Today BlackNewsuk reports on the Kill The Bill Protests held on Saturday 17th of April in Central London, where campaign...

Today BlackNewsuk reports on the Kill The Bill Protests held on Saturday 17th of April in Central London, where campaigners opposed to the government's proposed Police, Crime, Sentencing and Courts Bill sought to have their voices heard!! Over 2000 people peacefully marched to Parliament Square expressing their opposition to a bill they see as being overly oppressive and counterproductive to democratic ideals and values in the UK. The Police, Crime, Sentencing and Courts Bill... which had its second reading at the House of Commons in early March, seeks to introduce measures which aim to have an impact on victims of crime, those who perpetrate crimes and wider community safety, however, it’s how it affects the future of demonstrations and protests which are the cause for controversy. Specific clauses within the bill, imposing conditions on public processions, on public assemblies and on one-person protests (Part 3, Clauses 54,55 and 60) are widely perceived to have been a response to the Extinction Rebellion and BLM protests throughout the past year. Add to that the controversy around the Sarah Everard vigil, the government appears to have rushed an unthought and reactive piece of legislation that will take away a long held right to gather and express views which is the hallmark of a democratic and tolerant society. Indeed it’s enshrined in Human Rights legislation. Currently if the police want to place restrictions on a protest, they generally have to show it may result in "serious public disorder, serious damage to property or serious disruption to the life of the community". They can also impose specific measures on the routes of marches. When it comes to major events, such details are typically thrashed out with the organisers weeks in advance. Under the new proposals Police chiefs will be able to put more conditions on static protests. They will be able to: · Impose a start and finish time · Set noise limits · Apply these rules to a demonstration by just one person A hypothetical example of the impact of the proposed measures is if an individual holding a protest placard, while blasting out their views on a speaker is told to move on. If they refuse to follow police directions over how they should conduct their protest, they could be fined up to £2,500. It will also become a crime to fail to follow restrictions the protesters "ought" to have known about, even if they have not received a direct order from an officer. At present, police need to prove protesters knew they had been told to move on, before they can be said to have broken the law. The proposed law includes an offence of "intentionally or recklessly causing public nuisance". As stated above, the right to protest and express yourself is enshrined in the Human Rights Act, but that right is not absolute. Protests can be limited by police if they believe they have good reason to impose restrictions on an event to ensure public safety, or to prevent crime. The Home Office and Ministry of Justice insists its proposals will respect human rights. But the problem is the history of public protest in the UK is littered with long and complex legal battles over whether police have used their powers properly. One of the most important cases - about the police's power to contain a crowd for an indefinite period - took 11 years of courtroom arguments to reach the conclusion that the tactic was indeed lawful. The Labour Party told Blacknews.uk that it opposes the measures. And the shadow justice secretary David Lammy added the legislation is "a mess". He further added that “the government is trying to rush this preposterous act through Parliament. It's simply poorly thought-out measures to impose disproportionate controls on free expression and the right to protest". Blacknews.uk asked the Rights of Women, a campaign group, what they thought of the bill. There are a number of criminal justice reform measures within the bill such as Whole life orders (life imprisonment with no possibility of parole) for premeditated murder of a child but they state it fails to introduce long-called-for measures that could reduce violence against women and girls. They also added they were opposed to any further powers handed down to the police regarding new Police Bail rules for suspects under investigation. A government source commented they “welcomed parts of the legislation that toughen sentencing for serious violent and sexual offences as this was part of a previous manifesto of which Theresa May had presided over and our current Rt Hon Robert Buckland Secretary of State for Justice and Lord Chancellor had already laid the groundwork for in this policy paper.” · The Bill also proposes changing sentencing rules so that serious criminals spend more time in jail before they can be conditionally released · Judges will be allowed to consider jailing child murderers for their entire lives · Maximum sentences for low-level assaults against emergency service workers doubled to two years · On terrorism, the bill creates powers to more closely monitor offenders released from prison · Community sentences for less serious crime to address underlying problems in offenders' lives · Changes to sexual offences law to tackle abusive adults in positions of trust, such as sports coaches and religious figures At the protest on Saturday, “Blue” from Justice for Black Lives and Marvina a prominent and influential figure at BLM took part in the procession towards parliament square, whilst the Kill The Bill band lead the way, beating the drums of natural law, causing no harm or loss, but inspiring the followers. Blue called for the crowd to halt midway, while she and the other BLM leaders called for a 10 minute vigil for all those 100's of victims including Rashaan Charles and Mark Duggan among many others, and their families that suffered by their loss, at the hand of the police and Justice system. Blue led the speeches touching on many issues such as the Press' "Black Exploitation of The BLM and Kill the Bill Movements.” She also touched on Equality in all aspects, from the Romana community to Palestine. There were also rousing speeches from, Andy of DPAC ( Disable People Against Cuts) who spoke of his struggles to protest, and being dragged from his wheelchair while fighting for disabled rights in this very location of Parliament Square. Ejel Khan of Muslim LGBT Network spoke of the years of protest he had gone through, being an openly Gay Muslim, over many decades in the UK. Lydia of Decrim/Swarm talked about her experiences as a Sex Worker. The crowd listened with intensity as the brave, well-spoken protestor explained her cause. Lydia is a brothel worker and university student sex worker studying History. She entered the sex industry aged seventeen and has worked previously as a street worker, sugar baby and independent escort. Lydia became a survival sex worker due to disability, issues with Student Finance funding, and mental illness as a result of sexual abuse. She strongly believes that decriminalisation would make her safer at work and prevent exploitation at the hands of her managers. At Decrim Now, Lydia contributes to work around public education and policy. She is also a member of the Sex Worker Advocacy and Resistance Movement and the United Voices of the World. However during the protest she outlined that the Nordic model of criminalising her clients would indeed help put an end to many sex workers legitimate right to monetise their commodities as they see fit. Other notable speakers at the protest included: - Ade of- Global Majority - Yaled, of Collective Action, who spoke of all the injustices of the bill, eloquently, and with great passion, -All black lives . Aima Poppy and Terell. - Mel Mullings of RMT - Dominique Palmer FFFI - Luke GRT - Mizan Poet