Tuesday 29 September 2009

Sizewell blockaders acquitted!!

*Breaking news* - Sizewell 5 anti-nuclear blockaders found not guilty

Two days into their four-day trial, the Sizewell five have been found not guilty of aggravated trespass after a blockade in 2008 of the Sizewell nuclear power station in Suffolk. 

News just through from Lowestoft Magistrates' Court in Suffolk, eastern England that the Sizewell Five have been acquitted after the prosecution failed to provide evidence that the defendants were on private land, meaning that they were all acquitted on this legal technicality. 

The trial related to a physical blockade of the sole access road to the Sizewell nuclear power plant last year. The defendants had held up a banner reading "Nuclear Power is Not a Solution to Climate Chaos" as they physically blocked the road with their bodies and arm tubes. 

The defendants had planned to use the defence that they were acting to prevent breaches of health and safety legislation resulting from the continued operation of the nuclear power plant in Suffolk. They had planned to call at least one expert witness, Dr Ian Fairlie, an independent nuclear consultant, but the judge had refused to allow this on the first day of trial, despite earlier pre-trial reviews. 

More details will no doubt follow from the blockaders themselves (once they have sobered up). 

Nuclear People Power network 
e-mail: vd2012-npp [at] yahoo.co.uk 
Homepage: http://stopnuclearpower.blogspot.com

Pre-trial press release

Indymedia report


Additional information from the blockaders:

It was good to get off but it would have been better if we had won the case on the issues about increased cancer deaths, breaches of health and safety... and all the other issues we brought up.

There had been two previous blockades,
which surprisingly did not result in arrests:

August 2007: http://www.indymedia.org.uk/en/2007/08/379149.html 
December 2007: http://www.indymedia.org.uk/en/2007/12/386851.html 

We have had several other protests at the site including (video):
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ti73TfSFSJU

I will not put up our legal defence here but if anyone is on charges and wants to find out more please do not hesitate to contact us.

The judge did not get round to considering the evidence provided by the defendants. This included the KiKK which is a German study that showed that there are large increases of leukaemia and other cancers in the vicinity of nuclear power plants similar to the one at Sizewell B. They also claimed that several breaches of nuclear regulations leading up to and after the leak at Sizewell A in 2007 meant that the plant was not operating legally.

KiKK report

Background to report (in English) and links to report: http://www.bfs.de/en/kerntechnik/kinderkrebs/kikk.html 

Ian Fairlie comments on the KiKK report in the New Scientist: http://www.newscientist.com/article/mg19826535.300-comment-lets-take-cancer-clusters-seriously-this-time.html

Sizewell Leak

Sizewell A – Cooling Pond Recirculation Pipe Failure Incident Of 7 January 2007. Assessment Of The Nii Decision Making Process, John Large Associates
http://www.largeassociates.com/cz3179/R3179-A3.pdf

Sizewell nuclear disaster averted by dirty laundry, says official report, Guardian June 2009: http://www.guardian.co.uk/environment/2009/jun/11/nuclear-waste-nuclearpower

Alarm did not sound for Sizewell leak, Evening Star January 2007:
http://tinyurl.com/yendamt

plunk 

e-mail: theatreofwar [at] hushmail.com

Friday 25 September 2009

Sizewell blockade - pre-trial press release

Are Sizewell Activities Lawful?

25th September 2009

Five local activists calling themselves the Sizewell Blockaders are appearing in Lowestoft court next week (w/c 28 Sept 09) charged with aggravated trespass at Sizewell Nuclear Power Stations.

The charges relate to a blockade, which took place back in July 2008 when the 5 activists locked themselves together on the end of the only entrance road to the nuclear power stations. The five activists claim that the stations should be shut down for health and safety reasons and therefore the activities on the site are not lawful.

Some of the defendants are calling Ian Fairlie, a Consultant on Radioactivity in the Environment who will be giving evidence about recent German studies (the KiKK study) which found that all types of cancer as well as leukaemia occurred significantly more frequently in the vicinity of nuclear power plants (within a radius of 5 km) than in further distant areas

Mell Harrison, 38, from Geldeston, a Campaigns officer for Campaign For Nuclear Disarmament said ‘when we took the action the government was pressing ahead with Nuclear power despite accidents such as the leak at Sizewell in 2007 and the worrying results of the German study. There are many cleaner and quicker ways of meeting our energy needs and cutting carbon emissions.”

The ‘Sizewell Blockaders’ are appearing at Lowestoft magistrates court for the four day trial from 28th Sept – 1st October.

Three of the defendants are represented by Bindmans Solicitors of London and two are representing themselves at the trial.

ENDS

Further Information

KiKK report

Background to report and links to report: http://www.bfs.de/en/kerntechnik/kinderkrebs/kikk.html

Ian Fairlie comments on the KiKK report in the New Scientist: http://www.newscientist.com/article/mg19826535.300-comment-lets-take-cancer-clusters-seriously-this-time.html

Sizewell Leak

Sizewell nuclear disaster averted by dirty laundry, says official report, Guardian June 2009: http://www.guardian.co.uk/environment/2009/jun/11/nuclear-waste-nuclearpower

Alarm did not sound for Sizewell leak, Evening Star January 2007: http://www.eveningstar.co.uk/content/eveningstar/news/story.aspx?brand=ESTOnline&category=News&tBrand=ESTOnline&tCategory=news&itemid=IPED09%20Jan%202007%2014%3A08%3A23%3A043

The defendants details


Rebecca Dale an accountant , 34, from Bungay

 Mell Harrison who works for the Campaign for Nuclear Disarmament, 38 from Geldeston

Nicola Stikles is a environmental education teacher, 39 from Saxmundham

Irene Willis, retired teacher, 61 from Essex 

Pete Lux, an office manager, 47 from Beccles

For more info, including during the trial, contact

Mellcndeast [at] cnduk.org

07760 161755
 


Sizewell blockaders Trial dates

over a year later ! but hey at least at the end we will not have any bail conditions!!

Please come and support if you can.

Thanks,
Mell
more info
mellcndeast@cnduk.org
07760161755