15,000 people gathered in Madrid this past weekend to protest genetically engineered (GE) crops. The protest was part of a Greenpeace tour through Europe; another tactic was to display billboards in Brussels of officials as chefs cooking “GE recipes for disaster.”
- Disabled citizens held a sit-in in New Delhi yesterday, demanding better education and healthcare as well as a reserved 20 percent quota of jobs.
- Several dozen pro-reform protesters rallied outside the Egyptian Parliament yesterday after an opposition leader said violence should be used against activists. There have been frequent protests in Cairo in the last few weeks calling for open elections and an end to tight emergency laws.
- A hundred people gathered outside the Arizona State Capitol yesterday to protest an immigration bill that requires Arizona to enforce border laws. The bill, which protesters say is racist, will be passed in five days if not vetoed by the governor. Nine who chained themselves to the Capitol doors were arrested.
- A dozen environmentalists blocked the road out of Bacton, England to protest oil company Shell and its plans to build a new terminal. The protesters, who were part of a worldwide day of action, only left when removed by police.
- Six people occupied Iowa Senator Grassley’s Des Moines office last Wednesday, demanding an end to funding of wars in Afghanistan, Iraq, and Palestine and a greater focus on human needs.
- A Japanese man who is part of an anti-U.S. base movement is hunger striking near parliament in Tokyo to protest the relocation of an American base within the area.
- Former employees of the Tahiti Hilton began a week-long hunger strike yesterday to protest redundancy payments and the hotel owner’s refusal to meet with them.
- Legislators in Chennai, India walked out of a government assembly yesterday to protest inaction from officials against rising yam prices.