A-Infos (en) Britain, GAGGED! #14 November - South Wales Anarchist Newsletter

War Crimes
The Lancet has published that approximately 655,000 Iraqis have been killed 
since the illegal invasion. Men, women & children have been blown apart by smart
bombs, sliced up by cluster bombs, burnt alive by napalm & white phosphorus, 
executed without trial by US/UK death squads (with the aid of mercenaries), shot
to pieces by trigger happy GIs, beaten up, tortured & raped. This mass murder is
the direct result of the actions of George Bush & Tony Blair supported by all 
the Labour MPs in Wales. They talk of the ‘promotion of democracy’ or ironically 
‘the "war on terror’" whilst it is British & American state terrorism that is 
being waged in the name of peace!
The fact is the war in Iraq was planned long before the attacks of 11/9/01. The 
right wing junta that controls the white house is following through the vision 
of the “Project for a New American Century”. Their desire for greater control of
the region's highly profitable resources being the motivation for invasion &
occupation.
Even General Sir Richard Dannatt, the head of the British army & as deep in the 
ruling class quagmire as anyone, admits that British troops in Iraq are making 
things worse, not better. Despite the cries of ‘being taken out of context’ by 
Blair, the call for war is getting pretty weak when even your own general wants 
to pack up & go home.
Over two million people protested against the war in Iraq, along with millions 
more around the world. We were right! Not only should the troops be brought 
home, Bush & Blair should be tried for war crimes.


Ransack Parliment
9th October marked the first Sack Parliament demonstration; called to coincide 
with the return to work for all our hard-working MPs after their summer hols. It 
seems that the honourable gentlemen & ladies do nothing else these days than 
lead the country into illegal wars & tear up age-old rights, so a hundred 
peaceful protesters turned out to blockade the MPs’ entry into the house of conmen.
In their way were 800 well-armed police thugs; some on horseback hidden round 
the back of Parliament Square, out of sight of the tourists. Protesters were 
quickly hemmed in by police whilst those who avoided the cordon were hunted down 
& arrested for taking part in an illegal demonstration.
Under new laws, namely the Serious Organised Crime & Police Act 2005 (SOCPA) - 
it is now illegal to protest within one kilometre of Parliament Square. Unless, 
of course, you’re Brian Haw, who continues his vigil in the square, despite 
SOCPA which was introduced precisely to get rid of this ‘irritating’ individual.
Others have not been able to escape the draconian new measures. Maya Evans was 
the first to be convicted in December 2005, for reading out the names of dead 
British soldiers & Iraqis in front of the bars of Downing Street. Recently Milan 
Rai has been in court for the more heinous crime of organising an illegal 
demonstration.
38 people were arrested & bailed that day. Some before they’'d even got to the 
demo. A samba band was turned away by police. Protesters were punched & there 
are allegations that pepper spray was used. Most are due back on 11th December 
to be charged. Watch this space.


Guantanamo Burger & Torture Coffee
To cater to the tastes of the jailers & torturers of people illegally 
imprisoned, there is a Starbucks & a McDonalds at the US Base in Guantanamo Bay. 
This news seemed to come as a revelation to staff & customers of these 
franchises in Cardiff. On Saturday 21st October, a hooded figure representing 
Guantanamo prisoners was escorted through both Starbucks & McDonalds in Queen 
Street. Activists held placards with messages such as: ‘Good Bloody Coffee?’ & 
‘Torture? Would you like Fries with that?’ They handed out flyers with further 
information & a link to www.cageprisoners.com before delivering anti-social 
behaviour orders (ASBOs) to managers.
Though there was a hostile reaction from management at both locations, a number 
of staff & customers responded sympathetically. Kitchen workers in McDonalds 
clapped & cheered while potential customers were so outraged to learn of 
McDonalds complicity in Guantanamo that they promptly walked out. Obviously 
deeply disgusted, one young man hurled heartfelt & well directed admonishment at 
the manager: ‘Shame on you!’ Ignoring such reactions & rejecting the information 
they were offered, managers at both venues expressed neither the slightest 
interest nor offered any hint of an apology.


Did you get a free vegan burger with this gagged!?
The basic idea of ‘Food not Bombs’ is for people to get together in public on a 
regular basis to cook & share free food. Three ‘Food not Bombs’ veggie burger 
giveaways have been held in South Wales so far this year, two in Cardiff & one 
on a rainy Saturday afternoon in the picturesque city of Newport. ‘Food not 
Bombs’ is not a charity or an organisation, but a way to redistribute food & to 
protest against the violence of poverty & hunger. It’s also an opportunity meet 
with people & share information & ideas in order to take action against 
corporate & government violence & injustice.  Anyone can get involved in 
organising or helping out a 'Food not Bombs' event. No-one is in charge & 
everyone can have a say in how things are done. Why not come along or get 
involved in the next event? Email CAN or GA if you wanna get involved!


Anarchist Black Cross
Supporting prisoners, resisting repression & working towards liberation!
The Anarchist Black Cross is an international movement that aims to support the 
struggles of prisoners, & of anarchist & class war prisoners in particular. The 
movement offers solidarity to prisoners to prevent them becoming isolated & to 
assure activists that if they are persecuted for their activities, they will not 
be abandoned. Offering solidarity can take different forms depending on the 
prisoner’s situation, but useful stuff can include financial help, writing 
letters, making visits & sending reading material. It may also include 
organising demonstrations or public solidarity campaigns for prisoners that you 
support.
The Anarchist Black Cross movement believes that prisons have no useful function 
& only serve to preserve the status of the people who rule over us. The movement 
believes that both the prison system & the society that creates a need for 
prisons should be abolished. It is argued that there are alternative & more 
effective ways of dealing with so-called anti-social crime. More importantly, 
anti-social crime is a product of an unfair social, economical & political 
system which makes a few people extremely wealthy at the expense of the poor. In 
this society, people who strike for a decent wage, steal to stay alive, break 
the bosses laws or resist the control & abuse in our lives face police, courts, 
prison. ABC exists to resist this system & defend those who are persecuted by it.
In South Wales, we have started regularly making & sending cards to prisoners to 
show them that while they are in there for us, we are out here for them! If you 
know prisoners who would like to receive support or would like to know more 
e-mail CAN or GA. Lots more information, including addresses of prisoners who 
would like to hear from you, can be found at the website of the very excellent 
Brighton ABC collective www.brightonabc.org.uk


Cardiff anarchist in prison
A CAN activist went to prison on the 6th October, after refusing to pay fines 
built up over years of opposition to the US / UK bombing & occupation of Iraq. 
In the end she owed the state almost £1500 in fine & cost orders, mainly for 
acts of trespass onto the US air force base in Fairford, Gloucestershire, which 
was being used to load US war planes with bombs.
“I couldn’t bring myself to pay their fines & court costs”, she said.  “The UK 
government is responsible, along with their big brother in the US, for the 
deaths of over two million people since the start of the 1990 gulf war.  The 
last three years alone has seen the deaths of at least 600,000.  This is genocide.
Any action is justified in opposing a crime of that magnitude.  All of us who 
took action in opposing this war were right to do so - the only thing we are 
guilty of is perhaps not doing enough.”
The activist was sentenced to 28 days in prison, which she served at HMP 
Eastwood Park.


Another woman dies in prison
Lisa Woodhall, aged 28, died in Eastwood Park prison on the 8th October.  She is 
the third woman to have died in prison this year, & among 32 to have died since 
2003.
Anyone who has experienced life inside a local prison cannot be surprised at the 
number of deaths that take place.  In Eastwood Park the most oppressive place of 
all is the ‘induction wing’, known as ‘A’ wing, where all new arrivals are 
placed for assessment.  This is where Lisa was found hanged.
Initially there is an induction process, which involves the hated strip search, 
& a cursory attempt at a ‘risk assessment’, which is a couple of questions that 
are supposed to find out whether you are a risk to yourself or others.  But the 
next step is the same for everyone – carrying whichever of your possessions they 
have arbitrarily allowed you to keep, you will be marched off to ‘A’ wing.
The cells here are tiny, grotty & usually filthy.  In your 6’ x 8’ space there 
is a hard plastic coated mattress on a solid wooden bed.  There is a steel 
toilet at the bottom of the bed, which is encrusted with limescale & looks less 
than hygienic.  You are given a duvet that is covered in stains you try hard not 
to think about, & a telly that might or might not work.
Then the door is locked, & you are left to listen to the noise of ‘A’ wing. 
There is no sound insulation on the cells here, so you can hear everything. 
Women more used to prison life will be shouting to their mates.  Those with 
psychiatric disorders (& there are many such women in prison) will be banging 
their heads & fists against the door or walls.  The new arrivals will be 
sobbing.  & everyone else will just turn up their telly to try to shut it all out.
Those that are taking medication (anti-depressants for example) before they come 
into prison often find they face a delay before they can obtain this medication 
inside, especially if it is a drug not normally stocked in the prison health 
centre.  Rumour has it that Lisa was denied her regular hormone treatment & the 
effects of this may well have contributed to her suicide.
For vulnerable women prison can have a devastating effect, especially if they 
are being separated from young children.  The trauma can be on-going & long 
lasting.  Some will say, well they shouldn’t have committed a crime in the first 
place.  But the vast majority of women in Eastwood Park are there because of 
poor education, drug addiction, or psychiatric illness.  For these people a 
prison sentence is a pointless & expensive exercise. For women like Lisa it is a 
death sentence.


More Crimes. More Prisons?
The prison population in Wales is threatening to outstrip the operational 
capacity (the maximum 'safe' overcrowding levels) of 2,640. This is a widespread 
problem across the UK as more & more people are locked up for more & more crimes.
Tories & Plaid demand more prisons, Labour is considering using police cells or 
holding prisoners on boats. Yet whilst more activities are criminalised & 
politicians demand higher sentences for more offenses, courts will simply fill 
new prisons with more prisoners.
Since New Labour came to power in 1997, there have been 3,023 new criminal 
offenses created. Building well on the draconian laws invented under Tory rule.


BAN ON MASKS AT PROTESTS?
Scotland Yard has drawn up plans to be submitted to the Attorney General that 
will make wearing masks at protests illegal. The law, if passed, will also make 
the burning of flags a criminal offense.
The proposed law is a knee jerk reaction that will apparently help combat 
‘extremist Protesters’. Clearly such draconian measures will not do anything to 
address why Protesters become radicalised & by unnecessarily eroding civil 
liberties in the UK even further, may well have the opposite effect of the one 
intended & contribute to the radicalisation of UK Protesters.  The law is 
obviously part of the Government's desire to be seen as 'tough on terrorism', 
but it not likely to have any impact at all on serious terrorism.
Shami Chakrabarti, Liberty's director, said: "It looks like some people have 
been watching too many American movies. The police already have wide powers, 
especially for dealing with people wearing masks."


underhand, unreasonable & unapologetic
Michael O'Brien, of Cardiff,  was convicted with 2 others of the murder of 
newsagent Phillip Saunders in 1988. 11 years later the life sentences of all 3 
were quashed at the Court of Appeal. Since 2000 Mr O'Brien has pursued a civil 
case against South Wales Police for malicious prosecution & misfeasance.
Rather than face a trial South Wales Police have paid off Michael, along with 
another of the wrongfully convicted men, Ellis Sherwood, to the tune of £300,000 
& £200,000 respectively.
While in prison his baby daughter Kylie died, his marriage broke down & his 
father died. No amount of cash could compensate him for that.
South Wales Police remained unrepentant & refused to apologise to Mr O'Brien. 
Officers said they paid the money just in case they lost the court case.
Deputy Chief Constable David Francis said, "Throughout, we have consistently 
maintained our position that the officers who worked on the investigation into 
the murder of Phillip Saunders did so in good faith & the force was not liable 
for malicious prosecution or misfeasance. Payment into court has been made in 
full & final settlement of the claims of Mr O'Brien & Mr Sherwood, without an 
apology. It is emphasised that this has been done without any admission of 
liability & in full & final settlement."


Swansea Cop denies rape charge
The chief personnel officer for the Swansea branch of South Wales Police has 
pled not guilty to multiple rape charges. He has been granted unconditional bail 
until the case goes ahead in November.


Local Sab Update
South Wales Hunt Saboteurs  have, (at the start of the season), been 
concentrating on the Pentyrch Hunt. After a sab come across them "sneaking out" 
on the bank holiday.
Kennel watching was met with over zealous policing, with the cops making sure 
sabs were not going to break any laws whilst blocking the road allowing the hunt 
to make a clean escape on a number of occasions. Sabs have also been busy 
fund-raising for this season, thanks to Lost Cherrees, Refuse/All & This System 
Kills who played at the benefit, & no thanks to Gwent Police for turning up 
videoing people & their number plates who turned up at the gig because, "the 
Hunt Saboteur Association  are a violent splinter group", according to the boys 
in blue, now lets take a "par-sec", (if needed), to think who gets a kicking 
week in week out, aaahhhh hmmm?


>From St Petersburg to Heiligendamm
Following the 2005 G8 in Gleneagles, Make Poverty History went back to sleep, 
Geldof went back to being a has-been no-one is interested in, Pink Floyd stopped 
talking to each other again & Persil’s profits slumped again as white went back 
out of fashion as quickly as it came in. Poverty, strangely enough, did not 
become history; the world kept getting warmer; & the war on everything kept 
rumbling along.
The G8 met again in Russia in 2006, but the UK media were busy with the World 
Cup. Small but beautiful anti-g8 protests took place in St Petersburg, which was 
something of an achievement because this sort of thing does not normally happen 
AT ALL in Russia without being crushed by the authorities.
In October a series of meetings took place around the UK with activists from 
Russia giving a report back on how the protests went & activists from Germany 
giving an update on the plans for the protests against the 2007 G8 in 
Heiligendamm, Germany. The Cardiff meeting was particularly well attended, with 
a huge number of activists showing an interest in mobilising for next year. 
Plans for the mobilisation are still in their infancy, but if you are interested 
in helping out in any way, whether it be going to Germany or joining in 
solidarity actions in Cardiff during the G8, contact CAN or SWAG8.


Police free to kill
Disabled man Gareth Bracey had his back broken & was killed when four Barry 
police pinned him to the floor. A jury has ruled he may have survived if he had 
been taken to hospital sooner, rather than being left alone in a police cell for 
20 hours. The Paramedics the police called were not told of his paralysis 
meaning he was moved to hospital without a spinal board. Gareth suffered from 
ankylosing spondalytis, a condition that had stiffened his spine into the shape 
of a question mark.
Police burst into Mr Bracey's home in Barry in April 2004 & arrested him  ‘for 
his own safety’ after he allegedly tried to kill himself. His twin brother 
Jeffrey told the inquest in Cardiff: "There were four officers on the bed trying 
to handcuff him - he was screaming at them. The officers had him pinned to the 
floor - there were two officers on the top of his body & two officers on his 
legs. I think one had a knee on his neck. Another was sitting on his leg & 
another was holding his leg. I was shocked at what I was seeing in the bedroom 
of his flat. Officers had asked me before they went in if he would pose any risk 
to them. I had told them about Gareth's back & said he was gentle - he wouldn't 
harm a fly."
Despite the jury’s unanimous verdict, that Gareth Bracey would have survived had 
his paralysis been recognised,   no-one is being held responsible for his death.


Police get cut
Despite massive amounts of money spent on it, the bid to aggregate local UK 
police forces had gone down in flames. Several branches, including Gwent police, 
are now facing cuts because of the huge chunk of budget they wasted. Not so 
smart, but better the money goes to management consultants than the cops.


Council lies go into overdrive
By the time you read this the result of the Momouthshire ballot on stock 
transfer will be known, and hopefully tenants will have rejected the 
privatisation of their homes. Next up is  Torfean where they go to the vote in 
February. The council is continuing to waste huge amounts of cash delivering 
pro-privatisation propaganda to council tenants, even giving out free DVDs to 
try to sell their feeble case! Resistance is very active, going door to door to 
every home affected by the proposed sell off, but is always in need of extra 
help. To get involved or if you want more information get in contact on 
07747328255 or torfeandefendcouncilhousing@hotmail.co.uk


Cardiff Alternative News has returned
for the latest news, listings, views, reviews & links for the radical & 
progressive alternative in politics, culture, music, green issues & ethical living.
uk.geocities.com/cardiffalternativenews


Ding dong, the witch is (not quite) dead
You can’t mark the date in your diary yet (unless you know something we don’t), 
but the long organisational build-up to Margaret Thatcher’s funeral is humming 
along nicely. The call has gone out for a massive party in Trafalgar Square 
starting at 6pm the Saturday after she finally drops dead. Organisers say that 
if she dies on a Friday or a Saturday morning, the fun will still kick off at 
the advertised time, but they reserve the right to come back the next Saturday 
as well. When she dies, the corporate media will be full of sycophantic bullshit 
about how she was Britain’s first female prime minister & how she had such a 
huge effect. She did, but in a completely rotten way. By throwing a massive 
party, we’ll be standing up against the crap & reminding everyone that 
Thatcher’s political views & actions  created misery for huge numbers of people 
in Britain & across the globe. Thatcher’s contempt for us was unparrelled, & 
expressed through policies ranging from the re-introduction of birching, to the 
war in the Falklands, to selling off services that should be basic rights, not 
businesses. She was committed to destroying unions & cutting education funding. 
She supported the bombing of Libya & brought US nuclear missiles into the UK. 
She introduced homophobic legislation & invited apartheid South Africa’s 
president over for a nice chat. Bobby Sands & nine other Irish hunger-strikers 
died under Thatcher’s reign. Here in Wales, we haven’t forgotten the misery she 
put us through over the mines. For those who can’t get to the big party in 
London, South Wales will definitely be hosting a celebration, or two or three or 
a lot more. Thatcher hasn’t made public appearances for some years, & is 81. We 
can’t say when she’s going to finally rid the world of her presence, but when 
she does the world average levels of compassion, humanity, & love of freedom 
will go up a notch. We will have every reason to celebrate.

New groups
In the last few months a number of new groups have sprung up across South Wales. 
A autonomous grassroots group of individuals who wish to take action against 
climate change has started, as have Anarchists in the Rhondda. Contact Cardiff 
Climate Action (provisional name) at cardifclimateaction@hotmail.co.uk & Rhondda 
Anarchists at rhonddaanarchists@hushmail.com. If your interested in setting up a 
campaign group or anarchist collective in your area, drop a line to some of the 
groups found in our listings, we’re always willing to help grass roots organisation!


Gagged! can be found in all sorts of strange places around south wales as well 
as every social centre & radical bookshop in the UK. If there's not a pile of 
gagged in the corner of your favourite pub, club, cafe, hairdressers, 
tattooists, record, book, head or anything else shop, get in touch so you can 
take a pile in yourself!  If you want to subscribe to the e-version send an 
email to gagged-subscribe@lists.riseup.net. More info online at 
lists.riseup.net/www/info/gagged. 5000 copies are printed per issue plus several 
thousand are read online. We’re always in need of more help in production & 
distribution. Send any articles, pictures, reports, diary dates or offers to 
help to gwentanarchists@yahoo.co.uk

Gagged! is produced by GA & CAN. Both are very  simular, contact your local 
group or set one up!

Cardiff Anarchist Network (CAN) is a collective of people who want to pursue 
political demonstrations through direct action. There is no membership, no 
leaders, just like minded individuals. Email: cardiffanarchists@riseup.net

Gwent Anarchists are like-minded individuals believing in autonomy, respect & 
justice; against all forms of exploitation & bigotry. Aiming to increase the 
knowledge of & create a resistance to governments & big business abusing people 
& the earth. Email: gwentanarchists@yahoo.co.uk

No Borders South Wales organises on migration issues & acts to break down 
boundaries; racial, cultural, gender, sexual, class & political that divide us. 
Email: noborderswales@riseup.net

South Wales Against the G8 (SWAG8) is a coalition of groups wishing to mobilise 
against next year's G8 Summit both in Germany & in the UK. Email: 
swageight@yahoo.co.uk

Peoples Autonomous Destination (PAD) aims to create physical space in Cardiff 
for groups & individuals who cannot or will not work within the constraints of 
governmental or corporate control. Email: thepad@riseup.net Phone: 07910973876 
Web: www.thepad.org.uk

South Wales Animal Rights Network (SWARN) working for animal liberation  Email: 
swarn@yahoo.co.uk Phone: 07903677111

South Wales Hunt Sabs saving animals’ lives now, actively sabotaging 
bloodsports. Newport Post: PO Box 1894, Newport NP19 4WZ. Phone: 0770815642 
Swansea Email: swansea_ar@webtribe.net Post: PO Box 7, Swansea, SA9 2YE Phone: 
01792475092


Keep up to date with news from all over the world like the sort you find in 
Gagged! online at a variety of websites. Here are a few that we’d recommend: 
www.schnews.org.uk   www.indymedia.org.uk   www.libcom.org   www.anarkismo.net . 
www.infoshop.org



Diary Dates
November

13th - Big Aldermaston Blockade to stop the building of a facility to build 
nuclear weapons. www.blockthebuilders.org.uk

13th -  Gwent Anarchist meeting 8:30pm in the Murenger, High Street, Newport (in 
snug near the back) fortnightly

17th-19th - Introduction to Renewable Energy in Wales 3 day course at the Centre 
of Continuing Education, University of Wales , Aberystwyth. 
www.greendragonenergy.co.uk

20th - CAN meeting Upstairs in the Glamorgan Staff Club, Westgate Street , 
Cardiff (opposite gate 3 of the Millennium Stadium). Fortnightly.

23rd - Cardiff climate action (provisional name!)- 8pm, upstairs at the 
Glamorgan Council Staff Club. Fortnightly.

25th - National DEFY-ID Gathering, 11am, Sumac Centre, Nottingham. 
www.nottingham-defy-id.org.uk/gathering

25th - Buy Nothing Day Why not spend a day without spending? www.buynothingday.co.uk

27th - Gwent Anarchist meeting



DECEMBER

2nd - Undercurrents BeyondTv film festival All day Ticket £8 Dylan Thomas 
Centre, Somerset Place, Swansea SA1 www.undercurrents.org/beyondtv

2nd - Anti-war demonstration at RAF Brize Norton - 12 noon in Carterton, 
Oxfordshire. www.stopwar.org.uk

4th - CAN meeting

11th - Gwent Anarchist meeting

15th - Citizen Fish, Bus Station Loonies, This System Kills & The Rejected. TJs, 
Clarance Place, Newport. 7pm £8 Anarcho-punk yuletide knees-up!

18th - CAN meeting

It looks alot prettier on pdf!! - 
http://lists.riseup.net/www/d_read/gagged/gagged14.pdf

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The majority of copies of Gagged! are distributed on paper, but think of the 
trees & invite people who might be interested onto this list. If you'd like to 
help distribure Gagged! please print out copies and give 'em out, post 'em up or 
leave them around the place.
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