Daughter of Holocaust survivor among those arrested at Palestine Action protest
By Ellie Ng, PA
The daughter of a Holocaust survivor who was among those arrested at a protest against the banning of Palestine Action as a terror group has said she “can’t be a bystander”.
Carolyn Gelenter was one of around 100 protesters who gathered in Tavistock Square Gardens, central London, on Saturday afternoon, where police officers formed a queue to methodically arrest people sitting in silence holding signs that read: “I oppose genocide, I support Palestine Action.”
A similar protest took place in Belfast’s city centre, but police there did not intervene and officers instead observed the rally from a short distance away.
Ms Gelenter, who is from Australia but lives in London, was arrested on Saturday for a second time over supporting proscribed Palestine Action.
The 67-year-old, who also wore a sign around her neck which said she was the daughter of a Holocaust survivor, told the PA news agency before her arrest: “I wasn’t sure I wanted to get arrested again.
“I thought I’d made my point, and it got lots of media attention, but I just was worried there weren’t enough people and I’m really worried about the erosion of our democratic rights.
“Right to free speech, peaceful protest and free assembly is all being eroded.
“As a Jew, and the daughter of a Holocaust survivor, I just feel I cannot stand by and watch this happening.
“It feels really worrying what’s going on in this country, let alone what’s going on in Gaza and the West Bank. I can’t be a bystander.”
She was later carried off by officers.
Gil Murray, from Norwich, was arrested on Saturday for the sixth time over supporting Palestine Action.
The 68-year-old told PA before he was carried off: “People are now increasingly in politics calling other people traitors or terrorists but for the Government to call people terrorists when they’re not, and we all know that holding a placard is not terrorism, is quite another matter.
“We all know genocide is wrong.
“In the Second World War, we fought a war against this sort of thing and the guys who were invading other countries and committing genocide were the bad guys and now they seem to be the good guys.
“I just cannot believe how attitudes have changed.
“I think we are losing the peace. We are losing what we fought for in the Second World War.”
Police officers appeared to outnumber protesters at the London demonstration, and there were at least 15 police vans in the surrounding streets.
Most protesters who were arrested in the hour-and-a-half-long rally, many of whom were elderly, were carried out of the square – with one young woman’s feet dragging on the ground as two officers carried her away.
Surrounding demonstrators clapped for and thanked those being arrested, with some shouting: “Shame on the police.”
A spokesperson for organisers Defend Our Juries said: “We are taking action today in the Peace Garden because it is a reminder that people acting in the name of Palestine Action only ever acted to save lives, never to take lives.”
They said police failed to arrest 95 people at a similar protest last week, adding that this “demonstrates that the proscription is unenforceable”.
“The ban has been widely condemned as an act of authoritarian overreach,” the spokesperson continued.
“Protest is not terrorism.”
In Belfast, a crowd of around 60 to 80 activists and supporters gathered on a pedestrianised area close to the city’s main court buildings at 1pm, with between 15-20 of them holding placards carrying the statement “I oppose genocide, I support Palestine Action.”
Four Police Service of Northern Ireland (PSNI) officers maintained a low-key presence as they observed the hour-long demonstration from a short distance away.
The officers did not intervene during the event and the crowd dispersed shortly after 2pm.
Another similar demonstration is planned in Londonderry on Saturday.
Palestine Action was banned after alleged attacks on an Israel-based defence firm’s UK site and two planes at RAF Brize Norton.
The ban on Palestine Action, which began on July 5, made membership of, or support for, the direct action group a criminal offence punishable by up to 14 years in prison.
Co-founder Huda Ammori is taking legal action against former home secretary Yvette Cooper’s decision to proscribe the group under anti-terror laws.
A further court hearing is due to take place next week.
