Mariam Kamish, Caerphilly Socialist Party
Following an occupation by protesters of Abertridwr Library on 6 September, solicitors HE Evans has won an injunction for the campaign in the High Court in London. The council has to reopen the ten Caerphilly local libraries for the duration of the judicial review. Scandalously, Caerphilly Council had decided to close all ten threatened libraries in the middle of the review – and we were determined to try to stop them.
Campaigners began to assemble from 10am – whole families with children. One thirteen-year-old said tearfully, “I don’t want them to close the library”. But this was a day of celebration, as well as determination. Children and adults browsed for books, used the computers, played with the soft toys, followed the librarian round in a gleeful treasure hunt.
Judicial reviews are not a reliable instrument for stopping cuts – the courts favour local councils – but some do win. And we’ve brought our judicial review on the basis of the impact on working-class families, young people, older people and disabled people – not on a point of procedure.
We were occupying Abertridwr Library – but on behalf of all ten libraries. At 1pm when the doors closed, we explained: “These closures are a cynical act by the council. Up till now, we’ve done everything by the book. Now, we’re taking them to the court of public opinion.”
Supporters came down with food during the afternoon, but council staff had locked the doors and they couldn’t get in.
Four police officers showed up to see us off. But we quoted the law at them and they didn’t try to remove us, though they kept warning they might. Eventually it was pleas that library staff would have to stay as long as we did, which wore a couple of the protesters down.
We’d agreed from the start that whatever we did, we’d do it together. We were also aware that not all the protesters could stay indefinitely. So, we announced that we’d leave at 5pm. When we got outside, we found the librarians had been sent home and other council staff had taken over.
We can chalk that one up to experience. But our four-hour occupation has sent a defiant message. With thousands of views on social media, the word is getting out there. We say: fight every cut, every closure, every attempt to give our libraries and playing fields away in Community Asset Transfers.
And we’re serving notice on councillors, both Labour and Plaid Cymru. If you won’t defend us from the cuts, stand aside for genuine socialists who will!
