This was originally posted on 19/01/11 however, was mysteriously removed on the 21/01/11 how and why are unknown.
Videos of what was being described in the testimony below where included in the original post, they will hopefully be re-posted soon.
This is supplementary to our post about what the BBC has a called a “clash”, that was the forceful eviction of the protestors, this can be found here.
Below is the testimony of an anonymous member of staff who witness what took place during the day.
When I saw the banner drop over the Watson Building Bridge at just after 12:00 noon, I decided to go and have a look at the student occupation. It became quickly obvious that University security seemed determined to take an uncompromising stance towards the occupation, and tried to deny the student occupiers access to sanitation facilities.
When a female student needed to use the toilet on the other end of the corridor security tried to prevent her from re-entering the occupation.
Other students present tried to shield this female student, peacefully and wholly non-violently from the security guards, I was shocked and horrified by the level of violence immediately meted out to the protestors. I saw one student in an arm-lock of one of the security guards, until he went red in the face. Standing in the background I shouted at them repeatedly to stop assaulting the students and stop the violence, but they would not and seemed to ignore me completely.
Another student was (his hands in the air and while shouting 'I am not violent') forcibly held on the ground by a security guard in a way which looked painful. I was very upset by these scenes and horrified at the violence used against our own students who were by all accounts from what I could see perfectly peaceful.
I was not present at the eviction in the evening.
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