British police today announced they had arrested 52 protesters on the sidelines of Charles III’s coronation in London, justifying the widely criticized arrests by saying they had been warned of plans to disrupt the historic event.
The officers arrested dozens of environmental activists planning actions along the route of the royal procession, as well as at least six anti-monarchist activists, including Republican leader Graham Smith, who had staged a demonstration in Trafalgar Square.
In the late afternoon, London’s Metropolitan Police stated that 52 people were still being held for disorderly conduct and that they had “received information that the protesters intended to disrupt the coronation procession”.
Scotland Yard said that “the information included individuals planning to vandalize monuments with paint, breach barriers and disrupt official travel”.
The claim seems to apply to the kind of actions of the environmental movement Just Stop Oil, whose activists were arrested, but it does not explicitly explain the arrest of anti-monarchists whose “Not my King” posters were seized.
However, the police action did not stop hundreds of Republican supporters from demonstrating as the royal procession passed, a limited and unimaginable presence during Isabel II’s reign.
The police crackdown, which mobilized more than 11,000 officers, drew criticism from human rights groups.
The operation took place days after a new and controversial law was passed that gives the police more powers to fight protests.
“We have a duty to intervene when demonstrations turn criminal and risk causing serious disturbances,” said Karen Findlay, who coordinated the police operation, quoted in the police statement.
“The coronation is a once-in-a-generation event and that is an important part of our assessment,” he added.
In Glasgow, Scotland, supporters of Scottish independence demonstrated to demand an end to integration into the United Kingdom and to show their opposition to the coronation of Charles III.
Source: DN
