Free the Gandalf 3
Statement In Solidarity From The McLibel Support Campaign and London Greenpeace. 20.11.1997
We send our solidarity to the jailed 'Gandalf 3' (editors of Green Anarchist magazine) and to all those who report, publicise or support the well-established political tradition of direct physical action to right wrongs - action against all those powerful institutions which only exist to control, exploit and profit from people, animals and the environment. 3 years in jail, just for publishing news! Meanwhile the establishment press continues to enthusiastically advocate and support all manner of military and other governmental violence, and the ever growing plunder of our lives and our environment by ruthless Corporations.There are many parallels with the McLibel case which was a failed attempt by McDonald's and the UK courts to suppress and silence growing public criticisms of the business practices of a transnational corporation in particular and of the food industry (and of capitalism) in general. McDonald's spend $2 billion annually advertising and promoting themselves, forcing their idiotic propaganda into our homes and onto our streets - propaganda which even the McLibel trial judge had to agree was 'exploiting children' and a deceptive 'pretence'. Yet, similar to the Gandalf case, the laws enable the powerful to seek to censor and criminalise the public dissemination of just the kind of sensible, alternative points of view which people everywhere are crying out for.
Anti-McDonald's campaigners around the world responded magnificently to this attempted censorship by stepping up the dissemination of leaflets, 3 million of which were handed out in the streets of the UK alone during the duration of the case. 2 days after the mixed verdict in June another 450,000 were distributed. It came as no surprise when the Corporation completely capitulated 28 days later, abandoning all legal attempts to halt publication of the leaflets or to recover any of the estimated #10 million it had spent on the case.
The hypocrisy of the legal establishment was laid bare. Despite the High Court finding McDonald's guilty on many points, no sanctions were ordered against the company and the profiteering junk food Corporation continues to operate in exactly the same way. However the anti-McDonald's campaign continues to grow as do the general feelings of public revulsion against the company and all it stands for. We believe that it has been thereby demonstrated that repressive laws can be exposed and made unworkable by organised, mass defiance backed by public awareness and support. In the same way, State attacks on independant publications can be successfully defeated.
We hope and trust that this latest crude attempt at intimidation will also cause outrage and widespread defiance, including ever greater circulation of the kind of information which the State is trying to suppress. It is vital that all progressive groups and papers report examples of direct action by the public against companies and governmental bodies which are the cause of the problems we face today. Its these problems of injustice, oppression, exploitation and environmental damage that are a constant incitement to everyone to get organised, to create resistance and to take direct action for a better world.
We pledge to throw our weight behind the campaign to defend the right to report news of direct actions, and to free the editors of Green Anarchist. This is a campaign that can and must be won.
In solidarity,
The McLibel Support Campaign and London Greenpeace
Back to Gandalf 3 page
