Parliament Square camps cleared by police for tenth anniversary of Iraq war

IssueApril 2013
News by Timothy Bidon

On 8 March, a police and council swoop removed the peace camps in Parliament Square that have been a symbol of war resistance in central London since 2001, when a vigil was begun by the late Brian Haw.

The camps, which have long been seen as a form of resistance to British imperialism, were cleared just days before the tenth anniversary of the invasion of Iraq.

Westminster council claimed the tents had been left unoccupied for 48 hours, according to a report in the local newspaper West End Extra.

This is not the first time the Parliament Square peace campers have struggled with their tents being removed. Last December, Parliament Square Peace Campaign activist Barbara Tucker began a 30-day hunger strike in protest at the removal of two tents.

Her protest was suspended in January, but resumed again in February of this year.

According to the campaign website, Tucker is joined by two other activists in this ongoing hunger strike.

Brian Haw refused to leave until an end to British involvement in Iraq and Afghanistan, and remained committed to his peace camp until his death in June 2011.

Topics: Repression