Travellers rights

Travellers at the largest “illegal” encampment in Europe lost their last battle in the courts on 17 October and now face eviction. On Tuesday 18th (as we go to press) Basildon Council confirmed that the eviction will begin on the 19th. Families must now rely on mobilising as many as possible and direct action if they are to resist the bailiffs. The council is evicting 83 families from 49 plots on the site because they are in breach of planning law. The former scrapyard they own and live on does not have permission for residential use. This is despite one half of the site, which the council...

One of two legal cases brought against Basildon Council to stop the eviction at Dale Farm travellers site has forced some concessions. The Council has to leave five pitches and several structures intact. As full “clearance” can no longer go ahead, it should seriously undermine the stated intention of council’s eviction: to “return” the site to the green belt. That is a nonsense — the site was originally a scrapyard. The outcome of another legal case challenging the entire eviction will be available before 8 October. • www.dalefarm.wordpress.com

Residents at Dale Farm travellers’ site have been granted a further temporary injunction (until Thursday 29 September) by the High Court, stopping Basildon Council from proceeding with their eviction. If a judicial review brought by Dale Farm is allowed to go ahead the eviction could be postponed indefinitely. But that is not certain. Dale Farm still needs our support: see dalefarm.wordpress.com . If you can get there to help resist the eviction on 29 or 30 September, or this weekend, please do!

The families facing eviction at the Dale Farm travellers’ site near Basildon in Essex have been granted a legal injunction (until Friday 22 September) preventing the council from entering the site to clear away caravans and the built structures — the homes of over 50 families. This is the latest, and most critical stage, in a ten year battle between the travellers (who own the land) and the council who refused permission to the residents to develop the land. Basildon say that without planning permission the travellers are breaking the law and therefore must go. They have set their face against...

Hundreds of people marched on 10 September to show their support for the travellers of Dale Farm, who are facing the prospect of imminent, violent eviction by Basildon Council. The atmosphere on the march — a mix of young and old, including travellers, locals and others from further afield — was vibrant and the speakers were positive about the chances of the campaign preventing the eviction. Camp Constant, the base set up by supporters of the travellers, is an inspiring place. The eviction is set for 19 September. We would appeal to anyone able to go there to do so as a matter of urgency. This...

The eviction by Basildon council of 90 Traveller families from their homes at Dale Farm in Essex is set for Monday 19 September. Since the High Court ruled that the eviction could go ahead, the Travellers and their supporters have been making plans to resist it. Over the weekend of 27-28 August more than 100 supporters visited Camp Constant, a base for human rights monitors and those who will engage in civil disobedience to stop the bulldozing. They discussed the campaign against eviction and learnt about Traveller and Gypsy history and culture. The police and council will move to restrict...

Dale Farm travellers’ community in Basildon, Essex has been fighting a battle against eviction by District Council for the past ten years. From the end of August they could face the bailiffs. The momentum of the current attacks on the travelling community stems from racism towards gypsies in towns like Basildon — reflected in the council’s willingness to spend £18 million on this eviction in a period of austerity and cuts, but nothing on providing alternative sites. Some of the cash for the eviction has come from the government but the bulk is being funded by the council. It’s a case of make...

Hundreds of travellers face eviction from a site in Essex after the Home Office said it would cough up half the cash for a costly police operation. Local councillors on Basildon District Council voted in April to evict 96 families from the Dale Farm site near Crays Hill, Basildon. Essex Police estimated the cost of policing the eviction — not the actual operation itself — would be £9.2 million. Previously Basildon Council couldn’t afford that figure, so the travellers stayed in their homes, on their own land. Now the government has come to the rescue of its Tory friends in Essex. The...

Dale Farm, the UK’s largest traveller site, home to 1,000 people, is under imminent threat of eviction, by Tory-run Basildon council. The people facing eviction have not been offered suitable alternative space or accommodation. Get in touch to help resist this: http://dalefarm.wordpress.com savedalefarm@gmail.com

Tories in Essex have voted to spend up to £8 million evicting more than ninety Traveller families from a site at Dale Farm in Crays Hill. The decision was made by Basildon Council on 14 March at a packed meeting, despite opposition from Labour and Lib Dem councillors. There have been legal battles over the site since the first families occupied the area in 2001. Opponents said the decision, which commits a third of the council's annual budget, could lead to more job cuts and make children and elderly people homeless. Bailiffs will begin to clear the site after a 28-day legal order is imposed...