FREE TRADE, Officials, groups prepare to lend aid

[Judi Lynn]

Posted on Sat, Nov. 15, 2003

FREE TRADE
Officials, groups prepare to lend aid
Civil liberties organizations and public officials are lining up legal resources to handle arrests and other issues during demonstrations.
BY TERE FIGUERAS
[e-mail]

With thousands of protesters expected to descend on downtown Miami for next week's free-trade talks, civil liberties groups are mustering their resources -- deploying monitors, enlisting lawyers and setting up an information campaign in anticipation of widespread demonstrations and possible arrests.

Public officials also are juggling resources and staffers to handle a potentially overwhelming number of people taken into custody during a week's worth of protests against the proposed Free Trade Area of the Americas.

The American Civil Liberties Union, which has expressed concern about tactics employed by city officials -- specifically a controversial ordinance passed Thursday limiting what protesters can carry during marches and demonstrations -- will operate a 24-hour hot line offering legal advice and referrals.

The local chapter of the ACLU has distributed 10,000 copies of a brochure outlining what demonstrators should do -- and not do -- while trying to voice their opinion. (snip/...)

http://www.miami.com/mld/miamiherald/news/local/7267353.htm