- LONDON: Britain's High Court has rejected an appeal from a community of Irish Travelers to prevent their eviction from an illegal site where they have lived for a decade.
The decision by Justice Duncan Ouseley clears the way for bailiffs to clear the contested Dale Farm site, 50 km east of London. Ouseley said Wednesday that the Travelers had waited too long to challenge the eviction. The eviction battle has dragged on for years and provoked concern from the United Nations.
Officials say the dispute stems from a planning issue - the 86 families own the land, but lack permission to pitch homes on it. But the Travelers, a traditionally nomadic group similar to, but ethnically distinct from, Gypsies or Roma people, say they are facing discrimination.
