A minister responded to criticism regarding arrests by saying that the police had to make “tough choices” when dealing with protestors during the Coronation.
According to Culture Secretary Lucy Frazer, the police were correct to consider the event’s scope and worldwide nature. She was speaking on BBC’s Sunday with Laura Kuenssberg.
Following 52 arrests in London, MPs, human rights organisations, and a former chief constable have attacked the police.
The Metropolitan Police claimed that their actions were “proportionate.”
The leader of the anti-monarchy organisation Republic, Graham Smith, was one of those detained on Saturday. After spending 16 hours in detention, he was freed and said that there was “no longer a right to peaceful protest in the UK.”
The news that three volunteers with a women’s safety organisation located in Westminster had been detained while dispersing rape alarms have sparked more concerns.
The Met claimed to have information that protesters intended to use rape alarms to obstruct coronation ceremonies.
According to Ms. Frazer, while the right to demonstrate is “really important” and everyone should be given a voice, protestors’ strategies have recently changed.
She claimed that protesters have been impeding people from going about their daily lives and that this imbalance needs to be corrected. People have the right to go about their daily lives, she continued.
According to her, officers would have considered the scope of the Coronation celebrations while making operational choices on a case-by-case basis.
She said, “We were on the international stage, 200 foreign dignitaries were in the UK, in London for an event, millions of people were watching, and hundreds of thousands of people were at the scene.
Wes Streeting, the shadow health minister for Labour, told the BBC that he was relieved that the Met was aware of a problem with public trust in policing and that the force was “explaining and justifying” why some of the arrests were made.
Labour, he added, would “wait and see” if the police managed to strike the correct balance, adding that “accountability” over policing choices was crucial.
Mr. Streeting advised them to “hold your hands up” if they didn’t get it correctly.
When defending her officers’ actions, Commander Karen Findlay argued that they had a duty to step in “when protest becomes criminal and may cause serious disruption.”
The Coronation, she continued, was a “once-in-a-generation event” that was important in their evaluation.
On Saturday, hundreds of demonstrators congregated in the pouring rain in the heart of London, chanting “down with the Crown,” “don’t talk to the police,” and “get a real job.”
There were other rallies planned for Cardiff, Glasgow, and Edinburgh. Outside London, there were no recorded arrests.
Affray, public order crimes, breach of the peace, and conspiracy to produce a public nuisance surrounding the Coronation were among the charges against individuals detained, according to Scotland Yard.
While protesters asserted that their demonstrations were nonviolent, the police claimed to have information that certain groups were “determined to disrupt” the event.
Sir Ed Davey, the leader of the Liberal Democrats, said he was unsure of the precise circumstances surrounding the arrest and requested more information from the police.
He attacked the government for “passing legislation to clamp down on protest that breached British traditions of civil liberties” in an interview with Laura Kuenssberg of the BBC. He continued, “The Conservative Party has a lot to answer for.”
The Met’s approach has also drawn criticism from a number of Labour MPs. A parliamentary constitutional monarchy’s “freedom of speech is the silver thread that runs through it,” senior backbencher Sir Chris Bryant claimed on Twitter.
Using social media, shadow minister Jess Philips said that “our nation and our King are not so fragile as to not be able to take harmless protest of a different view.”
In a statement on Sunday, Republic chairman Mr Smith said the arrests had “destroyed whatever trust might have existed between peaceful protesters and the Metropolitan police”.
“What is the point in being open and candid with the police, working with their liaison officers and meeting senior commanders, if all their promises and undertakings turn out to be a lie?”
Mr Smith was arrested early on Saturday – before the Coronation began – at a protest in Trafalgar Square.
Footage during the day showed several protesters wearing “Not My King” T-shirts being detained, including Mr Smith.
“Lock-on devices,” which protesters can use to fasten themselves to things like railings, were seized, according to the Met.
The legislation has changed as a result of this week’s legislative revisions, making it unlawful to get ready to lock-on.
But Matt Turnbull, another member of Republic who was arrested, said the straps were being used to hold the placards and had been “misconstrued” as lock-on mechanisms.
According to a former police chief, she is “very disappointed” in the arrest of protesters and has harsh words for the new powers.
Sue Sim, a former chief constable with Northumbria Police and a specialist in public order policing, said she was “very disappointed” by the arrest of demonstrators and branded the new powers “draconian”.
“I think that’s a very different thing when you’re talking about terrorism, where people’s lives are at risk. But where you are talking about nonviolent protest the whole question for me is, what type of society do we want? We do not want a totalitarian police state,” she told BBC Radio 4’s World This Weekend.
Concerns about the police’s approach to the Coronation were also raised by Westminster City Council’s cabinet member for communities and public protection over reports that volunteers with its Night Star women’s safety programme had been detained and questioned after being stopped by officers while handing out rape alarms.
The authority was in contact with volunteers to ensure their support, according to Councillor Aicha Less, and was working with the Met to determine what happened.
According to The Met, there was a “significant risk to the safety of the public and the riders” because of intentions to use rape alarms to spook military horses and obstruct the Coronation procession.
The force said three people were arrested in the Soho district of London for suspicion of conspiracy to commit public nuisance.
One man was also further arrested on suspicion of handling stolen goods. Since then, all three have been published.
Ade Adelekan, a deputy assistant commissioner, stated that the force was “aware of and understands there is public concern over these arrests” and added that the case was still being looked into.
