Decommissioners Trial begins June 7th 2010 at Hove Crown Court
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Home | Friday 18th June 2010 | Issue 727

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NIGHT MAYOR

The mood is still defiant in Parliament Square as the Democracy Village continues to resist eviction and wait for the high court judgement ruling in the case of Boris vs Democracy. The occupation began on Mayday and has remained since (see SchNEWS 724). The mayor failed in his first attempt to get activists evicted, by claiming in court that he had the right to evict anyone from the square, including the Queen, something that the judge flatly refused to agree with. A full trial was called and started this Monday (14th).

The legal mumblings are occurring due to the fact that only the registered land owner can officially apply to the court to get people evicted, and Parliament Square belongs to the Queen and Crown – not Boris Johnson. As far as anyone knows, the Queen is neither amused or not amused, but indifferent to this people’s assembly on her doorstep. The Mayor however, is getting pretty hot under the collar with this exercise in free speech. A temporary injunction is in place, instructing the camp to dismantle itself and threatening anyone who wanders onto the site or chats to a villager with criminal punishment. All of this comes in the same week Cameron pledged to ‘restore rights to non-violent protest’.

The trial is expected to reach a verdict on Friday (18th) although delays are possible - check websites below for updates. In the meantime, an evening of song and poetry is scheduled for tonight (18th), and a citizen journalism workshop at 1pm on Saturday (19th).

* For details on the injunction and the camp’s reply see www.democracyvillage.org/wp-content/upl/2010/06/IMPORTANT-NOTICE.pdf

* See www.democracyvillage.org & www.democracyvillage.blogspot.com



 
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A brief history of the Dragon Festival and Cigarrones travellers site, southern Spain.
The Cigarrones travellers’ site is one of several communities which have sprung up near Orgiva in Andalucía, Spain, in recent decades. Coming to the southern tip of Europe to escape the repression against travellers in Britain and elsewhere, they have carved out a life of avin’ it autonomous anarchy – despite increasing attention from tinpot local authorities who act like Franco is still in. Since 1997 the site has held the annual Dragon Festival - now arguably one of the most significant free festivals in Europe – but this is also under attack. Here is a brief history written by a resident of Cigarrones:
SchNEWS interviews Canadian journalist and military historian Gwynne Dyer about the dire warnings for a post-climate change world in his book 'The Climate Wars'
Report from US-Mexico border about the narco wars whose connections go right up to the president
One year after the military coup in Honduras which ousted the leader and installed a neo-liberal cabal, grassroots groups across the country are aligning to create a popular movement.
SchNEWS interviews Richard Stallman – hacker, founder of the Free Software movement and activist for digital-software-information freedom...
From Kemp Town to Kabul, as SchNEWS interviews Al Jazeera journalist Medyan Dairieh about his take on the war...
An eyewitness account from Phnom Penh, as Cambodia faces its largest forced displacements since the time of the Khmer Rouge.
The future of Titnore Woods is threatened as Tesco and Worthing Council gang up to build upon the ancient woodland...
Who are the far-right English Defence League, and what are their strategies?
With the murder of Russian human rights activist Natalia Estemirova in Chechnya, we look at the Russian-backed despotic regime in Chechnya.
At the last minute the Big Green Gathering festival in Somerset was pulled due to legal pressure - SchNEWS looks at the events and factors that led to this.
The president of Honduras, Manuel Zelaya, is removed and sent into exile after a military coup d'etat.
This year marks the 24th anniversary of the infamous police attack on travellers on their way to Stonehenge in an incident now known as the Battle Of The Beanfield.
SchNEWS looks how deep the financial problems are for the banks and the British Govt, and how they won't learn from their errors.
Given a more optimistic environment after Obama's announcement that he's going to close the Guantanamo prison camp, SchNEWS interviews ex-detainee, Omar Deghayes, to gauge his reaction.
Eyewitness accounts from British activists on the ground during the wanton attack on Gaza by Israel in January 2009.
Somali pirates roaming the Gulf Of Aden, hijacking - amongst other ships - a Saudi oil supertanker. How is it possible? What geo-political context is giving rise to these latter-day pirates?

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