CALL TO ACTION of the ANTI-WAR ASSEMBLY,
World Social Forum 2005, Porto Alegre, Brazil

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On the day of elections in Iraq, anti-war movements, coalitions and
organizations the world over came together in an Anti-War Assembly and
called for massive mobilizations on March 19 and 20. Representatives from
over 33 countries, including Iraq and Palestine, also discussed strategies
and actions beyond March 20. This is the report of the proposals made at the
Assembly.
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Two years after the invasion of Iraq, there is more opposition to the war in
the US, in the coalition countries, and all over the world than ever before.
The justifications for the war have all been proven to be lies. A widespread
and popular resistance has risen up against the occupation forces. Over
100,000 Iraqis and over 1,500 coalition soldiers have been killed. With the
global condemnation of the war and the inability of the United States to
quell the resistance in Iraq, we stand at a critical moment in which there
is a real chance that the war could be stopped.

Now is the time for the anti-war movement to take action, not to retreat.
It is time to escalate the protests, not to give up. A defeat for US-led forces
in Iraq will be a victory for everybody facing US aggression globally.

We demand an end to the occupations of Iraq and Palestine.

We demand that the US desists from attacking Iran, North Korea, Syria, Cuba,
Venezuela and other countries. We must highlight the dangers of global war
especially in Latin America where the US threatens to intervene in many
countries. We call for a Global Day of Action against War on March 19/20
demanding troops out of Iraq now, no more wars. We call for a rolling wave
of massive demonstrations, civil disobedience, and other forms of protest
around the world.

IRAQ

We call for the immediate withdrawal of occupation troops and support all
efforts to bring them home. We support efforts to organize soldiers,
conscientious objectors, and military families against the war. We support
the counter-recruitment campaign and demand political asylum for deserters.

We support the right of the Iraqi people to resist occupation while
condemning the killing of innocent civilians. We support efforts to
understand the full range of civil, political, and armed resistance in Iraq
to further strengthen our campaigns. We commit to deepening our links of
solidarity with the people of the Middle East.

We demand the closure of US military bases around the world and support
efforts towards the abolition of nuclear weapons, the banning of the arms
trade, and other moves towards demilitarization.

We support efforts to stop the economic occupation of Iraq by corporations
and international financial institutions. And we will escalate our campaign
against these war profiteers through boycotts and direct action.

We call for protests against Bush and his allies wherever they go.

PALESTINE

We support the Palestinian people's struggle for justice,
self-determination, a sovereign independent state with Jerusalem as its
capital and the implementation of the right of return in accordance with UN
resolution 194.

We call upon the international community and governments to impose political
and economic sanctions on Israel, including an embargo on armaments. We call upon the social movements to mobilize also for divestment and boycotts.
These efforts aim to force Israel to implement international resolutions,
and the advisory opinion of the International Court of Justice, to stop and
take down the illegal wall and end all occupation and apartheid policies.

We support the Israeli anti-colonialist, anti-Zionist activists who share
this struggle.

We reaffirm the call for a Global Day of Action on March 19/20 and a wave
of protest to stop war and end the occupations.

*To send plans for demonstrations on March 19/20, email:
website@march19th.org or office@march19th.org
For more information on campaigns, email info-assembly@riseup.net

COUNTRIES DEMONSTRATING ON MARCH 19/20: (preliminary list) Iraq,
Palestine, Argentina, Brasil, India, US (400 cities), Italy, Greece, Ireland,
Japan, Britain, Turkey, Macedonia, Cyprus, Philippines, Australia, Thailand,
South Africa, South Korea, Sri Lanka, Hungary, Poland, Canada, Austria,
Mexico, Spain (Barcelona, Madrid), Hawaii, Venezuela, New Zealand, The
Netherlands

DETAILED ACTION PLAN

PROPOSALS FOR MARCH 19/20:
- Common slogan: Troops Out of Iraq Now! No more wars! Each country
is of course free to use their own slogans.
- To hold big demonstrations or other forms of protest in your own
countries
- List all cities and countries demonstrating on a common website:
www.march19th.org

PROPOSALS FOR BUILDING LINKS WITH THE MIDDLE EAST AND STRENGTHENING THE RESISTANCE:

- Organize a roundtable conference outside Iraq inviting all the
different groups and anti-occupation forces in Iraq to dialogue with the
global anti-war movement
- Support the existing campaigns that build links between civil
society in Iraq and other countries.
- Send a team to Iraq to work with Iraqis to produce a multimedia
project, Voices of Resistance, that shows all the different forms of
resistance in Iraq to serve as a mobilizing tool to get rid of US
occupation.
- Make use of all opportunities to link with the Middle East,
including the Cairo Conference March 24-27, the Mediterranean Social
Forum in June, the World Tribunal in Iraq in 2005 and the World Peace Forum in Vancouver, Canada on June 21-27, 2006.
- Encourage all groups to share contacts and information so as to
avoid replication of efforts.

PROPOSALS TO OPPOSE OTHER US THREATS OF INTERVENTION

- Because George Bush is the symbol of global war, there should be
protests wherever he goes: (1) July 2nd-6th: Edinburgh Scotland, Global
Action against Bush and the G8. (2) November: Mar del Plata, Protest
against Bush and American Summit of Presidents.
- Link our anti-war work to campaigns against attacks or threats
of intervention in Iran, North Korea, Syria, Cuba, Venezuela and other
countries.

PROPOSALS AGAINST WAR PROFITEERS AND INTERNATIONAL FINANCIAL INSTITUTIONS

- Strenghten protests and direct action against the 2 largest war
profiteers: Halliburton and Bechtel.
- Encourage people not to buy goods from US/UK multinationals and
encourage people instead to buy from local businesses.
- Encourage socially responsible companies to take a stand against
the war
- Protest against the World Trade Organization (WTO), especially
on the 6th Ministerial on December 13-18 in Hong Kong
- Launch a campaign to stop Iraq from becoming a member of the WTO
- Disseminate materials on the war profiteers in Arabic

PROPOSALS FOR PALESTINE

- Send civilian missions to Palestine
- Launch a campaign of sanctions, boycott and divestments
- Launch a campaign for embargo on arms and suspension of economic
agreements with Israel

PROPOSALS FOR WAR RESISTERS

- Organize a gathering of anti-war forces from the countries that
support the coalition forces in Iraq to coordinate strategies
- Strengthen efforts to encourage young people NOT to join the
military
- Provide support for soldiers who refuse to fight in Iraq
including:
(1) encourage countries like Canada and individual cities to provide
asylum
(2) organize speaking tours of dissenting soldiers
(3) collect stories from various countries of soldiers who refused to
fight

PROPOSALS AGAINST MILITARY BASES AND NUCLEAR PROLIFERATION

- Support and get involved in the process of building an
international movement demanding the closure of foreign military bases around the world
- Show solidarity with the struggle of the Okinawans to stop the
construction of US bases in Henoko
- Support global actions on May 1 to demand the abolition of
nuclear weapons
- On the 60th anniversary of the atomic bombing of Hiroshima and
Nagasaki, call for global actions on August 6-9 to say ³No more
Hiroshimas! No more Nagasakis.