Smash EDO National Demo Saturday June 11th

Smasher | 25.05.2005 11:45 | Anti-militarism | Repression | South Coast

A National Demo against arms dealers EDO/MBM Tech is taking place on June 11th in Brighton at 12pm.

Why you should come to the demo

They want to silence protest against this!

EDO/MBM manufacture bomb release mechanisms and equipment for the Paveway series of weapons used in the illegal invasion of Iraq and aggression in places like Palestine, Afghanistan, Indonesia and Sri Lanka. Their Managing Director David Jones was quoted in the local press as being 'very proud' of UK involvement in Iraq.

For the last year a campaign has been carried out against EDO by local anti-arms trade activists in response to the use of EDO's weapons technology in the illegal invasion and occupation of Iraq. This has included shutting down the factory for a day last May with a road blockade and roof-top protest, a week long peace camp last summer and weekly demos outside the factory.

The campaign has been the target of a High Court Injunction under the Protection from Harassment Act 1997 (the 'Stalkers law') by EDO lawyer Timothy Lawson-Cruttenden (TLC). However in the High Court last month most of TLC's demands were struck out with Judge Gross stating that 'the right to freedom of expression is jealously guarded under English law'. An interim injunction is currently in force until the trial which has no restrictions on the weekly protests outside EDO. Terms of the interim injunction include forbidding sending letters letters to EDO employees and other restrictions on activities which have never featured in the campaign. The 50 grand EDO has wasted on lawyerTLC has only invigorated the campaign against them - over 70 protesters turned up to one demo in April - and brought lots of negative press for the factory - the campaign has featured in the national as well as local media, coverage the activists could only have dreamt about before the injunction.

The demo on June 11th will start on The Level, near St Peter's Church, a five minute walk from Brighton station at the bottom of Trafalgar Street. There will be an open mic rally followed by a march around central Brightoon to the factory

Be there

DEFEND THE RIGHT TO PROTEST

DEFY THE INJUNCTION

DESTROY THE ARMS TRADE

SMASH EDO

Smasher
e-mail: general - smashedo@hotmail.com, press - smashedopress@yahoo.com
Homepage: http://www.smashedo.org.uk - tel 07891 405923

Comments

Hide the following 5 comments

The Point Is????

25.05.2005 13:25

Isn't the factory closed on a Saturday? or am I missing the point?

Puzzled

No one there but Edo will be open on saturday 11th

26.05.2005 12:25

wide open ;)

demolition man

PHEW

26.05.2005 15:30

Good job this is a little read secret site or someone in authority might get wind of your plans. Let's hope the nasty policemen and lawyers aren't looking in.

Puzzled

Striking while the irony's hot

27.05.2005 10:27

Obviously one big disadvantage in being owned by a US company is all employees lose any sense of ironic humour. Oh well, more victims of US economic and cultural domination.

Boy George

PEACE CAMPAIGNERS TO DEMAND POLICE ARREST LOCAL WAR CRIMINALS

09.06.2005 17:49

SMASH EDO
www.smashedo.org.uk
Thursday 9th June 2005
EMBARGO. For Immediate Release
CONTACT: Andrew Beckett 07875 708873

smashedopress@yahoo.co.uk

PEACE CAMPAIGNERS TO DEMAND POLICE ARREST LOCAL WAR CRIMINALS

SATURDAY JUNE 11TH 12PM ON THE LEVEL, BRIGHTON.

On June 11th, following a rally on the Level, Brighton peace campaigners will march to John St Police Station and demand that Sussex Police investigate local arms dealers EDO MBM for complicity in war crimes. A bundle of evidence demonstrating EDO’s involvement in the illegal war in Iraq will be supplied. SMASH EDO invites press and anyone who is against the arms trade and for freedom of speech to join them on the national demonstration.

Andrew Beckett, press spokesman for SMASH EDO said: “We think that Sussex Police should stop trying to intimidate protesters and investigate those who have committed crimes against humanity. 100,000 civilians died during the aerial bombardment of Iraq and many more had their lives ruined. EDO directly profited from this bloodshed and yet Sussex Police so far have diverted huge resources to undermining the campaign against the warmongers. EDO failed to get an exclusion zone in court and yet the police seem determined to enforce one anyway. We know that people of Brighton were overwhelmingly against the war and demand that their police force investigate the real criminals.”

Campaigners will be rallying on the Level in the centre of Brighton at noon on June 11th (map). A march through town will culminate with the presentation of the evidence to John St Police Station.

Peace campaigners have blamed intimidating and dangerous police tactics for clashes outside Brighton arms dealers EDO MBM’s factory on 31st May. See press releases on web site.

DEFY THE INJUNCTION-DISARM THE BOMB MAKERS

Noise Demos every Wednesday 4 ‘til 6

Background Info

Brighton&Hove is a UN Peace Messenger City.
The injunction referred to was served under the1997 Protection from Harassment Act (originally designed to protect women from stalkers) and is the first of its kind directed at activists outside of the animal rights movement. Crucially it is a civil injunction but carries criminal penalties. It affects anyone deemed to be a protestor
Initially EDO/MBM requested a large “exclusion zone” comprising the whole of Home Farm Industrial Estate. They and Sussex police also wanted to limit demonstrations to two and a half hours, with less than ten people who had to be silent. Judge Gross refused to impose these conditions at the initial hearing. In his summing up he said, “The right to freedom of expression is jealously guarded in English law” and consequently refused to impose the requested limits on size, timing or noise made at demonstrations.
EDO MBM Technologies Ltd are the sole UK subsidiary of huge U.S arms conglomerate EDO Corp, which was recently named No. 10 in the Forbes list of 100 fastest growing companies. They supply bomb release mechanisms to the US and UK armed forces amongst others. They supply crucial components for Raytheon’s Paveway IV guided bomb system, widely used in the “Shock and Awe” campaign in Iraq. EDO also recently withdrew a threatened libel action against Indymedia over being named as “warmongers”.
Lawson-Cruttenden & Co, a solicitors firm working for EDO have been instrumental in developing the Protection of Harassment Act 1997 from a measure designed to safeguard individuals to a corporate charter to make inconvenient protest illegal. They have pioneered to use of injunctions to create large “exclusion zones”. They have secured numerous injunctions against anti-vivisection and anti-GM protestors.
Campaign against EDO MBM, People involved in the anti-EDO campaign include, but are not limited to: local residents, the Brighton Quakers, peace activists, anti-capitalists, Palestine Solidarity groups, human rights groups, trade unionists, academics and students.
The campaign started in August 2004 with a peace camp. It’s avowed aim is to expose EDO MBM and their complicity in war crimes and to remove them from Brighton.

_____________________________________

Andrew Beckett