Scotland Peace not War Feature Archive
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Peace Protesters still active!
In Scotland anti war actions are still taking place nearly every day, despite the police tactics getting more and more restrictive for the protesters. On Thursday 3rd of april the autonomous demonstration suceeded in blocking an Esso garage for about an hour, following on from the demonstration a week earlier on the 27th of april.On Friday the school students suceeded in blocking the traffic with a sit-in before marching of in a cordon of police to the American embassy. Friday saw also a mass mave-in of posters and postcards as a solidarity action for a protester, who was arrested alongside with others on the anti-war demo the 22nd of march for his design of the American flag.
An anti-war exhibition by local artists also opened on Friday, to be seen untill the 13th of april, in the Roxy Art House.
On Saturday, activists went to protest in front of the BP headquaters in Grangemeouth, Fife.
Peace Vigils were also held on Monday, 7th of april in front of the US consulate. The next women's vigil will take place on Saturday, 12th of april Night outside City Chambers on Royal Mile from 9-10pm.
More actions are also to take place on Wednesday,9th of april, when Glasgow activists have announced a demonstration, starting off at Kelvinbridge Underground at 5pm to march to BBC studios, Queen Margaret Drive.
On Saturday, 12th of april, another mass demonstration will take place in Glasgow and in London, following on from the one on the 29th of march.
When Injustice becomes Law Resistance becomes Duty
Demonstration in Edinburgh on Saturday, 29th of march.
The demonstration on Saturday was quite big and most impressive with over more than 10000 people.
The new tactic was fencing off the route of the demonstration from the starting point till the end.
However, inspiring and exciting was the crossing of the fencing, when protesters blocked one of the bigger traffic junctions in Edinburgh with a street party including music and dancing.
Many sympathisers of the peace movement also showed their support by banging pots and other kitchen equipment or hanging banners out of their windows or onto the balconies, which was further encouraging.
Critical Mass on Friday
A peace protest in form of a bicycle demonstration rolled around the city centre on Friday evening. "Bicycles not bombs" and "No Blood for Oil" were slogans of some of the environmentalists campaigning for a sustainable longterm solution to the worlds energy problem rather than waging war on countries rich in oil and other exploitable resources.
[ full report | Background reading: Rising Tide ]
Protest on Thursday
In Edinburgh, at midday on Thursday, an autonomous demonstration was taking place, which was quite fun, exciting, spontaneous and successfull. A picket outside the Army Recruitment Office was held, and a major junction on the main shopping road was blocked as well as a sitdown in front of GAP happened.
[report 1 | report 2 | report 3 ]
Anti-war demonstration, Glasgow
The anti-war demonstration in Glasgow last Saturday on the 22nd of march is still of concern to the participants, particularly because of the police brutality happening. [ Robert Burns against the war . | report 1 | report 2 ]
Stop the War- Stop the City!
Direct actions and peace demonstrations took place again today. In Edinburgh, lots of speeches and a die-in in front of the Scottish Parliament started the anti-war protest, before school students speeded the demonstration off to Princess Street to block the traffic several times with sit-ins before marching to the US consulate followed by another row of speeches.
Then back to Princes Street with more Sit-Ins and Die-Ins to Charlotte Square.
Police until then has been astonishing relaxed, but become violent, aggressive and provoking when plain-cloth policemen brutally tried to arrest a protester for no apparent reason which kicked off the bystanders to intervene, resulting in more arrests and detention.
Whereas the speakers of the rally tried to support police tactics by asking demonstrators repeatedly not to bother, the police had to let the detained people go due to crowd pressure.
The crowd finally walked off to have a solidarity picket in front of St.Leonards police station, St.Leonard Street.
The demonstration broke through police-lines, when police tried to block their way.
The solidarity picket is still continuing after 10 pm on Saturday night.
In Glasgow there was a big demonstration, and protesters were boxed in for over one and a half hours by police.
Hoosie, from Faslane Peace Camp has been beaten up by police and is now hospitalised with bruised kidney and bruised liver.
He was arrested on Thursday at an action for allegedly assaulting a police officer.
More direct actions against the war reported
The British army building in Glasgow has been attacked by protesters on Sunday night. Resistance is also awakening in Galloway, where depleted uranium is tested. From Dundee, first independent reports and pictures come in about anti-war actions during the last week. In Dumfries pupils went out of school to demonstrate, too. For Edinburgh a big demonstration has been called for next Saturday, as well as for a critical mass on Friday evening and anti-war actions on Thursday midday.
No War!
As we are still waiting for incoming anti-war reports, there has been a pro-peace confetti action in Edinburgh.Anti-war confetti- action in the Scottish Parliament
Direct actions when bombs drop- now!
Direct actions and protest are also planned for Friday the 21st in front of the Scottish Labour Conference in Dundee.More calls for demonstrations are out for Saturday, when anti-war demonstrators will meet up in Glasgow and in Edinburgh at 12 noon at Parliament Square, and all over the world in bigger and smaller cities to raise their voice against the war.
<a href="/en/2003/03/58848.html">Looting</a> against the war in Edinburgh!
Edinburgh was again facing a traffic collapse when 2 demonstrations blocked Princes Street on Thursday, the day when war broke out.The protest at noon broke out from Parliament Square and onto Princess Street. Police tactics got more confrontational with horses, motorcycles and lots more forces employed to try to disempower the protesters, such as tried by speech-showering politicians.
This did not stop demonstrators running into the capitalist shops owned by multinational corporations and looting stuff whilst shouting anti-capitalist slogans, redistributing it to fellow protesters or just throwing it away.
Some people were arrested or detained by the police during the protest.
A solidarity picket took place in front of the police station.
The Peace protesters were released as soon as the last demo finished.
Banner drop and civil disobedience in Aberdeen!
The city centre was brought to a standstill when protesters broke through the policeline in Aberdeen to reclaim public space from commercial business making.
A banner drop was also taking place. Some people were arrested.
Read this excellent report by Aberdeen Anarchist Resistance!
Scotland resists against the War!
Direct actions and protests were held all over Scotland on Thursday, 21st of march. There were protests in Glasgow ( beware: big file-size of pictures).
Demonstrations and disruptions were also held in Dundee, and in other cities, towns and villages around Scotland, including Lerwick on the Shetland island.
Edinburgh Anti-war Protesters storm the Castle and block Princes Street
An Anti-War demonstration took place this morning in Edinburgh, amongst the protesters mainly school students, who went on strike.The activists stormed Edinburgh Castle, which is not only a main tourist attraction, but also a military garrison. After blocking the entrance for about an hour, the demonstration moved on to the front of the Scottish parliament, and then, further to Princes Street, where the traffic was blocked and a sit-down took place.
Later, the protesters tried to raise their opposition in front of the US consulate, but police hemmed the protesters in and allowed them to leave in small groups.
[ full story | pictures]
Anti-War actions at RAF Leuchar- Tornado damaged!
Access has been gained and a hangar was entered at the Royal Air Force base in Leuchers near St.Andrews in Fife, when a Tornado Aircraft was damaged by 48-year-old Ulla Roder. Tornados are among the aircraft being deployed to the Gulf and part of the air-defense.Also, Roz,33, from Edinburgh, and Petter,22, from Glasgow, face two charges at Cupar Sheriff Court relating to the perimeter fence and spray painting.
On Saturday a group of anti-war activists held a protest at the very same base near St.Andrews in Fife .
[update and description of action |full report | Trident Ploughshares |BBC report | Anarchist Black Cross | Earth Liberation Prisoners]
Faslane Peace Camp needs more guests!
Faslane Peace Camp, exists to protest against nukes and war for 21 years, and has become the activist centre of Scotland.The next big direct action will be at the Big Blockade in April- see Calendar, but at the moment, Faslane Peace Camp is in urgent need of guests.
[ report | Faslane Peace Camp | Blockade]
Aberdeen is marching against the war
The biggest march in Aberdeen for perhaps a decade took place on Saturday the 8th of March protesting the war on Iraq, and the persecution of the Palestinian people by the Israeli military state.
Activists in Aberdeen and beyond are preparing for the next direct action, taking place next Friday at 12 noon in front of the local army recruitment centre on Belmont St.
[full story | another report ]
Edinburgh March against the War - 6.3.2003
On Thursday, 6th of march, there were two demonstrations happening in Edinburgh, which joined together in front of the Scottish parliament.Both demonstrations were quite large compared to other demonstrations in the last years.
[ report | pictures of SSP]
Edinburgh Claimants destroy forces recruitment brochures
On Wednesday, 26th of february, Edinburgh Claimants have destroyed armed forces recruitment material in an Edinburgh Job Centre in resistance to the threatened war with Iraq. The shredded material was returned through the letter box. The group also explains its action, that “ The army and other armed forces try to take advantage of unemployed people?s poverty ”[full story | Edinburgh Claimants]
International Demonstrations against War and Imperialism, 15th of February.
On Saturday, 15th of February, masses will take the streets all over the world to protest against the forthcoming war in the greed for oil and economical control of resources. As the politicians are getting shit-scared, the suspension and abolition of democratic, constitutional and human rights to assemble on the streets to voice alternative opinions are excluded in the lie of "security". The demonstration in Glasgow is expected to be one of the largest Scotland has seen in a long while. The Labour conference will simultaneously take place, and Blair is planned in to speak at 2pm.
[more feature on global imc about February, 15th | feature on global imc about the cancelled demos | call for red and black block at Scottish demo | International anarchist call for global action against capitalism and war]
No more speakers in our name!
Scotland's parliament was temporarily reclaimed today, when First Minister's Question Time was interrupted three times. Anarchists and allied anti-war protesters heckled their “ representatives ” over the Scottish Executive's disinterest in the wishes of the Scottish people - as exemplified by Labour's support of the war on Iraq.
“ No more talks in our name ” on Saturday either, when the after-demo rally is banned. Also there seem to be calls out to have also demos starting from the south of Glasgow and the East.
Critical mass against the war in Edinburgh
On Sunday, 26th of January, a crowd of cyclists, drummers, pedestrians and wheelchairs took the street to protest against the forthcoming war and to deliver a clear message of “ Don't attack Iraq ” to the American embassy.
[full story | another report | more impressions]
Global Days of Action against the War on the Gulf War anniversary
Glasgow Anarchist Students prepare for a weekend of direct action, starting Thursday 16th of January. This weekend will see global anti war actions on the Gulf War anniversary January 17-19th. Actions have been called in Argentina, the USA, Ecuador, Puerto Rico, Mexico, Pakistan, Australia, Egypt, Belgium, Spain, Canada, Italy, France, Japan, Indonesia, Britain, Germany, Austria, Russia, the Phillipines, Switzerland, Bahrain and South Korea.
[Glasgow events against the war | global events against the war ]
Solidarity with Glasgow Anarchists facing repression
Some of the brave Glasgow Anarchists who took direct action against the war by occupying the Adam Smith Lecture Theatre on campus for 21 hours are now to be facing the repressive intimitation methods of the powers that be.
As usual when the state and other representatives of power lack arguments, they try to suppress civil courage and resistance by abusing their bureaucratic hierarchies to prove their self-righteous, elitist, capitalist, sell-out neo-liberal attitude.
The demands are and were:
- to the Chancellor of the University of Glasgow to step down; because of him investing the universities pension funds in war-profiteering companies.
- the Army to be booted off campus instead of the brave Glasgow Anarchist students; because the army does not belong there, whereas courageous, independant-thinking ethically sound students do.
- For the university to keep the Slavonic and Philosophy departments. Because philosophy makes more sense than war.
- Read Adorno!
Reading tip especially for university professors and politicians: Minima Moralia. For more brains and more discussions and less intimitation or superiority policy.
For all to support the Glasgow Anarchists Students meet on Friday, 24th, 9.30 outside Hillhead Underground to protest against the university hearing. [full story | link to former article]
For more demands on libertarian education go to: lib ed magazine
Free University Copenhagen
[ women | abz | all powers | publications | on knowledge production | all power ]
Blockade of BAe and Ark Royal
On Monday 13th, protesters took direct action against the War. BAe, British Aerospace was blockaded in Edinburgh, and access to the Ark Royal, before leaving towards Iraq, was blocked, too, when it was stationed at Loch Long (near Faslane Trident sub base).
Stop the war, chuck out the army and remove the Chancellor!!
Glasgow Anarchist Students occupied the main hall of the university building in Glasgow. They protest against the war, the army which has recently tried to recruit on the campus, as well as the investment of the Universities pension fund in war-profiteering companies.
[ full story ]
Stop the war
On Saturday, 14thof December protesters tried to inspect weapons at the Raytheon arms manufacturer in Glenrothes, Fife. The action was organised by the local 'Stop The War Coaltion'.
[ full story | rock against war in Kirkcaldy ]
Scotland says Don't Attack Iraq
About 15 000 people demonstrated in Glasgow on Sunday 20th October. The 'Scotland says Don't Attack Iraq' demo in Glasgow was the biggest demonstration seen in Scotland for a very long time. Many different groups and also individuals were present from all corners of Scotland - from Berwick upon Tweed, to Newcastle, Dundee, Aberdeen, Forth, some trainloads from Edinburgh and of course lots from Glasgow. Four marches from north, south, east and west merged in the city centre. Many people will take civil disobedience actions in the event of an attack on Iraq. Over the coming weeks the Pledge campaign will be used to try and mobilise for the Day of Action on the 31st with over 20 non-violent direct action workshops organised across Scotland. [ Report and photos | More photos | Army Recruitment Office Action | Iraq War Threat ]
