So, finally we have the caravan here. This is a brief summary of the day:So, finally we have the caravan here. This is a brief summary of the day:
The busses arrived at 4 PM, so the day started pretty late. Just the time to have a shower and some food — something that takes hours if you multiply everything by 270 — and there where two important deadlines: the presentation meeting and an anti-war demonstration, one of the many going on every day in the whole Italian peninsula, from North to South.
The presentation meeting went pretty smooth — the various movements partecipating to the Caravan presented themselves, and there was also some practical issue like giving to all indians a map of the city together with reference phone numbers, plus money changing and phone cards distribution. At the end, we presented the peace demonstration and asked — if people was not too tired after such a long travel, from Paris to Milan by bus — to partecipate to it.
At 6.30 PM there was the demonstration organized in Piazza Castello by the "Women in Black", a peace movement mainly female-based focusing very much on the human side of war, i.e. WHAT IT COST TO HUMANITY!!! The Caravaneers which felt like partecipating to it gathered in the Leonca's yard and — surprise — it was almost all of them!!
So, free subway because the bus drivers were tired, till the center — the Castle — where the demonstration was called. At 7 PM a couple of thousands people moved around the park surrounding the castle and after some walk planted 350 white crosses by the Arena, to simbolize the children killed in those last days by the folly of NATO bombing and Serbian nationalism.
Everything went perfect, but relaxed as everybody was, it got late. So, back again to the Leoncavallo for dinner, then public meeting with the Madres de Plaza de Mayo. This was quite crowded but it was kept to a minimum, so to end by midnight and allow people to rest — altough some Caravaneers hanged around with us till 3 AM. Tomorrow morning, demonstration by the Stock Exchange.