Students participating in the government department's off-campus study program in Washington D.C. found themselves in the midst of the large-scale protests taking place in the nation's capital yesterday, as world financial leaders gathered there for meetings of the World Trade Organization and the International Monetary Fund.
As many as 10,000 protesters ringed the area around police-blockades encompassing the WTO building, just two blocks from the building in which the 16 Dartmouth students are spending their Spring term.
Students said they were impressed to be in the midst of the kind of event they had only heard of on the news in the past.
"I think it's exciting to see this sort of thing occur," said Caroline Cantner '01, one of the students on the program. "It was pretty intense there for awhile."
Cantner and two other students walked down to see the protests in the middle of the day after they were awakened early in the morning by drums and chanting, as well as the flight of helicopters overhead.
Many of the protesters seemed peaceful, Cantner said, noting the presence of several activists dressed as turtles and women in red reading from copies of the Communist Manifesto.
"The only part I really got tense about was there was this group who wore all black and they were moving really fast and pushing people out of their way," Jordan Cortez '01, one of the students who accompanied Cantner, said.
"The police presence is unbelievable," Cantner said, describing police in full riot gear as well as activists wearing gas masks and bandanas.
Police have been stationed on the street in front of their building" which is now cordoned off " since last Wednesday and there have been motorcades and many sirens for the last week, she said.
Police in the nation's capital " with its many highly-protected people and monuments " began preparations well in advance and were on high alert for yesterday's protests after riots shook WTO talks held in Seattle last year.
Government professor Dean Spiliotes, who is in charge of the off-campus study program, said he has not been very worried about the situation because of the high level of security and since the students' building is far enough away from the main protests to be safe.
Students said Spiliotes told them that he "didn't want to see them on television" and asked them to be careful.
"I just urged them to exercise caution," Spiliotes said, adding that the protests are really "an interesting exercise in democratic process." Both Cantner and Cortez agreed.
"We're here studying government process, and it was good to see people working outside of that process," Cantner said. "As long as it doesn't get violent, it's a sign that people still care."
A wide variety of issues, ranging from environmental damage to the exploitation of third world nations drew protesters to Washington for the demonstrations against the two international economic and financial planning organizations.
Many of the protesters yesterday were there in an attempt to block both press and delegate access to the buildings at which the meetings were being held.
Most representatives made it to their meetings on time thanks to a predawn VIP bus service. IMF representatives from France, Brazil, Portugal and Thailand, were forced to wait six hours before proceeding to their meetings, however.
The protests remained mostly peaceful yesterday except for one incident in which police used pepper spray, smoke bombs, and batons in a successful attempt to control a crowd of protesters approaching a police line.
Police reported arresting more than 600 people Saturday evening after they shut down the protest headquarters. The number of arrests yesterday was much lower, with estimates of those taken into custody ranging from 20 to 40.
IMF delegates concluded their opening session yesterday with a pledge to continue efforts to offer more debt-relief initiatives to the world's poorest nations.