Imprisoning political protesters without trial should not be the British way
4 min read
If I were to tell you that a member of my family has now spent six months in prison without trial for political protest, I’m willing to bet you would think he is in darkest Russia, in a damp and dilapidated room, scarcely seeing the light of day. In fact, while much of that is true, he is in London.
My partner’s brother was one of ten Just Stop Oil protesters arrested in July in connection with planned protests at Heathrow. As we go to press, he is awaiting another bail hearing to determine whether the group will be kept in prison until a delayed trial, or now released on bail. Whatever the outcome, I’m sure he has long been able to hear the crowds screeching “lock them up” through the prison walls. You need only spend a few seconds online to understand the level of rage much of the British public feels towards these activists. And yet, while I understand people don’t want their holidays delayed or their roads clogged up, part of me remains mystified.
What I think the crowds forget is that the law used to imprison Just Stop Oil demonstrators – the Public Order Act (2023) – does not apply to them alone. Laws apply to everyone. But how and when laws are applied does unfortunately depend on the political climate, and on who is in government at a given time. So whatever your opinion of Just Stop Oil, I would urge Brits, those sitting in Parliament especially, to ask themselves the following questions:
Do you think you might ever want to protest against a government? Do you think an issue you feel strongly about could be ignored despite your legal protests? And do you think it so impossible that our government could become anything other than perfectly democratic?
On the final point, the trajectory of many countries around the world would suggest otherwise. Whether you look across the Channel or across the pond, far-right politicians are grasping at power. Our trajectory towards liberal democracy is by no means linear. Rights can be taken away at any time. When my family left Russia in 1998, it was not yet obvious what that country would become today, yet 1998 is not so long ago.
Were the far-right to rise to power in the UK, the Public Order Act, with its vague stipulations and draconian powers, would be a terrifying tool at their disposal. Only of course by that time it would be too late to do anything about it.
Just Stop Oil activists are by no means the first protesters to face the possibility of long sentences if found guilty, yet others in this country did not spend years in prison for it. The crucial point, which has largely been lost in the mania surrounding Just Stop Oil, is this: there is an enormous difference between arresting and releasing a protester, and handing out antiquated charges like Public Nuisance that hold a maximum sentence of ten years. That is what my soon-to-be brother-in-law is facing.
Judges at the European Court of Human Rights have long objected to the jailing of peaceful protesters. The democratic consensus has long been that it sets an extremely dangerous precedent. Yet here we sit, in the UK, watching our human rights being stripped away. Worse still, many Brits are cheering about it. As far as I can see, those supporting the jailing of Just Stop Oil protesters are sleepwalking into an authoritarian state.
This Labour government must repeal the Public Order Act instead of actively and cynically pursuing the imprisonment of protesters. At best, this law is an embarrassment to the country. At worst, it is a frightening sign of things to come.
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