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NZer Arrested As Spanish Board Rainbow Warrior
Greenpeace Press Release: New Zealander arrested as Spanish police board the Greenpeace flagship...
March 15th
2003
Madrid, Spain: The Spanish police have boarded the Greenpeace flagship Rainbow Warrior at port's entrance of the Rota naval base as the ship was blocking the U.S. Navy vessel Cape Horn from delivering arms to the Gulf region in preparation for the war against Iraq.
Phil Lloyd from Whakatane who is the bosun aboard the Rainbow Warrior has been arrested along with his captain and several other activists.
The crew, activists and the captain were protesting non-violently as 20 policemen moved in to the ship. A tugboat was preparing to move the Rainbow Warrior from the exclusion zone, which was declared by the authorities earlier this week. Before boarding the ship, the special forces of Spanish police, Guardia Civil, gave the captain of the Rainbow Warrior a written order to leave the area.
"Greenpeace considers that this is a just protest because we are trying to prevent an illegal war. Greenpeace is acting in order that the Spanish Government listens to the requests of its citizens and stops supporting the war against Iraq," said Juan Lopez de Uralde, director of Greenpeace Spain.
Yesterday, activists in inflatable boats from the Greenpeace flagship Rainbow Warrior confronted the U.S. Coast Guard ship Dallas as it left the Rota naval base in Spain armed with guns, torpedoes and harpoon missiles. Four activists brandished banners saying "No War" and chased the Dallas for two miles before being intercepted by three police boats and a helicopter. There were no arrests.
Greenpeace is calling on all members of the United Nations to prevent Spain, the U.K. and the U.S. from undermining the UN Charter by waging an illegal war on Iraq. Greenpeace said all 191 members of the UN General Assembly should use UN resolution 377, known as 'Uniting for Peace', to call an emergency session because the Security Council is split on the issue of how to maintain international peace and security. (1)
For further information contact:
Robbie Kelman, Greenpeace anti-war campaigner in New Zealand on 021 565-165
Images of the action are available for download at: greenpeace.org.nz/pres s/photo desk.asp
Audio: Sound bytes from on-board the Rainbow Warrior are available at: greenpeace.org .nz /news/news_main.asp?PRID=490
Video: Contact Martin Atkin in Amsterdam on +31 20 524 9544
Notes to Editors:
(1) A General assembly can be convened within 24 hours to consider and recommend, measures to UN members. The resolution has been invoked ten times in the past 50 years. The full text of Resolution 377 can be found at: http://nowar.greenpeace.org/ufp
Greenpeace
Greenpeace exists because this fragile earth deserves a voice.
Greenpeace is an independent global campaigning organisation that acts to change attitudes and behaviour, to protect and conserve the environment and to promote peace.
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