Arrested for holding a banner - can't ruin a big day, can we...

[cakeorwine]

'Not My King' protesters unfurl flags and shout anti-monarchy slogans on Coronation route | Daily Mail Online

Looks like the police are taking full advantage of their new powers.

I definitely can admit to double standards here. I think Republic should have been allowed to protest peacefully as they tend to do. All my republican friends protest the institution not the individuals personally and it’s incredibly important they’re allowed to do this at things like the Coronation and even the late Queen’s funeral. Peaceful protest is so much more of a persuasive powerful tool than violent protest.

But I would have found it incredibly annoying if Just Stop Oil had done their thing. I can’t stand them and I try quite hard to be environmentally friendly.

i appreciate this makes me some sort of hypocrite or inconsistent.

DuncingToffee - You think protesters should be allowed to cause disruption to the public who just want to go about their daily lives? In 2021 when eco protesters blocked the M25 a man was trying to get his mother to hospital because she'd had a stroke. He was stuck in traffic for 6:hours and had to watch whilst his mother deteriorated. She was left partially paralysed. Do you think that's ok?

Yes , I do think disruptive protests should be allowed even if I don't agree with their methods and/or motives.

I appreciate it can be a fine line between disruptive and dangerous as per your example.

I dont recall such concern for animals including horses when they tried out the Emergency Alert two weeks ago. I take it members of the Met who work with horses all kept their mobiles well away from said horses back on the 23rd April. As alarms are such a concern

I haven't got that money to drop in one instance being a poor common folk.

I am surprised they targeted Republic - this group do not take direct action - it's pretty obvious that this is counter productive as highlighted by the examples above. It was also obvious that anyone taking direct action during the procession would be risking life and limb especially with the armed police around.

Republic also did have a protest area - we have seen the protests on the video. So why target the CEO of Republic? What were they hoping to achieve?

I heard Lucy Frazer on Channel 4 news. She was the Government Minister today on the media rounds. She was asked about the rape alarm story - either she didn't know the details or just took the police view that they were worried about the effect on horses. She wasn't really pushed on the details.

Yes, I am surprised @cakeorwine because Republic keep police informed, they don't glue themselves to roads or lamposts, they aren't destructive, they just shout. Given they were given an area that wouldn't disturb the watchers, I have no idea why the CEO and a few others were arrested.
They are very mild really.

I hope there are some questions to the police about this - I have no doubt it will be spun as trying to prevent disruption, linking to other groups, but the Republic protest was allowed to take place. So if they were concerned about Republic, why allow the Republic protest to take place but target those 6 individuals.

But I don't think the police will be asked such questions - unless they are hauled before a Government committee.

Ain'tshesweet - I like how in that message you received from Graham Smith he manages to promote the book he's written. He's not silly is he lol!

Many commentators on LBC including Rachel Johnson are expressing dismay at how the police have handled Republic's pre-arranged peaceful protest in particular. They have never had a better recruiting sergeant for the cause. Indeed, their twitter followers have put on 35k and donations have increased 15k since the events of yesterday, and they have got the message out to 100s of thousands of more people and the news of their heavy-handed treatment have gone around the world.

Since as monarchists never tire of telling us they are an essential part of the British constitution and are paid literally royally for that job then the right to peaceful protest which was agreed in advance is a democratic right to be cherished and supported whatever your view.

Yesterday was a watershed moment on the long march to a Republic - helped in great measure by the actions of the Police, and for that we must be grateful.

Well said @vera99

When Julia Hartley Brewer tweeted showing disgust at the heavy handed approach to the Republic people arrested... I thought to myself, my god it really really must be bad

Well this how it goes, there is a suspected basically drugs sex etc house near me with shady shit going on and I live in rotherham

Funnily enough police aren't interested without evidence.

But apparently you can use suspicion of people against them.

It's utterly vile.

It’s bad enough that we still have a Royal Family.

And now we can’t peacefully protest that without being arrested?

I despair for what Britain has become.

Daily Mail is annoyed

Met Police got balance right with Coronation crowds, minister says | Daily Mail Online

Labour and the BBC were criticised last night over the prominence they awarded to Coronation protesters, amid a republican backlash over dozens of 'heavy-handed' police arrests.

A government source criticised BBC News' initial online coverage of the arrests as 'one-sided', and said: 'The Labour Party and the Twitterati, ably assisted by the BBC, have been quick to pile in with criticism of the police.
'They glance over the fact hundreds of people were allowed to protest peacefully on Saturday. What happened is that officers on the ground took decisions to make arrests in a number of cases where they felt they had cause to.'

And at the same time you have people like Julie Hartley-Brewer criticising the response.

What a topsy turvey world we live in

If anything, that Daily Mail article seems supportive of the arrests, they’re annoyed with the criticism of the police.

If anything, that Daily Mail article seems supportive of the arrests, they’re annoyed with the criticism of the police

Yes - annoyed with the protestors, the BBC, Labour.

Your topsy-tervey comment confused me, because authoritarianism and bootlicking are entirely on brand for the Mail.

It's absolutely disgusting.

How the police behaved this weekend has really hit home. I'd always thought they did a reasonable job of balancing conflicting needs in often difficult circumstances, but where their loyalties lie has truly been laid bare now.

They're not operating in the interests of the majority. They're just puppets of the establishment and we can all go fuck ourselves if we think they're there for us.

Every monarch must bow down to Lord Rothermere the non-dom who lives in Monaco. The tax dodging owner of the Daily Mail in the 90 days per year he is here spewing his toxic filth into the veins of our body politic where it poisons and spreads angers and fear. He is worse than Covid.

p.s Harry had the audacity to take them on ...

*How the police behaved this weekend has really hit home. I'd always thought they did a reasonable job of balancing conflicting needs in often difficult circumstances, but where their loyalties lie has truly been laid bare now.

They're not operating in the interests of the majority. They're just puppets of the establishment and we can all go fuck ourselves if we think they're there for us*

This. And especially given everything recently about the Met, this just adds further distrust.

Interesting

Policing by consent and linked to the Met

policingwithconsent.pdf (london.gov.uk)

If anyone is interested, this is guidance for police about the new laws

Changes to legislation for policing protests | College of Policing

Thanks @cakeorwine I suppose it remains to be seen in court whether pre-emptive rounding up and arrests are justified for peaceful protesting.