BY JAMES VASSILOPOULOS
CANBERRA — The planned March 23-24 national convergence on Parliament House has received more support, including endorsement by Unions ACT and more regional activist interest.
A Unions ACT meeting on March 5 unanimously endorsed the Planned March 23 rally and a protest on March 24, a parliamentary sitting day. The union body also passed a motion to urge affiliates to protest at noon in Garema Place the day after war breaks out. The 1000 students at the March 5 student strike also vowed to walk out of class to come to the March 24 protest.
Twenty towns and cities have expressed interest in attending including Cooma, Byron Bay, Bega, Tathra, Merimbula, Mudgee, Young and Bowral. The Armidale No War group is trying to organise a car cavalcade stopping off in cities along the way to gain more people to attend.
A number of local Sydney peace groups are also considering organising buses to attend. The Quakers are organising contingents from NSW. Greenpeace is advertising the event to its members. Forty thousand flyers and 1800 colour posters have been produced and are being sent out mainly across NSW.
The ACTNOW meeting on March 4 decided to propose five speakers, in negotiation with other groups, for the Sunday rally at Parliament House: from the Greens, ALP, Democrats, a union speaker and celebrity.
At 6pm on that day there will be networking meetings of activists who are students, workers and from peace groups at the Manning Clarke Centre, Australian National University.
The web site of the convergence is . For more information phone James on 0405 309 283 or email <dimivasso@hotmail.com>.
From 91×ÔÅÄÂÛ̳ Weekly, March 12, 2003.
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