Today 21 year old philosophy student Alfie Meadows is going to appear in court on charges of violent disorder during a protest against government plans concerning tuition fees last December. Meadows could face up to five years in prison for the offence. There is no mention in the article of what precisely he did.
At the same protest Meadows was hit on the head by a policeman’s baton. He had to go through brain surgery as a result of the injuries he sustained by the hit. In the article there is no mention of charges against the policeman who delivered the hit.
Apart from Meadows, 43 other students will appear in Westminster City magistrates' court over the next two days, all facing similar charges. Outside the court building, hundreds are expected to protest for the right to protest.
I too am for the right to protest and I find some gaps of information in the text to be somewhat suspicious. Why is there no mention of what precisely Meadows did? And why is there no mention of charges against the policeman who hit him? Or aren’t there any?
Of course protesting is no justification for violence, or any form of crime whatsoever, but it most definitely isn’t a justification for a policeman to hit a protester in the head. Even if Meadows violated laws while protesting, hitting him on the head so hard it causes the kind of injuries he sustained seems a little overdone. Or did Meadows’ behaviour perhaps form a danger to the health of others around him? Is that something a 21 year old student who’s protesting against fee policies would do? Seems unlikely, doesn’t it. And again, why is there no mention of circumstances at the moment the policeman decided to hit Meadows? Or even a mention of why such information is not available?
If you ask me, there’s a suspicious odour to this case.
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