Police seize Parliament Square Protester's placards

cymrococh · May 23, 2006

http://politics.guardian.co.uk/iraq/story/0,,1781182,00.html

Police moved in overnight to remove the majority of anti-war placards from Parliament Square - although its lone protester, Brian Haw, has not been evicted.

Although Mr Haw - who began his Iraq peace vigil in 2001 - has been allowed to stay, all but three metres of his posters facing parliament have been removed.

The police operation took place at 2.35am, after an appeal court ruling earlier this month.

Mr Haw, who was not evicted from Parliament Square, said his large display of anti-war banners, placards and flags had been "completely destroyed".

He said: "They have left me with just [a] placard. All of my personal belongings have been taken and dumped in a container along with nearly all the displays.

"They have completely destroyed all the expressions of people who opposed the war in Iraq.

"What gives them the legal right to remove 40 metres of evidence of genocide and reduce it to just three metres?"

The legal size of the protest - three metres - was imposed by the Serious Organised Crime and Police Act (SOCPA) 2005.

Mr Haw now suggested he may go on hunger strike in protest at the move. He said: "It seems I am going to die in this place now because I'm going to be fasting and praying - I have to accept the possibility.

"Some of our soldiers over there [iraq] have to accept that possibility, don't they?

"What else can I do as a Christian? They have taken my means of showing people what is going on."

A spokeswoman for Scotland Yard confirmed officers attended the scene at 2.35am.

She said: "The Metropolitan Police Service removed placards from a demonstration site as per conditions related to size and supervision imposed in relation to notice to demonstrate under SOCPA.

"This action was taken due to continual breaches of the conditions imposed on the demonstration.

"This action follows a number of requests to the applicant to adhere to the conditions, which he has failed to comply with."

Last July, SOCPA came into force bringing with it powers to stop demonstrations in Parliament Square or nearby - a provision widely seen as having been designed with Mr Haw in mind.

Beginning on June 1 2001 as a protest against sanctions in Iraq, his Parliament Square vigil predates the September 11 attacks and the military action in Iraq and Afghanistan.

His legal team argued - ultimately unsuccessfully - that the fact that the protest predates the act itself put him beyond its reach.

The court of appeal ruling earlier this month means that Mr Haw will have to apply to the police for authorisation to continue the dispute.

Mr Haw, 56, of Worcestershire, was refused permission to appeal to the House of Lords, but he plans to petition the law lords directly in a bid to take the case further.

Since the court ruling, speculation has mounted that Mr Haw, who sleeps in the square in a makeshift shelter, will finally be evicted.

It is understood that any decision on eviction may be decided at Bow Street magistrates' court next Tuesday, when he will face allegations that he has breached protest conditions.

At one point, two of Mr Haw's supporters, a man and woman, climbed on top of a metal container placed at the side of Parliament Square.

Both blew whistles and the woman waved a banner with a picture of a deformed baby on one side and the slogan "Freedom of expression over political repression" written on the other side. The container was surrounded by police.

Mr Haw said officers had come at quarter to three this morning and had crammed and "smashed" his display into the container.

He said: "People come here from all over the world and when they see what has happened they are going to be outraged."

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The governement have behaved like playground bullies over this. To argue that there are certain areas where freedom of speech and expression cannot exist is disgusting and completely alien to the concept of democracy.

Spike · May 23, 2006

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