Press release

26th January 2004

Case against anti-war protester dismissed

Police’s treatment of school students was outside the law

Today (26th Jan, 2004) the criminal case against anti war activist Karl Debbaut was dismissed. 8 months ago, on the day the war began, International Socialist Resistance member Karl Debbaut was charged with ‘assault on a police officer in the execution of his duty’ whilst attending a school student strike against the war in Lewisham.

The judge ruled that the police had acted outside the law when they wanted to forcefully remove school students from a London Transport bus and take them back to school. The school students and students had boarded the 185 in Lewisham on their way to parliament square where they would have joined thousands of other young protesters.

International Socialist Resistance and Karl Debbaut himself are extremely pleased with this ruling. It reconfirms that the police attempts to prevent students or school students organising or joining a collective protest were unlawful on the basis of truancy laws. We believe this is a victory for students’ the right to protest and against the attempted criminalisation of anti-war activists and political activists in general.  

The case for the defence of Karl Debbaut was handled by barrister Tony Metzer and solicitor Matt Foot.

For more information contact International Socialist Resistance



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Defend the right to strike, organise and protest

ISR international co-ordinator faced up to six months imprisonment after participating in Lewisham school student demonstration

Below are some of the sponsors of the campaign and a background of the campaign.

Sponsors of the campaign included:

Stop the War Coalition, George Galloway MP, Members of the Scottish Parliament for the Scottish Socialist Party: Tommy Sheridan, Frances Curran, Rosemary Byrne, Carolyn Leckie, Rosie Kane. Mark Serwotka General Secretary of the PCS, Janice Godrich President of the PCS, Sue Bond Vice President PCS, Mick Rix General Secretary ASLEF, Jeremy Dear General Secretary NUJ, PCS NEC members: Sevi Yeslgalli, Chris Baugh, Danny Williamson, Christine Chorlton, Rob Williams. UNISON NEC members: Raph Parkinson, Carol Dutton, Roger Bannister, Clare Williams, Mike Tucker, Jon Rogers, Kate Ahrens, Helen Jenner. CWU NEC members: Gary Jones, Bernard Roome. Branch Secretary London East CWU Paul Stygal, NUT NEC members: Linda Taaffe. T&G GEC members: Martin Meyer, Chris White, John Boughan. Teresa Mackay Chair of T&G Rural Agricultural Workers Section, Brian Rebel National Organisers of T&G National Agricultural Workers Section. RMT TUC delegate: Joe Grey, Keith Brodel, Neil Kaeith, G Watson, D Elliot, Roy Cottage, Martin Wickes. ASLEF TUC delegates: Nigel Gibson, Mike Jones, Dave Tyson.  Socialist Party Councillors: Coventry - Dave Nellist, Rob Windsor, Karen Mackay, Lewisham – Ian Page. Liv Gustavsson Rhodin, Jonas Brännberg, councillors for Rättvisepartiet Socialisterna, Swedish section of the CWI, in Luleå, Sweden, Mark Thomas comedian.

“If the government told the police to get tough and told the kids you can’t protest, people would tell us that Britain has become like Iraq under Saddam Hussein.”

A ‘Whitehall insider’ quoted in the Financial Times 22 March 2003

The day the war on Iraq began tens, or maybe even hundreds, of thousands of school and college students left their classrooms and took to the streets. They were expressing their outrage and opposition to Blair’s determination to continue with the war against Iraq despite the overwhelming opposition of the British population.

Faced with the sheer scale of the strikes, and the audacity of the school students, in many areas the school authorities, politicians and police had no choice but to allow the demonstrations and strikes to go ahead unhindered.

The Lewisham police, however, were among those who appeared to ignore any propaganda niceties. Instead they used numbers and force to prevent school students from participating in the Parliament Square protests instead physically making them return to school.

In doing so they arrested International Socialist Resistance co-ordinator, Karl Debbaut and charged him with ‘assault on a police officer’, a charge he totally refutes. If he is not cleared he now faces the possibility of a six month prison sentence. 

As Karl explained:

“As far as ISR is aware I am the only person to be faced with imprisonment as a result of taking part in a school student protest. However, this is not just about me.  For the crime of daring to make their opposition to the Iraq war heard many school students suffered disciplinary action in their schools and even police brutality. As part of this campaign ISR intends to launch a national debate on school students’ rights.”

Nationally, International Socialist Resistance (ISR) took the first initiative in raising the idea of school student strike action. However, it would be arrogant for ISR to claim we organised the strikes. Our initial call, along with that of other parts of the Stop the War Coalition, was seized upon by countless students as the best means of making their voice heard against the tumult of pro-war propaganda.

The strikes in Lewisham were initiated by schools students who were members of no anti-war organisation, but who then contacted ISR for assistance. Yet, throughout the day of the strike the police in Lewisham treated the school students as mindless truants. Any older anti-war protesters were treated as sinister manipulators.

Since then the Hutton Enquiry has shown the depths of New Labour’s sinister manipulation. Conversely, both the Hutton Enquiry and the nightmare of occupied Iraq show how clear-sighted Britain’s school students were when they left their classrooms to try and stop the onslaught on Iraq.