18th August 2013
People came from all over the UK to protest against fracking, and in solidarity with the villagers of Balcombe and the road-side protest camp who've been 'Locking the Gate' for three weeks now. Police have been increasingly harassing camp residents, arresting seemingly at random times picking people off as they come out of the toilet or are eating lunch, and putting severe pressure on the rig-side forest camp. Meanwhile the Reclaim the Power camp had landed in a field about a 30 minute walk away, and has been building up to the action days this coming week.
Well over a thousand people marched – the first wave left Reclaim the Power, passed through the original protest camp and made it's way up to the station. No sooner than a line of yellow came into view ahead through the trees lining the road, a cheer rose and people at the station came streaming down. The police withdrew from between the crowds – fearing a Blakelock Sandwich – and took up position at what had been our rear, and now was the front. We slowly marched down, to the beat of a band of drummers, a samba band, and sound systems, down to the gate, where along with the lines of police from various forces, people listened to speeches by communities fighting the fracking threat and public figures there in solidarity.
Local 'democracy' (AKA corruption) of Balcombe parish council – Private Eye