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Faslane Peace Camp
Nieuwe Ploegscharen-akties bij Schotse atoombasis (19 aug 98)

Nieuwe Ploegscharen-akties bij Schotse atoombasis

PRESS BRIEFING 12 - Wednesday, August 19, 1998 -10.00h 

MASS ACTION AT FASLANE AGAINST UK WAR CRIMES 

At the North Gate of the Faslane Naval Base where the submarines carrying 
Britain's illegal Trident nuclear weapons are berthed and maintained, 
activists from Trident Ploughshares who have pledged to uphold 
international law by disarming the weapons system in a non-violent way took 
part in a mass action which saw the gate blockaded, the security fence cut 
places and 5 arrests, while activists from the permanent Peace Camp 
demonstrated at the base's South Gate. 

The police are present in great numbers. The small number of arrests may 
well be due to the fact that there have already been 86 in the last nine 
days, which is drawing nation-wide publicity to the determined action to 
uphold the law and leading to a whole series of trials in the subsequent 
months in which the primacy of international humanitarian law will be 
tested The police have instead deprived many of the activists of their 
legitimate disarmament tools, such as bolt cutters, hammers, hacksaws and 
chisels. The police blocked the Garelochhead to Helensburgh  road outside 
the base 

After a half-hour concert by the internationally renowned early music 
quartet, the Venus Birds, the disarmers, inspired by Monday night's foray 
in which two women and a man reached a submarine docking bay, set about the 
fence and attempted to carry out a citizens' war crimes inspection. They 
are determined to expose the hypocrisy of the UK on the matter of war 
crimes. On the one hand the UK has taken the lead in setting up the 
International Criminal Court but at the same time it stubbornly refuses to 
accept the Advisory Opinion of the International Court of Justice in July 
1996 which ruled mass destruction systems such as Trident unlawful. 

The blockade of the North Gate has already lasted an hour and a half and is 
continuing. 

Many of the disarmers arrested for actions which took place this week and 
last week appear in court today, including, Katri, Rick and Krista who 
reached Docking Berth 12 on Monday night. 

Web page:   HYPERLINK http://www.gn.apc.org/tp2000/ 
http://www.gn.apc.org/tp2000/ 

------------End of Press Briefing 12----------- 

Noot voor de redaktie: 

Press contacts: David MacKenzie and Pol D'Huyvetter August 11 1998 - August 
25, 1998 

Phone: 01436-850488 
TP2000 Peace Camp, Peaton Wood, Coulport (North West of Glasgow) 

High Quality TV Footage (POOL) is available for most actions 
Pictures at Reuters 
Interviews with arrested activists available 


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