Anti-capitalist protests force close St Paul's Cathedral in London

Anti-capitalist protests force close St Paul's Cathedral in London

The iconic St Paul's Cathedral in the heart of London was forced to be closed on Friday as anti-capitalist demonstrators continued their camping for the sixth day outside its main entrance.

"I have written an open letter to the protestors this afternoon advising them that we have no lawful alternative but to close St Paul's Cathedral until further notice," Dean of St Paul's the Right Reverend Graeme Knowles said in a statement.

Knowles said that the cathedral authorities were unwilling to close the building and had asked the demonstrators to move their camp, but felt they had no alternative.

"It is about the practical and safety issues which this peaceful protest has raised. It should be obvious to anyone approaching the Cathedral that the size of the camp and the consequent compliance issues which it inevitably raises, has increasingly put us in a difficult position," he said.

Protesters inspired by the Occupy Wall Street demonstrations in the United States started camping on the site of the St Paul's Churchyard on Saturday afternoon, when a bid to occupy the London Stock Exchange in a neighboring square was thwarted by a large police presence.

The cathedral authorities have asked the protesters to take down their camp, which has grown from about 30 to 40 tents to more than 200.

The camp is clustered at the west end of the cathedral, which is the main entrance to the cathedral, one of London's major landmarks and a key tourist attraction.

Editor: yan

English.news.cn   2011-10-22 05:52:34 FeedbackPrintRSS
LONDON, Oct. 21 (Xinhua)