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07/09/2005:

"Statement on the London bombings by George Galloway on behalf of Respect"

We extend our condolences to the families and loved ones of those who have lost their lives today and our heartfelt sympathy to all those who have been injured by the bombs in London.

No one can condone acts of violence aimed at working people going about their daily lives. They have not been a party to, nor are they responsible for, the decisions of their government. They are entirely innocent and we condemn those who have killed or injured them.

The loss of innocent lives, whether in this country or Iraq, is precisely the result of a world that has become a less safe and peaceful place in recent years.

We have worked without rest to remove the causes of such violence from our world. We argued, as did the security services in this country, that the attacks on Afghanistan and Iraq would increase the threat of terrorist attack in Britain. Tragically Londoners have now paid the price of the government ignoring such warnings.

We urge the government to remove people in this country from harms way, as the Spanish government acted to remove its people from harm, by ending the occupation of Iraq and by turning its full attention to the development of a real solution to the wider conflicts in the Middle East.

Only then will the innocents here and abroad be able to enjoy a life free of the threat of needless violence.
Full: respectcoalition.org

How can it be said that citizens in a self-proclaimed democracy are not responsible for the decisions of their government? This is the simple truth that Ward Churchill and others got crucified for. The actions of our governments in the UK and US dirty all of us, and willing or not, we are complicit. And furthermore, there is no evidence that this was an Islamist operation. The question must be, who benefits the most from this? If we could just hold that question in our minds, the horror of the answer might lead to a real confrontation with the beast that's stalking the world. The carefully constructed illusion that these people care for the lives of 'their own' any more than they care for 'the others' is what has to fall away