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Scottish Police Harass a Peaceful Protest

Alex Cabb | 15.04.2008 22:40 | Repression | Social Struggles

Five members of the Edinburgh Clown Army (1) were detained for questioning this afternoon at a peaceful and entertaining biofuels protest in Bruntsfield(2). They have since been arrested and charged with a breach of the peace, despite maintaining a friendly atmosphere.

Eye-witnesses state that the biofuels demonstration was peaceful, friendly and party-like atmosphere.

Witnesses also state that the Clowns were friendly and entertaining, creating a comical and amusing ambiance for the protest.

Witnesses say that the Clowns gave no grounds for the police to charge them with a breach of the peace.

Police moved in in large numbers, surrounding the Clowns, filmed them, and took them one by one into the back of a police van.

They were taken to St Leonards Police Station for questioning, at which point they were charged with a breach of the peace.

The protest was part of the biofuels day of action, and took place at the BP garage in the Bruntsfield area of Edinburgh.

People who attended the demonstration are shocked and angered by the treatment the Clowns have received from the police.

This latest move from the police is part of an ongoing campaign of harassing peaceful demonstrators over the last six months. Three environmental campaigners were detained for questioning at 7.30 in the morning last month, including one of the Clowns who were targeted by the police on Tuesday.

They are due in court tomorrow, Wed 16th, and the friends and relatives of those arrested will be turning up to support them.

Friends and relatives of those Clowns who were arrested urge the media to provide the pictures and videos that will help prove that they have been wrongfully arrested.

From -  http://scotland.indymedia.org/newswire/display/5536/index.php

Notes:

(1) A comical and entertaining activist group that use humour and ridicule to challenge the status quo.  http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Clandestine_Insurgent_Rebel_Clown_Army
(2) The protest was called by Biofuels Watch to raise awareness about the negative impacts this fuel source has: calling for a an EU moratorium on agrofuels from large-scale monocultures. Agroenergy monocultures are linked to accelerated climate change, deforestation, the impoverishment and dispossession of local communities, bio-diversity losses, human rights abuses, water and soil degradation, loss of food sovereignty and food security.  http://www.biofuelwatch.org.uk/

Alex Cabb
- Homepage: http://scotland.indymedia.org

Comments

Hide the following 5 comments

Police Harras Clowns...

16.04.2008 07:37

So, this is how the Polis have decided to deal with us? Harrasment, intimidation and arbitary arrest... A friend and fellow clown was recently stopped and searched by the police here in Aberystwyth (which, for those of you who don't know is in the County of Ceredigion in WEST WALES.) The reason given by our friendly neighbourhood upholder and defender of the Status Quo (never liked that band...) for stopping her? That her car had been seen outside an MOD base. And where was this? Faslane (which, if memory serves is in Scotland and, as I recall about two hundred miles from little ole Aber!) Kinda gives the lie to the old shiboleth about the surveillance state with its CCTV and ID cards that "if you aren't breaking the law then you have nothing to fear" doesn't it? My friend wasn't even arrested at Faslane (nor has she ever been arrested anywhere else.) In fact, she's only had a coupla parking tickets in her whole life... Yet her car registration and details are now on the police national vehicle data base. Take care people, Big Brother IS watching, and he will take whatever action he can to let you know what will happen if you put even a toe over his line... I have no doubt that the Clowns who were arrested in the incident described above will almost certainly not be prosecuted and, in the unlikely event that they are, that this prosecution will probably not succeed. This seems to be the pattern that has emerged in the five years or so that we have been around. It is almost certainly a similar experience to those of other direct action groups. Perhaps someone should look into the numbers, but I think that they will find that, although the number of Clowns arrested seems to be rising inexorably there have yet to be ANY convictions or even, for that matter, prosecutions that actually went so far as a trial. The lesson we must learn is that this police tactic is an attempt to scare us and that, apparently, they are content to use the threat of arrest etc, rather than risk looking very foolish when the defence barrister asks the question of a police witness in court "so P.C. Plod... Why did you arrest this Clown?" Don't let them scare us. Let them know that we refuse to be intimidated and that we are not going anywhere! Go Clowns! Who are we? Clown Army! CIRCA forever! Sgt Sideshow salutes you!

Sgt Sideshow


Only the lonely.....

16.04.2008 14:11

Call me an old cynic but may be Plod needs some entertainment.

On a serious note, from my experience, anyone who expresses anti establishment views is now considered a threat and has the status of terrorist. This expression of views extends to groups who are part of the establishment, eg masons. I am a Police/Polis target purely due to an anti mason campaign. Say anything about masonic corruption and hey presto the cops are out to get you.

One of the worse things is for the Plod to get a car number to put on the APNR system. They can track you where ever you go then. Phone numbers are another hazard, at least a mobile enables you to change number at will.

This is indeed the surveillance society and anyone who questions authority gets harassed. Time for a strategy to deal with this.

Sgt Pepper


hello Big Brother

16.04.2008 17:58

The clowns have been charged and will appear in court in August. Whether or not the charges will be dropped is debatable. It looks like the Police just took this as an opportunity to ask them lots of nasty questions about various other (anti-)political activity going on in Edinburgh recently, as if there is only one small group of people who are anti establishment in the city. The clowns were not treated kindly whilst being held.
Anyone appearing slightly alternative and wishing to go into the clowns' hearing had to give their name and address or they wouldn't be admitted (to this "open court"). They were told different stories as to why, and as to who will now see and use their details ("they will be kept in the police fraternity").
once Big Brother is watching you, he wants to pin as many of his big file of problems on you as he can.

Pwdin


Chat with the Chief Constable

17.04.2008 09:10

The chief constable of Lothian and Borders will be happy to chat about clowning concerns.

On 12:30 to 13:30 Thursday 17th of April

Keep questions polite, but I doubt if they will be answered.

 http://www.lbp.police.uk/chat/index.asp

Starkj


Chief ain't talkin

17.04.2008 10:56


Sorry the above comment is out of date.

starkj73