The Right To Protest
Posted on 07. Apr, 2009 by Richard Barnbrook in Latest News
Here’s something received in my mailbox recently concerning the policing of the G20 protests. Not being there myself I cannot vouch for the accuracy however I’ll use this blog to giver this letter the wider audience it deserves.
Dear Richard Barnbrook,
I would very much appreciate it if you could take time to read the account of what I have witnessed today in the City of London. I am a normal respectable citizen who didn’t attend Wednesday’s protests but wanted to pay my respects to the man who died yesterday. This is what
happened:
If you read the news about the protests today, you won’t find much. They are simply not reporting the true extent of what has been going on.
I want to point out now that these 200 odd people who were inside the cordon I saw today went to Bank to pay their respects to Ian Tomlinson who died yesterday stuck inside the police cordon (which was in place for over 10 hours).
This is what I witnessed myself in 15 minutes standing near the Bank of England…
The police were ushering the protesters along towards a side street near the Bank of England. One of them decided he had had enough and tried to leave. A policeman immediately swung him against some scaffolding, handcuffed him and walked him away. My first reaction was that the guy must have done something to antagonise them or break the law earlier.
The ushering continued and the police then split them up into two groups on two cornering streets, not letting anyone leave. Suddenly, a policeman threw a punch at the face of a male man, who raised his right arm to try and block the punch (NO retaliation, merely a block). Immediately, 3 officers threw him up against the scaffolding, knocked him to the ground and beat him with their batons. They then carried him horizontally away.
A photographer on the spectator side of the cordon tried to capture it. An officer ran over and grabbed him, trying to force him into the cordon. He escaped but the officer came after him and squared up to him (who was right next to me at this point) shouting, “Do you want a piece of this, huh, do you want to come and get some?”. He was then called back by another officer.
A few minutes later, a girl no more than 10 metres away from me, who was on the front line of the cordon, was suddenly shoved up against a wall and kicked repeatedly by a policeman. he left her as she stayed cowering.
Subsequently, 6 mounted police trotted around the corner and penned them in, after which the police dogs showed up. The general atmosphere was fear at who the police would pick on next.
At that point, 5 police surrounded us (as quite a crowd had amassed in horror by now) and told us that we would be arrested if we didn’t move along. One guy said he had a right to stand there and watch and the policeman threatened him in no uncertain terms that he would either be arrested or thrown in the cordon if he didn’t move. He did. I left.
No media were there to witness these events.
In the space of fifteen minutes, I saw 5 people arrested for no apparent reason, and 3 people attacked by the police and left bleeding. In FIFTEEN minutes only. At NO stage were the protesters doing anything other than chanting and playing tambourines.
I am left in abject shock at what I have witnessed and would seriously urge you all to spread the word about this. Whether you agree with the subject of the protests or not, every citizen has the right to protest. and a right to freedom to express their opinions without fear of violence or arrest whilst doing so.
It is only when you yourself have an issue that you realise the problems minorities face (when your identity is stolen, when you feel strongly enough about an issue to protest…). Those rights need protecting.
I for one am extremely proud of the protesters for having the courage to go out there and speak up knowing what’s awaiting them: police photographers cataloguing them all on a database (they were everywhere today); a constant threat of violence and arrest with no recourse or justice; knowing that the actions of 6 stupid people yesterday (1 who hit officers with a metal pole, the rest who broke the RBS windows) justified in the public’s eyes the police violence they faced for the rest of the day; being ‘kettled’ (cordoned) in for over 10 hours with no right to leave or enter = no food, drink, water, toilets for that length of time.
Ordinary innocent people. The ones the police are supposed to protect. The ones society is supposed to protect.
Think about whether one day, if you ever feel strongly enough about something to protest, you would want to be faced with what I have witnessed today. It happens on a regular basis. There is no excuse.
P.S. Yesterday, a student group sitting down on a road were charged by riot police and beaten with one girl being taken away unconscious. Batons were flying everywhere. The injured were not allowed to leave the cordon to seek medical help. One man died penned in like the rest of them. The police should be occupying the moral high ground, not letting a few idiots give them an excuse to randomly assault innocent protesters.
I say not in my name. I hope you would agree.
I would implore you to ensure that those responsible are held fully accountable for their actions, and further that you would push Parliament to legislate against the police practice of ‘kettling’, cordoning people in a pen for hours on end without the freedom to leave or get water or relieve themselves. I am sure you yourself have been the victim of the police infringements of freedom to protest and I would urge you to ensure that the rights of others are enshrined in law.
