The United Kingdom has been the target of demonstrations and social movements of various origins for many weeks. Meanwhile, Parliament has just voted on Wednesday, April 26th, to pass a law on the maintenance of public order, intended to prohibit road blockades (a tactic favoured by activists). The United Nations is alarmed and sees this legislation as an obstacle to the fundamental freedoms of expression, assembly, and association.
UN human rights chief, Volker Turk, spoke out against the Public Order Bill on Thursday, April 27th, and called on the British Parliament to reverse its vote. He sees the bill as a serious attack on the “freedom of expression, peaceful assembly and association,” of which the UK’s international commitments provide for the protection and guarantee.
Turk is particularly concerned about the provisions of the law that would allow the police to hunt down individuals, even without apparent justification. He calls the penalties “unnecessary and disproportionate,” and points out that the powers currently available to the UK police are sufficient to deal with violent protests. If the law is finally passed, it will allow significant restrictions on the freedoms of some protesters, preventing them from blocking roads, stations, or airports. It will also create a new criminal offence for those who attempt to lock themselves inside certain buildings, or who ‘stick’ themselves to objects such as works of art.
The law is particularly aimed at environmental activist groups such as Extinction Rebellion and Just Stop Oil, both of whom have recently resorted to road blockades. A few days ago, Just Stop Oil activists brought central London to a standstill for several hours.
Turk believes that the law unduly targets “peaceful demonstrations by climate activists.” The UN commissioner’s benevolence towards them is explained by the nature of their demands—mainly about human rights and environmental issues—which are described as “existential” and should inspire clemency and indulgence from the authorities. “Governments should be protecting and facilitating peaceful protests on such existential topics, not hindering and blocking them,” Tusk said.
Supporters of the law argue that while the right to protest should indeed be protected in a democracy, it should not interfere with the right of the law-abiding majority to come and go freely in everyday life.
The law is currently awaiting promulgation by King Charles III.
