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UK marching banned in 5 London boroughs for 30 days
The UK government has granted police the right to prevent far-right groups from marching through five London boroughs for 30 days, prompting concerns that a dangerous precedent has been set in terms of police power and freedom of expression.Scotland Yard says it applied for the ban over fears of violence and disorder planned by the English Defence League earlier this month. The ban comes hot on the heels of widespread rioting in many English cities in August. It also coincides with the introduction of government austerity measures, which some say amount to the dismantling of the entire welfare state. Many say public fear of civil unrest is being manipulated to prevent unions from turning out to protest fierce cuts. "They are talking about area curfews, they are talking about shutting down Facebook [and other] social network sites," [Patrick ORegan from the Workers Revolutionary Party] said. "They are talking about dictatorial civil war measures because what they are doing in Britain is creating a historic change, in which inevitably the majority of Britain will oppose them." The Home Office can only stop marching -- it is powerless to prevent people from gathering. But workers' organizations argue it is no good just standing there. You have to be able to march in order to make a statement, as the unions did in March, when more than a quarter of a million people turned out to protest the cuts. Activists say that is exactly what the government is trying to stop. Posted by: Anonymoose 2011-09-26 |
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