SCOTLAND – UNEXPLODED BOMB
Scotland suffers from a massive hangover from the Cold War militarization and remains one of the most over-militarized countries in the world. Cape Wrath is the only ship-to-shore bombardment range in Europe and since the United States Navy was forced to withdraw from a similar range in Puerto Rico in 2003, Cape Wrath can unwittingly claim to be the most important area for naval training in the world, or at least in the Northern Hemisphere. The range also contains the only place in Europe where aircraft can release live one thousand pound bombs. For a country as small as Scotland, it is staggering that it contains: - All of Britain’s nuclear weapons at Coulport and the strategic nuclear submarine fleet at Faslane - Britain’s biggest Tornado base at Lossiemouth - The largest and most frequently used low flying area in Britain in the north west Highlands - The only open air live depleted uranium weapons test range in Britain at Dundrennan The utilisation of Scottish based troops, aircraft and equipment in the ‘War on Terror’ in Afghanistan and Iraq, highlights that Scotland still has an active role in present world conflict. Scotland’s Cold War legacy is still being felt today, and without concerted effort to combat the role of the British State by those who believe Scotland should play more of a role as a force for peace in the world, this situation is unlikely to change in the near future. To fight this a group has just been launched – Scotland UXB - who have invited a delegation from Puerto Rico to hold an all-Scotland peace conference on the Friday 29th and Saturday 30th April, at the Pearce Institute in Govan. Speakers include: Robert Rabin and Dara Guadaluope from the Comité Pro Rescate y Desarrollo de Vieques, Tommy Sheridan from the Scottish Socialist Party, David Miller from Spinwatch and author and activist Alistair McIntosh. Plus representatives from Comité Pro Rescate y Desarrollo de Vieques - Faslane Peace Camp - Scotland's for Peace - Trident Ploughshares - Campaign Against Depleted Uranium - Scottish CND The evening will become Club UXB – the perfect way to start (or end) your May day celebrations, with films by Camcorder Guerillas and a bar, food, and music from DJ Norman Shaw. It would also be a good opportunity for groups to hold a stall and sell videos, dole out stickers, flyers etc – organisers are looking for £10 for each stall for national funded groups, or a pay what you can donation to help cover costs from smaller groups. To book a stall or volunteer to help on the day contact: mail@scotland-uxb.org To book tickets send a cheque payable to “Scotland UXB” and sent to Scotland UXB, Unit 110, 355 Byres Road, Glasgow G12 8QZ Day Tickets £4 waged / £3 (low/unwaged) Weekend Tickets £8 waged / £6 (low/unwaged) Lessons from Vieques - resisting military occupation, a conference celebrating peace, resistance and a commitment to a military-free Scotland. Friday 29th and Saturday 30th April 2005 Pearce Institute, Govan, Glasgow, Scotland
