Security Minister Dan Jarvis told the Commons it was right to proscribe Palestine Action after nearly 900 people were arrested on Saturday, sparking a backlash from MPs
Ministers faced calls to rethink the “unworkable and unsustainable” decision to proscribe Palestine Action as a terror group following hundreds of arrests.
MPs pressed Labour frontbencher Dan Jarvis after nearly 900 people were detained under the Terrorism Act in London at the weekend. But the Security Minister defended the controversial measure, which makes voicing support for the group punishable by up to 14 years behind bars.
He said many of those holding placards in support of Palestine Action are unaware of the violence it has unleashed and said it was behind an “escalating” campaign of intimidation and criminal damage. He also hit back at accusations that right to peacefully protest was under attack.
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Labour backbencher Kim Johnson told him: “The prescription of Palestine action is an authoritarian attack of the right to protest. It’s absurd, it’s unworkable, and unsustainable.” She called on Mr Jarvis and Home Secretary Shabana Mahmood to reconsider the Government’s position.
And Lib Dem Caroline Voaden said: “Many members of my community were arrested in London on Saturday, including a senior priest, an elderly Jewish man, a teacher who spent years with Gazan children and has witnessed the horror of seeing them killed by Israeli troops over the last couple of years. These people are not terrorists.”
But Mr Jarvis said the decision to proscribe Palestine Action was the right decision. He told the Commons: “Some of those holding placards in support of Palestine Action may not know the extent of its activities. It has conducted an escalating campaign involving intimidation and sustained criminal damage, including to Britain’s national security infrastructure.
“Some of its attacks have involved the use of weapons, resulting in alleged violence and serious injuries to individuals. Palestine Action’s members have been charged with violent disorder, grievous bodily harm with intent, actual bodily harm, criminal damage and aggravated burglary… These are not the actions of a legitimate protest group.”
On Saturday 890 people were arrested in London at a protest against Palestine Action’s proscription. They included 857 for showing support for a proscribed group, and 33 for assaulting police officers and other public order offences.
It follows 532 arrests at a protest in Westminster the previous month. Lib Dem home affairs spokeswoman Lisa Smart told the Commons the scale of arrests is “deeply alarming”. She said: “There’s no doubt that those using violent, anti-Semitic abuse or hate speech must face the consequences.
“But these crimes are already covered by existing law. Mr. speaker, it cannot be right that simply displaying a placard in support of a proscribed organisation while peacefully protesting can result in a conviction and up to six months imprisonment.”
Mr Jarvis responded: “The voice that the government received was clear and unambiguous. Palestine Action is concerned in terrorism. Its members have demonstrated a willingness or intention to conduct serious violence against persons in pursuit of their cause.
“Under those particular circumstances, the government has a responsibility and a duty to act.”
Mr Jarvis later told MPs: “This government hasn’t done anything that interferes with anybody’s lawful right to express their concern about an issue.”
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