Advertisement
Advertisement
Nick: I'm here because making lives in Syria more miserable is not going to solve the problem. I'm being very selfish: It makes us ever more a target for terrorism. But I think the real reason is bombing never solves any problem in the world at all.So how do we combat this apocalyptic death cult of pure unadulterated evil?
I do not know. It's a battle of ideas, and it's a long process in terms of trying to persuade those of the Islamic faith that fundamentalism is not the way to go. There's also a battle to be had in persuading, for example, Saudi Arabia, in being more liberal in its views and other countries that formalize more extreme forms of Islam into their legal system.
Advertisement
I'd rather not comment on that… [pause]… to be a bit mealy-mouthed about it: Jeremy Corbyn is a man of great principle. But I don't think he's a unifying force in the Labour Party.
Toby: I completely disagree with bombing Syria. I think it just perpetuates terrorism and it makes us responsible for terrorism—and we shouldn't be responsible for it.Do you think they're gonna bomb anyway in spite of all the people who don't want it?
Yes.Is that depressing?
I think it's just, you know, we live in democracy and it's our right to protest and we should. It lets people in other countries know that we're against what our government is doing and shows that there's a failure somewhere in the democratic process.
Bearded Man: Because we don't want to escalate it. There's a terrible civil war going on in Syria, we should be helping refugees, not bombing them!But don't the attacks in Paris make this necessary?
That's a load of nonsense! If anyone wants to commit criminal acts and do whatever, they'll do it. That's about policing and intelligence.Ian: Actually it'll mean there are more terrorist attacks. The people who are being bombed, ISIS, are actually in favor of being bombed. It makes them martyrs. They're not afraid of death, are they?
Advertisement
Carole: I'm not a member of the Labour Party either but I paid my £3 to vote for him and so far he's been excellent. I'm an old woman now—the same age as Corbyn—and I know what war's about. We haven't got the right in anybody's name to commit all these young people to another war.Bearded Man: Who do you write for?
It's called VICE.Bearded Man: Vice! Carol knows all about vice. Ask her what she got up to in the 60s.Carol: I'll tell you something about vice. When you get to my age, you've got two alternatives: either you pay for it or you have a vivid imagination. My imagination is boundless.Thanks Carol.
Kim: I took the train all the way down from a tiny place in Gloucestershire because the last time there was a big protest, before the Iraq war, my children were a lot younger and I couldn't come. And every time I heard something about it afterwards, I thought, 'I should've come.' Not because I think being here will make a difference but because it means whatever little power I've got, I've done something.What about the argument that the Paris attacks means we need to do something?
It's not a good argument. Violence doesn't solve violence. That said I don't know what the answer is. But if I'm stood in my cosy kitchen and I hear on Radio 4 that they've just bombed a school… I don't want it to be as a result of my government.
Advertisement
Josie: I'm a big fan. I think he can make it through to the next election.What about the others in his party who want him to resign over this?
The idea of a party whip and everyone in the party having the same beliefs is ridiculous. There should be internal conflict. You want there to be debate not just across parties but within them. It's not something that invalidates the leader.
Kasya: I'm here because dropping missiles in Syria isn't going to solve our problems. It's a short-term answer to a long-term problem. This has been happening for long enough… starting another way in another country is not going to solve the problem. We need peaceful solutions.And how long are you going to sit here?
As long as it takes!
Bashir: I didn't. Well, I didn't know this was going on. (laughs)Well what do you think of it?
I just saw the signs…"Don't Bomb Syria." People need to be aware of what's going on in the world. The things that are happening in Syria are really bad.Will bombing make things worse?
Of course. That's how ISIS started. When people lose their homes, lose their family, they get angry. And they need to put their frustration somewhere. And this is where it starts. Then things like Paris happen. It'll lead to more violence.
Ifti Shah: He's a problem. He's an apologist for imperialism. He hasn't said once that Britain is the cause of all these global problems. He hasn't once talked about capitalism. He hasn't once talked about racism. He's just playing his part in the mainstream bullshit politics that this country is a professional at disseminating. Fuck this man! Fuck Britain! Fuck the British state!
Advertisement
They don't give a shit about the people of the Middle East. They want to control the region.
Georgia: Just because I think we're making the same mistake we've made a million times. It's just repetition, repetition, repetition. I don't understand it.So how do we defeat ISIS?
Not through bombing. Things have gotten way worse since we started bombing. We're already bombing in Iraq. I don't understand the logic of bombing for peace.
Zuhair: Absolutely. We don't want another war. We saw what happened in Iraq and Afghanistan and everywhere, and we don't want another war. The war will not sort out ISIS.What do you think of the way Jeremy Corbyn's handled his response? He's looking to grassroots support like this to oppose the war.
I think it's absolutely fantastic. We all have to stand by him. I think he has a big challenge in parliament and I'm absolutely with him. We need to support him more and educate people more so they know what war is about. We have a lot of evidence that war doesn't sort out the problem at all.Was it important that your children came here too?
Absolutely. It's very important for them to see what's happening. They are too small to understand. They are very young. But they need to see. They have cousins in Syria. And they need to see what is happening.Follow Yohann on Twitter.Follow Chris on Twitter.