British student arrested for carrying water color pen

From Felicity Dowling.

Students from across the UK organised a demonstration against  increases in fees and cuts in Funding  for universities. It was one year since the first huge student demonstration. This time student numbers were smaller. The police presence was huge. Students who had been in contact  with the police the previous year had letters from the police warning them not to attend.

Students from University of the West of England were dropped by their coach and walked into a group of police. The police stopped and searched them. One student, one of the coach organisers, was found to have a water colour marker pen in his pocket. He was Arrested. They called his name into their head quarters and said "yes were having him". He was taken to the police station and charged with "going equipped to cause  criminal damage".  He was eventually let out on bail,after the demonstration. The conditions include not being allowed to be in London for a month. There is a big demonstration due on November 30th with a strike of public sector workers. Presumably the police want to stop him going on a demonstration then too The court case is on the 22nd November.

So many rights seem to be abused here. The freedom from arbitrary arrest, freedom to demonstrate and freedom to carry a pen...