Doctor awaits arrest over submarine protest

26 June 2007

Dr Richard Lawson.

A CONGRESBURY doctor who believes the Government is acting 'illegally and foolishly' is fully expecting to get arrested at an anti-nuclear protest in Scotland.

Dr Richard Lawson, a GP in the village, will be travelling to the base of the Trident nuclear submarines in Faslane, with four members of the Somerset Stop Trident Replacement campaign group on July 6 to take part in the Faslane 365 campaign.

Faslane 365 is a one-year continuous peaceful blockade of the Trident base which began in October 2006, and throughout the year protest groups have been visiting the naval base to form blockades and disrupt entry and exit to the site.

Over 800 people have been arrested since it began in October 2006 including Green MEP Caroline Lucas, Somerset-based political folk band Seize the Day and five elderly Quakers from Bristol.

Dr Lawson, who is international co-ordinator for the Green Party, said: "It is the duty of all citizens to disobey their Government when it is acting illegally and foolishly.

"I do not relish the prospect of being arrested, but there comes a time when we have to stand up and be counted. Or in this case, lie down and get arrested."

The married father-of-three says he feels driven to take direct action because of a lack of national debate about the nuclear submarine base.

He said: "Gandhi used civil disobedience to make the British quit India. His actions were ignored at first by the British Government, but in the end, the tide of history was with him.

"We have a choice. Nuclear weapons will either be abolished or used in a final act of catastrophic folly."

The Trident nuclear defence will need decommissioning, replacing or extending within the next few years. Replacing Trident would cost over £40billion and would keep nuclear submarines in Scotland until around 2055.