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The police are trampling on our civil liberties in an effort to strangle resistance to the cuts.
"After the controversial death of Ian Tomlinson, we saw public order officials hold back on their response to protest movements. The policing of the student protests, however, shows us that this is no longer the case."
Isabel Parrott
Know your rights, watch out for yourself and other on demonstrations. Support people arrest people facing criminal charges because of their involvement in progressive political action. And support the prisoners
Standing up for civil liberties - support and information
Scottish Activist Legal Project
The Scottish Activist Legal Project formed in October 2009. It draws on the experience people have of providing legal support for direct action at Faslane, the G8 2005 and lots more.
Useful guides from SCALP include:
Glasgow Defence Campaign
Glasgow Defence Campaign has been formed in order to defend democratic rights and oppose the criminalisation of political protest. We stand against political policing and call for the maximum unity of all in order to defend all those harassed, targeted, imprisoned and beaten at the hands of the police and judicial system.
Useful guides from the Glasgow Defence Campaign include:
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Legal briefing
If arrested... Always exercise your RIGHT TO REMAIN SILENT, and answer ‘no comment’ to ALL questions asked, before and during detention and during any interviews the police may carry out. Anything you volunteer can be used as evidence against you.
LGMG - Legal Defence and Monitoring Group
LGMG - Legal Defence and Monitoring Group was stablished in London in the 1990's and still active. Lots of valuable advice on their website, including:
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No Comment, the defendant's guide to arrest.
"We reckon the best policy if
you want to get off is to remain silent. The best
place to work out a good defence is afterwards,
with your solicitor or witnesses, not under
pressure in the hands of the cops. If your refusal
to speak comes up in court, we think the best
defence is to refuse to speak until your solicitor
gets there then get them to agree to your
position. You can then say you acted on legal
advice."
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Reasons not to plead guilty
"Standard legal advice is that, if the evidence is against you, pleading guilty at the earliest possible stage will result in a 30% discount on your sentence... The position for anyone convicted of a public order offence (and we use the term widely here) for taking part in protests is very different"
Green & Black Cross
"The Green & Black Cross is an entirely independent grassroots project set up in the spirit of mutual aid and solidarity to support autonomous social struggles within the UK. It's a new project set up in November 2010 to provide legal support for protests against the governements wave of massive spending cuts. The project takes inspiration from the Anarchist Black Cross and diverse skills and infrastructure built up over the last decade or so by elements of the environmental movement, such as The Camp for Climate Action."
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