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Pro-Palestinian demonstration in Japan

Published April 18th, 2002 - 02:00 GMT
Al Bawaba
Al Bawaba

Around ten protesters held a rally Wednesday in front of the US embassy in Tokyo's Minato Ward to criticize the role of the United States in the ongoing crisis between the Palestinians and Israelis, Kyodo news agency reported from Tokyo, cited by IRNA. 

 

The demonstration was unusual as the protesters, from Kanagawa Prefecture, southwest of the capital Tokyo, are not affiliated with organized groups such as Non Governmental Organizations (NGOs), organizers said.  

 

Using a megaphone, Sulejman Brkic, head of the protest, slammed the United States for its involvement, claiming it caused the protracted Middle East crisis, as some 25 police officers looked on.  

 

''Enough is enough. Stop the war'' 32-year-old Brkic said.  

 

The demonstration lasted about half an hour.  

 

Brkic, a Bosnian national who teaches English and French at a language school in Kanagawa Prefecture, accused the UJMS of promoting hegemony in the region.  

 

''Israel is nothing without the west...without the financial and military support of the U.S.,'' Brkic expressed. 

 

Furthermore, he called on the media and residents not to sit idly by and to take action. ''We will have more (protesters) - at least 50 or 100,'' he said. In addition, he said they would change tactics in their rallying methods.  

 

Meanwhile, Brkic's wife, Kanako Toya, aged 26, said the rally aims to serve as a wake-up call for the U.S. ''When you look at things from a normal perspective, the situation (in the Palestinian areas) is terrible and abnormal,'' she said. On being unaffiliated with an organized group, she said NGOs lack the ability to take decisive actions. (Albawaba.com) 

© 2002 Al Bawaba (www.albawaba.com)

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