Quakers oppose Telford Arms Fair
‘The kind of technology and equipment touted at the SDSC is associated with destruction and oppression right now.’
Quakers from Telford, Wolverhampton and Malvern joined others to witness against the Specialist Defence and Security Convention arms fair (SDSC-UK) this month.
In an open letter to the Telford International Centre (TIC), which hosted the arms fair on 2 November, local Quakers and other peace groups noted concerns that SDSC exhibitors included companies ‘linked to the Saudi-led coalition’s war in Yemen and the resulting humanitarian crisis, to anti-democratic surveillance and repression, and to the drone bombings, night raids and the killing of civilians in many countries’.
The open letter, presented to the TIC on 13 October and calling for the cancellation of the arms fair, said: ‘This is not just another industry show. SDSC-UK is part of the destructive global arms trade which drives armed conflict, oppression and human rights abuses around the world.’
‘We strongly object to an arms fair being held in Telford,’ said Ellis Brooks, Britain Yearly Meeting staff member and Bridgnorth resident. ‘The kind of technology and equipment touted at the SDSC is associated with destruction and oppression right now.’
Fiona McCleary, a Telford resident, said: ‘This deadly trade consumes over $100,000 billion every year which could be used for so many human needs around the world. According to [a 2022 estimate by international experts] an estimated 5.5 per cent of global warming emissions come from militarism. It really doesn’t match our values in Telford.’
After campaigners raised awareness of the arms fair, a popular grassroots live music venue in Southwater cancelled the arms fair’s booking for ‘welcome drinks & nibbles’ planned for the evening before the event.
On the day, Friends joined the regular midweek Meeting for Worship at The Octagon, Meeting Point House, in Telford town centre, and then travelled together to the nearby site of the arms fair, for a half-hour Meeting for Worship for witness.
Other Friends shared leaflets and protested as the delegates arrived and left in the morning and afternoon.
The Stop SDSC open letter is published online and was sent to the TIC by email and on social media, but, according to the campaigners, by 13 October, they had not received a response from the exhibition centre’s management. Campaigners then chose to hand-deliver the letter.
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