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Western Morning News,
11th August 1999. Plain Text Version
Children caught up in Festival Violence.
Three children were treated for the effects of CS spray as 200 missile
throwing travellers clashed with 100 riot police assisting council staff to seize music
equipment from an illegal eclipse rave in Cornwall.
A four year old boy named Jake, his 10 year old sister Opie and another child had
their eyes washed by ambulance paramedics following yesterdays' clash at Trefullock Moor,
near Summercourt, Newquay.
Six staff employed by Restormel Borough Council and two police also needed
hospital treatment before four hours of angry confrontation and tense standoffs ended with
police withdrawing from the site.
Helmet clad council staff and police were pelted with stones, wood, mud and
paint, with police using their riot shields, batons and CS spray to protect themselves .
While supporters of the Manchester organised "Midday Mooners"
festival accused Devon and Cornwall Police of being provocative and heavy handed,
residents angered by the festival noise applauded their intervention.
Last night it was feared that the polices' high profile Operation Genesis,
with the media invited to watch, had been a failure as the music started up again.
The council acted yesterday, after receiiving many complaints about excessive noise
from residents in the parishes of St Enoder, St Stephen and Probus.
Former Army officer Ian Kyle-Milward, of Trefullock, said, "We've had to
endure a succession of sleepless nights. The noise has been absolutely
deafening."
The marshland meadows , where yesterday's skirmishes broke out, are owned by Bodmin
businessman Jenti Madhvanti. It is understood some young men from mid Cornwall hired
the land from him to stage an eclipse party.
But instead, about 1000 people paying 35 pounds for their tickets converged on
Trefullock from all over England after being falsely infrormed by organisers that it had a
public entertainments licence.
Those organisers, from Manchester, lost complete control on Saturday night when a
convoy of travellers turned away from an encampment at St Agnes Head, near Truro, came up
the A30 and stormed the Trefullock site.
As the council and police action began at noon yesterday, there were at least seven
seperate sound systems spread around the Trefullock meadow and marshland.
The authorities concentrated their efforts on reaching an open tent about 30 yards
inside the main entrance and capturing a high powered "techno" music system.
But as they headed back towards a 20 strong convoy of police and council vans
parked out on the Laddock - Fraddon road they were pelted with missiles by travellers who
recaptured some equipment.
Some police struck out with batons and sprayed their attackers with protective CS
spray.
A traveller named Justin alleged : " I was sitting in my van and realised that
my four year old boy, Jake was outside. I ran out to grab him and saw police gassing
him in the face.
" My ten year old daughter Opie also got gassed and also got treated by the
ambulance men."
Festival organiser Duncan said :"I have spent about 7000 pounds on renting
fields, twenty toilets and paying for an ambulance, fire cover and security. I
advertised the event on the internet and was
expecting 500 - 800 people."
Devon and Cornwall Chief Constable John Evans said the aim of the operation was not
to evict festival goers but to support the Council, which wanted to seize a main sound
system. Two noise abatement notices issued over the previous two nights had been
ignored. |