TORONTO – Beatle Lennon says he and his wife Yoko Ono wanted to go to Biafra a few months ago but decided against it because they do not want to become martyrs for peace.

The Lennons are in Canada gathering ideas for spreading a peace movement to young people around the world.

Lennon said they decided not to visit Biafra because “we’re scared to go to where it’s happening because we don’t want to be dead saints.”

“I’m scared to go to Vietnam and Biafra. Until I’m convinced that I can do better there than I can do outside, I’ll stay outside.”

Ono told a crowded news conference that this year’s pop festivals at Woodstock and Idlewild in the United States were “very historical” because “before that when that number of people gathered it was only for war.”

The festivals, which attracted thousands of young people, were quiet. If this quiet, peaceful mood can spread, she said, “the noisy people, the violent people will become ashamed.”