november 5th #OpVendetta march on parliament - report & pics

rikki | 06.11.2012 00:22 | Policing | Social Struggles | Sheffield

up to a thousand people took part this evening in a rally and march and film re-enactment. after gathering at trafalgar square, several hundred people marched down whitehall, many wearing iconic 'anon' masks, and gathered at the gates of parliament, taking over the road and closing it to traffic for several hours this evening. as numbers dwindled towards midnight, it seemed unlikely that westminster would erupt in flames shortly after midnight as it did in the film 'v for vendetta'.

disturbing peace banner

fire play

tax banner

nelson's column

heading down whitehall

at the gates of parliament

loose cordon

anon banner

route from embankment closed

justice banner

debt banners

never mind the cold

police lines push forward

at 6pm, the steps of trafalgar square were full of masked anons, and numbers built up to spill into the square. police and "heritage wardens" watched as various square bye-laws were transgressed, with some commercial photography, lots of banners and protest, some singing, music and games, and even some fire-eating and juggling (all things prohibited by the bizarrely draconian rules covering this "private" public space).

at around 7.30, anons climbed the ledges around the base of nelson's column, and this then became the focus for the crowd, which at its peak might have numbered close to a thousand.

around 8pm, the group set off towards parliament, taking over whitehall to the familiar chants of "whose streets, our streets". along the way, they paused to allow a giant 'anonymous' banner and some disabled people to lead the protest into the square.

police formed a line, forcing people to pass around them. their idea seemed to be to prevent traffic disruption to certain routes, but it looked as though they had accepted that the main road in front of parliament would be closed and traffic was obviously being managed to facilitate this.

there was also a line of police along the fences and gates of parliament, and the crowd surged right up to them, with some people attempting to attach the anon banners to the fences.

there were some scuffles over by the abbey between masked protestors and a FIT team. this led to a sit-down at that corner, which resulted in traffic being turned back along the embankment and then managed again to avoid the square.

as two politicians were accompanied out of parliament, police surged forward to clear the pavement in front of parliament and there were some minor confrontations during that process.

there was also some scuffling and, i think, one arrest, when a small group of people tried to scale the fences.

otherwise, the proceedings remained cheerful, peaceful, and reasonably unhindered. however, my feeling was that the protest was being "facilitated" or tolerated, but the police had huge re-inforcements nearby, two helicopters above, and manifestly visible and audible attack dogs within the grounds of westminster, so were in complete control at all times.

numbers started to dwindle after 9pm, and it's been reported that legal observers left around 11pm as less than a hundred people remained outside parliament.

rikki
e-mail: rikkiindymedia[At]gmail(d0t)com

Comments

Hide the following 22 comments

Anonymous Nov 5 Guy Fawkes - Great videos

06.11.2012 01:07

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qT583LLW2og

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dk5Pk0J72Ic

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rCi-4MHB6IU

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tE80-e7NLuw

Leon

Erm!

06.11.2012 01:21

I don't understand!

Where are the pictures of Parliament blowing up in a huge fireball with a big V spelled out in two perfectly coordinated firework rocket things?

And where the f***is Natalie Portman?

And where are the army?

So you all marched to Parliament and waited around for a bit trying to meet someone to have sex with. In the meantime David Cameron is selling fighter jets to Dubai despite not being allowed to work for defence companies and the BBC and the Government are busy flinging children at each other to see who's got the most peado's working for them.

Facebook IS FUCKING CRAP!

anonymous

Yers

06.11.2012 01:26

Two thousand people turn up but are foxed by ten police officers standing outside Parliament with their arms folded!

No wonder the revolution won't be televised...its too fucking dull!

Bandana

V for Vanguard.

06.11.2012 01:38

I went to the facebook page for this and its seems to have been an attempt to renact the closing scene of V for Vendetta.

So its more an historical re-enactment society than anything else!

I note they didn't choose to re-enact the scene where the PM is dragged into an underground storm drain and executed at point blank range with a big scary gun. Nor the scene where half the states minions are poisoned leaving them face down in their own vomit.

What exactly was the point...aren't you all just fantasising?

No wonder the government keep spitting in our faces with austerity flavoured phlegm!

Checkboard

revolutions behind the keyboard

06.11.2012 09:03

Recently there have been so many well organised and well attended demos which have left the state quaking in its boots, that it is almost impossible to know which ones "Checkboard" "Bandana " and "anonymous" were responsible for.

Amazing that they are able to tear themselves away from the revolutionary fervour for long enough to attack someone elses demo.

cops, fash and misfits post here too

Thank god for True Revolutionaries.

06.11.2012 09:46

Indeed, perhaps the true revolutionaries above could share with us what meaningful productive action they took part in on this evening whilst everyone else was wasting their time at this event?? i'm sure, given their disdain for those who turned out that there's no chance they were just sat on their arse doing nothing...

And perhaps they could also post details of the next actions they are organising so that the naive innocents who turned out for the Anonymous protest will know how better to spend their time in future. Thank god for true revolutionaries who can go on indymedia, point out where everyone else is going wrong and eh, go back to doing nothing...

someone

@anonymous @Bandana @Checkboard

06.11.2012 10:12

Thanks to very intelligent commentators for pointing-out shortcomings in last night's protest. Where would we be without geniuses like you? Unfortunately what's even more obvious, and even more relevant, is that what YOU did - and that's NOTHING - is even LESS likely to achieve ANYTHING

@Checkboard specifically, you criticise other people for not choosing "to re-enact the scene where the PM is dragged into an underground storm drain and executed at point blank range", the pertinent point here is that it's YOU who "didn't choose to re-enact the scene where the PM is dragged into an underground storm drain". Don't criticize other people for not doing things you havn't got the courage to do yourself

Photo of arresting officers

06.11.2012 10:49

http://www.flickr.com/photos/noslen22/8160473655/

http://www.flickr.com/photos/noslen22/8160473011/

Shadow

Free Manning (900 days)! Free Assange (2 years)! Free yerself (a lifetime)!

06.11.2012 11:46

LONDON REPORT/ PHOTOS - Heading to the Oval to engage Australian footy fans over Julian Assange

It was a last minute goal by Brad Ebert

http://tinyurl.com/cgladv6 that gave Port Adelaide the win over Geelong in the Australian Rules exhibition match at London's Oval on Saturday. And it was a last minute idea to head out to the Oval tube station pre-match to engage the thousands of Australians heading to the game with the plight of their fellow London based countryman Julian Assange.
REPORT/ PHOTOS CONTINUED...........

http://tinyurl.com/bv2gezh

Solidarity with our Prisoners!

N.U.S. PROTEST NOV 21st - SPREAD THE WORD #Demo2012

06.11.2012 12:14

#Demo2012 - 21 Nov 2012

Stickers, flyers, leaflets, e-mail, word-of-mouth, on-line, spread the word about the N.U.S. protest on Nov 21

http://www.facebook.com/events/259158454193672/

Rex

Objective measurement, Rally Against Debt, BBC

06.11.2012 12:47

When the Establishment tried to fake-up a movement in FAVOUR of austerity, despite its organisers' massive financial backing, the one single demo they managed to scrape together was the risible "Rally Against Debt"

The Establishment wouldn't organise demos if demos aren't important, but their best effort attracted 350 supporters (almost all the kind of salaried right-wing lobbyists who are paid to troll progressive websites). Compare that to the hundreds of thousands who protested against austerity on Oct 20 on March 26 last year

http://www.guardian.co.uk/commentisfree/2011/may/16/rally-against-debt-taxpayers-alliance

As for Operation Vendetta, no surprise the BBC are under-reporting attendances, since so much of the anger was directed at the Establishment for tolerating paedophile rings at eg - 10 Downing Street and the BBC etc, last thing the BBC want to report is that public anger about their corruption is bringing thousands of people out onto the streets

Carl

Next year it will be much bigger

06.11.2012 13:50

Don't worry next year it will be much bigger. Roll on November the 5th 2013!

Anon a mouse

Yearly??

06.11.2012 16:41

I thought you lot were supposed to electronically bring the system down in December this year so you've been bleating on throughout 2012? Surely there would be no need for a demo next year if this is the case.

plastic actor

@plastic actor

06.11.2012 18:32

Seriously, troll, is that the best you can come up with? Get a life

Pete

@Pete

06.11.2012 19:48

I'm not a troll. It was a serious question. Where's the answer?

aPlastic Actor

06.11.2012 20:08

Which part of what you wrote is the serious question?

You're clearly hostile from the way you use 'bleating'

"I thought you lot were supposed to electronically bring the system down in December this year so you've been bleating on throughout 2012? Surely there would be no need for a demo next year if this is the case."

Now do you have any links to prove the claim that there would be no parliament after December? Cos the 'bleating' hasn't been loud enough for me to hear it yet.

troll detector

WOT? No CCTV?

06.11.2012 20:19

Parliament Square camera mysteriously not on line last evening. Funny that keeps on happening...... you'd almost think.....

cyclops

Be careful about what you screen-capture

06.11.2012 23:56

@cyclops you really shouldn't post-up screen-grabs that include people's personal details in the menu bar (you have to be careful about stuff like that). I presume your computer's deliberately set-up using a false name.....

Either way, clearly the BBC have an interest in minimizing publicity surrounding this demonstration

Verb

Photo of police kidnapper

06.11.2012 23:59

Cop kidnaps citizen 5th Nov 2012

Remember that face

Arc

Cheers

07.11.2012 11:13

The FIT team are grateful for all the great shots of unmasked faces.

Doh

good effort

07.11.2012 14:01

for a cold night in central london, getting this many people together is not a bad effort. it brings peoples attention to teh fact we want change and we want it now. although, having said that, nothing will truly change until we start bombing and shooting...sorry to have to say it, but no change has ever occured without violence. and the trolls can say what they fucking want, but history has shown us that violence against tyranny can work, even as far back as the battle of morgarten (dont believe the wikipedia version, it was mostly peasants that fought off the hapsburg army who vastly outnumbered them), even up to more 'modern' examples of palestinian liberation groups and nationalist/republican groups in Ulster. However you come to it, if you want real revolution, literally violently dismantling your enemy and its structures is the only way to go about bring on any real change. if the provo's had not taken up arms against loyalist lynch mobs on the bogside estate, then the 'modern troubles' would not have kicked off in the way they did. the provo's showed people that they would fight and die to tilt the balance of power into their favour. in palestine (lets not forget israel was born out of terrorism, blowing up atleast 120 UK soldiers pre-1948, before UK government got the fuck out of there) various groups have fought against oppression and in their own way have helped to save the people from being completely shat on,these are merely examples of when using force gets you some degree of autonomy from a previuosly enslaving state.

the recurrent theme here is the powerful states involved, the hapsburgs, the UK, the Israelies....they are groups of powerful (mostly) men and they will literally stop at nothing to keep the staus quo the way it is. therefore, logically, mathematically, the only way to bring about lasting change and liberation for the planet and its inhabitants, its to do away with those systems and those that defend those systems, by FORCE.
anything other than that is reform, and then its not my revolution.

francesca

@Doh - blur faces

08.11.2012 11:34

Speaking personally, I would never post or re-post any photos that weren't in the public domain already, therefore readily accessible to the police anyway

You will have noticed however that some of the photos posted here, the person responsible was sensible enough to blur any visible faces

Carlo

IMCs