Today’s judgment that police surveillance of arms trade campaigners was unlawful is a welcome victory for democracy
Occasionally people joke “here comes the law” when referring to the police. But the police aren’t the law, and they are subject to the law ? just like you and I. Today a ruling by the court of appeal found the police had broken the law when they undertook a “routine surveillance” operation against Campaign Against Arms Trade in 2005 ? a period in which I was CAAT’s press officer.
The legal action arose after I and other members of staff legitimately attended Reed Elsevier’s 2005 annual general meeting. We attended as shareholders, to question the board about its acquisition of Spearhead Exhibitions which organises arms industry trade fairs.
