Date:20/12/2004 URL: http://www.thehindu.com/2004/12/20/stories/2004122008290400.htm

Andhra Pradesh

Anti-War Assembly unveils action plan

By Our Staff Reporter

HYDERABAD, DEC. 19. Anti-war rallies and protest meetings will be held in India on March 19 and 20, 2005, as part of a global movement to remember the second anniversary of the attack on Iraq by the US and its allies.

The Anti-War Assembly, which concluded its three-day session in Hyderabad on Sunday, also decided on a slew of actions to broadbase the "peace movement in the country," said Meena Menon, Anti-War Assembly National Coordination member while addressing a press conference here on Sunday.

The Assembly decided to work towards establishing international committee of lawyers to defend Iraqi prisoners, launch an international campaign to protect civil liberties in Iraq and set up an Iraq War Tribunal in collaboration with the teams from the US, the UK, India and West Asia. Delegations of parliamentarians and lawyers were planned from India to Palestine.

The Assembly discussed and planned to link Indian anti-war actions with global movements, said Prabir Purkayastha, member, National Coordination, Anti-War Assembly. He emphasised the need for Indians to participate in greater numbers in the anti-war movements, which were emerging the "second superpower in the world," challenging the power of the US. Egyptian democracy activist, Mamdouh Habashi, Italian anti-war activist, Favio Alberti, and human rights lawyer, Nandita Haksar, also addressed the press.