Those who saw and survived the pain, misery and destruction of war in the first part of the 20th century - with millions of innocent men, women and children slaughtered with disregard and disdain amid the brutality of war - cried out in union "Never Again"
Yet when politicians and powerful business interests sat in comfortable chairs on comfier salaries in distant offices, decide to impose war on the masses - it is not them but the children and loved ones of working people who are compelled to make the ultimate sacrifice.
There have been just and necessary wars. Those from every culture, every religion and every background gave their lives to push back the monstrosity of fascism in the hope of lasting peace - the sanctity of which we must preserve.
But we do not see just wars in the cries and desperate pleas of dying children and innocent civilians in Yemen, Palestine and elsewhere echoing around the world and ringing in our ears;
those killed by bombs with British labels launched by murderous regimes, whose despotic leaders are close friends, donors and business partners of some of our shameless political representatives.
This Remembrance Sunday 2018, on the centenary of WWI, I implore the British Government to:
- Stop Arming Saudi, for their continued inhumane killing and destructive bombardment in Yemen, causing the present humanitarian catastrophe
- Stop Arming Israel, for their illegal occupation, blockade and repeated military assaults on Palestinians in the West Bank and Gaza
- Not allow military veterans to have to rely on charity, the state owes them support for forcing them to experience the dehumanising horrors of war
- Resurrect the concept of ‘Never Again’ in our foreign policy and stop our own bombings and military interventions of other sovereign nations
- Scrap Trident, our single-biggest investment cannot be in nuclear weapons, it is a massive diversion from the path to global peace
We are in desperate need of an Anti-War Government. We must lobby and put pressure on our MPs. We must use our votes and voices to remove warmongers from office and elect a cohort of political leaders who are unshakably committed to peace.
War destroys lives.
We must commit to global peace.
We must resurrect and embody ‘Never Again’.
