AUCHTERARDER (Scotland): Little seems out of the ordinary in this clean, quiet Scottish town with its small upmarket shops stretching down the long main street. But a shiny new steel fence, snaking across the green hills and glinting in the sunshine, is an indication that all is not normal in Auchterarder.

In less than a month, eight of the world’s most powerful men — including Prime Minister Tony Blair and US President George W. Bush — will gather at the luxurious Gleneagles countryside hotel nearby to discuss African poverty and climate change.

While some local people see an opportunity to get their town better known, others fear becoming the target of anti-capitalist protests when the summit of the Group of Eight (G8) industrialised nations takes place from July 6-8.

“People are concerned. They would rather it was happening on an aircraft carrier stuck in the middle of the Atlantic than in Auchterarder,” said Peter Everett, chairman of the town’s community council.

“More and more of the businesses are talking about boarding up, shutting down,” said Everett, dressed in a golfing pullover, as sun streamed through the windows of his front porch.

The main umbrella group planning to demonstrate near Gleneagles, G8 Alternatives, insists its event will be peaceful — not a repeat of the pitched battles seen near previous summits such as those in Genoa and Evian.

But some of the 4,000 residents of Auchterader, situated some 65 km northwest of Scotland’s capital Edinburgh, fear radicals could use the protest as a cover to cause trouble.

“People just don’t believe they can guarantee there won’t be a violent element joining on,” Everett said.

Shop owners are hoping the town’s lack of big international retail stores will work to its advantage.

The vast majority of the shops along the main street, which gives Auchterarder its local nickname of the ‘lang toon’ (‘long town’), are small and family owned.

There are no obvious symbols of global capitalism such as a McDonald’s fast food restaurant.

Just about the only thing in the area owned by a multinational corporation is Gleneagles itself.

Purpose-built as a resort hotel by the Caledonian Railway company between 1913 and 1924, Gleneagles is now a subsidiary of drinks giant Diageo.

But police have pledged no protester will get near the imposing grey stone building or its grounds, including its famous world-class golf courses. The five mile long, two metre high fence is just part of a massive security operation.

That leaves Auchterarder as the nearest rallying point for protests, although local people point out demonstrators will hardly be able to influence the summit participants.

—Reuters