G8 news

We made our voices heard

We made our voices heard, despite the restrictions, with anti-poverty, anti-war and anti-G8 chants, as well as holding our placards high (one that said Make socialism our future appeared in two local papers). Our efforts hopefully put a damper on the extravagant welcome given by the obedient politicians in Sheffield.

Lucy Morrissey

Police fencing and lines of personnel separate us from the ministers - one police officer informed us of the necessity of these ‘sterile zones’ even though our protest was entirely peaceful.

At the ‘Rice for dinner’ protest, a good spirited assembly with a rendition of the Internationale by the Socialist Choir turned into a mass show of police force. A splinter of demonstrators including the Samba Band and some trade unionists marched down a street off the green. A frantic operation by the police closed them in, raising defensive lines all around.

Riot vans descended upon the surrounding streets and police fronted up to protesters confused as to the necessity of the excess of police action. Snatch squad riot police were deployed from behind one end of the police lines, comrades witnessed the overly aggressive arrest of one man by seven officers, mounted police also backed up the operation.

The police are using Sheffield as a precursor to the security operations in Edinburgh and the G8 summit - protesters can expect an intimidating police presence.

South Yorkshire has not seen such a large-scale police operation since the miners’ strike. This show of force by the capitalist state must give momentum to the struggle for socialism and the campaign for a mass workers’ party.