UN human rights chief Volker Türk has called on the British government to roll back a law that gives police in England and Wales the powers to crack down on protests. Türk speaks of “very disturbing legislation that is incompatible with the UK’s international human rights obligations”.
The law was approved by parliament on Wednesday. According to the Conservative government, the new powers are needed to prevent a small minority, which mainly demonstrates for environmental issues, from disrupting the lives of a large part of the population. The bill aims to prevent infrastructure from being flattened in protests and creates a new criminal offence for protesters who pin themselves to objects or buildings.
“This new law imposes serious and unnecessary restrictions,” Türk said. He called it “particularly worrying”that the powers of the police are being expanded to detain and search persons without suspicion and that it imposes “unnecessary and disproportionate” penalties on people participating in peaceful protests.
Türk also emphasizes that in times of climate change, the government should protect and facilitate, not hinder and block, peaceful protests on such topics.
Civil rights groups have previously criticized the law, arguing, among other things, that the law gives the police too much power.
