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Communiqué of the Meeting of the Secretariat of the WPC
15th June 2007 - The Secretariat of the WPC
The meeting of the Secretariat of the World Peace Council, held in Brussels at the European Parliament on 15th June, concluded successfully its agenda and issued the following statement:With the participation of the members of the Secretariat from Cuba, Greece, Portugal, Mexico, France, Congo, USA and Vietnam and invited organizations from India, Palestine, Turkey, Belgium, Serbia, Bulgaria, Palestine, Poland, Czech Republic, Venezuela, Lebanon, Spain, Denmark and Georgia, the WPC held a very fruitful secretariat meeting.
Having reviewed the current International situation and the global threats to peace and security the WPC is repeating its condemnation of the growing aggressiveness of imperialism, foremost of the USA and is expressing its appreciation and satisfaction with the massive peoples’ mobilizations against ongoing wars and occupations, plans for new US or NATO Military Bases around the world and threats for new attacks against sovereign nations and countries.
In addition to the two wars already being waged in Iraq and Afghanistan, there has been Israel's attack on Lebanon in July 2006, which despite the temporary pause has worsened the situation in the Middle East. The concentration of military forces in the region, the threats against certain countries and the plan to attack Iran, the increased military presence of the imperialists in Africa, the attempts to destabilize the Chavez government in Venezuela and the new exacerbation of the situation in the Balkans over Kosovo, where the idea is to create a protectorate, give rise to volatile hot spots and possibly to fresh interventions.
The EU is forming battle groups and planning to set up new naval groups for rapid intervention. It is preparing to send fresh troops to replace NATO in Kosovo. The newly elected French President has asked for a new aircraft carrier and the Italian government has agreed with the expansion of the US base in Vicenza. Germany is becoming stronger militarily. Despite the rejection of the “Constitutional Treaty” and the disapproval by the peoples the EU governments are trying to reshuffle and rename the treaty by maintaining all reactionary elements and nature.
The domination of the new imperialist world order is worsening the economic situation of the working people and of the peoples in general in both developed and developing countries. The promotion of capitalist restructuring and neo-liberal policies with the withdrawal of workers' gains and the implementation of flexible forms of employment, the abolition of collective agreements and the generalized privatizations in all sectors are causing an increase in poverty, unemployment, hunger and misery. Social contradictions are on the rise. Today 10% of the world's population owns 90% of the total wealth produced. Discontent is growing and the working people are waging struggles with which the peace movement can and must link up.
In the recent period authoritarianism, policing and the offensive against democratic rights and liberties have become harsher with bloody attacks by the police and other repressive forces. In the USA, the EU and in other countries laws are being passed which in the name of dealing with terrorism do away with democratic rights and freedoms. The CIA activity has been officially disclosed, with its illegal abductions and arrests of hundreds of innocent citizens being made with the agreement of European governments, along with the use of European airports for their transport. A monstrous monitoring system has been set up, ranging from cameras spying on all of people's activities all the way to the establishment of databases including DNA files.
In view of all this, for the WPC and the entire Peace Movement, the struggle for the withdrawal of the occupation troops from Iraq and Afghanistan is a matter of immediate priority linked to the need for solidarity with all the peoples of the region, who are resisting and paying for the imperialists' plans with loss of life in the hundreds of thousands.
The WPC notes positively the outcome of the Non Aligned Summit, last September in Havana and the need to strengthen the cooperation between its member states.
The WPC denounces a new increase of military expenditure which represent $ 1,2 Trillion USD in 2006 and demands an immediate end of this absurd escalation. Only 10% of this expenditure would be enough to reach the Millennium Development Goals of the UN of the year 2000.
New warheads, including developments of nuclear weapons are built and deployed as well as new launchers and missiles. New satellites and satellite clusters are being deployed in space, for missions of surveillance and “security” control. The multiplication of ground and space bases and facilities, are increasing the imperialist domination and are signs for the new threats and military aggressions.
The Secretariat agreed to prepare till the next Assembly a campaign against the militarization of International Relations, the growing military expenditure and the dedication instead for social expenses and combating poverty.
The WPC reaffirms its clear and principled position in favour of the complete abolition of all nuclear weapons in the world. The WPC can not equal the responsibility of the USA and its targets. We are not in favour of nuclear tests and we consider them harmful, but at the same we condemn the “double moral and standards” of the US administration, which considers some of the states which hold nuclear weapons as allies and others as terrorists.
The World Peace Council notes with concern the continued division of Cyprus as a result of the Turkish occupation of 37% of the territory of the Cyprus Republic, as well as a result of the intransigence of Turkey. Its refusal to seek the reunification of the island under UN auspices, and the transformation of the Republic of Cyprus into a bizonal-bicomunal federation, at large due to the support by NATO allies, especially the USA and the UK, poses a grave danger to peace in the region and prevents Greek and Turkish Cypriots from living together a common peaceful, demilitarized island.
The WPC condemns vehemently the plans for creation of a NATO- or EU-protectorate out of the Serbian province Kossovo and demands a just, mutual and viable solution without foreign interference. The “Ahtisari plan” does not serve this purpose at all.
The WPC denounces the plans to destabilize the legitimate and several times elected government of Venezuela, which is defending its right for independent and sovereign development, despite the propaganda of the imperialists hand in hand with the oligarchy of the country. All measures which ensure the people’s control over the Mass Media and real transparency have to be appreciated.
The Secretariat expresses its deep respect and solidarity to the Cuban people, which are continuously defending their revolution against all types of manipulation and blockades. The WPC demands the release of the Five Cuban political prisoners held unlawfully in the USA.
The WPC expresses its full support to the Vietnamese people for the ongoing suffering of more than one million victims of the toxic “Agent Orange” used by the USA in their dirty war against Vietnam. The Secretariat calls upon all members and friends of the WPC to join actively the international campaign for the compensation of the victims and the total ban of all chemical weapons.
The WPC expresses its firm solidarity with the people of Western Sahara, for its decades of suffering and oppression. The Secretariat underlines its support to the right of Self-determination of the Saharawi people and for a political solution, mutually accepted between the Polissario Front and Morocco.
The WPC salutes the struggle of the peace loving people of Japan and of the Japan Peace Committee in their struggle for maintaining the article 9 of the Japanese Constitution.
Some of the priorities in the activities of the WPC in the coming period:
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