Occupy Glasgow given 48-hour reprieve

CAMPAIGNERS who have set up camp in Glasgow’s main civic square as part of worldwide “anti-greed” protests were yesterday granted a 48-hour stay of execution from eviction.

A case brought by Glasgow City Council to remove demonstrators from George Square was continued until tomorrow afternoon, so as to allow members of the Occupy Glasgow group to seek legal advice.

In a civil hearing at Glasgow Sheriff Court, Sheriff Andrew Normand said it seemed a “reasonable compromise” to delay the case until 2pm tomorrow after protesters said they had unable to secure legal representation.

However, Gerry Moynihan QC, representing the local authority, stressed that the protesters should be moved by Friday at the latest in order to allow preparations for Armistice Day and Remembrance Sunday to go ahead unhindered.

Yesterday’s reprieve was the latest development in a stand-off which began on 15 October, when members of the group moved into a corner of George Square opposite Glasgow City Council’s headquarters. It escalated last Thursday, when the authority issued a letter of expulsion, ordering the group to leave immediately, albeit to no avail.

Last night, human rights lawyer Aamer Anwar told The Scotman he had offered legal advice to several of the protesters and described the council’s argument as “bizarre”, given that whose who fought for their country did so to help defend freedom of expression.

Members of Occupy Glasgow, who have launched a petition asking for public support, were due to hold a meeting last night to discuss their next move, where proposals of a relocation were expected to be discussed.

Patrick McManus, a member of the group, said: “The general consensus is that we want to respect Armistice Day, we have had loads of discussions about taking the camp down for Armistice Day. We’ve actually had a really good dialogue with the council and we want to maintain that. The council have been in some ways been quite supportive, and I can understand wanting to take countermeasures to ensure that this goes ahead.”

At the sheriff court, two members of the movement told Sheriff Normand they plan to cite articles 10 and 11 of the European Convention of Human Rights in their defence, claiming they should be allowed the freedom to express themselves and demonstrate.

Both John Crossan and Kirsty Forsyth told the court they needed more time for legal advice as the summons had only been handed to them on Thursday. They initially asked for a week but the request was opposed by Mr Moynihan, leading Sheriff Normand to grant the 48-hour window as a compromise.

During the 15-minute hearing, attended by around a dozen members of Occupy Glasgow as well as council officials, Mr Crossan explained that he was dyslexic, and needed additional time to digest the court summons.

Describing himself as an “occasional occupier”, he said the first time he had taken legal advice was around ten minutes before the case began, when he spoke to Mr Anwar. He and Ms Forsyth told the court they believed the removal of the group breached their human rights.

In turn, Mr Moynihan said the local authority wanted the matter resolved by 4 November. He told the court: “What needs to be weighed up here is the human rights of the individuals against those of other citizens who would normally attend these events which have taken place every year in George Square since 1922.

“The square has been occupied since 15 October and since then the council has tried to engage with the group in respect of their human rights by offering alternative venues. Three venues have been offered as alternatives.”

Mr Anwar, who spoke to protesters outside court following the hearing, said: “Obviously they welcome the fact the sheriff accepted they required more time to defend their case.”