5040 x 3347 px | 42,7 x 28,3 cm | 16,8 x 11,2 inches | 300dpi
Data acquisizione:
20 luglio 2009
Ubicazione:
French Embassy, Knightsbridge, London, England, UK
Altre informazioni:
London and Brighton NoBorders groups demonstrated outside the French Embassy at lunchtime against the planned destruction of the 'jungles' housing around 1, 800 migrants around Calais, expected to start the following day. Around 25 people turned up, fewer than expected as some were already on their way to protest in Calais. Police attempted to get the demonstrators to occupy a pen on the other side of busy Knightsbridge, almost out of sight and largely out of hearing of the embassy. Instead they stayed mainly in the side road containing the embassy entrance. A small group of masked demonstrators holding a black banner "NO BOMBS NO BORDERS" was moved several times under threat of arrest on various grounds, including the that of obstruction, even when they were clearly not causing an obstruction. It was a noisy demonstration, thanks to the sound system from Bicycology which allowed a number of people to tell the French what they thought, as well as providing some rather loud music which wasn't to everyone's taste. Police let one of the demonstrators attempt to deliver leaflets to the embassy, and although they would not take these, a diplomat did come out and talk with her for some time. A police officer attempted to stand in my way to prevent me taking pictures, and I was not allowed to approach the two people. Shortly before the protest was due to finish a team of police in blue overalls marched in, the TSG, several of them armed with tasers. The police then again tried to persuade the protesters to move into the pen across the road. One masked protester was briskly led away by three officers for 'obstructing a police officer', who was photographing the event. The rest of the protesters were then threatened with arrest under Section 14 of the Public Order Act unless they moved to the pen. Instead they finished their 2 hour demonstration ten minutes early.
