Sardinia: Demonstration against NATO’s Trident Juncture training

“Trident Juncture shows that NATO’s capabilities are real and ready,” said NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg on Wednesday 4 November 2015. Trident Juncture, NATO’s largest exercise in over a decade, involved more than 36,000 personnel, more than 230 units, more than 140 aircraft and more than 60 ships. It took place in a number of locations, including Italy.

On 3 November , Teulada military base in Sardinia was the focus of a demonstration to disrupt the ongoing NATO training and to complain strongly about the continued destruction and poisoning of the island.

For over 50 years, Sardinia has been used by armies and arms manufacturers to test weapons. For many it’s an island of sun and vacation but it currently also hosts 61% of Italian militarised zones (servitu militari) and the three biggest military weapons testing ranges and rocket launch sites in Europe. Over decades, cancer, leukemia and birth defect rates have been increasing. Sardinians and others claim the soil, air, food and water are contaminated with heavy metals, jet fuel and depleted uranium. The island has a long history of opposition to its military slavery.

In the days leading up to the demonstration, 20 people received expulsion orders and the demonstration was forbidden by local police. On the day of the demonstration, more than 600 people from all over Sardinia arrived at Porto Pino in order to march towards the Teulada military base. After a long walk and clashes with police, most of the demonstration remained blockaded on the road but at least 20 demonstrators managed to cut the base’s fence and enter. This forced the military to stop the training exercise, a result comparable to the efforts and results of NoMuos demonstrations.

For pictures and other updates, check #notrident on Twitter.

For a detailed account, check Infoaut’s article.

Originally from the Struggles in Italy blog.