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https://www.theguardian.com/uk-news/2021/apr/24/law-firm-takes-up-case-of-nurse-fined-10000-for-1-pay-protest One of the UK’s biggest police forces is refusing to back down after being accused of wrongly issuing a £10,000 fine to a nurse who was protesting over the government’s 1% pay rise for NHS workers, reigniting concern over new powers to inhibit protest.

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/live/election-us-2020-55558355 The stark difference in police response to last summer's protests of racial injustice compared to the mob attempting a coup at the US Capitol today leaves me sick and despondant. A truly sad day ...

How do police choose who to arrest while leaving other protesters alone? I saw one video of a guy being arrested while they just ignored the guy with a megaphone standing right beside them

https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=D1fvh_ff3L8

Police stations were closed on Wednesday and long queues formed at passport control booths as officers staged a “black day” of protest to demand better working conditions. https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/2018/12/19/police-stations-closed-french-officers-demand-248m-unpaid-overtime/

Source: http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-kent-35483210 Having been at Dover on Saturday, I can only comment on what I saw- it is, however, nice to see a Chief dig his heels in and stand up for what his force is doing. It seems to be all too common for the sound of backpedalling to kick in, but it appears we've stuck to our guns here. Thoughts?

The Metropolitan Police have apologised for their treatment of Sikhs during a protest outside the Indian embassy. Full Story - Evening Standard

To prevent a complete hijack of @Krycek topic of thought I'd start a new one as I'd never herd the term before. As I understand it they have no actual legal status and are perhaps slightly bias towards the protesters. Has anyone had any dealings? Positive or negative experiences?

Some quite robust policing here by my local bobbies. Good on 'em. (Background is there was a protest in the area about the increasing gentrification/perceived social cleansing of the area. As usual the rent-a-mob showedup and hijacked it, with a few people "storming" Brixton police station and refusing to leave)

Twelve campaigning groups have said they will refuse to pay for what they view as their right to protest. Their declaration comes after the Metropolitan police told protest groups they would have to pay what could amount to thousands of pounds for private firms to oversee their protests. The Met said they would have to fund traffic management - including measures such as road closures, barriers and stewards - for demonstrations they are planning to hold. Scotland Yard has previously carried out the role. In a statement on Thursday, the coalition of groups declared: “We believe any demand to pay to be able to demonstrate constitutes an unacceptable restriction on the right to protest.” “We reject proposals that protest organisers should have to pay private companies to plan or implement traffic management. We will therefore continue to organise and support public protests in the same manner that we have in the past, without paying for traffic management.” Among the groups are Million Women Rise, which campaigns to end male violence against women and girls, and the Campaign Against Climate Change, both of which are planning to hold protests on 7 March. Organisers of the Million Women Rise rally said last week that the police had told them they would need to hire their own private security firm and devise a road closure plan. The organisers estimate that this would cost at least £10,000. This month, the Observer revealed that police had told the climate change protesters that they would no longer facilitate the temporary closure of roads along the agreed route. Organisers of the Stand up to Racism march on 21 March and the People’s Assembly Against Austerity on 20 June are among those who say they will not pay. Other groups that fear that they could be forced to pay in the future include the Palestine Solidarity Campaign, Stop the War, CND, the British Muslim Initiative, Friends of the Earth and Defend the Right to Protest. The Met has said there is no question that organisers would have to pay for policing. One of their officers, Ch Supt Colin Morgan, said last week: “This is not a case of police charging for their services, but more a matter of refusing to use the public purse to provide a traffic management plan or stewarding for a private event.” Westminster council said in a statement last week: “Our position in relation to protests has not changed. We fully recognise the democratic right to protest and organisers have not been subjected to any new council requirements, restrictions or fees. “The Metropolitan police is the lead agency in managing demonstrations across Westminster and we support the police in their role of facilitating safe and successful protests and demonstrations.” More than 60,000 people have signed a petition on Avaaz against any move to make protest groups pay. View the full article

For the past seven years, on or around International Women’s Day, thousands of women from all over the UK and other nations have marched through central London to demand a world where women and girls can live without the fear of male violence. We march the same route as the suffragettes once did, and the women’s liberation marchers of the 1970s. The Million Women Rise (MWR) march is organised solely by volunteers and over the past seven years we have had the full cooperation of the Metropolitan police. [embedded content] The Million Women Rise March 2013 This year, things are different. We have been informed that the police will no longer have any involvement in the march. Instead, we have been told that we should employ a private company to put together a road closure plan and employ our own certified stewards. The cost of doing so will be £10,000 or more. Facebook Twitter Pinterest ‘We can’t pay and we won’t pay, but we will rise and we will protest.’ Photograph: Alamy There is no way that we can afford this, as Million Women Rise has no public funding, relies on donations from individual women and struggles every year to raise money to pay for essentials such as insurance. I contacted the police to explain our situation and asked them to help us find a way to facilitate our protest. But the police do not appear to be listening. We are still being told to pay thousands of pounds in order to hold our march. It is essential that we make the march a safe place for women and girls to protest against violence, and we have therefore always worked with the police. Those who attend the Million Women Rise march are of diverse nationalities and backgrounds and many have experienced male violence. Some have experienced it in the countries from which they have fled and have already been persecuted for merely daring to speak out against oppression. Without a positive police presence at the march, some women may feel vulnerable and unsafe and this may discourage some from participating. Ten thousand pounds is too much money, and the authorities know it. The police say they are experiencing cuts. Well, cuts are affecting everyone, especially the people who are most marginalised, like many on our march. I have always had a good relationship with the police when organising the march. The facilitation of peaceful protest by the police is part of a long British tradition, one that we should be proud of and work hard to protect. Those at the top who have made this decision need to understand the effect that it will have on people down here in the real world. Related: Climate change marchers told to hire private security firm We can’t pay and we won’t pay, but we will rise and we will protest. We will be marching on Saturday 7 March 2015 on our planned route and we have made this clear to all the authorities involved. If there are any women who would like to attend, but are concerned, please keep an eye on our website and social media for updates or get in touch with us directly. There is a rally point at Trafalgar Square which will not be affected by this change, and we will have women there ready to welcome you. Many of us already feel that we don’t have much more to lose. The one thing that we won’t allow them to take is our right to speak out. When they try to crush us we become diamonds under the pressure; we don’t break and we will continue to protest peacefully. View the full article