It sickens me that the SWP are to capitalise on the tragic death of Jean Charles de Menezes for a few votes. The Stop The War Coalition is partly responsible for the London bombings and Jean's death with it's laughable "victory to the resistance" slogan, and in a wider context for co-opting the anti-war movement into a recruitment drive for SWP's latest makeover - creating a safe haven for homophobes and anti-abortionists in the process. Maybe it's time to disband and do something useful.

Would you care to elaborate, and perhaps support your allegations with specifics or sources?

Disrespect the Blairites must think you are one of them!
The execution of the young Brazilian man and the terrible atrocities in London are a direct result of the Bush and Blair invasion of Iraq. The government and the media is doing all it can to deny the link but cannot hold the line .The Blair who condemned the suicide bombers is the same politician who helped unleash Shock and Awe on Baghdad .Hundreds of cruise missiles,high explosives and cluster bombs have rained down on the cities of Iraq.Disrespect could have commented on many of the terrible events and issues that have led up to the bombings and the shooting of Jean Charles de Menezes but has instead chosen to attack the anti war movement.Pathetic really... and how the pro war lot must love him!
Ifor

Pretty much every comment ever posted on Indymedia is a broad-brushed, one-sided, fact-free matter of personal opinion. Apparently everyone here already knows more about what went on in Stockwell last Friday than any of the people who were actually involved, right down to being able to know what various police officers were thinking at any given time.

Not exactly shocking that the SWP tossers are trying to jump on a bandwagon to shift a few papers, though, is it?

The Stop the War Coalition have always demonstrated to defend civil liberties. In fact there has been a protest planned for the 1st August for some time.This is just one example. See below from www.stopwar.org.uk.

"London Exclusion Zone

Join the Protest on Parliament Square on 1st August against the government's exclusion order for the area around Parliament. We believe this is a very serious attack on our civil liberties. There is no justification for prohibiting demonstrations in these areas and there must be concerns that this ban is an attempt to prevent legitimate protest against government policies....more."

You can also see the various groups that form the Stop the War Coalition on the website or
if you go to local or national meetings.

See you at the lobby of Downing Street tommorrow.

To see the pictures of the concerned at mondays vigil i assumed that there would have been a sizeable contingent at todays protest. After all they care about jean charles and the countless thousands alike around the world yes ?
Well i was wrong.
One thing that makes me sick the most is the utter hijacking of a tragedy by careerist politicians who now call for a lobby of downing street with the message stop shoot to kill, bring the troops home. let em stay and die and take galloway and the SWP with you

"The Stop the War Coalition have always demonstrated to defend civil liberties."

Were they defending civil liberties when they refused to mention the Parliament Square peace camp or the Fairford demonstration on their website in the first months of the Iraq war because they weren't central committee-approved activities?

Were they defending civil liberties when they had an imcista arrested for trying to publicise police repression on the ESF closing march?

The only liberties the STWC are interested in are their own.

It troubles me that at a time when bombs have been exploding in London ,a totally innocent worker has been shot down by the police and moslems in this country feel threatened by racist and bigots someone like "Disrespect" who appears to be involved in the anti war movement can write such tosh about the SWP and the Stop The War Coalition.
The STW Coalition was set up in Sept 2001 with the aim of not only stopping the drive to war but also preventing a racist backlash and civil liberties which would be an almost inevitable outcome of the attack on Iraq and Afghanistan .
The STWC mobilized millions and inspired many more in the great series of protest,demonstrations and countless local meetings and actions. The STW book ,recently published by Bookmarks gives a flavour of the breadth and depth of the anti war movement both here in Britain and across the world.The SWP is an embedded part of the anti war movement and the movement is all the better for the red thread provided by its socialist organisation and ideas.These past few weeks are a crucial period in the political battle between the pro war right and those who are opposed to the war and all the horrible racist baggage that goes with it.
"Disrespect", who comments above appears, to be a sectarian bigot of the first order has let his hatred of the SWP and the STWC get in the way of the truth.He needs to get out a bit more.

Typical SWP groupthink David. You fail to respond to my specific comments and instead stick to the party line of "either you are with us or against us". You need to cut the umbilical from central committee and get out and do something more worthwhile than selling papers.

According to Disrespect the Stop The War Coalition is partly responsible for the London bombings and the shooting by the police of the young Brazilian workerin London last week.The STWC according to "Disrespect ", has also given refuge to homophobes and anti abortionists.
How bizarre!I was convinced that the anti war movement in all its variety and shades of opinion had spent the past four years opposing the invasion and occupation of Iraq. WEe have warned about the massive bombing of Iraqi cities,the use of cluster bombs on civilian neighbourhoods,the flattening of cities like Fallujah,the terrible malnutrition among Iraqi children and so much more.
The anti war movement insisted that the invasion was illegal and would result in a slaughter of the innocentsin Iraq and elsewhere.
From the very beginning the STWC also warned about the attack on our civil liberties and stood shoulder to shoulder with moslems and other minority groups including refugees who were the first victims of the racist backlash
But according to Disrespect [hey he hasnt put the boot into Galloway yet] it is the STWC which is responsible for the murder and the mayhem,the carnage and the killings,the racism and the sexism.

I think not somehow.
Disresect.... underneath the old bluster you are nothing but an anti socialist and to all intents and purposes a Blairite.There may be a crisis in our capital city and a vicious racist backlash across the country ...hey but you know the cause some Socialist Worker paper sellers selling an anti war paper.Thank you for that Disrespect.
Leslie

hmmmmmmm. but i am confused about the swp party line...
when bombers blo up kids in Iraq the are called insurgents/resistance and the SWP supports them. when they blow people up here you oppose them...? is our blood better than theirs?

aren't we against all killing? or just when it is in our country?

In Iraq the insurgents are fighting against foriegn aggression/occupation> US/UK forces have killed countless amounts of people and in some cases wiped some cities out (Fallujah springs to mind). I would totally support anybody who fights back against occuping forces. In fact when France and Italy were occupied the British supported the "resistance fighters" and we should support the Iraqi people.

We do not believe terrorist attacks will help our cause, in fact it will make the lives of ordinary people people at home worst, actually the people who are effected most are (apart from the bomb victims) the British Muslims and people with brown skin.

Dissrecpect is totally wrong to say that STWC is to blame for the attacks. Lets make it clear that STWC is and will continue to play a central role in stopping the occupation and to help bring about peace. STWC has helped forge links and solidarity between Muslims and whites, in fact one could argue that without the STWC terrorists attacks would probably increase.

Dissrespect is a fool to think there is a quick and easy way to end the occupation and stop this war, if people were fooled into his way of thinking and that STWC disbanded as he advocates then Blair&C.o would be very happy people.

Dissrespect, get out of your sectrian getto.

can red letter clarify?

So you do support the "insurgents" blowing up kids in Iraq.
comparing them to the french resistance fighty the Nazis even.
I wouldn't mind (so much) if they were fighting the Americans and British....but suicide bombs in crowds of kids?

Why didnt they stand in the elections (how ever flawed)?

all the crocodile tears from STW leadership about people dead here seem a bit crass.
death is death is death is death. isn't it?

If britain decalres war on another country and foreign innocents die as a result (and you support the resistance doing the killing) so what if the killing and the resistance comes home?

Victory to the global resistance! death to innocents!
surely you see the awful logic?

down with killing!

Mr Costello, firstly war is not a pretty game, nobody asked for this war, most people were against it but our rulers decided to go ahead regardless. So under such circumstances the options for fighting back are limited.

Lets be clear, most of the resistance is targeted at US forces and the Iraqi puppet police force, 1,700 US solidiers have died (loads more have been disabled). Alot of these deaths occured in self defence, alot occur in offensive attacks. Both of these types of resitance is totally justified.

Of course innocent people have died in the process, US occupation forces have killed countless of innocent people and also have resitance fighters, thats true I don't deny it, but haven't you notice that war is bloody dreadfull and there has not been one war where shit like this doesn't happen, there's no such thing as a clean war!

You may have your pacisfist ideas but at the end of the day you need to take sides, are you with the Iraqi people fighting back or do you support Bush & Blair? There cannot be a liberal middle ground here. There were was no liberal ground in Vietnam, both sides lost huge amounts of people, fortunately the imperialist side was defeated and I am pleased it did (if the US had won, then no doubt more wars and misery would have been fought).

In regards to your question of the iraqi elections, these have been imposed by US & the puppet government, they have been rigged in order to divide the iraqi's on ethnic grounds and groups. Classic divide and rule tactics, they are not legitimate elections- If they were truely democratic then the occuppying would be asked to leave.

Finally, STWC coalition does not have a position on the Iraqi resitance and this is just a personal view. STWC has a broad view that the occupation should be ended and UK troops out. This view is shared by the majority of the UK population including military personel.

The best thing we can do is to continue our peaceful struggle at home.