The Peace Strike Campaign was formed in 2007 as a pre-emptive campaign against war and for peace.
The Peace Strike campaign was founded by Maria Gallastegui and co- founder Chris Coverdale.
Maria Gallastegui lived on the then, Peace Camp on Parliament Square between 2006 -2012. She was ‘On Strike’ during her time there. The Peace Camp at the time was against the Afghan and Iraq war.
The Peace Strike campaign supported many different causes during that period, from The Burma campaign through to the Tamils genocide and the conflict in the Congo.
Two Peace Boxes were created during the time of the ‘Democracy Village’ 2010
The campaign promotes going “ On Strike For Peace “ as our stand against ongoing oppression. A strike for peace – to save life – can only be a moral duty, and therefore not an offence in law.
We oppose all forms of warfare and the perpetual insane cycles of violence and de-humanising behavior aimed at the poorest and least powerful.
Our peace strike is independent and not influenced by corporate funding or by political parties. We aim to stay true to our objective of campaigning for the end of warfare and armed conflict.
We aim to initiate peace strikes in UK / USA / Israel and any other countries around the world. We are no longer prepared to stand by and let our brothers and sisters of any country to be victims of aggression towards innocent civilian populations. We are on strike for humanity and we refuse to collaborate with our governments and we condemn their aggressive actions.
“To initiate a war of aggression, therefore, is not only an international crime; it is the supreme international crime differing only from other war crimes in that it contains within itself the accumulated evil of the whole.”
– Robert H. Jackson
When we – as individuals, and as a conscious collective, become aware of problems within our societies that have a negative effect on our welfare and peace, must act to counteract such perils. We cannot ignore these issues, we must act for the greater good. It is therefore ”ON OUR WATCH” and our responsibility.
TO STOP WAR THE PEOPLE MUST STOP
We support protests, and direct action that do not endanger life. Our energies are aimed at challenging the government to bring about peace and justice for those affected by war both in countries under attack, and here for those of us who face cuts to resources and services to pay for those wars.
Peace Strike supports the Boycott / Divest and Sanction Campaign BDS
What is a strike?
A strike for peace does not always involve downing tools and walking out of work. A strike for peace is also about making a statement, that you are aware of the suffering and injustice in the world and you are willing to give up your time to show that you care and that you want things to change.
It is about empowering yourself by not taking part in activities or duties that help maintain the status quo. It is about making a stand against those in power, getting them to pay attention to the people’s concerns rather than to those of their wealthy and powerful friends who benefit from the oil and arms trade.
We also need to collectively :
BUY NOTHING- so plan ahead
No Credit / Debit Cards – to be used.
No Money Transfers – so plan ahead
Ìf you have to work, you still have the options of the above .
What sorts of people make up a strike?
YOU DO!
We can all be strikers if we care about each other and other people. The Peace Strike has been formed to provide a direct action movement whereby housewives, parents, students, workers, people on benefits, homeless people, people with disabilities, carers, pensioners, families, etc, can join together in solidarity in a common cause for peace, united in action and standing strong together.
Emergency Workers / Essential Workers / Carers
We do not expect you to abandon your responsibilities. However, you can still be in solidarity in your hearts, even though you may not be able to strike. Use the option to buy nothing and spend nothing.
The Peace Strike Campaign was formed in 2007 as a pre-emptive campaign against war and for peace.
The Peace Strike campaign was founded by Maria Gallastegui and co- founder Chris Coverdale.
Maria Gallastegui lived on the then, Peace Camp on Parliament Square between 2006 -2012. She was ‘On Strike’ during her time there. The Peace Camp at the time was against the Afghan and Iraq war.
The Peace Strike campaign supported many different causes during that period, from The Burma campaign through to the Tamils genocide and the conflict in the Congo.
Two Peace Boxes were created during the time of the ‘Democracy Village’ 2010
The campaign promotes going “ On Strike For Peace “ as our stand against ongoing oppression. A strike for peace – to save life – can only be a moral duty, and therefore not an offence in law.
We oppose all forms of warfare and the perpetual insane cycles of violence and de-humanising behavior aimed at the poorest and least powerful.
Our peace strike is independent and not influenced by corporate funding or by political parties. We aim to stay true to our objective of campaigning for the end of warfareand armed conflict.
We aim to initiate peace strikes in UK / USA / Israel and any other countries around the world. We are no longer prepared to stand by and let our brothers and sisters of any country to be victims of aggression towards innocent civilian populations. We are on strike for humanity and we refuse to collaborate with our governments and we condemn their aggressive actions.
“To initiate a war of aggression, therefore, is not only an international crime; it is the supreme international crime differing only from other war crimes in that it contains within itself the accumulated evil of the whole.”
– Robert H. Jackson
When we – as individuals, and as a conscious collective, become aware of problems within our societies that have a negative effect on our welfare and peace, must act to counteract such perils. We cannot ignore these issues, we must act for the greater good. It is therefore ”ON OUR WATCH” and our responsibility.
TO STOP WAR THE PEOPLE MUST STOP
We support protests, and direct action that do not endanger life. Our energies are aimed at challenging the government to bring about peace and justice for those affected by war both in countries under attack, and here for those of us who face cuts to resources and services to pay for those wars.
Peace Strike supports the Boycott / Divest and Sanction Campaign BDS
What is a strike?
A strike for peace does not always involve downing tools and walking out of work. A strike for peace is also about making a statement, that you are aware of the suffering and injustice in the world and you are willing to give up your time to show that you care and that you want things to change.
It is about empowering yourself by not taking part in activities or duties that help maintain the status quo. It is about making a stand against those in power, getting them to pay attention to the people’s concerns rather than to those of their wealthy and powerful friends who benefit from the oil and arms trade.
We also need to collectively :
BUY NOTHING- so plan ahead
No Credit / Debit Cards – to be used.
No Money Transfers – so plan ahead
Ìf you have to work, you still have the options of the above .
What sorts of people make up a strike?
YOU DO!
We can all be strikers if we care about each other and other people. The Peace Strike has been formed to provide a direct action movement whereby housewives, parents, students, workers, people on benefits, homeless people, people with disabilities, carers, pensioners, families, etc, can join together in solidarity in a common cause for peace, united in action and standing strong together.
Emergency Workers / Essential Workers / Carers
We do not expect you to abandon your responsibilities. However, you can still be in solidarity in your hearts, even though you may not be able to strike. Use the option to buy nothing and spend nothing.
Peace Strike projects
Peace Strike was active in Parliament Square and Whitehall up to 2016. These are the main projects in which we were involved in addition to the regular Peace Strikes.
Peace Boxes
From 2010, Peace Strike established two Peace Boxes situated on the pavement opposite the Houses of Parliament. The boxes were made from hoarding boards reclaimed from skips in the nearby area of Westminster.
The boxes were an extension of the 4ft high display board made for the Vigil for Gaza. While the Serious Organised Crime and Police Act legislation of 2005 required protests around parliament – and selected locations elsewhere – to get authorisation, it did not put a limit on how many authorisations a person could apply for.
Peace Strike applied for several authorisations, which provided space for two boxes which were built to fill the space of 8ft in length, 8ft in height and 4ft in width. One box was used for storage and the other had an area for making drinks and meals and a small sitting area. They provided shelter on the many rainy days during the months that the Peace Boxes remained in Parliament Square.
The purpose of the box was to act as news billboards with large messages that could be read from the gates of parliament and by the MPs and others going in. The notices would be changed frequently to highlight ongoing concerns, primarily the on-going wars in Afghanistan and Iraq.
The SOCPA legislation was repealed in December 2011 and was replaced by the Police Reform and Social Responsibility Act 2011. It was under the new legislation that the Peace Boxes were removed by the police. On the 3rd May 2012, the final box was removed following an unsuccessful High Court challenge.
After they were removed from Parliament Square the ‘peace plinths’ were on display in ‘The Peace Project’ exhibition in a central London gallery in 2012 and one made the trip to a gallery in Los Angeles (picture below). See more info and photos on the Internet Archive.
See photos of the boxes in Parliament Square.
Supporting the Tamil protests
In 2009, there were large-scale demonstrations in Parliament Square by the Tamil community in the UK against the atrocities that the Sri Lankan Government has committed against Tamils in Sri Lanka.
Arrest Tony Blair
At 11:15 on 16th May 2007 Peace Strike members made their first attempt to conduct a citizens arrest of Tony Blair. They were accompanied outside Downing Street by a small group of supporters and a film crew. The police were informed of their intentions and relevant documentation was handed over.
Downing Street petitions and demonstrations
In June 2007, Peace Strike petitioned Downing Street asking for the arrest of Tony Blair and those responsible for the war in Iraq. We believe these people have broken several laws relating to war crime and crimes against humanity.
For a number of years, a petition was handed into No. 10 Downing Street on a regular basis, sometimes every day. The petitions made a variety of requests relating to peace and justice issues. On many occasions a one-person demonstration with a placard also took place behind the gates of Downing Street, opposite the door of No. 10. These were often timed to coincide with the Cabinet meetings of the government.
| By January 2009 the following number of petitions had been handed in at 10 Downing Street: Crisis in Gaza 1 Hands off Iran 337 Supporting a peace plan 80 Arrest Tony Blair 12 Free Palestine 7 Solidarity with the people of Burma 5 Repeal SOCPA 5 Petitions handed in as part of the monthly Peace Procession 4 TOTAL 451 |
By 2013, there had also been 50 demonstrations outside No. 10, within Downing Street.
In 2013, the petitions were still being presented regularly to No. 10, and continued until PM Boris Johnson entered Downing Street in 2019.
An estimated total of 3,000 petitions were handed into Downing Street during the time of Prime Ministers: Tony Blair, Gordon Brown, David Cameron and Nick Clegg (coalition ) David Cameron, Theresa May, Boris Johnson.
It ended abruptly on Boris Johnson’s watch with an email from the police stated that too many petitions had been handed in. Clearly the administration was not keen on the constant knocking on the door. Shortly after that, the country went into COVID SHUTDOWN.
Downing Street went into #PartyGate
Peace processions
The first peace procession through Westminster took place in October 2008 in London, for everyone who cares about humanity and peace and wishes to demand an end to the destruction and suffering caused by our own country’s actions.
Peace Strike 