From: Sarah Waldron, Campaign Against Arms Trade
Sent: ‎02/‎10/‎2017 13:55
To: Ms jacqui lovell
Subject: Out of the shadows, blocking and exposing the arms trade

Weapons manufacturer BAE was at the Excel centre, London twice in September: first at a massive arms fair, then it came back to try to polish its image at ‘New Scientist Live.’ Ask New Scientist to find more ethical sponsors.

This weekend, at a family-friendly 'festival of ideas' in London, New Scientist was helping profile weapons manufacturer BAE Systems.

'New Scientist Live' is a “celebration of science” which promised to “touch on all areas of human life” - yet it lent legitimacy to a company whose warplanes are currently tearing apart human life in Yemen.

Take action: caat.org.uk/new-scientist

BAE Systems sponsored the festival's Engineering Zone, with the cost of sponsorship a small price to pay for the opportunity to present itself as a force for good in the world. Meanwhile, with no hint of irony, oil corporation Shell sponsored the Earth Zone, despite its record of contaminating the environment and funding attempts to undermine climate science.

Working with our friends at Art Not Oil, Campaign Against Climate Change, Medact and Scientists for Global Responsibility, we are calling on the New Scientist to rethink its approach to sponsorship. Please add your voice here.

These sponsorship deals are portrayed as harmless acts of charity, but in fact they are “an integral part of strategic business plans”, aimed at neutralising public opposition to these companies' toxic business, and maintaining the government support and subsidy that is essential to their operation. It's vital that we challenge this.

In the past our campaigning has persuaded the National Gallery, Natural History Museum and Cathedrals to stop supporting the arms trade. Take action and ask the New Scientist not to be co-opted by unethical companies.

Stopping the arms fair

Earlier in September BAE was among hundreds of arms companies exhibiting at the ExCeL Centre when it played host to DSEI, one of the world's largest arms fairs. This was one event the arms industry wanted to go ahead unnoticed by the public: it took place behind high fences and tight security and wasn't even listed on the ExCeL Centre's events calendar.

But two amazing weeks of action confronted and exposed it. Over 100 people were arrested after taking action to block entrances to the arms fair, locking bodies together across roads and  abseiling from bridges. Hundreds of people held the space with workshops, dancing, the sharing of food, and prayer, impeding the set-up of DSEI and making the links between the arms trade and repression around the world, nuclear weapons, borders, and environmental damage.

Watch the video reports here.

Art and theatre events and subvertising brought the arms fair to new audiences; creative interventions added humour and joy - it was certainly the first time we've seen a Dalek arrested!

This action was made possible and amplified by the support of many thousands of others – thank you to everyone who contributed in so many ways: from signing petitions, speaking out online and in your communities, to pet-sitting so others could protest, making beautiful props or food for protesters, and sending messages of support. 

Together we obstructed the arms fair and brought it out of the shadows.

§  Actions had a direct financial impact on the event, with military equipment blocked from entering the site for hours at a time. Some contractors reported receiving extra days of pay as protests prevented them starting work as scheduled.

§  Extensive national and international media coverage focused on the impact of the arms trade and UK complicity – such as Channel 4's repeated questioning of government Minister Liam Fox inside the arms fair, asking "How many civilian targets would have to get hit" before he would deny permission for arms sales to Saudi Arabia. 

§  The Mayor of London said he would like to see the arms fair banned; street artist Banksy donated a new artwork to the Art the Arms Fair exhibition, increasing publicity and raising money for more action against the arms trade and when celebrity chef Hugh Fearnley-Whittingstall found out that the Excel Centre had hosted the arms fair, he donated the profits from his on-site outlets to charity, saying "we do not want to profit from the spend of the arms trade"

§  Caroline Lucas MP commented "Over 100 people have been arrested because of their actions, but I have no doubt that history will judge kindly those who peacefully put their bodies in the way of an an arms fair which sells weapons to some of the world’s most brutal dictatorships."

Thank you to everyone who helped expose and challenge the arms fair!

Sarah Waldron
Campaign Against Arms Trade

P.S. Our success at DSEI took the arms trade out of the shadows – don’t let arms company BAE deflect attention from its devastating impacts around the world by buying the support of New Scientist.

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