Thousands march through London in pre-G20 protest
March 28th, 2009 - 10:01 pm ICT by IANS
London, March 28 (IANS) Thousands of anti-capitalist protesters marched through London to protest global financial policies Saturday as police threw a massive security cordon ahead of next week’s summit of the Group of 20 (G20) leaders.
The Put People First (PPF) march involved an alliance of 150 groups from around the world, including unions, charities, environmental campaigners and faith organisations.
Protesters, waving flags and placards on a rainy day, blamed banks and city finance for the global economic crisis that has thrown thousands out of their jobs.
“We must realise that all these problems that we face come from the same place. Poverty, environmental problems, I believe these things can be eradicated, but government must listen to the will of the people who put them in power,” said protester Luke Pritchard of the rock band, the Kooks.
Amid fears of violence by anti-capitalist anarchist groups, Britain’s Minister for Climate Change Ed Miliband said the “vast majority” of protesters were peaceful, adding: “There is a very important line between peaceful and non-peaceful protest.”
Kevin Smith, a marcher, told the Press Association: “The type of measures the G20 leaders will take to reflate the global economy are going to take us back to the system of an endless pursuit of economic growth. It’s not possible to do that in a world of finite resources, especially in the context of climate change.”
The April 2 G20 summit is to be attended by Prime Minister Manmohan Singh and other world leaders.
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Tags: anarchist groups, city finance, climate change, endless pursuit, finite resources, global economic crisis, global economy, kevin smith, kooks, london march, luke pritchard, manmohan, manmohan singh, peaceful protest, placards, ppf, prime minister manmohan, prime minister manmohan singh, security cordon, waving flags