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Fri
31
Jan

Interview with Emma Sangster, co-ordinator of Forces Watch

Ian Sinclair -

Last summer the first Armed Forces Day was marked in the UK with over 200 nationwide public events including a military parade in Chatham, Kent attended by the Prime Minister. According to the official Armed Forces Day website the event “is an annual opportunity for the nation to show your support for the men and women who make up the armed forces community” who are “busy working around the world, promoting peace, delivering aid, tackling drug smugglers and providing security and fighting terrorism.”

Thu
30
Jan

What is Militarism?

What is militarism and why is the Global Fund for Women investing in an anti-militarism initiative? Militarism is a complex interweaving of beliefs and assumptions that promotes a culture of fear, asserting that the world is a dangerous place and that armed force is the best way to resolve conflicts.

What is Militarism?
English translation unavailable for .
Wed
29
Jan

Woodcraft Folk U.K.: Motion 5: Campaign Against Military Recruitment in Schools: article

Young Kinsfolk delegates

This Annual General Meeting supports the DF movement’s campaign against military recruitment in schools. Woodcraft Folk calls for an end to the recruitment of children into the armed forces as it goes against our Aims and Principles as well as contravening the recommendations of the UN Committee on the Rights of the Child.

We call on the relevant Minister in the Ministry of Defence (currently Mark Francois MP) to change their recruitment practices in light of the UK’s ratification of the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child which opposes the recruitment of children into the armed forces.

This Annual Gathering also recognises that the new Woodcraft Folk campaign “Our Times” on war and politics is a good opportunity for this issue to be discussed and campaigned on. We see this issue as a priority for young people and recommend that the campaign reflects this.

Proposed and seconded by: DF Committee

Wed
29
Jan

British army criticised for recruiting 16 year olds

Britain is one of just 19 countries that still recruit 16-year-olds to the armed forces. A new report claims that younger recruits are more likely to suffer from PTSD, alcohol problems and suicide than those who join as adults. This video tells the story of David Buck who joined the army at 17 but now feels he was conned by misleading recruitment marketing.

Source: http://www.theguardian.com

British army criticised for recruiting 16 year olds
Wed
29
Jan

Targeted Hacker Jacob Appelbaum on CISPA, Surveillance and the "Militarization of Cyberspace"

Computer security researcher Jacob Appelbaum argues the measures included in the proposed Cyber Intelligence Sharing and Protection Act (CISPA) would essentially legalize military surveillance of U.S. citizens. "When they want to dramatically expand their ability to do these things in a so-called legal manner, it’s important to note what they’re trying to do is to legalize what they have already been doing," Appelbaum says.

Targeted Hacker Jacob Appelbaum on CISPA, Surveillance and the "Militarization of Cyberspace"
Mon
27
Jan

America's Child Soldiers

America's Child Soldiers

Congress surely meant to do the right thing when, in the fall of 2008, it passed the Child Soldiers Prevention Act (CSPA). The law was designed to protect kids worldwide from being forced to fight the wars of Big Men. From then on, any country that coerced children into becoming soldiers was supposed to lose all U.S. military aid.

It turned out, however, that Congress -- in its rare moment of concern for the next generation -- had it all wrong. In its greater wisdom, the White House found countries like Chad and Yemen so vital to the national interest of the United States that it preferred to overlook what happened to the children in their midst.

As required by CSPA, this year the State Department once again listed 10 countries that use child soldiers: Burma (Myanmar), the Central African Republic, Chad, the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Rwanda, Somalia, South Sudan, Sudan, Syria, and Yemen.  Seven of them were scheduled to receive millions of dollars in U.S. military aid as well as what’s called “U.S. Foreign Military Financing.”  That’s a shell game aimed at supporting the Pentagon and American weapons makers by handing millions of taxpayer dollars over to such dodgy “allies,” who must then turn around and buy “services” from the Pentagon or “materiel” from the usual merchants of death. You know the crowd: Lockheed Martin, McDonnell Douglas, Northrop Grumman, and so on.

Mon
27
Jan

Militarisation in Sweden: Interview

At our 2012 conference in Darmstadt, Germany, we recorded interviews with activists talking about militarisation of youth in their own contexts.

In this interview, Cattis, from Swedish antimilitarist group Ofog speaks about militarisation and recruitment in Sweden.

The photo shows an action described in the interview, when Ofog took action at Stockholm Pride. The speech bubble reads 'speech bubble saying: "Here I am walking defending my human rights while my job is about violating other people's human rights"

Tue
21
Jan

Saskia Neibig, Woodcraft Folk: Raising awareness, taking action

Saskia Neibig, from Woodcraft Folk talks about raising awareness and taking action.

Saskia was involved in the Woodcraft Folk's Campaign Against Military Recruitment in Schools, which is still active.

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Saskia Neibig, Woodcraft Folk: Raising awareness, taking action
Mon
20
Jan

Emma Sangster: Young people and the British military

Emma Sangster, from Forces Watch, on how the British military interacts with young people.

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The Militarisation in Everyday Life in the UK conference was held in London in October 2013 and was organised by ForcesWatch. It brought together academics, writers, activists and campaigners who are researching, writing, campaigning on, or just concerned about the implications of the militarisation of everyday life in the UK.

Emma Sangster: Young people and the British military

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