On Friday 15 February the judge finished summing up in the trial of four men who were in Harmondsworth IRC at the time of the protest there on 28 November 2006. This morning, Monday 18 February 2008, the prisoners will be at court waiting for the jury to return with its verdict on whether they should be found guilty of various charges, the main one of which is conspiracy to commit violent disorder.
Harmondsworth is run by private company Kalyx, a subsidiary of Sodexho. The protest came the day after the publication of a damning inspection report by Chief Inspector of Prisons Anne Owers into conditions and treatment of detainees at Harmondsworth. Prison riot squads were drafted in and about 50 detainees left in a courtyard all night, while others were locked in their rooms even though parts of the detention centre were on fire.
The Support the Harmondsworth 4 campaign is supported by London No Borders, Barbed-Wire Britain, Campaign Against Racism and Fascism, Fight Racism! Fight Imperialism!, Pay-Day Men’s Network, All African Women's Group, Women of Colour in the Global Women's Strike, the National Coalition of Anti-Deportation Campaigns London Anarchist Black Cross, Iraq Solidarity Campaign and North West Asylum Seekers Defence Group.
See here for photos of the demo on Monday 14 January
http://noborders.org.uk/News/DemonstrationJan14 See here for letter from two of the Harmondsworth 4 to Fight Racism! Fight Imperialism!
http://www.revolutionarycommunist.org/racism/letter_harm4.html Photo by Endo