Eastern

Next Tuesday, January 30th, is the fifty ninth anniversary of the day that Mahatma Gandhi was assassinated in Delhi in 1948. Although revered in India as a great soul (Mahatma), he is also known there by the affectionate and respectful title Gandhiji.

Eastern Bloc Protest on Thursday 25th October

We arrived in Glasgow at 4.00am. At 6.00 some of us set off for Faslane, aiming to be there at 7.00 to catch the early shift. The main blockade was taking place at North Gate, but a few of us were dropped off to blockade South Gate. A group of students ran ahead with their tubes and chains and were soon lying in the road, preventing cars from driving into the base. We were soon surrounded by police. Because their hands were locked together inside plastic tubes, the blockaders had to be separated with cutting equipment. This took over an hour. The blockaders were then arrested, carried to police vans and driven away to two police stations. They were held for 30 hours, but released without charge.

A team of seven provided Legal Support for the Eastern bloc.

After an early a meeting about Faslane 365, there was a constant stream of e-mails to garner support and offer workshops to learn about blockading. As Legal Support person, I sent e-mails in every direction I could think of to find enough people for at least two to be on duty at any one time.

Norfolk Quakers were able to take advantage of a 2 for 1 offer on our trip to Faslane – that is 2 blockading groups for one journey. And what a journey – overnight on the coach, arriving in Glasgow for breakfast at 4am, then off to the barricades. And a breakdown on the way home.