Topline
London police clashed Saturday evening with mourners at a vigil in memory of Sarah Everard, a young woman who went missing earlier this month and was allegedly murdered by a police officer, prompting calls for the head of the London Metropolitan Police Department to resign over her officers’ conduct.
Key Facts
The police officers’ actions have been sharply criticized after videos and images of women being roughly pinned down and arrested Saturday evening went viral online, paired with the fact an officer from the same London police department has been charged with Everard’s murder and kidnap.
The original vigil organizers cancelled the event planned for Saturday evening at Clapham Common, the 220-acre green space Everard is believed to have crossed shortly before she disappeared, after a judge ruled police had the right to shut down the vigil over coronavirus restrictions.
Throughout Saturday, hundreds of socially-distanced mourners visited the Clapham Common bandstand as permitted without incident to lay flowers in Everard’s memory and pay their respects, including Kate Middleton, who was spotted making an unofficial visit.
According to police, a close-knit crowd of hundreds still formed around 6 p.m. that evening as speakers took to the bandstand, at which point officers at the scene encouraged attendees to leave, which most did, according to Metropolitan Police Assistant Commissioner Helen Ball.
“Regrettably, a small minority of people began chanting at officers, pushing and throwing items,” she said, adding four people were arrested over public order offenses and breaching health protection regulations, Ball said Sunday.
Some onlookers said the police were unnecessarily forceful in breaking up the crowds, and many have called for Cressida Dick, the first female commissioner of the Metropolitan Police, to resign from her post—Dick told reporters Sunday she will not step down.
Tangent
Maria Kalinowska, a 25-year-old who lives near Clapham, attended the vigil and said every person she saw at the vigil wore a mask and that there was enough space at Clapham Common for attendees to keep their distance from others if they wished. Kalinowska left the scene before many of the rough arrests that went viral online occurred, she said, and felt “sick and disgusted” when she saw how other attendees had been treated by officers after she left. “Everyone was so chill and the atmosphere was so chill, other than the police,” Kalinowska said. “I don’t think their actions were justified at all.”
Chief Critics
“The scenes from Clapham Common are unacceptable. The police have a responsibility to enforce Covid laws but from images I've seen it's clear the response was at times neither appropriate nor proportionate. I'm (in) contact with the Commissioner (and) urgently seeking an explanation,” London Mayor Sadiq Khan said.
“The scenes in Clapham this evening are deeply disturbing. Women came together to mourn Sarah Everard - they should have been able to do so peacefully,” Labour Party head Keir Starmer said. “I share their anger and upset at how this has been handled. This was not the way to police this protest.”
Key Background
Sarah Everard went missing in early March, and was last seen alive as she walked home from visiting a friend in Clapham, an upscale neighborhood in South London. Police confirmed Friday Everard’s body was found in a wooded area in Kent, more than 50 miles from where she went missing. Wayne Couzens, a 48-year-old Metropolitan Police officer, was charged with her death and kidnapping Friday and will next appear in court Tuesday. A woman in her thirties who was arrested alongside Couzens last week on suspicion of assisting an offender has been released on bail, according to the Metropolitan Police.
What To Watch For
The London police’s latest clash with protestors comes as Prime Minister Boris Johnson’s Conservative government seeks to push through Parliament a new bill designed to give police more powers to shut down protests. Parliament will debate a second reading of the bill Monday, and the Labour Party will vote against the bill, Shadow Justice Secretary David Lammy announced Sunday. “This is no time to be rushing through poorly thought-out measures to impose disproportionate controls on free expression and the right to protest,” Lammy said in a statement, and called the legislation “a mess, which could lead to harsher penalties for damaging a statue than for attacking a woman.”
Further Reading
How Sarah Everard’s Disappearance Sparked A Social Media Movement (Forbes)
"here" - Google News
March 15, 2021 at 12:46AM
https://ift.tt/3vj5GsZ
Outrage Grows Over Aggressive Police Response To Vigil For Sarah Everard—Here's Why - Forbes
"here" - Google News
https://ift.tt/2z7PfXP
https://ift.tt/2Yv8ZPx
No comments:
Post a Comment