Police facilitates ESF-meeting?!

transmitter | 16.08.2004 18:41 | European Social Forum | London

Police are hanging out at Granbanks Social Center, where an ESF-meeting is currently taking place.

Just talked a friend who went to an ESF meeting tonight at the Granbanks Social Center. He says there are 2 police vans, 2 foto units and about a dozen of cops hanging out in front of the Social Center, taking pictures of everyone. Asked why they were there, and why they were taking pictures of people, and wether this might be a strategy of intimidation, a police sergeant replied: "We are here to make sure you are having a save meeting, we are here to facilitate your meeting."

Thank you, cops!

transmitter

Comments

Hide the following 12 comments

Red Kens lackeys

16.08.2004 19:39

Kick em in the bollox from me. Fucking ridiculous this is getting!

Tiptop

Embaressed For You

16.08.2004 20:21

The European Social Forum is embaressing. Are you Londoners ashamed of yourselves for letting corporate and hierarchical power brokers take over the organising of it? I think there should be a complete boycott of the ESF. It has been stolen from right under your noses and you get no credit for it whatsover. It has turned into a Labor Party event starring Ken Livingston. Ken is a member of Blair's Labor Party which is a supporter of the US "War President".

What a fucking hoax! Sort it out London and start promoting the alternate events ASA!

Not A Londoner

Clarification

16.08.2004 20:32

The meeting at Ex-Grand Banks was a meeting for those outside/opposed to the european social forum process. the point of the meeting was create autonomous spaces outside of the esf, usinf squatted spaces, rented spaces ort whatever we can to work in horizontal ways without the hierarchical bollocks o the SWP and ken's cronies. see www.altspaces.net for more info, or see www.wombles.org.uk/auto for more information.

spanner

What about my knitting meeting?

16.08.2004 20:34

Interesting comment from the cops! Its nice for them to care so much for your welfare, just think you've got your own personal protection squad.

Ooh aren't they nice those boys in blue. Just think, they are so overstretched and can't cope with all these young hooligans running around the streets, and crack dealings become such a problem in parts of London, but at least they've got time to take a few snap shots.

I wish they'd come to my local knitting club and photograph us and protect us from thoe vicious anti-knitting hoodlums who bother us!

Miss Point

You guys are so funny!

16.08.2004 22:16

At first you think it's an official meeting so of course it's

"The SWP and Ken Livingston are in league with the cops!!!!!"

Turns out it is an "alternative" meeting and of course then it's

"These evil bootboys must have been called by the KLSWP front!!!"

Keep up the good work chaps, lets not let facts get in the way of a satisfying sectarian rant.

Sonic

Not home

17.08.2004 08:47

Spanner, The www.altspaces.net site you sent me to is broken.

Sonic, I can't see anything Sectarian on this thread. you're just a trouble maker.

Not A Londoner

ESF sherief

17.08.2004 15:07

London government sherief doing dishes for his master tony!!

jerome

ESF sherief

17.08.2004 15:08

Wanker!

London government sherief doing dishes for his master tony!!

jerome

state repression

17.08.2004 16:33

I have evidence that Ken Livingstone and the SWP leadership met in secret on Monday with the Chief Constable of the Met to plan how to contain the threat to the UK state posed by this meeting of autonomists. Permission was subsequently sought from Blunkett to deploy police immediately with armed back-up on standby.

Also I've seen computer printouts showing that resources including CCTV, remote eavesdropping, heat cameras and surveillance satellites have been tasked to track the movements of all participants.

The Office of Threat Monitoring (part of MI6) have categorised the anti-ESF and the horizontals as "the single most immediate and serious threat to security in the capital".

asif umupitz

sigh

18.08.2004 17:37

More anarchist/autonomous bullshit. I am just waiting for the following comments -

"The SWP sucks the life out of the movement"

"The SWP are as bad as fascists"

"The SWP are authoritarian 'Trots'"

"The SWP are in secret talks with the police to kill all autonomists"

Wait...you have already written the last one...

SWPer

I was joking!

19.08.2004 09:03

Oh dear.. I thought my post was pretty obviously taking the piss, but I guess people really will believe anything at all about the SWP.. I mean spy satellites???

(try saying my name out loud)

asif umupitz

smile

22.08.2004 22:51

Take a picture of them taking a picture of you, though remember to ask them to smile.

politico