As a result of the disruption that occurred in towns and cities across the United Kingdom the previous week, the police and communities were making preparations for another wave of far-right rioting on Wednesday afternoon.
Businesses and residences were secured with boards, migrant centers were blocked, and 6,000 law enforcement officers were dispatched to various locations across the nation.
Nevertheless, when nighttime arrived, the far-right rioters did not show up, for the most part. Despite the fact that there have been widespread reports of intentions for groups to mobilize over one hundred targets across the country, including roughly forty migrant centers, this is the situation.
The opposite occurred, with thousands of counter-protesters showing up at many of the venues that were targeted. It is estimated that there were approximately 5,000 anti-racist demonstrators who were spotted waving placards that read “No Room for Racism” and “Refugees Welcome” on the streets of Walthamstow, which is located in East London.
Places such as Brighton, Bristol, Newcastle, and Liverpool all experienced events that were comparable to one another. In comparison to the photos that were brought to the attention of the nation in Southport the previous week or throughout England and Northern Ireland during the weekend, these were completely different.
In the aftermath of the chaos that occurred a week ago, hundreds of people have been arrested, and dozens of law enforcement officials have been hurt. However, many people believe that the events that occurred on Wednesday are an indication that the worst may now be past. The police have stated that intelligence indicated that additional riots might be expected.
Why, then, did those who hold far-right views not go on strike on Wednesday as they did the previous week? This is all that you need to be aware of:
Quantity of arrests made
The disturbance that occurred the previous week has resulted in the arrest of over 400 individuals, the majority of whom were taken into custody during the events themselves, while others were taken into custody in the days that followed. During the course of the inquiry, the police have conducted raids on residences, putting the individuals into jail after determining that they are suspects.
Mark Rowley, the Commissioner of the Metropolitan Police Department, shared the following statement: “We have been out doing some dawn raids this morning, The persons who were most violent in the Whitehall protests and violence last week… Approximately seventy percent of them have experiences with criminal activity.
We are dealing with criminal damage, violence, crime involving weapons, and directives to ban football players. These are criminals who are thugs. The majority of them are going to be charged with violent disturbance, and the majority of them are going to be sentenced to prison for a few years. Any claim that they are patriots or that they have a cause that they are protesting for is completely absurd.
Additionally, photographs and footage from social media platforms are working on behalf of the authorities. Livestreaming and location tagging are two examples of features that have been developed over the past few years that will prove to be valuable for law enforcement agencies in their efforts to gather intelligence. An anonymous insider within the police department stated to The Guardian that “for the purpose of gathering evidence, every force will have analysts monitoring social media platforms such as TikTok.”
Video footage of arrests and searches conducted on residences is likely to have a powerful dissuasive effect on individuals who are contemplating engaging in riots and who do not wish to find themselves in a similar situation.
Sentences that are extremely severe
As a result of the disorder that occurred in Southport and beyond, the Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) has been working to swiftly jail those individuals who were involved in the disruption. Several of them have already been sentenced, and their cases have pushed to the front of the list, despite the fact that the backlog of court proceedings in the UK can frequently last for years.
It was on Wednesday that three men became the first to be sentenced to jail for their involvement in the rioting that occurred in Southport. The individual who received the longest term was Derek Drummond, 58, from Southport. He was sentenced to three years in prison after pleading guilty to the charges of assaulting an emergency worker and causing a violent disorder.
According to Stephen Parkinson, who is the director of public prosecutions, “There are sentencing guidelines that indicate that a significant number of individuals who have been caught up in this disorder will face immediate imprisonment.” In this regard, there ought to be no room for doubt. They are going to be incarcerated.
“We are eager to investigate any offenses related to terrorism. According to my knowledge, there is at least one situation in which that is occurring.
As a result of Mr. Parkinson’s tough tone, which has been backed by Prime Minister Keir Starmer and Home Secretary Yvette Cooper, it is probable that many people who were considering rioting have refrained from doing so. And now that we are witnessing the kinds of punishments that people may anticipate receiving for participating in the violence, the deterrent has become even more powerful.
Confrontational protesters
The targeted plans for Wednesday were disseminated on the internet in a widespread manner, in contrast to the far-right riots that occurred the previous week. As a result of the relatively high number of people who attended the riots over the weekend, it is probable that the organizers felt encouraged to publicly release more information about the event.
Businesses, residences, and the migrant centers that were the focus of the violence prepared for the impending violence by barricading doors and even boarding up their windows. The response of the police forces was to deploy more than 6,000 personnel in order to deal with the potential for even more disorder.
However, perhaps the most significant aspect of all was the large number of anti-racist counter-protesters who were present at various sites across the United Kingdom. These enormous crowds dwarfed the presence of far-right individuals at most locations, which was already decreasing in comparison to the previous few days.
All of the movements were coordinated with the assistance of the campaign group known as Stand Up to Racism. The anti-racist organization has planned dozens of additional demonstrations for a “National Day of Protest” that will take place on Saturday. The purpose of these demonstrations is to “stop the far-right.” It is anticipated that the throng would congregate in front of the Reform UK headquarters in London.
Regarding the events that took place in London, Mr. Rowley made the following statement: “It was a massive policing operation.” I couldn’t be happier with the way things turn out.”
“We put thousands of officers on the streets, and I believe that the show of force from the police, and frankly, the show of unity from communities coming together, was successful in overcoming the challenges that we have seen, and it went up very peacefully last night.”