SOCPA has withered away

The name-reading ceremony for the Afghan war dead proceeded opposite Parliament without any attention from the police today - despite the use of a loudhailer (banned under the Serious Organised Crime and Police Act)

Hi folks

We showed up opposite Downing Street at 10am this morning to read the names of Afghan civilians and British soldiers who've died in the war.

Dozens of police walked by. A host of diplo cops watched us from around the Downing Street gate.

Maya Evans, Gabriel Carlyle and myself had written an open letter to the police in advance, notifying them that we were organising this name-reading remembrance ceremony, but refusing to apply for police permission.

No police officer approached us. No police officer talked to us. No police officer arrested us or tried to stop us using a loudhailer to shout the names of the dead across the road into Downing Street.

Using a megaphone is specifically banned under the Serious Organised Crime and Police Act. Section 137 is all about loudspeakers and how they cannot be used in the 'restricted zone' around Parliament:

137 (4) A person who operates or permits the operation of a loudspeaker in contravention of subsection (1) is guilty of an offence and is liable on summary conviction to—

(a) a fine not exceeding level 5 on the standard scale, together with

(b) a further fine not exceeding £50 for each day on which the offence continues after the conviction.

About 18-20 came to the protest, the largest name-reading we have ever organised. Different people took turns reading the names and holding the megaphone (and the umbrella).

Afterwards we gathered in a circle and shared our thoughts about the event. Maya thanked everyone for coming, and we all re-dedicated ourselves to ending this war.

So, after the case dismissed yesterday (see other post), it's Peace Movement 5 - SOCPA 0.

(Goal 1: not having to give a date of birth at the hearing; Goal 2: having the case dismissed; Goal 3: getting defendant's expenses paid by the court; Goal 4: holding an unauthorised event without any police interference; Goal 5: operating a megaphone to remind our rulers of hundreds of deaths they have caused - without any hindrance from the police.)

SOCPA seems to have withered away. Now it's just a matter of the State....

Milan Rai
e-mail: milanrai@btinternet.com
Homepage: http://www.j-n-v.org

Comments

Hide the following 11 comments

Well done guys!

08.05.2009 18:51

Passed by today or should I say I discretely cruised by a couple of times today and was happy to see you all there being left alone. Pity about the early rain but you did'nt seem put off. Just a shame the FIT did not show up for me to snap or were they secretly watching from afar? Did the police lay on the nice little crowd barrier coral for you? And once again well done and keep up the good work.

itsafitup

It is British State 10 - Anti War Movement 0

08.05.2009 19:11

I don't think the police and the government are too worried about you I'm afraid Milan. Those symbolic acts in the SOCPA area are not stopping anything as far as I'm concerned. They will repeal sections 132-138 soon, mainly because they're useless to them. Public processions and assemblies will keep on being regulated by the Public Order Act. Just remember that the law used to repress G20 protests was mainly Section 14 from POA 1986. As suggested by the Joint Committee on Human Rights, they will update this section to ensure that the operations of Parliament are not 'hindered' and just carry on with business as usual (Afghanistan, 'terrorism' at home, maybe some other country). Yesterday 6 people had their houses raided and were arrested for 'violent disorder' during the Gaza protests last January (under section 2 from, oh yes, POA 1986). In the meantime, hundreds of thousands (if not millions) dead, maimed, displaced, made refugees and living under occupation. I'm afraid it is British State 10 - Anti War Movement 0.

protestor

SOCPA has not withered away

08.05.2009 20:26

People are STILL in prison because of this act, it has far from disappeared.

Maybe for campaigners who aren't protesting vivisection everything is great and dandy, for animal liberationists this is quite the opposite. See Section 145: it's illegal to 'to interfere with contractual relationship so as to harm an animal research oganisation'.

What does this mean? See -

http://www.indymedia.org.uk/en/2008/01/389745.html

Sean Kirtley (

http://supportsean.wordpress.com) was sentenced to 4.5 years under Sec.145 for running a website critical of an animal research organisation, 'organising' demonstrations (by hosting the dates on a website) and 'legally' advocating its closure (by website). Note; not actually protesting - but 'organising' protests and criticising a company so as to harm them (for example, purely economically by legal boycotts is all thats needed to prove this).

There has been solidarity and it will continue -

http://www.indymedia.org.uk/en/2008/09/408433.html

Luke Steele and Dean Cain who are remanded in prison (

http://www.myspace.com/supportthehighgatefour) along with another activist, await sentencing after pleading guilty to Sec.145 because of the vast implications and broad terminology in the act. A fourth activist was found not guilty in the same case. See the recent SOCPA trial for more details -

http://www.indymedia.org.uk/en/2009/05/429635.html

Don't forget about this repressive law just because it doesn't effect you...Keep resisting!

by a long way

Pics from Friday's name reading

08.05.2009 21:24

Here:

http://tinyurl.com/NamingDeadPicsMay09

dv
mail e-mail: vd2012-imc [at] yahoo.co.uk

Use of language

08.05.2009 21:44

Yes, the entire Serious Organised Crime and Police (SOCrAP) Act 2005 certainly has not withered away, even if the sections relating to protest around Parliament (s.132-138) appear to be in decline in terms of their practical enforcement (even if they are still on the statute book, for the time-being at least).

Let's not forget that SOCrAP (s.128) also makes it a criminal offence to trespass on a designated site; and that since SOCrAP came in, any offence no matter how trivial is potentially arrestable. So let's be careful with our use of language.

We must keep asserting our right to demonstrate, to not be silenced, repressed, brutalised, tortured, rendered or killed by the State or its agents or proxies, or prevented from holding the State or its agents to account - otherwise it's Police State: 1984, Protesters: 0.

Peace be upon you.

dv
mail e-mail: vd2012-imc [at] yahoo.co.uk

Afghan name reading ceremony at TA centre in south London

08.05.2009 23:09

http://london.indymedia.org.uk/articles/1341

well done, however we dont need to be told who our rulers are

09.05.2009 08:02

Goal 5: operating a megaphone to remind our rulers of hundreds of deaths they have caused - comment

they are not mine i mean the rulers.

additionally thought what were you doing trying to read names of those killed, or trying to confront the government, police etc - it is enough that you held a memorial event

greeves

Not so certain

09.05.2009 11:59

I am not convinced this proves SOCPA has withered away. Perhaps the police interest in applying the law has withered away. Perhaps for political reasons they do not wish to apply it. It only seems to show that the six month deadline was accidentally or deliberately missed for political reasons.

In any case thanks to all involved for taking the risk and remembering the dead of Afghanistan. I did not feel able to do that due to SOCPA 132-138 laws being still in place.

I would say the score was British state 0 (killing thousands of innocents in Iraq/Afghanistan) Antiwar movement 2 (for being right about these 'wars' and for continuing to protest).

Brian B

socpa is still used but it's legal basis is in tatters

09.05.2009 17:42

milan's recent trial collapsed, and this name-reading was allowed to pass off without hindrance. recently even a 24-hour road blockade by the tamils outside westminster passed without any socpa arrests or notifications, but there ARE still arrests and very occasional convictions under socpa, and much more worryingly, there is much misuse on an extra-judicial level.

no-one that i know of has yet had an opportunity to cross-examine the crown prosecution service (cps) over papers disclosed to barbara tucker (parliament square peace campaigner) where they put one thing in writing (that due to changes in socpa legislation they cannot proceed), while acting another way and still proceeding with cases! (see

http://publish.indymedia.org.uk/en/2008/07/404526.html)

as the cps turned up at mil's trial without the necessary paperwork, he was unable to question this himself.

socpa, while not pursued in court, is still used as a threat against those not clued up on the state of this dishonoured legislation, and is even used to support summary justice (theft of banners, megaphones, deprivation of liberty etc.) without any judicial oversight.

when barbara tucker uses her megaphone (something the socpa act supposedly bans), police still occasionally attack, kidnap and then normally release without charge. she has something like 30 complaints outstanding against the met, and the courts, for these and other similar operations.

extraordinary papers that have come to light recently which show that politicians from both houses have been aware of, and have supported this extra-judicial harassment. since the house of lords is the final buck-stop for the judiciary in the uk, this political interference throws a huge question mark over the chance of any fair trial in this country.

["socpa" above refers to sections 132-138 and the restrictions on protest around parliament. posters' points about the other nasty clauses in this act are quite right]

rikki
mail e-mail: rikkiindymedia[AT]gmail(d0t)com
Homepage: http://www.socpa-movie.blogspot.com

rikki

09.05.2009 23:49

SOCPA is not all/just about the sections relating to the square mile, this is just a part of it.
If the legal basis is in tatters, then why is Sean Kirtley, Luke Steele and Dean Cain still imprisoned? It's obviously not in tatters, just for the sections you mention it partially is.

As you say - ["socpa" above refers to sections 132-138 and the restrictions on protest around parliament...] - but it really doesn't. "Socpa" includes all of its sections, not some.

By all means mention section X-X of socpa is in tatters, otherwise don't both summarising, generalising and stereotyping the rest of the act without having a clue at whats going on!

People are in jail so don't state lies and fictional stories, it only further oppresses them. Thank you for acknowledging that the above poster was correct, that socpa has not withered away; so why bother referring to socpa as sec.132-138 - if you know its not so?!

SOCPA is a all of its sections - not just some of them! Please...stick to reality not fantasy.
I no longer wonder why people sit in jail being ignored, when others think "socpa is dead".

veganarchist
Homepage: http://reality.indymedia.org

talking about socpa

10.05.2009 08:54

I reckon the discussion above about how we talk about SOCPA is important and that we should be mindful of all the ways people are suffering oppression and imprisonment because of various parts of this Act, how they're applied and misapplied.

Stylistically, it's a real pain to have to talk about exactly which section of SOCPA you're referring to every time you use the S-word, and I can see exactly why Rikki decided to stick the reference to the particular sections at the bottom of the comment. But I can also see why someone who doesn't know much about the Act might misunderstand.

Regular articles and updates to the newswire on what's happening on SOCPA are important. If we keep reading about it, we start to get a picture of what the whole thing is about. I reckon newswire items reach more people than an exchange in the comments section of one post, so I hope folk keep reporting their SOCPA news - not forgetting to mention which section they're referring to.

Solidarity.