London Indymedia

Climate Camp: How The Police Radicalized An Entire Generation

IMCista | 08.08.2008 23:37 | Climate Camp 2008 | Climate Chaos | London | World

Mass harrassment, terror tactics, theft, lies and propaganda, excessive force: the relentless campaign of intimidation by police at this years Climate Camp that started with raiding the camp and confiscating essential equipment, has also now included the premeditated political use of blanket stop and search, night-time terrorising of the climate camp site, confiscating pushbikes, blockading food supplies, and harrassment of media and legal observers.

Late Tuesday night/very early Wednesday morning police attempted to terrorise the camp with a low-flying helicopter and by storming the gates with sirens blaring and riot cops shouting. The same night police cut locks and took away bikes after telling people to leave their bikes in the car park. From the beginning the police used excessive force against climate campers (photos) including women, children and legal observers. See newswire post on police bullying.

Links: Climate Camp website | Full Climate Camp 2008 Coverage | the very latest: Climate Camp timeline



On-site media also suffered intimidation from the noisy low-flying police helicopter, while reporters and photographers were held outside, some for hours.

On Thursday vans delivering food were stopped and forced to unload a mile from the site.

Climate campers soon came together to defend the site against the police incursions and resist the blanket stop and search(pics & audio), with many commenting that the repeated heavy attempts to enter the camp 'are radicalising a new generation of activists'. Photos of Wednesdays mass 'breakout' here.

Police were given extended stop and search powers on Thursday, they can now stop and search anyone without needing to have reasonable grounds to do so. The pre-meditated political use of blanket stop and search is well known to be unlawful under the Police and Criminal Evidence (PACE) Act, Section A. Such searches cannot be based on 'generalisations or stereotypical images'. The Camp For Climate Action Legal Support team wrote to the police about the legality of their exercise of powers of seizure.

As if the harrassment and intimidatory tactics weren't enough, police resorted to disinformation via the mainstream media, claiming an outbreak of dysentry in the camp and the unearthing of a 'secret weapons stash'.

Legal info for climate campers

Arrests list

Fitwatch pics

IMCista

Comments

Hide the following 9 comments

Old fashioned sexism?

10.08.2008 09:22

Amazing... a country that has a long history of women activists and women's camps... and you still find it necessary to put women on the same level as children when it comes to police attacking them?
It's necessary to point out when the police attacks children, when they don't respect the position of legal advisers, but why does it make a difference to you as feature writer whether the police attacks a male or female activist?

clara


Welcome to the past

10.08.2008 12:01

How The Police Radicalized An Entire Generation? About fucking time too. None of these tactics are new and we need to realise this and build on the past and our experience, not just go on and on about how dreadful it all is. Stop being hysterical about police violence - this is what they do; it was they did in the Miners Strike, what they did at Greenham and Molesworth, what they did to the travellers and protests in the nineties. Welcome to the club guys - now stop behaving like whinging middle class brats and start fighting.

Star

Star


yep, this is sexist reporting on indymedia...

10.08.2008 14:30

I totally agree with Clara. It is massively important that the story about children and young teenagers being assaulted, harassed etc. gets out, and mentioning "women and children" like this really waters down the argument. And insults us women who are usually happy to put ourselves on the front line. I mean, going on what I saw last year, probably 60 per cent of climate campers are women... are we really this small, delicate sub-group that need defending by the big men? Fuck off.
However, half a dozen large male coppers throwing a small female in a floaty dress about, shoving her to the ground and sitting on her is shocking...
good on you, campers... well done.
Now get home for a bath and several days of sleep.
xx

davina


Entire Generation. . .

10.08.2008 22:39


I`m embarrassed for Indymedia reading this. An Entire Generation Radicalized! It appears that the author is somewhat divorced from reality. All power to Star and our Sister`s for their most valid observations.

NON VIOLENCE PROTECTS THE STATE---------------EARTH FIRST!

Ivor Point


PACE codes of practice

14.08.2008 13:31

Breach of PACE codes does not make a search unlawful, in the way that an officer not giving his name does (PACE s2).

-------------------------------------------
From PACE Section 67:

(10) A failure on the part—

(a)of a police officer to comply with any provision of such a code;
(b)of any person other than a police officer who is charged with the duty of investigating offences or charging offenders to have regard to any relevant provision of such a code in the discharge of that duty, or
(c)of a person designated under section 38 or 39 or accredited under section 41 of the Police Reform Act 2002 (c. 30) to have regard to any relevant provision of such a code in the exercise or performance of the powers and duties conferred or imposed on him by that designation or accreditation,

shall not of itself render him liable to any criminal or civil proceedings.

(11) In all criminal and civil proceedings any such code shall be admissible in evidence; and if any provision of such a code appears to the court or tribunal conducting the proceedings to be relevant to any question arising in the proceedings it shall be taken into account in determining that question.
-------------------------------------------
 http://www.statutelaw.gov.uk/content.aspx?parentActiveTextDocId=1871554&ActiveTextDocId=1871644

streetlawyer


radicalised - as if that wasn't the aim

14.08.2008 17:52


The term/concept of radicalisation is used here by IMCista as if it was an unintended or stupid action by the police - but that's the very point: to radicalise - to radicalise to the point of people reacting so strongly that the violent unlawful means used in the first place are justified retrospectively: "Look, we told you that these climate campers were dangerous people..."

It is repression lesson 1.

Google strategy of tension for entry into more relevant stuff....

radikalised


to radikalised

16.08.2008 18:17

But none of the Campers succumbed to the provocation.

How ever much the police might have deserved reprisals against them ("a black eye for a black eye"?), the wise, brave Campers realised that it was better to stay on the high moral ground.

I'm not saying that we shouldn't be forceful in defending ourselves (and that is radical), but it needs to be low key in appearance to be perceived as legitimate (actually, I guess you agree with that last part).

squatticus


War On Terror Boardgame - as seen on channel 4

03.09.2008 01:19


The War On Terror boardgame seized by the cops appears in The IT Crowd (a stupid sitcom shown on channel 4 on 2007).

Oh, and I agree with the above posters. "women and children." This is Indymedia, not the Sun. Think about what you're writing.

Fabbri


"How The Police Radicalized An Entire Generation"???+?

05.09.2008 08:51

Lets try something a bit more honest and a bit less sensational shall we? How about: "How The Police pissed off a few hundred white middle class kids who were previously indifferent to them."? Its not such a catchy title but its certainly a lot more accurate. If you wan't to see kids radicalized en masse by the filth then just go to any council estate.

U no hoo


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