The protest action snaked its way through inner Auckland streets, flanked by a large police contingent determined to guard Mobil Oil, Television New Zealand, and the consulates of the United States, United Kingdom and Australian in Auckland.

The protesters included people of all ages, races and religions united in their opposition to the killing of innocents resulting from US President George W. Bush's decision to launch an unsanctioned war against Iraq.

The Auckland's busiest retail and commerce district ground to halt as the protest made its way to Queen Street.

A heavy police guard was deployed around Queen Street's British Consulate, Quay Street's Australian Consulate and Customs Street's United States Consulate buildings.

When the protesters stopped outside the US Consulate, they burned the United States flag while the New Zealand police passively looked on.

The protesters also hurled their outrage at the US-fed war coverage, and pro-US bias, emanating from New Zealand's state broadcaster TVNZ.

Thousands shouted shame and disgrace at Television New Zealand. Protest organizers from Global Peace and Justice Auckland crossed a police cordon to deliver a letter to TVNZ, demanding that it cease broadcasting its one-sided US-bent version of this war and that it endeavor to seek a real and honest account of atrocities being dealt to Iraqi innocents by coalition troops.

John Minto of Global Peace and Justice Auckland said: "We have been increasingly angered at TVNZ coverage of the US invasion of Iraq. We are quite used to TVNZ - along with much of the world's media - displaying a US centric view of the world in its coverage of international affairs."

Since the invasion began the coverage has slipped from merely poor quality, unbalanced reporting to the spreading of unashamed, blatant "pro-war" propaganda on behalf of the US. "We are deeply disgusted at the extent to which TVNZ has - through its news service - become a mouthpiece and visual portal for an unrelenting stream of bald US/UK propaganda and blatant lies," John Minto said.

(Xinhua News Agency April 13, 2003)