Faslane protest leads to 170 arrests
CAMERON SIMPSON
Sheridan is arrested again at Faslane Trident base

THE CND's ritual dance of protest at Faslane yesterday saw 170 people arrested - including two MSPs, an MEP, a Church of Scotland minister and someone's granny - as demonstrators tried to blockade the Trident nuclear submarine base on the Clyde.

Among those held were politicians Tommy Sheridan, the Scottish Socialist Party leader, MSP Lloyd Quinan of the SNP, and Irish Green MEP Patricia McKenna.

The demonstration, given added poignancy by the September 11 outrages, saw protesters and police join for a minute's silence to remember those who died in the attacks on the World Trade Centre and the Pentagon.

It attracted about 500 people who danced, banged drums, and chanted anti-war slogans outside the gates to urge the government to get rid of nuclear weapons. Others bound themselves together with chains and rope and lay on the ground outside the main entrance.

One person sported a witch costume with a pumpkin head, while another wore an Elvis costume. Others wandered around holding large posters and placards reading "Trash Trident" or "Stop the War".

In a case of deja vu, Mr Sheridan again was led away by police. He spent five nights in a Greenock prison last December for refusing to pay a fine for a similar offence.

At Argyll and Bute District Court on October 8, after an hour-long trial, justice of the peace Anthony Stirling found him not guilty, an acquittal that is to be challenged by the Crown.

As he was led away, Mr Sheridan said: "We would much rather the police officers were deployed in more socially useful work this morning.

"Nuclear weapons have no place in the twenty-first century. We should be channelling resources towards pensioners, the homeless, and fighting the war against poverty, which are a scar on Scottish society.

"No-one at this demonstration has acted in anything other than a peaceful fashion. We are here to campaign in peace and can't understand why we are subjected to mass arrests."

Mr Quinan, the former TV weather presenter, said: "I am glad to have been here at this peaceful and civil protest, but I hope that I never need to come back again. I hope the government takes the steps to ensure that these foul weapons are removed."

Brian Quail, joint secretary of CND Scotland, said the demonstration had come at a very poignant time. "We could be on the brink of a civil war in Pakistan and who knows what's going to happen in Afghanistan?

"No matter what happens, we will continue vehemently to oppose these barbaric and inhumane weapons of mass destruction."

The Rev John Harvey, of Ardgowan Parish Church in Greenock, said John Webster, a retired minister from the Isle of Arran, and Flora Munro, a minister from Cults, Aberdeenshire, had been detained.

Mr Harvey said: "The Church of Scotland is against the possession and threatened use of nuclear weapons and we view them as being immoral, illegal, and useless. Here we have this war against terrorism, but can you imagine nuclear weapons being used to deal with that? Of course not."

Mrs Munro said: "I have five children and I want a future that's safe and peaceful for them, their children and their children and so on."

Chief Superintendent Harry Bunch, the officer in charge of the operation, said the main priority had been to keep traffic flowing and ensure staff and visitors had access to the base.

He said: "What we have seen this morning is a very sensitive policing operation."

The number rose to 168 by the end of the day - 77 men and 91 women. Ministry of Defence police said they had also arrested two more people at the base, bringing the arrests total to 170.

Mr Bunch denied the police presence was excessive, adding that the protest was on a smaller scale than the last attempt to blockade the base in February, when 385 people were arrested out of about 1000 demonstrators.

He estimated that around 500 people took part in yesterday's protest, although the organisers put the figure at nearer 800.

The protest at the north gate of the base officially ended at 12.40pm. Protesters set off for the south gate, where they held a small protest before the day's proceedings concluded with a vigil on Helensburgh pier at 2pm.


 http://www.theherald.co.uk/news/archive/23-10-19101-23-40-28.html

Monday, 22 October, 2001, 17:06 GMT 18:06 UK
Faslane protest sparks 170 arrests
A total of 170 people have been arrested during an anti-nuclear protest at Faslane naval base, according to police
 http://news.bbc.co.uk/hi/english/uk/scotland/newsid_1612000/1612409.stm

Sheridan held again in Faslane protest
By Tara Womersley
(Filed: 23/10/2001)
MORE than 160 people including Tommy Sheridan, the Scottish Socialist leader, and Church of Scotland ministers were arrested yesterday after protesters tried to blockade the Faslane base, home of Britain's Trident nuclear submarines.
 http://news.telegraph.co.uk/news/main.jhtml;$sessionid$Y1AGOXIAAJB51QFIQMGCFGGAVCBQUIV0?xml=/news/2001/10/23/nfas23.xml&sSheet=/news/2001/10/23/ixhomef.html

October 21 2001 ECOSSE
Protests hit critical mass
The passion of hardened peace protesters such as Angie Zelter is attracting the mainstream, writes Dani Garavelli
 http://www.sunday-times.co.uk/news/pages/sti/2001/10/21/stiecoeco02015.html

 http://www.thescotsman.co.uk/scotland.cfm?id=118432

Tracey Lawson
( tlawson@scotsman.com)

THE law on peaceful protests in Scotland was plunged into confusion yesterday when Scottish Socialist Party leader Tommy Sheridan was among 170 people arrested during a demonstration outside the Trident nuclear submarine base at Faslane.

The MSP was arrested for alleged breach of the peace just days after he was acquitted of the same charge for his part in a similar demonstration outside Faslane in February this year.

The Crown is appealing the ruling by Justice of the Peace Anthony Stirling at Argyll and Bute district court in Helensburgh, who found that mass arrests at peaceful demonstrations infringe human rights.

Strathclyde Police were last night warned by human rights experts that they could be guilty of wrongfully arresting all those detained at yesterday’s demonstration if they have breached their right to peaceful protest enshrined in the European Convention on Human Rights.

Mr Sheridan, 37, was among the first to be arrested at the demonstration, as he took part in a sit-down blockade of Faslane’s north gate which began at 7am yesterday.

As he was led away by police the MSP said: "No-one at this demonstration has acted in anything other than a peaceful fashion. We are here to campaign in peace and can’t understand why we are subjected to mass arrests."

Professor Allan Miller, the UK director of the international human rights consultancy McGrigor Donald, said that police might well have wrongfully arrested protesters yesterday. He said: "The European Convention gives people the right to peaceful protest, and police would be on shaky ground if they interfered with people doing that.

"The test for breach of the peace in Scottish law has always been whether protesters conduct is causing, or is likely to cause alarm. f this was not the case then the arrest might be wrongful."

David Mackenzie of Trident Ploughshares, the anti-nuclear group which organised the protest in conjunction with CND Scotland, said the mass arrests highlighted the confusion about the legality of peaceful protest in Scotland. He said: "This yet again illustrates the mess the police and the courts are in over how they respond to peaceful acts of conscience by people exercising their rights."

Also arrested were Scottish National Party MSP and former television weather presenter Lloyd Quinan, Irish Green MEP Patricia McKenna and two Church of Scotland ministers.

Protestors claimed that 800 people attended the demonstration, although police put the figure at 500.

Brian Quail, the joint secretary of CND Scotland said: "We could be on the brink of a civil war in Pakistan and who knows what’s going to happen in Afghanistan? So really, this demonstration has come at a very poignant time."

John Webster, a retired minister from the Isle of Arran, and Flora Munro, a minister from Cults, Aberdeenshire, were also detained . Strathclyde Police arrested a total of 168 people at the protest - 90 women and 77 men - for breach of the peace.

The Ministry of Defence police arrested two more people, one on suspicion of infiltrating the base illegally and another for alleged breach of the peace.

Our coach arrived at Faslane around 7am. We had already locked our arms together on board, so we legged down the steps (taking care not to break anyone's arms) and sat down in front of the gates. We were surrounded by cops, separated and nicked quite early on, so I didn't really get to see the full scale of the protest.

Anyway, my main point was to wonder why numbers were down this time. Was it because everyone's busy campaigning against the war? Are too many people bogged down with court cases/warrants from the last one? Was it just at the wrong time of year (do people prefer February)? I think it's really important we get as many people along as possible for the next one on 11th February to show that we're not going to go away just because they've decided to start a war or take us all to court. See you there!

[I would have posted some photos but they were all pretty crap because the guy I gave my camera to didn't work it properly and it was a bit dark. There are some good ones at
 http://www.redbrick.dcu.ie/~greensoc/ though (I didn't take them or anything)]