njamescouk
Member
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the cops were wandering round with a video camera, they'll be knocking on doors at 3am shortly. if you are ever thinking of using your right to protest wear a mask.
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Trespass incident at Manchester Piccadilly (11/03)
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the cops were wandering round with a video camera, they'll be knocking on doors at 3am shortly. if you are ever thinking of using your right to protest wear a mask.
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Qwerty133
Established Member
The protesters who decided to take their children onto the tracks should lose custody and any who are not UK citizens should be deported.
Clearly at Piccadilly indeed. This picture beggars belief.
Good God!
Is that not some form of child cruelty or abuse? Think of what could easily have been deposited on the ballast from train toilets as well as oil and fuel. Action of that sort is more likely to lose them sympathy and support rather than gain it. Stupid thing to do.
Jonfun
Established Member
And? More ammo to prosecute them with.
Iskra
Established Member
I sympathise with the Kurdish struggle, but not this reckless demonstration that inconveniences law abiding citizens. I'm not in anyway saying they aren't within their rights to protest, but that they aren't in this scenario as they have broken the law, endangered themselves and others and are needlessly inconveniencing thousands of innocent people for little gain.
Turkey seems to be on a slide away from the West and us, so I'm not sure we're allies apart from being in Nato but that's about state on state confrontation and doesn't mean we endorse Erdogan, in fact he's complaining we aren't helping him in the current conflict...
Oh right I see. I didn't realise you were a policing expert! If only you'd been on hand to advise GMP.
In a related incident...
BBC said:
GatwickDepress
Established Member
Indeed. I daresay quite a few posters have watched a too many episodes of Cops and consider themselves armchair policing experts.
DarloRich
Veteran Member
For the heinous crimes of expressing a roght to protest and distrusting trains? Deportion?
Are you honestly suggesting you would happily accept a riot in order to achieve a few more convictions for minor civil order offences?
Jonfun
Established Member
Heh, don't tempt me. If I ran the police, we wouldn't be in the mess we're in now...
Elecman
Established Member
There would be a bigger problem than a few trespassers if a Pendo passed that location at 125mph
edwin_m
Veteran Member
While I largely agree with you, this would no doubt have been videoed and used as evidence of police brutality by those with a particular axe to grind. I think it would be preferable to arrest and prosecute them to give some chance that for consequences of their actions to have an airing in public.
(Again, based on personal experience) No, it really wouldn't.
DarloRich
Veteran Member
Becuase that always works and brings protests to an end in short order doesnt it? Have you never seen a protest on the news?
goblinuser
Member
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- 12 May 2017
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- 292
Hahahh, of course, it's a terminus
Jonfun
Established Member
I work on the basis that if you take a hard line on the smaller matters, the level of overall obedience improves. So much low level crime is ignored, or even accepted.
Iskra
Established Member
Last week one smoke bomb was let off in a football ground. Six fans were arrested. I don't know what policing you've witnessed, but that's one recent example of policing which doesn't add-up when you look at events like todays much more idiotic and dangerous affair.
61653 HTAFC
Veteran Member
The BBC report on this story mentions similar protests at Düsseldorf Airport, so some degree of co-ordination seems likely. I have no idea if 11th March is a significant date though.
It's the anniversary of the Madrid train bombings but that is a coincidence.
It's the anniversary of the Madrid train bombings but that is a coincidence.
DarloRich
Veteran Member
What "hard line" would you take to deal with a relatively small protest and associated disturbance? Rubber bullets? Water cannon? It is hardly the poll tax riots!
What do you assume these people will be charged with? What do you think the sentence should be?
Btw - i assume sensible and right thinking people like you decide the acceptable level of "obedience".
bb21
Emeritus Moderator
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It is not the police's job to escalate matters. Their primary objective should be to contain and dissolve peacefully where possible in these situations, both for everyone's safety (including both the protesters and the general public) and to allow services to return to normal as quickly as possible. That would make everyone's life easier.
The evidence gathering can take place while this is all going on, and prosecutions, if necessary, brought about later.
I am surprised that as railway staff you would want anything else than services being restored as quickly as possible for everyone's benefit.
Do you have any idea how much it will cost the industry (and you and me as tax-payers) if this unnecessarily turned violent and dragged on?
There were - it is said - around 200-300 demonstrators. How many police were on site? In those circumstances I suspect the police felt their main responsibility was to ensure safety and a negotiated agreement to end the demonstration. You might not like it; I may not like it. But that's how it has to be realistically.
Jonfun
Established Member
Like I say, if I was in charge, once suitable resources had been obtained, I would have given the trespassers suitable notice to leave the railway and then starting from one end, forcibly removed any who remained.
Off the top of my head the appropriate charge would be obstructing an engine or carriage on the railway but I couldn't tell you what the current sentence for that is.
What is the point of rail trespass laws if they're not used? And if they're used for individuals walking along a track, why shouldn't they be used when far more trespass? Are we saying that large numbers give an excuse to break the law? Why not mass arrest them? And those who are clsiming this would result in a riot cleatly don't believe in the rule of law.
At the risk of repeating myself - but it seems that some people are better at shouting than listening/reading: It is about Kurds v Daesh - remember them. As for BTP/GMP inaction, well that's par for the course. What will be interesting is GMP's reaction (as in lack of) next time politicos like BNP take over Piccadilly Gardens/Bus Station on a Saturday.
And there may be arrests following this incident. But when there are 200-300 demonstrators, or football fans intent on misbehaving, making arrests is rarely a sensible option.
There's an easy answer. The power is switched off. They are quickly dragged away and the power gets put back on as soon as possible.
Intermodal
Established Member
"Quickly dragged away" - if it only were so simple.
From past experience it's clearly very posdible to deploy more officers wuickly for a major incident, and the BTP should quickly call on the GM police for assistance if necessary.
Are you saying that people in numbers should be allowed to break the law in ways that individuals could not?
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