and Away •french students fight French lessons for British students • Mark Jasen. For thousands of young people raves are where you can have a good time free from the macho atmosphere that dominates clubs and pubs, so why has the government declared war on illegal raves? Their new Criminal Justice Act, passed on 11 January, strengthens the power of the police to forcibly evict crush raves and free festivals from unused land. Drugs are used as a reason for state repression, but the numbers harmed by Ecstasy are compared to the number of people who have taken the drug. The main danger of the drug -dehydration - can be reduced by having plenty of water for people to drink. Legal raves charge extortionate prices for bottled water and stop the water supply to the toilets. Squatted raves, for fun not for profit, are less likely to have these unnecessary dangers. The crackdown on raves is just another example of government using heavy handed tactics to protect private property and crack down on the vibrant and creative energy of the young people involved.
• Kathryn Marshall