Dear friends,

“Opposition to war is our mission. If you have voice, speak out! If you have power, use it! If you have courage, show it here! Now is the time to block the road to war.” This is a remark by Koji Kitahara, general secretary of anti-airport residents in Narita.

- This time, let me start to quote several words from various people against war (and a little bit from pro-war people also). I believe you can enjoy them. And article of our Doro-Chiba railway trade union in Japan is also a call for successive anti-war actions in April. Let’s make another step together this month!

“Why it is not Iran (rescue the earthquake survivors) but Iraq?”, “There is no non-combat zone in Iraq” - those are the questions posed by rank and file soldiers in Northern Japan where the troop goes to Iraq. Local papers have reported that there was even big quarrel or fight on this issue and not a few troop members refused to go to Iraq and chose to resign.

“9/11 has not been somebody’s problem but directly the problem of us, air workers, and our workplace. It was a desperate retaliation against American unilateralism by the persecuted people. That is why we are now against troop on Iraq and National Emergency Act. This is for our own safety.” - These are the words by Tetsuya Muranaka, vice-president of Japan Federation Of Aviation Worker’s Unions and leader of “Land, Sea, Air and Longshore Workers’ 20 Trade Unions”. JAS and ANA, “National Flag” of Japan air companies had to refuse troop transport because of the opposition by trade unions.

“Japan’s national flag has to be displayed on the stage in front, from the beginning to the end of the ceremony. Sing National Anthem has to be written on the agenda, has to be uttered by ceremony chairperson, and everyone has to stand up when singing. Teachers and staff have to stand at designated place in the venue heading toward the National Flag and to song National Anthem...” These annoyingly detailed instructions have been issued by Education Board and Tokyo mayor Shintaro Ishihara. They want to have the ceremony to make workers and students to swear loyalty to the nation. But not a few teachers and students did rebel. In Itabashi High School, while a councilor raving about: “Stand up you bastard!” 90% of graduates, 250 of them, kept sitting. Now 176 school workers are fighting against punishment by Ishihara and Education Board.

Hiroshi Kanba
japan2world@hotmail.com
http://stopwar.fc2web.com

RISE UP TO SUCCESSIVE ACTIONS IN APRIL!

STOP DISPATCH TROOP TO IRAQ!
SMASH REACTIONARY WAR BILLS!

Junichiro Koizumi, Japan’s Prime Minister, enforced dispatches of its “Self Defense Force” to Iraq where is the fight is on now. Japan has been proud so far to have its Pacific Constitution, but Koizumi has changed Japan from “the country that will not go to war” to “the one who has gone to war”. The resistant groups who are against American invasion on Iraq have named Japan, follower of the US, as one of their targets for their attack. PM of Japan has plunged all of his own people into the live battle field.

Besides, on the active regular Diet session, the government has tried to enact a bundle of crucial bills that has direct effects on our life and trade union activities. As to Emergency related bills, they have 7 bills including “Citizen Protection Bill” which allows the government to mobilize people to war even before the war starts. All of these 7 bills are to accomplish the Three Emergency Acts which were enacted on June last year despite of the huge opposition. Koizumi also has an aim to enact “Conspiracy Crime Bill”. According to this bill, even just a meeting of a couple of people can be considered as conspiracy crime. Police could spy on trade union, civil liberty, any movement, and could oppress movements whenever they like.

This is the reactionaries we are facing now. This is why “Land, Sea, Air and Longshore Workers’ 20 Trade Unions” and “One million Signature Campaign” call for successive actions against those bills and against dispatch troop to Iraq.

RALLY ON 9TH APRIL:
“NO TO DISPATCH TROOP TO IRAQ! SAVE THE PEACE AND LIVES”

War on Iraq is nothing but imperial and aggressive war with no justice. Koizumi, however, gave support for it soon after US started to bomb, and enforced the National Emergency related 3 bills by the power of numbers in the Diet. And last month, he finally sent heavy armed “Self Defence Force of Japan” to Iraq. Japan was supposed to regret going to war in the past, and enacted the Pacifist Constitution, but now it gradually started to follow the track it went before.

As the entire world is shifting into war, and after train bomb attack on Madrid, people in Spain voted for Socialist Party (PSOE) not for Popular Party (PP) which was said to be predominant, in its general election on 13 March. PP called “anti-terror” official demonstration and tried to insist that they were right to go to war on Iraq. But majority of the people interpreted the situation completely opposite and eleven million of them marched and said “Your war, our death”, “Bring the troop back home”.

The leadership of newly elected PSOE gave an appeal to withdraw from Iraq if US fails to shift its power to UN till June. A part of the “Coalition of the Willing” who has waged war started to be collapsed and replaced by the anti-war camp supported by massive workers and citizens.

Now, Land, Sea, Air and Longshore 20 Trade Unions gave a call for Anti-War Rally on 9 April. Why not us to join! Let’s broaden the success of 20 March action!

Date: Friday 9 April, 6pm-
Venue: Hibiya Outdoor Music Hall, Tokyo
Assigned train for DC union members: Rapid train departing JR Chiba Station at 16:44 from platform 10 bound for Tokyo

RALLY ON 10TH APRIL:
ABOLISH “CITIZEN PROTECTION BILL”!

“Citizen Protection Bill” completely betrays its name. And we knew it through experience of Okinawa battle at the World War II where Japan army did not protect citizen but rather used people as human shield to protect soldiers. Army never ever protects people because of its nature.

The true aim of the bill is to supervise, control and ultimately mobilize people to war under the name of “Citizen Protection”. So, it functions as same as “National Mobilization Act” did during the past war.

The rally on 10 April is called by “Block the Road to War! One Million Signature Campaign”. Speakers include Masahiko Shimizu, lecturer of Meiji University, Hiroko Uehara, Mayor of Kunitachi city in Tokyo, and Shoich Chibana, Yomitan village councilor in Okinawa. Let’s learn the true face and detail of this bill and talk how we can abolish it!

Speak out and stop Koizumi’s war nation system plan!

Date: Saturday 10 April, 2pm-
Venue: Nakano Zero Hall, Tokyo
Assigned train for DC union members: Rapid train departing JR Chiba Station at 12:26 from platform 6 bound for Tokyo

JOINT AND URGENT RALLY ON 11TH APRIL:
NO TO “CONSPIRACY CRIME BILL” AND POLICE REINFORCEMENT!
STOP SENDING TROOP TO IRAQ!

“Conspiracy Crime Bill” is really bad and even worse than Security Maintaining Act during the war and Subversive Activities Prevention Act after the war. It can fundamentally transform the existing Penal Law.

At the rally on 11 April, we can listen to Steve Zeltzer, Campaign Against Taft-Hartley, Repression and Privatization from the US who has built up international solidarity with Doro-Chiba since last year. The expected title of his speech is “the Fight against the USA Patriot Act”. Also, we will have proposal by Suk-bum Kim, writer, and discuss how we can prevent enactment of the “Conspiracy Crime Bill” and end dispatch to Iraq and occupation on Iraq itself.

Date: Sunday 11 April, 1:30pm-
Venue: Kyobashi Plaza Community Centre, Tokyo
Assigned train for DC union members: Rapid train departing JR Chiba Station at 12:01 from platform 5 bound for Tokyo

Rise up to successive actions in April!

Bush in US and Koizumi in Japan has been dragged into a morass of Iraq. But their economical crisis which has been the root for the war is getting worse rapidly. They have nothing but go to much ferocious war.

The globe is divided into several blocks and another World War can start anytime. Conventional lefts are all submissive now to the government, but we have new anti-war movement. Together with our colleagues and friends in 20 Trade Union and One Million Signature Campaign, let’s stand up for the successive actions in April!

DORO-CHIBA (DC) : National Railway Motive Power Union of CHIBA
Email: doro-chiba@doro-chiba.org
Web: http://www.doro-chiba.org

English page at:
http://www.doro-chiba.org/english/english.htm
Read automatic English translation at:
click here

Read automatic Korean translation at:
click here

[Labour-J-info] generated by Hiroshi Kanba
japan2world@hotmail.com
http://stopwar.fc2web.com