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Saturday 16.03.02:

Up to 600.000 people demonstrated in the streets of Barcelona today. This massive march was the culmination of a week of events called by the Campaign Against the Europe of Capital designed to challenge the EU summit taking place in the city. Citizens were confronted with widespread police violence, despite the fact that the vast majority of the protesters were totally peaceful. Accounts from the participants highlight the premeditated, brutal and indiscriminate nature of police attacks, that have resulted with the total of 80 people arrested. In spite of the repression, spirits are high and most sources consider the day a success. Read Campaign's communique on today's demosntration. Protests in solidarity with the arrested have been called for tomorrow morning.

========BREAKING NEWS - Local Times========

00:30 - The massive gig attended by 50.000 people in El Sot del Migdia is now at full swing. There are no incidents and police presence is very low.

24:30 - The streets seem less tense. Many people are going to a gig, which features among others Manu Chao, and others are concentrating outside the police station where detained protesters are held. There is a call for a solidarity demo there tomorrow at 10am.

23:33 - Reports of protesters invading the pitch of the Camp Nou stadium. In two separate incidents, people protesting at the conditions of Basque prisoners in Spanish jails interrupted the game between Real Madrid and Barcelona, trying to unfurl banners. Some managed to lock on the goal posts. All were arrested and roughed up on live TV.

22:30 - Many people are being arrested in the Raval area, in the old centre of the city. Many police vans keep arriving to the Parallel area nearby.

22:22 - Legal team reports 40 people have been arrested on the day, so far, with no news of where they are being kept.

22:10 - Police charges inside Parallel tube station, many injured and two reported arrests.

21.08 - 30 riot police vans have taken position outside Drassanes; reports of many undercover police wearing black; the police are chasing demonstrators in hotels, bars, entrances where they are trying to hide.

21.05 - Confirmed reports of police using rubber bullets, tear gas and baton charges. The situation is horrible and there are unconfirmed reports of injuries and arrests. Report

21:00 - Clashes with the police have spread towards the centre of Barcelona, especially at Colom and Govern Militar (seafront). Report<<br>
20:50 - At least 200-300.000 people has taken part in today's demonstration. Eyewitness report from Radio Klara confirm police have used rubber bullets in Las Ramblas. Also unconfirmed reports of agent provocateurs starting the trouble at the end of the demo.

20:30 - Confirmed reports are coming in of police attacking the back of the demonstration with batton charges.

19:50 - Report from the Spanish-French border. Two Belgian busses that had been stopped, have managed to cross the border, and are on their way to Barcelona.

19:45 - IMC-Barcelona and Radio Klara are currently affected by a cut of broadband internet access (ADSL) by the Spanish telecom company Telefonica. The sites are having serious problems in reporting, and many parts of Spain have no access to them. It is still not clear whether it is a technical or a more dubious problem.

19:30 - The front of the march has reached the end of the planned route peacefully but the tail is still leaving the starting point.

19:00 - [18:44] Translating live broadcast from Gap Radio, Italy. Thousands of people in Barcelona have converged and the Piazza Catalunya and the Ramblas are crowded with carnival atmosphere and people dance down adjacent avenues. 150000 or more people have just moved in three main blocks, which included: social forum, Campaign against Europe of capital, and unions. The three blocks have merged. slogans: against capitalism and EU decision .

18:45 - Reports on Radio Klara of police taking over Jardins de Gracia, where a separate smaller autonomous unpublicised demo was meant to start.

18:15 - Today's demonstration has just started. 150.000 people are now entering Via Laietana in central Barcelona. Radio reports of massive police presence and that police is trying to confiscate some banners.

16:10pm - People is gathered for a popular lunch-party in MACBA's square. The athmosphere is festive with live music and performances. No police presence so far. Photo

15:40 - Police has confiscated video tapes from an Indymedia-Barcelona volunteer. The video contains images of the protests outside la Verneda police station.

15:30pm - Report from the Spanish/French border.

15:15pm - Between 100-200 people is outside Verneda police station showing support for the jailed. Read indymedia communique here

15:10pm - Communique against repression of free information from Indymedia-Barcelona.

14:10pm - People concentrated outside La Verneda police station are being identifyed by police. Another 8 riot vans have arrived there.

13:20pm - Perpinyà (France) - The buses that have been denied entry to Spain are now concentrating in Perpinyà. They expect another 150 buses will arrive there. People are doing an assembly to decide this afternoon's action.

10:15am - Pepole demonstrating outside La Verneda police station in solidarity with the jailed, have called for another protest there today at 1pm.

04:21am - Verneda: 20 people left the place going to Plaça Catalunya by bus, and when they arrived there were 16 secret police men in 5 cars that identified everybody.

3:00am - A bus arriving from Alacant has been stopped by police. People have been put agains the wall and thoroughly searched.

02:54am - Verneda: the campaign Legal Comision published an inform about the arrested people on 15th: 28 arrested people (6 Basc Country + 1 Sweden + 1 Nederland + 1 Eslovenia + 1 French + 6 Spanish + 3 Catalan + 2 German + 1 English + 2 d'Elx + 4 uknown) and 3 missing people. Report

02:20am - Verneda: the 150 grouped people walked around the police station so the arrested people could hear them, but at the second round, the police charged against them, and only 40 people meet again. Now they're are sitting infront Verneda waiting for news.