A Second Weekend of Protests Announced as the War in Ukraine Escalates.

 

The Stop the War Coalition and The Campaign for Nuclear Disarmament have called a second day of action to protest against the war in Ukraine for Saturday 12^th March.

 

In London’s Trafalgar Square thousands of people gathered to hear speakers including former Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn and Stop the War Coalition convenor Lindsey German.

 

Protests took place in towns and cities around the UK including Manchester, Birmingham, and Glasgow.

 

A stop the War event held in Hanley organized by Ukraine Solidarity North Staffs and sponsored by South Cheshire and North Staffordshire CND, NORSCARF and North Staffs Green Party attracted more than sixty people and collected money and personal care items to be donated to people in the war zone.

 

In a statement published in their website CND said “We condemn the Russian military aggression against Ukraine. There is no justification for war.
The bombing must stop immediately. What is needed, is a comprehensive ceasefire, the withdrawal of all troops and a return to the negotiating table”.

 

Local anti-racism campaign group NORSCARF will also be sponsoring the Hanley event and providing a speaker.

 

They go on to warn that the presence of nuclear weapons in the region and threats regarding their possible use made by Russian president Vladimir Putin presents a serious threat to world peace.

 

The week since the last protest action has seen the war in Ukraine escalate significantly with civilians fleeing towns across the country as invading Russian troops attempt to progress their stalled advance.

 

Thousands of refugees have crossed into neighbouring countries including Poland, the UK government continues to face criticism for moving too slowly when it comes to issuing visas and for making the process of claiming asylum too bureaucratic.

 

A spokesperson Ukraine Solidarity North Staffs said: ‘the situation in Ukraine is getting worse by the day and there is a real risk of a humanitarian disaster as neighbouring countries struggle to cope with the flow of refugees’.

 

Adding that ‘the government needs to speed up and simplify the process for granting visas to people fleeing the war’.

 

A second event sponsored by Ukraine Solidarity North Staffs, North Staffs Green Party and SCANSCND will be held on Saturday 12^th March at the Blue Clock on Upper Market Square in Hanley ST1 1NS, between 12:00 & 13:30pm.

 

Regular updates about the event will be posted on the Ukraine Solidarity North Staffs Facebook Page:https://www.facebook.com/groups/ukrainesolidaritynorthstaffordshire