It is not often that the tide of world history ebbs around the moat of Cardiff Castle, but on Friday of last week a group of protesters set up camp just there as part of the “Occupy” movement that has been sweeping the globe. I’m sure you’ll have noticed these protest camps, whether at Saint Paul’s Cathedral in London, or on Wall Street in New York. Media reports currently suggest that there are 951 camps in 82 different countries. The protests are a demand for justice in the finance sector, a revolt against the avarice of a feral banking system that has brought economic misery into the lives of millions of poor people. This industry refuses to change its own behaviour or shoulder the burden of responsibility for its actions, yet is endlessly bailed out and molly-coddled by national governments who stand and stare in hypnotized awe at the cheap tricks of recalcitrant gamblers.
The protest in Cardiff began with a rally at the Aneurin Bevan statue on Queen Street, and then moved to the grass outside Cardiff Castle, where the demonstrators set up camp and proceeded to hold a meeting. This was widely covered in local media, and it was clear to anyone watching that the protest was good natured and entirely peaceful. Despite this, and despite the fact that the camp was not even blocking the pavement, much less disrupting the life of the city or posing a public order threat, South Wales Police took the decision to forcibly clear the camp at around 9pm in the middle of a heavy rain storm, arresting six people as they did so.
