Those involved in the G20 protests in London last week have been widely accused of aggressive, reckless and unlawful behaviour.
And I’m not just talking about the protesters.
For anyone who hasn’t seen it yet, this video shows an apparently unprovoked police attack on Ian Tomlinson, the 47-year-old man who later died inside police cordons on Wednesday.
The 41 second video – published by the Guardian - shows Tomlinson, who was on his way home from work and not part of the protest, being struck on the upper thigh by a baton-wielding police officer. Tomlinson walks on, hands in pockets, yet moments later same officer is seen to push him forcefully to the floor. Onlookers rush forwards to help him up as the police stand and watch. Minutes later, Tomlinson suffered a heart attack and died.
The police watchdog, the Independent Police Complaints Commission (IPCC), has launched an investigation into the incident. Officers have claimed that medics attempting to help Tomlinson following his collapse were pelted with bottles thrown by protesters.
George Monbiot has written an interesting blog about police conduct at the G20 protests (Riot police or police rioting?) here.
