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'Suffragette' Tamsin held in Parliament climate protest
Anna Davis and Terry Kirby14.10.08
HUNDREDS of environmental campaigners laid siege to the Palace of Westminster last night after they failed to storm Parliament in a demonstration aimed at replicating a suffragette protest of 100 years ago.
A line of police officers held the protesters some in Edwardian-style costumes at bay at the main St Stephen's Entrance while officials secured the doors with two large metal bars.
Five arrests were made for breach of the peace. The hammering of protesters, chanting "deeds not words" could be clearly heard inside Westminster. Police said the protest was "peaceful but vociferous" and that none of the demonstrators had entered the building.
Green campaign group Climate Rush organised the direct action to mark the centenary of an identical "rush" by suffragettes on 13 October, 1908.
The aim was to draw attention to climate change and plans to expand both Heathrow and Stansted airports. After more than two hours outside Parliament, their leader conceded the attempt to "rush" the building had failed and the protesters dispersed.
The demonstration began peacefully at about 6.30pm as the protesters, many dressed as suffragette leader Emmeline Pankhurst, listened to speeches from MEP and Green Party leader Caroline Lucas, and journalist Rosie Boycott.
Ms Lucas, who had told the demonstration there were fewer than 100 months left before climate change became irreversible, later defended the direct action.
She said: "In this situation it's legitimate to take peaceful, direct action, just like the suffragettes did 100 years ago. They were simply arguing for the right to vote but now we are campaigning for the right of everybody on this planet to survive."
The MEP criticised the Prime Minister for coming to the aid of City bankers but not doing enough to prevent climate change. Ms Boycott, former editor of The Independent on Sunday, The Independent and The Daily Express, said: "It's 100 years to the day since the suffragettes came to Parliament.
"Climate change is closer to my heart but 100 years ago to the day our grandmothers did extraordinary things they didn't get to appreciate. We protested today because there needs to be more action on climate change." After the speeches, the demonstrators launched their "rush" on the St Stephen's entrance, stopping traffic and confronting police.
One protester, Rosie Haworth-Booth, 62, from Wandsworth, said: "It's a pity we couldn't get into Parliament. I was near the front and got a bit afraid. I'm too old for this. The Government is prepared to give £50 billion to help the banks and more people will be affected by this issue."
Climate Rush organiser Jennifer Ruhemann said: "Climate change is a man-made problem, that is why women must take action. A hundred years ago women were calling for the right to vote, now women are calling for climate action."
Among those held by police was another organiser, Cambridge graduate Tamsin Omond, 23. She was detained overnight for a breach of bail conditions which followed her arrest in February for scaling the roof of Parliament in protest at the Heathrow expansion.
Speaking to the Evening Standard before she was arrested, Ms Omond said: "I am really pleased that so many people turned up to protest. I had a three-hour MA exam today which I had to leave half way through to get here. I doubt I've done that well. I want to radicalise a lot of women and get Gordon Brown scared about how many different people are getting involved in direct action.''
Ms Omond, from Belsize Park and the granddaughter of a baronet, was appearing at City and Westminster magistrates' court today and could be remanded in custody until her trial in November.
Reader views (13)
Engineer, just because local temperatures are falling doesn't mean that global temperatures are not rising. If they are not then why are the glaciers and the Ice sheets at the poles melting. I would like nothing better than to be wrong, but we are sleepwalking into oblivion. Time to wake up and take action
- Hazel, Skipton, London
Hundreds of women - I wonder why the number isn't given.
1 or 2 hundred women protested about global warming 10 years after the highest recorded temperature, in other words after a decade of falling temperatures and they can't really understand why no-one is listening.
No-one is listening because the looney left have been crying "the sky is falling" for 30 years now - and the actual temperature anomolie for august 2008 was NO HIGHER than when Hansen started the ball rolling in 1988.
- The Engineer, Copenhagen, DK
Jools, you are missing the point entirely. When laws are wrong it is our obligation to demonstrate. The suffragettes bravely took direct action 100 years ago so that now women today have equal rights as men. The suffragettes yesterday demanding strong climate laws have an equally important reason to take direct action.
Angus, there is not a single peer-reviewed paper published in the past five years that would support the misinformation that was broadcast in The Great Warming Swindle. Unfortunately, it was just a bit of wishful thinking and utterly irresponsible of Channel 4. There is absolute consensus amongst scientists that climate change is real and is a serious threat.
- Jody, London
Please stop referring to them as "suffragettes"! They are protestors, nothing more. Not that there's necessarily anything wrong with that but please don't elevate them to something they're not.
- Helen, London, UK
It was an amazing and inspiring event, really good to have the like of the Womens Institute down there, it was a much more women and kids dominated event than your average protest. Great to see a new constituency getting involved.
- Calvin, Brentford, London
The overwhelming majority of the world's scientists consider climate change to be a great and increasing threat to humanity and other species. I am totally in favour of any peaceful, direct action to force the government to protect us from this threat. I only wish I had been at this demonstration - but illness prevented it. Go, sisters!
- Jess Mcdonald, London
You are clearly a misguided fool. Yes it is true that the earth exists in a constant state of flux and global tempretures rise and fall naturally within the earths cycle. However, human activity is speeding up and exacerbating the natural cycle and may be pushing the earth to a point of no return.
Its pointless to argue but I will just say this-I would much rather be proved wrong on climate change than proved right, unfortunately by the time we are able to prove it either way, it could already be too late.
- Anon, London, England
You are clearly a misguided fool. Yes it is true that the earth exists in a constant state of flux and global tempretures rise and fall naturally within the earths cycle. However, human activity is speeding up and exacerbating the natural cycle and may be pushing the earth to a point of no return.
Its pointless to argue but I will just say this-I would much rather be proved wrong on climate change than proved right, unfortunately by the time we are able to prove it either way, it could already be too late.
- Anon, London, England
Yes, Angus, because everything on TV is always right.
- Sj, london, uk
The theory of sunspots and cosmic rays was proved false as there is absolutely no correclation between either and temperature swings in the last 50 years. sorry Angus but it looks like you'll need to find another theory to blame for your self indulgence.
- Bob, Cheam
How amazing! Women came together last night in a way they should have been doing for a long time. Its men, including the climate change deniers, that have led to millions of women the world over already suffering the catastrophic impact of climate change. Women are the poorest people in the world, and its women in rich countries that have to stand up for them. I salute the Climate Rush in the name of all the suffragettes still out there!
- Leila, London
The main protest against airport expansion at around 4pm was legally organised, but if the 6.30 storming of Parliament wasn't legal, then maybe the organisers should be prosecuted?
Silly me, the Kingsnorth case showed that you can engage in aggression (direct action) so long as you claim the environment as an excuse. Perhaps it will take a judge or a politician having their 4x4 trashed by an eco-warrior to change this?
- Jools, London
Those protesters were misguided because the theory that global warming is caused by the burning of fossil fuels is wrong. There was a documentary that explained why that theory is wrong two years ago on Channel 4 called The Great Global Warming Swindle. The read cause of global warming it explained was solar activity such as sunspots and cosmic rays from outer space.
- Angus, London
