ABSTRACT
On the morning of 25 October parents began to gather outside the two schools, and the police removed the outer barricades. Government attempts to address the students by loudspeaker vans outside were drowned by clapping and singing, while the SCMSSU organization used their own public address system to keep up the students' morale, and set up an effective organization to deter any of them from leaving. It was clear that force was going to be necessary. All police and army units were therefore alerted and briefed, though none were moved at this stage, and preparations were confined to those which were not visible to the public.
