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Smash EDO camp update: Dog bites and bylaw repression

dismantle the war machine | 29.08.2007 10:04 | Anti-militarism | Repression | Terror War | London | South Coast

The Smash EDO camp held a noise demo at 8 o'clock this morning at EDO's Mouslecoomb site. The gate to the site was open so a few people decided to casually walk in.

A security guard then brought out an Alsatian dog, which proceeded to bite someone on the arm badly. They have since been to hospital for treatment.

Later on the same dog attacked an EDO member of staff. Police then threatened to arrest anyone using a megaphone under section 5 of the public order act, claiming they'd received complaints from people working inside EDO that they felt "alarmed and distressed". They then changed this to "annoyance" which isn't part of section 5 of the public order act.

People stopped using the megaphone, and for the first time ever at protests at EDO, Sussex Police produced a bylaw about making noise in the street. They then read a warning under the bylaw which no-one had ever heard before. Immediately after reading the warning, three cops walked over to protesters and dragged off a woman without saying a word. They have since arrested her under this bylaw and she's being held at Hollingbury police station.

The noise protest ended at about 09:30 and at about 09:45, three cops entered the camp, one of whom is known as Sean Mac Donald. They made a big point of saying that they knew certain 'known' people at the camp. The other campers told them to go away and they retreated. Campers suspect they're scoping the camp out for another raid.

There's a noise demo outside Moulscombe at 4 pm today and people are urged to attend to make this bylaw unworkable.

dismantle the war machine
- Homepage: http://www.smashedo.org.uk