The Police in Anguilla are reviewing the two recent protest marches at the Governor’s Office and in the vicinity of the Attorney General’s Chambers to see whether any offences were committed against the Public Order Act.
This was told to reporters on Wednesday by Commissioner of Police, Rudolph Proctor. He prefaced his remarks by pointing out that persons applying for permission to hold a protest march were required to give the Police three days notice.
“Persons applying for a public march, or protest, on the road in daylight, have to apply to the Commissioner of Police three days ahead,” he explained. “One of the things that the application has to contain is the point of departure, the route and the termination…The person must also give an estimate of the number of persons who are expected to be in the march.”
He pointed out that sections 10 and 11 of the Public Order Act also contained provisions relating to prohibiting certain items at a protest march. These include loud speakers, musical and noisy instruments, and the display of flags, banners or emblems at public places.
“I want to give this warning: there are some persons who seem to be engaged in trying to get people to disrespect the Police and law enforcement,” he stated. “We have to be very careful that we do not push it to a point where we cannot retract it. We should all respect the laws that are put in place to govern us. This Police Force, under my command, will never try to impose any actions on the people that are not consistent with the laws and the constitution of the island – and nobody should try to give the impression that that is what we are doing.”
The Police Commissioner went on: “The first protest march was largely peaceful and the organiser was given the specifics under which the protest would start and finish…The same cannot be said about the protest in the vicinity of the Attorney General’s Chambers. That seemed to have gotten a little ugly on the departure of the Attorney General.
“We will be looking at all that has taken place, studying the footage, looking through the evidence from the officers who were on the scene and seeing whether any laws were broken or any offences were committed. If offences were committed, you can rest assured that there will be prosecutions.”
