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London marchers remember G20 death
LONDON (AFP) — Hundreds of black-clad demonstrators marched through London on Saturday to pay homage to a man who died during the G20 protests, minutes after being pushed over by riot police.
Speaking of their pain, the family of newspaper seller Ian Tomlinson, 47, said they hoped action would be taken against any police officer found to have contributed towards his death.
Tomlinson was walking home from work on April 1 through the protest zone in London's central financial district the day before the Group of 20 summit. He died of a heart attack.
"Ian was a much loved and warm-hearted man and we are still coming to terms with his sudden death under such tragic circumstances," stepson Paul King, 26, told marchers on behalf of Tomlinson's family.
"We are hopeful that the IPCC (Independent Police Complaints Commission) will fulfil their duty to carry out a full investigation into his death and that action will be taken against any police officer who contributed to his death through misconduct.
"We may have a long a difficult process ahead of us in getting justice. The developments of the past week, particularly the footage showing Ian suffering a violent assault from police, have been painful for us to take in."
Tomlinson's family did not join Saturday's march, which set off from Bethnal Green police station in east London for the Bank of England in the city centre to lay flowers at the spot where the newspaper seller died.
Police said at the time they had been called to help a man who had collapsed and was not breathing. They said they had come under fire by protesters throwing missiles, thought to be bottles, as they tried to revive him.
An amateur video obtained by The Guardian newspaper, and another clip by Channel Four television, showed a policeman hitting the newspaper vendor with a baton before shoving him to the ground minutes before he collapsed.
Tomlinson was also photographed in an altercation with police more than an hour before his death. The pictures appear to show him blocking a police van as officers in riot gear try to move him on.
Tomlinson reportedly lived in a homeless shelter and had an alcohol problem.
The policeman caught on video pushing Tomlinson came forward and has been suspended.
Source: http://www.google.com/hostednews/afp/article/ALeqM5hxIWwqTv8cccm4Hoy94LVD2G0GGA