Demonstrators plan G20 policing protest

Tuesday, 21 April 2009 5:00 PM

By politics.co.uk staff

Activists intend to demonstrate around the Bank of England next week in a protest against G20 policing.

A group called Space Hijackers are using the event - timed to coincide with May Day - to harness public anger around the issue.

Protestors are being urged to wear striped prison clothing while other dressed as police have been asked to don black riot gear.

They are urged to "encircle the prisoners to p**s them off and start some fights".

"If they want a nation of criminals then let them have it..." a poster on the group's website said.

This morning the head of the Independent Police Complaints Commission (IPCC) faced questions from MPs about his organisation's response to the protests.

The commission had originally tried to manage a police investigation into the protests, and then made the mistake of claiming there was no CCTV footage of Ian Tomlinson's death.

This was later retracted, but many activists were incensed that it took the public to post videos on YouTube for the watchdog to act.

Mr Tomlinson died as a result of internal bleeding and footage has since emerged appearing to show a police officer striking the 47-year-old with a baton before pushing him to the ground.

Police had originally claimed there was no contact between officers and Mr Tomlinson and he had died of natural causes.

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