Home | 24th March 1995 | Issue 15

Justice? Brighton's Campaign in Defiance of the Criminal Injustice Act

SchNEWS
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CJA ARRESTOMETER
Hunt Sabs 148
Road Protectors 16
Travellers 11
No live exports* 3
Tree Defenders 2
* at least 450 arrested under 1986 Public Order Act so far this year! (250 @ Brightlingsea /150 @ Shoreham/ 100 @ various sabs)

YOU'RE NICKED!

POLLOK ATTACK

The shit has hit the fan in Glasgow. Wimpey bailiffs along with 32 vanloads of police invaded the Pollok Free State protest camp on Wednesday. They managed to cut down trees on the periphery of the main camp after an aerial battle in the treetops. Floodlights were set up last night and the eviction went on into the night. 15 arrests were made and one person was injured. The £53 million M77 will cut through the heart of Europe's largest urban green space.

As one protester said "Its a boxing match and this is just round one". The Glasgow community including local schoolchildren are trying to save more than 5,000 trees in a seven mile stretch. The remaining protesters are calling for people to get up there now! Call 0141 810 1600 / 0860 728244

POLICE AMBUSH

Ten sabs were ambushed by Sussex Police in a carefully sprung trap last week. They were driving down a public right of way when a police officer directed that they leave immediately and kindly showed them the track to take. As if by magic, approximately 25 police officers appeared out of nowhere, brandishing crowbars and jemmies, and forced an entry into the van. All ten occupants were arrested and handcuffed, during which process several sustained minor injuries. The van itself was completely stripped down. Was it coincidence that they were directed to leave via a private track, and that down that track lay 25 coppers?

THUGS FOXED

Two pro-hunt thugs from the Cheshire foxhunt were given 12 month prison sentences after being found guilty of violent disorder. Geoffrey Park and Anthony Kirkham were part of a ten-strong gang armed with pick axe handles and coshes who trashed a hunt sab van and beat up its occupants. A woman who ran far help was cornered by the gang, punched to the ground and then severely beaten. One cab sustained two black eyes, damaged kidneys, extensive cuts and bruising to the y and head.

NO ALTERNATIVE

A group of Scottish travellers have been forced by the CJA to dig in their heels to hold apiece of land and keep their children and homes safe for the winter months.

The Dengin travellers face two court cases, fast under the 1865 Highland clearance law known as the Criminal Trespass Act then under sec61 (1 & 4) of the CJA. They are asking for support on 28th April at Fort William Sheriff Court 10 am :"These laws effectively make our way of life illegal because there's nowhere in the country we can legally camp... even if we are given permission to camp, the landowners can be prosecuted for breach of planning permission. This applies even if we buy our own land. We have no alternative but to camp wherever we can find disused land. The only time we are not breaking the law is when we are moving from one site to another."

SchNEWS IN BRIEF

The No M65 Campaign is now focused on Stanworth Valley's "Village in the sky" which looks set to be evicted in the first week of April. They need more people URGENTLY 0161 861 7895/0585165311 (camp mobile)

*** Reclaim the Streets who campaign on various issues including pedestrian and cyclists rights, car culture etc. have opened a new office 0171 254 2290

*** the crucial European Parliament vote on the Trans-European Road Network (TERN) is due in early April. Write to your MEP asking him/her to support all amendments calling for more rigorous environmental assessments, and to re-evaluate the whole TERN network

*** HELP is needed with a book that is being written on the history of the Stonehenge festivals, their banning, how this led up to the CJA, the party scene and the philosophy of the Conservative Party. Contact Jim Loughran, 146 Cowesby Street, Manchester, M14 4UW.

COVENTRY AIRPORT: The campaign against live exports from the airport despite limited press coverage. 20-30 protesters are camping there every night, and numbers are swelled to 50+ during the day. The police attitude is "disgraceful generally." A 14 year old boy was arrested but is now back on site. Please show support by writing letters, giving donations etc. A campaign is also underway in Amsterdam, where the cargo ends up after Coventry.

INSIDE SchNEWS

How NOT to Write To Jailed Activists

At the Missile Silo Peace School in Missouri last July a number of people were talking about letters they got whilst in prison. They get great bags-full of letters all saying the same thing "What a wonderful thing you have dome- You are so brave! I would never have the courage to do such a thing. Thank God for people like you!"

They all hate this sort of letter. (I must admit I have written letters like that myself). I think the problem is that it makes the activist seem different from other people. They would much rather have letters telling them what you are doing, instead of what you feel you cannot do. One women said, "There was some guy in a Catholic Worker House somewhere who sent me these wonderful chatty letters about what was going on at the house."During one of my (very short) says in jail I got an illustrated letter. Nearly every thing in the text was illustrated in colour. It boosted my spirits for the rest of the day. Send me a picture of yourself m the fence of a missile silo."

So, don't tell imprisoned activists how much you admire their courage. Tell them instead about resistance in your area. Tell them about yourself. Be chatty. Illustrate the letter if you are artistic. Be a pen-pal, not a worshipper.
From Nuclear Resistance newsletter

STOP & SEARCH?

"In the case of the female, particularly the buxom girl, search in the fold under the breast, or in the cleavage "*

Harassment is a repugnant aspect of our society that is gradually being stamped out by the majority of decent-minded people. However in 1981 with the metropolitan police actively pursuing a policy of racial harassment known as 'Swamp', Brixton rioted.

Three days in April saw some of the most serious inner city riots that this country has seen since the war. In just one Saturday, 279 policeman and 45 civilians were injured. 61 private and 56 police vehicles were destroyed or damaged, and 145 properties were destroyed. The police were attacked with stones, iron bars and, for the fast time on this island, by petrol bombs. Later in the year, the riots spread to other parts of the country, such as the West Midlands, Manchester, and most notably, Liverpool which tragically resulted in the death of a disabled man.

Lord Scarman concluded that the immediate cause of the riots was the police stop and search policy, which resulted in the constant harassment of black people in Lambeth. The police operation Swamp '81 saturated the area with officers and stop and search people under section 66 of the 1839 Metropolitan Police Act, to attempt to rid the area of robbers and burglars.

The policy failed. In the five days that preceded the riots there were no fewer than 943 stop and searches; largely on blacks. According to Scarman the suspicion was created in the community that the police actions were dictated less by impartial enforcement of the law, and more by racial prejudice. The target of the rioters was undoubtedly the police - they simply wanted to get the police out of their area.

The government have not learnt from this. Now the Criminal Justice Act (CJA) introduces the most Draconian piece of stop and search legislation ever. Previous unjust legislation at least stated that the police needed to have 'reasonable suspicion' before they could stop and search for weapons or drugs. Sections 60 and 81 take away this provision in certain circumstances.

In section 60, on an order of a superintendent, an area can be specified, where the police have the power to stop and search anyone for weapons, for a period of 24 hours, if he 'reasonably believes' that a serious outbreak of violence may take place in that area. Failure to co-operate results in a maximum of one month imprisonment.

In section 81 a commander can authorise the stopping and searching of people in an area for up to 28 days if appears that it is 'expedient to do so to prevent acts of terrorism', for articles that may be of use to terrorism. Failure to co-operate could result in six months imprisonment.

Indiscriminate stop and search is a green light by the government for Swamp '81 type operations. An area such as Brixton could be designated an area of potential violence every Saturday. Football matches and music festivals are very much likely to suffer the same fate.

Provisions provided by the CJA go on top of the existing stop and search law. Although skin colour or hairstyle are not supposed to be the criterion used to judge 'reasonable suspicion' (this is undefined in law), in practice this is the criterion used. 42% of those stopped and searched in London under the Police and Criminal Evidence Act are from ethnic minority backgrounds despite the fact ethnic minorities amount for only 20% of the cities population.

It is true that areas such as Brixton do suffer from large crime rates. However, any sane society would look into the reason for this - such as poverty, lack of opportunities and wealth in an increasingly consumerist culture. The last thing the people of Brixton want, is constant police harassment to add to this. Fortunately, operations like Swamp '81 have not occurred since the riots. The rioters can, therefore, claim to have had a limited success. However, Scarman's recommendation that discriminatory behaviour become a special offence in the police disciplinary code, punishable by dismissal, was opposed by the police organisation and finally dismissed by William Whitelaw. The police still look at arrest figures when review promotion prospects. So, while there are laws such as the CJA and prejudiced, suburban-dwelling policemen, raised on Starsky and Hutch, anyone who does not fit into a white middle class stereotype, such as bikers, festival goers and football fans, should feel uncomfortable walking the sheet. How often is the Oxford commuter stopped and searched?

"To search the anus, bend the suspect down, splay the legs fully apart and look closely at the anus. Rarely when something has been introduced up the anus does the sphincter (ring of muscle at the anal orifice) fully close and this can be noticed and the appropriate recovery action taken"*

* extracts from Police Review article by Sergeant John H Burnett of Nottinghamshire Constabulary

Party and Protest

Sat 25th Mar Lobby Michael Howard's surgery 10.30 am Westcliffe Gardens, Folkestone Kent Defiance Alliance *** South Coast Against Road Building (SCAR) protests against Highways Agency planned destruction - more info 01273 677284

Mar 27- 31st Direct Action Conference in Berlin. 42-5-4221-0438 or SchNEWS

FRI 31st 'This Land Is Our Land' meeting 7pm Cooltan Arts, Coldharbour Lane, Brixton 071 7370100

SAT 1st APR - Brighton Demo against JobSeekers' Allowance. Assemble 12.30pm @ Peace Statue (Seafront) *** `Push the Law to it's Limit Day' - Wild Pear Centre, Combs Martin, North Devon, EX34. *** Mass trespass Brewery Fields, Bangor - site of proposed development on green field site 01248 600 286 *** Picnic in the Park/Anti CJA march Rugby 0788 817786

MON 3rd APR Workshop on fighting Interim Possession Orders (IPO) Tel: 071 277 7639 *** Day of Action against A30 in Devon 01392 43801

WE SAY...

WHO ARE THE REAL CRIMINALS?

Last week seemed to be one long depressing tale of evictions - the new camp at the No M11 Link Road, the Pollok Free State, the Cosmic Tree Village in Preston, Menwith Hill Peace Camp, numerous travellers sites..., our spaces to live, breathe and express ourselves get smaller and smaller, you sometimes wonder what's the point in carrying on, and how much is the next flight to Spain?

But who are the Real Criminals? TODAY BETWEEN 50 AND 75% OF BRITAIN IS OWNED BY 1% OF ITS PEOPLE

Justice? new squat, opened up bang in the middle of the main High Street, was served eviction papers before we'd even opened our doors to the public! More DiY culture in yer face - information and exhibitions, cafe, creche, free entertainment and a chilled-out party Saturday night. Criminal? Individuals and groups such as Justice? are taking the initiative in creating homes, culture and entertainment for themselves and their communities are being criminalised trader the CJA. Meanwhile the owners of the new squat -Lloyds Bank - rip off the third world and no one bats an eyelid.

"For every £1 the British public give charities for overseas aid, British banks take back £I1 in debt repayments from the third world." World Development MovementDuring the 1970s British banks went on a frenzied lending spree to Third World countries. They lent ridiculous sums to Governments, elected or unelected. Much of the money lined the pockets of dictators, arms traders and created environmental destruction. Western Governments now blackmail debtor nations to repay or lose aid.

In the Philippines a child dies every hour to pay the banks that make the profits. The 1994 Lloyds Annual Report boasted that the bank had made a net profit from the Third World of £260 million.

"Hundreds of thousands of the world's developing children have given their lives to pay their countries' debts and many more are still paying the interest with their malnourished minds and bodies."

United Nations Children's Fund

SO WHO ARE THE REAL CRIMINALS???

Britain's buzzin at the moment but we've got to stick together, conquer our fear and stand up to authority for what we know is right.

and finally...

Typically Blairingly quiet..

The labour leader, Tony Bluurgh, has supported Government proposals to give local councils the power to confiscate home hi-fi systems which are deemed to be too loud. PS SchNEWs interviewed Tony in January but we didn't report it 'cause he was so dull...

For further copies of the SchNEWS send stamps/donations (payable to Justice?) SchNEWS c/o on-the fiddle PO Box 2600 Brighton East Sussex - Tel: (01273) 685 913. Or pick one up @ Peace Centre, Gardener St, Brighton and around town

e-mail: schnews@brighton.co.uk

Justice? meet every wednesday 7pm @ prince albert

FT+Vom+Gibby+Kate+George+Wozza+Cosmo+Andy

1995 the year of the laarf!

SchNEWS, PO Box 2600, Brighton, BN2 0EF, England
Phone: +44 (0)1273 685913
email: schnews@brighton.co.uk

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