I visited the St Pauls occupation site around 10am Monday morning for an hour or so with my daughter. The police were around of course, a few of them milling about being 'nice', while a number of identikit TV reporters were making banal commentaries about the goings on around them, Actually things were quite quiet - there were a couple of meetings going on here and there, and some discussions with a representative of the Cathedral about moving people temporarily to enable cleaning of the steps and areas around St Pauls. It did start getting a wee bit busier when I decided to leave for lunch.

It will be interesting to see how things progress in the coming days and weeks.

Notes from the general assembly held this evening with updates from some of the working groups.

For note the wish list of supplies is currently sturdy folding tables, lighting + solar lighting, sand + sandbags, marker boards, tents, pavilions, power generation equipment, food, drinks, cutlery, butane gas, rings, saucepans cups, washing up stuff, kettles, buckets brooms, sanitaries, chairs, hammers and nails, wood, ropes, blankets, tarps, gazebos, rope, cushions, cardboard, sleeping mats, waterproofs, bin liners, tape, gaffa, stationary.

And people who can help transport kit with vehicles.

Report backs:

Kitchen: closing in 1 hr to relocate to big tent - location still tbc. 

Recycling: Make sure you use the right bags to separate out different types of recycling and waste. Make sure to compact cans and so on. If you're going home please take a bag away with you to recycle.

Legal Update: Started more training to enlarge team for legal observing workshop at 9pm tonight.

From weekend there were 8 arrests, 6 charged and 2 bailed. Those charged are appearing at city of london magistrates court soon - Oct 21st if you want to show solidarity. If youwitnessed any arrests pls call / contact green black cross. 6-7pm every night is know your rights session - big marquee.

Media Update: Press feedback very positive. Want volunteer spokespeople. Media training scheduled. Volunteer reporters wanted - get in touch at media tent. Create Indymedia - create our own media so we don't have to rely on the mainstream press. 

Extra: 420 people watching livestream now! New radio PA system in place. In process of getting solar panels brought in. Donations coming in fast. 

People's health care update: We have an area for help, esp if you are cold - come and get blankets. Volunteers with skills welcome. Remember to wash your hands or use antibacterial gel :)

University committee starting lessons tomorrow (marquee hopefully going up tonight).

Meeting continues with breaking into smaller groups for discussions...

Some pictures from the second day of occupation in london - very impressive with so many people there. Huge amount of support and donnations of food. More structures are needed, people with vehicles to help transport kit, leisure batteries and people to help volunteering with roles to keep the occupation running smoothly. 

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Dateline: LSX - London Stock Exchange, Paternoster Square, City of London, UK, 12:00-19:45 - #OccupyLondon, in common with at least 1,304 cities 82 countries, aims to emulate the courage and tenacity demonstrated by our sisters and brothers in the uprisings of the Arab Spring, Spanish Squares, and Occupy Wall Street (among many others) - by occupying the London Stock Exchange. On the #OccupyTogether Global Day of Mass Direct Actions, when people all around the world are acting United for #globalchange, here are some photos and a report of how the General Assembly of the London Occupation began to assert its will.

At our rendezvous point of St Paul's Cathedral at 12:00 noon, on a sunny Saturday afternoon, several hundred citizens had already assembled. After securing my Brompton loan bike to the railings around the Queen Victoria statute (shortly to become a circular bike park facility), I hefted my street sound system up the steps of the Cathedral's main entrance. Once set up for radio mic operation, I made a few well-received opening remarks about the global nature of todays uprisings, then invited anybody with something to say to step on up to the open mic.

We heard from an elder woman (who's name I missed, sorry to say) bringing solidarity greetings from a nearby Peace Camp, and from stalwart human rights campaigner Peter Tatchell, before the crowd exited stage right in the direction of the London Stock Exchange - our primary occupation target, just to the north in Paternoster Square, through the Temple Bar archway.

However, the cops were blocking all access to Paternoster Square at the Temple Bar archway, with a line of pigs on foot backed by a line of pigs on horses, with the London Stock Exchange building behind them. Scouting parties established that cops were blocking ALL access points to Paternoster Square, so we used my street sound system to reconvene the Occupy London General Assembly (from its original incarnation the previous Sunday, during the Block The Bridge mass direct action). Our first decision was to move back into the sunshine in the plaza in front of St Paul's Cathedral, and our second was to remain there for at least two hours, to give our decision-making process time to decide 'What are we going to do now?' (with a nod to the late great Spike Milligan).

My street sound system was not loud enough to reach the thousand or so people now taking part in the General Assembly, so we adopted the tactic of 'the People's Megaphone' - each speaker spoke c. half a sentence through the sound system, then everybody repeated what was said word-for-word, carrying and amplifying the speaker's speech to the farthest edges of the plaza. To help ensure everybody's opinion was heard, we divided into 10-15 strong small groups, and a nominated spokesperson from each group later used the People's Megaphone to share a summary of the opinions expressed in each group. I choose to keep my photovideojournalist hat on, and to continue to gather images of this historic occassion, rather than participate directly in the decision-making process of our people's assembley.

The Metropolitan Police have recently been ravaged by revelations related to their waaaay to cosy, corrupt and profitable relationship with the mainstream media corporations. So this was the second major direct action/democracy 'incident' under the watch of new Commissioner Bernard Hogan-Howe, who last week promised to "win big days of action".

Shortly before 14:00, cops in body armour, riot helmets and long batons slung from their belts, lined up shoulder to shoulder to kettle our General Assembly (see the yellow lines in A2. OccupyLSX Mass Direct Action Map above). Units from different forces were giving contradictory orders to citizens, with one Met line blocking Ludgate Hill threatening arrest for anybody who breached the riot cop cordon, and a City of London line blocking Dean's Court directing people to an 'exit point' from the kettle on Cannon Street. As usual, with citizens in our people's assembly dressed only in the soft fabrics of street clothes, surrounded by body-armour equipped and infantry-weapon-wielding uniformed thugs, it was blindingly obvious which gang came prepared to commit pre-meditated violent assaults - such is the way generations of peaceful protestors have come face-to-face with the capitalist state's monopoly of violence.

Around 14:30, the mainstream media hacks went into a feeding frenzy as WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange and three burly minders managed to breach the kettling cordon inbound, and make their way to my sound system on the Cathedral steps. Julian arrived in a long black gown and 'V for Vendetta' Guy Fawkes mask, but was unmaked in crossing the kettling cordon. Since all the common people could see were a circle of the backs of hacks cameras held aloft around the 'Celebrity', mass angry chants of “Media, sit down!” eventually got through some thick skulls, so nearly everybody could at last see what all the ballyhoo was about.

After a heckle of “Can we have our meeting back?”, Julian sensibly kept his remarks short. He mentioned his difficulties in getting in to address our assembly through the cop kettling lines on Ludgate Hill, and his hopes that all the people currently being excluded by the cops would be able to join our assembly too.

“Like all of you, I have had difficulty getting in here today. It started with my signing on for bail in Norfolk - my 323rd day - and ended with getting through the kettling. But there's many people who haven't yet been able to get through these guys over here [pointing to the Met's Ludgate Hill kettling lines] - and I hope they will be able to, and you will NOT accept the kettling! [warm applause and cheers]

I have always wanted to say, “We are all individuals!” [me, an unreconstructed Monty Python fanboy: “I'm not!”; supportive cheers] And all of us are very naughty boys and girls. [laughter]

But to be serious, what is happening here today is a culmination of dreams that many people all over the world have worked towards, from Cairo to London. What we face today is the systematised destruction of the rule of law. People are being laundered through Guantanamo Bay to evade the rule of law, and money is being laundered through the Cayman Islands and London, to evade the rule of law. This movement is NOT about the destruction of law - it is about the CONSTRUCTION of law. [loud cheers]

Thank you! [louder cheers and applause]”
~ Julian Assange, address to the Occupy London General Assembly, Sat 15 Oct 2011
» video, 3:51 - http://www.youtube.com/watch_popup?v=esnypOKpBgs

By mid afternoon, the General Assembly had identified a need for 12 working groups to consider and expedite its desires - everything from food, drink, and sanitation to media, communications, and liason with Cathedral authorities. These working groups met in distinct locations around the plaza and began addressing how the London Occupation Assembly can establish itself and exert its will. One practical and physical outcome showed up with the arrival of a set of Portaloos, for the general relief of the Assembly's bladders and bowels. Until then, there were permanent queues, several metres long, leading into the toilets of local cafes inside the kettled General Assembly zone.

Unfortunately, my attempt at filing scores of photos and an action report from the field via two Linux tablets didn't work out, more due to human error than technical failure. When I left with a fully-battery-depleted sound system at 19:45, the cops were moving in agressively to try to clear we citizens from the steps of the Cathedral (ie: trying to seize the high ground), while a pig repeatedly droned into an amplified police public address system:

“This is not a clearing. Police officers are securing the steps, in order to protect the integrity of the Cathedral.”

Bullshit! Of course, the “integrity of the Cathedral” hadn't been in jeopardy all day, so this was an especially stupid rozzer excuse for needlessly bullying folk to bend to the will of the Officer i/c Public Intimidation.

 
WHATEVER NEXT?
You are welcome and encouraged to join and/or support the Occupy Together uprisings, and if you're in reach of London, then please do support the London Occupation Assembly at St Paul's Cathedral: take a look at the Occupation's twitterfeed to see what the folks at the Occupation would like you to bring along:
» Twitter - http://twitter.com/occupylsx

...from which comes very positive news indeed from the Cathedral liason group:

“Made it through the first night, in the morning meeting making the occupation comfortable, come and join us! Its official we are occupying St Pauls! The vicar has given his blessing and asked the police to move :D”

So the filth can take their bogus concerns for the “integrity of the Cathedral” and just f*ck right off! The London Occupation needs the hostile interferance of cops like it needs chocolate fireguards. We're here to stay, and to shake up the people-&-planet screwing status quo, which pays the cops to defend it's intolerable business-as-usual with street violence.


UNITED FOR GLOBAL DEMOCRACY
The following text is a call for the Arab nations to join us as brothers and sisters on 15 October 2011. It was initially written for a protest against a G20 meeting, and signed by world reknowned public intellectuals Naomi Klein, Vandana Shiva and Noam Chomsky, plus mass direct action organizers.

“On 15 October 2011, united in our diversity, united for global change, we demand global democracy:  global governance by the people, for the people. Inspired by our sisters and brothers in Tunisia, Egypt, Libya, Syria, Bahrain, Palestine-Israel, Spain and Greece, we too call for a regime change: a global regime change. In the words of Vandana Shiva, the Indian activist, today we demand replacing the G8 with the whole of humanity - the G 7,000,000,000.

Undemocratic international institutions are our global Mubarak, our global Assad, our global Gaddafi. These include: the IMF, the WTO, global markets, multinational banks, the G8, the G20, the European Central Bank and the UN Security Council. Like Mubarak and Assad, these institutions must not be allowed to run people’s lives without their consent. We are all born equal, rich or poor, woman or man. Every African and Asian is equal to every European and American. Our global institutions must reflect this, or be overturned.

Today, more than ever before, global forces shape people's lives. Our jobs, health, housing, education and pensions are controlled by global banks, markets, tax havens, corporations and financial crises. Our environment is destroyed by pollution in other continents. Our safety is determined by international wars and international trade in arms, drugs and natural resources. We are losing control over our lives. This must stop. This will stop. The citizens of the world must get control over the decisions that influence them in all levels - from global to local. That is global democracy. That is what we demand today.

Like the Mexican Zapatistas, we say "Ya basta! Aquí el pueblo manda y el gobierno obedece”. Enough!  Here the people command and global institutions obey!  Like the Spanish Tomalaplaza, we say "Democracia Real Ya": True global democracy now!" Today we call the citizens of the world: let us globalise Tahrir Square! Let us globalise Puerta del Sol!”


LINKS
• Occupy London
» Website - http://occupylondon.org.uk
» Facebook - http://facebook.com/occupylondon
» Twitter - http://twitter.com/occupylsx
• Hashtag - #occupylsx

• Occupy Together
» Website - http://www.occupytogether.org
• Hashtag - #occupytogether

• United for #globalchange
» Website - http://15october.net
• Hashtag - #occupytogether

• Occupy London, Global Day of Action #15Oct - further coverage
» Indymedia London Aggregate Article - http://london.indymedia.org/articles/10420

 
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Up the Revolution,

Tim Dalinian Jones

Footnotes
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• Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial-Share Alike 3.0 Unported License
» Human-readable summary -http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-sa/3.0/
» Attribution: tim.dalinian.jones@gmail.com

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Hundreds of people stayed overnight at the Occupy London Stock Exchange protest. This morning the square is buzzing again with more infrastructure being set up and the assembly discussing issues - following on from the key messages announced yesterday. 

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Inspired by actions in Spain in May this year [15M]where the main squares were occupied, and by the recent uprisings in Tunisia, Egypt and Libia. After a global call out, actions have been taking place across the world in; Berlin, Athens, Auckland, Mumbai, Tokyo and Seoul to name a few. Plans were made in over 82 countries, in 950 places, some small, some massive, reports are still filtering in.

In South Africa, about 80 people gathered at the Johannesburg Securities Exchange. In Taiwan, organizers drew several hundred demonstrators, who mostly sat quietly outside the Taipei World Financial Center; Taipei 101. 600 people occupied Ottawa, Canada. In Australia, 800 people gathered in Sydney's central business district. In Brazil the reports have been gathered to one site; Juntos.
While the spotlight is on New York, "occupy" actions are also happening all across the United States, from Ashland, Kentucky to Dallas, Texas to Ketchum, Idaho. Four hundred Iowans marched in Des Moines, Iowa Saturday as part of the day of action. See these reports on local indymedia's; Los Angeles, Boston, New York, and the Occupy Wall Street site.

More links as we find them:

Key messages from first general Asembly of Occupy LSX held outside St Pauls cathedral 15October

1) The current system is broken - undemocratic, unjust. We need alternatives. This is where we start working towards them. We will work out further points in the course of the occupation.

2) We are all ethnicities, classes, genders and generations - and we stand together with occupations all over the world.

3) We refuse to pay for the bankers' crisis.

4) We support the strike on 30th November, the student actions on 9th November, and actions to defend the health service, welfare and employment, and to stop wars.

5) We want structural change so the world's resources go to caring for people and for the planet, and not to the military, corporate profits, or the rich.

6) THIS is what democracy looks like. 

http://occupylondon.org.uk

'Occupy London Stock Exchange' is unable to gain access the London Stock Exchange and a decision is made to occupy the area in front of St Pauls Cathedral.

The Occupy London Stock Exchange action was barred access to the Stock Exchange and, after a raggle taggle Open Assembly deliberation, the inevitable decision was made to occupy the area around St Pauls Cathedral where the protest had been 'kettled' in and pretty much been unable to move from anyway.

The police then spent most of the action over-containing a peaceful crowd not intent on moving anywhere and enabling the traffic to flow on the surrounding roads. The manner in which the police over react to this and other peaceful public protests is an uncomfortable reminder of how repressive policing has already become in this country, but it is also a more ominous precurser of how nasty policing will get in the next few years as people become more and more affected by the cuts in social provision and working conditions, and the police are necessarily obliged to protect the ruling class' looting spree.

With the complete disregard for the 'rights' to public protest in this country the protest will, in all likelyhood be cleared in the not too distant future., however if the occupation can create a permanent site of discussion and debate then it may well be a great opportunity to move this anti-capitalist movement forward.

Perhaps, as was suggested to me yesterday, setting up multiple smaller (semi)permanent, but regular 'talking/debating occupations' in public areas over London may well be a way forward in bringing ordinary people into the struggle against the suicide capitalists ruling us at present.

For the last couple of hours police have been slowly pushing people back further from the occupation, and sometimes allowing people back inside, but mostly not. There have been some very aggressive invasions of the occupation space, with squads of riot police pushing people off the steps of the Cathedral and  the surrounding streets. Dog units have been used as well. I find it quite shocking given the square was mostly full of people participating in the big assembly, singing, dancing and making banners. 

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Some impressions

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Got stuck outside the massive kettle and spend an hour and a half trying to get in to the occupied square but with no luck. Just now in one corner the police said they would allow people in past a police video camera filming them, but said they probably wouldn't be allowed out for a while...

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Pics from this afternoon's general assembly feeding back from working groups (also arrest pic from earlier)

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The crowds at St Paul's are holding a massive General Assembly to decide in a democractic way, what to do next. It will report back soon.

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Some pictures of the occupation that i found accross the web today - good to archive in one place.

The atmosphere was really cilled out and fun, the police did what they could to intimidate but the protestors enjoyed themselves - lets hope they can stay the night/wee/month...

Some pictures from arbolioto

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People are starting to arrive in the City of London at St Paul's, ready to occupy the place. They have come with sleeping bags tents and food, in for the long haul. Police helecopters are overhead and the Patanoster Square has signs up claiming it to be private property, which says it all about capitalism and the general public; If you are rich you are OK, if you are not we will keep you out and you will probably get the bill for it!

We are here in solidarity with all the people round the world that are occupying today, we have to fight back and challenge the city and all it stands for. Come on down!

More to come as it happens...

At 12 O'clock around 1000 people have gathered on the steps outside St Pauls Cathedral, with a mobile sound system keeping the atmosphere going. An aray of anti-cuts plackards and banners are on show with the capitals media clicking away. Mounted police are in the area outside the Stock Exchange. At Paternoster square there are posters up in the advertising mounts stating that the square is private property and that the square is closed. There are also copies of a high court injunction taped around the area prohibiting anyone from occupying. #occupylondon

[12.30] The soundsystem has been pushed towards Paternoster Square where the police have re-enforced their line preventing any occupation of the square. Mounted police are being brought in along this line and the media are going crazy as some pushing and shoving starts on the front line. The crowd is chanting "We are the 99% - let us in", and "Fuck Fox News". Tension is starting to mount.

[12.45] Bust cards are being handed out and there are legal observers in the area.
Green and Black Cross Legal Support: 07946 541511
Solicitors: Bindmans 020 7833 4433
HJA: 020 7837 3456

[13.00] The crowd have now moved from this front entrance to Paternoster Sq around the side streets to other enterances, each time blocked by the police lines. They have gone past the front of the Stock Exchange, shouting "let us in", each time attempting to push through police lines. Police dogs have been brought out, and the crowd is spcontinuing to spread around the square increasing in numbers.

[13.10] A large group started to march off towards Bank but were again blocked by a line of police across the road, who started to funnel them back to St Pauls. With Paternoster Square and London Stock Exchange surrounded by protesters (at least symbolically) and the police preventing any entrance. There is now a pause while a general Assembly meeting is taking place outside St Pauls in the sunshine.

[13.15] Messages around the world of other occupations taking place: Brisbaine, New Jersy, South Africa. A large banner is being unfurled on St Paul's steps saying "We are the 99%"

[13.20] Another group to the North of the Sqaure are being prevented from leaving the pedestrian area by police cordons, not quite a 'kettle' but restrictions on the crowds movement.

[13.35] Most people arriving all the time, nice day out in London. Road blocks are being reported around St Paul's station. Fustration is mounting at how the police are restricting peoples movement. A fit team is reported around St Paul's Alley.

[13.45] A group of 100 have taken over the roads outside St Paul's chanting "who's streets - our streets" making sure the poilice dont kettle everyone tighter and tighter on the steps.

Up to one thousand people at Occupy London as part of 15Oct global day of action

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During the Block the Bridge, Block the Bill NHS action an assembly with hundreds of people participating was held to discuss the wave of occupations that have been occuring worldwide, and to talk about plans to occupy the london stock exchange on Oct 15th. Many people were also talking about the student protests planned for 9th November and the strikes on 30th November. 

See http://www.ukuncut.org.uk/blog/block-the-bridge-block-the-bill

Over 100 people met at the North East London Council of Action Conference on Saturday 1st October 2011 and voted unanimously to occupy Chase Farm Hospital if planned closure goes ahead. Will TSG vans be commandered and turned into something useful, like ambulances??

The government plans to close many District General Hospitals around London, especially to scrap their A&E, Maternity and Paediatric units.

The meeting hall was near to Chase Farm hospital and speakers were frequently drowned out by the noise of blue-light ambulances taking patients to A&E.

I hadn't been involved in the Chase Farm campaign before and was really impressed by the group gathered there, young and old and and very friendly to newcomers. It was inspiring to see an elderly lady take the microphone and declare passionately how she was prepared to occupy the hospital, and how it belonged to them as residents of Enfield.

Visteon workers were also present to lend advice about occupations.

It was also striking to feel a real sense of community built around the presence of a local hospital, something that is often hard to find in England.

The group has been campaigning for the last 4 years against their hospital being closed. David Cameron and a local Tory MP had even made a shameless election pledge to reverse Labour's plan for closing Chase Farm. People at the meeting expressed a real sense of betrayal and dissolutionment with Parliamentary democracy. The meeting had an authoritarian socialist leaning, and there was no doubt that the State would support the Health Service if enough pressure was applied. One pensioner talked angrily about how all the political parties couln't be trusted. Then she asked what the alternative was - a few people muttered about a worker's government, but they didn't sound very convinced themselves. Still, people were certain that you had to have a government of sorts.

I want to know more about anarchist style alternatives to health care. If there is no National Health Service, supported by the Welfare State, how would an Autonomous Health Service work instead? If Enfield residents do occupy their hospital, it could be an interesting time to discuss anachist ideas about health care, in a situation where the local community have taken over a state-run hospital and are confronting the State. What will occupiers do if the State refuses to continue funding Chase Farm Hospital? How do you organise Social Welfare without the Welfare State?

The Council of Action are planning a large demonstration for December 10th. They reckon the government could try to close Chase Farm in January. They have been holding monthly pickets already and want a big picket on October 18th and another sometime in November. After the march in December they plan daily picketts to draw more attention and prepare for occupation.