Jeremy Corbyn speaks at the Anti-War Convention
Several hundred people joined the Anti-War Convention, organised by Stop The War, in east London on Sunday. It heard speeches from across the movement and debated how to build the Palestine solidarity and anti-imperialist movements as Donald Trump heads back to the White House.
Poet Michael Rosen said the United States isn’t just “complicit” in or “collaborating” with Israel’s genocide, but driving it. “The Palestinians are fighting against the mercenary forces of the US,” he said.
Palestinian author Ghada Karmi said, “The first stage in Israel’s plan is the destruction of the Palestinians. They are trying to destroy the Palestinians and all who support them including in countries like Britain.
“People here who stand up for Palestine are subjected to surveillance and police action.”
She added, “We have to be more creative and more focused than we have been so far. Rallies and demonstrations do have an effect. But they are not enough—we need imaginative new ways to smash the consensus of the ruling class against the poor people of Palestine.
“One suggestion is a regular day of action with people going on strike. Things that really affect people are what we need to think about.”
Andrew Feinstein, the author and anti-arms campaigner, spoke in a session on Nato, Ukraine and South Asia. “The West doesn’t really care about Ukrainian citizens,” he said. “Ukraine is just a pawn in the West’s game.
“It supports it against Russia for geopolitical reasons just as it supports Israel in the Palestinians.”
He added, “When Volodymyr Zelensky came to power he removed the person regarded as the most corrupt man in Ukraine because of his role in the arms industry.
“After the conflict with Russia started, he brought this man back to the government because they were struggling to get as much weaponry as they wanted.”
Several people at the convention discussed activities they are planning for the workplace day of action on 28 November, which is backed by the TUC trade union federation.
An NHS worker talked about the campaign No Palantir in Our NHS. It aims to break the link between the NHS and a security and surveillance tech company that backs Donald Trump and enabled migrant deportations.
Stop The War convenor Lindsey German said the day of action could be the biggest yet. “We have to take this movement into the trade unions and the wider working class,” she said.
Journalist and historian Taj Ali said, “Keir Starmer is not a friend of the Palestine movement. His comments about there not being a genocide in Palestine are deplorable. Politicians who do not back a full and immediate arms embargo will not get the support of our communities”.
Other sessions during the day discussed the crisis in Sudan and Islamophobia and the far right.
Unions have called a general strike
Interview with a member of French revolutionary socialist group Autonomie de Classe
