I've sent this to my MP
I'm emailing you my concerns of the policing of the demo on Saturday about Gaza.
Over last year I've been to many of these demos. They have been well organised and stewarded by Palestine Solidarity Campaign and the other groups working with them.
The demo on Saturday route had been agreed to be from Portland Place to Whitehall.
I have attended previous demo going from Portland Place. At which there was no trouble.
Over last few weeks extra conditions brought in by Police led to people like me not knowing what was going to happen until last minute.
There was imo no valid reason to alter the route and bring in extra conditions.
The original starting point was not near the Synagogue. Nor did the march route go by it. It from that point moves away from it.
At the demo on Saturday there were as usual a lot of people with families and a play area had been set up for children.
As usual the atmosphere was good natured at the demo with a cross section on people there.
The large presence of police was in my opinion intimidating.
There have been a series of marches over last months which had a large number of people with children and had been peaceful. There has not been a breakdown in public order at previous marches.
So the extra conditions put on this demo were not justified.
It was difficult to get into and out of Whitehall. I had to advise some of how to get in and out as early on Police were blocking main ways to gain access to the demo
This caused more tension not less. If the previously agreed march route had been allowed there would have been no serious trouble on that day. Given the record of previous marches.
I'm concerned that the Met are using the Public Order Act to effectively curtail demonstrations on spurious grounds.
The Met in this instance over stepped the mark. As my MP will you ask questions directed to the Met what was the evidence basis for these extra conditions on the demo. As I don't see them anywhere.
Also ask the Met why after meetings with march organisers were extra conditions brought in late in the day. As my understanding is that the march organisers had planned ahead and thought it was all agreed with Met.
On a secondary note I'm concerned that the Labour Government are continuing the appeal started by the previous Tory government about public order rules.
Government ‘showing disregard for the law’, Liberty warns in anti-protest legal challenge - Liberty
As my MP do you agree that the new Labour government should continue this appeal? As if successful it would could be used to limit legitimate peaceful protest. Which is a cornerstone of a democratic society.
From the Liberty article.
The legislation, which significantly reduced the threshold at which the police could impose almost-unlimited conditions on protests to anything that they deemed caused ‘more than minor disruption’, had been brought in by then Home Secretary Suella Braverman in June 2023. Previously the threshold had been set at anything that caused ‘serious disruption’.
Liberty challenged the legislation in court, arguing that it was unlawful since it had already been democratically rejected by Parliament just a few months earlier, and was subsequently brought in “via the back door” through ‘secondary legislation’, which required less Parliamentary scrutiny and debate.
In May 2024, the High Court agreed with Liberty’s arguments, ruling that “more than minor cannot mean serious”. The Court also found that the Government had failed to undertake a fair consultation period, instead only inviting thoughts from those it knew would be supportive of its proposals, such as the police but not protest groups.
www.theguardian.com
