17.10.1996

No more police thuggery

Jimmy Nolan, chair of the Mersey Ports Shops Stewards Committee, reports on the aftermath of the weekend of action in Liverpool

After the 47 arrests at the Liverpool dockers’ mass picket on Monday September 30 the Liverpool dockers have been waging a vigorous campaign against the actions of the police over the whole weekend of action.

Even at the demonstration on Saturday it was obvious that the police did not come as passive bystanders: they came as an armed force.

Those who were arrested have been charged with petty nonsense, such as obstruction - which is a joke, given the thuggery of the police.

On Monday we immediately sent representatives to the Labour Party conference to speak to the Merseyside MPs. We have gained their support and now are launching a campaign to expose the actions of the police. We are calling for an independent inquiry into the police actions on the day and have much video and photo footage as evidence.

Whether or not we are successful in getting an inquiry, all workers need to oppose these police actions, which should not be allowed on any picket line or demonstration.

Support is still growing internationally for the dockers. We have an International Steering Committee meeting in France on October 27, where different representatives will report back.

Meanwhile dockers throughout the whole of Spain will be taking a day of action in support of our dispute. The Canadian TUC is discussing a boycott campaign against Canadian Pacific, which is a huge transnational company, and is the parent company of ships that operate out of Liverpool.