Representatives of the coalition organising the national
Palestine marches, along with MPs and civil liberties
organisations, will hold a press conference tomorrow morning
(Wednesday 28 February) in Parliament to address the growing
attacks on the right to protest.
It comes the day after the Home Affairs Select Committee made a
number of recommendations that would further limit the right to
peaceful protest, and a week after the disgraceful scenes in
Parliament where the speaker abandoned normal protocol at the
same time as House of Commons security prevented people lobbying
their MPs.
Since then, the repressive atmosphere has escalated dramatically.
Parliamentarians and many media commentators have portrayed the
lobby of Parliament as an act akin to insurrection and have
sought to associate peaceful protests with terrorism. A number of
MPs have escalated calls for demonstrations outside the Palace of
Westminster, MPs offices and council chambers to be banned.
Among those to address the press conference will be MP, Liberty’s Ruth Ehrlich,
and representatives of the six organisations who together
organise the Palestine marches.
The organisers are deeply concerned that the long tradition of
freedom of protest and expression in this country is being
threatened. A huge democratic gulf between the majority of the
population on the one hand, which opposes Israel’s genocidal
attacks on Gaza, and most politicians on the other, has produced
an unprecedented series of massive demonstrations.
A spokesperson said: “Since October, hundreds of thousands of
people have taken to the streets of London and their local areas
calling for an immediate ceasefire in Gaza, yet politicians have
denounced these peace protestors as ‘hate marchers’ for
expressing the majority view.
“Under intense political pressure from the government, political
commentators, and a range of pro-Israel groups pushing to have
the protests banned, the policing of the demonstrations has been
increasingly aggressive and restrictive. It has been marked by
unprecedented use of restriction orders, pressure on the
organisers not to march, and violent arrests of protestors.”
The march organisers have produced a dossier outlining some
examples of the unacceptable policing of the protests which they
will be presenting to Assistant Police Commissioner Matt Twist at
a meeting at Scotland Yard on Friday.
The spokesperson added: “Much of this demonisation of the
Palestine marches has been openly Islamophobic, fuelled by the
recent interventions of and amongst others. None of
it bears any resemblance to reality. Our massive demonstrations
have been diverse, family-friendly, well managed protests
reflecting the wishes of the public on this issue.
“Even the Metropolitan Police have admitted that the marches and
protests have been peaceful and orderly with fewer people
arrested than at the average music festival. There have been no
attacks on politicians or anybody else by pro-Palestine
protestors, with the only violence that of pro-Israel, far-right
groups encouraged by the demonising rhetoric of politicians.
“Perversely, the costs of wholly unnecessary levels of policing
are now being used to justify a rolling back of democratic
rights.
“Keeping protestors away from decision making centres is an
attempt to insulate politicians from public opinion. As such, it
is an attack on democracy not a defence of it.”
Ends
Notes to Editor
The press conference takes place on Wednesday 28 February at 10
am in Committee Room 7, Palace of Westminster.
The Palestine march organisers are:
Palestine Solidarity Campaign
Friends of Al-Aqsa
Stop the War Coalition
Palestinian Forum in Britain
Campaign for Nuclear Disarmament
Muslim Association of Britain
