SMASH EDO

PRESS RELEASE

This is as a result of evidence submitted to the court in the ongoing injunction trial between Brighton peace campaigners and arms dealers EDO MBM. At the last hearing the Attorney General’s office was requested by Judge Simons to give advice on the documents provided by the defence which raise the spectre of the legality of the Iraq war and specifically the liability of British forces for war crimes under international law.

Currently EDO MBM have obtained a controversial interim injunction under the Protection from Harassment Act , which restricts the nature of protests outside their factory on Home Farm Industrial Estate, Brighton. The act specifically excludes actions taken to prevent or detect crime

The defendants will argue that their conduct was intended to prevent war crimes which are illegal under UK domestic law.

EDO MBM supply essential components for weapons used by the armed forces of the UK, US and Israel, particularly the Paveway missile system. The defendants have provided evidence of their use in war crimes in both Iraq and Palestine.

Weapons systems supplied by EDO MBM have been used in the bombardment of civilian populations in Iraq and the Occupied Territories. The ‘Shock and Awe’ campaign involved deliberate destruction of civilian infrastructure, such as bridges and hospitals. The defendants argue that not only was the war illegal but specific war crimes were committed within the conduct of that war. For full details of the allegations please see the attached document entitled “EdoComposite Defence(2)”

THERE WILL BE A DEMONSTRATION OUTSIDE THE ROYAL COURTS OF JUSTICE ON FRIDAY 9TH AT 10.00 AM

A PRESS CONFERENCE WILL FOLLOW THE HEARING WHICH IS
EXPECTED TO FINISH AT 4:30 PM


==========================================
Notes for Journalists

Brighton&Hove is a UN Peace Messenger City.

The injunction referred to was served under the 1997
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 of
an interim injunction, which was put in place in the
period before the full trial to be heard at the High
court in London from November 21st.

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.

He also said that he doubted that protesters were
'stalking' employees of EDO MBM.

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.

_____________________________________