Issue No. 7 - Sept/Oct 1998
Produced by: Anni and Lindis
Indigo, 8 Park Row, Otley, West Yorkshire, LS21 IHQ, UK
Tel No. 01943 466405 or 01482 702033
Fax No. 01482 702033
E-mail: caab.lindis_anni@virgin.net
Dear Friends,
We have often said that all US bases put all our security at risk.. Sadly and alarmingly this has become very evident recently .
The bombing of the US embassies in Kenya and Tanzania and the US retaliatory cruise missile strikes on Afghanistan military camps and a Sudanese pharmaceutical factory have resulted in heightened security at all US bases and facilities worldwide.
It is now widely accepted that all American bases are a potential focus for terrorist attention.. Armed guards and hardened concrete security barriers are just some of the outward signs of this fact.
The USAF has just celebrated 50 years of its occupation and control of British bases and made much of its 'special relationship' with Britain..
A great deal has been publicised about how much the base personnel spend in the local economies, the amount they give to charities and how much they love our local pubs and people…and indeed how much the local people love them.
What has been missing from these glowing accounts have been any references to the nuclear weapons they store at USAF Lakenheath; the lack of any lease agreements; the certificates of immunity from prosecution that they sometimes present to local courts; the complaints against their military personnel to which they claim jurisdiction; their exemption from local planning constraints and procedures etc, etc. It really is time that we start to question this 'special relationship'.
Planning Applications
Because it is such a significant application we would like to let you know about it.
On Tuesday 25 August the security fence planning application was heard by Harrogate Borough Council Planning No. 1 Sub-Committee at its public meeting in Ripon Town Hall.
It came under Part B of the Agenda: 'To make observations on applications to be determined by other Authorities' - this really means that normal planning procedures do not apply.
This proposed development may have gone unnoticed and stayed as a delegated application with no further debate.
Luckily we saw the site notices which had been posted up the day before informing the public that security fencing was to be put up.
This gave us time to immediately get the details and have them photocopied at the Planning Office in Harrogate, alert the press and local TV, produce and distribute a leaflet urging people to object, put the details on our web-site... and generally get going!
There were 48 letters of objection which meant that the application must go to the Planning No. 1 Area sub-committee public meeting.
Regular monitoring of Harrogate Planning Office confirmed a shared concern with some Councilors and objectors about a colony of wild orchids on the NW corner of the base through which the new fence was originally proposed to go.
These concerns led to the Planning Committee gaining some quite significant concessions from the MOD and their American clients.
Full details are given in the report and recommendations;
which was included as Appendix A;
A revised plan was agreed some days prior to the public meeting in which the security fence line was moved back to an existing chain link fence at the inside edge of the orchid field and away from the public footpath.
There was also an agreement that the MOD would take advice from English Nature to ensure minimal disturbance to the orchids.
A further concession was agreed by the base authorities to allow a site survey by experts during next years flowering season as it has been alleged that some of the orchids may be of a rare species.
The Planning Committee also gained a concession that the proposed security fence line be moved slightly in order to protect the orchids and woodland verge along another small section of the base.
The most contentious part of the planning application involved the NE corner of the base where the fence is to go diagonally across a sportsfield and within 3 metres of a public footpath.
Despite a blistering report by the committee's Landscape Architect no concessions were gained in this area.
This would normally have been enough for the application to have been rejected by the committee had it not involved Crown Land.
Representations were made at the public meeting by someone from both CAAB and the Menwith Women's' Camp who shared the 3 minutes allowed for the objectors to speak against the planning application.
The Women's Camp objections were confined to the wellbeing of the orchids which were addressed by the concessions gained with the revised fence-line on the NW corner and along the other piece of verge .
CAAB raised its usual objections about lack of local democracy and power regarding Menwith planning concerns and pointed out that no fence would stop the determined terrorist.
We asked that the application be held up under Circular 18/84 of the Town and Country Planning Act; or that it be referred to the full Planning Committee; or that it be referred to the Secretary of State for the Environment for a Public Inquiry; and /or that it be put on hold until after 16 September when as a result of the STOA Report commissioned recently at the request of the European Parliament, MEP's will be asking questions about economic spying on Europe by the National Security Agency of America.
This will of course bring in the role of Menwith Hill Station.
Some Councilors responded with questions about Circular 18/84 and the STOA report but answers were cut short by the Chairwoman as not being relevant to the application.
Squadron Leader Ted Sumner, the RAF Liaison Officer at Menwith then had 3 minutes to speak in favour of the security fence.
He basically said that it was necessary for the security of NATO, US and Britain; that they had responded to the concerns about the orchids; that other bases in Britain have similar security fences and that we should afford the same protection to our American allies.
[Actually most bases in this country have chain link rather than weld mesh fencing; barbed wire is often used instead of American military specification razor wire and few bases have outside CCTV cameras.]
He also said that children from the American school on base used the sportsfield and that the security fence was necessary for their teachers to carry out their statuary duty of care due to one or two reported cases of attempted child abduction locally.
One Councilor objected to the Squadron Leader's 'emotional blackmail' regarding the safety of the American schoolchildren saying that the safety of British schoolchildren was just as important but that local schools were not asking for 8ft high security fences and all that goes with them.
Other Councilors asked the Squadron Leader questions about the razor wire; range and activation of the 17 CCTV cameras; whether Menwith has become more of a risk and whether it had a civilian as well as a military role.
We feel that more questions have been posed by his answers which we will pursue!
The Councilors then debated the subject and much frustration was expressed by some at their lack of power in this matter.
There was some resistance to the Case Officer's recommendation that the application be 'Accepted with no Observations'.
It was pointed out that no concessions had been made in the most contentious area of the sportsfield and the public footpath across it; that the MOD (read American client) pays no planning application fees; that time taken with site visits, meetings etc was being paid for by the ratepayers, and that no matter what they decided the fence would go ahead anyway.
A recorded and seconded request that the fence was unacceptable and should be rejected was overturned.
The Chairwomen imposed her feelings in a most 'unchairwomanly' way by assuring everyone that it was an MOD planning application not a US one; that Menwith was military not civilian; that all our military establishments have security fences and that need outweighs the harm to the landscape.
After debating the application for about an hour and twenty minutes and some Councilors remaining unhappy about things the Committee finally voted to accept the Case Officer's recommendation of 'Acceptance with no Observations' by 10 For, 0 Against and 2 Abstentions.
Richard Sadler, the Environmental Reporter for BBC Look North who we contacted as soon as we heard about the proposed security fence filmed some of the meeting.
He did some earlier filming and an interview with Lindis outside the base.
One of the Councilors was filmed after the meeting saying that normally the committee could say 'yes you may or no you may not put up a fence', but in this case members were no more than 'dummies ... paid for at the ratepayers expense'!
The filming was shown on both the 6.00pm and 9.00pm Look North news reports.
SO after all that ... it went through but again Menwith was brought to the attention of the public.
Some of the Councilors are becoming increasingly uncomfortable about the lack of democracy and accountability.
(See continuing story - CAAB 9.)
... An application for the re-siting of 8 Rhombic Antennae masts has been submitted to Harrogate Borough Council.
Some of them will encroach onto land not yet built on and which is presently used for grazing.
An application for a bus shelter inside the base has also been submitted.
Court Action
Lindis has now been reported for breaching her Injunction many times while putting up these 'INVALID' notices and has been warned by the Treasury Solicitor's office that the MOD intend to bring proceedings against her sometime. The MOD appeal against the invalid byelaws on 23 July in the High Court was adjourned due to the ill health of one of the barristers.
The two invalid byelaws signs inside the base which the MOD moved even further in after the Carnwath judgement and which we have written copious letters about have now been moved back to their original position. As neither can be read from outside the 'protected area' we shall continue to ask questions.
... The MOD have dropped various cases of alleged Criminal Damage against Lindis, Anni and Christine Dean on advice from the CPS. Apparently it is not in the Public Interest to pursue these cases which all involved openly removing invalid byelaws signs that the MDP refused to take down themselves.
More Court News
Because of her paid employment Lindis was unable to refuse to pay and her fine, costs and compensation totaling £213.31p was automatically added to her 'slate'.
Despite pleading Not Guilty the three magistrates found the case against him proved and sentenced him to an Absolute Discharge and £179.50p costs.
There was no local or national press coverage of this case even though private prosecutions and convictions of assault by police officers are both quite unusual things.
Lindis has been notified by John Quinn's solicitor that he intends to appeal against his conviction and sentence. The case is to be heard at York Crown Court in front of a judge and two magistrates and is on the Warned List for the week beginning 21 September.
Independence from America
On the Saturday morning we made a loud peaceful protest during the flag raising ceremony.
The Americans were rather cross that their flag ropes had been mysteriously untied during the night and the base fire engine was called out with its long ladders to tie the ropes halfway up the flagpoles.
We handed out copies of an "Independence from America" leaflet, that we had prepared, to people outside the base and we publicised the planning application for the huge new outer security fence.
Anni made an official complaint against a MDP officer who grabbed the handlebar and accelerator of her electric buggy and ran her into a wall as she snuck round the side of the entrance barrier after the flag raising ceremony.
Some of us joined in the base celebrations and had a few fairground rides before being escorted out by the MDP who were not arresting under the invalid bye laws despite maintaining that they were valid!
Various friends came up and joined us throughout the day, and a North Yorkshire police officer came and sat by our fire and had a cup of tea.
The base fire engine was called out to untie the flag ropes before the flag lowering ceremony could begin and we noisily and peacefully disrupted it again.
We had long conversations with some of the MDP about the unaccountability of the base, the Americans and themselves and we packed up when heavy rain spoilt their firework finale.
The information in the leaflet handed out said:
History of the Campaign of Protest at Menwith Hill Station
Christine Dean (Assistant Honorary Keeper of Otley Museum), who has been involved with the
MHS protest for many years and kept meticulous records, is chronologically cataloguing and
updating the files containing the archive material since the beginning of the campaign of
protest at MHS. It is important to document the work, to tell the story from the start and
to hand it on to future generations.
She has asked if anyone has any items such as news, press cuttings. leaflets, court actions,
which could be included in this history.
To save Chris time and expense please could photocopies rather than originals be sent to:
Christine Dean, 5 Garnett Street, Otley, West Yorkshire LS27 IAL.
Thank you.
Noise Pollution
The jets fly over the school so frequently and are so noisy that the 297 children find it hard to get on with their work and teachers claim they are adversely affecting the schools Ofsted results.
Their claim has been backed up by Ofsted Inspectors who visited the school in March 1998 and reported that 'noise interference, particularly from aircraft at the airbase, frequently impedes pupils' progress'.
The school is on the USAF Lakenheath flight path and is subjected to the roar of jet engines up to twenty times a day. Each time lessons have to be interrupted because the children cannot hear.
The school governors have been trying for eight years to get soundproofing. They have just been refused an £80,000 grant for double glazing by the MOD. Because the school is classified as an industrial site it has not been included in MOD-funded double glazing programmes for neighbouring homes.
This story was recently covered in the local press and on the local TV News.
[Thanks to two of our East Anglian friends, Barbara and Peter for this information.]
Complaints Review Board (CRB)
Anni has been asked to clarify her 1994/5 complaints and been assured that the CRB will be pleased to investigate them.
The CRB originally convened in November 1996 to look into all these complaints which the USAF claimed jurisdiction. There have been endless delays and difficulties over the years. It is our belief that the civil police and the MDP should be investigating these complaints not the Americans.
(See also Issue 3, 5, 6, 7, 8 and 9).
Base Development
The 71,500 square-foot mini-mall will house an enlarged commissary, a shoppette, a gas station, specialty vendor shops, a barber shop, a beauty salon, a food court and a dry cleaners and should be finished by November 1998.
It will be the keystone project of an overall development plan and is expected to be the showcase AAFES facility in the whole of the UK.
This project was designed under a new MOD scheme known as 'Contractor Design'.
"Under this process, the Air Force [US] provides the concept design, and the contractor is responsible for doing the detailed design and the actual construction.
This process has great benefits because it saves the Air Force [US] money by shortening the design time while shifting pressure to complete on time to the contractor [UK] who gets paid for completed work only,"
said Don Loyd, USAF Mildenhall's Community Area program manager in an official Press Release.
Protest against US Cruise Missile Strike
Lindis was again warned under s.69 of the Criminal Justice and Public Act 1996 for alleged aggravated trespass after having a peaceful look round the base.
'Careless Driving'
The prosecution witnesses gave conflicting evidence.
One of the American Security Police said "Yes - she drove in at speed".
The other one said "Yes - she drove in very slowly" ..!
The charge had been reduced from one of dangerous driving after she drove extremely carefully into the base past a dozing American sentry guard.
(See also Issue 5 and Issue 6).
Heritage walk
The Priory was officially opened by the Duke of Edinburgh who was the main guest at the inaugural dinner on 16 July 1998.
According to Brig. Chris Holtom the UK base Commandant about 6,000 students a year are trained; many from overseas.
The centre is Tri-Service involving Navy, Marines, Army and Airforce.
Although the Americans handed the base back in 1995 and had a lavish leaving ceremony ... they have not gone away.
They are hiding inside a heavily shuttered building marked 'DISC (CD) Dev 120'. Ring the bell and an American should open the door!
From a statement of General Wesley K Clark US Army in Chief, US European Command before The House National Security Committee, 5 March 1998:
North Atlantic Treaty Organization:
A major planning application (No. 6.500.181 CROWND) to enclose three quarters of MHS with a 2.4 metre high 'prison style' weld mesh fence was submitted to Harrogate Planning Department at the beginning of July.
The fence would to be topped with coils of concertina razor wire (to American military specification) and 17 CCTV cameras on 8 metre high poles.
Parts of it would run within 3 metres along the length of two public footpaths which cross the NE and NW corners of the base (see map below).
Plan for fence - click on it for a bigger picture
Continuing Byelaws Saga
Mindful of Judge Carnwath's ruling during her recent breach of Injunction case in the High Court, Lindis has stopped removing the invalid bye-laws signs which the MOD refuse to take down. She has instead been taping notices printed with the word 'INVALID' across each one and says she will continue to do so until the matter is resolved in the courts.
(see CAAB 8)
4th July 1998
On the evening of July 3rd we set up our annual "Independence From America" mixed peace camp on the grass verge outside the main entrance of Menwith Hill Station and planeted our banner in one of the ornamental flower beds.
This year we were not hassled and the MDP did not video us or send for a NYCC Highways photographer to come and take flash photographs for possible injunction proceedings.
With a bit of help from Tracy, Anni went for a wander inside the base on her electric buggy (which Marit took up in her sheep trailer) and was picked up near the open Ops Gate by a very surprised dog handler and escorted out of the main entrance.
Lindis continued to stick "Invalid" signs on the invalid bye laws signs that the MOD are refusing to remove and was reported for more breaches of her injunction.
These bye laws were declared invalid by Judge Crabtree at York Crown Court on 7 September 1997.
The MOD have appealed against this judgement but a hearing set for Thursday 23rd July 1998 in the High Court was adjourned due to the defence barrister, Vera Baird, being too ill.
The case is now expected to be re-listed in the High Court sometime in October.
Thomas and Shaun wandered inside the base for a couple of hours without being found.
(See also pictures of a sister demonstration on July 4th in Colorado Springs)
LAKENHEATH
(near Brandon, Bury St. Edmunds, Suffolk)
Staff from Breckland Middle School in Brandon have complained to their local MP, Richard Spring, about the noise of F-15 jets from USAF Lakenheath flying over their classrooms.
Lindis has been informed that the USAF have finished their investigation into 11 of her complaints against US military personnel for violence against her in 1994/5. As yet she has not been informed of the outcome. Juliet McBride is also awaiting the results of her complaints.
MILDENHALL
(near Bury St. Edmunds, Suffolk)
USAF Mildenhall is undergoing a $14 million construction project to improve and consolidate the base's Community Area.
A new mini-mall will be the showpiece of a major development of its 30 acre site which will also include relocation of sportsfields and other community function buildings which are presently spread over different areas of the base.
MOLESWORTH
(near Huntingdon, Cambridgeshire)
The Main Gate was blockaded with a car after the US action and traffic coming in and out was held up for about half an hour.
The MDP eventually came and tried to tow the car away but it was not necessary as each time they attempted to attach the tow rope the car moved just a fraction out of reach!
The banner on the car window said "US actions - all our security is at risk".
ALCONBURY
(Huntingdon, Cambridgeshire)
Despite failing to get any documents which would have helped her defence, Lindis was found Not Guilty at Huntingdon Magistrates' Court on a charge of alleged careless driving and awarded costs.
CHICKSANDS
(near Bedford, Bedfordshire)
A walk round the base in July which is now the National Intelligence and Security Training Centre revealed that the ancient Priory was being refurbished. The Americans left in 1995 and the Priory needed extensive renovation. It is a wonderful building and has been beautifully restored at a cost of £4 million. The public are not allowed in!
SNIPPET
"NATO has been the foundation of US engagement in Europe and the key to relative peace in Europe for nearly 50 years.
The Alliance combines the resources of 16 member nations and leverages military capabilities as well as other forms of international power.
Through NATO, the US is able to secure its place as a European power and protect our vital national security interests in the AOR [Area of Responsibilities].
While US military power in the theater is significant, NATO increases the effectiveness of our forward-stationed forces by providing the basing rights and access we need to project military power from the US, enabling us to execute our national and theater strategies.
Across the spectrum of military activities, from peace time engagement to fighting and winning Major Theater Wars, our NATO Alliance remains essential." ... [Hmmmmmm!!!]
Updated September 1998