Police endanger the lives of students, schoolchildren and others on 24th Nov. Tuition Fees Demonstration

[dotnet]

At the London demo, police 'kettled' the demonstrators mid-afternoon, just as many people were wanting to leave.
The police showed contempt to the schoolchildren, students, parents and lecturers. They lied to them repeatedly; when someone asked how they could get out of the confinement area, they'd indicate a police cordon opposite, or at the other end of the area,even though none existed - the plods at every exit were barring the way, riot shields in hand, making a 'wall.' No exits were opened from mid-afternoon until about 6.30, and all this time, many- probably most - of those present simply wanted to leave the area, having made their point.
There were thousands of people in a confined space, and nearly all of the kids' behaviour was exemplary despite the utter frustration of being penned up against their will. I even saw some sixth formers (or younger) doing the Hokey Cokey. Bless! - they deserved better treatment than they got.
TWO Portaloos were brought in, and no food or water. A relative of mine came down Whitehall to ask why on earth I had been trapped, and again - was met with lies. 'All the demonstrators can leave whenever they want' she was told. 'Well, if that is so, why is no-one leaving?' she asked. 'It's because they're happy where they are' lied the plod.
Should the police not be charged with False Imprisonment? If I locked someone in my house against their will, that would be the charge I would have to face. Yet the police think it is perfectly fine to coop up thousands of young people and to lie that that is where they want to be, closing their ears to the repeated chant of 'let us leave, let us leave.'
Or perhaps reckless endangerment to life would fit the bill. It was an idiotic, dangerous and thoroughly irresponsible decision by the Head of the Metropolitan Police (I suppose)to concur with the way his force operated yesterday. People have been crushed to death in similar oonfined spaces (remember that terrible football stadium tragedy?)
Those young demonstrators are people's loved children. Shocking that the Metropolitan Police force is filled with such contempt for young life and limb.

[grannieonabike]

You are right of course, that people can get swept up by the atmosphere and even those who didn't intend to do anything wrong might end up committing a criminal act - and the police do need to be prepared for that.

[scurryfunge]

The peaceful ones can stay peaceful but expect to be delayed or have their movements controlled if the criminal element make themselves known. Kettling is a safe way to do this. It is about protecting peaceful protesters as much as dealing with those with criminal motives.

[grannieonabike]

Well that is what I thought at first - especially as the alternative might be tear gas. But why keep them for so long? And why that business of one group of police telling them to go to the other end if they wanted to leave - only to be told to go back by the police at the other end? What's that all about? (Several eye witness accounts that I've heard or read about corroborate that).

I would really like to think the police are on our side, btw. Anything else is too awful to contemplate.

[scurryfunge]

The police are on the side of the public -they police by consent. I suspect crap communication was to blame for the mis-directions.

[kate1956]

It was a political move to try and deter the schoolkids from demonstrating - it's backfired because the kids are just saying they'll wear warmer clothes next time! Kettling is nothing to do with creating a peaceful protest - it's designed to shock people so that they realise that whatever the right to peacefully protest the police can hold them against their will at any time - we just need bigger demonstrations frankly!

[Desiderata]

You sound like a nice gal, Granted.

Even temperament, sound argument, takes accounts of all the facts .....

I never entertained any interested in uni, right from being a kid. Intelligent enough, certainly. Most kids I know who go to uni don't know how to place an apostrophe, let alone riot with any degree (pardon the pun) of aplomb.

I'm simply interested in the economic argument. How is the country supposed to fund all these wannabes? The fact that it was free fifteen years ago is irrelevant. The population has gone up a third since then, and there's more uptake, because, much like X-Factor, everyone thinks they've got something special.

You're not actually listening to the government. You're just reacting. It's dull and it's pointless.

And I agree with Moondog's post. The OP's statement was hysterical, misguided, dull, pointless, et al ....

GO AND CLEAN SOME BOGS. IT'LL DO YOU GOOD

[edam]

Kettling - holding someone without charge - is designed to intimidate. To bully people.

Anyone who thinks the police are jolly nice chaps who uphold the right to peaceful protest has never been on a demo. Has failed to notice the death of poor Mr Tomlinson - and the fact the copper who threw him to his death got away with it. Has failed to notice the countless documented accounts and video footage of coppers who remove their badges - which is illegal - so they can give demonstrators a good kicking without fear of being held to account. (Usually at TSG tactic.)

Nor been in the region of a demo and spoken to the police. I've heard coppers sneering at demonstrators and promising to give them 'a good kicking' (I wasn't involved in that demo myself, just standing in the same queue for sandwiches as the coppers.)

I'm sure there are some lovely police officers - in fact I know a few of them - but the policing of demonstrations is not exactly a shining example of the boys in blue. Far from it.

[grannieonabike]

Ok Granted. Maybe you had a point ...

Edam the G20 demo was a real eye-opener. Very sad and worrying.

[edam]

Only came to light because someone in an office filmed it with his mobile. And because he was an obviously 'respectable' person. If it had been a demonstrator who filmed it, the police would have seized or smashed the phone, and no-one would have believed it.

As it was, the cops just reached for their favourite incompetent pathologist who they knew would give them the result they wanted...

[Desiderata]

What are the police supposed to do?

Lay out picnic hampers?

If any of my kids were ever involved in a riot, I'd whoop their arses too. It's no way to go about things.

Never mind! They'll all go home to their mummies once they're done.

[edam]

You wouldn't have the right to vote if people hadn't protested. The rich and powerful didn't go 'ooh, I've got a good idea, why don't we let everyone else have a say'. Ordinary people had to fight for their rights. Often at the risk of being beaten, killed, or tortured (e.g. suffragettes and 'force-feeding').

[edam]

Or thrown out of their homes onto the streets - as happened to my Godmother as a small child after her father dared to stand as a councillor for Labour when the guy who owned the mine was, obviously, a Tory.

[grannieonabike]

So what's going to happen now? The demos will stop or continue. If they continue there will inevitably be more clashes with police. It is only a matter of time before someone else gets really hurt.

The police have to change their attitude towards the protesters. They have to protect our right to protest peacefully.

And the government needs to be sent homeward to think again.

[Desiderata]

Thank you Edam, but I know my history. You've never been anything but entirely predictable in your arguments. They are based on your familial interpretation of history, which is never a good way to go about things.

You describe an era that has gone, and has no bearing on the current situation.

We now live in a somewhat different era.

And if you want to use the old Labour/Tory debate, then I have to tell you something, kid.

It's tired and dated. I'm beginning to unwillingly entertain the shocking thought that you have a mullet ... and shoulder pads.

[grannieonabike]

That's the sort of thing that will happen in the Big Society, Edam. Powerful local people who wreck the lives of people who depend on them. Another thread perhaps.

[Desiderata]

God! Pathetic!

[grannieonabike]

Edam is a hairy-handed trucker bloke, Desiderata. I'd watch what you say.

[newwave]

God! accurate!

[kate1956]

The police won't change their attitude because it's not new - they've always been like that when demonstrations are political and look like they are winning - the way to change things are for the demos to be even bigger - hopefully the momentum will keep up because I know I want to join in - I'm pretty peeved that my kids could end up with such huge debts before they even start working and I'm pretty sure that others feel the same.

Second day of action is tuesday - hopefully third day will follow at a weekend so that all the parents, friends and relatives of the students and schoolkids can join in.

[SausageMonster]

Police endanger the lives of students, schoolchildren and others

What a ridiculous load of melodrama.

So they got a bit thirsty, a bit hungry and couldn't find a loo?

A bit like being at Glastonbury then?

[grannieonabike]

Couldn't they use their helmets?

[newwave]

SM "Police endanger the lives of students, schoolchildren and others"

Ahem, Tomlinson springs to mind. After todays news thank God the Police didnt need to "restrain" anyone.

[grannieonabike]

Desiderata, of course the history of people's protests has a bearing on what's happening now. We need to learn from it - that's what history is for.

Emily Davies threw herself under a horse for you. These kids are doing it for all of us. They're trying to protect our precious education system.

This government seems to want a select few to get a higher level of education and more people to have lower aspirations and expectations and be content with less. It's just so they can keep more of the good things of life for themselves and their cronies. It really isn't fair, and we have to stop them!

[Niceguy2]

Personally I think the police got the balance right.

They have to balance the right to protest against preventing mass destruction and rioting.

Kettling them inside an area achieves both. They still get to protest (see all newspapers & TV News) and the harm done is minimal.

Any protestor's should realise now that this is the preferred police tactic.

If you don't want to get kettled for a few hours, stay at home and write letters to your MP.