Michael Birmingham public talk in Wynn's Hotel - Tues 15th July 7.30pm

national | anti-war / imperialism | press release Tuesday July 08, 2003 14:11 by Aoife Ni Fhearghail - Irish Anti-War Movement info at irishantiwar dot org Kimmage 087 7955013

Michael Birmingham who has spent the greater part of this year witnessing the devastation caused to Iraq by US & British governments will speak at a public meeting next Tuesday about his experiences. The event is hosted by the Irish Anti-War Movement.

Michael Birmingham, Irish Human Rights activist, will address a public meeting organised by the Irish Anti-War Movement next Tuesday about the dire humanitarian situation in Iraq and his experiences there. The following day he returns to Iraq to continue his work monitoring the impact of the war and occupation on the lives of ordinary Iraqis. The meeting will be chaired by Richard Boyd Barrett of the Irish Anti-War Movement and begins at 7.30pm on Tuesday 15th July in Wynn’s Hotel, Lower Abbey St., Dublin 1.

Having spent the greater part of the past year in Iraq, Michael has witnessed the horrifying impact of the recent war on the country’s people and the continued hardship suffered by Iraqis under the US-led occupation. He has criticised the US Administration for failing to provide basics such as water and electricity for the people of Iraq while millions are spent maintaining Saddam Hussein’s former palace as the occupation’s administrative HQ.

Michael has spent the past 2 months documenting the daily human rights abuses of Iraq’s men, women and children and has written extensively for electronic.iraq - a website devoted to recording human rights violations in Iraq which receives over 500,000 hits a week.

Michael returned to Ireland recently to give evidence in the case of Mary Kelly in Kilrush and returns to Iraq on Wednesday. Michael was a founder member of both the Campaign to End the Iraq Sanctions and the Irish Anti-War Movement and has spent years working as a housing project officer in Tallaght.

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Further information - contact Aoife on 087 7955013