The previous evening around 50-60 people attended a public meeting hosted by the Fylingdales Action Network (FAN) in Whitby on the east coast of North Yorkshire. The speakers were Bruce Kent (vice president of CND), Carol Naughton (chair of CND), Dave Webb (from Yorkshire CND and the Global Network Against Weapons and Nuclear Power in Space) and Chris Dove from FAN. The subject was the role of the UK bases Fylingdales and Menwith Hill in the US Star Wars programme. There was time for a few questions before the meeting ended and most people adjourned to the Friendship Rowing Club for an evening of music and dancing to "Hamps Tramps".

The weather on the next day was wonderful - just a smattering of rain first thing to refresh the small but intrepid band of walkers who had decided to walk the 12 miles or so from Whitby to join those others gathering at Eller Beck - just a few hundred meters along the road from the Fylingdales phased array radar base. Already at Eller Beck were Ulla and Alistair of the Fylingdales Star Peace Camp - which had been set up by Ulla just a few weeks before to draw attention to Star Wars and the militarisation of space, the role of UK bases and the demise of the ABM Treaty..

More people from all over the country (and Scotland) joined in the party atmosphere thoughout the day - despite the fact that England were playing in some football match or other! There were games, displays, drumming workshops and music and just a few short speeches from Bruce Kent, Carol Naughton and Dave Webb from CND and Jackie Fearnley of FAN. Excellent food from 'Veggies' was also available.

Then, around 2-2.30pm we marched up the hill in a long impressive convoy to the gateway at the entrance to the base. A large number of police were waiting and guided us round the specially constructed crowd barriers.

Carol read out our statement of concern about the US withdrawal from the ABM Treaty and the demand that the UK does not participate in Star Wars activities and the base commander - Wing Commander David Knapman - came out to receive the written version in person. Then a pause while police moved in on two NVDA protesters who had joined themselves together and lay down to block the road to the base. There was no violence and they were cut apart by the police.

People drifted back to Eller Beck and the party slowly drifted away.

This beautiful setting in the North Yorkshire National Park has been blighted by the pointless radar pyramid for far too long - we are all committed to continue to protest and speak out until the day it is removed and George Bush's crazy Star Wars schemes are abandoned.

This is somewhere where the UK can make a great difference  - Tony Blair could speak out against this dreadful waste of resources and the start of an arms race in space; he could point out that true security does not come from some high tech fix that might not even work; he could refuse to allow the US to upgrade the bases at Fylingdales and Menwith Hill for Star Wars. He could even ask them to take these (and other bases in the UK) back home!

We hope to be able to help him and the UK government find the courage to stand up to the US and just say "No"!

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