𝓤𝓷𝓲𝓽𝓮𝓭 𝓝𝓮𝔀𝓼

Greenpeace activists installed wooden prison bars around statues of Nelson Mandela, Mahatma Gandhi, and Millicent Fawcett in Parliament Square this morning, protesting the UK government’s tightening restrictions on demonstrations by suggesting these historical figures could be criminalized under current laws.

The action, which included signs reading “Protest is not a crime” and caused no damage to the monuments, highlights Greenpeace’s analysis showing nearly half of all Terrorism Act arrests since 2001 (2,100 out of 4,322) occurred in the last four months, mostly at silent vigils against the proscription of Palestine Action.

It also notes 144 terror-related charges in early 2025—more than any full year since 2001—including amid major past attacks—and coincides with Labour’s Crime and Policing Bill, which seeks to expand police powers to ban protests near religious sites, restrict face coverings, and curb repeat actions based on “cumulative impact.”