Wooooosh – we've launched another counter-offensive UKTI: Armed and Dangerous!
This weekend around 100 dedicated supporters and members of staff congregated in Conway Hall with bleary eyes but in eager anticipation of CAAT's new focus, a day of skills sharing and a good old veggie lunch.
Our guest speaker Solomon Hughes, author of 'War on Terror, Inc. - Corporate profiteering from the politics of fear', emphasised the importance of CAAT's work, especially with regards to our new campaign. Solomon highlighted that profits are regularly a driving force behind military and security policy. This certainly appears to be true within the fledgling UK Trade and Industry Defence and Security Organisation (UKTI DSO) department.
UKTI DSO is the focus of our new core campaign for this very reason. Supporters learnt how this new department is in some ways a follow on from the Defence Export Support Organisation (DESO), in that it's mandate is very similar. UKTI DSO is responsible for the promotion of military exports, finding and encouraging new and emerging markets and assisting, exhibiting and promoting British-manufactured weaponry at international arms fairs, including Farnborough and DSEi here in the UK. Not only is this department funded by the taxpayer but it is disproportionate in many ways to the importance of the arms trade to the British economy. Attentive ears learnt how arms manufacturers receive support equitable to that provided to all other businesses combined. In terms of the input of arms production to the UK economy, they should really only have 2 members of staff and a tin of biscuits, and yet they have 170 staff, as well as their own board member.
Sarah and Selina outlined the initial stages of what we hope will be a successful campaign calling for the closure of UKTI DSO without the transfer of its functions and an end to government support for this deadly industry. Starting with a launch action on the 24th November, outside UKTI headquarters in London, they outlined and active and persuasive game plan based in hard facts and modern political realities. An encouraging response to our Andrew Cahn postcard initiative sparked a buzzing atmosphere and was a great start to the campaign, as supporters pledged to distribute postcards far and wide with a personal target of at least five sign-ups. They also identified that with UKTI DSO attending so many arms fairs annually there will be plenty of opportunities to expose the realities of their work, and ask other UKTI employees 'do you know where your colleagues are today...?'
So as the days Rolls Royce by, we'll be showing the government, UKTI, and arms companies that their interdependent relationship is wrong and something that the British public will not stand for. This CAAT and mouse game is far from over so watch this space, and be prepared to join in!
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