'저는 그들의 땅을 지키기 위하여 싸웠던 인디안들의 이야기를 기억합니다. 백인들이 그들의 신성한 숲에 도로를 만들기 위하여 나무들을 잘랐습니다. 매일밤 인디안들이 나가서 백인들이 만든 그 길을 해체하면 그 다음 날 백인들이 와서 도로를 다시 짓곤 했습니다. 한동안 그 것이 반복되었습니다. 그러던 어느날, 숲에서 가장 큰 나무가 백인들이 일할 동안 그들 머리 위로 떨어져 말과 마차들을 파괴하고 그들 중 몇몇을 죽였습니다. 그러자 백인들은 떠났고 결코 다시 오지 않았습니다….' (브루스 개그논)





For any updates on the struggle against the Jeju naval base, please go to savejejunow.org and facebook no naval base on Jeju. The facebook provides latest updates.

Wednesday, January 19, 2011

Text Fwd: Anti-Bases Campaign Article For "Marlborough Express" For Day of Waihopai Spybase Protest (22/1)

*Text fwd from CAFCA on Jan. 18, 2011

CLOSE THE WAIHOPAI SPYBASE
& END NZ INVOLVEMENT IN US WARS

Murray Horton

Murray Horton is the spokesperson for the Anti-Bases Campaign. He has been organising protests at the Waihopai spybase since 1988.

People from all around New Zealand are protesting in Blenheim and at the super-secret Waihopai satellite interception spybase today. The Wikileaks NZ cables reveal the central role that this spybase plays in the secret intelligence relationship between NZ and the US, proving what the Anti-Bases Campaign has been saying all along. Full US/NZ intelligence ties were secretly restored in 2009.

The war in Afghanistan, in which the NZ military is directly involved, has got dramatically worse. Simultaneously, the US is dangling a Free Trade Agreement, via the Trans Pacific Partnership as NZ’s “reward” – nothing has changed since Holyoake’s “guns for butter” catchcry of the Vietnam War years. Now it’s guns for milk.

The theme of our activities, both at the spybase and in Blenheim, is anti-war. The US says that Intelligence is the key component of all the wars that it is fighting, or planning to fight, throughout the world. The Anti-Bases Campaign (supported by the Wikileaks cables) points out that Waihopai, an important source of intelligence for the Pentagon, is New Zealand’s most important contribution to the American war machine and it means that we New Zealanders have blood on our hands.To symbolise that, our props include crosses, coffins and white masks. This is the first protest at the spybase since the March 2010 acquittal of the Ploughshares peace activists for the 2008 deflation of one of its domes. As part of our activities we will be celebrating that acquittal. The speakers, either in Blenheim and/or the spybase, are: Peter Murnane, one of the three acquitted Ploughshares peace activists; Keith Locke, Green MP; John Minto, of Global Peace and Justice Auckland; and myself, of theAnti-Bases Campaign.

Waihopai, of course, is a “New Zealand” base – or so the Government says. The fact is, however, that in everything but name it is an outpost of American intelligence – paid for by the long suffering NZ taxpayer. Between $500 million and $1 billion of public money has been spent on the NZ Government Communications Security Bureau (the agency which runs Waihopai) in the 23 years of Waihopai’s operation. That money could have been much better utilised on health and education, not spying on behalf of Uncle Sam.

Nor does it do anything to protect us from terrorists or foreign agents. Just seven years ago Israeli intelligence agents were caught in Auckland, fraudulently trying to obtain fake NZ passports. They were imprisoned and deported and there was a major row with Israel. But they were caught by an Internal Affairs officer who tipped off the Police. Waihopai played no role in protecting us from these foreign criminals operating in our country.

Waihopai does not operate in the national interest of New Zealand. Waihopai must be closed. (For details on Waihopai and what it does, go to our Website www.converge.org.nz/abc).

ABC
Anti-Bases Campaign
Box 2258, Christchurch, New Zealand
cafca@chch.planet.org.nz
www.converge.org.nz/abc

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