The demo contained a diverse grouping of people from various activist groups and traditional left parties and concerned individuals, numbering around 250-300. Police had obviously been briefed to wear kid gloves and were observing "public policing" ! The demo had gathered support from an ealier demo against Bush and his rejection of the Kyoto treaty, his dreadful stance on climate change and the Son of Star Wars project. The protest was also given a massive boost from the samba players that had
gathered from the Barking Bateria and Rythms of Resistance.

The embassy was lined on the side by stadium fencing to block off direct entry to the building. The police stood in between these fences and the embassy to facilitate the traffic and to form a middle line of police barricade.

As temperatures reached the 30s the samba band and the protest march came around the corner from the American embassy and towards the Italian embassy. On the
way there was some negotiation as to whether the police were planning to pen in the protest as the way that the march was directed led through fences on one side and a hedge fence on the other in which the police could have closed off into a natural pen and section 60ed us. After
some assurance (!!!!) from the police that a section 60 would not happen the march continued into the middle of the fencing and started to play energically opposite to the embassy. As the tempo of the drumming increased so too did the cries of "assassini" "assassini". There was much
chanting in the name of the dead martyr of the G8 Carlo Giuliani. Posters, placards and banners displayed slogans of "murded for wanting a better world", "stop killing our children" and "another world is possible". A graffic photo exhibition showed the horrific injuries and acts of police
brutaltity suffered by the protestors in Genoa, displayed under a banner reading "Tell The Truth". All at the protest were of the same mind - "shame on the Italian government".

A wreath of flowers was placed at the door of the embassy and many demonstarting wore a black band around their arms in respect.

Later in the afternoon after the police had started to remove the fences and many protesters had taken a short siesta in the park, the samba band took up drumming again which re-awoke the dozing cops. The band and protestors had gathered at the far side of the park to prepare to take a march of solidarity down the high street. About 70 policemen and a couple of those on horseback dashed to block the march and penned them in against the bushed with their bodies, like a human fence. There was a brief
confrontation then those penned in filtered in to the park through a small entrance.

The samba band and about 50 protesters filtered down to Oxford street dumming their way though excited crowds handing out over 2000 leaflets about G8 brutality on the way. The march had a couple of run-ins with the police on the way and were shoved about but not injured. They played their way to the Gap flagship store and proceeded to drum and sing and protest outside. At this point the police came in much stronger and managed to disperse and fragment the band and the march. Passers by however still lent down to pick up leaflets reading the messages that resistance will not die.