The 'Stansted Fifteen'. Photo: Brian Wardrop.
Stansted Fifteen upheld
Friends in Chelmsford have shown solidarity with the 'Stansted Fifteen'
Friends in Chelmsford have been praised for the solidarity they have shown towards the fifteen Stansted protestors charged with terrorism offences for disrupting a deportation charter flight.
The fifteen protestors, who include at least two Quakers from Brighton and Reading Meeting, are on trial at Chelmsford crown court for blocking a government night flight from Stansted airport. It was due to send fifty-seven people to Nigeria and Ghana in March 2017. The activists face charges of endangering an aerodrome under the 1990 Aviation and Maritime Security Act.
Jean Wardrop, coordinating clerk of Chelmsford Meeting, told the Friend that because of its close proximity to the court, the Meeting house has become a central base for the protestors: ‘Several of our Meeting are accommodating some of the fifteen. We are accommodating five. It is physical and spiritual upholding. They are a very sincere and dedicated bunch and we’re glad and proud to uphold them as much as we can.’
The Meeting house in Chelmsford, which is a Sanctuary Meeting, has held several meetings in support of the fifteen protestors, including a ‘Weekend of Connections’ where the protestors met their hosts. There were also public performances of authentic monologues from asylum seekers and refugees, and films exploring their plight.
Jean Wardrop said: ‘On the day before the trial, we held a lunch for the fifteen and their supporters, and a Meeting for Worship to uphold them. All fifteen came and it was incredibly powerful. When we closed, several of them sang.’
Kevin Smith, part of a support group for the defendants, praised the Meeting for ‘the warmth of the reception and the support’ they received. He told the Friend: ‘When the defendants arrived in Chelmsford, the Quakers put on an incredible spread. They let us use the Meeting house for our organising and then hosted a special service for us. It made a huge impression on everyone. It was beautiful and heartfelt, and soothed and grounded a lot of frayed nerves.’
The defendants have also had support from David Ramsbotham, a former chief inspector of prisons; Green Party co-leader Caroline Lucas MP; David Lammy MP; author Philip Pullman; and shadow home secretary Diane Abbot MP. They have all called for an end to charter flight deportations and for the charges against the fifteen to be dropped.
Chelmsford priest Robert Wiggs said: ‘Many of those asylum seekers that the Stansted Fifteen managed to keep in the country by their direct action will have had cases that were still in process. All would have faced a frightening, possibly threatening reception on arrival in the country to which they were being deported.’
The trial began on 19 March and is expected to last six weeks.
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