Press Releases & Updates 1999

After being held in custody for four hours she appeared again in court only to have both the original and the contempt case adjourned till March due to the failure of police witnesses to appear at the proper time.

Angie was appearing for trial resulting from a protest in August against the Trident nuclear weapons base at Faslane. Before the trial began she challenged the competency of the court to hear her case. She said that as it was now clear that the District Court did not recognise international law, her defence could not be heard in full.

Angie said:

"I can’t go into the witness box and tell the whole truth if you say my truth is irrelevant. At the moment a Russian journalist is in prison for telling the truth about his country dumping radioactive waste in the sea around Japan. You are treating me in just the same way. What kind of democracy is that? If you can’t give me justice here then I might as well leave"

At that she got up to go. The magistrate Mr McPhail JP said that he found her in contempt of court and ordered her to be taken into custody. The court was asked to rise for the magistrate to leave but everyone in the public gallery remained seated to register their solidarity with Angie. Eventually the magistrate had to leave with the public still seated.

Angie was brought back into court at 3 p.m. and agreed to submit to trial on the understanding that she would be given a proper hearing. However, the case was unable to proceed as the Ministry of Defence witnesses, who had been summoned for the afternoon hearing, could not be found.

Local resident and TP2000 activist Jane Tallents said:

"Within TP2000 we feel that the time has come to confront the court system more directly. We have been extremely patient and co-operative and have given the courts every chance to respond to the challenge that is given to them by the framework of international law, and they have been totally unable to do so. It is also very irritating to see yet again the inefficiency and lack of organisation of the court system and the MOD police leading to a waste of time and money. They get away with it but if we step out of line they come down on us like a ton of bricks."

Yesterday, after basing their defence on the primacy of international law, Clare Fearnley and Hazel Bloor were given hefty fines amounting to £500 for breach of the peace by the same court. During the August disarmament camp they had sat down on the road as part of a blockade of the gate of the Faslane naval base.

Meanwhile activists from all over the UK and as far afield as Finland and the Netherlands are preparing to come to Scotland for the weekend of 13th to 15th February when street action in Glasgow will be followed by a major blockade of the Faslane base on Monday 15th.

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