UK Culture Secretary Lucy Frazer has defended the actions of the Metropolitan Police during anti-monarchy protests in London on Saturday, stating that the officers had to make "tough calls" during the coronation of King Charles III. The event had seen 52 arrests, with the police facing criticism for what many have called a heavy-handed approach towards demonstrators. However, Frazer stated that the right to protest remains "really important" in a democracy, but tactics by demonstrators have shifted in recent years to interrupt people going about their daily lives. The police were tasked with balancing people's right to protest with overseeing an international event on the world stage.
Criticism of the Metropolitan Police, the UK's largest force, comes amid growing concern over the increase in police powers to stifle dissent in Britain following the recent introduction of controversial pieces of legislation. In the days leading up to the historic event, the force had stated that its "tolerance for any disruption, whether through protest or otherwise, will be low," adding: "We will deal robustly with anyone intent on undermining this celebration."
Thousands of people gathered in central London on Saturday to celebrate the once-in-a-generation occasion. However, it also drew demonstrators, with protesters wearing yellow T-shirts booing and shouting "Not My King" throughout the morning. Republic, Britain's largest anti-monarchy group on Saturday that police, without providing any reason, arrested organizers of the anti-monarchy protest. At around 7 a.m., police stopped six of Republic's organizers and detained and searched them, according to Republic director Harry Stratton.
Graham Smith, the chief executive of Republic, was among those detained. He was later released from police detention. Labour lawmaker Chris Bryant posted on Twitter: "Freedom of speech is the silver thread that runs through a parliamentary constitutional monarchy." UK Director of Human Rights Watch, Yasmine Ahmed, described the police's actions as alarming and "something you would expect to see in Moscow, not London."
The Met stated that arrests were made on Saturday for offenses including affray, public order offenses, breach of the peace, and conspiracy to cause a public nuisance. Members of environmental activist group Just Stop Oil were also arrested on The Mall outside Buckingham Palace, and Animal Rising said some of its supporters were apprehended on Saturday while at a training session "miles away from the coronation". A spokesman for the campaign group, Nathan McGovern, described the arrests as "nothing short of a totalitarian crackdown on free speech and all forms of dissent."