Tory approach to protests exposed as a fraud


by Sunny Hundal    
1:53 pm - May 25th 2010

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The Tories demonstrated their limited dedication to free speech and protesting today by trying to clear out Brian Haw and other demonstrators from Parliament Square.

The Guardian reported this morning:

Police with sniffer dogs moved to search the tents on Parliament Square before the Queen arrived to announce the new government’s plans. Another protester at the camp, Barbara Tucker, was also arrested.

The response from Westminster council was even more ludicrous:

We all support peaceful protest, but it is completely unacceptable for parts of our city to be occupied and turned into no-go areas by vociferous minorities, however laudable each cause might be.

Parliament Square never was a ‘no-go area’. Perhaps they mean that Tories can’t stand going into areas where leftie protesters might be.

The Tory blogger Iain Dale today illustrated this bone-headed Conservative approach to civil liberties:

I am a defender of civil liberties. I want the laws repealed which ban spontaneous protests within a mile of the Palace of Westminster. People should have the right to protest about anything they want to. But their protests have to be within reason.

I don’t support Britain withdrawing from Afghanistan immediately but anyone with half a brain can see that free speech, free expression and the right to protest can never be dictated by what is ‘within reason’. A free society is a free society is a free society.

Not one where Tory ministers decided whether the protesters are well-dressed enough to have a protest or not.

You also won’t be surprised to hear that self-described ‘libertarian Tories’ are keeping completely quiet on the issue too. So much for their dedication to free speech and civil liberties.

More
BBC News: Parliament Square anti-war protester Brian Haw arrested

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About the author
Sunny Hundal is editor of LC. Also: on Twitter, at Pickled Politics and Guardian CIF.
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Reader comments


1. Watchman

I hate to break it to you but there is a major difference between protesting and squating, and I think the defintion might well involve setting up tents.

Another way to look at this: has anyone been arrested for protesting? No. Have people been arrested for refusing to move tents placed on public ground without due permission? Yes.

As for “Not one where Tory ministers decided whether the protesters are well-dressed enough to have a protest or not”, got any evidence for that one?

And as a sometimes libertarian, can I point out public spaces are public, and therefore open to all. By putting up tents the protestors were effectively stating only they could protest there.

2. JSlayerUK

LOLWUT?

“Within reason”? Who gets to decide what is a reasonable protest or not? Iain Dale?! That’s the stupidest thing I’ve heard so far today. Any non-violent protest is reasonable, and Democracy Village (as ugly as it is IMO) is certainly reasonable.

3. blanco

Indefensible. I hope the Lib Dems speak out against this – as they usually do – and that Labour also speak out against this – which they never do.

4. Chris

Sorry pal, but I actually agreed with (some parts of) the official statement. Its not a no-go area – sure, no-one is physically forcing anyone to avoid the area – but then no-one is stopping you from walking through the middle of a gang of crackheads. Its more the intimidation than can come with it.

Its a little scary walking through a large gang of dirty, crazy looking hippies. And I’m not generalising here – I’ve seen them. They’re dirty, most of them look a bit crazy, and they look like (and in most cases, probably are) hippies. OK, I admit that not everyone with a screwed up face and serious dental hygiene issues is “crazy”, but there’s social conditioning for you.

I’m trying to look at this from the less-biased point of view of someone who doesn’t bear an ongoing hatred towards the Iraq war. Fact is, If they were campaigning to repeal the fox hunting laws, the reactions would be very different.

There *is* a time and place for everything – if they want to come to London every day and protest for 12 hours, then that’s up to them – that’s a reasonable protest. Right now, walking over parliament square feels like you’re walking through the middle of a travellers camp. They’ve made it their home, and invading that “home” feels very uncomfortable.

That said, Iain Dale and Boris are still both twats – but even the biggest twats are allowed to get it right once in a while.

5. BenSix

“Within reason” is a lovely way of phrasing it. To whose conception of reasonableness does it actually apply?

6. Watchman

Worth adding that in the best tradition of partisan journalism (and this is the Guardian, not Sunny), the article has forgotten to note the arrests were made for trying to stop the police search tents (a security precaution which should be expected), not anything to do with rights to protest or evictions. Might be worth presenting the facts fully?

BBC source: http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/england/london/8702526.stm

7. Sunny Hundal

the article has forgotten to note the arrests were made for trying to stop the police search tents (

Which is always the bullshit pretext they come up with.

8. Watchman

Sunny,

No – if you read the article, action has not yet been taken to move the encampment, although this will be forthcoming. I suspect the inspection of the site may be something to do with the state opening of Parliament – after all, anarchists etc are renowned for not trying to cause disruption. In this case I suggest the police may have found at worst a few drugs (if the protestors are truly stupid), but then moved on until tomorrow or whenever.

It is sometimes a bullshit excuse, but in this case it rings true. Admittedly the arrests were quite possibly made with knowledge of what is coming.

9. cjcjc

Oh FFS.
Turning up for a day – a few days even – fine.
Turning a public square into a squat – not so fine.

I voted for Haw in 2005 but enough’s enough.

10. Alex

anyone with half a brain can see that free speech, free expression and the right to protest can never be dictated by what is ‘within reason’. A free society is a free society is a free society.

So Sunny, does that mean that you’re against any laws against death threats, child pornography, libel, advertising, and so on?

Or perhaps if you’re in favour of such laws, you justify them using something other than “reason”?

And can I just say it’s absolutely hilarious that you attack Dale for using the phrase “within reason” by using your own phrase “anyone with half a brain”, making your attack equivalent to saying that “Anyone using reason can see that using reason is a bad thing”.

11. Richard

Libertarians would say it is up to the property owner whether these people are allowed to squat there.

12. Sunny Hundal

So Sunny, does that mean that you’re against any laws against death threats, child pornography, libel, advertising, and so on?

How ludicrous. Those are made illegal because someone is actively being harmed or smeared. Who’s being harmed here? The only people pissed off are some middle-class boys who don’t appreciate the sight of the great unwashed when they’re on their lunch break. And only a few years ago went around screaming ‘ZaNuLabour’ hysterically.

13. Alex

Sunny, you said:

“free speech, free expression and the right to protest can never be dictated by what is ‘within reason’”

Now you say the things I listed above can be made illegal when:

“someone is actively being harmed or smeared”

which is different to what you initially said. Can you now confirm that actually you agree with Dale that free speech and so on can and should be dictated by what is “within reason”?

Agreeing with that does not mean you have to agree with Dale about the police’s actions yesterday, so why you are banging on about it in #12 I have no idea. I never gave any indication of what my position is on what happened yesterday. However, I will say that commenters above have given arguments against your position, but you haven’t replied to most of them.

14. Mr S. Pill

Don’t Lib Dem MPs get a ceremonial copy of JS Mill’s “On Liberty” when taking office? He must be spinning in his grave at their deafening silence…

15. sally

Shorter tories

We don’t need no stinking Magna Carta.

At which point David Davis resigns and runs on the freedom issue……………no wait!


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