Make peace happen peacefully, protesters say
Protesters gathered in Garden Place in opposition to the Government’s decision to send troops to Iraq.
Protesters in Hamilton’s Garden Place yesterday displayed their opposition to the Government’s decision to send troops to Iraq.
The soldiers are being sent to aid in the fight against Isis, the Islamic extremist group in Iraq.
“He [Prime Minister John Key] may say he is sending them to help Iraq, but they all end up shooting at each one another,” said Carril Karr, one of 20 protesters at the event.
The group did not oppose helping Iraq, but did not approve of the military stance that the government was taking.
However, when announcing the deployment, Key said aid has already been sent. “As I said last year, we have already contributed to the humanitarian cause and we are currently examining options to provide more help,” he said.
Protesters at Garden Place said the better option was to continue with non-military aid.
Patricia Waugh, the co founder of the AVP (Alternatives to Violence Project) in Hamilton in 1991, also attended the protest.
“One factor that isn’t getting much publicity is [that] why ISIS is being successful as they occupy areas is because people are being oppressed by their governments,” Waugh said.
“You don’t have to be a pacifist to do the right thing,” said Mareti Kume, a worker for the AVP.
