Smash EDO protesters on national recruitment drive (From The Argus)

Smash EDO protesters on national recruitment drive

11:50am Tuesday 22nd November 2011 in News

Anti-arms protesters are touring the country to muster support for demonstrations next year.

Smash EDO is holding a publicity drive in a bid to reignite its campaign to close the EDO weapons components factory in Home Farm Road, Moulsecoomb.

The group wants to hold a series of monthly mass demonstrations to mark its Summer of Resistance campaign in 2012.

The group has announced it plans to hold a May Bank Holiday protest and said they would not rule out direct action aimed at the EDO MBM/ITT factory.

Representatives from Smash are in the middle of a tour of venues in Manchester, Liverpool, Sheffield, Edinburgh and Newcastle, talking to anti-military groups and running workshops about direct action protest tactics.

The group’s May Day protest in 2009 brought the city to a standstill as riot police and protesters clashed, while in January 2010 campaigners from the group caused £200,000 of damage in a raid on the factory.

The group says it will host a series of community meetings in the city in the new year where it will try to reach out to different people.

Andrew Beckett, a spokesman for Smash EDO, said: “We have received great support from a lot of people.

“We’re not trying to recruit people to our group but we’re hoping they will come here and do their own protest.

“It’s impossible to tell what the scale of the protest but there will be a series of mass demonstrations throughout the summer.”

Mr Beckett conceded that repeat scenes of the 2009 May Day protests could be “counter-productive” to gaining public support for the group.

A Sussex Police spokeswoman said: “We have not been advised of any planned protests and are therefore not in a position to comment on them.”

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