08 June 2004 07:46
US deploys 20,000 securitymen for G8 summit
ByLine: Peter Kahler, PANA Correspondent
Savannah, US (PANA) - With looming terror threats and the presence of hundreds of anti-globalisation protesters, the
US government has thrown a huge security blanket on Georgia, as leaders of the world's richest nations Tuesday
began meeting on Sea Island, outside here. The leader of Canada, France, Japan, Italy, Russia, Germany and Britain will
join host President George W. Bush for three days of talks on global issues under the auspices of the Group of Eight
most industrialised nations, the G8. Local, State and federal security operatives totalling 20,000, according to
official figures, have swooped on the State of Georgia, with a police precinct set up in a school building. In Savannah,
hundreds of police and military men are on foot patrol, some with snifter dogs, joined by scores of military and police
patrol vehicles. Military helicopters hover above and US Coastguard speed boats mounted with machine guns patrol the
Savannah River on the edge of the city, with the international media centre accessible only by officially accredited
journalists, farther away from the summit venue. Road blocks and removable steel fences are a common sight citywide,
complemented by traffic diversions, vehicle searches and screening of individuals. But the G8 summit is being held some
150-km away on Sea Island, which in itself provides a natural hindrance to potential terrorists and the protesters.
"The US is a nation at war and facing terrorist threats. We have to take all measures to protect the leaders of the
world's leading nations," said Dan Barlett, White House Communications Director on television. He thanked the
people of Georgia for their understanding and co-operation with the security measures which have sent the rather serene
Savannah into a sleepy mood. Protesters, who traditionally converge at venues of G8 summits to vent their concerns over
key global issues, seem not much of a threat, camped in faraway Brunswich and holding a thin march in Savannah,
punctuated by speeches in the two cities. "Since last Saturday we've seen a decline in customers due to the
overwhelming presence of the security men. My folks are even concerned when I come to work," said Stephanie, a
waitress at a restaurant downtown. "I'm scared to death," said a black woman in her 60s. "I am going
inside till they (security men) leave town," she added. One journalist said the security measures were
"unprecedented" for a G8 summit, while another newsman described the Georgia summit as the farthest the media
have ever been kept from the actual venue of a G8 summit. President Bush and some of his colleagues would have to fly
the 150-km distance to the international media centre to address an end-of-summit press conference Thursday after the
three-day talks.
[Panafrican News Agency (PANA) Daily Newswire] |
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