Welsh Campaigners Condemn Pendine Missile Tests

CND press release

CND Cymru has joined others campaigning to stop the arms race in space, inroundly condemning the testing of three 'penetrator missiles' which werefired into a sand bunker at the Qinetiq-run Missile testing centre at Pendine, Carmarthenshire. These tests now make Wales a prime testing ground for "dual use" weapons forbunker buster applications and technologies to be used to further the armsrace in space.

This test in Wales is disguised as a Moon test but as NASA has long said, everything carried out by 'space exploration' organisations; every technology they create is for "dual use", meaning they will serve as aspace weapons system as well.Peter Truss, one of those responsible for the testing of the missiles at Pendine, is reported as saying: *"... with the increase in technology thatwe can apply to these problems, all sorts of possibilities open up,".In 2002, another penetrator, bunker busting bomb was to be tested atPendine,in advance of the invasion of Iraq, but the tests were called offafter objections by local people and anti-war protestors. If a 'penetrator missile' could be aimed at a point on another planet, itis only time before such a missile will be fired to non-compliant'adversaries' to earth from military space stations.Jill Gough, CND Cymru National Secretary said today: " We humans just don't seem to learn. It was the 'space race' in the 1950sand 60s that fuelled and helped develop the cold war arms race. At a time when we are allegedly having to live with increasingly scarce natural resources and with pollution, poverty, war and injustice, we are insteadresearching and learning new ways to deliver misery and destruction to life on earth and even to other planets."

"Is this what we want in Wales - to be part of the problem, or to be part of the solution?" *More information about the test
http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/sci/tech/7438270.stm

Interviews for CND Cymru : Jill Gough CND CYMRU 01495 773 180 heddwch@cndcymru.org Mobile: 07704 675787
Interviews from Bruce K. Gagnon, Coordinator, Global Network Against Weapons& Nuclear Power in Space PO Box 652, Brunswick, ME 04011 44 (207) 443 9502
http://www.space4peace.org/
mailto:globalnet@mindspring.com
globalnet@mindspring.com
http://space4peace.blogspot.com/ (Blog)

St Athan Anti-metrix protest

for more info see http://www.antimetrix.org/2008/04/big-brother-hassles-anti-metrix-st.html

Jill Evans MEP speaks at the protest rally

Jobs Con on St Athan by Bryant, Morgan.....

Whatever happened to mature debate? Jill Evans MEP

Jill Evans is the only Welsh politican to speak out against the mega military academy proposals! Yet plaid policy is absolutely against privatisation so they speak out against post offices closing, traffic wardens been privatised but military training.....why not??

This contract will be the largest PFI/PPP project ever undertaken by the Ministry of Defence and will be the largest partnering arrangement ever undertaken in the UK. A Private Finance Initiative (PFI) for DTR in simplistic terms means that the winning consortia will effectively own all of the real estate and services for training for the next 25 years. For this they will be paid an annual sum and must, by law, make a profit for their shareholders. The contract is worth £19 billion.

Politicians couldn't make a privatised railway work so it is pretty unbelievable that we even suggest privatising military training never mind applauding it especially when it is to be delivered by private arms companies that are excluded from any ethical investing country, bank or charity. What damage could be done here and as a private business they will train whoever pays! Just who are we inviting to Wales?

So why do plaid support them dumbly emm.. because of the jobs...but what jobs? They have been given figures that are wrong. The Government has lied! Rhrodri Morgan is lying. The assembly have an office and staff dedicated to making this academy happen what ever and it isn't because half the deal has been already dumped by the MOD!!

And what about more autonomy for Wales? Isn't that jeopardised by having ALL uk military training in Wales?

Balance of ideology and pragmatism for Plaid ic Wales, United Kingdom -PLAID Cymru entered Government with rank- and-file members in good heart and high spirits. Labour, the

Plaid slammed over St Athan criticism ic Wales, PLAID Cymru was yesterday accused of endangering Wales’ chances of winning a Ministry of Defence training contract potentially worth up to £4bn. ... Conservatives and the Liberal Democrats had attempted ...

Plaid MEP questions defence academy ePolitix, A row has broken out over the Plaid Cymru vice-president's questioning of a new military training academy in Wales. Ahead of a meeting of the party's ruling

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St Athan another white elephant for Wales?

St Athan Military Training AcademyAnother White Elephant for Wales?

With the latest news about the indefinite delay of package 2 of the StAthan Military Training Academy project, another wheel has come off thistrundling white elephant. How many more wheels will have to be lost beforepoliticians of Wales’ four main parties realise that the whole project is aterrible mistake, and is not going anywhere. Instead of wasting time and money pursuing even more crazy militarysolutions to international problems, our elected representatives should befocussing on addressing the major environmental changes our world faces.

Why can’t we in Wales be at the forefront of training in non-violentconflict resolution, in preventing violence at home and abroad? Why are hospitals and schools in Wales facing closure?Nobody should be taken in by the latest amount of spin over this issue. Itis about time that the Westminster and Cardiff Governments learned theirlesson - £77 million of taxpayers’ money has already been wasted on anothermilitary fantasy at St Athan - ‘Project Red Dragon’. An expensive 65,000square metre white elephant.The proposed military training academy at St Athan will be built and run bya consortium which includes major multinational arms companies, and willtrain not only British service personnel, but those from any regime orprivate military company that can fork out the ready cash.

The whole StAthan project has a bitter cold heart. It addresses a future whereinternational conflict can only be solved by violence, accepts thewidespread death and maiming, misery and suffering caused to innocentpeople by militarism and ignores the permanent environmental damage causedby wars and conflict.

It does nothing to deliver the Wales that people inthis country want – a Wales that honestly addresses global warming andother environmental problems, champions human rights, teaches our childrenthat violence solves nothing, does not invest in the arms trade, encouragesvaluable, long term employment and delivers decent public services.

The champagne sprayed by Assembly Ministers Morgan, Hutt and Davies towelcome the signing of the contract to build the academy, on January 17ththis year has, by October acquired a sour, vinegary flavour.
Jill Gough
National Secretary
CND Cymru

Write to the papers. And your MP, AM, Cllr