Protesters: police treated us like terrorists

[ina]

Environmental activists say police ‘grossly overreacted’
By Rob Edwards, Environment Editor

THE POLICE have been accused of a campaign of harassment by environmental protesters arrested after peaceful demonstrations in Edinburgh.

Student activists have told the Sunday Herald that they were deprived of food, water and medical attention while being held in police cells last week. Some said they've since been woken by dawn raids, or asked to become paid informers.

The protesters have been backed by their parents, who are alarmed that non-violent demonstrators are being treated "like terrorists". The Green MSP, Robin Harper, has accused the police of a "gross overreaction".


Full Article:
http://www.sundayherald.com/news/herald ... orists.php

[johnhcrf]

We live in a time of heightened awareness and misunderstandings will occur where there is a preceived threat. Thinking the way these others do, should help protestors choose good sites for demonstrations.

John.

[Martin]

it's nothing new! I saw it with my own eyes at the Shoreham live exports demos in '95 - a bunch of hyped up, out of control yobboes who beat the crap out of defenceless protestors - I got beaten up for daring to photograph them doing so.....they'd either removed or covered their ID numbers so they couldn't be identified.........

[ina]

We live in a time of heightened awareness and misunderstandings will occur where there is a preceived threat. Thinking the way these others do, should help protestors choose good sites for demonstrations.

I don't think the site could have been any better. Sitting on the wall by a filling station they would have been in nobody's way, and they would have been seen by the people who's awareness they were trying to raise. Who would a bunch of clowns have been threatening? I think the choice of costume says it all - clowns are not threatening.

[johnhcrf]

Bio Fuel is a lame duck policy since it is either food for the poor or gas for us. The government latched onto it without proper investigation. The whole thing is a fiasco. You do not need to protest about it, just stand back and have a good laugh at their incompetence.

John.

[Martin]

The frightening part is that a vast body of people are now by definition "terrorists", who in more enlghtened times would have earned the title "eccentric", often preceded by "harmless", or "loveable"...........
Anyone who is very green for instance, or is against nuclear power, or GM crops - they would like to see the status quo overturned.........in today's "thinking" they are therefore "terrorists"
Maggie Thatcher started using the tactic against the miners most succesfully, and the technique is being continued - firstly, daemonise the protestors - then sit back and let the forces of darkness kick the cr*p out of the them, knowing full well the Daily Mail readers will let out whoops of joy, and vote them in again for saving them from the evil protesters!

[ina]

Bio Fuel is a lame duck policy since it is either food for the poor or gas for us. The government latched onto it without proper investigation. The whole thing is a fiasco. You do not need to protest about it, just stand back and have a good laugh at their incompetence.

John.

Sorry, but I have to disagree. Laughing doesn't change a thing. I could equally say that you should just stand back and laugh at all the waste packaging! Would you be prepared to do that? I think if we care about the future of the earth - not just our society - we need to do something. Protests of this kind are nothing else but telling people to be more aware of what's happening, and to try and change their behaviour. You are doing the same with your campaign, only you don't dress up as a clown and go out in the street. Mind you, you might be more successful with that... Because here on SSish you are preaching to the converted - out there in the street are the people who still need to change!

[johnhcrf]

Protesting is a good way to communicate. My idea is to push the debate as far as possible. The 52 week bin topic is an attack on waste. We are no where near this yet. I contact all other agencies I can, communicate with the many like-minds (Karen Cannard for one) and live the life. The biofuel thing is large in the media but it is of little practical use.

John.

[Andy Hamilton]

I was speaking to a political journalist the other day and he was telling me that lobbying is the way forward; indeed the only way to really make a difference. He said that for really big protests the way forward is to pay professional lobbyists instead of paying to organise a big protest. Interesting point of view.

As far as heavy handed policing is concerned that indeed has always happened. I remember the going on the kill the bill march (anti criminal justice), the police presence was massive. They bottlenecked the crowd and forced them to retaliate. Mind you I was down the pub when the violence kicked off. Hmm, nothing changes

I have pretty much decided that a big anti packaging campaign is the next thing for ish! I think I will send letters to loads of mps and to each supermaket again.

[ina]

I have pretty much decided that a big anti packaging campaign is the next thing for ish! I think I will send letters to loads of mps and to each supermaket again.

A lot of the packaging is down to health and safety issues, so you have to start at the top - you can't get rid of packaging if it's considered essential to safeguard the health of the population, no matter how much you lobby MPs or supermarkets about it!

And as to biofuels - it's not just big in the media, it's big in at least my mind, and should be big in every thinking person's mind. And yes, you can do something about it - you just don't buy fuel. Just as you don't buy food that's overly packaged. It's not essential, whatever people may think. Even I could live without it - OK, not all that easily, but it's possible - and I live 4 miles from the nearest village/public transport.

[johnhcrf]

All forms of attack are welcome. I will sign every petition. Watch out for the pro-bag lobby. They are a curious breed, all-male, head in the sand.

Go for it, Andy,

John

[ToolUsingAnimal]

These people ARE eco-terrorists, in the way that the government is not a regular terrorist.
What I mean is, these tags are given official resonance, and new eco-terrorism laws apply to breaking anothers' contractual obligation. So chaining yourself to a gate, or lying in front of trucks- these non-violent actions are now legally terrorist. Which kind of betrays the use of 'terror' in there, doesn't it?

Of course, at heart 'terrorist' is now a value judgement- it means actions i don't agree with for goals i don't share. Nothing to do with terrorising a populace.

[eccentric_emma]

I was speaking to a political journalist the other day and he was telling me that lobbying is the way forward; indeed the only way to really make a difference. He said that for really big protests the way forward is to pay professional lobbyists instead of paying to organise a big protest. Interesting point of view.

As much as I would like to disagree with this point of view and have some faith in politicians doing the right thing, unfortunately I do believe that a lot of actions are down to who you know, not what you know. And professional lobbyists have good contacts and are paid to make these contacts see a certain point of view. Sad really, life shouldn't be like that, but unfortunately it may ultimately be down to playing the game in order to get the right thing done. In my experience, I have heard many people just turn their noses up at whatever is being protested about, due to the stereotype of protesters being smelly hippies, and not bothering to look past this view!

[Super.Niki]

been doing a lot of reading on this (touching on this in an essay for uni soon) and it's curious the way the new "terrorism" legislations are being used to enforce the strangest things.... for example, a policey man can, apparently, arrest you JUST to get your name... so much for the right to silence I suppose...

Should see some of the brutality that went on during last year's climate came (huge section on http://www.indymedia.org.uk/) it's quite shocking! There is a group though that's dedicated websites to putting up pictures of cops with ID numbers for identification purposes! Go them!

[Welsh Girls Allotment]

been doing a lot of reading on this (touching on this in an essay for uni soon) and it's curious the way the new "terrorism" legislations are being used to enforce the strangest things.... for example, a policey man can, apparently, arrest you JUST to get your name... so much for the right to silence I suppose...

Should see some of the brutality that went on during last year's climate came (huge section on http://www.indymedia.org.uk/) it's quite shocking! There is a group though that's dedicated websites to putting up pictures of cops with ID numbers for identification purposes! Go them!

Sounds like we may be doing a similar uni course SOCPA is one the most terrifying pieces of legislation, and Brown is trying to role it out countrywide, not just to control protest in London but all across Britain