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**Jay Coop** · 05-25-2021, 02:00 AM

P O L I T I C S
Largest protest in national history occurs in Ravneby
Allie Vega, Chief politics writer
Monday, 24 May 2021

Ravneby — The streets of the Valkyrian capital were filled by nearly a million people marching through the city Monday demanding the end of the Kalkara War. Led by Socialist leader Steve Bennett, whose daughter was killed in the war in April, the protest easily became the largest demonstration in Valkyrian history, overtaking the successful 1970 protest that demanded the end of Qvait's 47-year military dictatorship.

Fuelled by online activism and personal relationships, a coalition of socialists, anti-war organisations, veterans groups, and ethnic Hystaigans co-organised protests throughout Valkyria but especially in Ravneby, where they drew about 850,000 people to the capital. In solidarity with the protesters, nearly 1.5 million workers across the country engaged in a general strike, dealing a major blow to the Valkyrian economy.

Speaking in front of the massive crowd of protesters in the backdrop of the Utøvende housing Chancellor Stella Kaufman, Bennett called for the immediate end of the Kalkara War, fresh elections, and an investigation into the government's conduct surrounding the conflict, going so far as to accuse the government of being led by "liars, thieves, and murderers".

In his speech, Bennett named and denounced several Valkyrian soldiers who have been accused of committing war crimes in the Kalkara War, "These soldiers are a disgrace to their uniform and the flag that they wear on their arms." Himself a veteran of the Great War of 2014, the Socialist leader argued that there was "more honour" fought in the 2014 conflict by Qvait than the actions committed by the Defence Forces in Hystaiga.

Bennett also took offence to a statement made by Ground Service general Randver Bergsson, who said in late April that the military should receive authorisation to raze entire villages in Hystaiga, calling for him to be stripped of his rank and removed from the military. Comparing the general's statement, Bennett said, "Had any of my subordinates made such remarks about Sporaltryan villages in 2014, I would have removed them immediately."

Former Chancellor Margaret Harrison also joined the Socialist leader in Ravneby. After returning to politics earlier in 2021 to campaign for Referendum 7's passage, the influential Labor politician wrote on social media after Referendum Day to say that she would participate in the anti-war protest, prompting several Labor and Populist Left MPs to join as well and generating a wave of support from the centre-left, who had initially been supportive of the war.

"There is no peace in a world of lies, and there is no justice without truth," Harrison told the crowd, "We have been deceived by our leaders who told us that we have all the facts, but they have yet to give us all the facts on what happened in the nightclub." The former chancellor alluded to a 2019 chemical attack in a Ravneby (then Stockholm) nightclub that led to the Kalkara War, disputing the government's characterisation of the events.

Harrison was still the chancellor when the attack occurred, and the investigation was in its early stages when Kaufman succeeded her but said that there was "little evidence" that Hystaiga was responsible for the attack when she left office. The former chancellor called for an "independent inquiry" into the events preceding the war and the government to "defend and lay forth whatever evidence they had to conclude" that Hystaiga was responsible for the chemical attack.

On the ground in the protests, KTN spoke with several demonstrators about why they were participating.

Malcolm and Toni Black, a couple that travelled to Ravneby from Winston Island, said that two of their children, a son and a daughter, "were killed in a war they didn't believe in". Gabríela Deníelsdóttir, a nurse from Fjellby, told KTN that her husband's death "wasn't for the country, but for the government's lies". Many other demonstrators shared stories of their loved ones who were killed in the conflict.

David Manchester, a veteran of the 1960s resistance against the military dictatorship, told KTN that he was a longtime member of the Conservative Party and supported the Kaufman government until his son Andrew was allegedly killed by friendly fire while attempting to prevent his fellow soldiers from opening fire on Hystaigan civilians. He also questioned the investigation into the case, "The government is trying to cover up the circumstances of my grandson's death."

Even though Bennett is a socialist, Manchester said that the former soldier turned politician is right to call the Kaufman government "liars, thieves, and murderers". The retired veteran told KTN that he intends to vote for Bennett out of spite of the current government, "I don't agree with [Bennett's] economics, but he cares more about people than our current chancellor."

In anticipation of a mass protest, Home Secretary and New Right leader Nicole Chancellor mobilised the National Police to guard the Utøvende and capitol building and monitor the demonstrators. In a written statement, the home secretary said that "the National Police will protect the nation from unruly protesters".

However, the government had little to say during and after the protests. KTN's requests for comment from leading government officials have remained unanswered, and so have similar requests from other news organisations. In the past, some members of the New Conservative Coalition, including Chancellor, called Bennett and other politicians "traitors" and "seditious", but many were quiet and chose not to respond to the demonstration. Marvin Jensson, a Centrist Democrat, was the only MP from the Coalition to respond to KTN's inquiry and told KTN that the demonstrators had a "constitutional right to assemble" but offered little more to say about the protest.

According to a KTN poll conducted between 17–20 May, 44 per cent of Valkyrians approved of the government, less than the 51 per cent who opposed them. In the same poll, Valkyrians were equally divided on their support for the Kalkara War. To date, 13,834 Valkyrians have been killed in the Kalkara War, far surpassing the 3,624 who were killed in the Great War of 2014

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(This post was last modified: 05-25-2021, 05:21 PM by Jay Coop.)