FOR CORRESPONDENCE USE  schnews@brighton.co.uk THANK YOU.

For this week's SchNEWS in full technicolour:
www.schnews.org.uk/archive/news683.htm

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WAKE UP!! IT'S YER KETTLE DRUMMIN'...

SchNEWS, Issue 683, Friday 10th July 2009

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BOBBIES ON THE BLEAT

A SchNEWS RETORT TO THE POLICE REPORT

SchNEWS has cast our cynical eye over the HMIC (Her Majesty's
Inspectorate of Constabulary) report about the policing of the G20
protests, 'Adapting To Protest'. The HMIC say they welcome
feedback on the report. Well here's SchNEWS' take...

So why was this report commissioned? Maybe something about the
police being out of order, the fact an innocent bystander was killed
or that all this was caught on camera? In the words of the HMIC:
'The high volume of publicly sourced footage of the protests,
including the events leading up to the death of Ian Tomlinson, has
demonstrated the influence of 'citizen journalists'
- members of the public who play an active role in collecting,
analysing and distributing media themselves. Consequently, individual
and collective police actions are under enormous public
scrutiny.'

The report is more concerned about the perception of the police than
the police actions themselves. Police were initially pleased with
media coverage, but 'by the 5th April this was becoming more
critical. This intensified following the emergence of images relating
to the death of Ian Tomlinson.' One suggested solution to this
is to have 'embedded' journalists with police on the front
line! Police say they face 'dilemmas around using potentially
sensitive information connected with death or serious injuries at
public order events which may subsequently become evidence in legal
proceedings.' But this didn't stop them spinning a whole
host of lies over the death of Ian Tomlinson (claiming there was no
police contact, medics were assaulted, and he died from a heart attack
- SchNEWS 672).

We are told that in relation to the press there should be
'Awareness and recognition of the UK press card by officers on
cordons, to identify legitimate members of the press.' But what
use is a press card when police officers don't give a damn if
you are press or not? On April 2nd there was a Section 14 notice
(under the Public Order Act) issued to the press. A City of London
Police Inspector told the press to 'Go away for half an hour and
possibly come back to help us resolve this situation.' He was
acting on behalf of Commander Broadhurst who was top cop for the day
- so harassment of the press was coming right from the top and
being carried out by an Inspector. Yet the report makes no mention of
this - it is not a case of a few officers failing to recognise
press cards, it is a systematic abuse of the police's powers to
manage the news and restrict the freedom of the press (it's also
a shame more press don't stand up for press freedom and refuse
to cooperate with unreasonable police demands).

In the build up to the G20 protests, there were lots of media reports
anticipating violence. The report has a breathtaking omission:
'An article titled 'The Summer of Rage Starts Here'
was published on a popular protester website by a member calling
themselves London Anarchists.' But it totally fails to mention
that the phrase 'Summer of Rage' was coined by David
Hartshorn, who heads the Met's public order branch.
Also, no mention is made of police blogs gleefully spoiling for a
fight, or Commander Simon O'Brien's boast:
'We're up to it and we're up for it.' Such
spin can only be designed to try and deflect blame from the police
themselves for ratcheting up the tension.

The report also conducted an opinion poll survey on the
public's attitude to the police and protesting (well, they need
to frame their PR correctly). It did admit that there was a split on
whether the police handled the G20 protests well, but did show the
public were largely favourable of the police overall. Also it showed a
distinct age and class bias, with young people and the working classes
being the least in favour of the police - reflecting the obvious
fact that the police are there for the rich rather than the poor and
likely to hassle youth.

Curiously, the report is illustrated throughout with rent-a-mob riot
porn photos: masked protesters, a fire, smashed windows, brew crew
with a bottle... but funnily no snarling riot cops without ID numbers
hitting people with truncheons!

There were some acknowledgements that the police did cock up on the
day - apparently we will see all Met officers displaying their
numbers in future (we wait with baited breath). The report is critical
of police planning for the day saying that a whole protest should not
be criminalised - it acknowledges that people have a right to
protest and that this should be protected under human rights law:
'the police, are required to show a certain degree of tolerance
towards peaceful gatherings... even if these protests cause a level of
obstruction or disruption.' How much disruption is a matter of
'debate' according to the report.

The police claimed they were at a disadvantage when it comes to
communication on the ground: they have to cope with a 'flexible
and responsive protest community which is capable of advanced
communication and immediate reaction to events on the ground. This is
in stark contrast to the traditional communication capabilities of the
police.' So let's get this straight - the police
have at their disposal CCTV street coverage, helicopters tracking
movements of crowds, radio communication equipment and a central
command bunker overseeing the whole operation and they are at a
disadvantage over us with mobile phones and a
make-it-up-as-you-go-along attitude on the ground?!

The most controversial tactic of all, 'kettling' gets the
thumbs up from the HMIC, which they qualify as being suitable as long
as it is proportionate - but police should let people leave the
areas if they er, like the look of you (ditch the black hoodie for a
suit?). The report recommends updating ACPO's public order
manual and says that the police need to adapt their public order
tactics. However, the police have already tried to deflect criticism
of their tactics, with Commander Bob Broadhurst, the head of the
Public Order Unit, laying the blame at the feet of inexperienced
ordinary police officers for the violent and repressive policing at
the G20. They ignore the whole issue of kettling and the fact that the
two most reported instances of police abuse (the death of Ian
Tomlinson and the blatant assault on Nicola Fisher) were committed by
the TSG - the Met's fully trained riot goons. The police are
still trying to spin the few bad apples line, when we know it's
the whole damn cart that is rotten.

* See full report at: www.inspectorates.justice.gov.uk/hmic/docs/ap

There will be a second instalment later in the year with 'a
systematic review... to inform the ongoing debate on the policing of
protest.' We can't wait!

More information following the campaign against police violence,
inspired by Ian Tomlinson's death:
 http://againstpoliceviolence.blogspot.com



Conclusion: A LOAD OF HORSESHIT


Here's an actual page from the G20 police report, wrapping up
many pages of lucid argument and rigorous research. But just what is
that pile of brown stuff next to the word 'conclusion'?
Under magnification, we can clearly see that it is in fact a well
chosen visual metaphor to sum up the report. It's all complete
horseshit.














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HANS OFF!

In the most serious Chinese government massacre since Tiananmen
Square 20 years ago, hundreds of people were killed on Sunday (5th) in
Urumchi, capital of East Turkestan - or Xinjiang, as the ethnically
Uighur province has been known since it was occupied by the
'People's Liberation Army' 60 years ago.

On Sunday, students organised a protest against the Chinese
authorities' inaction on the mob killing and beating of Uighurs
at a toy factory in the southern Guangdong province two weeks ago, and
the increasing racial discrimination against the Muslim Uighurs across
China. In the earlier attack, the police didn't show up for
three hours as the Uighurs were being beaten, resulting in at least
three fatalities.

The march in Urumchi initially passed peacefully, with the student
protesters even waving Chinese national flags to appease the security
forces. It didn't work however. Paramilitary police arrived,
heavily armed and in position to confront the marchers before they
even reached the central square. Police initially tried to disperse
the crowd with tear gas. When this failed they shot into the crowd
with live ammo and hunted down groups of protesters well into the
evening. According to eyewitnesses, seventeen demonstrators were
crushed by armoured vehicles near the university. While it appears
that most of the several hundred dead and over a thousand injured were
Uighurs, there were also Han Chinese victims as, following the
repression of the march, many Uighurs vented their anger in attacks on
the Han and their property.

In response some 1,500 Uighur students were subsequently rounded up.
Many are still being held and are being threatened with execution for
being responsible for the deaths during the Sunday clashes. Protests
were also violently repressed in other East Turkestan cities such as
Kashgar, with reports of dozens killed.

Security forces flooded the province's cities on Monday,
fearing a larger uprising in a region simmering with ethnic tensions,
where the indigenous Uighirs have been resisting the extermination of
their culture and language for decades. With the world's media
in town, the police acted with restraint to control groups of Han
Chinese who went on the rampage on Monday against Uighur businesses,
and Uighur women protesting against the detention of their relatives
on Tuesday. Many Uighur have since tried to flee the area, scared for
their lives.

Complementing the city lock-downs by the security forces, the
authorities imposed a communications blackout with almost all internet
connections and phone lines to the outside world cut off, even for the
world's media, who were forced to rely on official press
releases and video footage of the clashes. The Chinese authorities
presented the Uighurs as the instigators and main aggressors in the
violence - only Han Chinese victims were shown and Uighurs were
shown attacking property. None of the 156 dead claimed by the
authorities have been named, nor has their ethnicity been revealed.
Rebiya Kadeer, Uighur political prisoner for six years from 1999 until
2005, and currently in exile in the US, was blamed by authorities for
masterminding the protests.
The massacre in Urumchi resembles the brutal crackdown of protests in
Tibet in March 2008 when over 200 Tibetans were killed by police
followed by a massive cover up by the authorities. But while this
provoked the righteous fury of western liberalism - spurred on by the
sage noddings of spiritual mentors such as the Dali Lama and Richard
Gere - the Uighurs, being Muslims, are less likely to be sanctified by
the western press. Video footage has since emerged however, of
brutality by the security forces towards protesters. As reports
painting a distinctly different picture to the official version of
events begin to emerge from East Turkestan, it looks like this
situation is also one the Chinese government will struggle to keep
covered up for long.

* For more visit www.uyghurcongress.org www.uhrp.org



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WON'T TAKE IT ZELAYA-N DOWN

Last Sunday (5th) saw a tense stand-off in Honduras as President
Manuel Zelaya attempted to defy military threats to arrest him for
treason by returning to the country after being ousted in a military
coup the Sunday before (28th) (See SchNEWS 682). Zelaya was supported
in his attempt by hundreds of thousands of protesters demonstrating
for his return.

Although a few hundred protesters managed to reach Tegucigalpa
airport in the early afternoon, the police and the military attempted
to prevent the main body of marchers by blockading access roads.
However, the blockades didn't last and by the time
Zelaya's plane was entering Honduran airspace, a reported
500,000 had surrounded the airport.
As the plane approached it became clear that the military was
blocking the runway with vehicles. Protesters tried to force their way
into the airport on the southern side, resulting in violent clashes
with rocks hurled at the police, who responded with tear gas and live
rounds. A number of protesters managed to break through the lines and
spilled onto the runway, but were cleared with gunfire. The clashes
saw the first confirmed death of the uprising when a 19 year old
student, Isis Obed Murillo, was shot and killed by police
gunmen.

With military aircraft in the flight path and soldiers and military
vehicles still blocking the runway, Zelaya's plane was forced to
re-ascend after circling the airport several times. It eventually
landed in Nicaragua.

Daily protests have continued ever since, although they have been
severely hampered by the military imposed curfew, was has been brought
forward three hours and now starts at 6pm. A teachers strike, which
began the day after the coup, has also continued. The teachers union
has claimed that teachers have faced heavy pressure from the
authorities to return to work.

Speculation - fuelled by Zelaya - is rife that he will attempt
another return in the coming week - possibly by land. But any
return will have to wait for the conclusion of mediations between
Zelaya and coup 'President' Roberto Micheletti, which are
now underway in Costa Rica.

* For more information see  http://www.narconews.com



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OH, THE HUMANITY

On June 30th the Free Gaza Movement boat, Spirit of Humanity, was
captured in international waters whilst en route to Gaza with a cargo
of humanitarian supplies and human rights witnesses. Not taking any
chances with a small boat carrying an unarmed crew of pacifists, eight
Israeli warships followed the Spirit, boarding her and taking the crew
hostage. At the time the boat was still some 19 miles from the coast,
well outside the 12 mile limit that marks the end of any
country's territorial waters.

Ten Israeli commandos stormed the ship and handcuffed everyone on
board. But despite being dressed up in full Navy SEAL combat gear,
these commandos hadn't quite earned their sea legs. Having
nicked everyone during slightly choppy weather, they proceeded to
throw up over the boat. Apparently this really pissed off the Spirit
of Humanity's captain.

The Israelis tried to spin the story that the boat was 'trying
to enter Israel illegally.' The mind boggles that the Israeli
propaganda machine has the balls to get away with such outrageous
rubbish as this. Not only did the ship's onboard GPS and
navigation equipment all prove that the ship was headed for Gaza, but
this is the Free Gaza Movement's boat (the clue's in the
name). Technically even the Israeli state isn't claiming that
Gaza is part of Israel (at the moment at least).

SchNEWS spoke to one of the Free Gaza organisers, Greta, based in
Nicosia, Cyprus. 'The 21 hostages were taken to an Israeli
immigration jail. They wanted to make the charges (illegal entry into
Israel) stick. But nobody signed anything, and they saw that this
tactic wasn't going to work. The Israelis have tried it all
before. They rammed one ship three times, and tried to capsize
another. These things didn't work, so I guess they figure
'maybe if we board them...' But it's not going to
happen. We're going back. But we won't go back with just
one ship next time, we'll take three or four.' To date
this is only the second boat that they've prevented from getting
in.

After the UN Special Rapporteur on Human Rights in the Occupied
Palestinian Territories (Richard Falk) spoke up by saying that Israel
had clearly violated the law, Israel quietly dropped the illegal entry
claim. They also, somewhat bizarrely, tried to claim that the ship was
illegally flying the Greek flag. The commandos tried to rectify this
by tearing up all the flags on board (bravo brave defenders of Zion).
This fact came as a surprise to the Greek owner of the ship.
He's currently in Tel Aviv negotiating the return of his vessel.
Despite the keenness of the Israelis to hold onto the Spirit of
Humanity, there are fairly strict rules about capturing the vessels of
other nations. These rules are variously referred to as Piracy,
Privateering or Acts of War (take your pick, Israel).
It's getting harder and harder to decipher Israel's game
these days. After kidnapping the passengers and crew of the Spirit and
throwing them in jail, they allowed them to keep their phones and call
the world's press from their cells. It's almost as if the
government revels in bad press.

Meanwhile, all the crew and passengers are out of jail and have
returned home. The UK detainees made it back last Monday (5th). The
Free Gaza Movement has plenty of people ready and waiting to brave
high seas and low tricks to break the brutal and criminal siege of
Gaza. They're short of cash however, and need activists around
the world to keep their missions to Gaza in the public eye.

* See  http://freegaza.org



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INSIDE SCHNEWS

Heather Nicholson, who was jailed for eleven years in the SHAC
conspiracy to blackmail trial (See SchNEWS 661, 663), was moved
without warning on Tuesday (7th), first to Eastwood Park in
Gloucester, before then being transferred to HMP Foston Hall in
Derbyshire.

* Write to her at Heather Nicholson VM5859, HMP Foston Hall, Foston,
Derby, Derbyshire DE65 5DN

* Another imprisoned animal rights activist, Sean Kirtley, was this
week granted leave to appeal against his conviction for
'Interfering with the contractual relationships of a
laboratory.' Sean is currently serving a four and a half year
sentence for doing little more than running a website and attending
demonstrations against Sequani labs (See SchNEWS 632). Judges ruled
that it was arguable that the guilty plea of a co-defendant may have
influenced the jury in the case. No date has yet been set.

See  http://supportsean.wordpress.com



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NICE TOSIA, TO SEE YOU NICE...

As we reported in SchNEWS 681, the pipe-laying ship, Solitaire,
contracted by Shell to build the offshore part of its gas pipeline
though the increasingly less scenic County Mayo in Ireland, is heavily
defended. In addition to 200-odd Shell goons, and over 300 extra crack
Guardia troops shipped in to the area, the navy has also been present,
backed up by a plane and helicopter - all to repress any direct
action by Shell To Sea (S2S) activists.

Money is apparently no object when it comes to Shell's right to
despoil and cause climate chaos - figures released recently show
defending Shell has cost the government 12 million euros and counting
since 2006 - but this time they overlooked one thing. The
Solitaire needs a constant supply of pipes and equipment from smaller
vessels. These goods are coming through the port in Killybegs, so it
was here that the canny S2S naval crew struck - showing that however
large the iron fist, it's difficult to crush people's
determination to protest.

On Monday morning, seven brave kayakers paddled out and headed for
the relatively undefended supply ship, the Tosia Independent, busy
being restocked to make another delivery to the Solitaire.

Coming alongside, some of the protesters then attempted to board the
vessel, with one managing to climb into a large tyre hanging off the
side of the ship and successfully holding up operations for several
hours. Hearty respect from us mere landlubbers!

The fight against the full range of corporate/governmental forces
continues - this coming week sees the state harassment and
intimidation of the campaign step up a gear with over two dozen
anti-Shell protesters being hauled before the courts on trumped up
charges.

* For more see www.corribsos.com



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CALL OUT! KEEN TO SQUAT!

The cheeky squatters of the house of MPs Anne and Alan Keen (see
SchNEWS 682) are in court today (Fri 10th July) at 2pm. Alan Keen has
recently stated that they should 'get a job' -
presumably meaning one like theirs - which will be up for grabs,
not before time, at the next election!

Assemble from 1:30pm outside Brentford Magistrates Court, Brentford,
West London to demonstrate - nearest tube is Gunnersbury, or
overground rail Brentford. The house is at 38 Brook Rd South,
Brentford, TW8 0NN, Site mob 07912078757

* See www.indymedia.org.uk/en/2009/07/433958.html?c=on#c227743



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CLIMATE CAMPAIGNS RUN HOT

With three court cases this week, plans for three Climate Camps, and
other international demonstrations later in the year, it's a
busy summer for climate campaigners across the country...

THE DRAX 22

This week in Leeds Crown Court, guilty verdicts were handed down in a
jury trial for the Drax 22 who were arrested in June 2008 for stopping
a coal train destined for the Drax Power Station in North Yorkshire,
the UK's most polluting power plant (See SchNEWS 636). Dressed
in overalls, they used safety signals to have the train stopped,
before climbing on board and dumping coal from it onto the tracks.
Others were suspended from ropes across the track to prevent it
moving. 29 were arrested - this trial involved 22.

The defendants were refused the right to claim in defence that they
were acting against the 'imminent threat' of climate
change, citing that 'UN statistics show that the amount of
carbon produced by Drax was responsible for 180 deaths a year. Every
minute we were on that train, we were stopping carbon
emissions.' The judge instructed the jury to 'stick to the
facts', refusing to allow this argument as a defence, but
assured the 22 that custodial sentences were not on the cards. Along
with the inevitable fines and costs, they are all likely to get
community service, as meted out recently to the Plane Stupid Stansted
Airport activists (see SchNEWS 659). As one of the Plane Stupid lot (a
youthful D-lock fanatic) put it: 'Death by charity shop old
ladies'.

* See www.facebook.com/group.php?gid=123128030015

THE RATCLIFFE 114

This week 67 of the Ratcliffe 114 (See SchNEWS 672), had their
charges dropped due to 'insufficient evidence'. The 114
were pre-emptively arrested over Easter in a huge media-splashed bust
at a school in Nottingham where the group was staying, before any
alleged demo could happen. The climate change campaigners found
themselves on charges of conspiracy to cause criminal damage to the
Eon-owned Ratcliffe-on-Soar coal-fired power station, in a mass-arrest
costing the taxpayer £777,000. The remaining 47 will find out
what's next over the following weeks as the police continue
their futile search for 'ringleaders'.

* See www.indymedia.org.uk/en/regions/nottinghamshire

THE CLIMATE RUSH er... 4

Also up in court this week were four Climate Rush activists. The
group who model themselves on the Suffragettes attempted to blockade a
coal conference at Chatham House on 1st June by chaining themselves to
a sculpture made of bicycle bits. When that failed they got out the
superglue. Their case was dismissed in court this week owing to lack
of evidence from the prosecution.

'We believe the police acted more forcefully than was
absolutely necessary: namely arresting anybody!' sniffed a
spokeswoman.

* See www.facebook.com/group.php?gid=37252577758

CLIMATE CAMPS

The Camp For Climate Action is back this summer with three camps
across the UK. Firstly, one at The Firth Of Forth, Scotland, August
3rd-10th (See  http://climatecampscotland.org.uk), then in
Pembrokeshire, Wales, August 13th-16th, (See
 http://climatecampcymru.org) then onto the London area, August
27th-September 2nd, to take on the Met 'somewhere within the M25
area'. The call is out for everyone to be ready and waiting in
or around London to swoop on the site on 27th August. Details will
posted on the web and texted for those who sign up (See
 http://climatecamp.org.uk). In the lead-up to all this there will be a
Climate Camp National Gathering in London, July 18th-19th. For more
info call 07534 598 733 and see www.climatecamp.org.uk/node/471

Dedicated campers have already been sharing their skills with a
series of workshops at last weekend's Glastonbury festival. The
training involved tripod climbing and blockading techniques. Graduates
of the Climate Camp School of BLOCK got to try out their new skills by
closing down the Greenpeace bar which was appropriately fashioned as
an airport terminal with departure lounge.

Planning meetings are also underway for a mass international action
on October 24th-25th, when a range of groups will come together in
Britain in an attempt to close down a power station. Climate Camp,
Climate Rush and Greenpeace have formed a coalition and are inviting
others to join for a day of global action shutting down climate
criminals. For info see the climate camp site, plus
www.climaterush.co.uk

COPENHAGEN COP OUT

The next UN Climate Conference, COP-15 (the biggest yet), will be in
Copenhagen on December 7th -18th. While the leaders rearrange the
deckchairs on the Titanic one more time there will be an international
convergence of protesters there to make an impact. One activist told
SchNEWS that plans mooted include 'keeping the lobbyists out,
locking the delegates in until they come up with a respectable
solution to climate change - and - create a space for proper
talks to happen between delegates and activists, though probably still
with the lobbyists locked in their hotels!'

See www.climatecamp.org.uk/copenhagen



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DIGGING IN

Early last Tuesday (7th) protesters at the Mainshill Solidarity Camp
in South Lanarkshire were rudely awoken by police barging a JCB digger
into the barricaded entrance to the site. Following at their heels
were representatives of both Scottish Coal and drilling company Apex,
who rolled flat bed trucks into the site to remove their equipment,
including two drilling rigs, a dump truck and two portacabins. The
equipment had spent three weeks impounded in the camp, preventing
exploratory drilling which has now recommenced at a different
location.

Camp activists told SchNEWS that local support had been
'overwhelming' and had come from 'the most unlikely
quarters... Even the police don't seem up for evicting
us'.

Undeterred by the raid, the camp continues and they are currently
busy digging tunnels and erecting tree houses, barricades and other
'interesting things'.

* The camp is in urgent need of people to help out and defend it
against eviction. For details on how to get there and more see
www.coalactionedinburgh.noflag.org.uk or call 07806 926 040



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AND FINALLY

BNP leader Nick Griffin has taken some well-earned flack recently in
the mainstream press, who have been busy re-publicising his
'Hitler went a bit far' quote - which, as
incredulous understatements go, is up there with 'the black
death was a bit inconvenient' or 'the Hiroshima bomb was a
bit of a bang'...

The BNP themselves are in indignant fury - and rushed out a
press release (don't worry, we only read them so that you
don't have to. Honest), to deny such outrageous slurs on their
Fuhrer.

Referring to the quote, they thundered: 'This is an outrageous
falsehood. Chairman Nick Griffin never said anything remotely like
this - it is a compete lie.'.

Panicking that hardcore supporters may indeed be outraged at such
weedy assertions from their supreme leader, they make no reference to
what the Grifter's actual views about Hitler's trifling
failures may or may not have been. But they certainly leave plenty of
room for Nazi Nick supporters to assume that what he actually meant
was 'Hitler didn't go nearly far enough... just wait
'til we get in power! Seig Heil! '



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Disclaimer

SchNEWS warns all readers - read the police report if you like, but
we're telling you it's not much cop. Honest!

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