BY NICK EVERETT
SYDNEY — A special meeting of the Walk Against the War Coalition, the group which organised the 500,000-strong February 16 anti-war rally, will be held to decide the coalition's future. The meeting will be on August 18.
Two of the coalition's three co-conveners, Bruce Childs and Hannah Middleton, gave notice on July 18 that they would move a motion at the August meeting that argues that the Walk Against the War Coalition is now redundant. Since October 2002, the coalition has united a diverse range of anti-war organisations.
The Childs-Middleton motion calls for "two-thirds of the funds [of the Walk Against the War Coalition to] be transferred to the Sydney Peace and Justice Coalition, after the Walk Against the War Coalition has met its other obligations".
The Sydney Peace and Justice Coalition (SPJC) was initiated by Childs and Middleton, together with Search Foundation representative Peter Murphy and officials from several NSW unions on July 7. Its inaugural meeting was kept secret from the majority of the Walk Against the War Coalition's affiliates, and from myself, the coalition's third convener. The SPJC meeting adopted a charter and operating rules which will give its coordinating committee — elected for a one-year term — control over who may affiliate.
On July 21, the Walk Against the War Coalition's monthly meeting attracted 70 people. Many were angered by the moves to split the anti-war movement. The initiators of the SPJC had hoped to dissolve, without warning, the coalition at the July 21 meeting. However, pressure from many of the coalition's affiliates for an open and public debate on the organisation's future prevented them from doing so.
At the July 21 meeting, supporters of the SPJC declined to provide any explanation for the split they have initiated and argued against having a debate on their proposal before August 18. However, they sent an email to Walk Against the War Coalition affiliates on July 18 that argued that their actions were necessary because "Socialist Alliance 'No War' group's representatives" had rejected "a proposal for an amicable reorganisation of the peace movement". (Socialist Alliance members Luke Deer and myself had insisted on July 15 that all coalition affiliates be given time to consider the SPJC supporters' proposal.)
The July meeting also heard a report on the call by the US Act Now to Stop War and End Racism (ANSWER) anti-war coalition for an international day of protest against the US occupation of Iraq on October 25 (which is also the second anniversary of the introduction of the draconian USAPATRIOT Act). Discussions between all five national US anti-war coalitions are being conducted to achieve agreement on a common October mobilisation date.
I gave notice of a motion to be moved at the August 18 Walk Against the War meeting that will argue for the coalition to continue to campaign against the US-led occupation of Iraq and to adopt an October mobilisation as its key focus.
Tim Ayres, president of the NSW branch of the Australian Manufacturing Workers Union, argued that an October mobilisation should not be on the agenda on August 18 because the meeting had been called only to discuss winding up the Walk Against the War Coalition, making discussions around any plans for action "redundant". However, the meeting voted to discuss the October mobilisation proposal and other plans for action on August 18.
During the next two weeks, the Canterbury-Bankstown, Auburn, Marrickville, Newtown, Chippendale-Darlington, Pennant Hills and North Shore peace groups are to discuss the proposals for the future of the Walk Against the War Coalition at their meetings. Many activists within these groups have expressed support for the continuation of a united anti-war movement and are enthusiastic about an October anti-war mobilisation.
Anti-war activists are encouraged to attend the August 18 special meeting of the Walk Against the War Coalition, which will take place at 6.30pm at Sydney Trades Hall, 4 Goulburn Street.
For information, contact Nick Everett at <nick.everett@dsp.org.au>.
From Â鶹´«Ã½ Weekly, July 30, 2003.
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