Update 28th February 2008

Last month saw honourable picnickers holding a tea party at the Home Office, lying down in the road outside Downing Street, aswell as attempting to post a blank placard (complete with address, and stamp) as a giant postcard to the state, all in response to the Government's 'Managing Protest' Consultation.

This was part of the new Campaign for Free Assembly's nationwide Day of Action, held on 12th January and to be repeated on 1st March 2008. You can see reports and pictures from the various actions that took place around the country on that day, here. In the Campaign's words: 'the government's consultation regarding the Governance of Britain needs a response not on paper but on the streets.'

Other SOCPA news includes:

1.Sequani Six

2. Smash EDO
On Saturday 19th January 150 demonstrators and a samba band gathered at Churchill Square in Brighton to protest at heavy handed tactics increasingly being used by Brighton police against legitimate protest groups and to promote the Smash EDO cause. See pictures and report here and more info here.

3. Another Government Success
It has been reported, to little fanfair (this month's Prospect Magazine) that since October 2006, the Serious Organised Crime Agency's Public Information Hotline (manned 5 days a week) has received just 16 calls.

4. Marc Valee
A photographer who was badly injured following police action during the Sack Parliament demonstration in Parliament Square in October 2006 has agreed an out of court-settlement from the Metropolitan Police Service. Full story, here.

5. Stop Press
Three Recent Arrests
Report on Recent Arrests of Barbara, Steve and Ant outside of Parliament, here.

6. Changes to Legal Advice at the Police Station
Find new rules and Bustcard, courtesy of AM (Camp FA's fine inhouse legal expert) here. Please note, these rules only apply until Hitler's 119th  birthday. From  21st April 2008 new and worse conditions will apply.

7. New Surreal Placard
Long term picnickers will be more than happy to note that our blank placard has been outdone, both in terms of surreality and overall artistic integrity.

A Call to Establish Democracy!

As the correct way to democratic renaissance and a commonsense way of organising society is now being called into question, how are we best to respond?

The short answer is, as Quentin Skinner once put it: "In order to maximise our own liberty, we must cease to put our trust in princes, and instead take charge of the public arena for ourselves, [constructing a genuine democracy] in which government is for the people as a result of being by the people".

International Law, likewise states in Article 1 of the UN Covenant on Civil and Political Rights, UNCPR that: "All peoples have the right to self-determination. By virtue of that right they freely determine their political status and freely pursue their economic, social and cultural development."

But in multicultural UK, how are we to define a people, and where are we to begin? The key, as new People in Common campaign manager (codename 'Hippy in a Suit') agrees, is to think of one's own *locality* as a potential new people, or multicultural sovereign in the making. And then, from there to find novel ways to work together *interculturally* to reorganise society, *independently* and from the ground up..

C421/Free Assembly 

Our 'creative response' to s.132 SOCPA included the 2006 C421 Project, (see statement here), at which, in partnership with other groups it was decided we should now begin the campaign for a new, democratic constitution, to be built from the ground up by people in common cause. So, along with the statement, here are some other broad principles upon which we might be able successfully build an effective coalition:

Principles of Democracy - Towards A New Social Covenant

In order for people to be free, and for justice to prevail *everywhere*, we must collectively build our own government, from the ground up.

ie. Regular decentralised mobilisation
for a new, libertarian politics..

A New Social Covenant | Suggested Policy Demands:

(1) The reordering of society from the ground up so that executive power vests with the people on the street and in each locality, in accordance with the UN right to self-determination, EU subsidiarity and democracy as 'government by the people', and by way of the concept of 'Free Assembly'.

(2) People's (Community Land Trust, CLT) buildings, with garden on every street: each to be run by the people who live around it as they see fit (and each Locality to be recognised in *meta-law* as a new social covenant 'Free Assembly').

(3) New communities enclosures: the ring fencing of parcels of land for the facilitation of low-impact, intentional, human-scale communities (kibbutz/commune style CLTs), each standing independently as a Free Assembly, with security of tenure and the same constitutional status as enjoyed by each locality outlined in (2) and (4).

(4) Free Assemblies to enjoy full executive and judicial powers of first instance, to be constitutionally recognised and include, alongside electoral processes delegate-system voting rights in Parliament, local taxation powers, the right to petition for and challenge new legislation, and constitutionality on all matters.

(5) Widespread expansion of affordable, low impact self-governing CLT, self-build, 4th Option and SPAN style housing projects.

(6) A new regime of Currency Transaction CTT and other Corporate Taxation on bank speculation and other multinational profits, monies to be ring fenced for grassroots development projects, to pay for basic sanitation, emergency relief, education and housing in the poorest sections of the world.

(7) EU Common Agricultural Policy CAP funds (currently 30 billion pounds of EU taxpayers budget per annum, and of enormous adverse effect on fair trade for developing agricultural economies) to be diverted for new CLT purchases outlined in (2) (3) and (5).

(8) A written constitution with built-in sunset clause (constitution to lapse every 15 years) to incorporate these and other policy demands and allow for judicial appeal procedures.

(9) To reign in on the absolute and unaccountable doctrine of Parliamentary Sovereignty, and guarantee the rights set out above, terms of written constitution (subject to sunset clause) to be recognised as new covenant *meta-law*, judicially enforceable against the state, as in the US.

(10) Terms of *meta-law* (new constitution) to include fundamental democratic rights of freedom of conscience, expression, protest and assembly, plus other rights set out in the UN Charter.

Encouraging Decentralised Mobilisation and A New Sovereignty, Built from Below

Let us use these ideas as a starting point around which to organise, according to the principles we stand for and to reflect the self-governing society we want to build. These principles are DIY, self-organising, indie, decentralized and democratic: non-hierarchical and from below. Let's convene regular public meetings in every locality.

"..set your foreheads against the ignorant Hirelings!...We do not want either Greek or Roman Models if we are but just & true to our own Imaginations.."
William Blake

To comment on these principles, please visit New Sovereignty or join the Forum.

Also, here are some links to other campaign groups that some of our members are involved in:

1. RESPOND TO THE CONSULTATION

In case you missed it, Gordon Brown once promised to repeal s.132-138 of SOCPA, which bans unauthorised demos and assemblies within 1km of Parliament, yet still it remains on the statute books. In October the government published a consultation document, "Managing protest around Parliament" which raised the question of whether or not to repeal s.132-8 (in spite of all the negative publicity, no-brainer). Worse, a spectre haunts the consultation, as it appears from the wording the police wish to increase their already formidable powers so they can, as at Parliament under SOCPA, control assemblies everywhere else in the country.

So, believe it or not, there is now a real and present danger the state will use the consultation as a fig-leaf with which to remove our hard won right to freely protest anywhere, anytime - by embarking on what is being called a "harmonisation upwards". It is therefore vital anyone who cares about the right to protest in this country responds to the Government consultation by the 17th January deadline. For more info on the details of this possible 'harmonisation', see below. But if you just want to know what to do, the consensus on how to respond to the consultation for the good of democracy is as follows:

(a) Call for sections 132 - 138 of SOCPA to be repealed

(b) Call for no increase in police powers to control marches and assemblies around Parliament or elsewhere (and so, in particular, no "harmonisation upwards" - see below for more on this).

(c) Call for no new "special provisions" for static demonstrations and marches around Parliament (again, see below).

Please take this important opportunity to show the strength of opposition to SOCPA, but also that restrictions on our democratic right to freely protest and assembly around Parliament, or anywhere else in the UK, are completely unacceptable. Please please respond to this consultation, and ask all of your friends to do the same. Responses should be emailed to protestaroundParliament@homeoffice.gsi.gov.uk or can be sent by post.

You can find out more about these three points by reading the Repeal SOCPA Briefing document here. Also, a PDF file of the Home Office consultation document is available here.

2. NATIONWIDE DAY OF ACTION 12th January

To respond adequately to the consultation, Saturday 12th January has been called as a nationwide day of action to defend freedom of assembly (see http://tinyurl.com/yrk2kn). Quite right too, as with s.132 freedom to assemble worldwide is not something that is given to us by consultation or consent, it is our democratic birthright won through the painful struggle of our ancestors and it should be defended with action alongside boring old paperwork.

A London event is already being organised: assemble 1pm, Saturday 12th January at the top of Trafalgar Square, National Gallery. Bring blank placards, action on day itself will leave it up to attenders to decide whether or not to go into the SOCPA zone and defy s.132, or not  (by respectively either writing on, or leaving blank, their placards) (for more info).

3. JOIN MARIA

NEW CAMPAIGN LINKS

As a result of the anger at s.132 and the linked C421 Project meetings in 2006-7 it was collectively decided to campaign for a new constitution, built from the ground up, starting with independent People's Assemblies in every locality. Watch this space for more info on this, and in particular the new People in Common campaign for a Local, north London Town/Parliament Square.

Also, here are some links to other campaign groups that some of our members are involved in. To suggest others, or debate these please join us at a picnic, or our lively forum.