by smashedo -

Thanks for the support

Thanks very much to everyone who gave support to Smash EDO’s Summer of Resistance campaign – that’s everyone who banged pots and pans, turned out to demos or took direct action against the factory/.

Special thanks goes out to XminY (https://www.xminy.nl/) who gave us some much needed funds.

by smashedo -

Activists convicted of weapons factory trespass vow to keep exposing illegal arms trade – From Electronic Intifada

EDO weapons systems components were likely used by Israel to commit war crimes in Gaza.

(Ashraf Amra / APA images)

When fellow activist Gavin Pidwell and I were convicted of aggravated trespass of EDO, an arms manufacturer, at a UK Magistrates court on 23 August, pro-Israel commentators were quick to call it a “BDS [boycott, divestment and sanctions] fail.” However, this ignores both the wider implications of the arms trade and the long history of the campaign resisting EDO.

by smashedo -

Manufacture of components used to fire cluster munitions challenged in court – From Corporate Watch

Two anti-militarist activists were found guilty of aggravated trespass
in Brighton today. The pair had glued themselves to the gates of the EDO MBM
factory in the early hours of 27th April 2011 in protest at the sale of
umbilical cables for use in Afghanistan and also to the Israeli military.

by smashedo -

Sticky business – from SCHnews

Smash EDO protesters come unstuck at court

Two anti-militarist activists were found guilty of aggravated trespass at Brighton Magistrates Court on Thursday(23rd).

In the early hours of April the 27th the two intrepid campaigners, Gavin Pidwell and Jessica Nero, glued themselves to the gates of Mordor (or at least Brighton’s secondrate answer to domain of the Evil Eye– the EDO MBM arms factory) – in protest over the sale of components used in military warfare in Afghanistan and Israel. The sale items in question are bomb rack connectors, known in the trade as umbilical cables- Field Replaceable Connector Systems (FRCS) to be precise. They are used by the US and Israeli militaries.

Paul Hills, the managing director of EDO MBM, was called in court to give evidence for the prosecution case. During the three hour cross-examination he confirmed a range of arms contracts the death dealers are involved in whilst claiming the firm is not breaking UK law. Hills confirmed that EDO MBM did have a contract to supply FRCS cables to Lockheed Martin for the F-35 fighter aircraft. He claimed that, although that the F-35 will be supplied to Israel, EDO MBM cables won’t be on the Israeli F-35s. The defendant’s Barrister Victoria Kerly asked him, “You cannot be certain that your product which ends up on planes for the American air force does not enable the use of cluster bombs, can you?” He replied: “I can’t stop somebody doing something wilfully with our product without our knowledge.”

The magistrates court found the two defendants guilty and handed them a sentence of a 24 month conditional discharge and a £200 fine each. Although disappointed with the verdict, the defendants told SchNEWS they’re pleased with the information that came to light during the trial and hope it will eventually lead to EDO MBM and Paul Hill being charged.

The sticky pair plan to appeal

by smashedo -

Smash EDO blockaders found guillty, appeal planned

Two anti-militarist activists were found guilty of aggravated trespass in Brighton today. The pair had glued themselves to the gates of the EDO MBM factory in the early hours of 27th April 2011 in protest at the sale of bomb rack umbilical cables called Field Replaceable Connector Systems (FRCS) for use on US warplanes and also to the Israeli military.

by smashedo -

Brighton arms trade protest case – Verdict expected this Thursday

Smash EDO Press Release,. Wed 22 August 2012, Contact: Andrew Beckett or Sam Hayward – 0752655743

*

CASE NAME:

R-v-Nero and Pidwell

VENUE: Brighton Magistrates Court
Edward Street, Brighton
TIME: 10:am
DATE: 23 August 2012

+

Brighton Magistrates are expected to announce a judgement in the case of R v. Nero and Pidwell on Thursday 23 August 2012. The case continues from 2 August after running out of time due to complex legal arguments and evidence about aircraft weapons technology.

Two anti-war activists, Jessica Nero and Gavin Pidwell, face charges of Aggravated Trespass. In their defence they have presented evidence of the unlawful business activities of Brighton arms company EDO MBM Technology Ltd, a subsidiary of US arms maker ITT Exelis Inc. Exelis is a a $1.7billion multinational arms, security, and intelligence
technology company.

Jessica Nero and Gavin Pidwell were arrested on 26 April 2011 after blocking the firm’s factory gates in protest at its ongoing manufacture of weapons system umbilical connectors being supplied for use on the new Israeli F-35 aircraft, as well as US F-16, and A-10 fighter jets, all of which carry illegal cluster bombs as part of their arsenals.

Section 2 (2) of The Cluster Munitions (Prohibitions) Act 2010 makes it an offence for any British person or resident to assist the use of cluster bombs.

The Managing Director of EDO MBM, Paul Hills, who has worked in the weapons system business for 23 years was cross-examined on the lawfulness of his business by the defendants legal team on 1 August. He denied knowing that a Joint Stand Off Weapon (JSOW) onto which his company’s parts are fitted,is a cluster bomb.

Smash EDO spokesperson Andrew Becket commented: ‘There has been clear documentary evidence presented in this case that EDO MBM have engaged in unlawful activities including assistance in the use of cluster bombs and the supply of military equipment for Israeli war planes contrary to UK domestic law.’

The defendants are represented by Teresa Blades of Kellys Solicitors, Brighton.

A BRIEF HISTORY OF EDO MBM’s PARENT COMPANY CRIMES

EDO MBM is a UK subsidiary of US arms maker ITT Exelis Inc. ITT is a $1.7billion multinational arms company with a notorious twentieth-century history of support for the fascist regimes in Spain, Germany, and Chile.

More recently ITT pled guilty in 2007 to illegal exports and cover-up of secret military technology to China over a 25 year period. As part of a plea agreement with the US Department of Justice, ITT paid $100million in fines, which at the time was one of the largest criminal fines for breaches of arms export controls in paid in US history.

EDO MBM’s previous parent company EDO Corp pled guilty 2003 to illegal arms exports and agreed to pay a $2.5 million fine to US authorities.

Both corporations were placed under increased auditing and compliance regimes as a result of their convictions.

From 1983 to 2000 EDO MBM was owned by the British Morgan Crucible PLC, under the direction its then CEO Ian Norris. Ian Norris was convicted of conspiracy to obstruct justice in December 2010 after destroying company documents related to a corporate fraud investigation into Morgan Crucible in the same period that EDO MBM was owned by the conglomerate. After being extradited to the US, Ian Norris was tried, convicted sentenced to 18 months in a US prison.

In June 2010 the crown court acquitted seven Smash EDO activists of £180,000 damage to the factory after a defence of ‘lawful excuse’ was accepted by the jury on grounds that it was reasonable to believe EDO MBM were engaged in illegal arms exports to the Israel Air Force of arming units used to commit war crimes in Gaza during Operation Cast Lead in January 2009.

Smash EDO spokesperson Andrew Beckett said, ‘EDO MBM have failed to learn anything from their parent firms corrupt histories or their own exposure in the crown court in 2010 as liars. They continue to act illegally,and unethically with apparent impunity. Like their bosses before them, the directors of EDO MBM have sought to cover up these crimes with lies and misrepresentations in numerous judicial proceedings.’

‘Sussex Police have done nothing to stop these acts, in fact by neglecting to do their duty they have effectively supported them. It’s time to bring this sordid tale of police collusion with arms dealer corruption to an end’.

ENDS

Contact: Andrew Beckett or Sam Hayward – 07526557436

smashedopress@riseup.net

Smash EDO website: http://www.smashedo.org.uk

by smashedo -

The Summer of Resistance

Smash EDO’s Summer of Resistance — three months of action against the EDO arms factory in Brighton – has drawn to a close. The summer has been a huge success, with activists campaigning in all sorts of creative ways.

The usual noise demos were complemented by a range of other actions at the factory: bad music/karaoke demos, an “art not war” painting session, a “Down the Drones” kite-flying afternoon, and the naming of those who have been killed in Israeli air strikes since 2009.

There have also been phone and Twitter blockades of EDO MBM and its parent company, ITT Exelis, where the factory was bombarded with calls and tweets. One irate EDO worker told an activist to “shoot yourself in the head with a gun!”

We have also held critical mass bike rides through Brighton, pickets outside Barclays bank (Barclays is the largest global investor in the arms trade), direct action workshops, and we have hosted guest speakers, who have visited to talk to the public about the arms trade.

There were two huge mass demonstrations. At the Don’t Attack Iran demonstration, protesters marched through Brighton to raise awareness about the prospect of an attack on Iran. The second march, the Brighton Citizens’ Weapons Inspection, saw concerned citizens from all over the country join in solidarity and march in weapons inpectors’ suits to the factory. The protesters were greeted by a steel wall, erected by the police, as well as riot cops and horses. Not to be deterred, a group of activists locked onto the wall, and traffic to and from the arms factory was stopped dead.

In the final week of the Summer of Resistance, London’s Campaign Against Arms Trade travelled down to Brighton in solidarity. They campaigned outside Barclays and also up at the factory, with a banner stating , “EDO – Peddlers of Death”. We were also privileged to host guest speaker Andrew Feinstein, author of Shadow World: Inside the Global Arms Trade, and former member of parliament for the ANC. He informed the enthralled audience of the harrowing and secretive world of the global arms trade.

Feinstein stated that 40% of corruption in world trade takes place in the arms trade, and he talked about the link between arms companies and the funding of political parties. Aptly, Feinstein told the audience that Barclays bank is the bank of choice for arms dealers, and in South Africa, Barclays has the right to veto any government spending over a certain level until 2018!

Feinstein states that ‘SmashEDO’s resistance to the shameful, corrupt global arms trade is a living example of Margaret Mead’s belief that action by a small group of committed citizens is the best, the only, way to change the world. I endorse the campaign’s credo that “Every bomb that is dropped, every bullet that is fired, has to be made somewhere. And wherever that is, it can be resisted.”

Smash EDO would like to thank everyone who has shown their support and participated in the Summer of Resistance. We are taking a break in August, but will be back in September with lots of energy for a winter season of resistance against the arms trade.