Flotilla time change

NOTE DATE CHANGE!
All Navy boats arriving Wednesday 16 November in groups of 4 from 5am – 2pm with a gun salute at 11am. Please feel free to go out on the water to protect the peace from these warships.

The planned peace flotilla has been postponed:
We will be meeting from 12.30pm in the harbour and surrounding the navy ships that will be lined up there, stationary, from 12.30pm-2.30pm. Navy event details here: http://nznavy75.co.nz/international-naval-review/

This flotilla is part of the ‘Week of Peace’ – a series of organised public demonstrations to challenge the business of war and send a message that peace is not just the absence of war, it’s something we must work actively towards. Please join us on the water – if you don’t have a boat, find someone who does to take you out, or borrow a kayak!

In 2011 Auckland was declared a city of peace. Yet this year, from November 13-20th, we are hosting a massive celebration of war. New Zealand is preparing to host major naval training exercises in the Hauraki Gulf with 17 countries including the US, Australia, and Indonesia. The government has committed an additional $20 billion to military spending over the next 15 years, and a major weapons expo is being held in Auckland to provide an opportunity for arms dealers to showcase their wares to potential customers.

Lockheed Martin, the world’s largest arms dealer, is a major sponsor of the Auckland weapons expo. The weapons business makes a few people very rich at the expense of the lives of millions around the planet. This flotilla and the Week of Peace will call out this glorified display of the repugnant commercialism of war. Preparing for war perpetuates war – we don’t want it, and we don’t need it.

You should be aware of the restrictions to public movement in the Waitemata Harbour and Hauraki Gulf during this time. Theoretically, if we observe these restrictions, we can’t be apprehended or moved on by police. This includes NO SWIMMING or diving at all within the ‘red zone’. Restricted areas are: 60m distance from anchored warships, 60m from the Auckland waterfront, roughly from the end of Wynyard Wharf to the Commercial Wharf Area (Ports of Auckland), 200m from Devonport naval base, and from moving warships the distance is 100m beside and behind, 500m in front.
Technical details here: https://gazette.govt.nz/notice/id/2016-go4597
Full list of confirmed visiting warships (and other craft and personnel) here: http://nznavy75.co.nz/welcome-readied-for-visiting-nationsl-to-navys-75th-celebration/

To lend support on land please meet near the Wynyard Bridge on the viaduct with your banners and placards from 12:30 – 2:30pm on Saturday.