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Five anti-G8 campaigners arrested in Edinburgh in the days following the Make Poverty History demonstration, had their charges dropped yesterday when the Procurator Fiscal decided to discontinue the case. They had been set to protest against the G8 leaders as they held their summit at the Gleneagles Hotel in July of 2005, but were forced to take part in an impromptu demonstration on Prince's Street when the Police stopped their pre-booked buses from taking them there. "The Police stopped us from taking part in a legal demonstration in Gleneagles, so we had no alternative but to protest here in Edinburgh", said John Wight, a Solidarity press officer, who was one of the five protestors finally released from their bail conditions after almost two years.
Four or five hundred protestors saw their numbers double as members of the public joined their ranks on route from Waterloo Place to the West End. The Police, who oversaw the procession from the start, then invited the crowd to return towards the Mound, where they were to mount four of the pre-booked coaches that the Police had decided to allow through. As the protestors approached the Mound however, they were informed by Police that the coaches were in fact full. Four of the five arrested then formed a delegation requested by the Police to leave the main group to confirm that the buses were full. Then-Council-leader Donald Anderson, who was also present during talks, told the delegation that he would look into the possibility of making further buses available in order to get more protestors off to Gleneagles. When the delegation was out of sight of the other protestors, however, the Police implemented a pre-planned organised arrest of all four. "I had been organising the buses from the start, so the Police saw me as a leader", said Wight. "They wanted to take me out, so they used the excuse of the buses to get me away from the crowd. The others on the delegation were just caught up in the crossfire. It's them I feel sorry for." The five were charged with taking part in an illegal demonstration and failing to desist when ordered to do so. Although it has been estimated that the case has cost the taxpayer hundreds of thousands of pounds over the two years and eight adjourned trials, the maximum punishment for each of the five would have been a £200 fine. The two-year delay resulted from a Crown failure to supply relevant Police video footage of the event, even though countless sheriffs and even a High Court Judge had ordered it. The Procurator Fiscal's decision to drop the case came after various defence lawyers suggested in court last week that the footage was deliberately being suppressed. "Donald Anderson felt that it was against the public interest to bring the case", said Nick Eardley, an SSP activist who was part of the delegation. "He points out that many within the Council thought Police had reacted wrongly, and he himself was set to be a witness in our defence." Raphie De Santos, an SSP member who was arrested separately from the other four, remains defiant after his ordeal: "Undeterred, we will continue to campaign for a more just and sustainable world that puts human need before greed and profits. This year's G8 summit in the German city of Rostock on 2nd June." Vanesa Fuertes and Kevin Connor (both of Solidarity) were hoping that the trial would expose the truth behind their arrests: "We were shocked at having been arrested simply for doing something that the Police had asked us to do. At first we naively thought it was a mix-up, but then we realised that it was part of a concerted effort to suppress legitimate protest", said Fuertes. "While our trial may be over, the case against the G8 is stronger than ever", said Connor. "The anti-poverty measures they promised at that 2005 summit have been exposed as entirely disingenuous." Joint Statement: On the morning of Wed July 6th 2005, thousands of campaigners made their way to peacefully protest the G8 summit at Gleneagles, where the world's most dangerous terrorists were meeting to discuss how best to carve up the world over the next 12 months. Back in, Edinburgh, Police blocked buses from leaving, halted those that had already left, and prevented many from getting through to the pre-arranged pick-up point at Waterloo Place. Hundreds of protestors were left stranded by concerted Police tactics to undermine our legitimate right to protest. When it became apparent that the Police were determined to keep us from demonstrating in Gleneagles, a spontaneous protest erupted on Edinburgh's main street. Although prompted by frustration at having had our rights curtailed by an overzealous Police force, the chants remained focused on the G8. Protestors allowed the Police time to "police" the march and lead it slowly towards the West End of Prince's St. When hundreds of riot Police were drafted in however, more or less equal numbers of onlookers decided to join the entirely peaceful march out of solidarity. At the West End, at 1.09pm the now static marchers were instructed by a Police Inspector to continue up Lothian Rd towards the Meadows. He told us, "if you do not wish to go there, you will be in contravention of Section 12, and you will be liable to arrest." FORTY SECONDS later however, before any contravention could have been made, a Police Superintendent revoked the order and invited us to return along Prince's St towards the Mound where 4 [previously-blocked] coaches had been allowed through and were now waiting to whisk us off to Gleneagles. On the approach to the Mound, the same Superintendent communicated that he hadn't known previously, but that the coaches were in fact full. However, to demonstrate "how much I'm wanting to work with you; to negotiate with you, to get a successful conclusion to this for us both", he invited a delegation to confirm that the buses were full. Then-Council-leader Donald Anderson, who was also present during these talks, said that if we would "go and check the buses", he would look into the possibility of making more buses available to get us off to Gleneagles. On arrival at the last bus, well out of view of the protestors, without any provocation whatsoever, at the order of the same Superintendent the delegation was violently arrested. Although no coherent charge was made at the time of the arrests (one was originally charged under the Prevention of Terrorism Act!), the entirely fabricated charge became failing to desist from demonstrating when ordered to do so! In a written statement, Donald Anderson makes reference to thoughts within the Council that the Police had reacted wrongly; he himself felt that it was against the public interest to bring the case, and was set to be a witness in our defence. Today, two years and around 20 court appearances later, after spending many tens or even hundreds of thousands of pounds of taxpayers' money, the case concocted against the five of us was dropped. The two-year delay resulted from the reluctance of the Police to supply relevant Police video footage of the event, even though countless sheriffs and even the High Court had ordered it. Last week, after various defence lawyers articulated in court for the first time that the footage was perhaps being suppressed by the Police because it would contradict their witness statements and confirm our own, an angry Sheriff pointed out the seriousness of the implication. Yes, very serious implications for a high-ranking Police officer who has since been promoted. After that hearing however, the Procurator Fiscal decided to "discontinue" the case. While our trial is over however, the case against the G8 is stronger than ever. The anti-poverty measures they promised at that 2005 summit have been exposed as entirely disingenuous, the benefit of any debt relief was cancelled out by an equivalent reduction in aid; trade terms continue to deliberately prevent any possibility of real development for poorer nations. The G8 continue to be the biggest perpetrators of global terrorism through their imperial wars (think Iraq) and arms sales to any tyrant that fits the bill (think Saddam Hussein). The evidence against the G8 is not contested: it doesn't need to be because it is almost never exposed. A compliant media ensures that we concentrate on Big Brother or Eastenders while a rich elite promotes neo-liberal policies that rape our planet and threaten the very existence of humanity. Undeterred, we will continue to campaign for a more just and sustainable world that puts human need before greed and profits. Finally, we offer our solidarity to the anti-G8 activists who are building what is likely to be Europe's largest demonstration for several years. They too are facing state intimidation to prevent them expressing their democratic right to protest this year's G8 summit in the German city of Rostock on 2nd June. Kevin Connor (SOLIDARITY) Raphie De Santos (SSP) Nick Eardley (SSP) Vanesa Fuertes (SOLIDARITY) John Wight (SOLIDARITY) |
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