Should the army be brought in to control violent demonstrations

[Wildcat]

The Police seemed to be doing a reasonable job themselves, when they wanted to, of identifying the agitators, going in and dragging them out kicking and screaming.

 

Is it reasonable for the police to be assaulting and dragging a protestor with cerebral palsy out of his wheelchair and across the street?

 

http://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/politics/video-shows-protester-dragged-from-wheelchair-as-police-criticism-grows-2159570.html

 

http://www.metro.co.uk/news/850240-disabled-man-was-assaulted-by-police-during-tuition-fees-protest

 

Liberal Conspiracy blog is pretty scathing of the BBC's coverage of the incident

 

What’s even more callous is the way he is later interviewed by the BBC’s Ben Brown last night.

 

During the interview, Jody talks of how the media has ignored people like Alfie Meadows, who had to be hospitalised after receiving brain injuries, and what the media reaction would have been if Charles or Camilla were in the same situation. As expected, the presenter completely ignores that and asks whether Jody himself had thrown missiles at the police. (he just told you his brother had to push him on the wheelchair, you ****ing dimwit).

 

The presenter then later asks whether Jody had shouted “anything provocative” or anything “that would have induced the police to do that to you”.

 

JM replies: “Do you really think a person with cerebral palsy, in a wheelchair, poses a threat to a police officer who is armed with weapons?”

 

The presenter responds: “But you do say you’re a revolutionary…” Where does the BBC find these halfwits? The implication is that Jody McIntyre probably deserved it.

 

http://liberalconspiracy.org/2010/12/14/how-jody-mcintyre-was-humiliated-first-by-the-police-and-then-the-bbc/

 

It makes you wonder how much we can trust the media doesn't it.

[eastbank]

Is it reasonable for the police to be assaulting and dragging a protestor with cerebral palsy out of his wheelchair and across the street?

 

http://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/politics/video-shows-protester-dragged-from-wheelchair-as-police-criticism-grows-2159570.html

 

http://www.metro.co.uk/news/850240-disabled-man-was-assaulted-by-police-during-tuition-fees-protest

 

Liberal Conspiracy blog is pretty scathing of the BBC's coverage of the incident

 

 

 

http://liberalconspiracy.org/2010/12/14/how-jody-mcintyre-was-humiliated-first-by-the-police-and-then-the-bbc/

 

It makes you wonder how much we can trust the media doesn't it.

 

the police were drafted in from all over the country...it was pay back for the time they saw the women pc's having their hats burnt outside millbank...welcome to the world of the football supporter...we have been on the recieving end for years....

[eastbank]

You're an idiot, if you think a valid reponse to the legal right to protest is to use a weapon with the potential to blind is perfectly fine you must be insane. I can guarantee if the police start using rubber bullets/water hoses protesters will ramp up their violence.

 

 

legal right to throw bricks.bottles and snooker balls at the police then complain when they fight back....the coppers were loving it and getting paid...bet syp sent some of their boys down...

[dosxuk]

Is it reasonable for the police to be assaulting and dragging a protestor with cerebral palsy out of his wheelchair and across the street?

 

In my opinion, there was unreasonable behaviour committed by both sides, even without having to bring the army in and arming the police with stun guns, tasers, water cannons and tear gas. Some of the police tactics (especially the charging with horses) were over the top for what was mostly a peaceful protest, until the order to kettle came in. Likewise, regardless of what the police are doing, it's not acceptable to throw breeze blocks or fences at the police.

 

It makes you wonder how much we can trust the media doesn't it.

 

Not particularaly, the media is there to show all stories in a way which interests the public. There big story of the day was students rioting, not police brutality - that story is starting up now and will roll on for a while yet. The media love a good bit of kettling, it makes for great rolling news coverage, especially if you can get your correspondents on the ground to talk to the protestors, and especially if you can find one of the ones who was throwing bricks. Both BBC and Sky seemed disapointed that they could only find peaceful protesters - my favourite bit was when they set fire to a bin - the BBC found one of them who'd be involved and asked them "why have you done it, what are you trying to achieve" just to get the reply "well, it's getting cold".

 

Just look at the media handling of the G20 riots last year, and thoughts of fair and balanced reporting go out of the window as soon as the anchors get the opportunity to announce "Lets go over live now to central london where some idiot is trying to smash a window with an inflatable palm tree!" (and we then cross to live pictures of one bemused protestor surrounded by 200 cameras).

[spooky3]

...

Some of the police tactics (especially the charging with horses) were over the top for what was mostly a peaceful protest, until the order to kettle came in.

...

 

There was an agreed route for the protest, the students, socialist and anarchist groups tried to go another way, knowing full well they wouldn't be allowed (but that's why they came pre-armed). Then after sustained attack from the rioters, the Police reacted.

 

The word 'kettling' was used quite early on, however at the same time they were reporting and you could hear magneto-phones announcing that peaceful protesters could still follow the originally planned route. Those left were trouble causers.

 

The horse charge did not harm anyone from what I saw.

 

As for the guy in the wheelchair, looks pretty out of order from what I can see. If I was in a wheelchair though, I know I wouldn't be heading towards the front line of a riot!

[dosxuk]

The word 'kettling' was used quite early on, however at the same time they were reporting and you could hear magneto-phones announcing that peaceful protesters could still follow the originally planned route. Those left were trouble causers.

 

Indeed, the Police spokeswomen told the BBC that people were free to leave via Whitehall, where upon leaving the students came across another wall of Police slowly moving down towards Parliament Square to close off that route and contain the riot. The BBC even interviewed several of them, asking why they hadn't left when they were told they could, and the protesters explained they just got fed back to Parliament Square and couldn't leave.

 

The vast majority of people hanging around Parliament Square seemed to be peacefully sitting / waiting for everything to calm down, just looking cold, bored and hungry.

 

The horse charge did not harm anyone from what I saw.

 

Apart from that policeman who lost control of his horse and got trampled by it.

[Wildcat]

The reports I have read suggest it was the police tactic of kettling that created the violence.

 

http://www.criticallegalthinking.com/?p=1090

 

There are interesting articles here about what happened and who was involved. It looks like the working class school kids affected by the EMAs were the most interesting and new group to take to protesting.

 

But a catalyst is all that the EMAs are. For these teenagers, the education cuts are only a confirmation of what they already know: that they exist on the very edges of a society that doesn’t want them. Condemned to poverty-stricken estates, in schools that that face huge social problems and a lack of resources, their music, cultural life, even their manner of speech and dress is routinely demonised in the media and by the political class.

 

And now even if they do ‘play by the rules’ – go to school, try to get to university, find a job – they find the door slammed in their face.

 

This is why the protests are such fluid, amorphous events – they have no easily defined political aim or demand, apart from a need for confrontation (and be in no doubt that many there yesterday wanted the confrontation with police, which is why confining people for hours and aggravating them with horse charges and beatings was even more stupid than normal).

 

This is why they spread, seemingly randomly, from Parliament Square, to attack shops in Oxford Street, and good old Charles and Camilla. And it’s why they are much more dangerous and powerful than the politicians seem to realise.

 

http://liberalconspiracy.org/2010/12/14/why-these-protests-are-more-dangerous-than-politicians-realise/

 

http://dan-hancox.blogspot.com/2010/12/this-is-our-riot-pow.html

[Conrod]

The reports I have read suggest it was the police tactic of kettling that created the violence.

http://www.criticallegalthinking.com/?p=1090

It's amazing how some people decry anything printed in a newspaper they disagree with, then try to suggest that opinions on a tin pot little website (do I have to add extreme left wing website in which the word 'comrades' comes up a lot?) should be taken as definitive fact.

[Halibut]

It's amazing how some people decry anything printed in a newspaper they disagree with, then try to suggest that opinions on tin pot little websites should be taken as definitive fact.

 

Equally so how some will seek to defend the police even when they're clearly at fault.

[Conrod]

Equally so how some will seek to defend the police even when they're clearly at fault.

On that I think we will differ - because to the law-abiding among us who support our nation and its Police and judiciary, the people in the wrong are the protestors and rioters, not the Police who have to deal with the mess they cause.