INTERNATIONAL STAR WARS CONFERENCE IN ENGLAND
For Immediate Release
Contact: Bruce Gagnon (GN) globalnet at mindspring.com
(352) 337-9274
Rachel Julian (Yorkshire CND) cndyorks at gn.apc.org
Hundreds of concerned citizens from around the world will gather in Leeds,
England on May 4-6 to protest plans for deployment of the Ballistic Missile
Defense (BMD) system -- the Son of Star Wars.
The three days of events are being sponsored by the Global Network Against
Weapons & Nuclear Power in Space (GN) and their affiliate Yorkshire Campaign
for Nuclear Disarmament (CND) and will serve to build momentum for the
growing worldwide grassroots campaign to keep space for peace. Activists
from over 15 countries are expected at the Leeds events, including people
from Japan, South Korea, Europe, Australia, United States, and Russia.
Events in Leeds will include:
* Friday, May 4: News conference and protest rally in the Leeds city
center as well as a bus trip to visit the U.S. Menwith Hill spy satellite
base.
* Saturday, May 5: Day long conference entitled "No Star Wars: An
International Conference to Keep Space for Peace."
* Sunday, May 6: International membership meeting of the Global Network.
"This conference reflects the growing international movement to stop the
U.S. from moving the arms race into the heavens," said U.S.-based GN
Coordinator Bruce Gagnon. "People understand that deployment of any BMD
system by George Bush will open the door to warfare in space. Our
conference will give activists from peace movements around the world the
chance to meet, share information, and build a unified effort. We intend to
Stop Star Wars."
The aerospace industry stands to make hundreds of billions of dollars of
profit from Star Wars. The U.S. Space Command has stated that it intends to
"control and dominate space" in order to protect U.S. corporate interests
and investments around the world and in space. Already the Pentagon is
talking about deploying the space-based laser, the real Reagan-era Star Wars
weapon. http://www.spacecom.af.mil/usspace
"The Global Network chose to hold this international conference in Yorkshire
because the U.S. has major satellite and radar facilities in this region
that must be upgraded to handle the new Star Wars program," said CND's
Rachel Julian. "The peace movement in the United Kingdom is working to stop
our government from giving the U.S. permission to complete those upgrades."
Conference proceedings on Saturday, May 5 will be broadcast via an
interactive website so that people who can't make the trip can still join
in. There will be audio interviews, video shots of the rally and trip to
Menwith Hill. Speakers and presentations will be available on-line and
on-line forums will be provided for people to interact directly with each
other all around the world.
Such an important issue demands that we develop a world-wide communication
network to exchange views and ideas. The conference website will be
launched on May 1. Check the GN's website at: http://www.space4peace.org
The GN was founded in 1992 to stop the nuclearization and weaponization of
space. Each year the GN holds its membership meeting in a different
country. Today the GN has 150 active affiliate groups located on all
continents of the world.
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Global Network Against Weapons & Nuclear Power in Space
PO Box 90083
Gainesville, FL. 32607
(352) 337-9274