Statement of Support for the 'Atos Two'

On 15th November, two Nottingham residents, a retired paediatric nurse and a wheelchair user, dubbed the 'Atos Two', were charged with aggravated trespass.

The case follows an entirely peaceful protest at the offices of Atos ‘Healthcare’ on Stoney Street in the Lace Market.

Nottinghamshire Police have made it clear that there has been "too much of this sort of thing recently and we have been told to crack down on it", a reference to the wave of peaceful direct action which has spread across Nottingham and the UK over the last year.

This is a clear attempt to criminalise peaceful protests and acts of civil disobedience and to intimidate those who would take part in such activities.

We, the undersigned, condemn the decision to charge the ‘Atos Two’ and call on the Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) to drop the charges immediately.

Groups

Anarchist Federation, Nottingham
Benefit Claimants Fightback
Boycott Workfare
Derby Uncut
Disabled People Against Cuts
ExLibris (Federation of Masked Booksellers)
Glasgow Defence Campaign
Mansfield Save Our Services Group
Notts IWW (Industrial Workers of the World)
Notts Save Our Services
Notts Uncut
Payday men's network
People's Histreh (Nottingham Radical History Group)
Social Work Action Network
The Sparrows' Nest

Individuals

Geoffrey Adams, Lincoln, UK
Niki Adams, Legal Action for Women
Wesal Afifi, Nottingham and Nottinghamshire Refugee Forum (NNRF), Nottingham, UK
Mohamed Ahmed, Lincoln IWW
Dr Frank Arnold
Alan Bestwick, Chicago, Illinois, USA
Michael Boyle
Ross Bradshaw, Five Leaves Publications
Sam Brackenbury
Sedley Bryden, Harrow, Greater London, UK
Jane Burd
Linda Burnip
Alisdair Cameron, LAUNCHPAD, Newcastle upon Tyne, UK
Julia Cameron, DPAC (Disabled People against Cuts), Islington, Greater London, UK
Jennifer Campbell
Bob Cann
Hilary Cave, Chesterfield, Derbyshire, UK
John B. Chadwick, Bellingham, Washington, USA
Chris Cheetham
Joe Clarke
Martin Clough, M.E. Self Help, Nottingham, UK
Chris Cook Cann
Liz Crow
Geoffrey Curl, Nottingham, UK
Alex Dable
Anne Darby
Wood David
Peter Dean
Bob Diamond, Clinical Psychologist, Nottingham, UK
Dr Antony Dowd
Shlomo Dowen, Mansfield, UK
Erica Drury, Derbyshire, UK
George Drury, Derbyshire, UK
Nick Dunn, Boldmere, Sutton Coldfield, UK
Eric Eaton, NUM Ex- & Retired Miners Association Mansfield
Dr Jane Ferrie, Department of Epidemiology and Public Health (University College London)
Dr Rhiannon Firth
Mary Foley
Margaret Foster
Gary Freeman, UNISON Rep (Personal Capacity)
Paul Frost, Mansfield Save Our Services Group (Personal Capacity)
Shirley Frost, Sheffield Defend Council Housing
Peter Garbutt
Christopher Gare
Axel Gehring, Marburg, Hessen, Germany
Claire Glasman, WinVisible (women with visible and invisible disabilities)
Catriona Gold
Alfie Hallam
Suzanne Hallam
Jenny Hambidge, Landrindod Wells, Powys, UK
Colin Hampton, Derbyshire Unemployed Workers' Centres
Rob Hanlon, Derbyshire, UK
John Hargrave
Jackie Hawkins, Isle of Wight, UK
Susan Haworth, mental health campaigner, Greater Manchester, UK
Jane Henson, Nottingham, UK
Ian Hewitt, HIYE
Richard Hindes
John Hort
Debbie Jolly, Disabled People against Cuts (DPAC)
Louise Kilbride, Birmingham, UK
Carol Laidlaw
Neana Lawson, Nottinghamshire Disabled People's Movement
Juliet Line
Konnie Lloyd
Alan Lodge, National Union of Journalists
Ross Longhurst
Nina Lopez, Global Women's Strike
Marie Lynam, Kilburn Unemployed Workers Group (KUWG)
Pippa MacKeith, Nottingham, UK
Darren Maher
Cllr Greg Marshall, Broxtowe Borough Council
John McArdle, Black Triangle Anti-Defamation Campaign in Defence of Disability Rights
Richard McCance, Nottingham, UK
Teresa McConlogue, London, UK
John McDonnell MP (Hayes and Harlington)
Dan Morgan, Santiago, Chile
Rich Moth, Social Work Action Network (SWAN)
Rosemary Muge, Stapleford, UK
James Mullett
Rob Murthwaite
Colin Newton, Inclusive Solutions
Teresa Pacey-Devlin, Nottingham and Nottinghamshire Refugee Forum (NNRF), Nottingham, UK
Tina Patel
Jane Petchell, Nottingham, UK
Melissa Plumb, Scarborough, Queensland, Australia
David Plumb, Scarborough, Queensland, Australia
Toni Price
Anne Pridmore, Being the Boss
Jon Purdom, Chair of the Heathrow Liaison Committee (Unite the Union)
Frédérique Poujades
Rose Powell, Mansfield, Nottinghamshire, UK
Phoebe Queen
B Rawsthorn, Merseyside, UK
Christopher Richardson
Richard Rieser, Coordinator UK Disability History Month
Hilary Robinson, Cheshire East Green Party and Alsager Town Council, Alsager, Stoke-on-Trent, UK
Bernd Sass, National Centre for Independent Living
Ian Sandeman, DLA Help Group
Bill Scott, Inclusion Scotland
Chris Shannon
Mark Shotter
Liz Silver
Dave Skull
Patrick Smith, Veggies Catering Campaign
Paul Smith, Atos Victims Group
Matt Southall
Gail Squires, shop steward, Notts UNISON
Lewis Stainer
Richard Stevens, Industrial Workers of the World (IWW), Nottingham, UK
Hannah Stirland
Rachel Strong
Ange Taggart, Parking Is An Obstruction
Angelica Tatam
J. Thompson
Jo Thorpe
Margaret Tuck, Arnold, Nottinghamshire, UK
Geoffrey Turner
Carole Underwood, Kendal, Cumbria
N. A. Unwin
Pete Watson, Convenor Notts UNISON Adult Social Care
Jan Wetzel, Marburg, Hessen, Germany
Fay Wilkinson
Cllr Chris Winterton, Mansfield South Electoral Division

To add your name please email nottsdefence@riseup.net

For more information on the case, see the report on Nottingham Indymedia: http://nottingham.tachanka.org/articles/2168

See also NottsDefence on Twitter http://twitter.com/NottsDefence

Contact email: nottsdefence@riseup.net