ON THURSDAY 9 May the Orgreave trial of 15 miners began in Sheffield Crown Court. It is likely to continue for the next four to six weeks.
The Tories want to use this case to strengthen the public order act and to ensure more effective methods of crowd control but they also have to steer clear of making the trial too political. The prosecution is avoiding bringing Arthur scargill into the court although he was arrested on the The prosecution opened the case by alleging that pickets charged towards the police line singing the 'Star Spangled Banner', throwing bricks, stones and iron bars.
Pickets had also broken into several workplaces looking for materials to burn and throw. At one firm two owners locked themselves in an office while pickets ran amok through the yard. They tore a blanket into strips, soaked it in diesel oil to make petrol bombs.
At one point. apparently. pickets threw a gas cylinder onto a flaming barricade yet one of the owners of the firm was able to run up and Friday 10 May Tony Clements, South Yorkshire's Assistant Chief Constable took the stand for the prosecution. Clements was asked if any pickets were allowed near the main entrance of the Orgreave works. 'We allowed what can be loosely described as an official picket of eight Mr Colex, the judge an ex Tory MP, then asked Mr Clement not to get into the politics of the dispute by determining whether it was official or otherwise. Clement described the various nrotective kits the pollce were issued with. The long shields were used to stop missiles reaching the police who were not in rot gear. The round shields and battons were for groups of police to disperse the crowd and arrest people He then said that if there were about 200 demonstrators he would deploy a police special unit which is 40 constables, four sergeants and Asked by the prosecution if there was any danger to pickets and police from the lorries Clement replied that it was his job to ensure the safety of his men and the miners but that it was not in his power to stop the lorries unless they The trial of Dean Hancock, Russeli Shankland, and Anthony Williams continues at Cardiff find Andy Williams not guilty of murder but he still faces two charges of conspiring to damage the taxi driven by David Wilkie taking a working miner to Merthyr Vale colliery. Hancocks and Shankland still face the charge of murder.
The howls of outrage from the bourgeois press at the events leading to the death of David Wilkie and their delight at this trial are in direct contrast to their silence over the deaths of five will face life imprisonment for his brutality in tungule.
The double standards of the bourgeois press should not deter the labour movement from giving its backing to these class war prisoners.
WOMEN IN the Nottingham Woman's support groups are approaching Women Against Pit ship remains firm in their resolve to around the changes U1 U I ne abused by consolidate the Chances SUrE frie GOTCLI Wuh fighting union A RE-ALIGNMENT is taking place within the NUM. Under the pretext of opposing sweeping centralisation the South Wales leadership has come out against the rule changes proposed by the national exThree camps are emerging within the union. The hard right, led by Nottingham super scabs Roy Lynk Lne and David Prendergast, form one camp. A 'centre', around the self styled 'realists' on the South Wales The Scargill/Heathfield national leadertions Evolved in the campaign the Dress have being projected as a dicfragmented NUM.
Bernard Levin or they are members of the union are • nas spoken out against women Wall charge nal lney would be this and other vital issues.
as voting fodder for overrun by lesbians.
The campaign on the to step up their preparaLa break awar argue that the strike was VOD now increasingly differenmense ver threatening a break away.
rank and file miners strike stated that the rule change against the nea of ana Wing ballots on the NUM to conditions dictated bv the in the union. Periodic electruly national union and in Nottingham says. or autonomv for the are owners.
national government, na means nothing more thar This is the key issue inSard on the basis of itser ture that Roy Lynk and the Ivy die.
paign to get this message NO POLITICAL PRISONERS Miners benefit social TU Centre, 2a Brabant Road, Wood Green E-7E1 reduced + Green/Green Lanes Miners' Support Groups CRYNANT MALE VOICE CHOIR with guest speaker Betty Heathfield All proceeds to Miners' Amnesty 26 May, 7.30pm, Pavilion Homel Hempstead Tickets £3.50 Phone: Pavilion/Hemel 212170 Kings Langley 68103 (Concesslons avallable)
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