Written by Michael Newland
The right to protest and demonstrate has in modern times always been upheld as a democratic right. Sometimes more in the letter than in the spirit but no one in power has seriously suggested it should be banned. It’s actually arguably more important than voting since it’s even more fundamental to having a say in how things are run.
Saturday 28th November, changed all that.
I spent the day walking all over central London watching as the police set out to ban a peaceful demonstration. Their argument appeared to be that protest was banned by law and they were simply enforcing.
But no such law has been passed. The virus regulations applying on Saturday – passed by ministerial diktat – say that gatherings are allowed if there is a ‘reasonable excuse’, and examples are given. The examples do not include protest as with the last regulations but they do not need to. Protest is allowed by Articles Ten and Eleven of the Convention on Human Rights which prevails over other law. True, restrictions can be placed but they have be proportionate and reasonable in the circumstances and a total ban is arguably not. The police appear to think that everything is banned unless specifically allowed (or want to) when in English law it’s the other way round.
Huge numbers of police were roaming the streets. You’d have thought there must be an armed revolution threatened or a terrorist threat all over. Or am I in Hong Kong? In fact the target was several thousand, as it later emerged, peaceful, reasonable people who do not agree with the lockdowns. They came from all over the country despite the police blocking coaches from travelling and were non-political in the sense of being from left, right, anarchist and every other viewpoint. The solidarity was palpable despite being from all shades of opinion. It was heart-warming.
The demonstration had been announced to start at Kings Cross and the arrests had already started. All day this went on with people being targeted if they looked like they might express an opinion in public, or at random if they looked like easy meat. Women seemed to be deliberately focused on. Was this to provoke the men so more arrests could be made? Women were handcuffed behind their backs. Why? Handcuffing is supposed to be to prevent escape or violence – not as a form of punishment applied outside the courts. One man was arrested wearing a Santa Claus outfit. Not exactly the Provisional IRA or Al Qaeda, is it?
All day groups of people moved around central London trying to outpace the police snatch squads. In Trafalgar Square a carousel of police vans kept furiously driving this way and that through the square on their way to attack another dangerous woman who happened to be on the streets. It had an air of the Keystone Kops – not really knowing what they were at but desperate to ‘obey orders’. Unfortunately, feral thugs assaulting the public fits better what I saw.
Around four much of the crowd reached Hyde Park where a huge number of vans full of police set about arresting more people. Apparently there were over 150 arrests during the day. Did it work? No – it simply disgusted everybody rather than putting people off daring to express a view ever again.
When Sir Robert Peel formed the first centralised police force, the Metropolitan Police, in the 1820s there was considerable concern that it would be used by government for political control. Peel avoided the police being military in appearance and they were given only a truncheon as a weapon. Look at them now. Dressed for combat and laden with weapons – and politicised. Exactly what people in the 1820s feared would happen. Cressida Dick and the leadership of the police should never have agreed that their force be used like it was on Saturday.
All too many of the crowd were under the naive illusion that you can reason with paramilitaries obeying orders. Often people talk themselves into being arrested not realising how the most innocent remarks can be manipulated. Do not talk to the police! They are not your friends.
Boris Johnson now has the dubious distinction of being the Prime Minister who is reducing Britain to being one of those nightmare dictatorships we used to deplore in newspapers. The sooner he is gone the better.
The point of demonstrations is not the demonstration itself. It’s what political message will be broadcast as a result. On that basis Saturday’s event was a huge success. It broadcast the message that Britain is hovering on the edge of being a totalitarian state.
It’s control by fear not by persuasion. People need to know.
So much for the big Tory rebellion today, and as per usual it fizzled out. The government won the Covid Tiers vote 291 to 78. There were about 8 Labour MP’s who voted against the government, so the number of Conservative MP’s who voted against numbers about 70. Nothing like the 100 that was being talked about. As for Labour, what a waste of space they are. What exactly do they stand for these days. Rather than abstaining why did they not vote against the government’s Tiers policy. Is this what Starmer calls leadership, the mind boggles. We need a mass root and branch clear out of that cess pit called the House of Commons at the next General Election. I really can’t see either the Conservatives, Labour or the Liberal Democrats ever being the parties of government again. They have failed the people of this country big time, and I am sure it won’t be forgotten.
According to a report the Court of Appeal in the Dolan case says you can argue human rights if prosecuted for a demonstration. That in fact was already the basis of Piers Corbyn’s defence. Day Two of his trial tomorrow.
funny the BBC breifly mentioned 60 arrests. Anyone want to take the risk of singing carols at the oslo tree ?
if you do bring along BLM/XR parahpernalia.
You are the sort pf person who will risk granny’s life by playing Monopoly and singing at Xmas contrary to guidance. Shame I say shame!
The problem arises because the government is no longer able to conceal it’s cockups due to social media bypassing the MSM.
(No wonder Donald Trump communicated with tweets.)
This leads the public becoming more agitated than in the recent past.
Too much information. Some of it wrong. Deliberately so.
It’s nothing short of the Nazification of England where only one establishment narrative is allowed, and it will get worse if they try to enforce health ID by passport stamp or mobile app.
I don’t think it is hyperbole to say we are on the cusp of 1984. Get rid of ’em before it’s too late!
The new regulations from tomorrow return to specifically allowing protests. Subject to ‘reasonable’ precautions. Back to head battering at the end of events by the looks on any pretext.
It’s not Boris that you have to worry about – if he goes there will be another numpty along to take his place – its the 14k civil serpents in the Cabinet Office that keep the MPs docile and obedient (no MP, even if he has the will, has the time to fight the machine). The problem has to be dealt with at source.
Yes another calculating bstard but it unsettles the system and encourages dissent. Rule One. The Tories are not in YOUR interests.
Yes, Jim, I completely agree. We have far too many civil servants trying to ensure that the government does exactly what they (the servants) want. The fact that we have voted in the government seems to escape them.
Very well done Michael Newland for going to London and doing this article.
Yes it’s all reported on UK Column how these civil serpents and their hangers- on (academics, Eurocrats?) are also behind the mental conditioning of police and public. Someone else in turn is pulling their strings but UK Column does not know who. (I surmise; the EU Joint Committee in the first instance?) They’re described as a Government of Occupation. All funded doubtless by Soros money.
We can’t sit and hope that someone in Government can break all this up. so can you think of ANY solution apart from educating the public and civil disobedience? Especially since I don’t think there’s any hope of anything like Brexit.
I was on the march, and realized for the first time, as a law-abiding person, that the British police are no longer on my side. The Territorial Support Group, baseball caps over their eyes, masks concealing the rest of their faces, were the ones to look out for. I tried to keep away from them.
The experience confirmed for me that this really isn’t about health. The amiable and cheerful people around me posed no danger to anyone. The Black Lies Matter and XR demos did not cause a spike in covid deaths. This was political repression of the public’s right to free assembly and protest. Deeply sinister.
Central London Policing is well resourced and aggressively led. May make more sense to peacefully protest locally. Try to catch the attention of your local peacock when they visit town to do photo opps and pick up their constituency post.
Luckily there no police in our town, at least, there wasarumourthat one had been seen driving a beautiful car outside a pub. I amsoorryi cannot confirm
The working class have known for decades that the police and the Tories are not their friends. Now the middle class are learning the same lesson.
Hopefully the working class are starting to realise also that Labour is not their friend either.
MWT Fully agree but we should add that Labour .Lib Dems are just as bad – there is not a piece of paper to put between them.
Anyone who is not engaging in political activity in some way cannot complain about the erosion of liberties.