London’s Metropolitan Police arrested another 492 people over the weekend after a protest Saturday in Trafalgar Square, as the Starmer government accelerated its crackdown on opposition to the Gaza genocide.
The entirely peaceful protest was held to oppose the proscription of Palestine Action. It was organised by Defend Our Juries and attended by over 1,000 people. Of the arrests, 488 were for holding up signs declaring, “I oppose genocide. I support Palestine Action”.
I don’t like the way this is being framed.
People aren’t arrested for supporting Palestine.
They are arresting for praising Palestine Action, a UK organization that was banned after breaching into a Royal Airforce military base
https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/cn81g4e0nlyo
https://www.politico.eu/article/uk-military-jets-damaged-pro-palestinian-activists-royal-air-force-israel-gaza-us-war/
So? I support Palestine Action and all actions they’ve taken to stop the UK’s complicity in genocide. It’s illegal to say this in the UK.
Spraying military aircraft with red paint isn’t terrorism by any stretch of the imagination. Who does it terrorize? And supporting an organisation whose members sprayed fighter jets with paint isn’t terrorism either. There’s no justification for the UK government’s use of anti-terrorist legislation against these protesters.
By contrast, supporting a regime that has been openly committing genocide for years and uses torture and murder to intimidate its opponents could well qualify as terrorism.
People that were against terrorism legislation argued this until they were blue In the face and people people told them don’t worry, the government is totally not going to abuse these powers.
And runs political interference campaigns at the highest levels of its allies to gain unlimited support. We label other countries foreign actors waging hybrid warfare for a lot less. It’s crazy.
When Keir Starmer was a solicitor he defended people, successfully, for the same kind of thing. This isn’t terrorism, this is my government taking away our rights to protest.
People are ignoring their proscription to bring attention to the insanity of it and hope to force the government to back down. It’s mainly old people being arrested; including priests. I would do it myself but it’s hard when you’ve got work and being in jail would hinder that.
For what it’s worth I support Palestine Action.
I mean. It’s obviously working. Coward.
Who gets to declare that the distinction matters? Why do they get to do that?
LOL, they are violating their Freedom of Speech instead of violating their Freedom of Speech?
I don’t like you.