Action Reports – Page 203

Protests mark the start of the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change in Posnan (Poland)

Denmark: KlimaX rocks the COP15 summit site

Activists from the copenhagen based climate activist group KlimaX climbed onto the front of the conference site Bella Centret and threw out banners. The site is symbolic in the way that its the actual site of the COP15 summit excactly one year from now.

Denmark: KlimaX rocks the COP15 summit site

Activists from the copenhagen based climate activist group KlimaX climbed onto the front of the conference site Bella Centret and threw out banners. The site is symbolic in the way that its the actual site of the COP15 summit excactly one year from now.

“We need a humane solution to the climate crisis.” Says Sini Østergaard from KlimaX “We cannot stand by and watch while the rich countries buy CO2 quotas from the poor countries. We have take action now.”

The activists brought banners, music, cookies and tea while the security people and diplomats attending a conference watched the fun.

“The clock is ticking and time has run out. We have to face the consequences of our over-consumption in the west now.” says Thor from KlimaX.

The police arrived but didn’t bother anyone. The activists promises that they’ll continue their actions in the run-up to and under the climate summit. Already other actions are brewing for the imediate future.

The international mobilization for action at the climate summit:
http://climateaction09.org/

KlimaX – Copenhagen:
http://klimax2009.org

Video from a coorporate newspaper (ignore lame comercials):
http://ekstrabladet.tv/nyheder/indland/article1091836.ece

KlimaX – Copenhagen
international@klimax2009.org
http://www.climateaction09.org

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USA: Monday Dec. 1

Climate Activists Invade DC Offices of Environmental Defense, Daughter
of ED Founder Accuses Group of Pushing False Solutions to Climate Change

Off-site Media Contact: Matt Wallace, Rising Tide North America,
828-280-3462
On-site Contact: Dr. Rachel Smolker, Global Justice Ecology Project
802-735-7794

***high resolution photos available soon at:
www.risingtidenorthamerica.org***

Washington, DC-As the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change opened today in Poznan, Poland, grassroots climate activists took over the Washington DC office of Environmental Defense. The activists stated that they had targeted ED, one of the largest environmental organizations in the world, because of the organization’s key role in promoting the discredited approach of carbon trading as a solution to climate change.

Dr. Rachel Smolker of Global Justice Ecology Project and Global Forest Coalition read a statement, which said in part, “My father was one of the founders of this organization, which sadly I am now ashamed of. The Kyoto Protocol, the European Emissions Trading Scheme and virtually every other initiative for reducing emissions have adopted their market approaches. So far they have utterly failed, serving only to provide huge profits to the world’s most polluting industries. Instead of protecting the environment, ED now seems primarily concerned with protecting corporate bottom lines. I can hear my father rolling over in his grave.”

The activists rearranged furniture in the office, illustrating how marketing carbon is “like rearranging the deck chairs on the Titanic.” Others held signs reading “Keep the cap, ditch the trade” and “Carbon trading is an environmental offense.”

Leo Cerda, an indigenous activist with Rising Tide Ecuador said, “ED wants to turn the atmosphere and forests into private property, and then give it away to the most polluting industries in the form of pollution allowances that can be bought and sold. Not only is this an ineffective way to control emissions, it is also a disaster for the poor and indigenous peoples who are not party to these markets and are most impacted by climate change.”

ED has been key in establishing the U.S. Climate Action Partnership, a business consortium advocating for a cap and trade system with extremely weak emissions reductions. US CAP allows polluters like Duke Energy, Shell, BP, DuPont, and Dow Chemical to claim they are green while continuing with business as usual. In recognition, activists awarded ED the “Corporate Greenwash Award,” a three foot tall green paintbrush. “We think this award is appropriate since Environmental Defense spends more time painting polluters green than actually defending the environment,” said Matt Wallace of Rising Tide North America.

Opposition to carbon trading is growing as it becomes apparent that market based schemes do little to fight climate change while helping corporations rake in profits. Earlier this year, over 50 groups came together in the US to denounce carbon trading in a Declaration Against the Use of Carbon Trading Schemes to Address Climate Change. Globally, hundreds of environmental, social justice, and indigenous groups have come together to oppose such market based initiatives as inherently unsustainable and ineffective in creating a just transition away from fossil fuels.

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Australia: Coal-fired power station blockade on the eve of international climate negotiations

November 27, 2008: This morning, four people entered the Munmorah Coal-Fired Power Station on the NSW Central Coast, attaching themselves to conveyor belts carrying coal.

Spokesperson Ann-Marie Rohlfs says “In two days, the Rudd Government will go to the United Nations climate change meeting in Poland. Instead of showing leadership, they are set to announce weak and ineffective domestic emissions reduction targets…”
“With the upcoming release of the Climate White Paper, the Rudd Government will hand tens of billions of dollars in compensation and free permits to polluting industries. Public money would be better spent investing in a green renewable future for Australia.”

Spokesperson Nicky Ison says, “This week we witnessed the closure of the BP solar plant in Homebush Bay. Australia is missing out on tens of thousands of new jobs by continuing to prop up the coal industry and preventing the transition to a renewable energy economy.”

In September, Nobel Prize Winner Al Gore said “I believe we have reached the stage where it is time for civil disobedience to prevent the construction of new coal plants.”

We are taking him at his word.

Today’s blockade at the Munmorah Power Station is part of a huge community effort to kick Australia’s coal habit.

“We are facing a climate emergency, but our emissions are still rising. We call on the Rudd Government to ensure 2010 is the year Australia’s greenhouse emissions peak and begin to rapidly decline.

“If half of the homes in NSW had solar hot water systems, there would be no need for Munmorah Power Station. We would save 1.5 million tonnes of CO2 annually. As the oldest power station in NSW, Munmorah Power station must be the first to go in the new green economy.”

For further comment:
Holly Creenaune- 0417 682 541
Ann-Marie Rohlfs – 0406 021 920
Nicky Ison – 0423 717 567
For high resolutions photos and video footage, contact Nicky Ison on 0423 717 567

protests against the roll-out of the ID card scheme & database

Against the imposition of ID cards on Non-EU students and marriage visa holders.

This is not the first time foreign nationals or migrants have been used as guinea pigs to test a law or technology. Examples include the Asylum Registration Cards (ARC), which is a similar card that asylum seekers have been required to carry since 2002. Once migrants have been used as a ‘road test’ for the widely opposed ID scheme, the government will start on the rest of us. From 2010 on, the government predicts that one million cards will be handed out every year.

For more background information on how this ‘drip drip’ approach to imposing biometric ID cards relates to migration management and the Home Office’s points system read:

http://www.corporatewatch.org.uk/?lid=3147
http://nobordersmanchester.blogspot.com/2008/11/defy-id-cards-no-one-is-illegal.html

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27th November 2008
This evening approximately 13 activists from No Borders North East handed out 200 anti-ID card leaflets to shoppers in Central Newcastle. Banners and placards were also held, and a very positive response was given from the public.

Tuesday saw the introduction of Identity Cards for non-EU citizens. No Borders views this as yet another attempt to victimize an often voiceless group, and so has orchestrated a series of protests this week throughout the country.

http://www.noborders.org.uk

…..

This morning, during the peak rush hour time of 7.30 – 9.00 am, 4 activists from No Borders North East performed an anti-i.d card banner drop from a bridge over one of the city’s busiest inner motorways. The largest banner read “No To ID Cards, Freedom For All!” and was accompanied by a smaller No Borders banner.

The reaction from the drivers below was overwhelmingly positive, with many honking horns, waving and giving thumbs up.

Today sees the start of the ID card scheme, with non-EU citizens applying for, or renewing visas for study or marriage, being made to carry a card and have their details put on the Government’s database. Immigration law already gives the Home Office powers it would like to exert over everybody. Under a cloud of anti-immigration hysteria the government is increasing it’s social control and attempting to usher in unprecedented powers of surveillance over the whole population.

The police came along while we were doing it, but didnt seem to have any problem with it. Interestingly however, they said that an anarchist symbol can be deemed offensive and thus removable under a public order act (?!). We told them that our No Borders banner with a large anarchist symbol wasn’t in fact anarchist related, and they believed us for some reason…. 😉
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Yorkshire Activists blockade Sheffield Border Agency Centre

1.12.2008
At 8am this morning a group of Yorkshire activists blockaded the Sheffield Border Agency Interrogation Centre at Vulcan House using bicycle locks and superglue to attach themselves to both entrances. The group are there in response to the introduction of compulsory ID cards for non-EU people on student or marriage visas. They are displaying two banners, one reads “My identity is not your property” and the other “Nothing to hide? Everything to fear! Defy ID!”

Some applicants have been turned away by the Border Agency staff but many were supportive of the actions the group has taken. Speaking to a blockader, one applicant said that by introducing compulsory ID cards, the government have shown that “they just want to control people”. Border Agency staff have called the police to remove the protesters but at the time of sending (10:30am) the protesters are still in place.

An activist from Bradford (who is currently superglued to two others in front of the main entrance) said “The government are trying to introduce ID cards through the back door, targeting some of the most vulnerable people in the country.” A Sheffield activist added “If we want to save the people of Great Britain from ID cards, we must act now!”

Government legislation has meant that, since 25^th November, foreign spouses and non-EU students who apply for, or renew, visas will be forced to attend an interrogation and be issued with an ID card that will hold their name, photograph, nationality and immigration status, along with a biometric chip that will hold their fingerprints and digital image. The details will be held indefinitely on the UK Identity Service database. Delays meant that the Sheffield Border Agency Centre only began interrogations from today (1^st December).

Update – 11 activists were arrested (significantly more than were thought to be locked on) after holding the blockade for more than three hours. All released with with verbal cautions.

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Identity Cards Protest, Lunar House, Croydon

26.11.2008
On the corner of George Street in Croydon, London, a November sun was warming the shoppers and office workers on their lunch breaks, but a few hundred metres north on Wellesley Road a biting Siberian wind seared the demonstrators outside Lunar House. It seemed appropriate that such a freezing blast should surround the UK headquarters of the Border and Immigration Agency and indeed be generated by its twenty stories of the grim early 1970s office complex. After all its raison d’être is to give would-be immigrants and asylum seeks an extremely cold reception.

Its bleak anonymity is also a warning of things to come for all of us in a Brave New Britain of state surveillance and control whose infrastructure is increasingly with us through security cameras, the interception mobile phone signals and electronic communications and the planned introduction of universal ID cards.

The picket, called by London NoBorders http://london.noborders.org.uk and NO2ID http://www.no2id.net/, marked the start of Biometric ID cards, which are being issued from today, 25 November 2008, to all non-EU students and spouses applying for, or renewing visas for study or marriage. The cards will have a photograph with name, date of birth, nationality, immigration status and biometric details, including fingerprints and digital facial image will be stored on a chip on the card as well as being held indefinitely on the UK Identity Service database.

Soon all foreign nationals in the UK will be required to have these cards, which will be rolled out to other groups including students who want a student loan by 2010. And from 2011 you will need to get one – and have your details on that database – if you want to renew or get a passport.

What worries many of us is not just the use to which our own government and security services might make of such data – linking to face recognition software working on images from security cameras and mobile phone data would enable our every move to be tracked – but the certainty that it will get into other hands – such as those of our US friends in the CIA, as well as criminal and commercial organisations who will have their own ideas about how such all-pervasive data might be used.

Among those at today’s demonstration was David Mery http://gizmonaut.net/bits/suspect.html a man who has achieved a small personal victory against the juggernaut database state.

Mery was stopped by police entering Southwark tube station on 28 July for being “calm on arrival, almost too calm” and having a largish rucksack and a strong French accent. It was three weeks after the London bombing – and – perhaps luckily for him, six days after the shooting of Jean Charles de Menezes. This time at least the police didn’t shoot first and ask questions later, but his treatment in the months and years following the event can most favourably be described as Kafkaesque. He finally (or at least probably) succeeded in having both his fingerprints and DNA record removed from the police databases, but it took over two years of fighting. His blog http://gizmonaut.net/ and articles are essential reading for anyone who wonders why civil liberties are important.

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Leeds NO2ID have burnt a mock ID card in protest at the introduction of the ID card scheme for foreign nationals

Video – video/quicktime 13M

Around 20 activists braved the freezing temperatures and rain to gather in Leeds last night on the eve of the introduction of ID cards for foreign nationals.

The protest was made my burning a mock ID card in public.

The Protest passed off peacefully without the presence of West Yorkshire Police.

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Liverpool anti-ID picket: No One Is Illegal

20 students and No Borders/anti-ID campaigners from Manchester made their way to Liverpool on 25th November, the day that the government introduced ID cards for non-EU nationals living in the UK. There they joined a group of 30 Merseyside activists outside Reliance House to protest at the introduction of compulsory ID cards for international students and non-EU spouses on that day.

Reliance House is where interviewing, photographing and fingerprinting will take place from 4th December before being issued with a biometric ID card. It is also Liverpool’s reporting centre where those seeking asylum have to ‘sign in’ on a regular basis while their claims are being processed. If their claims fail they can be held, without prior notice, in the immigration detention facility in the same building for up to 7 days.

It is thus imperative to make the connection between ID cards and the assault on the rights of non-EU nationals wanting to live, work and study in the UK. People from Manchester No Borders had brought along placards and banners proclaiming that “no one is illegal”. Where the state reinforces the division between legal and ‘illegal’ people our solidarity must extend to those most affected by the scheme.

Some mention in the news:
http://www.liverpoolecho.co.uk/liverpool-news/local-news/2008/11/25/protests-in-city-over-id-cards-100252-22330184/
http://www.theherald.co.uk/politics/news/display.var.2470740.0.Protests_as_first_ID_card_scheme_launched_in_Britain.php
http://www.liverpooldailypost.co.uk/liverpool-news/regional-news/2008/11/26/protesters-say-no-to-introduction-of-id-cards-for-foreign-students-64375-22341365/

(During the picket of Reliance House, some first contact was made with individual No Border activists from Liverpool, Merseyside and North Wales. If you are from this region and want to get active in a No Borders group, please email us, so we can get you in touch)

manchesternoborders@riseup.net
http://www.manchesternoborders.org.uk

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Over 60 people attended our protest against the introduction of Biometric ID Cards for non-EU students and spouses on Tuesday. The demonstration was held for a couple of hours at midday outside the Cardiff office of the UK Border Agency at 31-33 Newport Road. People the government is forcing to carry ID cards will have to attend this centre for interrogation, photographing and fingerprinting.

We displayed banners, held placards, waved giant mock ID cards and distributed 600 copies of this leaflet – the reaction from passers by was completely supportive. Many people used their lunchbreak to join the protest for a short while before returning to work or study. This protest was part of a nationwide day of action outside UKBA centres by No Borders Network who, along with Defy ID, NO2ID and other groups, held protests in Croydon, Liverpool, Glasgow, Solihull, and Newcastle. Though many of these protests around the country got into local newspapers, Welsh media coverage has been minimal.

This protest appears to be just the start of resistance to ID Cards, the British Airline Pilots’ Association (BALPA) has threatened industrial action if the government goes ahead with it’s plan to impose ID cards on airport workers next year. Tens of thousands of people have signed up to NO2ID’s pledge not to register for a card, even if that means going to prison. No Borders South Wales will be protesting outside the Border agency again, on Wednesday 10th December when the Cardiff office will start to register people, join us if you can.

“These new ID cards are not only a repressive measure against non-EU students and spouses, they are the first shot in an attack against everyone’s liberty. In targeting a largely voiceless migrant group, who have the least chance to complain and the most to lose, the government is following a familiar path of repressive regimes throughout history. Immigration law already gives the Home Office powers it would like to exert over everybody. By resisting the repression of migrants, we defend the freedom of everyone!“

For links to leaflet, video and other stuff, see http://noborderswales.wordpress.com/2008/11/26/cardiff-protest-against-id-cards/
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Solihull protest against the imposition of biometric ID cards on migrants

26.11.2008
Yesterday Noborders Birmingham protested against the imposition of biometric ID cards at the UK Border Agency Office in Solihull. They were met by a puzzling disproportionate police response at Dominion Court, 41 Station Road, Solihull – around 12 police officers, including 3 police vans and an evidence gatherer. This may have something to do with the policing of a previous protest around the corner at Sandford House, the home office reporting centre, where hundreds of Congolese demonstrators facing mass deportation occupied the main road http://www.indymedia.org.uk/en/regions/birmingham/2007/04/368076.html

A banner proclaiming ‘Freedom of Movement for All’ was held by the entrance of the UK Borders Agency Office. The police offered to ‘facilitate’ our protest by a seemingly polite offer to arrange for a metal barrier to hang our banner from. However, we realised that the six foot high hedge in front of the building would make our protest invisible to almost everyone, so instead we hung our banner by the main road and distributed around 600 leaflets to some very interested members of the public.

Following a concerned report from a dedicated community police officer earlier in the day, two equally committed council workers from the environmental and health department at Solihull Council turned up in their lunch hour to ensure that the literature being distributed was of a political, rather than commercial, nature and thus would not run afoul of local bye-laws on littering/flyering (no one seemed quite sure). This follows several other incidents known to us in central Birmingham where council officials have attempted to apply similar bye-laws (with accompanying threats of fines and court appearances) to dissuade people from handing out political literature. It has been noted before that the parliamentary legislation which serves as the basis of these bye-laws specifically exempted materials of a political nature. The council workers also showed some interest in the banner, raising concern over the manner of its attachment to some local shrubs and something else about private property, but in the end they seemed to decide that neither the public nor the shrubs were at any risk (potential, real, or otherwise) and returned to what remained of their lunch hour.

Two students from Pakistan informed us that they had to book an appointment to begin the biometric ID card process and they couldn’t return home until this had been completed. They claimed today they were told by staff that they would be required to give blood samples and have iris scans for their biometric cards so if they committed any ‘crimes’ in the UK they could be identified immediately. It appears that the private company contracted to the tune of £5.6 billion, and entrusted with sensitive biometric data, are already doing their best to impress upon applicants that ID cards will be effective at ‘fighting crime’. Liberty, the civil liberties and human rights organisation, have already expressed concern about the Government’s ability to safeguard individual’s intimate details on the National Identity Register after Government departments last year lost 30 million pieces of personal data, including those of 25 million child benefit claimants. ‘We have ID cards in our country but they aren’t biometric’ said one of the students. ‘It feels very discriminatory that we are being targeted first. Why aren’t they processing UK nationals first?’ The international students also pointed out that this was costing them a great deal of money. Not only did they have to pay exorbitant fees for their courses but on top of that they have to pay £300 for their visas and now they have to pay for their biometric ID cards and they are only permitted to work 20 hours a week. They also added that these measures would serve to put overseas students off studying here citing Australia as a more welcoming alternative.

The use of foreign nationals as guinea pigs for the more widespread introduction of ID cards is a strategy to run a testbed for the technology on people without a voice. It has become apparent that the government is likely to pick off certain sections of the community in Britain one at a time. This divide and rule strategy has been used throughout history, most notably by the Nazi regime in Germany.

When the British government came for the migrants,
I remained silent;
I was not a migrant.

When they came for the airline workers,
I remained silent;
I was not an airline worker.

When they came for the convicts,
I did not speak out;
I was not a convict.

When they came for the health workers,
I did not speak out;
I was not a health worker.

When they came for the students,
I did not speak out;
I was not a student.

When they came for me,
there was no one left to speak out.

noborders-brum @ riseup.net

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http://glasgowanarchists.wordpress.com/

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Also in the news:

ID ‘reading’ machines on Canada and Mexico borders
‘Smart’ CCTV in Portsmouth

Buy Nothing Day reports – London x2, Norwich, Wrexham, Liverpool & Manchester

“Take your clothes off!

“Take your clothes off! Swap them with your friends for FREE!” was the message from the Space Hijackers http://www.spacehijackers.co.uk/html/welcome.html, who decided to set up their clothes swap – “the restyling fashion mash-up event of the year” – on the lower ground floor of TOPSHOP at Oxford Circus (London). The idea was to demonstrate that “we don’t need to spend money we don’t have on things we don’t need.”

The action, designed as it was to subvert one of the iconic temples of consumerism seemed to baffle police and didn’t amuse the security staff, who stopped me taking pictures there. One other photographer was manhandled out of the store, but I was treated very politely, with several security men standing between me and the action and telling me that photograph was not allowed. On of the store managers even offered to personally help me find any clothes I might wish to buy elsewhere in the store, a possibility I found most unlikely.

I left the store (with a rather large escort until I left the premises) and walked around to the side exit where I expected the clothes swappers to be ejected, arriving just before they emerged, and was able to photograph them continuing to swap clothes on the pavement in Regent Street. Here one policeman did attempt to prevent me from taking pictures, claiming I was causing an obstruction (which clearly I wasn’t) and as usual I moved back a couple of feet before returning to take pictures when he moved away.

Things did threaten to get out of hand when a rather elderly police officer (at my age all policemen are supposed to look young), helped by a ‘Red Cap’ (rather sinister private security wardens employed by the ‘New West End Company’ to ensure shoppers don’t step out of line) started to push people around, but mostly other officers took a more sensible approach, some even talking and joking with the swappers as they continued to exchange items of clothing on the pavement.

Some shoppers passing by stopped to watch, and a few took a leaflet, but there was no evidence of any Damascene conversions, most hurrying on clutching their loaded shopping bags, desperate to spend more money.

One of those taking part was held by the police for a while as they had decided he was the ringleader. He got a big cheer when he was released, waving his pink ‘Get out of TOPSHOP Jail Free’ Chance Card and the Anti-social Behaviour Act Notice for the Dispersal of Groups (see http://www.opsi.gov.uk/ACTS/acts2003/ukpga_20030038_en_5 ) which the Met had issued. This required him to leave the Oxford St/Regent St area for the next 24 hours. Fortunately the map provided didn’t include the Red Lion, where he announced his intention of going – and at this point I also left as I was already late for a meeting with friends in Streatham. Some of the others looked as if they were going to continue their fun along Oxford Street.

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All in all, I think it was a good action.

around 30-40 people turned up and swapped clothes, hundreds of leaflets were handed out on oxford street before the action, and when it did happen, TopShop had a shop full of Police, PCSO’s and security, they closed the entrance to the shop and removed the ‘red phone box’ meeting point display.

Lots of literature was handed out, and plenty of pretty activist flesh, (oh my).

two arrests happened, one for refusing to give a name and address (section 50 of the Police Reform Act) apparently it was anti-social behaviour. On the contrary I thought it was incredibly social behaviour show by the hijackers. Both arrests were released without charge fairly swiftly. Although one was driven to Trafalgar square and dropped off there for no apparent reason?

Later on the actions continued with a street party in Kingly Court shopping centre, and then a road blocade at Seven Dials with plenty of dancing.

thanks to all of the non-shop swappers and to the lovely people who swapped their clothes with mine for the great new outfit I have.

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Buy nothing day – brixton report

“Buy nothing day” is an international anti-consumerist day. Put simply : people are encouraged to stop shoping for one day. In Brixton, activist set up a stall to give away free food and other free items.

Activists met at 11am at Library House to pick up vegetables and part of the content of the Library House’s freeshop. The items were brought to Brixton, and were given out for free in front of the supermarket next to the tube station.

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To mark Buy Nothing Day, activists from Norwich Rising Tide held a Rat Race in the Norwich city centre.

The busiest high street in Norwich was today full of rats. The rats were equipped with placards reading Work Harder, Earn More Money, Buy More Things, Keep Going, and leaflets telling people to join the consumption Rat Race. The reverse of the leaflet, revealed the spoof and informed people that today was buy nothing day and perhaps they should consider the environmental and social consequences of excessive consumption.

600 leaflets were handed out in total (see below), and many passers-by expressed their support, although one by passer was heard to call “Get a job” to which one of the rat (a teacher) shouted back, “It’s a Saturday you tosser!” – the crowd of shoppers that had gathered around the rats all laughed.

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“Free Socks!” “Why? Who’s holding him?”
29.11.2008
In Wrexham town centre this morning, the local Freeconomy group held a Sock (FREE) Shop – that’s socks for free, not a shop free of socks or even freeing Sock. Hundreds of pairs of warm socks were distributed in subzero temperatures to people with cold feet – and hands – along with leaflets explaining what Freeconomy Wrexham does and inviting people to get involved in the happy world of giving and sharing.

There was a great deal of puzzlement about a stall offering free socks in the town centre on a busy Saturday morning.

One passing shopper came over to find out more about our campaign to free the mysterious ‘Socks’ from his captor. More commonly, people just couldn’t seem to believe that the socks were for free:

Free? What’s the catch? You don’t get anything for free… do you?

But of course you do. Or, at least, someone does….

Loads of stuff happens for free all the time. Capitalism has only survived this long because of the free labour which is provided by anyone whose work helps someone else to get richer. Marx had something to say about this. Land and resources stolen from the people – our own Eagles Meadow included – are used by businesses to generate profit, and trashed in the process. We nurture our children for free because we love them, but all that free care and attention is what brings the next generation of workers into being – a free gift to capitalism. Much of the free stuff we do as parents, carers, partners, friends, ‘good neighbours’ and so on is largely invisible to the economy, although without it the economy as it is couldn’t function at all.

Freeconomy Wrexham is just doing a bit to raise the profile of free giving and encourage people to spread their free gifts around rather than trashing them, which is what happens when good stuff ends up at the tip, for example. We handed out socks and leaflets for about 3 hours, by which time even multiple layers of our free socks couldn’t keep our feet and hands from freezing, so we called it a day.

LEAFLET TEXT

FREECONOMY WREXHAM… Bring and Take… Free for All…

What’s it all about?

Freeconomy Wrexham is:
for everyone; environmentally friendly; sharing; giving; fun!; re-using stuff; completely free; sustainable.

Turn over to find out more…

Freeconomy Wrexham is about gift and sharing, showing that it is possible to make things work without payment or financial profit. In a world where everything seems to have a price – often more than we can afford – it can be difficult to imagine a completely free event. But all the goods on our stalls and at our events are there for the taking. Everyone is invited to come and help themselves.

Bring and Take is made possible by everyone who gives their time and energy to help out, who donates goods to be given away, who loans a venue for free or lets us use a van or bakes a cake, and – most importantly – everyone who takes away all the things that are donated!

Re-use for the planet. Before you throw anything away, think about whether someone else could use it. Natural resources, time and skills were needed to make that item. If it’s binned, all those things are lost. By sharing and re-using, we can keep wealth in our communities, help each other, create goodwill and happiness, and do a little bit to save the planet.

freeconomywrexham[at]yahoo.co.uk

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What, No Prices?

More than 150 people came to Next To Nowhere’s Free Shop on Saturday in Liverpool. This was a one-off event to mark Buy Nothing Day. The organisers encouraged people to come in by offering free tea and toast and free mistletoe on the street outside.

Really, it’s free

Buy Nothing Day originated in the USA in 1992. It was intended to make a statement about over-consumption and the amount of waste this generates, and encourage people to re-think their lifestyles. It generated some controversy, and still does, if the comments to the previous posting about Buy Nothing Day are anything to go by! Some people think consumption by itself is not the issue, others think the event is patronising to people who can’t afford to buy much anyway.
But none of the people who wandered into the free shop last Saturday seemed to feel patronised. Some, who had come to town to do Christmas shopping, looked in out of curiousity, and found they preferred doing some “non-shopping”, and getting some refreshments at the free cafe. People with little money were happy to take away free items they needed, and for the people who had donated things, it was satisfying to see goods they don’t need any more being taken for re-use. Not everybody who came had heard of Buy Nothing Day, and had to be reassured that everything really was free!
Whatever the general criticisms, this particular free shop worked as a co-operative event, it introduced people to the social centre who had never been there before, and it gave people a taste of how liberating it is to do without currency for once.

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Buy Nothing Day Manchester: Primark Feels the Wrath of Santa’s Little Workers!

On Saturday 29th November seven students braved Manchester’s heaving Market Street in support of Buy Nothing Day 2008. In festive dress and armed with some thought-provoking clothing labels of their own, the aim was to raise awareness about unnecessary consumerism over Christmas, and to reveal the true cost of high street fashion to Saturday shoppers.

The action began incognito, as the protestors secretly delivered messages questioning consumer greed and the unethical sourcing of cheap fashion into the pockets, zips, and cuffs of clothing in Primark. Messages such as “I wonder if the person who made this garment is happy?”, and “Do you really need another one of these?” were soon dotted around the bustling store and security quickly reacted, calling all cleaners to the ground floor to remove the labels. The protesters escaped unscathed, merry in the knowledge that the chances of hunting out all the labels would be pretty slim.

After a quick change of clothes the protestors took to the street, antlers and all. With a splendid banner and leaflets a-plenty they approached the swarms of passers-by and announced that they need not spend money this Christmas to be happy. Some engaging debates ensued concerning consumerism and sweatshops. It was felt by some that only the financially privileged could afford to have a conscience, and that outlets such as Primark offered those with a lower income the chance to look (and therefore feel) good. Others had been so far unaware of shops like Primark’s association with factories in India, and were genuinely shocked at some of the stories the protestors relayed about underpaid and mistreated workers. Whilst not everybody agreed, the value of lively public debate cannot be underestimated. Talking about something is the first step to changing it and perhaps now a few people will think twice before buying something just because it is cheap. It’s real cost is inhumanely high.

E.ON protests & actions – London (x3), Bristol, Norwich, Coventry (x2), Nottingham, Brighton & Kingsnorth

Pix-&-Vidz of E.ON F.OFF, Pall Mall, London – 28 Nov 08

Pix-&-Vidz of E.ON F.OFF, Pall Mall, London – 28 Nov 08

Greenwash Guerillas London Brigade, Detection Platoon #1, pay a protest-oriented visit to the London Office of filthy climate criminal corporation E.ON UK to confront a Short-Sighted Fat Cat and PR Pushers plugging ‘Clean Coal’ bullplop.

Climate Camp: How to make an E.ON F.OFF placard
http://uk.youtube.com/watch?v=jbqngfkMZmU
Very useful and generally applicable method for placard & banner production using a projected image

Telling E.ON to Take its ‘Clean Coal’ Greenwash & F.OFF

At a time when the global climate crisis demands clean, renewable, energy generation solutions, a German energy transnational corporation called E.ON want to build a new filthy big coal powered electricity generating station [1] at Kingsnorth in north Kent [2]. All indications are that the UK ‘New’ Labour government will give them the go ahead, despite the fact that their own Environmental Audit Committee has recently called coal a ‘last resort, even with CCS’; where CCS = Carbon Capture & Storage, an unproven pipedream technology that won’t be available for 20 years at the earliest (or so says Alistair Darling, the industry itself and the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change).

So building on the recent Mass Action Victory which scuppered E.ON’s UK graduate recruitment plan [3], a bevy of climate crisis protesters targeted E.ON UK’s London office at 100 Pall Mall [4] from 8:00 this morning. This is one of a number of decentralised protest actions arising from a call to ‘Take Back the Power’ through ’48 Hours of Action against E.ON and New Coal’ over Fri 28 and Sat 29 Nov 08 by:
▪ E.ON F.OFF – http://www.e-onf-off.org.uk
▪ Camp for Climate Action – http://climatecamp.org.uk
▪ Rising Tide – http://risingtide.org.uk
▪ Plane Stupid – http://www.planestupid.com
▪ Campaign against Climate Change – http://www.campaigncc.org

Footnotes

[1] E.ON’s proposed new filthy big coal powered electricity generating station – it will emit between 6 and 8 million tons of CO2 every year (equivalent to the annual emissions of Malawi’s 13 million people or more CO2 than Heathrow’s third runway would burn) source – http://www.e-onf-off.org.uk/why.html

[2] Kingsnorth in north Kent – http://tinyurl.com/KingsnorthCoal-map

[3] See ‘Mass Action Victory Scuppers E.ON’s UK Recruitment Plan’ – http://tinyurl.com/MAV-13-Nov-08

[4] E.ON UK’s London office at 100 Pall Mall – http://tinyurl.com/EON-LDN-map

All these photos and video clips are ‘CopyLeft’
This means you are free to copy and distribute any of my photos you find here, under the following license:
> Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial-Share Alike 3.0 Unported License
> http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-sa/3.0/
> Accreditation: tim.dalinian.jones@googlemail.com

NB: These pix are edited and downsized versions (up to 640x640px, 0.39Mpx, 324 to 728 KB) for onscreen display. If you would like the free, edited, full-sized versions (up to 3072x2304px, 7.1Mpx, 1.0 to 2.9 MB) for print, poster, placard, banner, etc, please email your request to tim.dalinian.jones [at] googlemail.com quoting the picture title(s) you’d like.

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On Friday 28th November London Rising Tide visited the FA Headquarters to protest about E-on’s strive for new coal in the UK.

The FA cup is sponsored by E.on and a full team of Rising Tiders turned out to play football in T shirts bearing the names of the government’s proposed new coal fired powerstations.

Yellow and Red cards explaining the facts about dirty coal were handed out to staff leaving the headquarters and passing public.

london@risingtide.org.uk
http://www.londonrisingtide.org.uk/

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Students spoof natwest ads – 48hrs action on coal

In the 48 hours of action against e.on and new coal, South London students affliated with People and Planet use their photoshops skills and sense of fun to target Natwest’s investment in climate change.

Natwest, part of RBS, were given shiney new posters boasting their investment habbits to customers. We had a smashin time putting them up so print some out and have fun to. Also lots of stickering and fun with the space hijackers topshop swap shop – good day!

see www.oyalbankofscotland.com

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Bristol Rising Tide and activists from in and around Bristol had a day of shenanigans directed at the Royal Bank of Scotland, E-on and new coal.

The day started with a banner drop on one of the flyovers crossing the M32 motorway running into the city centre. Over lunchtime the main RBS branch in the city centre was picketed, with activists handing out forged £20 banknotes (see below) to passers-by and customers only to have an ‘RBS bank robber’ steal them back to give to E-on and the coal industry (see photo). A mock bank statemate was also distributed showing RBS’s investment in coal around the world set against the taxpayer funded bail out of the bank. The picket moved on to an E-on ‘Family Football’ event in the Broadmead shopping centre (see photo). Mid afternoon saw over 50 activists gathering in the city centre for a reclaim the streets party. The party, with mobile sound system roamed the city centre forcing the city centre branch of NatWest to close early and leaving the RBS branch unusable after a very messy cake fight!

http://risingtide.org.uk/bristol

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Norwich RT Spoof E.on Stall

29.11.2008
Today six activists from Norwich Rising Tide set up a spoof E.on stall on the Royal Bank of Scotland’s doorstep (RBS is one of E.on’s core sources of funding).

The spoof (despite all materials reading E.on F.off – including a table cloth, banner, t-shirts, leaflets, badges and stickers) fooled many of the public. Passers-by said things like “we don’t want to hear anything about E.on” and “I’m not a fan of E.on” (it really was amazing how hostile people were to E.on). Once they were informed that we were revealing the truth about E.on and Coal most then took a leaflet and badge.

In total we gave out 400 leaflets and undertook a questionnaire on behalf of E.on.
Results showed that …

50% of people didn’t know that E.on plans to build a new coal fired power station – they do now.
90% of people didn’t know that RBS will part funding it – again we made sure to inform them of this fact.
Lastly, 100% of people said they thought that coal fired power stations should be shut down and replaced with renewable energy sources.

We’ll pass on our findings to E.on as soon as possible!

norwich@risingtide.org.uk
http://www.risingtide.org.uk/norwich

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On Friday morning, Warwick University People and Planet held a demonstration at the UK headquarters of E-ON in Coventry. This was part of the national 48 hours against E-ON. The demonstration was attended by around 30 people, including a number from Coventry university and Leamington Rising Tide. The group left central campus at around midday and marched to E-ON HQ, chanting and drumming. The action was colourful and lively; entertainment included some carbon capture theatre and singing (see below). We also leafleted employees walking past. Spirits were high and strengthened by the knowledge of the other actions to come in the national 48 hours of actions.

Grace Kelly, EON

E.ON: I want to talk to you!
Protestor: The last time we talk, Mr E.ON, I reduced you to tears! I promise you, it might well happen again!

**Verse 1**

E.ON: Do I attract you?
Do I pollute you with my CO2?
Am I too dirty?
Am I too mirky?
Don’t I like what you like?

Protestor: You could be wholesome
But you’re still loathsome
I should stop being so shy

E.ON: Why don’t you like me?
Why don’t you like me?
Why are you making me cry?

**Pre-chorus**

Protestor: We tried to keep it all pretty,
Just a little banner or two,
But when your plans are so shitty,
There’s nothing else I could do!

**Chorus**

E.ON: I can be Brown
I can be blue
I can pollu-ute the sky
I can be hurtful
I can burn people!
I can burn anything I like!

Protestor: You gotta be green
Gotta be clean
Gotta be everything more!

E.ON: Why don’t you like me?

Why don’t you like me?

Protestor: Why don’t you walk out the door!

**Verse 2**

E.ON: How can I help it
How can I help it
How could I stop burning coal?
Coal is my baby
My little lady
I like to get in it’s hole.
Why don’t you buy me
Why don’t you buy me
Why don’t you buy CCS?
When old coal over
I’ll been much bolder
And still pollute nothing less.

**Pre-Chorus**

Protestor: We tried to keep it all pretty,
Just a little banner or two,
But when your plans are so shitty,
There’s nothing else I could do!

**Chorus**

E.ON: I can be Brown
I can be blue
I can pollu-ute the sky
I can be hurtful
I can burn people!
I can burn anything I like!

Protestor: You gotta be green
Gotta be clean
Gotta be everything more!

E.ON: Why don’t you like me?
Why don’t you like me?

Protestor: Why don’t you walk out the door!

**Bridge**

Protestor: Say what you want to satisfy yourself
But you only want what rich investors say that you should want
(should want)

**Chorus**

—-
1 December 2008
E-ON HQ occupied

Shortly after 9am two mini buses packed with Santas arrived outside their headquarters and a score of festive protesters armed with sacks of coal poured in to the building.

For a good half hour they toured the offices, really scoring a bullseye when they inadvertently crashed the boardroom where a full scale meeting was in progress. Even after security managed to clear the upper floors the huge reception area was occupied until well into the afternoon.

Outside security goons and police created a cordon and refused entry to dozens of visitors. Clearly a good number of meetings were postponed as a result.

The mood soured slightly towards the end and extra grumpy police were summoned to kill the festive spirit. After some jostling the spectre of Scrooge emerged and four were arrested, charges not known.

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Yesterday (1st December), activists from across the country staged the third demonstration against e.on’s headquarters in Coventry in eight days. Graham, e.on’s security boss for the day, bemoans the impact on the company…

Yesterday, activists from across the country staged the third demonstration against e.on’s headquarters in Coventry in eight days. Graham, e.on’s security boss for the day, bemoans the impact on the company.

We’d thought we had seen the end of the protests. The 48 hours of action that had been called was annoying enough, but that would be it. We’d taken down the Harris fencing around our headquarters and were waiting for just another days work running and planning to build coal-fired power stations. Before we knew it two van loads of people dressed in Santa Clause costumes with “e.on f.off” emblazoned on them, were unloading coal, scrambling on our building and generally running amok.

Just before 9am yesterday morning, about 15 managed to get inside the building bringing, they say, presents of coal, because apparently e.on has been very naughty this year – because we want to build a new coal fired power station in Kingsnorth and continuing to contribute to climate change. Outrageous. We are a decent, respectable company. Some managed to get to a boardroom meeting and dish out a lump of coal to all sitting there. Others got scarily close to the CEO’s office. Others engaged with staff on the large open plan office that made their voices heard by all. It took us a good hour to clear the pesky Santas from the building.

Meanwhile there was one unsuccessful attempt to scale part of the roof, but at the revolving doors at the main entrance, two were able to get up and hold up a banner. Several of those in the foyer glued onto side doors, while yet another Santa, found himself in the middle of the revolving doors, also glued on in the midst of a pile of coal bags with “Co2 al” printed on them. Later yet another Santa glued themselves to a barrier.

Some claimed to have be bringing the mystical solution of “carbon capture and storage” – coal left as it is.

We had to lock the entire building down, forbid staff from leaving, and turned away loads of visitors that were arriving, it being a busy day for us. This despite us having already introduced various security measures such as new turnstiles – maybe next time we’ll have them locked so the protestors cannot simply walk through them to the open office.

I can tell you that e.on are deeply unhappy at being made a fool of so comprehensively yet again. On the day that Lord Turner released his report that the government would fail dramatically to reach its CO2 reduction targets if e.on are allowed to build a new power station at Kingsnorth before controversial carbon capture and storage technologies have been developed. The protests made Radio 4 headline news at mid-day, much of the local media and other press. There were at least four cameras from mainstream media while a number of other independent photojournalists were also there to make sure it was properly covered. The bosses are not happy, and the protestors got some good images.

My staff, from Initial Rentokil, were not enthusiastic about how they had been made to look like bumbling idiots. They need to calm down a bit and stop kneeling on people’s necks because they have been defied. Some of them were not helping their bosses by being rude to the BBC cameraman and other media. They strutted up and down like lost penguins, trying to shove people around and shoving cameras in to the faces of the Santa Clauses – though they all got waves back. We had to seem important by telling staff in the canteen that they were not allowed to look at the protestors – the top brass were getting jumpy by then.

Some of my security need to think as well, it seems. Wasn’t the brightest thing to say that protestors were fine to stay at the main door. Nor was telling the protestors on the roof of the door that they could not attach the banner to the wall because e.on would not be able to get it down.

If all that was not enough bumbling, in a deft movement, the Santa Claus’s realised that the staff had not locked the revolving door and used the fact to get a half-dozen back in to the building were they ran around singing altered Christmas hymn about no new coal. Loads of more images for the waiting press, including them congo’ing through our main foyer.

Eventually they released themselves, and proceeded to leave. West Midlands police were there, and had kept a pretty useless, low profile throughout the day. Now, at the request of our boss they decided to do something. They were very low on numbers and clearly were not up for removing the actual protest, despite the fact the protestors were clearly peaceful and mostly singing their silly songs. The police tried to form a line to stop them leave but their public order training was woefully bad and kept letting them escape through despite the fact they were carrying sacks of coal.

A number were seized and arrested; though some were let go because the police were little better than our security guards in terms of knowing what they were doing. Four ended up going to the cells, of which two have been released. They rest sailed away.

All in all, quite a bad day for us here at e.on. We’re going to have to rethink our entire security plan, having been comprehensively embarrassed. The bosses are fuming at having e.on’s reputation yet again dragged through the mud, and it is clear that the campaign against us is not going to fade away.

By the way, there is a load of email addresses for our various companies at http://www.eon.com/en/infoservice/3027.jsp

Hopefully we’ll not see more protestors soon.

Another report, photos of police cordoning Father Christmases, and videos
—-

As part of 48 hours of nationwide action against E.ON, called for by the Camp for Climate Action, Rising Tide, Plane Stupid and Campaign against Climate Change, Nottingham students called a demonstration outside E.ON’s city centre offices (Mount St, NG1 6PG)

They met at 11.45 in front of the the town hall in Market Square on Friday 27th Nov. Then moved over to the offices at 12pm to flyer and protest about E.ON’s plans to build a new coal fired power station at Kingsnorth in Kent, a venture that will wreck any serious plans to cut carbon emissions and protect the planet and its’ population from the most disastrous effects of climate change.

The policing and security arrangements seemed a little excessive to me, to manage 10 students and fluffy toy!

Why target EON and Kingsnorth?

The proposed power station will emit between 6 and 8 million tons of CO2 every year, and is just the first in a plan to build up to seven new coal fired power stations. This will wreck the UK’s chances of meeting its own target of an 80% reduction in carbon emissions by 2050.

Climate change isn’t about warmer summers, here in the UK. It’s about serious changes that will cost millions of people (particularly those that are the worst off and living precariously) their livelihoods and lives. If we can stop E.ON, other companies will be discouraged from risking similar plans, and we will send the strong message that the energy crisis needs to be tackled positively, implementing the solutions that will get us off fossil fuels.

E.ON’s proposed new big coal powered electricity generating station – it will emit between 6 and 8 million tons of CO2 every year (equivalent to the annual emissions of Malawi’s 13 million people or more CO2 than Heathrow’s third runway would burn) source – http://www.e-onf-off.org.uk/why.html

Kingsnorth in north Kent – http://tinyurl.com/KingsnorthCoal-map

For photos of the FIT surveillance again in Nottingham, see also https://indymedia.org.uk/en/2008/11/413951.html

and ….. earlier Nottingham action on the subject:

Nottingham Spring into Action :: Ratcliffe-on-Soar Power Station
http://indymedia.org.uk/en/regions/nottinghamshire/2007/04/367714.html
http://indymedia.org.uk/en/regions/nottinghamshire/2007/04/367736.html
http://indymedia.org.uk/en/regions/nottinghamshire/2007/04/367757.html

‘Clean’ Coal On Trial [Feature] inc Ratcliffe case court reports
http://indymedia.org.uk/en/regions/nottinghamshire/2008/01/389386.html

Fossil Fools Blockade E.On Offices in Nottingham : Pictures 1
http://indymedia.org.uk/en/regions/nottinghamshire/2008/04/395382.html

Fossil Fools Blockade E.On Offices in Nottingham : Pictures 2
http://indymedia.org.uk/en/regions/nottinghamshire/2008/04/395403.html

Fossil Fools Blockade E.On Offices Surveillance and Specialist Equipment
http://indymedia.org.uk/en/regions/nottinghamshire/2008/04/395429.html

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Brighton – 28th
In Response the the 48 hours of action against Eon and new coal Brighton activists staged 2 actions over the 48 hours. The first action on Friday 28th Activists staged a demonstration outside the Royal Bank of Scotland with a large banner saying ‘RBS and EON fund Climate chaos’ With some subversive cleaning ladies attempting to Clean some coal but strangely to no avail – (Illustrating the unfeesability of ‘clean coal’). There was also alternative ‘banking advice’being offered to passers by, letting them know about RBS and its investments in EON and the building of a new coal-fired power station at Kingsnorth.

On the Saturday 29th
A stampede of endangered animals decended on Brighton Town centre handing out flyers to raise awareness about EON and its plans to build at Kingsnorth. In the middle of the large shopping centre forecourt the animals staged a dramatic ‘die-in’. With bewildered shoppers and security guards crowding round this tragic scene, Mother earth herself addressed the crowd and explained what might happen to the animal kingdom and the human one if EON and other Coal hungry companies were allowed to have their way and wreak climate havoc!

—-

Kingsnorth action coverage – “Intruder enters E.ON power station and switches off 2% of UK supplies”

SOLIDARITY WITH MIGRANT WORKERS: DEMO AT AMEY HQ, OXFORD: MON 8TH DEC

SOLIDARITY WITH SACKED MIGRANT WORKERS 8/12/08

On Monday the 8th December at 11.00am there will be a noisy demo outside
Amey PLC’s Corporate HQ in Oxford (address below)called by the Campaign
Against Immigration Controls, and The No Borders Network

In September this year 5 migrant cleaners were sacked by Amey Plc for “bringing the company into disrepute”.

SOLIDARITY WITH SACKED MIGRANT WORKERS 8/12/08

In September this year 5 migrant cleaners were sacked by Amey Plc for “bringing the company into disrepute”.

(Those of you with long memories may remember Amey as the contractor for Whatley Quarry way back when in 1996.)

How were they damaging the company image? By belonging to a Trade Union and telling other staff at the National Physical Laboratory (NPL) in London where they work what was happening to them. Since them they have had their appeal against dismissal rejected.

Background:

Julio (one of the sacked cleaners) recently described how Amey were contracted by the National Physical Laboratory to do the cleaning work. Originally there were 36 Latin American cleaners. When Amey took over the contract at NPL the cleaners were paid £7.10 per hour. The company were surprised at this rate of pay and so attempted to get rid of those workers contracted at this rate of pay.

Their first act was to reduce the levels of staffing. When the workers resisted the company responded using intimidation. On one occasion the workers were invited to a health and safety training session. Once in the room 60 police and immigration officers entered. Some of the workers did not have the papers needed to work and have since been deported.

But this did not deter the other workers who knew their rights and continued to show a tremendous spirit of solidarity and courage.

No Borders Groups from Bristol,Oxford,London & South Wales are attending. It would be great see other groups and individuals there.

Transport is available from Bristol. E-mail: bristolnoborders@riseup.net

About The Campaign Against Immigration Controls:

Immigration controls are a weapon against the whole work force. They divide us and are a tool of discipline the workforce. If there are workers with less right or no rights, this undermines the position of workers as a whole. The answer must be to oppose immigration controls. EQUAL RIGHTS ARE IN THE INTERESTS OF ALL WORKERS!

http://caic.org.uk/

About The No Borders Network:

No Borders is a network of groups struggling for the freedom of movement for all and an end to all migration controls. We call for a radical movement against the system of control, dividing us into citizens and non-citizens.

/www.noborders.org.uk

Amey
The Sherard Building
Oxford Science Park
Edmund Halley Road
Oxford
OX4 4DQ

“I got a letter from the government the other day, I opened and read it, it said they were suckers” Chuck D

Telmex phone booths sabotaged in Mexico City

Communiques from the 96 phone booths sabotaged in four separate actions by the eco-anarchist cell for direct attack, the Earth Liberation Front (ELF) and the Luddites Against the Domestication of Wild Nature (LCDNS);

“During four days last week 37 telephone receivers of public telephones belonging to the ‘telmex’ phone company in Mexico City were cut (with the help of bolt cutters and wire cutters), leaving the phones unusable.
Telmex, in addition to being responsible for the destruction of the planet, also financially supports, directly and with advertising, sadistic bullfights.
The sabotage continues … it will not stop …

arm your desires … do not let the moment pass …

until the exploitation ends.

eco-anarchist cell for direct attack.

mexico city 31 october 2008″

—————————-

“Inspired by the action on October 31 in Mexico City, we have likewise sabotaged 25 phone booths of the Telmex company.

Frente de Liberación de la Tierra [Earth Liberation Front]”

—————————-

“Sabotage to 4 telmex telephones.

On Saturday, November 8, with the means within our reach we sabotaged 4 public telephones belonging to the super millionaire Carlos Slim and his business telmex. Telmex not only financially supports bullfights, but is also one of the major destroyers of the planet.
These sabotages will not stop… until the end of exploitation of flora and fauna.
For animal liberation… commitment and direct action…

eco-anarchist cell for direct attack.

mexico city (d.f.) november 9, 2008″

—————————-

November 12:

The company that destroys the earth and its inhabitants, Telmex, received a new attack from the Luddites Against the Domestication of Wild Nature (LCDNS); at night we sabotaged 30 telephones, tearing them from their respective booths.

The sabotage against Telmex will not stop until civilization falls.

We are the stone in your shoes!

Revolution and insurrection, Mexico.”

—————————-

Source – www.directaction.info

NEW SOCIAL JUSTICE CENTRE IN BIRMINGHAM

24.11.2008
A new social centre is developing near Birmingham City Centre. Please come and get involved.

JUSTICE NOT CRISIS have moved on from their squatted Cllr John Lines homeless village, http://earthfirst.org.uk/actionreports/node/21744
into the Firebird pub, on the local Benmore estate.

24.11.2008
A new social centre is developing near Birmingham City Centre. Please come and get involved.

JUSTICE NOT CRISIS have moved on from their squatted Cllr John Lines homeless village, http://earthfirst.org.uk/actionreports/node/21744
into the Firebird pub, on the local Benmore estate.

The protest has become much more than a housing demonstration. “Its a response to the lack of youth provision, community provision and the lack of communal spaces for people to meet without the need to spend money.”

Since entering the pub the group has been cleaning up, inside and out, making it safe and secure. There is a cosy community space and the young people from the local area have been given their own space to do their own thing. They’ve brought in their own pool table and a sofa. They have also decorated the entrance during a grafitti workshop.

Free advice on debt, benefits and housing is being offered to local residents, a fireplace has been built from recycled materials found on-site and a library has been started.

The beginnings of a Social Centre are emerging from the initial Justice Not Crisis protest and the collaboration between the different groups involved. For more information on Social Centres go to; http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Social_centre

We are still in the process of fixing up the space and anyone is welcome to come down and get involved.

Some of us will be at the film screening this Thursday at The Spotted Dog in Digbeth at 7.30pm, showing and talking about we’ve been up to.

For more info;
http://www.justicenotcrisis.wordpress.com

——-

Previous updates (since last report):

THE JOHN LINES HOMELESS VILLAGE FINDS NEW LOCATION

November 9, 2008
Following the granting of an eviction by Birmingham’s county court The Councillor john Lines Homeless Village has moved to a new site.

Following our live interview on BBC1’s The Politics Show campaigners form JUSTICE NOT CRISIS moved tents and belongings to a new site just 50m away. The old site has been cleaned up and the remaining few things will be removed tomorrow (Monday) before the bailiffs turn up SO NO BIG CLEAN UP EXPENSE councillor Lines.

The site is at the start for the Pershore Road (city end). Parking is available in Balsall Heath Road. Click here for a map.

——-

HOUSING DEMO MOVES TO A THIRD SITE

Posted on November 12, 2008
Having moves to a new site just yards from the original site we have now been told to move again. We didn’t want to cost the council any money be refusing and making the council pay for a bailiff so we have left the site.
Our new location is at the old Firebird Pub in Bellevue. We have chosen this site as the building has been empty for years, is vandalised daily and is an eyesore. The land could be used for social housing, community facilities, a business that could provide jobs, etc but the owners have left it empty and falling down.

Bellevue is almost opposite the old camps and can be reached by buses: 61,62, & 63 Bristol Road, 45 &47 Perhore Road or the 8A & 8C.

Click here for a map.

See top of story for more info.

——-

JNC CAMPAIGNER STABBED IN THROAT

48 hours of action against E.ON and new coal – pre-advertised events this Friday & Saturday

The 48 hours of action against E.ON and new coal are nearly upon us, and final preparations are being made. Below is a selection of public actions that have been organised. You can also find information and resources, including a media Q&A, on the E.ON F.OFF website at http://www.eon-foff.com

Plus invite your friends to the Facebook event:
http://www.facebook.com/event.php?eid=32617789333

Plus post your reports from the day on www.indymedia.org.uk and here

Friday 28th November

COVENTRY
Join Warwick Uni students at E.ON’s headquarters in Coventry.
Meet at 12pm on the piazza. We’ll march from there to the Headquarters, arrive there about 12:30. Once there, there’ll be loads going on, including… .a ‘Catch the Carbon’ competition, drumming workshop, a mass die-in, visually showing the effects climate change are already having and more.
For more see: http://www.facebook.com/event.php?eid=34220633837&ref=ts

LONDON
E.ON vs. Greenwash Guerillas
8am-10am. Meet up in Trafalgar Square at 8.00am to head down to E.ON’s London office at 100 Pall Mall and show E.ON their greenwash won’t wash. All inventive greenwash actions welcome!

LONDON
World Development Movement kids demo at E.ON
Meet at 10am in Trafalgar Square for the children to add their footprints to the banner, then take our footprints to a ‘No new coal’ protest outside E.ON’s London offices in Pall Mall. Come along with your children and participate

Saturday 29th November

LONDON
Stop Coal Sticker Rush
Keep the pressure up on E.ON by spreading the word and putting up some E.ON F.OFF & Stop Coal stickers – you can get them from the Coal Hole (91-92 Strand, WC2R 0DW) from 1pm-3pm on Saturday.

NORWICH
Spoof E.on Recruitment Stall
Location – Outside RBS, 5 Queen Street, Norwich.
Time – 12noon – 2pm, Saturday 29 November.

Targetting Royal Bank of Scotland the financier of New Coal and Eon

Bristol Rising Tide is targetting the Royal Bank of Scotland the financier or climate chaos

Come and join in a day of shenanigans targetted on RBS (now 60% owned by the British Taxpayer), the financier of new coal development in the UK. Be a bank robber or help the cooks with their recipe for disaster!

Meeting at the ruined church at 12.00 on Castle Green, then onto the RBS branch in Baldwin Street around 12.15, NatWest in Corn Street around 12.45 and then RBS insurance in Nelson St around 1.15.

Party and Protest in defiance of E-on (owners of Kingsnorth) and coal expansion with solar powered sound system and free cake 3.00 pm at the Hippodrome, St Augustines Parade

Shell to Sea / Rossport Solidarity Camp Update from Erris Co. Mayo. November 2009.

While Glengad and Shell issues have largely gone from the public eye, and indeed things have quietened down some what, that’s not to say that stuff hasn’t been going on, it just doesn’t always make the media.

The last few months have seen a few developments since the Solitaire left our shores.

* Shell have completely vacated the Glengad compound in the last few week or so. Unfortunately they haven’t done a wonderful job of cleaning up after themselves. Plenty of rubble was left behind on the beach from the causeway that they extended out to sea and then removed.

The “cliff” has been banked up with soft materials which don’t look too stable to me and will likely continue to be washed out by the rainwater. In the old compound itself large heaps of materials have been piled and netted over to prevent birds nesting? Strangely they have not attempted to net the re-banked cliff area, as they had before. Some of the old netting can be seen on the cliff top, intermeshed with the grass on top.

Their channel buoy markers have been washing ashore recently also, as they left these behind to. At the road entrance to the Glengad compound all the fencing and gates have gone (as it has around the whole site), to be replaced with regular cattle fencing and gates, having pulled out at this time of year the whole place is a bit of a mud bath.

* The road, left unfinished by Mayo County Council now Shell have pulled out, is already showing signs of deterioration, with potholes forming in the tarmac beside where the entrance gates to this compound stood. The Co.Co. have left the road as it stands from what I can see, without finishing the works, just loads of signs and bollards left around everywhere.

* Nov 10th last saw a procession along the Bellanaboy Road up to the main refinery gates, attended by about 50 local people carrying crosses with the names of the Ogoni 9, to mark the execution of Ken Sara Wiwa and 8 of his colleagues in 1995, the Nigerian activists who were executed by the Nigerian Military Dictatorship at the time, at Shell’s behest.

* The Garda presence is likewise down, but still tangible.

* After a meeting some time ago with a few ministers, the silence has been loud from the powers that be, despite their recent announcement of setting up some forum or dialogue with people involved in the Corrib Gas issue. However no one here has actually heard anything or been contacted about as of yet. Minister Eamon Ryan has admitted in the media that ‘mistakes were made’ but has refused to discuss the moving of the refinery or the appropriacy of a pipeline landfall at Glengad. “There will be no re-visiting of the consents / permissions already given to Shell”, he said. As usual the terms of reference are pre-set by the ‘authorities’ in order to avoid a fair and proper addressing of the issues.

* The AFRI hedge school a few weeks ago was really fantastic with some great people coming to have an input/speak including Dennis Halliday and other people who have been dealing with Shell in other countries.

The fight goes on.

Solid Energy Gets Coal for Christmas (New Zealand)

24 November 2008
Long-time environmental activists Mr and Mrs Santa Claus, were very roughly removed from Solid Energy’s Annual Meeting in Auckland today for attempting to bring attention to Solid Energy’s climate changing practices. The meeting was a publicity stunt. Solid Energy even said at the meeting that it is not likely to continue to have open meetings in the future.

Mr Claus delivered a sack of Coal to Solid Energy CEO Don Elder for his naughty behaviour this year and Mrs Claus aimed a home-cooked pie at his face. Don greedily accepted the coal, but unfortunately managed to deflect the pie.
Solid Energy is intent on staying in the fantasy world that the coal industry has created, where the myth of “Clean Coal” is a sensible solution to climate change. So members of the Save Happy Valley Coalition (SHVC) thought that perhaps what was needed was another fantasy character to help bring Solid Energy back to reality. However, not even Santa Claus himself could persuade CEO Don Elder of the obvious fact that coal is dirty.

Mr and Mrs Claus wanted to demonstrate their frustration at Solid Energy’s disregard for the future of the planet, their continued mining and export of coal, and their plans to turn the pristine wilderness of Happy Valley on the South Island’s West Coast into an open cast coal mine, killing critically endangered species including kiwi in the process. Mr and Mrs Clause are being personally effected by climate change as their homeland in the North Pole melts away before their very eyes. They will soon be added to the growing list of climate change refugees.

“Don Elder has been a very naughty boy again this year,” says SHVC spokesperson Santa Clause.

“He’s not getting any presents from me this year, just dirty, carbon-emitting coal, which unfortunately he has far too much of already!”

In fact, Don Elder was quit eager to accept the gift of coal from Santa, snatching it greedily from Santa’s hands.

After attempting to deliver some of her home baking to Solid Energy CEO Don Elder, which he wasn’t so keen on, Mrs Clause had this to say,

“Every year Don is told he needs to stop promoting fossil fuels that cook the climate, but he just won’t listen to reason. I thought maybe a nice, home-cooked pie to the face might be the kind of reasoning he would understand.”

SHVC chose to take a very light-hearted approach today to what is a in fact a very serious issue. The public knows the reality of climate change, and that coal is a dirty, polluting substance which we should be leaving in the ground rather than mining. Solid Energy would like to convince us that profit is more important than the future of the planet and that coal can somehow be clean. But sensible people know how ridiculous that sounds. Clean coal technologies are impractical and unproven. There is no such thing as clean coal.

http://www.savehappyvalley.org.nz