© Leon Neal/Getty Images
In response to the mass arrests of Palestine Action protesters in Parliament Square today, Sacha Deshmukh, Chief Executive of Amnesty International UK, said:
“Today’s mass arrests of peaceful protesters under UK terrorism law are deeply concerning.
“Peaceful protest is a fundamental right. People are understandably outraged by the ongoing genocide being committed in Gaza and are entitled under international human rights law to express their horror.
“The protesters in Parliament Square were not inciting violence and it is entirely disproportionate to the point of absurdity to be treating them as terrorists.
“We have long criticised UK terrorism law for being excessively broad and vaguely worded and a threat to freedom of expression. These arrests demonstrate that our concerns were justified.
“Instead of criminalising peaceful demonstrators, the Government should be focusing on taking immediate and unequivocal action to put a stop to Israel’s genocide and ending any risk of UK complicity in it.”
Call for restraint
Amnesty wrote to Sir Mark Rowley, Commissioner of the Metropolitan Police, ahead of the planned protest, warning against the arrest of peaceful demonstrators expected to gather in their hundreds.
The letter highlights that arresting individuals solely for displaying messages such as “I Oppose Genocide. I Support Palestine Action” would breach the UK’s international obligations to uphold the rights to freedom of expression and peaceful assembly. Amnesty stressed that any further arrests on these grounds would violate international human rights law. Under international law, protest speech can only be criminalised if it incites violence, hatred or discrimination. In the case of today’s protest, holding a placard and peacefully stating support for Palestine Action cannot be treated as an example of incitement.