Dakta Green is in Wellington with Maryjane the Cannabus. After travelling the length and breadth of the country gathering signatures and stories, the end of the Armistice Tour approaches:
:: 10am Armistice Day 11/11/10 ::
Dakta Green, Maryjane and the friendly Daktory crew conclude thier 2010 NZ-wide tour with a peaceful protest and a march on parliament, demanding the end of the unlawful and inhumane persecution of NZ cannabis users.
Please, invite your friends! The more people who speak up, the more obvious it is that the persecution of cannabis is an issue facing many in NZ society.
Remember, this is an R18 event.
Yesterday afternoon, just after 4pm, a group of organisers went to Parliament Grounds to reconnoitre the permitted spaces for presentation of grievances to MPs. Ptotests must remain off the forecourt at all times. Barriers are erected in the front of the row of flagpoles at these occasions.
As we stood around Seddon's statue well away from Parliament buildings going about our business, a parliament security guard approached the small group. I recognised the guard. He was the same one who insisted on the security wand the day of the Reconstituting the Constitution conference.
No-one was smoking anything at this stage, although several very small burning effigies of Richard Nixon might have been passed around at some stage earlier on. Dakta Green spoke for the group, polite and clearly pointing out that we are minding our own business.
We had concluded our floor plan for the 11th November at Parliament, and went to continue our deliberations back on the bus. No sooner had we started walking back down the hill, I clearly heard the man in the uniform call for Comms. He had called the cops on us.
The guard followed the clutch of us down the hill, speaking with Dakta Green. We boarded Maryjane parked outside parliament, across from the Law School. The guard stood at the gates of parliament expectantly as we returned to our meeting.
Not long afterwards, two police cars parked blocking the rear of the Bedford bus, as one of those police command vehicles with aerials a go-go (and probably Glocks and Bushmasters in a lock box) blocked our front. Sergeant D857 of the Wellington Police approached as his officers scoped out the scene outside.
Dakta Green once again acted as spokesperson. After a quarter hour talk between the Sergeant and Dakta, the police left. Good on Sergeant D857 for not causing a fuss. The guard walked back up the hill to continue his petty vigil, undaunted by his impotence.
