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Human rights group: There seemed to be "a continual expectation containment would be used" on London TUC march
Senior officers policing protests in London last month focused too heavily on kettling to contain activists, Liberty says. The rights group, which had 120 observers, including two inside Scotland Yard's special operations room (SOR), for the TUC march on 26 March, said the tactic was "under near constant consideration" when potential trouble emerged.
"In the SOR, there seemed to be a continual expectation that a containment would be imposed at some point," Liberty's report said, adding that the tactic "does appear seriously to undermine the relationship of trust and confidence between peaceful protesters and the police".
The report added: "The possibility of mass containment of peaceful protesters has undoubtedly had a chilling effect on many people's rights to freedom of expression and assembly."
Despite its criticism, Liberty added that the Met's response was "on the whole proportionate" and found no need for further police powers to deal with violent groups who infiltrate demonstrations.
Assistant Commissioner Lynne Owens, of the Met, said: "We were faced with the difficult task of striking the right balance between ensuring the vast majority of people were able to peacefully protest whilst managing the small number of criminals intent on disorder."
