During May a small but nevertheless significant gathering of peace groups took place in Brussels. The forum was hosted by MEPs Clare Daly and Mick Wallace, drawing activists from eleven countries.
Both these MEPs have been the most outspoken against the war in Ukraine, both in condemning Russia’s invasion and the massive military intervention by NATO and the EU in the conflict.
Many of the activists reported on the current state of peace movements and the number of actions for peace taking place right across Europe, many of which go unreported by the establishment media. Those attending the Forum came from Britain, Holland, Czech Republic, Italy, Germany, etc.
It was noted that the media are all too willing to promote war rather than peace. It was also reported to the forum by representatives attending that peace activists are suffer consistent attack, branded as “Putin stooges”, etc. There is also growing evidence of increased harassment of peace forces with people losing their jobs in countries like Poland and Czech Republic just for speaking up for peace.
The forum was an important start in the process of building a powerful peace movement to demand an end to the war and to prevent the possibility of it spiralling out of control and even nuclear war.
All delegates agreed upon the necessity for an immediate ceasefire and opening of peace talks.
At the end of the meeting, a brief statement was agree by all those who attended which read:
“On May 13, 2023, representatives of a number of peace and anti-war organisations from 11 different European countries met in Brussels, at a conference hosted by Clare Daly and Mick Wallace MEPs, to discuss the situation of the peace movement in the context of the war in Ukraine.
Those present deplored the suffering and loss of life caused by the war, and shared a profound concern about escalation of the conflict. There was a strong consensus around the need for anti-war forces in Europe to call for a ceasefire, peace negotiations and efforts to diminish the possibility of nuclear war in Europe.”
It was agreed that we would support a number of other peace conferences taking place in the coming months.
There was also a proposal to call a world day of action later in the year to demand peace and an end to militarism. It is clear the the majority of countries and peoples of the world do not agree with the war, but equally they have not fallen for the NATO ruse that it is an honest broker in the conflict; rather they understand well the role played by NATO in Ukraine which led to the Russian invasion.
The Communist Party of Ireland was represented at the Forum, as was the Peace and Neutrality Alliance (PANA).
