Istanbul
With generous support of Belgian comrades Yves and myself travelled to Istanbul for the International Anti-Imperialist Peace Summit organized by TIP - The Turkish Workers Party on 4 July 2026. The summit was scheduled to correspond with the NATO 2026 summit in Ankara. While the Turkish state permitted the peace summit in Istanbul it was not without interference and of course with more than 200 citizens in Ankara jailed 2 weeks before the arrival of the western dignitaries. Of the european activists and invitees that came to Istanbul, our two fellow Belgians from Vrede were interrogated for a couple hours before being allowed leave the airport. 5 europeans from different organisations were detained upon arrival and then sent back to their countries. Some of them were scheduled to speak at the Summit.
The summit functioned extremely well with no visible problems. Very surprising for a first major international conference by the TIP. Very many official speechs occurred in various languages with simultaneous translation. It was stimulating to hear different ideas and stories from numerous cities and countries from across the world. There was an inspiring continuity across people and networks with a common thread of humanism underpinning a criticism of capitalist power structures feeding democratic disfunction, corruption, keynesian militarism, ecological dismissal and unfit approaches to the future. Obviously colonialism, imperialism and war were constantly brought up to be denounced. Futures with justice, fairness, equality, sharing, ecological care, peace and organised political awareness that makes this possible, were described and championed.
On Sunday following the summit, a large march against NATO and for peace was organized. More than 20 left wing parties walked one after the other with the 1000 or so TIP members making up about half of the total that made it to the central square. Here speeches were given and filmed in the big crowd. Myself and two other comrades were able to make speechs that were translated into Turkish for the public and shared online. The demonstration was permitted even though there was a heavy police presence. The previous evening 100 activists and personalities were put in jail to weaken the weaken the event and remind everyone who is the authority.
Documentation from the summit, including the final declaration, is available on the “A Budget for Peace, Not War” event website: https://notonato2026.org/en.
Chicago
Less than two weeks later I was in Chicago and I attended a protest against the US/Israel war against Iran.
It was planned for Trump Tower chicago but the police forbade it. Moved across the street it was once again forbidden. In the subsequent arguments between police and organisers, an organising association leader was arrested and brought to jail.
The demonstration moved down the street and to one side of Trump Tower and numerous speeches were made in front of a small group of citizens.
Photos of signs and posters expressing opposition to the war by Chicago residents
