Zurdito
16th June 2008, 16:17
tellingly the most truthful report I could find ont his came from the Zimbabwe Guardian. the British press are full of crap about "violent" protesters and not even worth reading.
and update though is that 25 were arrested, and many more protesters injured than "one".
http://www.talkzimbabwe.com/news/117/ARTICLE/2700/2008-06-16.html
OVER 2 500 anti-war protestors greeted the US President George Bush when he visited Britain yesterday on his farewell tour.
Many people were injured as the protests turned violent and three were arrested.
Over 1,200 police officers controlled the crowds who were shouting: 'George Bush, terrorist'.
Many of them brandished placards emblazoned with President Bush’s name, blood patches and handcuffs.
Colin Wilson, who was selling t-shirts with the slogan 'George Bush: number one terrorist', said to the Press Association: "These always go down very well, particularly with American tourists because they're just so glad that there are people who hate Bush as much as they do."
He added: "We shouldn't let Bush get away with thinking that he can swan around the place, when you think of the hundreds of thousands of people that have been killed. He shouldn't be treated as a respectable politician, he's a war criminal and that's how he should be treated."
Demonstrators had planned to march to Downing Street, but police erected barriers to the government area of Whitehall effectively blocking the march.
Officers lined up behind a metal barrier, striking demonstrators with batons as they surged forward.
One protestor was left bleeding from a head injury after being hit by a police baton. According to a report the woman, Suzanne Wylie (29) “had been linking arms with protesters at the front of the crowd, trying to stop demonstrators in Parliament Square from surging forward.”
She said: "I've been on lots of demonstrations before and every one of the Stop the War demonstrations have been peaceful. This time because Bush is here, specifically because Bush is here, because of his own security arrangements, they won't let us demonstrate. If they let us demonstrate, there would have been none of this."
One 17-year-old girl was held on suspicion of assaulting a police officer. Her friends said she has her A-level exams next week.
Left-wing veteran Tony Benn was applauded as he told the crowd that troops must leave Afghanistan and Iraq. “I listened as a student to the judgment at Nuremberg that convicted Nazi criminals,” he said.
“The war against Iraq is a war crime. The US spends 400 million dollars every day for the war while there are people starving.”
Dr Daud Abdullah, from the Muslim Council of Britain, called on Bush to pay compensation for the damage he had caused, and to “express contrition for his crimes against humanity.”
Andrew Burgin, a spokesman for the Stop the War Coalition said: “We think Bush is a war criminal.
“Both Blair and Bush are responsible by duplicity and lying for an illegal invasion.”
There were around 2,000 to 2,500 demonstrators in Parliament Square at the height of the protest, according to a report by Scotland Yard.
President Bush is on a two-day visit to London and Northern Ireland.
Analysts say Iraq is likely to dominate the meetings as the US President was seeking reassurance that Britain was not withdrawing troops anytime soon.
He also denied that there were disagreements between the US and Britain over Iraq.
”I have absolutely no problem how Gordon Brown is managing the Iraqi effort,” he said.
Downing Street yesterday said there was no disagreement with the US after reports Sunday indicated a premature withdrawal of British troops.
Earlier, Bush told Sky News he was sorry that innocent civilians had died in Iraq, but he was still certain the invasion had been the right thing to do.
President Bush has always met protestors in the British capital. When he last visited Britain — in the wake of the Iraq War — almost 300,000 people turned up in London for a rally.
and update though is that 25 were arrested, and many more protesters injured than "one".
http://www.talkzimbabwe.com/news/117/ARTICLE/2700/2008-06-16.html
OVER 2 500 anti-war protestors greeted the US President George Bush when he visited Britain yesterday on his farewell tour.
Many people were injured as the protests turned violent and three were arrested.
Over 1,200 police officers controlled the crowds who were shouting: 'George Bush, terrorist'.
Many of them brandished placards emblazoned with President Bush’s name, blood patches and handcuffs.
Colin Wilson, who was selling t-shirts with the slogan 'George Bush: number one terrorist', said to the Press Association: "These always go down very well, particularly with American tourists because they're just so glad that there are people who hate Bush as much as they do."
He added: "We shouldn't let Bush get away with thinking that he can swan around the place, when you think of the hundreds of thousands of people that have been killed. He shouldn't be treated as a respectable politician, he's a war criminal and that's how he should be treated."
Demonstrators had planned to march to Downing Street, but police erected barriers to the government area of Whitehall effectively blocking the march.
Officers lined up behind a metal barrier, striking demonstrators with batons as they surged forward.
One protestor was left bleeding from a head injury after being hit by a police baton. According to a report the woman, Suzanne Wylie (29) “had been linking arms with protesters at the front of the crowd, trying to stop demonstrators in Parliament Square from surging forward.”
She said: "I've been on lots of demonstrations before and every one of the Stop the War demonstrations have been peaceful. This time because Bush is here, specifically because Bush is here, because of his own security arrangements, they won't let us demonstrate. If they let us demonstrate, there would have been none of this."
One 17-year-old girl was held on suspicion of assaulting a police officer. Her friends said she has her A-level exams next week.
Left-wing veteran Tony Benn was applauded as he told the crowd that troops must leave Afghanistan and Iraq. “I listened as a student to the judgment at Nuremberg that convicted Nazi criminals,” he said.
“The war against Iraq is a war crime. The US spends 400 million dollars every day for the war while there are people starving.”
Dr Daud Abdullah, from the Muslim Council of Britain, called on Bush to pay compensation for the damage he had caused, and to “express contrition for his crimes against humanity.”
Andrew Burgin, a spokesman for the Stop the War Coalition said: “We think Bush is a war criminal.
“Both Blair and Bush are responsible by duplicity and lying for an illegal invasion.”
There were around 2,000 to 2,500 demonstrators in Parliament Square at the height of the protest, according to a report by Scotland Yard.
President Bush is on a two-day visit to London and Northern Ireland.
Analysts say Iraq is likely to dominate the meetings as the US President was seeking reassurance that Britain was not withdrawing troops anytime soon.
He also denied that there were disagreements between the US and Britain over Iraq.
”I have absolutely no problem how Gordon Brown is managing the Iraqi effort,” he said.
Downing Street yesterday said there was no disagreement with the US after reports Sunday indicated a premature withdrawal of British troops.
Earlier, Bush told Sky News he was sorry that innocent civilians had died in Iraq, but he was still certain the invasion had been the right thing to do.
President Bush has always met protestors in the British capital. When he last visited Britain — in the wake of the Iraq War — almost 300,000 people turned up in London for a rally.