Violence mars May Day holiday

Police attempted to contain demonstrations in central London

LONDON, England -- Sporadic violence marked the end of May Day protests in European capitals after police dispersed anti-globalisation demonstrators.

Skirmishes between police and protesters lasted late into Tuesday evening in London.

Police had earlier come under fire from a hail of makeshift weapons as they charged at demonstrators in the capital's Oxford Street shopping district, as several thousand people brought the city centre to a halt.

AUDIO CNN's Richard Quest in London: Protesters push at police lines 457K/42 sec. AIFF or WAV sound CNN's Bettina Luscher: Controversial neo-Nazi march 870K/80 sec. AIFF or WAV sound Tom Bentley, Demos Director: Groups and their agenda 910K/84 sec. AIFF or WAV sound Tom Bentley, Demos Director: Use of the Internet 930K/86 sec. AIFF or WAV sound CNN's Doug Herbert: May Day tradition 740K/68 sec. AIFF or WAV sound     RESOURCES May Day 2001 • Diverse agendas in Europe • Day in pictures • Ancient roots • Police preparations • Monopoly in London • Tension in London • Rallies around the world • Riots, dancing in Asia • Related sites

By nightfall, more than 40 people had been arrested and the crowds had shrunk to just a few hundred protesters in scattered groups.

A car was overturned and shop windows smashed as police dispersed most of the crowds.

Police estimate the protests cost London businesses around £20 million ($28m).

Across Europe, record numbers of police were deployed to keep May Day rallies under control. Many remained largely peaceful.

But in Berlin, around 6,000 people confronted police, who arrested scores of people and used water cannon to break up blazing barricades set by demonstrators.

In France, thousands of workers took part in traditionally peaceful May 1 marches in protest at recent job cuts by large companies.

Violence first erupted in London after several thousand demonstrators were surrounded by police in riot gear on London's Oxford Street.

After hours of largely peaceful protest, in which police kept separated differing groups of demonstrators, the mood turned ugly.

Police charged demonstrators, forcing them back only for the protesters to counter-charge as makeshift weapons rained down on police lines and masked demonstrators wrecked traffic lights.

Around 6,000 police officers had been ordered onto the streets to keep the crowds under control.

CNN's Paul Sussman, reporting from the scene, said bottles, sticks and debris were used as weapons against police dressed in riot gear.

The protests were scattered throughout the city. Approximately 600 bicyclists earlier snarled London's morning traffic.

Some laid their bicycles down in roads in an apparent bid to bring attention to their cause of promoting environmentally-friendly transportation. Double-decker buses loaded with morning commuters were brought to a halt.

Britons were outraged last year when a statue of Winston Churchill was daubed with graffiti and a piece of green turf placed on his head.

On Tuesday, barricades were erected round Parliament Square where workmen boarded up statues of Churchill and Abraham Lincoln.

Demonstrators had dubbed the UK protests May Day Monopoly after the famous board game.

One of the protesters' Web sites said: "Using the symbolism of the Monopoly game, diverse groups will perform autonomous actions throughout London relating to squares on the Monopoly board."

Water cannon fired in Berlin

In Berlin, police had turned water cannon on demonstrators before dawn on Tuesday in a prelude to feared May Day mayhem.

The demonstration had been banned by the authorities, but during Monday night about 500 protesters erected barricades, set fires and threw stones and bottles at police, who responded with water cannon.

A police spokesman said up to 40 demonstrators were arrested and several officers were injured.

CNN's Bettina Luscher said police and rioters clashed in two separate incidents in the east of the city.

She said in one a crowd of 6,000 people confronted police, while elsewhere another 500 were involved in clashes. At least 40 people were arrested and several police officers were injured.

In France, staff recently laid off from British-based retailer Marks & Spencer and French food giant Groupe Danone were given the pride of place at the head of marches throughout the country.

In Greece, flights were curtailed and shipping and rail services disrupted as public transport workers joined in May Day protests against government plans for pension changes.

Tens of thousands of protesters, many carrying banners and shouting slogans, turned the traditional May Day march through the streets of Athens into a strong assault on the government's proposed reforms of the pension system.

The demonstration followed a general strike last week that brought 100,000 people onto the streets, shutting down schools, hospitals and state services and bringing transport to a standstill.

In Russia, the news agency Interfax said more than 50,000 people took part in May Day rallies across Siberia and the Far East.

It said they were demanding higher wages, better working conditions, improved pensions, price controls and abolition of a single social tax introduced at the beginning of the year.

Protesters carried banners proclaiming "We need a second Stalin" and "No to the anti-national policy of the government."

In Amsterdam, police released smoke bombs and tear gas to clear the streets.

In Italy, a scuffle broke out in the northern city of Turin after a small group of activists backing centre-right leader Silvio Berlusconi tried to join a leftist May Day rally.

Meanwhile, some 5,000 mostly elderly supporters of Bulgaria's main opposition Socialist Party marched in central Sofia to protest against poverty, rising crime and corruption.

May Day: Roots in an ancient rite
April 30, 2001
May Day: Rallies around the world
May 1, 2001
Police brace for May Day protests
May 1, 2001
Riots, dancing mark Asia's May Day
May 1, 2001
Berlin protesters clash with police
May 1, 2001
Police prepare for May Day mayhem
April 30, 2001

May Day Monopoly
The Metropolitan Police Service

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