Brian Haw arrested...

[modern]

This is what "democracy" looks like: Brian Haw arrested

On a day that is supposed to celebrate British democracy the opening of the "mother of parliaments", peaceful dissent is shut down with the arrest of Brian Haw and other peace campaigners in Parliament Square.

The Metropolitan police and Boris Johnson, the mayor of London, today launched a two-pronged crackdown on protesters encamped at Parliament Square, arresting the veteran anti-war agitator Brian Haw and ordering the immediate closure of a "democracy camp" which has sprung up since 1 May.

In separate moves, residents of the camp, which consists of 31 small dome tents, three communal marquees, a tee-pee and a pair of compost toilets, woke up to find notices from Johnson's officials demanding they leave immediately tucked under their groundsheets.

The letter warned they faced high court action for trespass. At 8am, police arrested Haw and fellow protester, Barbara Tucker, for alleged obstruction during security checks ahead of the Queen's speech. Haw, who was forcibly detained and handcuffed, has been protesting against the Iraq war directly opposite parliament for almost nine years.

The legal assault - shortly before David Cameron and Nick Clegg made a point of walking from Downing Street to parliament to hear the first Queen's speech of their government - was today greeted with dismay by protesters who insist they have the right to freedom of assembly and freedom of expression in the area. The camp includes communists, climate change protesters, opponents of the war in Afghanistan, anarchists and homeless people and features a communal vegetarian kitchen, an IT tent and a "peace garden" with an oak sapling surrounded by vegetables growing in the ground.

A pair of large red hammer and sickle flags fly prominently and there is a banner declaring that protesters are "dancing on the grave of capitalism".

A statement on the mayor's behalf said Johnson was concerned at the camp's impact on "a top tourist attraction visited by thousands of people and broadcast around the world each day. The mayor respects the right to demonstrate ‑ however, the scale and impact of the protest is now doing considerable damage to the square and preventing its peaceful use by other Londoners including those who may wish to have an authorised protest," it read.

The protesters deny damaging the square and have instructed solicitors to ensure they are able to challenge the mayor at a high court hearing rather than simply be forced to comply with a judicial order. The GLA claims that the protesters may have breached bylaws under the Greater London Authority act (1999) by attaching items to trees and fences, "exhibiting any notice, advertisement or any other written or pictorial matter", camping and organising a "performance or theatrical event".

A homeless former nurse, Tracey Chumley, 40, today dressed as a queen and gave an alternative Queen's speech from a red velvet throne. "I am trying to bring the troops home, trying to stop racism, trying to help the homeless," she said.

Sam Fryers, 25, a former soldier who runs the camp's IT tent, pitched in the shadow of Winston Churchill's statue, said: "I can understand that it might look like an eyesore, but you have to think about the message … This is about getting the troops out of Afghanistan."

The protesters have enjoyed regular visits from tourists and local office workers on their lunch breaks, Fryers said. Today, three tourists from Iran had stumbled across the camp while visiting Big Ben. "We like it, it is very nice," said Ali Hamid, a 36-year old translator from Iran. "We have taken some pictures and we think it is a very good idea because parliament is right there and they can hear the protest."

"I wish we could have this in Iran," added Ahmed Zariee, 25, a student.
The attempt to clear the garden was welcomed by Westminster council which said the protesters had "hijacked" the space.

"We all support peaceful protest, but it is completely unacceptable for parts of our city to be occupied and turned into no-go areas by vociferous minorities, however laudable each cause might be," said Colin Barrow, the council leader.

But Shami Chakrabati, director of Liberty, the human rights campaign group, said: "We are very sad to see that on a day that is supposed to celebrate British democracy, peaceful dissent is also shut down. The new coalition government has promised to restore the right to non-violent protest. Attempts to clear Parliament Square are not the most promising start."

http://stopwar.org.uk/content/view/1893/1/