International Campaign  Against Militarization and War

Proposals for Action
Presented by the Egyptian Group
Against Corporate Globalization (AGEG)
contributed by Sherif Hetata
Beirut September 15-17, 2004

Proposals for Action Presented by the Egyptian Group Against Corporate Globalization (AGEG)

The aim of this short paper is to make a certain number of proposals for action in the International Campaign Against Militarization and War. It does not aim at dealing with strategic issues related to the development of this International Campaign. The contribution it can make is an attempt to define what action may be taken locally and regionally in the Arab countries in order to reinforce the movement of resistance against war.

The Arab region has become “a theatre for major wars.”¹ Popular resistance against militarization and war in this region is therefore a crucial matter:

1. It will strike at the very heart of the forces waging war, in an area where American and English military presence and bases have reached unprecedented proportions,

2. It is an area with major reserves of oil,

3. It is situated on the southern shores of the Mediterranean close to Europe and from it millions of Arabs migrate to European countries along the northern shores,

4. It is a focus for fundamentalist movements whether Islamic, Christian or Jewish,

5. It is a region where two military occupations are making tens of thousands of victims and destroying the foundations of a settled and peaceful life,

6. It is a candidate for NATO’s expansion in the coming years,

7. Israel with its armed population, its technologically equipped army, its nuclear and hydrogen bombs is an outreach and proxy of American neo-imperialism in the Arab region and the biggest military base in the world, and

8. Two major wars of occupation are going on one in Iraq and the other in Palestine.

The development of a strong resistance to militarization and war can therefore be a major contribution to the world struggle for peace. Irrespective of the nature of the forces involved the Palestinian and Iraqi people by continuing to fight against occupation remain an important force in this struggle. In the other Arab countries, the movement remains weak and apart from the limited efforts of a few activists, mainly belonging to the left, people in the Arab countries (including Egypt) seem to be passive. This is due to a variety of reasons including the exercise of state terrorism and the continuing disarray and division in the ranks of the political forces. However dissent and dissatisfaction against U.S. neo-imperialism and its local allies in power is rising rapidly and things can change if action becomes effective.

The world movement against militarization and war, international networking and support and activities such as this conference can act as catalysts and overcome the isolation imposed on local popular forces. Nevertheless without local and regional popular resistance in the Arab countries the struggle against war is considerably weakened.

The first question we must try to answer is how can more people in the Arab countries be mobilized against war if they do not yet realize that war is at their door, and if they do not see the relationship between it and their daily economic and social problems? What do we do to overcome this obstacle, to make our messages, our campaigns, our publications, our actions closer to their lives?

The second question is how can we pinpoint issues that will have a broad mass base and at the same time neutralize or reduce the exercise of state terrorism against resistance to war.

The proposals listed below are an attempt to follow these lines of thought:

1. Seize the opportunity afforded by this conference to arrange a special meeting of the Arab participants. In the meeting this and other papers can be discussed as well as proposals for networking and future action.

2. The fact that Israel is the only state in the Arab region and in the Middle East that has developed nuclear and hydrogen bombs has been and continues to be a very sensitive issue with Arab governments. The President and successive governments in Egypt have appealed several times for a nuclear free zone in the region. A campaign against nuclear weapons might therefore gain tacit approval from the Egyptian ruling system or at least be more difficult to oppose by violent means and would give peace campaigners more freedom of movement in civil society, the media, parliament etc.

3. Launch a campaign against sending troops from Arab countries to Iraq,

4. Mobilize for March 20, 2005 the international day against militarization and war by making the link between military expenditure, and rising prices, scarcity of essential commodities, deterioration of services like health, social security and education etc. This may help us reaching a wider popular base and to strengthen resistance against militarization and war in the Arab countries.

5. Arrange local conferences and meetings in Arab countries to which well known foreign figures are invited to break through the barrages raised by local governments.

6. Organize youth peace camps for both young men and young women on holiday.

7. Try to compile lists of soldiers killed in successive wars and the locations from which they came as material for the campaign against war.

8. Introduce the right to life (not to be killed in war) as a human right to be defended by all human rights organizations and societies.

9. Accelerate the translation and publication in Arabic of materials against militarization and war including sites, websites etc.

(10) Create an international peace prize and regional peace prizes for outstanding efforts in the fight for peace.

(11) Work towards the creation of human peace walls in Palestine and Iraq so that greater numbers of people agree to volunteer.

(12) Build up networks between Arab immigrants active in the struggle against war, and arrange meetings / conferences between then open to participants from other countries.

(13) Organize an international meeting on fundamentalism, terrorism and war.