Devonport Seven Denied Justice


In a predictable outcome, six Trident Ploughshares activists and one Plymouth resident, Gill Woods of CANSAR (Campaign against Nuclear Storage and Radiation) were today found guilty of obstructing the highway and ordered to pay fines and costs totalling £1400. The charge arose from an anti-nuclear protest on the day of the arrival of the Trident submarine HMS Vanguard for its refit in Plymouth.

The defendants were angered by the refusal of District Judge Evans not to allow them to call expert witnesses, or to hear any arguments about the defendants' motives. Veteran peace campaigner Angie Zelter chose to be absent from the trial because she said that the justice offered by the court "could as well be dispensed by a computer."

One defendant, Margaret Jones, refused to pay her fine, preferring to face prison rather than support the nuclear state.

Despite the court ban on mentioning nuclear issues, the defendants repeatedly referred to the dangers to Plymouth residents of radiation pollution and possible nuclear accidents from the dozen nuclear submarines now assembled in Devonport dockyard. They also expressed the belief that the Trident weapons system, and the current nuclear threat to Iraq from the US and the UK, make the world a more dangerous place than at any time since the Cuban missile crisis.

Lizzie Jones, a member of Trident Ploughshares, called for individuals to take responsibility for actively resisting nuclear weapons.

Supporting the Trident Seven Sandra Leslie, a spokesperson for Plymouth Nuclear-Free Coalition (Devonport), said "We shall continue to build the campaign here in Plymouth against this crime in our back yard."

The defendants are considering appealing the court's decision.