Animal rights activists were accused in the High Court of conducting a "campaign of terrorism" in the area surrounding a farm which breeds guinea pigs for medical research. Timothy Lawson-Cruttenden, lawyer for the owners of Darley Oaks Farm at Newchurch, Staffordshire, and their families and neighbours, said: "This is not a campaign of mild civil disobedience, but a campaign of terrorism which needs to be met harshly. "This community asks this court to protect it as effectively as it can by way of an exclusion zone which can be policed." ..TEXT: He urged Mr Justice Owen to impose a 27 square mile no-go area around seven parishes whose 3,830 households were at risk from the activities of extremists. "Everyone wants lawful protest to occur under controlled terms, but they want unlawful protest to stop," he said. The judge was hearing an application by local parish councillor Peter Clamp for the right to represent people living in his parish of Newborough and the nearby parishes of Yoxall, Barton- under-Needwood, Hanbury, Tatenhill, Draycott and Hoar Cross, all west of Burton upon Trent. Mr Lawson-Cruttenden said Mr Clamp had the backing of two local MPs and the vast majority of residents who had so far responded to a ballot of the seven parishes. But Simon Dally, lay representative for 16 individuals and protest organisations named as defendants in the action, argued that Mr Clamp had "no sufficient mandate" to act for all the residents. Mr Dally said an independent poll carried out in the area showed that some people living in Yoxall, near the farm, were against the court action, but were unwilling to sign a petition to that effect because of "village politics". One Yoxall resident had stated that she knew of no one in the village who felt threatened by the protests outside the farm. There was no formal evidence to support Mr Clamp's claim that he had the backing of other parish councillors, he said. Even if he had such backing, it did not mean he was supported by everyone in the parishes. The truth was that most people were "indifferent" to the ballots, as shown by the low turnout. Mr Clamp and the farm's owners, brothers Christopher and John Hall, with their families, friends, employees and tenants, are suing under the Protection from Harassment Act. The defendants named in the action include SNGP (Save Newchurch Guinea Pigs), Shac (Stop Huntingdon Animal Cruelty), Speak (Campaigns), and the Alf (Animal Liberation Front). Some of them have agreed to their protests outside the farm entrance being limited in time, frequency and the number of demonstrators, but they contest Mr Clamp's right to act as the voice of the local people. Last October, the body of Gladys Hammond, who died in 1997 aged 82, was stolen from a grave at St Peter's Church. Mr Dally, for all the defendants apart from the Alf, argued yesterday that a letter of support from the Rector of Yoxall, Jenny Lister, was no evidence of general support for Mr Clamp's action. The fact that a large number of people turned out to show their respect for Mrs Hammond at a church service following the grave desecration was no indication of general support for Mr Clamp. The judge reserved judgment. | 
