Fitwatch Resisting and Monitoring Forward Intelligence Policing

‘Intelligence on the cheap’? Only if you don’t ask questions.

According to an Evening Standard article on Friday, those poor detectives at NPOIU are providing 'intelligence on the cheap', having to buy heaters for their freezing offices and living off Mcdonalds and Burger King.

However, like the majority of Evening Standard articles, the facts and figures only make sense if you don’t start asking questions. Firstly, it is difficult to tell which part of the NPIOU these figures are based on, or where the figures came from in the first place. Whilst it would be lovely to think they had emerged as part of an open and accountable police force, the piece reads far more as a drip fed police story served into the unquestioning hungry mouth of an Evening Standard hack.

Given there are no obvious figures for undercover work – regular accommodation, vehicles etc., it seems likely, although impossible to say for sure, that these figures are based on uniformed operations, and keeping, amongst others, the above pictured bunch of miscreants employed.

The figures themselves also do not stand up to scrutiny. The 154 hotel visits average at £201 per night, meals average at £13.50, flights (mostly domestic, and very questionable as to their necessity) at £150.95, and train journeys at £67.57. And whilst there are claims for 125 receipts for the M6 toll, no mention is made of how much the mileage of all these excursions have cost the tax payer. This is not doing things on the cheap by any stretch of the imagination.

More importantly, we need to look at why this money is being spent. Close to £100k worth of expenses are listed in the Standard article, which are only a very small part of the operational costs. This money is being spent on activities such as sending Ian Caswell to Plymouth to spy on those nefarious domestic extremists in Trident Ploughshares (did this involve one of the flights? A night in a hotel?), and monitoring gatherings such as Earth First.

Bringing NPOIU under the control of the Met has not legitimatised it and every penny spent on the unit is a penny too much. This is still a shadowy organisation happy to waste vast amounts of public money spying on protesters, and it must be disbanded.

Avon and Somerset police repress local paper

On the afternoon of august 17th, police raided a house in central Bristol where an editor of local newspaper The Autonomist lives. Riot police kicked down the door of the property without warning, detained the inhabitants for two hours, and seized articles relating to the production of The Autonomist. Delighted journalists from the Evening Post swarmed around outside, trying to photograph the detainees and remaining in contact with an officer inside by telephone at all times.

The grudgingly-produced warrant for the raid attempts to link the occupants to recent disorder (as did a frankly libellous sign erected outside by the police). It authorises the seizure of "rocks (may by having glass samples upon)" and "white paint", and refers repeatedly to "domestic extremisim [sic]". The list rounded out with such incriminating articles as "pedal cycles", "clothing", and "literature". Several other items not listed, such as passports, were also illegally seized.

The Autonomist is a popular but controversial local paper, produced by a small group of mainly homeless local people and distributed for free. They're dedicated to reporting unheard voices in the community, but this principled stance has caused problems in the past. Refusal to censor reports of the rising tide of sabotage attacks around Bristol, or to stick to police statements when reporting the riots in april, has earned the enmity of the police.

Collective member Lucy Parsons says "The seizure of phones, computers, and paperwork relating to the production of The Autonomist just as we start to compile the september edition is a clear, worrying, and damaging attack on journalistic independence. The demonisation of those who report the news as "domestic extremists", and the willingness to use violence to silence them, does not fill us with confidence in the police or the future of liberty in this country. Regardless, we will continue to produce The Autonomist, using computers at the library if we have to, and you can expect the september issue at the turn of the month."

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Note to groups, etc - We've lost all of the event listing data. If you've got events on in sept/oct, contact us at BristolAutonomist@Gmail.com

Note from occupants of the house to people who know them - We've not been able to contact a lot of you due to our phones being taken. We're all ok at the moment, and please pass this message around.

Don’t Panic: Don’t Talk

The Met today released another 44 photos of people they want to 'talk to'. The pictures are often of poor quality, and many of the 'targets' are masked up. The police have little chance of identifying many of these without help.

The information printed above has been distributed around London, but at the same time the Met police propoganda machine and their friends in the right wing press are bombarding people with messages to hand in themselves, their neighbours and even their children.

Some will probably do this in the expectation of justice, but there's been little that looks like justice so far in the magistrates courts.

One man, who stole bottles of water worth £3.50 from a looted Lidls store, was sentenced to six months in prison as he had contributed "to the atmosphere of chaos and sheer lawlessness". Another was given four months for merely telling a cop "I'd smash you if you took your uniform off".

Almost everyone else has been remanded into custody, and very long sentences look likely. Magistrates courts sitting through the night have been described as being a conveyor belt, and even the law society has raised concerns about unfair hearings and rushed justice.

The politicians have said that the riots are 'not political', which is odd, because the sentencing clearly is. It is blatantly about creating a 'deterrent', not giving just punishment. Young people are simply being made examples of.

Anyone tempted to hand themselves or anyone else into the police should remember this. Conviction will mean a long prison sentence and a record that will last a lifetime and scupper any chance of getting a decent job. It may even mean a family is evicted from their home. Does the person you want to grass up really deserve that?

People facing arrest should give 'no comment' interviews, and take time to consider whether to plead guilty or not. No-one should admit to anything, or plead guilty, until they know the extent of evidence against them. Anyone reading this who would like legal support for a friend or family member should get in touch. info@fitwatch.org.uk

The leaflet printed above was not produced or distributed by Fitwatch, but does have a similarity to information we published after the student demo back last December. When we published it then, the police shut down our website, claiming we were 'perverting the course of justice'.

This leaflet has already been reprinted on various websites and even quoted in the Evening Standard, so we have no fear of publishing it again here. Unless the Evening Standard too is perverting the course of justice.

The reason why the youth hate the police

This brilliant video appeared on youtube, and has also been published on the Police State UK site. It really shows the sort of mind-set the police have. I'd guess that a lot of people will recognise that arrogant, petty and vindictive attitude.

The cops appear to be Forest Gate, and as far as I can make out the number of the cop is KF 5309. It's possible though, it may be KE (East Ham).

Anyone in East London who sees him could maybe think of some choice words to say.

This is what ‘robust’ policing looks like

The video shows a unit of Manchester riot police baton, punch and kick three youths on push bikes. The police carrying on kicking and punching them even when they are on the ground. Is this the sort of 'robust' policing that David Cameron and the politicians of all parties have been clamouring for?

A fitwatcher’s view of the riots

I’ve felt a lot of emotions over the past few days ranging from joy to grief to anger. It’s been amazing to see people fighting back against the police and it’s been equally horrific to see damage to people’s homes and small shops, let alone the deaths in Birmingham yesterday.

However, today I am just angry. I feel utterly sickened at the attitude of large numbers of people who are suddenly supporting the police, who support the army being brought in, who want to see water canon and plastic bullets used on the streets.

I am livid with rage at people who have never experienced police harassment not even attempting to understand the brutalisation this causes. I know the effect it has had on me, and I’ve only experienced it through the choice of being politically active which is nothing compared to it happening on a daily basis because of your skin colour or where you live.

Not only did the cops kill Mark Duggan, they tried to spin a story about him shooting first, the same way they manufactured lies about Charles de Menzes and Ian Tomlinson amongst others. They showed utter contempt for his family by not communicating with them, and the demands of peaceful protesters to speak to a senior officer were ignored.

This was just one incident in a long line of police killings, brutality, harassment and abuse, but it was one incident too far, the spark was lit and now the flames are a long way from being quelled. In Hackney, it has been well documented that it was a stop and search which led to the conflict which quickly escalated.

For years the carrot of capitalism has been dangled in front of kids with the stick of police brutality and harassment to keep them in place. Now with EMA cut, youth services decimated, university unaffordable and mass unemployment, many don’t see a future and no longer have anything left to lose. This is a generation growing up with capitalism blasted in their faces, living in areas colonised by gentrification. Every day these shiny unattainable products are shoved in our faces through advertising, telling us our lives will be happier if we have the latest product, and then we act surprised when people start looting.

I don’t want to see our streets being controlled and patrolled by gangs, and totally support for example the Kurdish and Turkish communities who have been defending their shops and homes. However, there has been a massive gang on the streets for years – the police, the biggest gang of them all. All the people calling for greater police powers and militarisation could do well with remembering they are a bunch of corrupt murdering liars – something we have seen amply demonstrated on so many occasions.

Meanwhile, the cops and media are calling on people to grass up their friends and family, to shop-a-looter, custody suites are filled to capacity and there are reports of courts having to open through the night. Deterrent sentences will be passed, there will be scapegoats, and the anger will continue. Locking people up in our already over-crowded prisons will not help, and media witch-hunts simply add fuel to the fire.

Civil unrest is a nasty, ugly, messy business, and it is naive to think it is otherwise. There have been some amazing actions and there have been some which have been utterly reprehensible. However, instead of condemning the rioters we need to look at the root causes – violent repressive policing, social deprivation and capitalism as a whole. Otherwise things are only going to get worse.

Police place emphasis on corporate property protection.

Cars were burned and local businesses attacked in Hackney last night, in the third night of rioting in London. Local residents could only watch as their vehicles were smashed and torched, and in some cases homes were also damaged. Local businesses were also attacked and looted.

The local community will inevitably feel bitter and angry at their treatment by ‘the mob’, and the remarkable lack of support from the police. The police operation in Hackney seemed highly focused on protecting corporate interests in Mare Street, and throughout the night police used batons and shields to deliberately force rioters back into residential areas. The burning of privately owned cars was completely ignored, although plenty of resources were available to protect the police station, when it looked as though that too would be a target.

Only the hardest of individuals could fail to have sympathy for those who have lost homes and had to watch their businesses and vehicles being attacked. But despite the difficulties faced by local communities, it is undeniable that the tactics employed by rioters over the last three days have brought us to an unprecedented position. The government is in crisis talks and the police have lost control of the streets. Whatever your views on property damage, these riots have had a powerful impact, far beyond any other ‘protest’ on social inequality and injustice.

Even given the Met's emphasis on protecting corporate property, a great deal of it has been hit. In Enfield last night a major Sony factory was in flames, and buildings in Croydon were also set alight. Also, for the first time, the riots spread across the country, to Brimingham, Bristol, Manchester and Liverpool. Acting Met Commissioner Godwin has said there was ‘no place for the army’ and has instead deployed 13,000 police in the next 24 hours, cancelling the England v Netherlands football match to keep cops on the street. Whether that will be enough to quell the rioters remains to be seen.

FIT teams in Tottenham

Throughout the unrest FIT teams have been present and taking photos and film from behind police lines, such as in the video of Tottenham shown here. Given they now have three days of footage (and growing), plus all the CCTV from looted buildings etc, it is hard to see how they will ever go through it all. Going through student demo videos allegedly took 80 officers, and there is a hell of a lot more footage available from the last three days than they had from the student demos. Threats to track people down from FIT team and CCTV evidence don't seem all that convincing.

Eyewitness account from Edmonton ‘riot’.

The police in Edmonton and Enfield last night had clearly lost control. As groups of young‘rioters’ carried out sustained and rapid attacks on predominantly corporate targets, and the police could do little other than race around town in a frantic attempt to minimise damage.
The police were clearly psyched up and frustrated that they couldn’t break more heads. One man, who happened to be both young and black, but in the area to monitor policing for the network for police monitoring, was arrested for obstructing police after he refused to give a name and address. In the back of the police van he was then repeatedly punched in the face leaving him with cuts, bruises and a bleeding lip.
If this is a typical example of how the police treat local black and working class youths – and there is every reason to think that it is – then it isn’t difficult to understand the anger and rage that exists.
As well as the corporate targets the police themselves came under attack in a series of confrontations in Enfield town centre, and in Edmonton Green a police car was attacked and smashed, reportedly causing the police inside to run for safety.
Those out on the streets of Edmonton will inevitably be slagged off for the looting and indiscriminate attacks on property. But while there are reports of local businesses having windows broken, the focus of their attack was overwhelmingly the corporate giants. The large Tescos had its massive windows reduced to dust, causing a fair bit of amusement among passers-by. Carphone warehouse, Corals and assorted banks were other casualties.
It also has to be remembered that this is Edmonton, not the square mile. It is difficult to see how they could have done it differently, at least not without being completely ignored. And if the kids pocketed a couple of phones from carphone warehouse in the process, well good luck to them.
For the most part the youths were masked up and hooded, and moved fast, making it difficult for the police to act. FIT teams were out in their riot gear grabbing any opportunity to photograph anyone dressed in black, but they struggled. Having said that, arrests were made, and the cops reported 100 over the night.
Whatever the ethics of the tactics they used, it is undeniable that the police were stretched to breaking point. If this sort of unrest continues and spreads across London, the cracks are really going to show.

Facebook site calling for photos of PSNI cops gets shut down.

Facebook has pulled a page calling for members to share accounts and photographs of PSNI (police service of northern Ireland) cops who have been engaged in the harassment of people in republican areas following recent conflicts between republicans and police.

The Crown Forces Watch page stated, “Over the past few days in East Tyrone and South Derry the Crown Forces the PSNI/RUC have launched a massive harassment and intimidation Campaign aimed at Irish Republicans , we must work together to combat this campaign of intimidation and harassment , by working together as a fraternity opposed to this British oppression the aim of this group is to keep people updated on the attacks intimidation and ongoing harassment by the Crown Forces.”

At the same time as clamping down on the sharing of information amongst republicans, the PSNI are fighting a fierce legal battle to force journalists to share unpublished information with the PSNI. 

The PSNI has said that news organisations have unbroadcast material of the recent riots that was of ‘substantial evidential value’, and have demanded that they hand it over.  The news agencies , including the BBC, have gone to court to resist the demands, saying that passing over such information makes them merely ‘evidence gatherers for the police’.   

The two incidents amply demonstration the state’s attitude to the control of information.  Putting it simply, they want to know all about us, but they want us to know little about them.  They hide behind the cover of security and confidentiality, while our rights to privacy and freedom of expression count for nothing.  And they continue to get away with it, despite the fact that there cannot be many people left who trust the police to operate with integrity behind closed doors.

Our right to share information as well as to keep information to ourselves, is fundamental.  That is why Fitwatch got such amazing support when the police shut down our website last winter.  But the police have huge powers to interfere with those fundamental rights. 

Facebook has a reputation for pulling any discussion at the first sign of controversy, so it’s doubtful if the police had to apply a great deal of pressure.  If needed though, they would probably have quoted the provisions of the terrorism act 2000.  This makes it an offence to publish or elicit information about any police constable "of a kind likely to be useful to a person committing or preparing an act of terrorism”.  It is an offence so widely drawn it could be applied to almost anything, and has consistently worried journalists, bloggers and fitwatchers alike.

So far, we’ve not been aware of any successful prosecutions under the act.  But if the crown forces watch page reappears as a website - and we hope that it does - they may be best advised to make sure they have a secure site.

Meanwhile, Fitwatch remain committed to publishing photographs of forward intelligence teams, and information related to police harassment of demonstrators or political groups, wherever that is taking place, and would be particularly pleased, in the circumstances, to publish any such pictures of the PSNI that people are kind enough to send us.