Network for Police Monitoring
 Network for Police Monitoring      | |
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| Abbreviation | Netpol |
The Network for Police Monitoring (Netpol) seeks to monitor public order, protest and street policing, and to challenge and resist policing which is excessive, discriminatory or threatens civil rights. Netpol has built an inclusive network of activists, campaigners, lawyers and researchers to create a forum for sharing knowledge, experience and expertise. Through active campaigning, sharing knowledge and building awareness, Netpol aims to effectively challenge policing strategies which are unnecessarily damaging to any sector of our society.
Netpol works in partnership with community and activist based groups that monitor policing within distinct communities, or who monitor the policing of protest through the deployment of legal observers.[1]
Contents
Defend Freedom to Protest
The government’s new Police, Crime, Sentencing and Courts Bill is an unprecedented attack on our freedom to protest. We have to fight against this Bill. But we need more than opposition – that’s why we’re launching a new Charter for Freedom of Assembly Rights.[2]
On 9 March 2021, Netpol tweeted:
- "Today the government announced plans for a new crackdown on freedom to protest with its wide-ranging, draconian and illiberal PCSCB. We urge you to oppose planned changes to the law - as a first step, sign our petition."
Britain not innocent
Netpol has published “Britain Is Not Innocent”, a 60-page report on the policing of the 2020 Black Lives Matter protests in Britain.[3]
Prevent
The government’s counter-terrorism Prevent strategy has been around for over a decade and its attempt to divert individuals allegedly at risk of “radicalisation”, through multi-agency panels, has always been highly contentious.[4]
Protest surveillance
Since 2009, Netpol has documented the way that the police, through various “domestic extremist” units, have engaged in intensive overt and covert surveillance on protest movements and in the retention of personal details about protestors.[5]
Protecting The Protectors
Protecting the Protectors is Netpol’s campaign to raise awareness and encourage debate amongst elected representatives and in the media about the pressing need to change policing strategies on anti-fracking protests. This area of our work is funded by the Joseph Rowntree Reform Trust.[6]
