locked on at the main gate around 5ish
locked on with tinfoil because rain on freezing ground is not good
Cars of workers waiting to get in (cause the gates shut)
Early morning at Menwith
We got up at 3am and were at the base around 4.30ish. The police were waiting. They were searching all the vans and taking the lock on stuff as intention to commit criminal damage. It was dark, freezing and rainy. We saw other vans that had been stopped and thought no-one had got through.
But it got better. People had locked together in front of the main gate, in the road, so with them and the police, the gate was effectively shut for a couple of hours and all the workers were really frustrated, stuck in their cars on the road….
On gate three, people in wheelchairs locked onto each other and then one guy locked himself between the wheelchair and the police van – which was fun, because the police really believed they’d grabbed all the lock on stuff at that point. Hee hee. So, that shut that gate too. At gate four, two freezing people sat in the road and caused chaos with the traffic, while the police used the tactic of waiting to see if people froze to death.
I think, it was a pretty good day. Despite the cold, dark and endless rain, we shut three gates – at least for a while (I don’t know what happened on gate two).
There was some shit. A guy at the main gate had his arm twisted so hard, he passed out and they had to get an ambulance. Loads of people were nicked. Don’t know how many, but some people were just chucked in the police van and left there, freezing, for four hours. The rumour was that the police weren’t up for arresting people because of the numbers of people involved. Um, sadly no.
Anyway, that’s about it. It was 50/50 I think. They got a lot of our gear but we shut three (or maybe four gates??), one way or another, at least for a while.
Think of how much more we could have done if some more of the people on the demo in London had come to Menwith instead. Then we really could have shut this obscenity down for the day.
Cheers
We got up at 3am and were at the base around 4.30ish. The police were waiting. They were searching all the vans and taking the lock on stuff as intention to commit criminal damage. It was dark, freezing and rainy. We saw other vans that had been stopped and thought no-one had got through.
But it got better. People had locked together in front of the main gate, in the road, so with them and the police, the gate was effectively shut for a couple of hours and all the workers were really frustrated, stuck in their cars on the road….
On gate three, people in wheelchairs locked onto each other and then one guy locked himself between the wheelchair and the police van – which was fun, because the police really believed they’d grabbed all the lock on stuff at that point. Hee hee. So, that shut that gate too. At gate four, two freezing people sat in the road and caused chaos with the traffic, while the police used the tactic of waiting to see if people froze to death.
I think, it was a pretty good day. Despite the cold, dark and endless rain, we shut three gates – at least for a while (I don’t know what happened on gate two).
There was some shit. A guy at the main gate had his arm twisted so hard, he passed out and they had to get an ambulance. Loads of people were nicked. Don’t know how many, but some people were just chucked in the police van and left there, freezing, for four hours. The rumour was that the police weren’t up for arresting people because of the numbers of people involved. Um, sadly no.
Anyway, that’s about it. It was 50/50 I think. They got a lot of our gear but we shut three (or maybe four gates??), one way or another, at least for a while.
Think of how much more we could have done if some more of the people on the demo in London had come to Menwith instead. Then we really could have shut this obscenity down for the day.
Cheers
Comments
Hide the following 3 comments
it doesn't make it clear but..
19.03.2004 20:25
and then the police say later "you look a bit cold. you could have chosen a better day for us". with a smile...
trinny
Gate 2
19.03.2004 20:47
anarchoteapot and buddelflink
cop - "we can't organise a piss-up in a brewery"
19.03.2004 23:05
three forces were policing, MoD police, North Yorkshire and west Yorkshire plod.
They were arguing amongst themselves, didnt even konw which gate was which and admitted that they couldnt organise a piss up in a brewery and at least us protesters were organised cos we had minibusses.
Indeed our transport logistics were far superiour to theirs.... I was arrested at just after 6am (by some cop from chapeltown who proceeded to unceremoniously drag me along the road to a van.
Many hours later (approx 5hours), still at the scene of the crime I was finally put in a prisoner van with others who had also been arrested at similar times. One of the detainees was let go before the rest of us were taken to the cells because he seened to lack an arresting officer.
At the police station I was taken to everyone was released at tea-time, mostly without charge. some will be making complaints to the cops about their treatment.
Jo Public