A police raid on a Quaker assembly space to arrest six ladies attending a protest assembly has been criticised as “ridiculously heavy-handed”.
The ladies had been arrested on suspicion of conspiracy to purpose a public nuisance, in keeping with the Metropolitan Police, after attending an introductory assembly to Adolescence Call for.
Adolescence Call for, a protest crew publicly making plans to “close down London” in April with a sequence of protests over the federal government’s place on local weather trade and Gaza, had employed a room within the Westminster Quaker assembly space. It claimed as many as 30 officials took phase within the raid.
Quakers in Britain has condemned the arrests; even supposing it is not related to Adolescence Call for, the non secular crew has a protracted historical past of non-violent protest.
One quaker used to be so incensed by way of the police ways that he pointedly didn’t be offering any officials a cup of tea, in an excessively British protest.
“They broke open the entrance door with out caution or ringing the bell first,” stated Paul Parker, recording clerk for the non secular organisation.
“This competitive violation of our position of worship and the forceful elimination of younger folks keeping a protest crew assembly obviously displays what occurs when a society criminalises protest.”
“No person has been arrested in a Quaker assembly space in residing reminiscence,” he added.
Symbol: In September, individuals of Adolescence Call for spray painted the phrase “genocide” at the safety check-in tent for Labour Birthday party convention
Police denied cups of tea after ‘flooding’ construction
Mal Woolford, who’s an elder on the Westminster assembly space the place the arrests came about, described the movements of the police as “ridiculously heavy-handed” and stated officials “flooded the construction”.
“There have been six very younger ladies of about twenty years outdated, speaking in a circle round a packet of breadsticks and a pot of houmous,” he stated.
“It appears, now not they all had been even concerned with the organisation; they had been simply curious, they usually ended up in handcuffs.”
Mr Woolford described short of to stay the placement calm but additionally to turn his “outrage” – so he made a cup of tea and did not be offering the law enforcement officials any.
It used to be the “handiest resistance I may just post,” he stated.
He added that the police raid it appears interrupted a counselling consultation and a existence drawing magnificence – “even supposing thankfully they did not see the fashion”.
Adolescence Call for described the arrests as “an remarkable degree of police repression”.
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‘Democracy has were given to have some upsides’
The arrests resulted in an outcry, with former Downing Side road director of communications Guto Harri telling Sunday Morning With Trevor Philips: “Democracy has were given to have some upsides, and some of the upsides is that the police do not come crashing thru your door simply since you say one thing that upsets any person.”
When House Secretary Yvette Cooper used to be requested about it by way of Trevor Philips, she stated: “Now we have a protracted custom, now not simply of loose speech, however of freedom of meeting.”
She added, alternatively, that the police have operational independence and “the police want to function independently from the house secretary”.
The Metropolitan Police instructed Sky Information: “Adolescence Call for have mentioned an goal to ‘close down’ London over the month of April the use of ways together with ‘swarming’ and highway blocks.
“Whilst we completely recognise the significance of the suitable to protest, we’ve a duty to intrude to stop job that crosses the road from protest into critical disruption and different illegal activity.”
5 of the ladies arrested on Thursday were launched on bail. One will face no additional motion.
5 extra Adolescence Call for activists had been arrested for a similar offence on Friday and all were launched on bail.
