Hearing several sketchy reports about the Seattle - WTO situation, but there is a virtual T.V. blackout on the National News Shows.

Celia, if you can, please give us updates from the front lines. Thanks in advance.

-- K. Stevens (kstevens@ It's ALL going away in January.com), November 30, 1999

Answers

Hearing from where? Hearing from who? LINKS please.

-- Jack Webb (Crickett@123.456), November 30, 1999.

Tuesday November 30, 1999 8:53 p.m. EST

Demonstrators Disrupt WTO Meeting; Mayor Declares Curfew

SEATTLE (AP) -- Police in riot gear fired tear gas and red pepper spray Tuesday at demonstrators who blocked streets and forced cancellation of the opening ceremonies of the largest trade event ever staged in the United States. The violence continued after nightfall, forcing Mayor Paul Schell to declare a curfew for most of downtown.

Schell declared a civil emergency, authorizing a curfew from 7 p.m. PST to dawn, a period that will cover the scheduled arrival of President Clinton, who is flying here to address the World Trade Organization on Wednesday.

SEATTLE: on Wednesday.

The mayor's declaration of a civil emergency came as demonstrators set fire to a trash Dumpster and continued to vandalize buildings in the downtown area.

Washington Gov. Gary Locke also declared state of emergency and called up two task forces of unarmed National Guard personnel trained in crowd control for duty Wednesday morning.

Schell said the curfew would last until 7:30 a.m. Wednesday.

Parts of this normally laid-back Pacific Northwest city took on the look of a battle zone as police confronted protesters who chained their bodies together so that officials' motorcades couldn't get through.

The violence continued after nightfall with roving bands of demonstrators smashing windows and doing others of vandalism to downtown buildings.

Clinton is scheduled to arrive in Seattle after midnight and will stay at a hotel in the curfew zone.

Schell told reporters at city hall, ``Do I wish things had turned out differently today? You bet, don't you?''

Locke, appearing with Schell at the news conference, said he had decided to call in 200 unarmed members of the National Guard as a precaution. He said he expected them for the most part to serve in a backup role.

``You may not even see them,'' the governor told reporters.

Clinton, who had hoped to use the meetings of the 135-nation World Trade Organization to showcase the benefits of free trade, told reporters in Washington before the violence erupted that he was ``very sympathetic'' with the concerns being expressed by labor unions and environmental groups.

``I think, 4th graf:

Copyright )1999 Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or distributed.

-- Old (timer@helping.out), November 30, 1999.

From Seattle Independent Media Seattle Police Fire on Retreating Protesters by dan merkle 5:32pm Tue Nov 30 '99

The Seattle Police unleashed a new round of tear gas and was finally able to disperse the crowd after an all day standoff. As the crowd retreated, the Police aimlessly fired rubber bullets at the back of the running protesters. As there was clearly no danger to the Police or any bystanders, these cowardly acts constitute violations of human rights laws.

At 5:15 p.m. (PST), the Seattle Police Department ("SPD") released a huge barrage of tear gas into a crowd of nonviolent protesters. The crowd had taken over an intersection in the heart of the city which resulted in a stalemate throughout most of the day.

Teargas was dispersed intermittently during the day as the SPD stood in front of their armored vehicle. The crowd took no actions against the SPD.

Finally, in a desperate attempt to take control, the SPD released large amounts of tear gas and fired rubber bullets into the crowd of mostly young adults. As the protesters retreated, the SPD continued to fire at the backs of the harmless protesters. This cowardly act violates the spirit, if not specific provisions, of international human rights law.

Or You can believe CNN ("Corporate" News Network who said yesterday on Oprah - y2k, no problem!) CNN view of Seattle

Links to non-corporate, non-government coverage: TUNE in tonight at 7 - 8 p.m. on KVMR FM Radio live stream for the latest from Seattle from World Trade Radio Watch

Corporate Watch

International Forum on Globalization

WTO Watch - Global Information Center on the WTO and Trade

World Trade Observer Many links here also

Independent Media Center Seattle

Sheri, Western Nevada County Y2K Preparedness Network (Calif) Host, "The Y2K Forum", KVMR-FM, Nevada City CA - 89.5, 99.3 & 103.7 FM - Next show Monday, December 20, 1 - 2 p.m. PST.

-- Sheri (wncy2k@nccn.net), November 30, 1999.

DESRTOY THE WTO>>> ALL PATRIOTS IT IS YOUR DUTY

-- kareem (kareem@sel.tec), November 30, 1999.

If you can find it please see Val Valarians article on the Multilateral Agreement on Investment. Concerns multinational corporate "bill of rights", where big business receives the same garantees as individuals. Old world order vs nwo, could the wto be the vehecle and seattle the battleground? and a practice field for y2k?

rusty2k

-- rusty (iam@iam.com), November 30, 1999.

From Komo Tv Web Site (in Seattle) Fair use and education and all that stuff:

. UPDATE: Police Try Breaking Up Last Group of Protesters November 30, 1999 SEATTLE - Seattle police appear to be systematically clearing intersections around the Washington State Convention and Trade Center. Officers have fired teargas into the middle of what appeared to be the last large group of protesters in downtown Seattle. They appear to be herding the protesters to the East. It's the latest skirmish in what has turned into a running battle with groups of protesters. KOMO 4 News reporter Joe Furia says officers hit protesters blocking a street near the Paramount Theater where opening ceremonies were supposed to take place today. He says officers asked the demonstrators to move so they could move a mobile command post, when they refused, they turned to force hitting the demonstrators and dragging them out of the way. The confrontations started in the afternoon. At one point a gang of 30 or so "Anarchists" moved down the streets smashing windows, spray painting walls and windows and dumping newspaper bins. At Fourth And University demonstrators refused to move and police fired gas and spray. Officers had fired gas in the morning and protesters backed off. But this time the violence escalated. Protestors have pelted the police with bottles and cans...just about anything they could find. In the midst of this latest clash a garbage dumpster was set afire. And KOMO reporters on the scene say the demonstrators are causing even more damage than they did earlier in the day. The crowd became much more aggressive than during the morning. Demonstrators, acting in well-orchestrated fashion, openly tell us they are here to "have fun" and enjoy the act of protesting. The protestors well out number the police. As evening set on the scene, it became apparent that many of those roaming the streets causing damage were not part of the original protestors. Instead, they appeared to be common vandals. For that reason, the mayor's curfew will extend from Denny Way south to Yesler and from, the waterfront to I-5. Everyone in the downtown area, protestors or otherwise, are told to leave the area. Only official traffic will be allowed. The demonstrators, who came from all over the country as well as overseas, have been practicing for months. Today they showed they have developed tactics. The crowds moved from intersection to intersection, apparently trying to spread out the officers. There is no word of any injuries. The object of today's activities was to prevent the WTO conference from getting underway. The morning opening session was postponed but the afternoon session began at 3:30 at the convention center. Delegates were having trouble getting in and out of the convention center. The Secret Service moved in to help police clear the way. It should be noted, the mass march conducted by the AFL/CIO was not part of the violence either in the morning or later in the day. The latest outbreak happened after the labor marchers headed back to Seattle Center. Many of the demonstrators had vowed to be non-violent in the weeks leading up to the event. But today those who came for something other than that made their presence felt. Many downtown businesses were vandalized, windows broken, slogans spray painted everywhere, and the area generally trashed. With almost every officer on the police force out on the front lines, there weren't enough officers to stop those bent on vandalism. At last report, 22 people had been arrested for alleged violations including assault and obstruction of justice. The State Patrol has confirmed that up to 50 patrol units from Pierce and Thurston Counties have been activated to assist with WTO disturbances. We've had several calls here at KOMO from viewers who say they saw 20 to 30 State Patrol cars traveling toward Seattle at speeds in excess of 80 mph.

-- Peace Farmer (peacefarmer@thefarm.veg), November 30, 1999.

[Clinton sympathizes with demonstrators - no doubt remembering those far-off, happy days when he himself demonstrated against America in Moscow at the height of the Vietnam war!]

From today's Washington Post breaking news....

VIOLENCE BREAKS OUT AT SEATTLE MEETING

[AP photo: WTO protesters react to tear gas fired by police on a downtown Seattle street Tuesday]

UPDATE
Seattle Mayor Sets Curfew

From Reuters at 8:11 PM

SEATTLE (Reuters) - As protests against a global trade meeting here turned violent, Seattle Mayor Paul Schell declared a civil emergency and said he would impose a 7 p.m.-to-dawn curfew for the city's downtown area.

The move came after day-long protests marked by repeated clashes between protesters and police, in which police fired tear gas, pepper spray and rubber pellets at protesters. The protests threw the opening day of the World Trade Organization meeting into chaos.

"People are advised to leave downtown now, using southern routes if at all possible, and avoiding the curfew area," Schell said in a statement.

"This declaration allows the mayor to impose a curfew, and he intends to sign a curfew order tonight, effective from 7 p.m. (0300 GMT), Nov. 30, to 7:30 a.m. (1530 GMT), tomorrow, Dec. 1," Schell said.

"Only official traffic is authorized in the curfew area," the statement added.

The anti-trade protests stopped the WTO from holding its opening ceremony on Tuesday, saying the organization's free-trade agenda favored big business over the environment and workers.

By John Burgess
Washington Post Staff Writer
Tuesday, November 30, 1999; 3:02 PM

SEATTLE  Linking arms and chanting slogans, many thousands of activists from all over the country  and world  blocked streets in downtown Seattle today, delaying the start of a global meeting of the World Trade Organization.

Police used tear gas at several sites where protesters blocked traffic, sending people running in panic. But as of late morning the demonstrators controlled large sections of the city center in what they call the "Battle in Seattle."

Demonstrators formed human chains to block access to a convention center and theater where WTO delegates planned to begin four days of discussions toward a new round of trade liberalization talks. "Who are you that's telling me what I can eat and drink," shouted a protester at some of the few delegates who managed to make it to a theater where the opening ceremony was to begin. "What about life and justice?"

Protesters blame the WTO for pollution, sweatshops and unsafe food. They contend that the world trading system that it oversees largely serves the interest of wealthy people and corporations. Here and there, protesters and delegates engaged in heated arguments on the street, about trade.

"We're for consumers  whatever consumers want, we'll give," said Bill Sprague, who identified himself as a Kentucky farmer who had come to lobby for farm exports at the meeting. A protester wearing a sign that said "No slave labor in Burma" responded that his group needed representation inside the meeting. "We don't trust the corporations. They're destroying the earth."

Virtually every liberal group is represented here  labor unions, animal-rights groups, Greenpeace, the Free Tibet movement, critics of biotechnology. Germany's Green Party was there, as was a Philippine group.

People were largely peaceful, sometimes cheerfully turning aside requests from delegates to pass through the lines, other times heckling them. They chained themselves in public places, refusing to move until they were arrested.

The demonstrations sometimes were as much a party as a protest. People danced to blaring music on streets and atop buses that police had placed to protect the delegates.

At one point, a group of men wearing ski masks knocked over nine newspaper vending machines. "No violence, no violence," the crowd chanted. The men made off into the crowd. Later, however, a vending machine was thrown through the window of a McDonalds restaurant.

As a result of the protests, the WTO put off the meeting; it was unclear when it would begin.

At midday, police were releasing more gas, but had made no major sweep to try to clear the streets and allow the meeting to begin. In a city with strong labor unions and an environmentalist tradition, many city politicians have expressed sympathy toward the demonstrators' cause.

Before leaving for Seattle, President Clinton commented on the protests, saying, "I am very sympathetic" to the concerns of the demonstrators.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.

-- John Whitley (jwhitley@inforamp.net), November 30, 1999.

Sheri, That report is pure bullshit.

From Seattle Independent Media Seattle Police Fire on Retreating Protesters by dan merkle 5:32pm Tue Nov 30 '99 The Seattle Police unleashed a new round of tear gas and was finally able to disperse the crowd after an all day standoff. As the crowd retreated, the Police aimlessly fired rubber bullets at the back of the running protesters. As there was clearly no danger to the Police or any bystanders, these cowardly acts constitute violations of human rights laws.

The police refused to arrest the protesters, there was a small group of people who went around and broke windows and spray graffiti. The police are getting m-80's thrown at them, they are not shooting people in the back, the people they are dealing with are voilent and distructive. As a matter of fact there was very little police presence most of the day, the big marches were peaceful, they had people from every walk of life, the Mayor even provided an arena for the protesters to go to. A lot of our legislators and city and county councels members were marching with the protesters.

What happened was a few people started trouble, then every troublemaker in the area decided to join in the fun.

give up your pathetic attempt to twist this into something it is not!

-- Cherri (sams@brigadoon.com), November 30, 1999.

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-- Cherri (sams@brigadoon.com), November 30, 1999.

-- Cherri (sams@brigadoon.com), November 30, 1999.

Sorry, Cheri. You weren't downtown. I have fellow radio journalists/reporters right down there in the middle of it. One fello journalist asked a policeman why they were firing on peaceful people and they would not answer - live on tape. I have it from people I trust what the real situation is.

Here is that article referred to earlier by Rusty.... The Multilateral Agreement on Investment: Mock Controversy, or Split in the New The Multilateral Agreement on Investment Mock Controversy or Split in the New World Order Editorial by Val Valerian Initial Draft Release to Internet April 23 1998 Leading Edge

-- Sheri (wncy2k@nccn.net), November 30, 1999.

King, the last time, we have seen thus, as I remember, was back in the 60's. Seems, sometimes, the Government pays the window bashers, sometimes, local thug youths, caught up. Roll the die, which one, or both, shall it be.

-- Older Than I thought (hippieperson@nodrugs.com), November 30, 1999.

K. Stevens,

I was out all day yesterday and will post notes later this morning on what happened in the streets.

Thanks,

-- Celia Thaxter (celiathaxter@yahoo.com), December 01, 1999.