G8 Alternatives announce not to accept road blocks during G8 summit

a very sceptical individual | 17.05.2005 22:36 | G8 2005 | Analysis | Repression

As currently announced via the mainstream media, the planned G8 Alternatives demonstration against the G8 previously announced to take place on the 6th of july, from the meeting at 12 o' clock noon, passing via the front of Gleneagles hotel, in which the summit is held to the park in Auchterarder, got its permission denied by the authorities.
This coincides with the announcement of road closures during the G8 summit.

G8 Alternatives website, 17th of may, 2005, 23:18

From the Tayside police website; map of road closures

However, on their website, G8 Alternatives is still currently announcing its demonstration to go ahead at the same time and route:

"Gill Hubbard of G8 Alternatives said ....

.... that a planned march outside the hotel would go ahead.

"We are not accepting the road blocks," she said."

How much of this announcement will actually become true remains to be seen.
Previous experience makes some anti-globalisation protesters sceptical, that G8 Alternatives founding principle of "lawfull obedience" (often confused with non-violence) will actually be tested on the spot, doubting how much of Gill Hubbard's quote can be taken seriously and on trust, and how honest and accountable she is - and will be - towards the followers of the call for this demonstration.

a very sceptical individual

Comments

Hide the following 13 comments

well lets be there

18.05.2005 08:32

as july approaches, the authorities will be declaring everything other than the make poverty history march illegal - i.e. any demo within 50 miles of gleneagles. So lets get on with it. The Chartists, the Suffragettes, The US Civil Rights movement, the Argentina'n social movements etc all had the same treatment. But it ain't up to the 'authorities' to grant us freedom here and deny it there, so I'll see you at gleneagles.

demoist

.

18.05.2005 08:40

Well anyone can always join the Dissent! mobilisation :-)

stop trying to divide the movement

18.05.2005 08:58

what is the point of this article?

G8 alternatives will demand to march, and will begin to campaign for that in just the same way as the Genoa Social Forum had to fight for the right to have the demonstrations and convergence centre where they wanted them, and how Stop the War had to fight for the Bush demos to go ahead

Whether it's a success will depend on how broad the campaign is and how many people there are on the day

So stop wasting your time attacking and insinuating and get on with building the protests

If criticisms need to be made then it's not G8 alternatives who should be criticised but the Green Party Scotland who quite disgracefully have accepted having accomodation with the police in a stadium in Edinburgh and the politcal naivety of Dissent for having two trains, one for the weekend and one for after, thereby doing the work of the State and the Media by literally dividing activist into 'good' and 'bad' protestors in the process

noel

Who ?

18.05.2005 10:26

I'm very suspicious of groups who publish all over websites like Indy Media giving full details of meeting points, travel arrangemets and accomidation etc. Who are these groups, why are they suddenly so well funded just before events like these ?

At the DSEI demo in 2003 there was police infiltration of nearly all the demos - was this because all the details were published on the web the week before or maybe because the stewards had "establishment lacky" written all over them ?

Me and my mates are traveling in small groups by a non direct route. We will be making a difference while others are standing in their 'government approved cage' waving some SWP banners.

Organise but keep it to small groups. Avoid organised demos. Don't tell others what you are doing.

I'll be there

B 4 you march you need to get there!

18.05.2005 10:27

>>GET ON BOARD THE SOUTH EAST ASSEMBLY TRAIN!
The South East Assembly has chartered two trains to take people up to the protests against the G8 summit in Scotland. For people who want to travel on the train we need you to PAY NOW so that we can meet our deadline for payment.

London to Edinburgh (Return)
Train 1 // 1st July to 9th July
Train 2 // 4th July to 8th July

Tickets £50 Rtn
If you would like a ticket on one of the trains, please download & complete the train booking form, and send it to us, along with a cheque or postal order for £50, made payable to “G.E.N.I.” and send a SAE to: BM South East Assembly, London, WC1N 3XX.

If you cannot afford £50 please let us know as we hope to offer some tickets at a concessionary rate. Likewise, if you can afford to donate some money to pay for another person to travel, we welcome donations (however small).

Download train booking form(pdf) www.resistg8.org.uk

More info:

trainforg8@hushmail.com

SE Assembly - Transport Office (open on Wed & Thurs 3pm - 7pm only)
LARC, 62 Fieldgate Street, Whitechapel, London E1

www.resistg8.org.uk

SE Assembly

mmmmm

18.05.2005 12:13

I share the concerns of the earlier poster, who the fuck are these people who suddenly are able to organise things like this. The following worries the fuck out of me;;;

"Tickets £50 Rtn
If you would like a ticket on one of the trains, please download & complete the train booking form, and send it to us, along with a cheque or postal order for £50, made payable to “G.E.N.I.” and send a SAE to: BM South East Assembly, London, WC1N 3XX"

Cheques and PO's accepted, SAE's able to be dealt with, forms ready for download ??????

Nine years involvement in street politics and grass routes activism tells me that nobody is ever this well organised !!!!

Not going but wish I was

How dare they?

18.05.2005 13:14

Totally agree with Noel. How dare Dissent do "the work of the State and the Media" for them by having what could be seen as a "good" protestors train for the weekend and a "bad" protestors train for after the weekend. Things would be so much better if Dissent had forced all those either not able to make it for the weekend or who don't think a big march will be effective to travel up for the weekend whether they liked it or not. Perhaps Dissent has been secretely set up by MI5, has managed to infiltrate the G8 protests and will thwart the protests by their cunning plan involving having trains set off at different times? Sly.

The press have already have had loads of stories about "violent anarchist" protestors and will doubtless have countless more in the next few weeks regardless of Dissent's travel plans. However, its far more likely that the run up to the event will involve stories about "scary" stories about foreign anarchists (if recent May Day press has had anything to do with it).

Anyway, if you're interested in more about Gill Hubbard:

http://www.indymedia.org.uk/en/2004/10/299895.html

Leam

learn something.

18.05.2005 21:10

I dont give a toss about G8 alternatives demo, they can do what they like, good luck to em. We'll do what we like too and I hope theres good luck for us!

As for the trains, you people talking shit need to get out a bit more. For starters, the trains arent organised by Dissent!, they are organised by the Southeast Assembly. The decisions have been taken in large, open meetings in London + Reading, with people from loads of different groups all accross the Southeast. The people who proposed it just want to help out activists (who are new individuals or dont have affinity groups etc to travel with) meet others and join in - and to anyone who thinks everyone can afford to just not work and swan off to Scotland for 9 days, you live on a different planet to the rest of us. Hence the train that only goes for 5 days in stead of 9. Many people cant even afford to do that. Hows it split the protesters? The early train is staying longer than the later train! I dont get what your point is. The money has been raised mainly by donations and benefit gigs - so get giving and gigging and help out!
If you dont wanna get the train - just dont give us yer £50! Its real easy to NOT do something - you dont have to bring into question the intentions and character of commited activists.
As for 'never that organised' - well things aint always as smooth as they sound on Indymedia, believe me.
And if you really dont have any trust in you at all, if youve got any questions or wanna meet the folks doing the train, get along to the next southeast assembly on 28th May in London and find out for yourself.

And anyone who agrees that this backbiting is bullshit, ignore me and most of them above, go to www.resistg8.org.uk for info and get involved by coming to the next assembly on 28th. :)

See ya on the streets folks! (A)

train gaurd

response to 'Not going but wish I was';

18.05.2005 22:41

cheers for the compliment.

SE Assembly is the real deal, come to the next assembly & see for yourself. Not a lefty in sight & yes we can organise just fine without them..

sea

stop trolling you cops!

19.05.2005 00:27

enuff said really!

:-o)

Agree

19.05.2005 08:37

Well said to all the people that have defended G8 Alternatives.

It is a broad coalition of groups - that also seems to betting the go ahead for a RALLY PROTEST right close to the summit.

This is a part victory.

mike

Noel chill out man!

19.05.2005 09:37

You say 'stop dividing the movement' then go on to slag off two other parts of it! You should realise that this whole G8 thing is very strong in terms of solidarity between different groups. Don't react to the trolls like this one by having a go at others.

We're all going to be there on the same side!

See you in Scotland.

wildwiki

a joke

19.05.2005 18:13

"Stop dividing the movement you fucking sectarian bastards!!!!"

hahahaha, the logic of the police is so predicatable. This may have worked in the past, but we're a bit more sophisticated now.

So keep it up guys, its given me a laugh at the very least.

Krop