Timeline:
11:00pm: 150 people discussing tactics and preparing lock on's at the convergence centre.
3:00am: people wake up, final preparations
4:00am: Leave Leeds for Menwith Hill. The weather is grim. Driving rain, howling winds even some sleet. Extremely cold.
5:00am: Blockade starts. There is a shift change of people working at the base between 5.30 and 7.30. There are four gates. At the main gate there are about 17 people split into three groups who have locked themselves together. Holding hands through lengths of plastic piping. The three groups are lying on the very wet ground blocking the gate. There are also about 30 other protesters at this gate and about 70 protesters at the other gates. There’s about 50 cops in 6 vans.
5:30am:At gate 2: two people have been arrested for having a PA system in their van, despite having permission to have it there. They are arrested for intent to cause criminal damage. How do you cause criminal damage with a public address system? The P.A. is confiscated as is the van.
Other people lock on to each other at gate 2 but are quickly uncut and arrested.
6:00am: Gate 1: Police have managed to uncut the protesters and start to arrest people. The police have been extremely brutal. Using cutting equipment very dangerously. Holding people down by their necks and using pressure points. There has just been a completely unnecessary level of brutality.
A huge US flag was raised on the base just as the police moved in. There were many shouts to the police of: who are you working for? Exactly which country are you serving?
6:30am: Gate 4: 15 people locked on to each other. Gate blocked.
7:00am: Gate 1: Everyone who had locked on have now been taken to various police stations.
7:30am:People start to disperse from gate 1 but the road is still blocked. Cars of base staff are queuing up on the roads around the base. Total traffic chaos, jams all around. success.
7:30am: The weather is horrible, a number of people were locked on at the main gate they have been removed and arrested, there are about 50-60 people there, more are arriving.
7:30am:The mighty veggies catering turn up with hot tea and coffee. Fair trade and organic. Much needed. it’s so cold that people really are on the verge of hypothermia after being in the driving rain and sleet since 5am, lying on the wet ground.
7:52am:2 gates still blocked . Police have been particularly nasty.
8:00am:Just gate 3 open, all others blocked. People still locked on at gate 4
9:00am:Police keeping the arrested cold and wet, they are not processing people.
11:00pm: 150 people discussing tactics and preparing lock on's at the convergence centre.
3:00am: people wake up, final preparations
4:00am: Leave Leeds for Menwith Hill. The weather is grim. Driving rain, howling winds even some sleet. Extremely cold.
5:00am: Blockade starts. There is a shift change of people working at the base between 5.30 and 7.30. There are four gates. At the main gate there are about 17 people split into three groups who have locked themselves together. Holding hands through lengths of plastic piping. The three groups are lying on the very wet ground blocking the gate. There are also about 30 other protesters at this gate and about 70 protesters at the other gates. There’s about 50 cops in 6 vans.
5:30am:At gate 2: two people have been arrested for having a PA system in their van, despite having permission to have it there. They are arrested for intent to cause criminal damage. How do you cause criminal damage with a public address system? The P.A. is confiscated as is the van.
Other people lock on to each other at gate 2 but are quickly uncut and arrested.
6:00am: Gate 1: Police have managed to uncut the protesters and start to arrest people. The police have been extremely brutal. Using cutting equipment very dangerously. Holding people down by their necks and using pressure points. There has just been a completely unnecessary level of brutality.
A huge US flag was raised on the base just as the police moved in. There were many shouts to the police of: who are you working for? Exactly which country are you serving?
6:30am: Gate 4: 15 people locked on to each other. Gate blocked.
7:00am: Gate 1: Everyone who had locked on have now been taken to various police stations.
7:30am:People start to disperse from gate 1 but the road is still blocked. Cars of base staff are queuing up on the roads around the base. Total traffic chaos, jams all around. success.
7:30am: The weather is horrible, a number of people were locked on at the main gate they have been removed and arrested, there are about 50-60 people there, more are arriving.
7:30am:The mighty veggies catering turn up with hot tea and coffee. Fair trade and organic. Much needed. it’s so cold that people really are on the verge of hypothermia after being in the driving rain and sleet since 5am, lying on the wet ground.
7:52am:2 gates still blocked . Police have been particularly nasty.
8:00am:Just gate 3 open, all others blocked. People still locked on at gate 4
9:00am:Police keeping the arrested cold and wet, they are not processing people.
