A-Infos (en) Global Peace March

[I-AFD_2@anarch.free.de (Nico MYOWNA)]

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                           GLOBAL PEACE MARCH
                    A Padayatra from Pokhran to Sarnath

                         11 MAY to 6 AUGUST,  1999


                           Theme of the march


                 We dream of a completely arms free world.
 For a peaceful world order it is necessary that all nuclear weapons should
                         be immediately destroyed
   and all nations of the world should reduce their defence budgets and
        start putting their resources in developmental activities.
Simultaneously we are also committed for reduction of violent tendencies at
                             the micro level.
We express faith in the principle of non-violence, and assert that security
                              can be derived
  only from human relationships based on trust and not from any weapons.
     Only on the basis of this can we conceive of people governed just
                        socio-economic human order.


                        SUPPORTERS OF THE MARCH

          Among those in India who have offered their
          support are Medha Patkar, Admiral L. Ramdas,
          Arundhati Roy, Janak Lal Thakur, Swami Agnivesh,
          Narayan Bhai Desai, Kishan Patnaik, Siddharaj Dhadda,
          Asghar Ali Engineer, Prof. Rimpoche, Thomas Kochhery,
          Acharya Ramamurti, Manmohan Choudhary, Ganga Prasad
          Agarwal, Prof. Banwari Lal Sharma, Anand Patwardhan,
          S.N. Subbarao, Natwar Thakkar and G.R. Khairnar.
          Association for India's Development, Greenpeace
          International, Friends of The Earth, Global
          Initiative, and Nuclear Awareness Project are among
          international organizations who have expressed support.

                        MAIN EVENTS DURING THE MARCH

   * 9 May, Jodhpur: day long seminar with Medha Patkar, senior Gandhian
     Siddharaj Dhadda, filmmaker Anand Patwardhan, nuclear experts Dr.
     Surendra and Sanghmitra Gadekar and many others.
   * 11 May, Khetolai village, Pokaran tehsil, Jaisalmer district,
     Rajasthan: 10:30 a.m. march begins
   * 6 August, Sarnath:  A big meeting will be held at Sarnath (Dist.
     Varanasi) on August 6 (Hiroshima day), 1999 at the end of the march.
     All supporters and social activists from India and other countries are
     invited in this meeting.
   * Meetings, discussions and exhibitions will be held at different places
     on route of the march.
   * A signature campaign is being organized in India and other countries
     as part of this event. A target has been set to collect about 2 lakh
     signatures which will be given at the end of the march on 9th August,
     Nagasaki Day, in New Delhi to the Prime Minister of India and Heads of
     States of the remaining 6 nuclear weapon nations and to the Secretary
     General of the United Nations.


                        HOW YOU CAN SUPPORT THE MARCH

   * Plan or join an event in solidarity with the Global Peace March
   * Join the March at any point along the route
   * Collect signatures.
   * Fundraising for the march is solely through the signature campaign.
     In India we are collecting a token donation of Rs.1 along with each
     signature and we request those in other countries also to collect a
     small token amount with each signature.

                         MAIN CONTACTS FOR THE MARCH

     Main Organizers: Lok Abhiyan, Upkaram Karoti, Dayanand Sewa
     Sansthan, Moti Nagar, Lucknow-226004; Phones: (0522)
     347365/382333 (Sandeep/Arundhati), 230819 (Vishwambhar
     Vidyarthi), Sanjay Rai (387509)

     Co-ordinators of Rajasthan route: Rajasthan Samagra Sewa Sangha,
     Gokul Vati, Durgapura, Jaipur, Phone: (0141) 552878 (Sawai Singh)

     Co-ordination Office during the march: National Alliance of
     Peoples Movement, 14 Supreme Enclave, Mayur Vihar Phase-I, New
     Delhi-110091, Phone: (011) 2256394, Fax: (011) 2492940 (Vimal)

     Contact e-mail addresses: Rahul Pandey, ASHA

     Web site address: members.tripod.com/peacemarch/morcha.htm
     -----------------------------------------------------------------

                  This is a letter written by the organisers.

     Dear friends,

     The preparations for the 'Global Peace March' are in the final
     phase. The march begins on 11th May, '99 from Khetolai, Pokaran
     tehsil, Jaisalmer district of Rajasthan. Some of us were not
     convinced of the logic of nuclear tests carried out by the
     government of India on 11th May last year and our disagreement
     and concern has taken the shape of this peace march. Your latent
     or stated solidarity and cooperation has encouraged us to take up
     this enormous task. After a day long seminar in Jodhpur on the
     9th May, when the march begins on 11th May, social activist Medha
     Patkar, senior Gandhian Siddharaj Dhadda, filmmaker Anand
     Patwardhan, nuclear experts Dr. Surendra and Sanghmitra Gadekar
     and many others will be with us. We request you join us on this
     occasion. The programme in Khetolai will begin at 10:30 a.m. on
     11th May. To reach Khetolai you may contact Shri Laxmi Chand
     Tyagi, Gramin Vikas Vigyan Samiti, 458, Gali No. 3, Pal Road,
     Jodhpur-342008, Ph: (0291) 741317, Ph/Fax: (0291) 744549. Ex Navy
     chief Admiral L. Ramdas will join the march in Jaipur on 9th
     June. Senior Gandhian Dr. S.N. Subbarao will participate in the
     programmes in Agra on 28th and 29th June. In Kanpur on 18th July
     a public meeting will be held which will be addressed among
     others by Captain Laxmi Sehgal, who headed the women's contingent
     of Subhas Chandra Bose's INA, and Janak Lal Thakur, leader of the
     big trade union of MP Chattisgarh Mukti Morcha. Professor Banwari
     Lal Sharma of the Azadi Bachao Andolan, a movement against
     multinational companies, will be with us in Allahabad on July
     29th. Arundhati Roy, the last year winner of Brooker prize will
     address a meeting at Kashi Vidyapeeth, Varanasi, when the march
     reaches there on 5th August.

     A big programme will be held at the close of the march on 6th
     August, Hiroshima Day, in Sarnath near Varanasi. Medha Patkar,
     Arundhati Roy, Siddharaj Dhadda, Professor Rimpoche, Director of
     Central Tibetean Inst., Sarnath, veteran socialist leader Kishan
     Patnaik, leader of National Fishworker's Forum Thomas Kocherry
     and many others will address the meeting.

     After the march gets over a programme will be organized in New
     Delhi by the anti-nuclear group MIND on 9th August, the Nagasaki
     day and signatures collected as part of the campaign presently
     going on will be handed over to authorities representing the
     seven nuclear weapons states including India and the US. An
     electronic signature campaign will also be carried out during the
     period of the march directed against the nuclear powers of the
     world. This will be coordinated by Vidhi Parthasarthi
     (vidhi_p@yahoo.com).

     Hon. Dalai Lama has extended his support for the march. Swami
     Agnivesh, the campaigner against bonded labourers, will
     participate in the march. Among organizations National Alliance
     of People's Movement, Sarva Sewa Sangha, Samajwadi Jana Parishad,
     CPI(ML), Ekta Parishad have expressed solidarity. International
     groups like Greenpeace International, Friends of the Earth and
     peace groups from Pakistan have also expressed support.

     You may contact Arundhati Dhuru (Ph: 0522-347365, email:
     asha@lw1.vsnl.net.in) in Lucknow or Vimal in NAPM office, New
     Delhi (Ph: 011-225639) for any further information on the march.

     We are aware of our limitations. But we have complete faith in
     Peace and Non-violence and the judgement of common people for
     right understanding.

     We are confident of your support for this event.

     Ram Pravesh Shastri, Ram Chandra Rahi, Laxmi Chand Tyagi, Sawai
     Singh, Vishwambhar Vidyarthi, Cittaranjan Singh, Vimal Bhai, Ajit
     Singh, Arundhati Dhuru, Sanjay Rai, Bobby Ramakant, Mahesh,
     Sandeep



The world is a dangerous place, fraught with the specter of nuclear war  
and ecological devastation and threatened by the inability of governmental  
and financial powers to create just and effective solutions for deepening
social problems as well as for the conflicts of peoples and nations.

Knowledge is a powerful tool; it has shown that each individual can make a
difference. Let us enthusiastically unite for an arms-free world. Let us
advocate peace. Let us spread the message of peace. Do take time to
organize a signature campaign. The following would be the text for the
campaign.

SAY NO TO NUCLEAR WEAPONS?.

We dream of a completely arms free world. For a peaceful world order it is
necessary that all nuclear weapons should be immediately destroyed and all
nations of the world should reduce their defence budgets and start putting
their resources in developmental activities. Simultaneously we are also
committed for reduction of violent tendencies at the micro level. We
express faith in the principle of non-violence, and assert that security
can be derived only from human relationships based on trust and not from
any weapons. Only on the basis of this can we conceive of people governed
just socio-economic human order.

'Global Peace March', Pokhran to Sarnath, India, 11th May to 6th August,
1999

Lok Abhiyan, Upkaram Karoti, Dayanand Sewa Sansthan, Moti Nagar, Lucknow -
226004, India.

Phone: +91-522-347365, +91-522-382333, Email: asha@lw1.vsnl.net.in

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