“Photographer and investigative journalist Marc Vallée on protests, breaking stories and police poundings” – ideastap.com
The nice folks at Ideas Tap interviewed me last week about my work and here it is. You have to sign up to view it or you could click here.
STOP & SEARCH ONE: Philip Caller being stopped & searched under Section 1 of the Police and Criminal Evidence Act (PACE) at 7.50am on Sunday 7 February 2010 in London, England. Photo by Philip Caller. (c) Philip Caller, 2010. Published here by kind permission of Philip Caller.
“Photographer stopped and searched three times during Israeli goods protest” – journalism.co.uk
“Journalists angry at ‘stop and search’ harassment” – National Union of Journalists.
On Sunday I got a phone call from London Photographers’ Branch member Philip Caller. Philip told me he had just been stopped & searched 3 times in 45 minutes by the police on a job covering a protest in west London. Philip had been stopped and searched under Section 1 of the Police and Criminal Evidence Act (PACE) and here are the pictures.
Yesterday the National Union of Journalists (NUJ) issued a statement on this. This is what Roy Mincoff the NUJ legal officer had to say:
“This is an example of straightforward harassment which is totally unacceptable in a country which presumes to lecture other regimes on freedom of expression. While we receive assurances from senior police officers and politicians that reporters and photographers will not face interference when carrying out their legitimate work, it is clear that the instructions to junior ranks are still not getting through to all officers.
STOP & SEARCH TWO: Philip Caller being stopped & searched under Section 1 of the Police and Criminal Evidence Act (PACE) at 8.15am on Sunday 7 February 2010 in London, England. Photo by Philip Caller. (c) Philip Caller, 2010. Published here by kind permission of Philip Caller.
STOP & SEARCH THREE: Philip Caller being stopped & searched under Section 1 of the Police and Criminal Evidence Act (PACE) at 8.35am on Sunday 7 February 2010 in London, England. Photo by Philip Caller. (c) Philip Caller, 2010. Published here by kind permission of Philip Caller.
I’m a Photographer, Not a Terrorist! – photographernotaterrorist.org
“Press Clippings: I’m a Photographer, Not a Terrorist!” – marcvallee.co.uk
Grant Smith and yours truly being interviewed on BBC News 24 in Trafalgar Square on Saturday 23 January 2010 before 3,000 photographers congregated for the “I’m a Photographer, Not a Terrorist!” Mass Photo Gathering event.
Pictures: “Mass Photography Demonstration Against Police Stop & Search Powers” – gettyimages.com
Here are a few of the better press clippings I have found of the 3,000 strong I’m a Photographer, Not a Terrorist! event in Trafalgar Square yesterday. It is a shame that the BBC News 24 broadcast is not up online as I have been told it was pretty good. Feel free to let me know of anything I have missed that is worth taking a look at. It was great to see so many photographers in one place – until next time!
“Photographers protest against police stop and search” – The Guardian.
“Photographers protest over UK terror search laws” – BBC News.
“Snappers Protest Over Police Search Powers” – Sky News.
“Photographers protest UK terror law” – CNN.
“Photographers protest in Trafalgar Square” – ITN News.
“Photographers protest against police use of anti-terror laws” – Daily Telegraph
A few of the 3,000 strong I’m a Photographer, Not a Terrorist! photographers go for some light refreshments after the event. Picture published here by kind permission of the Unknown Snapper.
Media Release: “Mass Photo Gathering in Defence of Street Photography” – photographernotaterrorist.org
“We’re photographers, not terrorists” – Marc Vallée, The Guardian.
Looking forward to seeing you all later today!
“Reporting terrorism: NUJ Ethics Council guidelines” – National Union of Journalists.
The National Union of Journalists Ethics Council has produced a set of guidelines for journalists covering “terrorism cases” – well worth taking a look at.
Let’s face it some need to read it more then others!
LONDON, UNITED KINGDOM – 02.04.09. A City of London police inspector orders the media to leave the area as police ‘kettle” protesters outside the Bank of England on Thursday 2 April 2009 in London, England. The police officer ordered members of the media to leave the area for 30 minutes under the threat of arrest by citing Section 14 of the Public Order Act 1986. The protesters had congregated to mark the death of a man who had died on an anti-G20 protest the day before. (Photo by Marc Vallée/marcvallee.co.uk) (c) Marc Vallée, 2009.
“Adapting to Protest – Nurturing the British Model of Policing” – inspectorates.homeoffice.gov.uk
“HMIC press release” – inspectorates.homeoffice.gov.uk
“‘Aggressive’ policing of protests condemned in post-G20 inquiry” – Paul Lewis, The Guardian.
“Journalists on the G20 front line” – Marc Vallée, The Guardian.
My friend and colleague Paul Lewis writes in The Guardian today, “Senior police officers could lose the consent of the British public unless they abandon misguided approaches to public protests that are considered “unfair, aggressive and inconsistent”, an inquiry has found.”
Paul goes on to say, “Denis O’Connor, the chief inspector of constabulary, used a landmark report into public order policing to criticise heavy-handed tactics, which he said threatened to alienate the public and infringe the right to protest.”
Many will welcome the report. But – and its a big but – what impact will this report have on frontline journalists who report and document political dissent in Britain? As the report almost fails to mention photographers and journalists covering protests, I think we will have to wait and see.
LONDON, UNITED KINGDOM – 18.05.09. Commander Bob Broadhurst at the NUJ Photographers Conference held at the Institute of Education on Monday 18 May 2009 in London, England. (Photo by Marc Vallée/marcvallee.co.uk) (c) Marc Vallée, 2009.
“Good news for photographers” – Marc Vallée, The Guardian.
I have written piece for The Guardian’s Liberty Central about the “I’m a Photographer, Not a Terrorist!” campaign and the new Home Office advice on counter-terrorism legislation and photography in a public place.
“Home Office letter on Photography and Counter-Terrorism – pdf” – From David Hanson MP – Minister of State responsible for crime and policing to Jeremy Dear – National Union of Journalists General Secretary.
“Home Office circular 012 / 2009 – Photography and Counter-Terrorism legislation” – homeoffice.gove.uk
On Tuesday (18.08.09) the Office for Security and Counter-Terrorism at the Home Office sent out new advice to all the Chief Police Officers in the UK to “clarify counter-terrorism legislation in relation to photography in a public place”.
In a letter about the new advice from David Hanson MP – the Minister of State responsible for crime and policing – to Jeremy Dear – the National Union of Journalists General Secretary – the minister writes in the closing paragraph on Section 58A of the Terrorism Act 2000,
“I believe this circular removes once and for all any suggestion that the new offence can be used to prosecute innocent photographers such as responsible journalists, simply because they are taking a photograph of a police officer.”
A victory for photographers? To read more about this go to the “I’m a Photographer, Not a Terrorist!” website.
KINGSNORTH, KENT, UNITED KINGDOM – 09.8.08. Two mounted police officers raise their batons amongst protestors as police move in to arrest a man as environmental activists march on Kingsnorth Power Station Hoo, Kent, England on Saturday 9th August 2008. 2,000 campaigners marched on the Power Station with the aim to shut it down for the day. (Photo Marc Vallée/marcvallee.co.uk) (c) Marc Vallée, 2008.
“Met police turns on charm ahead of climate protest” – Paul Lewis, The Guardian.
“Climate Campers Should Steer Clear of Police Charm Offensive” – Kevin Blowe, blowe.org.uk
“Met bids to “charm” protesters ahead of Climate Camp” – Guy Aitchison, opendemocracy.net
So what is it going to be like to document the Climate Camp next week?
My colleague Paul Lewis – who I have worked with on investigations into police surveillance of protesters and journalists, covert state targeting of environmental activists and police violence – has written an interesting article about how the Metropolitan Police are “overhauling its tactics for policing protests by reaching out to activists”. The Public Order Branch of the Met – C011 – has even set up a Twitter account! And yes I am following them.
A group of activists from the Climate Camp are on a day trip to the Met’s public order training centre in Gravesend today and I’m told that representatives from the National Union of Journalists are also at Gravesend today to work on relations between the media and the police in a public order context.
So is this just public relations or a real change in policing of protest?
Activist Kevin Blowe – writing on his Blog yesterday thinks climate activists should steer clear of the “police charm offensive” and Guy Aitchison – a contributing editor at openDemocracy makes the point that, “if the Met were at all serious about becoming a facilitator of peaceful protest, rather than an obstacle to it, they would abandon the apparatus of control and surveillance they’ve brought in recent years which seems designed to intimidate protesters and makes them feel like criminals.”
For me the test will be on the ground next week. Bottom line – will the Met respect the right to protest and the right of the media report it?
I’m sure some in the media will buy into the narrative the Met is spinning – I for one feel it is our job to report on events and not to treat a media strategy from New Scotland Yard as fact.
