SmashEDO

Police have intervened across the country to censor 'On the Verge' an independent documentary about a campaign to shut down a Brighton weapons manufacturer. So far establishments in Southampton, Chichester and Bath and Oxford as well as Brighton have come under police pressure to cancel film showings. In Brighton police intervened to prevent a showing at the Duke of York's Cinema.

Staff at the Arthouse Community Cafe in Bedford Place, Southampton were approached at 11 a.m (Weds 19th March) by police accompanied by licensing officers. Threats were made concerning their licensing if the film, due to be shown on Thursday 20th was screened. Jani Franck director of the Community Cafe said “I grew up in South Africa and this feels awfully familiar. This has nothing to do with protecting the public this is nothing but censorship”

The campaign against Brighton’s own bomb makers continues both in and out of Brighton. On May 15th EDO/MBM took part in the Electronic Warfare exhibition and conference at Olympia in London. This is a yearly get-together for hi-tech arms dealers keen to develop every moneymaking opportunity in the ever-expanding world market in death and destruction. A Samba band played for two hours and several activists occupied the ledge over the entrance to the conference centre holding a banner so that passers-by could see just what was being exhibited inside.

A 'MASKED Ball' was held by Smash EDO to celebrate the discontinuance of EDO Rugged Systems, one of the businesses operating out of the controversial weapons firm in Home Farm Road, Brighton.

The campaign group has campaigned for over three years for the closure of EDO MBM, which supplies weapons to the Israeli military for their assault on the Palestinians and for the US/UK led occupation of Iraq. EDO MBM, a wholly owned unit of the US EDO Corporation, has performed dismally in 2006. Since March 2006 EDO has lost a major High Court suit against anti-war protesters in Brighton, which caused the resignation of EDO MBM Managing Director David Jones, has been implicated in a high level Pentagon sleaze and corruption scandal involving EDO director and former CIA man Dennis Blair (who was also forced to resign), has been sued for Racial Discrimination and has lost vital orders from the US military for its flagship Warlock counter measure system that appears to have serious security flaws.