Tribute to Redditch man's protest planned

Buy photos » Brian Haw could be commemorated in London following his ten year campaign against the Iraqi war. (s)

THE REDDITCH man who spent a decade camped outside the Houses of Parliament as a protest against the Iraq war could be immortalised in bronze at the spot he occupied.

Artist Amanda Ward has created a model which fellow campaigners hope will be turned in to a nine foot statue in the likeness of Brian Haw, who passed away last year following a battle with lung cancer.

The 62-year-old hit the headlines in 2001 when he set-up camp in Parliament Square, which was bitterly opposed by those in power with repeated attempts made to evict him including a High Court ruling secured by London Mayor Boris Johnson in March 2011.

The campaign needs to raise £60,000 to build and install the statue but any permanent tribute would also require planning permission. It has already been backed by a host of famous faces including philosopher and linguist Noam Chomsky, actress Vanessa Redgrave and MPs such as Caroline Lucas.

Any extra money raised will be donated to the Fallujah General Hospital in Iraq to help children orphaned by the war.

On the group's blog, Ms Ward said: "My project is to produce a fitting memorial to Brian Haw who bravely campaigned against war for ten years in Parliament Square and also for the people of Iraq and the two million who marched in vain.

"He stood there in all weathers with constant police harassment and politicians trying unsuccessfully to remove him."

Redditch MP Karen Lumley said as long as campaigners raised the money and the proper permissions could be gained she had no objection to the idea.

"A lot of people in Westminster thought very highly of him," she said.

Visit statueforbrianhaw.wordpress.com for more information about the project.

Regional news »