200,000 in Edinburgh Make Final Call to G8 for Anti-Poverty Actions

The high-profile Make Poverty History rally yesterday drew over 200,000 from the UK and Europe to the capital of Scotland, Edinburgh. Standing in solidarity with the world’s poorest continent - Africa - campaigners all dressed in white and formed a white walking band around the landmark hilltop castle.

The crowd blew whistles, banged drums, waved placards that read "Water not war" and "Drop the debt," donned kilts and flashed their white wristbands, a symbol of the UK-based Make Poverty History campaign.

Individuals have poured out their hearts to demand leaders of the world’s richest countries, who are arriving for the G8 summit, to eradicate world poverty by sharing out their wealth in the light of the widening gap between the rich and the poor in the world.

At 3:00 p.m. (1400 GMT) sharp, the marchers stopped and held hands, forming a giant human chain beneath the castle. They observed a minute's silence in memory of the many millions who have died in poverty.

Richard Bennett, the chairman of the Make Poverty History campaign said, "Thirty thousand children die every day as a result of extreme poverty."

"That is one every three seconds. It's totally avoidable, and the fact that it is avoidable makes it unacceptable."

Both the British Prime Minister Tony Blair and his finance minister Gordon Brown are in strong alliance to give full backing to the Make Poverty History campaign.

"We are today seeing Britain at its best, united as one for a great cause," Gordon Brown told a gathering in Edinburgh at the end of the rally. "Round the world, people, whether in rallies or concerts, are coming together in a movement of millions for debt relief, aid and trade justice."

The aggressive wake-up call yesterday is to coincide with the G8 summit that will be held in Gleneagles, Scotland, from Wednesday 6th July. Yesterday, the delegates started arriving at the Gleneagles Hotel in Perthshire, a short distance away from Edinburgh.

Waves of people were also seen moving in Hyde Park, London, where the Live 8 concert featuring some 25 acts such as U2, Madonna, REM, Mariah Carey, Pink Floyd, Coldplay, Bob Geldof and Elton John, was held. More than 150,000 people gathered in the park to support the anti-poverty call from the worldwide celebrities.