Liberty - Protecting civil liberties, promoting human rights

Protest

People with megaphones

Protest - Your Rights

In collaboration with the National Union of Students, Liberty has produced 'Protest - Your Rights', a detailed guide to your right to peaceful protest, including information on notification requirements, issues to be aware of if you are protesting on private property, an explanation of police powers and tactics, and a summary of relevant offences. 


'Protest - Your Rights' is being launched to coincide with the NUS student activism conference. Student Activism 2011 aims to bring together student activists from across the political spectrum to learn, share and inspire a generation of campaigners.


Protest is a crucial part of political life, with a strong British history, yet a variety of measures have undermined the right to peaceful protest.
  • Broad anti-terrorism powers of stop and search have been used to harass and stifle peaceful protesters.
  • Protest around Parliament has been severely restricted by laws limiting and overly regulating the right to assemble and protest around Parliament.
In 2010 we secured a major victory when the European Court ruling in Liberty’s Gillan and Quinton v UK case confirmed that section 44 stop and search powers breached human rights law.

We will continue to lobby for reform of the legislation that currently restricts protest around Parliament, sections 132-138 of the Serious Organised Crime and Police Act 2005, which was almost repealed in 2010.


Search our press releases, policy papers and legal interventions to find out more about Liberty’s campaigning work to defend the right to peaceful protest.