Occupy Movements At High Court

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Occupy St Paul’s protesters are determined to stay outside St Paul’s indefinitely
Occupy St Paul’s protesters are determined to stay outside St Paul’s indefinitely

Anti-capitalist occupiers camped outside St Paul’s cathedral went down to the High Court on Monday in support of the Parliament Square occupiers who are threatened with eviction.

The Parliament Square occupiers have a permanent ‘democracy village’ outside parliament.

Occupy St Paul’s protesters were outside the court dressed as bankers, giving out ‘twenty pound notes’ on the back of which said: ‘What on Earth has happened to our world?

‘The politicians are in the pockets of the big banks!

‘The government is bailing out the banks with your taxes, so you are losing services and the banks are getting richer!

‘At the same time the government borrows money from the banks to pay for illegal wars in the pursuit of oil causing a national debt to be paid for with your children’s taxes and making every taxpayer auxiliary to genocide!

‘Now is the time to all stand together and put a stop to this tyranny.

‘You are a human being with the power to change this.’

Outside the Royal Courts of Justice Eric, from Occupy Bournemouth, said: ‘I have come to London to support the Occupy St Paul’s movement and to defend the protesters at Parliament Square.

‘I am from Venezuela. The difference between rich and poor in every country in the world is huge.

‘There are people dying of starvation in every country, this system is for the rich, it is not equal or fair.

‘We are going to stay at Occupy Bournemouth for as long as it takes.

‘I want a revolution because the corruption is coming from the top, that means that we have to take them all out.

‘We need something to happen like what happened in Egypt.’

Raffe said: ‘I have come here to the High Court in support of the Parliament Square protesters because they have been doing what we have been doing for three months, for ten years.

‘Whatever the decision in the High Court today regarding the protesters in Parliament Square affects everyone.

‘It affects every person who wants to uphold the right to protest.

‘We are here to uphold the right to protest and that is a fundamental right.

When asked about the struggle at Chase Farm hospital in Enfield where the North East London Council of Action has a daily picket to prepare to occupy the hospital to stop the closure Raffe said: ‘I think what you are doing at Chase Farm hospital is brilliant, I support the struggle.

‘I will bring some friends down to Chase Farm to join in the daily picket to keep the hospital open because if they privatise our health service more people will die.

‘Private health care is awful, there is no contingency plan for emergencies.

‘In the private there is greater infant mortality and more chance of dying during routine operations because if anything goes wrong they have to be taken to an NHS hospital.

‘NHS is best because they have the facilities to treat you.

‘In the private you might get your own room, a TV and a comfy bed but you are also more likely to die!

‘I think occupying Chase Farm hospital to stop the closure is a good thing, it will raise awareness and we have to save the vital services.’

Ev Emanon said: ‘Our brothers and sisters in Parliament Square have been protesting in tents with their “democracy village” for ten years and with the case in court today we wish them the best of luck.

‘We admire their resilience and lots of us from Occupy have come to the High Courts to support them.

‘We have a basic human right to protest.

‘If we lose that right, that is how dictatorships take over and then there will be no one left to stand up to the government.’

Back at the Occupy St Paul’s occupation Fred Rutland said: ‘Anonymous UK have been on the front line of this struggle from day one and we are not going anywhere, we will stay indefinitely.

‘Despite the cold we will not move!

‘The weather only separates the wheat from the chaff.

‘We are definitely the wheat and we will never give in.

‘The amount that they earn in the City is obscene.

‘The cost of living for everyday people is exorbitant. Everything is going up and the austerity measures are kicking in while the bankers and the rich are enjoying their lavish dinners and expensive cars.

‘The system is corrupted, the elite own the banks, the banks dictate to the corporations and the corporations have their fingers in the pockets of the government.

‘The government use its cronyish lives to pass legislation to further protect their interests to the detriment of the poor.’

Chris Greenford who came down to the St Paul’s occupation a week ago from Spain said: ‘I am originally from Poland, I went to Madrid to join the occupation there.

‘They were forcibly removed by the police two days before the elections.

‘The whole system of capitalism is inherently floored.

‘I am not for reforming capitalism. I believe that this movement has the power and momentum to overthrow the establishment.

‘I am behind the idea that one day we should get rid of currency completely with the ultimate goal of getting rid of private ownership.

‘The occupy movement still lacks organisation but every general assembly meeting we move a step forward.’

Landscape gardener Paul Sermanni said: ‘I have travelled down from Glasgow for the day just to show my support for the Occupy St Pauls movement.

‘We were involved in the Occupy Glasgow movement.

‘We had a couple of hurricanes and snow but the movement defied the weather.

‘The financial system as a whole is a fallacy!

‘Because of the set up, the entire concept of the stock market, of trading debt is a big lie.

‘The whole system needs to change dramatically.

‘We have to value human effort, human labour, initiative, engineering goods and produce.

‘They are the only things of value in this world.

‘Everyone around the world has taken encouragement and support and been spurred on by each other.

‘It is all part of a world revolution of sorts, whether it is in a big capitalist centre like New York or London or in the centre of an African country with a corrupt government, or in Egypt these struggles are all related.

‘There is definitely a world revolution that has begun, we are seeing the physical manifestation of it in country after country, it is part of a collective awareness in consciousness.’

l Overnight on Monday police intervened at Parliament Square forcibly removing the ‘Democracy Village’ occupation, two people were arrested during the eviction.

Some tents remained on the site, one person has launched legal proceedings and cannot be removed while the legal proceedings are ongoing.