Indy Media Watch

According to many newspapers

The main G8 march in Auchterarder has been cancelled because of violent clashes between police and protesters.
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Tayside Police decided to ban the march on the grounds of public safety after the outbreaks of violence on the streets of Stirling this morning.

Indymedia has a different story:

According to Mike Arnott, spokes person of G8 Alternatives, who is organizing the march, said the announcements that the march has been cancelled is 'an unilateral decision by the police'. It is his understanding that the march is going on. About 20 coaches who were stopped earlier near Perth are now making their way to Gleneagles. A large group of people have left the A9 after some blockades and are walking north towards Gleneagles. Various other groups are now making their way towards the Gleneagles Hotel.

This should be 'interesting'...

The Newspaper says:

Shops and other businesses were attacked by scores of activists, with at least three people having been arrested.

The violence saw running battles being fought with police as groups of demonstrators smashed cars with iron bars and hurled bricks through the windows of a Burger King.

About 200 hooligans dressed in hooded tops with scarves obscuring their faces hurled missiles at police officers and barricaded roads.

A motorway just outside the village of Cambusbarron was blocked off as far as the eye could see in either direction.

Local resident Duncan Paterson, 64, said: "The protesters were tearing up the slabs at the side of the motorway and the trees and they used them to block both carriageways.

"There were about 100 of them with drums and their faces painted and hats."

UK Indymedia is strangely silent on the matter.

Whose fault? Who do you think?

Organisers of the G8 Alternatives demonstration accused the police of "disgraceful behaviour" after the decision to call off the march."This is a serious indictment of British democracy," said Gill Hubbard, spokeswoman for the march.

"The Prime Minister should tell us why the police have banned a peaceful march and denied thousands of people the right to protest."

Interesting definition of "peaceful". Peaceful protesters need to know the following:


Some interesting comments on the Indymedia page:

So now my hometown of Stirling is being wrecked in the name of protest?

What the F has going down a residential street putting in peoples windows and wrecking their cars got to do with G8 protest?

For your information on this website who advocate "free speech" on the one side...My 10 year old daughter is in Stirling Royal Infirmary this morning with 18 stitches to a head wound due to some anti whatever putting a brick through her bedroom window as she peacefully slept.

Hope your all proud of yourselves. The Scottish people don't want you lot roaming our streets!
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To those that choose not to believe the comments of individuals living in and around Stirling, please keep your comments to yourself until you know the facts. We are all aware of how the media can hype the stories of protests and vandalism, and how the media can also choose to ignore certain things. If I did not live in Stirling I would've never have believed the level of disorder that has occurred in the last 24hrs. These people are thugs, vandals and very low intelligence human beings. Burger King was attacked, a franchise operation that employs local people, contributes to the local community (charitable donations etc) and sources 95% of its goods from within the UK. Please someone tell me what is wrong with all 3 of these points? Somehow I think the replies will lack any degree of evidence. Please leave us alone.

Finally, a plea to "look at the bigger picture":

The police have done everything they can to limit peoples right to peacefull protest and have made little or no effort to seperate the violent fringes from the main core of peacefull protesters. The police inadvertantly conscripting more angry militant types by typecasting any protester as dangerous , 99% of us are not dangerous at all , in fact we are saving the planet.

In the grand scheme of things whats worse , a brick through your window or several despots ruining the lives of millions of innocent people ?

So the bricks were hurled, windows were smashed and people got hurt as part of your grand scheme. The police just don't get it do they?