It’s half midnight on 28 January by the time I open the door to my hostel room. Less than four hours later, I am walking back through it and out onto the Royal Mile for today’s adventure – documenting the shutting down of Leonardo Factory in Edinburgh.

There’s a wee crowd gathered at the bus stop when I arrive. As she pulls in more appear from the shadows, masked up and at the ready… silent Scottish ninjas out to fuck with the system.

I’m not going to lie, it’s kind of hard writing these pieces – it’s a similar formula when you’ve done a few of these actions. Some awesome people do an awesome thing. Invariably, someone comes along to be a bastard. Usually theres a happy ending.

Sometimes you’ve really got to rely on the police to give you something good to write about. They aren’t always helpful.

Edinburgh: hardly the best and brightest

By quarter past five, protestors had successfully created blockades at all four designated entrances to the Edinburgh facility. Two security guards held position in front of the gate, whilst another couple of unidentifiable individuals stalked menacingly. Later on it became clear these must have been private security – one of them overheard boasting of multiple military tours in the middle east;

I went there to help people

Okay buddy…

Police arrived shortly to assess the scene and continued to amass. There were reports of at least 30 officers gathering in a carpark around the corner.

At almost exactly 6.30am the officers not gathered in the carpark, tired and at the end of a long shift decided to move in. These state sanctioned thugs managed to get behind the line, clambering over peaceful activists to do so, eagerly helped by both private security personal.

One wore a “Leonardo Visitor” lanyard. Both were witnessed assaulting various protestors. Police allowed this with impunity and when a journalist reporting on this tried to bring it to their attention he was directed to attend a police station if he wished to make a complaint about the incident happening within arms reach of the officers.

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Questions must be asked of Police Scotland. Who are these individuals and why were they allowed to assist the police in their duties? On public land? And, with no identification visible to anyone?

Why were officers on the scene not concerned about unidentified private citizens assaulting protestors?

Why was a journalist, a man of colour, told to visit a police station to report a crime happening in full view? The closest station – Drylaw –  is 15 minutes away.

A mile walking on foot for justice?

State sanctioned repression of peaceful dissent in Edinburgh

You could see how futile the effort would always end up being – theres a correlation between the violence and the desperation of an action usually. When they start pushing unarmed women into the road in the way of traffic – beeping as someone is nearly thrown under the wheels –  you know they are really clutching at straws.

Yes two or three staff at the Edinburgh facility managed to squeeze into the gate, but in doing so the police line was stretched, distorted and finally bowed to the pressure of the crowd, intent on shutting shit down. A hasty retreat was negotiated with the crowd as officers found themselves out of their depth – exhausted and surrounded, and they were permitted to leave the scrum; the entrance once again blockaded.

They left soon after, their shifts over. Tired and beaten; the states resolve broken by a bunch of beatniks. Home, to their own reflection in the mirror.

Hanging around the next few hours things felt quiet, a little too quiet. There was a certain level of anxiety hanging in the air. Were the police regrouping? Its so easy to read into all the movements on the other side of the the road. The security guards aimlessly bumbling around, police coming and going.

It quickly became obvious they didn’t have the numbers – inspectors on their phones discussing “resources” – could he loose those two officers? What a shame – theres actual policing to do – not just bullying protesters? Big sad meow for the police. Failure it was.

Lost Property?

And what a failure. Not content with being totally unable to break the Edinburgh blockade, turns out that the first shift had been even more incompetent than anyone realised… To add to the hilarity of their inability to do their jobs properly, the blue bibs were forced to come across and beg for help finding some missing equipment. What equipment did they loose? Turns out in the scuffle they managed to loose three canisters of PAVA and a set of handcuffs.

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Now this wasn’t news to me – I had earlier found a PAVA canister in the middle of the road while live streaming and immediately handed it to an officer.

After all, who the fuck is irresponsible enough to leave a fucking firearm lying in the road…

Neither the remaining canister outstanding or the handcuffs were located. Dunno about you but I wouldn’t want to be having that conversation

sorry gaffer I lost a firearm

I’m sure they were feeling pretty shitty about it – and you know what I probably would too.

But I wouldn’t then go and take that out on a journalist doing his job from a public place, legally…

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Fucking unreal.

I wish police realised that the respect they are given is earned. You don’t get someone to force someone to look up to you. Just because you dragged your arse out of bed, pulled your lickle bib on and combed your hair, it doesn’t make you respectable.

Let’s not pretend this is anything other than what it clearly is.

No one chewed me out for disrespecting them – no one demanded my credentials.

No one shouted at and threatened me like what happened to another journalist, just for doing her job.

When two calm, professional, Muslim journalists are targeted by police while the abrasive white guy gets to carry on without even a comment you know that institutional racism is not merely confined to the MET police.

The rest of the action in Edinburgh continued without much fuss. They knew they were beat and they stayed away for the most part – besides a couple of brief journeys across the road to plead for information – when would this be over so they could leave? Activists finally had pity on them and scattered into the beautiful winter sunshine shortly after 1; the morning shift vanquished… The sounds of chanting still ringing in our ears…

We’ll be back…

So will we…

Thank you for your action guys! See you soon!

Featured image and additional images via the Canary

By Barold

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