The leader of the anti-monarchist organization Republic was detained at a demonstration in Trafalgar Square before the Coronation.
Graham Smith, the CEO of Republic, is seen detaining protestors wearing ‘Not My King’ t-shirts on video.
The group reported that six demonstrators, including Mr. Smith, were apprehended by police while unloading placards near the route of the Coronation procession.
Republic tweeted images of officers collecting information from them.
“So much for the right to peaceful protest,” the group said, adding that the officers would not disclose the reasons for their detention and confirming that their chief executive officer was among those detained.
Matt Turnbull, a detainee, said the placard straps were “misconstrued” as lockable.
“We were never going to be allowed to be a visible force here,” he told. They knew we were coming, and they were going to find a way to stop us.
This week, new legislation made it unlawful to prepare to lock on to objects such as street furniture.
The Metropolitan Police has not confirmed the precise number of detainees, but they have stated that several arrests were made near the route of the Coronation parade:
- Several individuals have been detained on Carlton House Terrace near St. James’s Park on suspicion of disturbing the peace.
- Lock-on devices were found on four St. Martin’s Lane and Trafalgar Square conspirators.
- Three more people were detained near Wellington Arch on suspicion of possessing items that could cause criminal damage.
The force stated on Wednesday that they would have an “extremely low threshold” for demonstrations during coronation celebrations and that demonstrators should expect “immediate action.”
But on Friday, Mr. Smith stated that he had been coordinating the protest with the Metropolitan Police since January and that he had no fear of being apprehended because the new laws would not apply to their plans.
He stated that Republic “certainly has no intention of actually disrupting” the proceedings.
“We will be highly visible, audible, and difficult to miss. But the procession and coronation plans will proceed unimpeded by our presence.”
Saturday morning, Republic reported that hundreds of their placards had been confiscated and questioned “Is this democracy?”
“Many wonder why we are protesting. Because we want to use the coronation to alter the conversation about the monarchy and demonstrate that we are not a royalist nation,” the campaign group wrote.
The anti-monarchy protest at Trafalgar Square in London chanted “Not my King” and “Free Graham Smith.
Before the ceremony, thousands of people gathered to witness the Coronation procession from Buckingham Palace to Westminster Abbey.
On the National Mall, 13 Just Stop Oil demonstrators and a huge climate change organisation were arrested.
Just Stop Oil reported that five protesters were also detained at Downing Street.
The group’s spokeswoman stated that “only T-shirts and flags” would be displayed, adding, “This is a dystopian nightmare.”
Human Rights Watch, a non-profit campaign group, called the arrests “something you would expect to see in Moscow, not London.”
The reports of people being arrested for peacefully protesting the coronation are extremely alarming,” said Yasmine Ahmed, the UK director of Amnesty International.
