Street wardens in Haringey, north London, are taking the law into their own hands. On Saturday 25 February they violently got rid of people peacefully petitioning and leafletting and smashed up a paste table, under the watchful and complicit eyes of the police.
Fight Racism! Fight Imperialism! were in the designated free speech area outside Haringey Library at Wood Green giving out leaflets for a meeting in London on 4 March on Imperialism, war and Resistance (email 
london@rcgfrfi.plus.com for more details) and petitioning against the war in Iraq and for the immediate withdrawal of British troops. Further down the road, another group were leafletting and on the megaphone about the atrocities being committed in Guantanamo Bay prison camps. They had been told to move into the free speech area by council street wardens who were gathering until there were about seven or eight of them. Suddenly they pounced on the other stall, seizing newspapers and leaflets, trying to take the table and being very rough with those who tried to stop them. These wardens were determined and soon began to smash the table up. The police arrived to back up the street wardens who then turned on our stall and stating that they had not liked our behaviour in support of the other group, they gave us two minutes to leave. The man in charge had the audacity to tell us that our behaviour had been out of order while he was snapping the wooden legs pulled off the confiscated table.
25 to 30 people gathered round and expressed their outrage at this blatant enfringement of civil liberties and free speech and the violent manner that all the officials and the police had acted in - all under the watchful eye of a CCTV camera (wot - no film guv!)
The Labour government is accumulating laws and still passing new repressive legislation against anyone who dares to challenge the status quo. Let us stand together to show that we will not be intimidated by such action, we will not be run off the streets, we will continue to highlight injustices at home and abroad.
Stand up for our rights!
Defend free speech!
london@rcgfrfi.plus.com for more details) and petitioning against the war in Iraq and for the immediate withdrawal of British troops. Further down the road, another group were leafletting and on the megaphone about the atrocities being committed in Guantanamo Bay prison camps. They had been told to move into the free speech area by council street wardens who were gathering until there were about seven or eight of them. Suddenly they pounced on the other stall, seizing newspapers and leaflets, trying to take the table and being very rough with those who tried to stop them. These wardens were determined and soon began to smash the table up. The police arrived to back up the street wardens who then turned on our stall and stating that they had not liked our behaviour in support of the other group, they gave us two minutes to leave. The man in charge had the audacity to tell us that our behaviour had been out of order while he was snapping the wooden legs pulled off the confiscated table. 25 to 30 people gathered round and expressed their outrage at this blatant enfringement of civil liberties and free speech and the violent manner that all the officials and the police had acted in - all under the watchful eye of a CCTV camera (wot - no film guv!)
The Labour government is accumulating laws and still passing new repressive legislation against anyone who dares to challenge the status quo. Let us stand together to show that we will not be intimidated by such action, we will not be run off the streets, we will continue to highlight injustices at home and abroad.
Stand up for our rights!
Defend free speech!
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