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Parliament Square protest law ‘could make the poppy illegal’
Campaigners claim Remembrance Day is not exempt from banning act
CONTROVERSIAL legislation banning spontaneous protest near Parliament Square is so badly written it should be repealed.
The calls come from civil liberties campaigners who say the Serious Organised Crime and Police Act has criminalised anyone wearing a poppy without permission at the Cenotaph this Remembrance Sunday.
The act could lead to a £1,000 fine or a maximum of one year in prison.
Web activist Tim Ireland and the campaigning comedian Mark Thomas revealed flaws in the act after they forced police to concede earlier this year that anyone wearing a red nose for Children in Need in the designated zone could be arrested.
“And what applies to red noses must equally apply to poppies,” said Mr Ireland. “Otherwise the police will be forced to admit that their role has become unacceptably politicised via poor legislation. Their job is to enforce the law as it stands, not to take great pains to enforce the law selectively in order to give one interest group priority over another. This has led to a situation where it is left to the police to decide what does and does not classify as an offence under this act.
He added: “So far, the police have warned, cautioned and / or arrested people under this act for displaying lapel badges, wearing T-shirts with slogans and even for carrying magazines containing political articles. In terms of the scale of demonstration, a poppy certainly applies.”
A Met Police spokesman would not be drawn on whether British Legion members would be arrested, but said the act aimed to “protect Parliament and other designated buildings from any potential terrorist attacks”.
Mr Ireland said: “They cannot issue a statement making an exception for Remembrance Day, as any level of participation involves an overt act with a clear political message. The police cannot publicly make an exception in this case, or even ‘merely’ turn a blind eye, without favouring one political cause over another.”
• The service at the Cenotaph to commemorate British and Commonwealth servicemen and women who died in the two World Wars and later conflicts starts at 10.30am on Sunday with the annual Western Front Association Wreath Laying Ceremony beginning at 10.45am. A service at Westminster Abbey is at 11am.
A Marylebone Parish Church a service will be held from 10.50am. There will be a two-minute national silence at 11am and Festival of Remembrance at the Royal Albert Hall from 2pm. |
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