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Home Ofice In Glasgow Has Been Dawn Raided!

The Unity Centre | 29.05.2012 08:59 | Anti-racism | Migration | Repression

More than a douzen people are currently outside the UKBA offices in Glasgow supporting three people locked on to prevent dawn raids on local families.

The protest and lock-ons have survived 4 hours so far but cutting teams have just begun work.

The blockade as it started
The blockade as it started

The cops arrive
The cops arrive

Tool team prepare to cut activists out
Tool team prepare to cut activists out


At 5:30am this morning a group of douzen protesters from Unity and the No Borders Network have blockaded and closed the gates at the UKBA reporting centre in Brand Street Glasgow, in protest against the continuing detention of children and the practice of early morning raids following the harrowing dawn raids and subsequent detention of two African families in the city over the last month.

Protesters have attached themselves through lock on tubes across the entrance of the main gates, blocking the exit for dawn raid vans, and closing all vehicle exits to the building where the heavy handed UK enforcement teams are based.

The team of protesters are chained together through tubing on which reads the
slogans “STOP DAWN RAIDS” & “END DEPORTATIONS”. Banners in support of refugee rights hang across the gates.

The peaceful protest has currently attracted the attention of 15 police officers.
As protesters blocked the road this morning, members of the UKBA Enforcement Teams which carry out the dawn raids arrived, protesters believe, in preperation to carry out a dawn raid on another family this morning. Protesters believe that we have managed to successfully stop the UKBA detaining a family today.

If you live in Glasgow, come down to join the protest before it's too late and show your support for the blockaders! NO DEPORTATIONS TODAY!

For enquiries (media or other) please call 07579008609

The Unity Centre
- e-mail: info@unitycentreglasgow.org
- Homepage: www.unitycentreglasgow.org

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Embarrassed

29.05.2012 09:49

God that's really embarrassing, actions like this from these type of people just remind me of how far away we are from real power and change.

Glad not to be there

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@Glad not to be there... Hey mate, you just stick with....

29.05.2012 10:07

your God and his fairies you fucking joke!

Aunty Christ

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For ' Aunty Christ '

29.05.2012 10:20

That curious wooshing sound you heard when you read my comment was the point just missing you.

Try again to understand why I wrote what I did.

Glad not to be there

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For ' Aunty Christ '

29.05.2012 10:21

That curious wooshing sound you heard when you read my comment was the point just missing you.

Try again to understand why I wrote what I did.

Glad not to be there

Fucking superb

29.05.2012 10:24

As always Unity your an inspiration to us all.
Don't you guys ever get tired.
Well done keep up the good work.
Nuff respect from Bristol

@rchie

Succesful action!

29.05.2012 10:47

Brief update:

About half an hour after we set up the blocakde, which had been organised at pretty short notice, there was a stream of cars with UKBA officials trying to get into the reporting centre. Some of the cars contained members of the Enforcement Team based at Brand Street so we are confident that our action disrupted a dawn raid this morning.

It took the specialist cutting team from Strathclyde Police 2 hours and 45 minutes to cut the three protesters from their lock on tubes.

All three were arrested and have been taken to a local police station. Unlike the previous protest when all our banners were confiscated as 'evidence' we even kept our nice new vinyl banners!

Today's action was therefore an effective action that although not as spectacular as the last action where we closed the gates for 11 hours...

We're totally not embarassed and very happy with the outcome fo today's protest.

UNITY!

We'll keep you updated!





Unity

Nice one Unity

29.05.2012 10:53

Great action! Well done to all involved.

S

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Assesment

29.05.2012 11:06

I'm used to be surprised when people described actions of this sort as "Successful" but I now realise that any action which makes it to Indy accompanied by a few grainy pictures is automaticly regarded as "successful" simply because it took place.

Proof of how so many do not understand where power is located in this country and what really disrupts it.

You claim to have delayed a deportation, well lets assume that's true, for how long. 4 hours, 8 hours 24 hours, a week ? In the greater scheme of things these minor delays make no difference to the poor fuck being sent back to some hell hole do they ? The only real success would be for all deportations to stop, anything less than that is failure but of course there are no failures here on Indy.

This fight is not outside the gates of an immigration prison but at the doors of those who decide who goes into those prisons and it's a shame you don't understand that.

Surprised

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@Suprised. Instead of criticising do something yourself..

29.05.2012 11:29

you pompous, all seeing, all knowing, all dancing ASS!

Barry Cade

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Surprised-- welcome to the real world.

29.05.2012 11:47

Are you seriously suggesting that the people who took part in this action are unaware that politicians exist. You arrogant prick.

This action was successful for at least these two reasons

The people who make the decisions over deportation are UKBA case workers. They work inside the building in question. The fact that they were prevented form carrying out their dirty work for any amount of time is a success.

Delaying deportation flights works for individuals. Very often the people forced on flights have not had the opportunity to exercise all their legal rights, it extremely common for solicitors to be attempting to last minute appeals on their behalf. So if the flight is delayed some may well get to stay.

Direct action gets the goods not bleating to politicians.

@rchie

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SIGH - Let me explain it to you slowly

29.05.2012 12:13

Are you seriously suggesting that the people who took part in this action are unaware that politicians exist. You arrogant prick.

>>> I may not think that much of them but I assume they are bright enough to be aware that politicians exist.

This action was successful for at least these two reasons

>>> the action was unsuccessful but carry on anyway

The people who make the decisions over deportation are UKBA case workers. They work inside the building in question. The fact that they were prevented form carrying out their dirty work for any amount of time is a success.

>>> failure to understand where the power is. The UKBA staff do as they are told, they are not the decision makers

Delaying deportation flights works for individuals. Very often the people forced on flights have not had the opportunity to exercise all their legal rights, it extremely common for solicitors to be attempting to last minute appeals on their behalf. So if the flight is delayed some may well get to stay.

>>> utter rubbish and you know it. Once the L387 form is signed deportation always takes place, there may be a delay of at most a week but nothing more.

Direct action gets the goods not bleating to politicians.

>>> Direct action makes those involved feel good but rarely achieves much. In that case it achieved nothing and realising that is important.

Finally and this is the important bit so pay attention.

THE POWER IS NOT WITH THE POLITICIANS.

Surprised

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Don't feed the troll

29.05.2012 12:25

Ie; the one going under various pseudonyms on here. Proof as ever that you're doing something that touches a nerve.

Fantastic stuff again Unity. Much love to you guys!

@

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Well said

29.05.2012 12:27

"THE POWER IS NOT WITH THE POLITICIANS."


fuckin well said mate, I'm with you.


I'm sick of these self righteous pricks telling all how their nice safe middle class action changed the world.

People are dying inside these prisons while some Trustafarian outside shows 'like solidarity man'

Wankers

Cheering

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another one

29.05.2012 12:31

"Fantastic stuff again Unity. Much love to you guys!"


Yeah right on Rupert and Poppy, much love will really make a difference to those inside.



Mother, save me from the Middle Classes.

Cheering

UNITY

29.05.2012 13:01

It's very simple

We suspected there might be a dawn raid on a family in Glasgow this morning
We took direct action to stop a dawn raid on a family in Glasgow this morning
We stopped them getting their vehicles out to do a dawn raid on a family in Glasgow this morning

Within that limited framework it was therefore a succesful action.- we are happy to have achieved our limited aims.

We weren't claiming that we would be stoppping deportations or that we were changing the world in this one straightforward action.

If only it were that simple!

Maybe lots of little actions like this morning will add up to the one big one of stopping deportations. With our limited resources that is all we can hope.

Thank you everyone for the support!

UNITY!

UNITY

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'Glad not to be there' and 'Cheering = uneducated troll

29.05.2012 13:26

'Glad not to be there' and 'Cheering' same person, missing your God and your mother are you Mate? Tut tut...........

Aunty Christ

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One last time

29.05.2012 13:35


We suspected there might be a dawn raid on a family in Glasgow this morning
We took direct action to stop a dawn raid on a family in Glasgow this morning
We stopped them getting their vehicles out to do a dawn raid on a family in Glasgow this morning

>>>>> delaying the deportation by 8 hours - Woo Hoo !!!

Within that limited framework it was therefore a succesful action.- we are happy to have achieved our limited aims.

>>>> Limited indeed. You aimed low and just about hit the target.

We weren't claiming that we would be stoppping deportations or that we were changing the world in this one straightforward action.

>>>> instead you are doing just about fuck all and feeling pleased with yourself for achieving it. I'm sure those people whose deportation you delayed by a day are over the fucking moon.

Maybe lots of little actions like this morning will add up to the one big one of stopping deportations.

>>>>> and maybe Thatcher will join Spearmint Rhinos as their new act but I'm not betting on it.


With our limited resources that is all we can hope.

>>>> yes "hope" that the ticket

s p e a k i n g s l o w l e y

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Well Done Unity

29.05.2012 13:40

Well done Unity on showing up at the crack of dawn and keeping the dawn raiders from their work yet again.

Ignore the nonsense posted on here. They obviously don't get out much or they would realise what crap they are talking although when I have a glance at the Indy Newswires I tend to read the ones with a lot of comments to see what's going on so they inadvertently do you a favour!! and no one takes any notice of that nonsense anyway.

The only failure I can see is from the people in a position to take a turn laying across that gateway one morning who don't bother.

Keep up the good work!

J

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Speaking even more slowly

29.05.2012 14:01

Look, you clearly don't know what you are talking about
We didn't stop a deportation for eight hours....We stopped a dawn raid.

A dawn raid is when an Immigration Enforcement Team go out in the early morning to detain a family who would then be put in a detention centre for about three - six days before the UKBA tried to put them on a plane.

Not all dawn raids result in deportation - over half of the people arrested by UKBA immigration officials (outside of ports) are given temporary admission into the UK and many go on to win the lawful right to stay in the UK..

When families are dawn raids children piss themselves in fear and end up being pyschologically traumatised. They can have recurrent nightmares, are often quiet and subdued for weeks after and will duck and shake when they hear the front door being knocked.

Unity has helped hundreds of families over the last six and a half years who have been dawn raided in this way. We do not just do one off actions. The last two families arrested in dawn raids in Glasgow in the last month who we helped are now back in the city and were NOT deported...

We are also actively supporting many other families who face the prospect of being dawn raided at this very moment. We are actively supporting and helping people who are in detention and are facing forced removal from the UK in the next few weeks as well.

Over 3,000 asylum seeker families have registered with us over the 6 years we've been running and 20 visit our offices (that are located less than 100 meters from the UKBA reporting centre where this morning's action took place) every day.

This action today is only a small and limited part of what Unity does in Glasgow and was not a one off but part of a campaign that has been running for over six years to make Glasgow one of the most welcoming and safest places for asylum seekers in the UK.

Love to everyone in No Borders Network and involved with the other Migrant Solidarity Centres

Solidarity!


Unity

Assesment

29.05.2012 15:40




I'm used to be surprised when people described actions of this sort as "Successful" but I now realise that any action which makes it to Indy accompanied by a few grainy pictures is automaticly regarded as "successful" simply because it took place.

Proof of how so many do not understand where power is located in this country and what really disrupts it.

You claim to have delayed a deportation, well lets assume that's true, for how long. 4 hours, 8 hours 24 hours, a week ? In the greater scheme of things these minor delays make no difference to the poor fuck being sent back to some hell hole do they ? The only real success would be for all deportations to stop, anything less than that is failure but of course there are no failures here on Indy.

This fight is not outside the gates of an immigration prison but at the doors of those who decide who goes into those prisons and it's a shame you don't understand that.

Surprised

Court support

29.05.2012 17:28

The three people arrested are being held over night and are due to appear in Glasgow Sheriff Court tomorrow (Wednesday) morning. Anyone willing to come and show support in the court is very welcome.

Unity!

Unity

@Surprised: looking forwards to reading about your actions...

29.05.2012 18:32

...where you raze the home of politicians, the rich, and the judiciary to the ground?

anon

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