http://www.guardian.co.uk/enron/story/0,,1809565,00.htmlThey came in their navy suits and animal-print ties, spilling out of black taxis and chauffeur-driven cars, clasping umbrellas, blackthorn canes and Daily Telegraphs. By 5pm there was a small crowd, waiting politely in ones or twos for the signal to get going. Then, "Come on!" shouted Karl Watkin, one of the organisers, beckoning exuberantly. "The champagnes are on me after we've finished the march!"
London can rarely have seen a less unruly rabble, or a better mannered demo. Around 100 business people gathered yesterday in Pall Mall to march on the Home Office in protest at an extradition treaty with the US that will see three British businessmen extradited to Texas next month to face fraud charges. Though their alleged crimes were committed in Britain against a British firm, and though no charges are being brought in this country, the US is seeking to prosecute them there as part of the wider fallout of the Enron scandal.
The controversial 2003 agreement allows the US to extradite British citizens without producing solid evidence of wrongdoing, though the refusal of the US Senate to ratify the treaty means the arrangement is not a reciprocal one. Introduced principally to expedite terrorism cases, the bulk of requests have in fact involved white-collar financial crime - a situation about which the City was eager yesterday to register its displeasure.
"The last time I protested was against the war in Vietnam!" giggled one expensively dressed gentleman, who declined with a pregnant smile to give his name or occupation. "It's taken something this horrific to get me out again!"