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Freedom of SpeechEurope

Thousands rally against UK protest law

April 3, 2021

A new bill would give UK police more power to disperse demonstrations. The country is now seeing a wave of the so-called kill the bill marches.

https://p.dw.com/p/3rYvG
A female protester with "kill the bill" slogan written on her face
Protesters claim the new bill would give police too much powerImage: Alberto Pezzali/AP/picture alliance

London police on Saturday detained several protesters at a rally against proposed legislation that would put new restrictions on public protests.

Officials said a "small minority" of the marchers had blocked the road at the city's Parliament Square.

"They are not social distancing and are putting people in danger of spreading the Covid virus," the police said on Twitter.

"The majority have left and we urge those remaining to listen to officers and leave the area now."

What are the protests about?

The London rally was one of dozens of such events across England and Wales on Saturday.

The marchers decried a UK government initiative to give police more power to curb protests. Under the proposed Police, Crime, Sentencing and Courts Bill, the authorities could impose time and noise limits on demonstrators or shut down "highly disruptive" protests.

Critics say the bill uses vague wording in order to give police nearly unchecked power. The initiative would also impose stricter penalties for defacing statues.

Demonstrators pull on metal fences during a rally in London
Police said a small group of protesters refused to leave the areaImage: Matt Dunham/AP/picture alliance

Movements such as Extinction Rebellion and Black Lives Matter oppose the bill. The opposition Labour Party pledged to vote against it.

Climate activists get creative

What did Jeremy Corbyn say?

On Saturday, former Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn pointed to the central role of protests in securing freedoms.

"Democracy and democratic rights were never handed down from above," he told the crowd. In a Twitter post, he said he would "always defend the right to demonstrate against injustice."

Last week, protests against the initiative turned violent in Bristol, with protesters pelting the police with missiles and setting squad cars on fire.

Some police officers also decried the "kill the bill" tag as "the bill" is a British slang term for the police.

dj/mm (Reuters,AP)