Critics of Alastair Campbell, former Director of Communications in the Blair government, will join a demonstration when he speaks at the UEA on Wednesday (Feb 5th).
Among them will be Rupert Read, lead candidate for the Green Party in the east of England at the European elections in May.
Dr Read, who is 80% on leave this semester from his usual teaching and research duties at UEA, so that he can run for election to the European Parliament, said:
"Blair lied, and as a result hundreds of thousands died. But the man who crafted Blair's lies was of course Alastair Campbell.
"Campbell is partly to blame for the low repute in which politicians are now held by most of the public. But we in the Greens are different: whether you like what we say or not, you can trust us to tell it as it is. I'm demonstrating against Alastair Campbell because I want to put clear green water between the likes of him and the likes of us. And to make clear that we, the British people, have not forgotten or forgiven his 'dodgy dossier' which eased the path to the criminal attack on Iraq."
Mr Campbell, now a novelist and diarist who has recently been appointed interviewer for the lifestyle magazine GQ, is due to speak to a sell-out audience of almost 500 as part of the Spring Literary Festival at UEA. The action outside the UEA Lecture Theatres from 18.15 is supported by People's Assembly UEA, UEA People and Planet and UEA Greens.
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