Saturday, 2 October 2010

RBS Superglue Protesters In Court


Two climate change protesters, who were part of a group who super-glued themselves together on the Royal Bank of Scotland's trading room floor have admitted trespassing.


During a Londonwide day of protest twenty-five demonstrators blocked the doors of the bank's City of London HQ as another half dozen vaulted security turnstiles and dashed up to the second-floor.


Once there they formed an interlocking ring secured by super-glue and chanted anti-RBS slogans.


Bristol University biology student Bryony Tayler, 21, of South Street, West Rainton, Houghton le Spring, Tyne and Wear and Plymouth University theatre and performance student Chico Carino, 23, of Faringdon Road, Stanford in the Vale, Faringdon, Oxfordshire appeared at City of London Magistrates' Court.


Both pleaded guilty to a summons of aggravated trespass at the Bishopsgate building on September 1, last year, contrary to the Criminal Justice and Public Order Act.


Prosecutor Miss Alexa Morgan told the court it was 8am when the group - protesting against RBS's investment in Canadian tar sands production - swooped on the building.


"They super-glued their hands and arms together and were chanting anti-RBS slogans and disrupting trading on the floor.


"Specialist police officers attended and unglued them as they insisted RBS only use renewable fuels as a company," added Miss Morgan.


"This is a crime of conscience," Carino told the magistrates. "Nothing is being done to save the world from the grave consequences of climate change."


He told the court the bank's continued investment in tar sands - extracted from the lands of indigenous peoples - was "illegal and immoral."


Critics believe it takes three times as much energy to dredge crude oil from land deposits as it produces.


The defendants were conditionally discharged for twelve months and each ordered to pay £60 costs.

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