Democratic freedoms are hard won and easily lost. Rights secured after generations of struggle – by citizens risking their safety, liberty and, indeed, lives – can be stripped away in weeks with barely a murmur. Such is the fate of the right to protest, which has now been redefined in the UK as a privilege that exists at the discretion of the police. This weekend, dozens of peaceful protesters advocating republicanism – a cause backed by around a quarter of the population, or well over 13 million British adults – were arrested. The Metropolitan police has since expressed regret at the arrest of six of them belonging to the Republic group, including its head, Graham Smith, but it is rather too late, not least because such repressive behaviour has a chilling effect that deters others from protesting.
The basis of their arrest offers an instructive lesson about how freedom is lost. All six of the Republic protesters were apprehended under the new Public Order Act, which allows for protesters to be arrested on suspicion of intending to “lock on” – that is, to fix themselves to a target. In the case of these six arrested protesters, the “lock-on equipment” was luggage straps to gather placards. When these laws are passed, opponents who warn they will be enforced far beyond their supposed remit are accused of hyperbole and scaremongering, yet they are invariably proven correct. Unless our politicians are completely stupid, they must be aware of how frequently legislation is used to curtail peaceful protest – and therefore we must conclude this is, in part, the intent. Given that the separate Policing Act allows for protests to be suppressed if they are deemed too noisy – protests are, almost by definition, noisy – this reasoning seems beyond dispute.
