Moment police officer knocks smartly-dressed protester
This is the moment a smartly-dressed protester appears to be knocked to the ground as scuffles break out at a migrant protest in Peckham.
Dozens of police officers were called to the south-east London borough this morning after a group of masked protesters blocked a coach trying to take migrants from a hotel to the Bibby Stockholm barge.
Mobile phone footage taken from the scene appears to show one of the demonstrators being pushed to the ground by a Met Police officer, as the force attempts to move the crowds away from the coach.
Another person screams out: ‘That’s my dad’, as the man falls to the floor and has to be helped up by his fellow activists during the chaotic scenes.
The crowds can then heard chanting ‘shame on you’ to the officers, after being warned by the Met that arrests were imminent.
The protesters swarmed the coach in Peckham shortly after 8am this morning. The activists formed a human chain around the vehicle before letting down its tyres and hurling Lime bikes under its path to prevent it leaving.
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Mobile phone footage shows one of the demonstrators (pictured) being pushed to the ground by a Met Police officer
Another person screams out: ‘That’s my dad’, as the man falls to the floor and has to be helped up by his fellow activists during the chaotic scenes
The demonstrators surrounded the coach in a human chain shortly after it arrived at Peckham Road bus stop at around 8am
Dozens of uniformed police officers have descended on the scene of the Peckham demonstration
The Metropolitan Police have said that they ‘have warned the groups that they could be arrested’ however as of yet no arrests have been made
The organised group were chanting ‘we will not be moved’ and ‘refugees are welcome here’ before throwing lime bikes under the vehicle whilst police attempted to defuse the situation.
In the absence of police action, protesters have been seen chanting, playing music on the pavements and sitting in the road smoking roll up cigarettes and drinking tonic wine.
The driver of the van has now been escorted out of the van and dozens of uniformed police officers have descended on the scene to attempt to form their own ring around the coach.
The Metropolitan Police have said that they ‘have warned the groups that they could be arrested’ however as of yet no arrests have been made.
The migrants scheduled to be moved to the government’s floating compound in Dorset have been told to remain in the Best Western hotel until the situation has been resolved.
It is believed the coach was set to collect other passengers on its route to Dorset.
The asylum seekers had been told they would be collected on Thursday morning by coach to relocate to the Bibby Stockholm moored at Portland in Dorset.
Explaining their actions, one protester said: ‘We are trying to stop police deporting migrants.
‘These are human beings who don’t deserve to be moved around like cattle. It’s state-sponsored human trafficking, that’s why we are here.
‘Today they are moving them to Bibby Stockholm. We are going to block the method of transporting them.
‘We will find any way to stop the coach from moving, whatever that looks like.’
The organised group has been chanting ‘we will not be moved’ and ‘refugees are welcome here’ whilst police attempt to defuse the situation
Lime bikes have been wedged underneath the coach to further prevent its exit
The asylum seekers had been told they would be collected on Thursday morning by coach to relocate to the Bibby Stockholm moored at Portland in Dorset
Matthew Smith, 49, who lives next to the hotel came down to watch the protest.
He told MailOnline: ‘I live just here. I understand they are taking people from the asylum hotel to the barge of the coast.
‘I support the protest and I don’t think they should be moving people out of the hotels. Putting people in a hotel is the least we can do when they are seeking asylum.’
A masked protester blocking the coach from leaving told MailOnline: ‘I think why’s going on in this country is really horrific and inhumane and it’s also been declared immoral and unlawful.
‘We need to stand up for people who can’t stand up and defend themselves because the legislation is targeting them.
‘Refugees and asylum seekers deserve to have homes and safety.
‘We will do everything in our power to let this not happen to them.’
The activists have blocked all entrances and exits to the vehicle
Due to the actions, none of the migrants scheduled to be moved have boarded the coach
When asked how long she will stay the protester, who did not want to be named, added: ‘As long as I can manage with my job.
‘Community action is the only way we will stop this awful laws to be stopped. Just because something is legal doesn’t make it moral. Just because something is illegal doesn’t make it immoral. ‘
Kojo Kyerewaa, a coordinator for the protest, told the Guardian: ‘Our friends who are at a Home Office hotel got notification that they were going to be taken to the Bibby Stockholm today.
‘We know that the residents don’t want to leave and we know that the Bibby Stockholm is a dangerous place to put anyone.
‘It’s unsanitary and one person has taken their own life being there and there’s been multiple attempts of suicide by people told that they’re going to the Bibby Stockholm.’
According to Kyerewaa, the protest was inspired by a similar one in Margate last week, where a coach was prevented from taking 22 asylum seekers to the barge.
Police are now remonstrating with the protesters who have been inspired by similar actions in Margate
Due to the action the coach has been unable to leave with the migrants
Commenting on the disruption, a spokesman for the Home Office said: ‘Accommodation is allocated to asylum seekers on a no-choice basis and asylum seekers can make representations if they believe they are unsuitable to be moved to the Bibby Stockholm.
‘These are considered in full before any decision is made.
‘We continue to deliver our plans to significantly reduce the use of asylum hotels, closing 150 by beginning of May, and work closely with accommodation providers to manage the exit process in a way which limits the impact on local authorities and asylum seekers alike.’
No10 said that Home Office officials should be allowed to carry out removals freely and backed police to use their ‘operational powers where necessary if they felt they needed to act’.
The Prime Minister’s Official Spokesman told reporters: ‘We are clear that we will be delivering our Rwanda plan … detentions have begun and the Home Office has got a significant operational team carrying out those detentions and will continue to do so as we prepare for the first flights to get off the ground by early July.
‘The PM’s message would be that the reason we have introduced this scheme is because we want to provide a deterrent and stop the people smuggling gangs from exploiting people and risking lives as people make these dangerous journeys across the Channel. We want to put an end to that.
‘He would urge people to allow Home Office enforcement officers to carry out their duties and we fully support the authorities and the police to ensure the operation can be carried out successfully.’