(The following article is from the April 1-15, 2008 issue of People's Voice, Canada's leading communist newspaper. Articles can be reprinted free if the source is credited. Subscription rates in Canada: $25/year, or $12 low income rate; for U.S. readers - $25 US per year; other overseas readers - $25 US or $35 CDN per year. Send to: People's Voice, c/o PV Business Manager, 133 Herkimer St. Unit 502, Hamilton, ON, L8P 2H3).

PV Vancouver Bureau

Five years after imperialist bombs started killing Iraqis, the illegal U.S./UK war against Iraq remains deeply unpopular around the planet. Opposition to continuing the war is a majority sentiment which continues to build in the United States and Britain, giving reason to hope that forcing an end to the occupation is possible.

     The fifth anniversary of the war was marked by protests in dozens of countries, some on the March 15-16 weekend, others on March 19 (the actual date), or on March 22-23. While the turnouts were not as large as during the first two years of the war, the geographic breadth of the demonstrations is a strong indication that billions of people are sick of the carnage and waste created by Bush's aggression.

     Over twenty Canadian cities and towns held rallies, most on March 15, two days after Stephane Dion's Liberals voted with the Harper Conservatives in Parliament to extend Canada's military mission in Kandahar to 2011.

     Several days earlier, Dion was challenged by anti-war protesters as he campaigned with Bob Rae during the Toronto Centre byelection. Demonstrators from the Toronto Coalition to Stop the War entered a room at the St. Lawrence Market where the Liberal campaign event was taking place, pushing toward the stage. A spokesperson for the Coalition urged the Liberals to side with the New Democratic Party and Bloc Quebecois in the parliamentary vote. Dion's party rejected that advice, turning against the majority of Canadians who want an end to the mission now, or by the originally scheduled February 2009 date at the latest.

      About a thousand people took to the streets on March 15 in Toronto, despite the frigid weather which continued to grip much of Canada. Nearly that number turned out in Vancouver for a rally organized by the StopWar peace coalition.

     Internationally, the biggest anti-war protest took place in London, where tens of thousands gathered in Trafalgar Square before marching through the historic centre of the city, ending up in Parliament Square. Rallies were also held in Glasgow and other cities, organized by the Stop the War UK coalition and its affiliates.

     Thousands of protesters marched in Washington, DC, on March 19, one of many actions held across the United States by United For Peace And Justice and other groups. The Washington demonstration was just one part of a week of UFPJ activities.

     As public opinion in the United States swings increasingly against the war, growing numbers of protesters are engaging in direct actions. UFPJ held some fifteen actions designed to disrupt Washington, including offices of military contractors. One target was the American Petroleum Institute, where demonstrators chanted "No blood for Oil." Others barricaded the national headquarters of the Internal Revenue Service, where 32 were arrested on March 19.

     Another highlight of recent U.S. protests was the Winter Soldier hearings called by Iraq Veterans Against the War to draw attention to atrocities by U.S. forces. The event was deliberately similar to the testimony by Vietnam vets in 1971 which helped blow the lid off the horrors of that war.