[g8-sheffield] Re: the right of unlawful protest

[John Smith]

Dear Adriana

I want to deal with those statements in your message which relate to facts,
rather than opinions. As for the latter, you invite me to continue the
conversation on the Matilda list. Well, maybe we could, I would be
interested... but I'd like to see if first of all whether we can agree on
matters of fact. Because on two points, your facts are false.  


I said:
> [the] (Stop the war coalition) publically denounced the oppressive
restrictions placed on their legal protests, and acquiesced to these
restrictions under protest. What they did was no different to what the G8
group decided to do, when a meeting unanimously assigned myself and Jillian
Creasey to try to negotiate with the police a route for a legal
demonstration on the first day of the criminals' visit.

You said:
"No, they didn't, as far as i know only the Green party and this anti-G8
group denounced the "oppressive restrictions"."

Well, here is the Stop the War Coalition's 15 June press release:

"----------------------------------------------------------------
SHEFFIELD STOP THE WAR COALITION
----------------------------------------------------------------
Lucinda Wakefield, chair of Sheffield Stop the War Coalition has today told
police that the coalition is calling on all restrictions on tonight's
protest to be lifted.

The Coalition has said that the restrictions currently in place breach their
democratic right to protest. But also that the restrictions will cause a
great deal of unnecessary confusion this evening for people wanting to join
the protest.

In discussion with Chief Inspector, Andy Ellison, she pointed out that on
Saturday over 1000 people joined the Coalition's peaceful march and that
today people wanted to make their voices heard to the ministers themselves
and that she can see no reason why these restrictions have been made.
-----------------------------------------------------------------
Press release ends. 
[and the message continued, to underline the point that the StWC didn't ask
people to stay at home, which is what submission to restrictions on the
static protest would have meant:]

Join the protest tonight - be there in your masses - let's make our voices
heard."



You say:
"Anyway, it would be interesting to have a journal or a report written of
those negotiations you just mentioned above, and make them public to the
other protesters (this list included of course) so we may get to know which
were these limitations you had to acquiesce with in the first place. ... All
i am asking for is some light on these secret negotiations."

This is ridiculous. There were no 'secret negotiations', nor would myself or
Jillian have participated in any such thing as secret negotiations. In fact,
there were no negotiations at all. We *tried* to negotiate a route for a
demonstration (as assigned to do by a G8 planning meeting at New Roots in
Spital Hill, I don't know if Adriana was there or not); the cops said they
were waiting for decisions to be made by their superiors; the decision came;
it was no. We reported all this to this list.

So, Adriana, if you want a discussion about principles, let's first of all
get the facts straight. 


greetings,

John S


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