No more Protest

Yes. Slow marching that blocks major routes and disrupts the functioning of infrastructure that people rely on is banned. Because it can be dangerous and highly disruptive.

Planning a normal march on an agreed route with police support isn’t banned.

I've never seen a peaceful protester be arrested.

I've seen people deliberately causing mass disruption to others that also caused a danger to other people's lives be arrested. I'm fine with that.

Just Stop Oil's actions alienate them to others and damage their cause.

Good that they’ve been jailed, but they won’t serve 5 years anyway. They will serve a little time in an open prison, and then get released with a tag.🤷‍♀️

They should have got longer. Hope they are enjoying their protesting inside. On a lighter note, perhaps their carbon footprint is down since their opportunity has been restricted, rendering them unable to drive diesel cars, live in uninsulated house and litter the streets in the name of climate activism.

How come there's been all those pro Palestinian marches then?

Hedda, you can't view this sentence in isolation. The 'whole picture' currently emerging around peaceful protest and civil disobedience in the UK, including recent introduction of new legislation, should have us all sitting up and paying close attention.

I agree OP. People don't like Just Stop Oil and are prepared to give away our rights to get one over them.

I've seen a chart for average sentences and these are long sentences for planning to do something, not even doing it.

I dont think.people appreciate the gradual creep against our various protest rights.

And people have too much faith that this government is ok so it won't matter but once the precedent has been set it can be used against all sorts by any government.

I have been involved in demonstrations about special education. I havent defaced things or stopped cars n a way people might call terrorism. But we've done things like leave a school bag representing each child without a school place, on the steps of council offices. It was probably disruptive for a very short time. It makes me nervous of that sort of thing now.

I have no time for the antics of JSO but a non violent protest now carry’s a heftier jail sentence than an actual rape.

This is fucking scary.

But DrRiver, peaceful slow marching has been a criminal offense since 2023 on account of causing public disruption.

People are so unaware that the scale and cost of climate disruption will be orders of magnitude higher than anything JSO have done.

Is that because it's covered in soup?

i think the sentences were harsh compared to what people get for sexual assault/rape/dangerous driving etc but their disruption costs money.

I suspect a PP will have already said this but they were planning massive disruption to a major motorway. That, to me, is not peaceful protest.

nor is daubing people and artefacts with orange. That is vandalism at the best end of the spectrum, and edging towards terrorism at the worst end.

There is a huge difference between peaceful marching and protest and destructive behaviour. Just Stop Oil aren’t keen on being moderate and they have gone too far.

I can't afford a gas guzzler, never could. They're punishing ordinary people rather than the big guys because it's easier and more news worthy.

It's not peaceful though. It's disruptive and potentially dangerous- to them and others. It falls under terrorism, not right to protest and I fully agree.

Here's a thought experiment. Suppose you drive a gas guzzling SUV. You could afford an electric car, but you choose the SUV. Since we know for a fact that having a large carbon footprint is killing the planet and therefore every species on it, why is that not considered violence?
Is it just because you think these deaths are too far off in the future to count as a direct effect? Well, they aren't. It's happening right now.
So explain to me (those of you with a large carbon footprint) why you are so much better than JSO. Aren't you being hypocrites?

Punishing the public achieves nothing the public cannot stop climate change they cannot dictates government policy they cannot change a dam thing there are thousands of people out there that would love to use their car less hell I learned to drive in my 40s BECAUSE we have poor transport services and I needed to get places I literally cannot get my children to a hospital without a car not even an emergency just a regular appointment ffs

What have just stop oil achieved

What protest were they planning?

What exactly were they planning?

The planning the protest wasn’t the issue - it was conducting a protest that caused massive infrastructure disruption and cost vast amounts of money. They knew the risks in doing what they did.

Protest yes- disruption like that no.

well deserved punishment.

People can protest, but when you shut down the countries motorways causing people to miss holidays, weddings, funerals, bedside of dying relatives and cost the country a fortune, prepare for a lengthy sentence. I don’t think the sentence is excessive at all and it doesn’t make me think people cannot protest. As peaceful protests are not punishable. These guys took it way too far

I was travelling home one day and the idiots glued themselves to the Tube carriage doors. Everybody on the platform was attempting to use public transport to get home. Isn't that what we're supposed to do to reduce emissions?

They're just a bunch of spoilt brats that don't have a clue about life or science for that matter.

I’ve read RHs lengthy description of the court case and don’t think he helped himself there either.

The fact that they all ended up representing themselves is telling. It is likely that they did not listen to legal advice

They haven't been jailed for peaceful protest. They have been jailed because they continue to cause public disruption.

Which does, precisely, nothing for their cause. But causes the general public immense problems and costs a fortune. They aren't achieving anything.

In my opinion the vast majority don't even care about their cause. It's a convenient excuse to cause disruption and chaos and still claim to be morally superior.