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Defending our liberties
David Polden
8 October saw two attempts by
police to restrict protest, and
stout resistance.
Up at Menwith Hill the US spy
base, Yorkshire Police tried to use
the Public Order Act (1986) to forbid demonstrators at the annual
"Keep Space for Peace" demo
from walking round the base (as
usual) because it was "too dangerous and would cause serious
disruption to the local community".
On 8 October, about 100 people assembled in the presence of
police on horses, cycles and
motorcycles, but were prevented
from walking by a police cordon.
Organisers, the Campaign for
the Accountability of American
Bases, told North Yorkshire Police
that they caused disruption to the
community by blocking the road.
London march
Two weeks before it was due to
take place on 8 October (the day
parliament re-opened), police
banned the anti-war march from
Trafalgar Square to Parliament
Square, using the Metropolitan
Police Act (1839).
Organisers, the Stop the War
Coalition were defiant. In the end
it was the authorities who backed
down and lifted the ban hours
before the march started.
The ban had greatly increased
the numbers intending to take
part. In the end, on a Monday
lunchtime, some 5,000 people
marched down Whitehall against
war and for the right to protest!
Sit-down
Because of the fence around Par-
liament Square (put up in August),
the police had difficulty squeezing
demonstrators in while keeping
traffic moving, and there were sit-downs in the road (pictured on
p5), with arrests. Later much of
the fence was pushed down.
Brian Haw targeted
Nine days later, GLA-hired security guards dismantled displays
attached to the resurrected fence
and took down all tents except
one (for authorised demonstrator
Brian Haw!). They were all left in a
smashed heap on the pavement.
The neighbouring Burmese
peace camp was also moved on.
However, a court case this year
found that Brian requires supporters at the camp to ensure that the
peace camp is supervised at all
times. Police restrictions allow up
to 20 persons at the camp.
So where are supporters supposed to stay at night?
Menwith SOCPA
Returning to Menwith, on 10
October, Helen Johns and Sylvia
Boyes were given a three-month
conditional discharge for criminal
trespass at Menwith Hill in April
2006, under section 128 of the
Serious Organised Crime and
Police Act (2005) which makes it
an offence to trespass on national
security "designated sites" (13 so
far), and which lays down a maximum sentence of 51 weeks
and/or a fine of £5,000!
The two had been arrested for
this on, suitably, 1 April 2006, the
day the section came into force,
when they stepped into the base.
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