How many of us want war?
But if we love peace and do not want war, then what was there to support about Iraq?
What?
The people of Portugal were overwhelmingly opposed to the invasion from well before 20 March 2003. They thronged the streets, as did millions around the world on that distant, famous 15 February. It is a people who not only wears its heart on its sleeve. Cergie commented recently how the Portuguese do not seem to be sectarian along lines of age, religion, wealth or class in their social gatherings. It's true. These demonstrations were composed of a full cross-section, even if they were primarily organised by the Left. No matter, you don't need any party card to protest an unjust war. All of the days of demonstration were - curiously - beautiful, warm & clear.
One month later, 5 days before the invasion, there was outrage voiced here when the centre-right Prime Minister, José Manuel Durão Barroso, hosted a mini-summit for his friends Bush, Blair & Aznar at Lages U.S. airforce base in the Portuguese Azores islands, where they obviously decided to go into Iraq. 15 months later, Durrão Barroso seized the invitation with both hands to abandon this country while still PM and go to Brussels to become the puppet-President of the European Union Commission.
On a different note, the early months of 2003 marked a radical departure in my photography. I went to the demonstrations, but I spontaneously decided to start doing them like a press photographer. From 15 Feb on, shooting pictures was never the same again. I taught myself rapidly, particularly when I got a decent zoom lens in Spring 2003. I was aggressive in my approach, rapidly climbing walls to aim downward, getting down low to aim up, pushing my way top the front where the politicians & VIPS gathered, constantly looking for something unusual, pointing the camera at everyone & anyone - great or unsung, oldest & youngest.
There are technical reasons why these pictures today are not of the repro quality they were then. You'd need to see the prints & enlargements.
Also, when I make these collages, they automatically cut the edges of the pictures, so that there can be important loss of the subjects.
It doesn't matter. The images come from Lisbon on 22 March 2003 and 20 March 2004, 100,000 people each time. And no police, because they are not needed. Think about that...When the cross-section is that representative of society - and in this case, society said "Não!!!" to war and "Sim!!!" to peace - then why would a massive police presence be required? It's self-policing.
I have made the collages simply to try to reflect this vast, deep rejection.
4 years on, Who was right? Who was wrong?
How many victims? And how many more will there be? All so predictable. All so predicted. Deaf, dumb, blind and self-righteous, Messrs Bush, B-liar, Barroso & Aznar. 360 days after the invasion, Aznar was thrown out of power by the Spanish people for lying to them about the Madrid terrorist bombings of 11/3/04. Barroso, see above. B-liar...crippled credibility and trust forever. Bush, finally punished at the polls last November, but still around in his Ivory-tower House.
But look hard at Iraq, what the day-to-day price is doing to the ordinary people, with their own grief, losses, fears, anxieties, depression. And then ask & keep asking: WHY IRAQ?
Collage 1: The Portuguese people
Collage 2: The "great and good" of the Portuguese left
Collage 3: Instruments of protest. The man's placard reads "Durão & the Govt. lied. What are we going to do with them? Durão, where is the 'irrefutable proof' of the existence of WMDs that you told us you'd seen?"
Picture 4: My personal favourite "We are all Iraqis", in the hands of a young boy. Everyone looks up to their left to see and applaud the construction workers raising a placard and chanting their opposition to the war. Somehow, this boy sums it all up for me.
Peace to all.
6 comments:
I considered to comment the "world press cartoon 2007" post, but I've got three more importants word to say:
THIS WAR SUCKS.
It should be stopped.
See ya
Fab
Fab, thanks. We are in agreement. But you know, you are also free to comment on the WPC. I won't charge you any extra LOL!
Peace to you
Our son-in-law was in Iraq and our blogfriends Aud's boy is in Iraq. For both of these young men there was/is no choice. It is their job to follow orders. Our son-in-law saw many of his friends killed in the name of "peace"????
I think that this video
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1eHHHD2-w1E
says more than I can...............
The last picture is begging me to ask what kind of world the Bushes and Blairs have created for this young child...a better one..Is that their belief??? The death toll of innocents rises daily.
I watched the man who hammered away at Sadams statue the day it came down give an interview, saying how much he now regrets...better the devil you know he stated. Who am I to judge him??
These pictures are powerful Stewart, the placards especially the one of Blair (assassino!) Why these men are still in power, beggars belief, so many whys!!!!
Thank you.
Wonderful pictures. It is good to see how many oppose the war, all over the world. I'm glad here in the U.S. people are finally starting to see the light. Of course many of us were opposed to the war from the start, but there were so many who had been brainwashed into thinking Iraq was the enemy we had to attack. I'm just afraid that Iran is next on the list. Bush and his cronies have to go.
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