HOME | IMC UK | Editorial Guidelines | Mission Statement | About Us | Contact | Help | Support Us

Oxford Indymedia

Video and pics of Oxford tree protest against shopping centre expansion

B | 09.01.2008 23:48 | Ecology | Free Spaces | Oxford

Pics from today's tree-defending action; video on YouTube ( http://youtube.com/watch?v=uXdLcAffXnE).

Take me down to the Paradise city...
Take me down to the Paradise city...

Sheltered Accommodation - its future may lie under the concrete of a carpark
Sheltered Accommodation - its future may lie under the concrete of a carpark

Attempting to climb the tree
Attempting to climb the tree

Pulling down the rope
Pulling down the rope

Short-lived joy (the tree was later felled)
Short-lived joy (the tree was later felled)

Sir Robert McAlpine ltd arrive
Sir Robert McAlpine ltd arrive

Our taxes pay their wages
Our taxes pay their wages

Uh oh, it's the pigs
Uh oh, it's the pigs

Hallo hallo hallo, wot 'ave we 'ere then (looks like scruffy anarchists, sarge)
Hallo hallo hallo, wot 'ave we 'ere then (looks like scruffy anarchists, sarge)

Westgate security
Westgate security

Carnage begins again
Carnage begins again

Awaiting orders from corporate masters
Awaiting orders from corporate masters

So-called tree 'surgeons'
So-called tree 'surgeons'

Deborah arrested - but didn't actually get to trespass!
Deborah arrested - but didn't actually get to trespass!

Community copper 9959
Community copper 9959

Three stripes 3753
Three stripes 3753

Meanwhile they have cut down the tree
Meanwhile they have cut down the tree

Hearse for the corpse
Hearse for the corpse

We know who you are and who you work for
We know who you are and who you work for

Murdered
Murdered

Too late
Too late


Today ten protesters turned up to resist the removal of beautiful, mature London Plains trees behind the Westgate Shopping Centre in Oxford city centre.

These trees, along with sheltered housing, and - I was told by a group of young people - the Oxford and Cherwell Valley College students' pub are being cleared to make way for a gargantuan cathedral to capitalism plus multi-storey car park. As one student sarcastically put it, "Yeah, 'coz what we really need are more shops".

Most people spent all day observing the goings-on of council employees and tree 'surgeons' and managed - albeit temporarily - to remove one guy rope from one of the trees along the west side of the Westgate car park.

However, this did not deter the Leisure and Parks people from beginning to remove the trees on the north side.

Once they started on the trees, emotions - which were already high - reached fever pitch. Councillor Deborah Glass Woodin was arrested for aggravated trespass (even though she didn't quite manage to get into the fenced off area) and then held for 5 hours at St Aldates Cop Shop.

One other protester is spending tonight in the trees, braving the gale force winds; I feel slightly guilty for being inside on my laptop writing this report. If you can get down to the site to join him and others please do. (See  http://www.indymedia.org.uk/en/regions/oxford/2008/01/389029.html for location.)

I counted the rings of the one of the first-felled trees, which you can see in the picture. It was nearly thirty years old; as old as I am.

B
- Homepage: http://youtube.com/watch?v=uXdLcAffXnE

Additions

Oxford tree protest: Bruce comes down

10.01.2008 14:33

Just heard that Bruce, who has been up one of the trees behind the Westgate shopping centre in Oxford, has finally come down. He spent over 24 hours up the tree - braving the freezing gales and lashing rain from last night and today.

He was joined this morning by a fellow protestor; pics from today's protest to follow soon.

And worryingly, one of the photographers from the BNP protest in November was on site too. This time he said he was from ITN rather than local news.

Local news updates from the Oxford Mail here:  http://www.oxfordmail.net/display.var.1956760.0.tree_protester_calls_it_a_day.php

B


Pics from today

10.01.2008 16:43

Bruce hangin' around
Bruce hangin' around

Two activists sittin' in a tree
Two activists sittin' in a tree

Today there were no cops and no council workers; people came onto the muddy site and wished Bruce and fellow protestor good wishes (and coffee and food).

There's no-one at the site now - and apparently work has been temporarily halted thanks to a technicality.

B


Comments

Hide the following 5 comments

PCSOs

10.01.2008 16:53

One of the officers arresting Deborah is in fact a PCSO. Does anyone know if this is legal? They are allowed to detain suspects, but not to arrest....this looks very much like an arrest to me!

Matt S


PCSOs and the law

10.01.2008 17:20

Just looked at this:
 http://national-pcsos.co.uk/id3.html

and this:
 http://www.policecommunitysupportofficer.com/PCSOPowersofarrestsearch2006v1.pdf

Apparently they *can* detain a person for 30 minutes until a proper copper turns up, however, there were plenty of 'proper coppers' on the scene yesterday.

Oh dear, and also, the picture in today's Oxford Mail shows that the PCSO's lapel also displays the word "Traffic". I think 9959 has acted beyond his powers a bit. Naughty!

The video clearly shows that he is detaining Deborah; I have more footage of the arrest if required too.

B


Identifying protestors

11.01.2008 15:35

Well done all those standing up to the tree-felling.
One point though. In the same addition, we are told a BNP photographer is present and a protestor is named. Please realise this is how they function. They take photos, they listen out for names, they piece together snippets of information about the person, location, employment etc and that person then becomes a 'target'. We need to be more savvy and protective of ourselves and each other. Blurring photos on here isn't enough.

C


re: identifying protestors (plus another protest tomorrow)

11.01.2008 16:55

C, totally agree with you.

I only used his name after he agreed for it to be used in the Oxford Mail - hence it seems a bit to late to not acknowledge it by then. IMHO by the time a name is in the mainstream it's a bit too late to do much about it.

But I do take your point :)

I also recognise that the blurring is slightly crappy - I've not quite got the hang of it yet!

There's been a protest calld for 12pm on Saturday (tomorrow) too starting at Bonn Square and we'll see what happens from there.

If the insidious psuedo-pap suspected BNP supporter turns up again, I'm sure people will find out!

B


ID & tomorrow

11.01.2008 22:40

Cool! Didn't mean to have a go and I didn't know the protestor had given the ok on it, cos I WASN'T THERE! Much easier to sit on my arse criticising others - sorry :-)
Good luck with the protest tomorrow. It might be useful to try and get a pic of this photographer - I remember one suspect photy bloke from the Ox Uni BNP night.

C


Publish your news
-->

Kollektives

Birmingham
Cambridge
Liverpool
London
Oxford
Sheffield
South Coast
Wales
World

Other UK IMCs
Bristol/South West
London
Northern Indymedia
Scotland

Oxford Topics

Afghanistan
Analysis
Animal Liberation
Anti-Nuclear
Anti-militarism
Anti-racism
Bio-technology
Climate Chaos
Culture
Ecology
Education
Energy Crisis
Fracking
Free Spaces
Gender
Globalisation
Health
History
Indymedia
Iraq
Migration
Ocean Defence
Other Press
Palestine
Policing
Public sector cuts
Repression
Social Struggles
Technology
Terror War
Workers' Movements
Zapatista

IMCs


www.indymedia.org

Projects
print
radio
satellite tv
video

Africa

Europe
antwerpen
armenia
athens
austria
barcelona
belarus
belgium
belgrade
brussels
bulgaria
calabria
croatia
cyprus
emilia-romagna
estrecho / madiaq
galiza
germany
grenoble
hungary
ireland
istanbul
italy
la plana
liege
liguria
lille
linksunten
lombardia
madrid
malta
marseille
nantes
napoli
netherlands
northern england
nottingham imc
paris/île-de-france
patras
piemonte
poland
portugal
roma
romania
russia
sardegna
scotland
sverige
switzerland
torun
toscana
ukraine
united kingdom
valencia

Latin America
argentina
bolivia
chiapas
chile
chile sur
cmi brasil
cmi sucre
colombia
ecuador
mexico
peru
puerto rico
qollasuyu
rosario
santiago
tijuana
uruguay
valparaiso
venezuela

Oceania
aotearoa
brisbane
burma
darwin
jakarta
manila
melbourne
perth
qc
sydney

South Asia
india


United States
arizona
arkansas
asheville
atlanta
Austin
binghamton
boston
buffalo
chicago
cleveland
colorado
columbus
dc
hawaii
houston
hudson mohawk
kansas city
la
madison
maine
miami
michigan
milwaukee
minneapolis/st. paul
new hampshire
new jersey
new mexico
new orleans
north carolina
north texas
nyc
oklahoma
philadelphia
pittsburgh
portland
richmond
rochester
rogue valley
saint louis
san diego
san francisco
san francisco bay area
santa barbara
santa cruz, ca
sarasota
seattle
tampa bay
united states
urbana-champaign
vermont
western mass
worcester

West Asia
Armenia
Beirut
Israel
Palestine

Topics
biotech

Process
fbi/legal updates
mailing lists
process & imc docs
tech