“Repeal these anti-democratic anti-protest laws and initiate an independent inquiry into the policing of the Palestine rally on Saturday 18 January and the subsequent claims made by the Metropolitan Police.”
Trade union leaders have added their voices to the call for an independent investigation into the heavy-handed policing of the Palestine protest on January 18th, and for repressive anti-protest legislation to be repealed. You can read the letter the Home Secretary published in full below:
Dear Home Secretary,
As trade union leaders, we wish to express to you our opposition to the repressive and heavy-handed policing of the Palestine solidarity rally on Saturday 18 January.
Last Saturday, tens of thousands – including many trade union members – gathered peacefully in Whitehall for a rally in solidarity with the Palestinian people. The rally had been arranged following a decision by the Metropolitan Police to impose a ban on a planned march from the BBC that had previously been agreed between organisers and the police.
On the day, the police imposed a series of complex restrictions preventing people from assembling at various points on Whitehall at various times of the day. As a result, a number of people – trade unionists amongst them – were arrested without warning. We understand that a total of 77 people were arrested on the day, 66 of them for alleged violations of these orders. Those charged with such violations include the chief steward of the rally, Chris Nineham, of the Stop the War Coalition and the Director of the Palestine Solidarity Campaign, Ben Jamal.
Since the rally, the Metropolitan Police have made assertions that are clearly contradicted by video evidence published online. This includes the claim that a delegation of organisers and rally speakers including an 87-year-old Jewish Holocaust survivor, MPs, trade union leaders and prominent cultural figures, forcibly breached police lines. On the contrary, video shows them being instructed by the police to ‘filter’ through. If indeed the Metropolitan Police has attempted to mislead the public, this can only serve to undermine confidence in policing.
As trade unionists we are only too aware how heavy-handed policing, followed by the construction of false media narratives, have often served as a pretext to undermine our democratic rights to demonstrate and take industrial action. We are also conscious that the repressive powers used by the police on Saturday stem from efforts by the previous Conservative government to curb our freedom to strike as well as protest.
We urge you to repeal these anti-democratic anti-protest laws and initiate an independent inquiry into the policing of the Palestine rally on Saturday 18 January and the subsequent claims made by the Metropolitan Police.
Fran Heathcote, General Secretary, Public and Commercial Services Union
Daniel Kebede, General Secretary, National Education Union
Dave Ward, General Secretary, Communication Workers Union
Sarah Woolley, General Secretary, Bakers, Food and Allied Workers’ Union
Jo Grady, General Secretary, University College Union
Mick Lynch, General Secretary, National Union of Rail, Maritime and Transport Workers
Steve Wright, General Secretary, Fire Brigades Union
Mick Whelan, General Secretary, Associated Society of Locomotive Engineers and Firemen
Maryam Eslamdoust, General Secretary, Transport Salaried Staffs Association
Zita Holbourne, Joint National Chair, Artists Union England
Gawain Little, General Secretary, General Federation of Trade Unions
Julia Georgiou, General Secretary, National House Building Council Staff Association
Muhumed Ali, General Secretary, UK Private Hire Drivers Union
Daniel Garnham, General Secretary, Security Industry Federation
John McGowan, General Secretary, Social Workers Union
- 50 Parliamentarians have also written to the Home Secretary calling for an independent inquiry in to the policing of the Palestine demonstration on 18 January.
- You can follow the Palestine Solidarity Campaign (PSC) on Facebook, Twitter/X, Instagram and Bluesky.
