ITALY: It has been depicted as a barbarian assault on the handsome Renaissance city of Florence. It ended as a powerful but peaceful protest against any US-led military intervention in Iraq. Paddy Agnew reports from Rome.
An estimated half a million "anti-globalisation" demonstrators thronged the streets of Florence on Saturday at the end of the four-day European Social Forum. While their number may have embodied a thousand and more different political, socio-economic and religious viewpoints, one issue, and one alone, united all of them. The dominant theme was anti-war with many banners declaring "No War", "Bush, Blair and Berlusconi - Assassins", "Take Your War and Go to Hell", "No In My Name".
Many protesters claimed that the United Nations Security Council resolution calling for weapons inspections in Iraq had swelled their numbers with thousands wanting to register their disapproval. The anti-war theme, too, dominated yesterday's final assembly of the social forum, attended by 3,000 delegates and marked by a call for further Europe-wide demonstrations against any US-led war on Iraq.
Delegates said they hoped to hold a wave of simultaneous Europe-wide demonstrations in three months' time, but would mobilise supporters sooner if a US attack on Iraq looked imminent.
"We have fixed a date of February 15," said Italian militant Piero Maestri. "Some people wanted to hold it sooner. However, if war breaks out beforehand, we will hit the streets immediately." Other delegates also indicated they may take to the streets again before next February if they were convinced the US had already decided to wage war on Iraq.
"This war, when it comes, will be one of the most unpopular in history and we have to do something to try to stop it," said Alain Krivine, a far-left French member of the European parliament who took part in Saturday's protest. "Florence has shown that there is radical opposition, from young and old people, and from all different countries."
Whatever about the future plans of the "New Global" or anti-globalisation movements, the social forum organisers had every reason to feel satisfied with the peaceful nature of Saturday's mass protest. For much of the last month, the Italian media had been warning of a possible repeat of the violent incidents which marred last year's G8 summit in Genoa where one protester was killed, hundreds injured and millions of euro worth of damage inflicted.
On Saturday, however, the 6,000-strong security forces kept a relatively low profile, avoiding any direct confrontation with a demonstration which, in any case, was totally festive and peaceful. The presence of a 3,500-strong force of volunteer stewards, many supplied by Italy's largest trade union, the CGIL, also did much to ensure the lack of untoward incidents.
The Prime Minister, Mr Silvio Berlusconi, who had grave reservations about the holding of the forum in Florence, expressed his gratitude to police and security forces yesterday. "I thank with all my heart the security forces who acted with great efficiency and professionalism."
Amongst the protesters, however, there were those such as Alfio Nicotra of Rifondazione Communista who argued that the Prime Minister and his government should apologise for their risk-mongering in the run-up to the event.
Although it represented by far the most important moment of last week's forum, Saturday's march was only the climax of four days of meetings, seminars, "chat-ins" and concerts addressing a bewildering range of issues. Environmental questions, debt-reduction, relations between Islam and Christianity, worldwide disarmament, racism, ethnic minorities, women's rights, child labour and workers' rights were just some of the issues discussed by more than 15,000 delegates from all over the world.
An estimated 150 Irish people were in Florence for the forum and march. A spokeswoman, Ms Aoife Ní Fheargaill, said: "The feeling here today is that we can beat Bush and Blair. Irish people at home can assist the anti-war effort by building for the Irish demonstration on December 7th in Dublin."