FL MORRIS / FMORRIS@STARBULLETIN.COM
Demonstrators hold war protest signs
during demonstrations yesterday along Ala
Moana fronting the federal building.

Air war brings urgency
to Hawaii peace events

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Star-Bulletin staff

A weekly peace vigil in front of the Prince Kuhio Federal Building took on a new sense of urgency yesterday, a day after the United States began strikes against targets in Afghanistan.

The vigils for peace and justice have been held Fridays from 4 to 6 p.m. since Sept. 11, but the Ad Hoc Committee for Peace called an emergency vigil in response to the bombings.

About 40 people lined Ala Moana yesterday bearing signs condemning war, bombing, racism and oppression. Many wore green armbands symbolizing life, peace, unity and healing. Some carried ti leaves.

FL MORRIS / FMORRIS@STARBULLETIN.COM
Darlene Rodrigues writes a war protest sign.

Kyle Kajihiro, program director for the American Friends Service Committee, said the U.S. retaliation "just raises the stakes for everyone."

"It heightens the risk factor for possible retaliation" and could increase tension in the Middle East if there are civilian casualties, he said.

Other peace events this week include the third "From Terrorism to Peace" forum, sponsored by the Spark Matsunaga Institute for Peace, at noon today in the University of Hawaii-Manoa Bilger Hall auditorium.

Tomorrow, Professors Opposed to War and University Peace Initiative will hold its second forum on "Why War? Questioning U.S. Foreign Policy and Terror Rhetoric." Similar forums are scheduled for Oct. 17 and 24.