No to war and German involvement in military interventions – yes to disarmament, civil conflict resolution and humanitarianism are core demands for the campaign “Winter of Peace 2014/2015”.
At an action conference at the DGB House in Hannover on 11th October over 100 participants discussed the need for broad and publicly visible actions for peace. Participants came from different social movements, political parties, churches, trade unions, and persons of the “Monday vigils”.
The central acknowledgement was that wars and military interventions – be it in the Ukraine, the Middle East, in Syria, in Iraq or anywhere in the world – are not solving any problems. They do not contribute to solutions of the pressing social, economic, and ecological challenges of the 21st century but on the contrary exacerbate the problems. Over 1.7 billion USD are globally spent on the military in 2014. Considering the shortages in social and ecological fields – billions of people living in poverty, starvation, shortages in the health sector, lack of education expenditure – this is a humanitarian disaster. According to NATO, the budgets for armament should increase. Germany has a responsibility in this world: for refugees and humanitarian aid; in solidarity with those affected by war and conflicts. German participation in war and military interventions is not a responsible position[1] but rather is against humanism, global justice, and sustainability.
The action conference calls on the German government to end all military interventions and to prioritize and work towards disarmament, civil conflict resolution, and conflict prevention. The action conference rejects the policy of NATO to intervene militarily for the interests of the 1st world anywhere in the world.
The action conference was an expression of conviction: peace needs movement and more actions for peace are necessary and possible. The peace movement is facing a huge challenge to oppose the warmongers with dedication and joint actions. With the motto “From confrontation to cooperation – peace logic instead of war rhetoric” a joint action program “Friedenswinter 2014/2015” (English: winter of peace) was agreed upon. It consists of the following:
- A week of actions from 8th to 13th December 2014. On Human Rights Day (10th December 2014) peace symbols should be visible in public spaces.
- 6 decentralized demonstrations on 13th December 2014 in Berlin, Hamburg, Munich, Bochum, Leipzig, and Heidelberg.
- Broad mobilization for the protests and actions around the Munich Security Conference (MSC) in February 2015. At the MSC the Western militarists meet annually. The annual peace demonstration and peace conference shall be supported and decentralized protests are being planned.
- The traditional Easter marches should be revived.
- Around the Day of Liberation from War and Fascism (8th May 2015, the 70th anniversary of the end of World War II) a large demonstration is being planned in Berlin.
The action conference concluded that “No more war” is today’s pivotal challenge. Peace MOVEMENT means: developing more movement!
If you would like to have further information please contact us. Statements of support or solidarity are appreciated and will be published on our website.
Berlin, 15 November 2014
For further contact:
Aktionsbüro Friedenswinter
c/o IALANA
Marienstr. 19/20
10117 Berlin
Tel.: 030/28482482
Fax: 030/31996689
Facebook: Friedenswinter 2014/2015
Twitter: #Friedenswinter
[1] German President Joachim Gauck formulated that Germany needs to take up more responsibility in the world – also militarily – in his speech at the Munich Security Conference in January 2014. Read his full speech here: http://www.bundespraesident.de/SharedDocs/Reden/DE/Joachim-Gauck/Reden/2014/01/140131-Muenchner-Sicherheitskonferenz.html
Download: Together for peace – German peace movement calls for actions against war