Press Releases & Updates 2001
12th October 2001
West Dunbartonshire Councillor Blasts Nuclear Hypocrisy
Dutch activist found guilty for third time this week
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Jim Bollan a West Dunbartonshire councillor and Scottish Socialist Party
member told Helensburgh District Court today that he felt it was his job to
represent the members of his council ward by standing against nuclear
weapons.
Appearing to answer a charge of breach of the peace relating to
the Big Blockade of Faslane Nuclear Submarine Base on 12th February this
year, Mr Bollan argued,
"I have a responsibility as a local councillor and a socialist to speak out
against the hypocrisy of spending billions maintaining nuclear weapons
while people are dying because of underfunding in the NHS."
Justice of the Peace Fraser Gillies instantly found Mr Bollan guilty and
fined him £175.
Adam Conway creditably argued against Procurator Fiscal Jonathan Kemp’s
argument that he had acted in a way likely to cause fear and alarm, by
pointing out that Trident nuclear weapons are a source of fear and alarm to
a majority of Scots.
Referring to recent refinement of how breach of the
peace is defined Mr Conway added,
"Breach of the peace refers to behaviour serious enough to cause fear or
alarm in any reasonable person, not any reasonable person who agrees with
the Government’s policy on nuclear weapons."
JP Gillies again found Mr Conway guilty and fined him £150.
Mark Akkerman, a student from Holland was found guilty of breach of the
peace despite being identified by the court before one of the two police
witnesses could provide corroboration of Akkerman’s identity. JP Gillies
fined him £125.
The crown deserted the case against Tim Hinton when a police witness failed
to appear.
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