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MPs report critical of many aspects of G20 policing

Former MemberFormer Member Posts: 1,876,323 The Mix Honorary Guru
http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2009/jun/29/g20-police-protest-kettling-report


I've resisted the urge to post this today because I've wanted to digest the full report.

Having read the coverage and the report, my reaction is broadly one of vindication - it is something of a breath of fresh air that this is not the whitewash many of us who were there feared. How could it be, with all the evidence - and indeed this was a major part of the thrust of the report.

There are some notable exceptions, possibly due to ongoing investigations or legal cases - e.g: the notable and persistent thuggery of the TSG is not addressed in full. This unit is the successor group of the SPG, which is widely believed to have murdered anti racist marcher and teacher Blair Peach in the early 1980s.

MPs praise the fact that in the circumstances, there was not as much conflict and disorder as their could have been, but they do put this down to a large slice of 'luck' (their words, not mine).

I will only give a paragraph over to this but I genuinely hope that this will go some way to changing some attitudes - those of us who were there were forced to run a gauntlet of accusations, slander and lies about what our intentions and actions were, while the police were presumed innocent on all counts. I genuinely hope public reactions to peaceful protest and over-forceful policing will at the very least be more balanced and skeptical in the future.

The report explicitly deals with Police media tactics of fermenting fear in the public mind, and unambiguously calls for more training in non-confrontational tactics, rather than spending on water cannons and batons (their terms, not mine).

This report supports the case that some of us have been making here that the police need to be trained about the role of peaceful protest in British society, and taught to respect it.

This isn't the end of the G20 story, but it is a good sign that there is at least the political will in this country to fight the excesses of police violence and unacceptable behaviour. We will all benefit from this, including the majority of police officers. What I was particularly attentive to was the thread that you'd thrown a bunch of woefully undertrained officers into a situation which had been built up as frightening by senior officers and media units. If I'd been briefed like that I'd have been scared to.

This report is an initial reaction, and doesn't really deal with the kind of criticisms that will be needed for meaningful change to occur, but it is a welcome step in my view.

Two comment pieces worth reading;

This one presents a view that there's a cultural element of intolerance to protest in British society generally;

This one (ironically from the lady who in the previous thread about Kingsnorth was bundled to the ground, restrained, assaulted and held for four days then released without charge) which says 'don't blame rank and file officers) - which for a woman who was treated so disgracefully by rank and file officers shows remarkable understanding in my opinion;

http://www.guardian.co.uk/commentisfree/libertycentral/2009/jun/29/g20-police

I hope these also go some way to countering some of the reactionary, false and groundless stereotypes about protestors and their conduct.

Incidentally, we haven't even seen the report from Kingsnorth, and if this is an indication of the fair hearing it'll get then I think that one will be somewhat more scathing of the police, from the evidence I've seen.

Comments

  • Former MemberFormer Member Posts: 1,876,323 The Mix Honorary Guru
    I think the main issue that needs addressing is this perception of the way the police act when they've had a complaint about one of their number. Our police's ability to handle protest situations is usually pretty good by world standards (which doesn't mean it can't be improved). It's this perception of covering up police wrongdoing, which is far more damaging to the force imo.
  • Former MemberFormer Member Posts: 1,876,323 The Mix Honorary Guru
    http://www.guardian.co.uk/uk/2009/jun/30/ian-tomlinson-inquiry-g20-protests

    Oh and it appears the idea was seriously entertained, to the point of informing the Tomlinsons, that this might not have been an officer but rather a protestor!

    Laughably ridiculous but unsurprising - indicative of the depths some in the service will go to in order to protect errant colleagues.
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