Rights groups call on UK government to reverse its crackdown on the right to protest and stop conflating protests with extremism.
This statement was originally published on article19.org on 11 March 2024.
ARTICLE 19 signed a joint letter led by Amnesty International UK reminding the UK government that it has a legal responsibility to ensure that all people can fully exercise their right to freedom of expression, which includes the right to protest at locations integral to a protest’s expressive purpose. The Defending Democracy Policing Protocol, published last week, outlines new restrictive proposals and represents another addition to a confusing patchwork of legislation – unnecessary when existing legislation already governs if violent or other criminal activity occurs. Signatories are concerned with how, in light of recent regular peaceful protests calling for a ceasefire in Gaza, the Protocol misrepresents the law and risks having a chilling effect on individuals’ ability to exercise their right to protest in this country. Read the full letter below.
8 March 2024
To the Prime Minister,
RE: Government proposals to crack down on the right to protest and free expression
We, the undersigned, write with great concern about recent proposals that will further restrict the rights of everyone in the UK.
It is the responsibility of any government to ensure that all people can fully exercise their rights, and that fundamental rights to freedom of expression and assembly are only interfered with when strictly necessary and in a lawful, proportionate way.
That is why we are greatly concerned by the ‘Defending Democracy Policing Protocol’, published a few days ago, which would further add to a chaotic patchwork of repressive legislation and policing powers that has placed undue restrictions on the right to protest in this country. The protocol outlines new restrictive proposals, some of which relate to protest locations. Many locations listed, such as the Palace of Westminster, outside constituency offices, town halls or the venue of a political event are perfectly normal locations for protest. Existing legislation already governs if violent or other criminal activity occurs, but the words used by senior politicians suggest these locations are in and of themselves no longer to be treated as acceptable locations of protest. The Protocol misrepresents the law and risks having a chilling effect on individuals’ ability to exercise their right to protest in this country.
In addition, we have wider concerns about the manner in which your government has come to discuss protesters and others that engage in legitimate political activity on important issues of the day. Our organisations have emphasised the necessity of using considered language in recent months. Yet the deployment of certain terms, such as ‘extremism’, ‘radical’, and ‘hate mobs’, by your government creates division and exacerbates existing fears amongst minoritised communities. For some, such as neurodiverse people and Muslims, they will be greatly worried by announcements to redouble support for the Prevent duty, which infringes on freedom of expression, association, assembly and the right to non-discrimination.
As an open society, we should value engagement with all, including our critics and those who see the world differently from us. That is why proposals from ministers on the definition of extremism or government advisors on banning engagement with certain groups is deeply worrying. There have already been concerns that the current definition of extremism is too broad, including from the former head of Counter-Terrorism Policing.
There is a different path to the above, one where your government facilitates the right of everyone to have their voices heard. It is our collective responsibility to set a reasoned tone for any discussion; the language that has been used in recent weeks and months has not met this important bar. Instead, the government has sought to demonise an overwhelmingly peaceful movement of individuals calling for a ceasefire in Gaza and Israel, who are concerned and outraged by the catastrophic loss of life that we are all witnessing.
We strongly urge the government to:
- Reverse the recent crackdown on the right to protest and stop conflating protests with extremism;
- Abandon the expansion of the definition of extremism and proposals to bar MPs from engaging with certain groups;
- Refrain from amplifying divisive language that could inflame tensions within and between communities.
Signed
- Sacha Deshmukh, Chief Executive Officer, Amnesty International UK
- Chris Rose, Director, Amos Trust
- ARTICLE 19
- Dr Sara Husseini, Director, British Palestinian Committee
- CAGE
- Leo Ratledge and Lianne Minasian, Co-Directors, Child Rights International Network
- Christian Aid
- Nick Gardham, Chief Executive Officer, Community Organisers
- Jennifer Nadel, Co-Director, Compassion in Politics
- Chris Doyle, Director, Council for Arab-British Understanding
- Tim Livesey, Chief Executive, Embrace the Middle East
- Daniel Gorman, Director, English PEN
- Giovanni Fassina, Programme Director, European Legal Support Centre
- Hugh Knowles and Miriam Turner, Co-Executive Directors, Friends of the Earth (England, Wales and Northern Ireland)
- Sarah Mann, Chief Executive Officer, Friends Families and Travellers
- Eva Tabassam, Director, Gender Action for Peace and Security
- Nick Dearden, Director, Global Justice Now
- Will McCallum and Areeba Hamid, Co-Executive Directors, Greenpeace UK
- James Harrison, Director, Institute of Employment Rights
- Liz Fekete, Director, Institute of Race Relations
- Sarah Castell, Chief Executive Officer, Involve
- Tareq Shrourou, Executive Director, Lawyers for Palestinian Human Rights
- Akiko Hart, Director, Liberty
- Aimee Shalan, Director, Makan
- Raheel Mohammed, Director, Maslaha
- James Skinner, Co-Director, MedAct
- Raghad Altikritti, Chairperson, Muslim Association of Britain
- Zara Mohammed, Secretary General, Muslim Council of Britain
- Azhar Qayum, Chief Executive Officer, Muslim Engagement and Development
- Naomi Magnus and Ros Edwards, Directors, Na’amod
- Kevin Blowe, Campaigns Coordinator, Netpol
- Northern Police Monitoring Project
- Mark Kieran, Chief Executive Officer, Open Britain
- Jim Killock, Executive Director, Open Rights Group
- Oxfam GB
- Ben Jamal, Director, Palestine Solidarity Campaign
- Layla Aitlhadj, Director, Prevent Watch
- Paul Parker, Recording Clerk, Quakers in Britain
- Michael Buraimoh, Chief Executive Officer, Race on the Agenda
- Shabna Begum, Interim Chief Executive Officer, Runnymede Trust
- The Democracy Network
- John Cooper, Director, The Fellowship of Reconciliation
- Clare Farrell, The Humanity Project
- Katrina Ffrench, Founder and Managing Director, UNJUST
- Tessa Khan, Founder and Executive Director, Uplift
- Asad Rehman, Executive Director, War on Want
