My G20 experience

Today I have a letter in the Ham and High about my experience at the G20 demo:

Along with other members of Haringey Green Party I attended the G20 protest on Wednesday 1st April. Realising that we were about to be penned in by police on Princes Street two of us tried to leave the area.

However a line of police had formed behind us and one of them pushed me, forcing us to continue into the crowd. It felt as though the action of penning people in was designed to create tension and violence. At one point an arrest led to objects being hurled including glass bottles. There were very young children in the crowd and my colleagues and I were becoming increasingly uneasy.

I have been on numerous demos over the years and have never come across such a bad attitude from the police. It is a human right to be able to protest peacefully.

May I urge everyone not to be put off protesting by this unfortunate episode.

Sarah Cope
Haringey Green Party.

Below my letter is one from Mayor Boris Johnson. In it he states 'Our police did a fine job in allowing peaceful protest, whilst cracking down on violence. There are many unseen and unsung heroes.'

I take it you weren't there Boris? No. Ian Tomlinson would probably disagree with your summary of the demos. Only he won't be able to tell you as he's dead.

I am attending the peaceful demo on Saturday to mark the death of this man. The footage of him being struck with a baton from behind and then pushed to the ground tells quite a different story to the one our Tory mayor would have us believe.