Recent
Watch also...
Police ‘well prepared’ for weekend demos
Copenhagen police won’t reveal how many officers will take part but say they are ready
By Jenny Jägerhorn
On Saturday 60 000 demonstrators will walk to the Bella Center from the parliament buildings at Christiansborg to demand a fair climate deal. Police were unwilling to announce the number of officers who will be deployed during the demo and would only say that they were ‘well prepared’.
‘We have had good dialogue with many of the activist groups and expect a peaceful demonstration. But if someone strikes us as having a different agenda we are well prepared. We have been training and exercising for months,” said Flemming Steen Munch, spokesperson for Copenhagen Police.
A number of national and international NGOs, labour unions, political parties and environmental and climate organisations will take part in the march.
The Danish parliament recently passed new legislation that allows the police to hold arrested demonstrators for an extended period of time, and a person resisting arrest can be sentenced to up to 40 days. Even people not participating in riots but present in the area can be punished to the same extent. Police also have the right to keep people in custody for twelve hours instead of six, even if they are not suspected of a crime. The law is temporary and only in place during the demonstrations.
“We have very experienced policemen and we are well prepared to recognise the real demonstrators. No one needs to be worried as long as they are behaving peacefully,” Munch said.
Mel Evans, spokesperson for Climate Justice Action, stresses that they have no intention of violence.
“ We want to fight for a sustainable world. There are people from all around the whole world participating and this is a wonderful chance to act together,” said Evans.
“I think the police are trying to distract us but we won’t let them. We will act. People have the right to demonstrate,” Evans said.
Source: http://cop15post.com/2009/12/11/news/police-%E2%80%98well-prepared%E2%80%99-for-weekend-demos/