At least 150 000 demonstrators Friday marched through Melbourne to
oppose the looming US-led war in Iraq in the first of a series of
weekend protests across Asia.
The rally, which organisers said was the largest protest in Australia since the Vietnam War, began with mock air raid sirens to symbolise air attacks on Baghdad.
Offical police estimates put the number at 150,000, although organisers claimed it was closer to 200,000.
Protesters chanted anti-war slogans and waved placards reading "No War for Oil" and "Will the Pollies' (politicians') Kids Go to War?"
They were addressed by a range of celebrity protestors and politicians, including Greens Leader Senator Bob Brown, who told the crowd: "This war is not Australia's war." A series of marches were being planned through all of Australia's state capitals while across Asia hundreds of thousands of anti-war demonstrators were preparing for a weekend of protests.
Politicians, activists, celebrities and ordinary citizens alike were set to join rallies as part of a worldwide weekend of demonstrations which organisers hope will send a message of peace to Washington.
Australia has committed 2,000 troops to war preparations in the Gulf and Prime Minister John Howard, along with British Prime Minister Tony Blair, has been a staunch backer of US President George W. Bush's stance on Iraq.
However, opinion polls show only six percent of Australians support war against Iraq without United Nations backing and one in three oppose war under any circumstances.
Students, professors, artists and Muslims were planning a "March for Peace" through the Philippine capital Manila on Friday that was to end in a candlelight vigil outside the US embassy.
"We march to tell President (Gloria) Arroyo: Do not prepare for war," said organizer Allan Jose Arcebuche, a Roman Catholic priest.
Arroyo is an open supporter of Bush's war on terrorism.
"The people understand that we have nothing to gain from this war. US aggression in Iraq serves US interests." In Japan, a demonstration is planned in front of the US embassy at noon on Saturday and a parade from Tokyo's trendy Shibuya district was scheduled for later in the day.
At noon on Sunday about 30 protesters including high school students will gather at Tokyo's Narita airport before flying to Iraq where they hope to act as human shields against any attack.
"I've seen many people there laughing and smiling. They do not hope for a war," said Masaaki Kozaki, a member of the group who has already visited Iraq once. "I wonder, do we have to attack them again?" In Thailand, about 5,000 people are expected to take part in demonstrations at a downtown Bangkok park, from where they will march to the US embassy.
"The main objective is to oppose war and agression against other countries, and to find peaceful solutions to the conflict," organiser Niti Hasan told AFP.
Anti-war sentiment has even reached the tiny South Pacific island nation of Fiji, where the Fiji Anti-War Movement (FAWM) sent floral messages to foreign embassies imploring them to pressure the US and its allies to avoid war.
"These flowers are our determined reminder to leaders George W.
Bush, John Howard and especially Tony Blair: Don't sacrifice beautiful young lives for your own interests," said FAWM spokesperson Stanley Simpson of the protest in the capital Suva.
The bouquets contained the message "Don't kill love by making war".
In New Zealand, the environmental group Greenpeace said they would fly anti-war banners over yachting's America's Cup in Auckland, which starts Saturday.
Several organisations in Hong Kong, including the Beijing-backed party, the Democratic Alliance for the Betterment of Hong Kong, staged protests on Friday outside the US consulate. A larger rally outside the US and British consulates was planned for Saturday.
Islamic Asia is also due to mark its opposition to the war. On Saturday, hundreds of Malaysian activists are expected to protest in the capital Kuala Lumpur and on the island state of Penang.
Arutchelvan Subramaniam, of rights group Voice of the Malaysian People, told AFP that organisers would collect anti-war signatures during the gathering to be presented to Prime Minister Mahathir Mohamad.
And in the Islamic republic of Pakistan, the Lahore-based Pakistan Anti-War Committee, a coalition of labour and political groups, says it has protests planned for 20 cities.
In India, only the eastern metropolis Calcutta expected any protests, with a rally organised for Saturday by the province's ruling Marxist-led coalition - Sapa-AFP.
The rally, which organisers said was the largest protest in Australia since the Vietnam War, began with mock air raid sirens to symbolise air attacks on Baghdad.
Offical police estimates put the number at 150,000, although organisers claimed it was closer to 200,000.
Protesters chanted anti-war slogans and waved placards reading "No War for Oil" and "Will the Pollies' (politicians') Kids Go to War?"
They were addressed by a range of celebrity protestors and politicians, including Greens Leader Senator Bob Brown, who told the crowd: "This war is not Australia's war." A series of marches were being planned through all of Australia's state capitals while across Asia hundreds of thousands of anti-war demonstrators were preparing for a weekend of protests.
Politicians, activists, celebrities and ordinary citizens alike were set to join rallies as part of a worldwide weekend of demonstrations which organisers hope will send a message of peace to Washington.
Australia has committed 2,000 troops to war preparations in the Gulf and Prime Minister John Howard, along with British Prime Minister Tony Blair, has been a staunch backer of US President George W. Bush's stance on Iraq.
However, opinion polls show only six percent of Australians support war against Iraq without United Nations backing and one in three oppose war under any circumstances.
Students, professors, artists and Muslims were planning a "March for Peace" through the Philippine capital Manila on Friday that was to end in a candlelight vigil outside the US embassy.
"We march to tell President (Gloria) Arroyo: Do not prepare for war," said organizer Allan Jose Arcebuche, a Roman Catholic priest.
Arroyo is an open supporter of Bush's war on terrorism.
"The people understand that we have nothing to gain from this war. US aggression in Iraq serves US interests." In Japan, a demonstration is planned in front of the US embassy at noon on Saturday and a parade from Tokyo's trendy Shibuya district was scheduled for later in the day.
At noon on Sunday about 30 protesters including high school students will gather at Tokyo's Narita airport before flying to Iraq where they hope to act as human shields against any attack.
"I've seen many people there laughing and smiling. They do not hope for a war," said Masaaki Kozaki, a member of the group who has already visited Iraq once. "I wonder, do we have to attack them again?" In Thailand, about 5,000 people are expected to take part in demonstrations at a downtown Bangkok park, from where they will march to the US embassy.
"The main objective is to oppose war and agression against other countries, and to find peaceful solutions to the conflict," organiser Niti Hasan told AFP.
Anti-war sentiment has even reached the tiny South Pacific island nation of Fiji, where the Fiji Anti-War Movement (FAWM) sent floral messages to foreign embassies imploring them to pressure the US and its allies to avoid war.
"These flowers are our determined reminder to leaders George W.
Bush, John Howard and especially Tony Blair: Don't sacrifice beautiful young lives for your own interests," said FAWM spokesperson Stanley Simpson of the protest in the capital Suva.
The bouquets contained the message "Don't kill love by making war".
In New Zealand, the environmental group Greenpeace said they would fly anti-war banners over yachting's America's Cup in Auckland, which starts Saturday.
Several organisations in Hong Kong, including the Beijing-backed party, the Democratic Alliance for the Betterment of Hong Kong, staged protests on Friday outside the US consulate. A larger rally outside the US and British consulates was planned for Saturday.
Islamic Asia is also due to mark its opposition to the war. On Saturday, hundreds of Malaysian activists are expected to protest in the capital Kuala Lumpur and on the island state of Penang.
Arutchelvan Subramaniam, of rights group Voice of the Malaysian People, told AFP that organisers would collect anti-war signatures during the gathering to be presented to Prime Minister Mahathir Mohamad.
And in the Islamic republic of Pakistan, the Lahore-based Pakistan Anti-War Committee, a coalition of labour and political groups, says it has protests planned for 20 cities.
In India, only the eastern metropolis Calcutta expected any protests, with a rally organised for Saturday by the province's ruling Marxist-led coalition - Sapa-AFP.
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