Press Releases & Updates 2003

162 people were arrested today during a blockade of Faslane naval base on the Clyde, home to Britain’s Trident nuclear weapon system.

The protest began at 7 a.m. as an effective blockade of all gates was quickly established. This was in spite of the fact that Strathclyde Police broke a promise made to the organisers of the event, that activists would be allowed to alight from their buses near to the main entrance of the base. Many activists locked themselves together using chain and plastic tubing. Barring one breach of the blockade at the south gate of the base, the protesters were able to deny access to vehicular traffic for nearly five hours and further disruption continued into the afternoon.

Three of Britain’s four Trident submarines are currently based at Faslane. Each of them carries 48 nuclear warheads every one of which is 8 times as powerful as the bomb dropped on Hiroshima, which killed 140,000 people and destroyed a city. In the last year UK Defence Minister Geoff Hoon has three times threatened to use Trident against Iraq.

Among the 500 or so present at today’s blockade were Scottish party leaders John Swinney, Robin Harper and Tommy Sheridan. Among those arrested were former CND chair Bruce Kent, two Church of Scotland ministers and a number of school students.

Immediately after the blockade was closed with a ceremony at the main gate, the "bandit" alarm was sounded inside the base after three activists cut their way through the perimeter fence. This will have caused further disruption to the base, as police carried out a thorough security search of the base.

A Really Big Blockade spokesperson said: "This has been a great action with so many people with such a diversity of age, nationality and background willing to put themselves on the line to disrupt these horrifying weapons of mass destruction. The creativity, imagination and peacefulness shown by the demonstrators today is at the opposite pole from what Trident represents."

It is expected that most of those arrested will be released from police stations late this evening or during the night.

Contacts:

media@tridentploughshares.org

www.tridentploughshares.org

www.banthebomb.org/rbb

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