Monitoring Olympics policing during the 2012 'Security Games'

A report on community-based legal observing organised by

OLYMPIC POLICING DURING THE 2012 'SECURITY GAMES' | Newham Monitoring Project

Contents

Monitoring Olympics policing during the 2012 'Security Games' an overview Community Legal O servers during the Olympics !hat our monitoring revealed
"he use o# stop and search powers "he treatment o# homeless people $rrests

2 6 10

Organising community legal o servation what we learnt $ppendi% 1& "he Olympics a day' y'day rea(down $ppendi% 2& "he )aralympics a day' y'day rea(down $c(nowledgements

14 17 26 28

OLYMPIC POLICING DURING THE 2012 'SECURITY GAMES' | Newham Monitoring Project

Monitoring Olympics policing during the 2012 'Security Games'

In the months before the start of the 2012 Olympics in
Stratford in east London, there was a rowin an!iety amon st Londoners abo"t the prospect of snipers in helicopters and #$% fi hters in the s&ies, missile la"nchers on tower bloc&s and repeated predictions that 'ewham wo"ld e!perience loc&down d"rin pea& periods( 'ewham )onitorin *ro+ect had also been recei,in en-"iries from across east London for months from local residents, partic"larly those wor&in with yo"n people, who were concerned abo"t the massi,e proposed policin operation and its impact at street le,el( London 2012 seemed to deser,e its rep"tation as the first .Sec"rity /ames.( 0he Olympics presented the lar est peacetime military and sec"rity operation since 1142, with a policin and sec"rity b"d et of aro"nd 3224m( %rom 2010, the n"mber of sec"rity personnel re-"ired by Olympic or anisers rose sharply to an estimated 24,700 on the b"siest days, more than do"ble the ori inal predictions, with "p to 12,000 police from forces across the co"ntry and the )inistry of 5efence pro,idin more troops deployed 6in "niform7 to wor& d"rin the /ames than were then stationed in $f hanistan( 8,en more 990: was installed in a city that already had the hi hest le,el of s"r,eillance of its citi;ens than anywhere in the world, whilst aro"nd 380 million was spent on the constr"ction of an 11<mile lon 2000<,olt electric fence aro"nd the Olympic ;one( 0he reason for this e!traordinary le,el of sec"rity, the =ome Office ar "ed in its )arch 2011 p"blication .Olympic and *aralympic Safety and Sec"rity Strate y,.1 was primarily the threat from terrorism> it promised .ma!im"m "se of e!istin national sec"rity and intelli ence str"ct"res. with the threat<le,el raised from .s"bstantial. to .se,ere. 6which ass"mes .an attac& is hi hly li&ely.7( $ secondary threat was p"blic disorder, hei htened by the perception of a wea& police response to riotin the pre,io"s s"mmer that followed the death of )ar& 5" an in $" "st 2011(2 0he International Olympic 9ommittee had made it clear after the riots that it e!pected the ?ritish o,ernment, the )etropolitan police and other domestic a encies to ens"re that the Olympics passed off witho"t incident(4 $rran ements were made to fast<trac& the trials of people acc"sed of offences lin&ed to the Olympics in the same hi hly contro,ersial way that had followed the disorder of the pre,io"s year, with $lison Sa"nders, the chief 9*S prosec"tor for London, e!plicitly lin&in these meas"res to .the lessons of the s"mmer riots(.4 @ith a climate of fear slowly b"ildin thro" h state instit"tions and the media, we were also aware of the si nificant pattern of racialised social AsanitisationB and e!ploitation that ha,e been a hallmar& of sport me a e,ents lobally, partic"larly where they ha,e been held in poorer and de,elopin areas( $cti,ists and academics from co"ntries incl"din So"th $frica and India, which ha,e both hosted ma+or sport e,ents in recent years, tra,elled to the CD to share their e!periences of h"man ri hts ab"ses and Asweep "p operationsB in their localities( 0hese had had a massi,ely detrimental and often de,astatin impact on the li,es of local people, lea,in them
1 2 4 4 $,ailable online at> https>EEwww( o,("&E o,ernmentEp"blicationsElondon<2012<olympic<paralympic<safety<sec"rity< strate y See ??9 'ews> .#iots report> *"blic lac&ed faith in police response. http>EEwww(bbc(co("&EnewsE"&<12114881 .London riots will not affect 2012 Olympic sec"rity, says IO9., the Guardian, 0"esday 1 $" "st 2011 .%ast<trac& co"rt system planned for London Olympics., the Guardian, 0"esday 26 F"ne 2012

OLYMPIC POLICING DURING THE 2012 'SECURITY GAMES' | Newham Monitoring Project
homeless, "nemployed or ,"lnerable to e!cessi,e policin or criminalisation, with a le acy of property de,elopers and real estate owners benefitin most( 0hese were real life stories behind the promises of employment and re eneration that had been made in each host city( @e reco nised that an atmosphere of intensi,e sec"rity, foc"sed on the boro" h where 'ewham )onitorin *ro+ect has wor&ed for o,er thirty years, had the potential to ne ati,ely impact on local people( )ost military and all pri,ate sec"rity personnel wo"ld wor& inside the .tic&eted areas. of the e,ent ,en"es, b"t in the streets s"rro"ndin the Olympic *ar& in Stratford and the 8!9el 9entre in 9annin 0own, it was the prospect of a massi,e policin operation that was o"r reatest concern( 'ewham is one of London.s poorest and most ethnically di,erse boro" hs with the second hi hest )"slim pop"lation in the CD, one that had e!perienced lon <term state s"r,eillance, s"spicion and incidents li&e the b"n led anti<terrorism raids in 2006 on two families li,in in %orest /ate, who end"red a terrifyin ordeal based on fa"lty intelli ence(2 0he boro" h also has one of the yo"n est pop"lations in London, with 24(6G of residents in 2011 a ed between 10 and 24,6 co"pled with a lon history of diffic"lt relationships between yo"n people and the police( 0his is partic"larly the case o,er the "se of stop and search powers( 0he final report7 of the #iots 9omm"nities and :ictims *anel, set "p to in,esti ate the ca"ses of the 2011 riots, said of stop and search that it was .cited as a ma+or so"rce of discontent with the police,. addin > Notably, this concern was voiced by young black men living in London with whom the Panel engaged, who felt that searches were not always carried out with appropriate respect. We were told that, in at least some instances, this was a motivating factor in the riots, including for some of the attacks on the police... This viewpoint was shared in many of the local reports that the Panel has read. @e ha,e lon been worried that, despite the low le,el of arrests that res"lt from the "se of stop and search powers, the conse-"ence of their repeated "se H and tar etin of partic"lar indi,id"als H is the criminalisation of yo"n people( In its own report into the riotin in London, entitled .%o"r days in $" "st., the )etropolitan police let slip its ,iew that .a history of bein stopped and searched. was an indicator of potential criminality(8 ?efore the /ames, there were already ac"te concerns abo"t the "se of stop and search powers locally( 'ewham.s police had carried o"t an inordinately hi h le,el of contro,ersial section 60 searches compared to other nei hbo"rin boro" hs, which "nli&e other police stop and search powers, do not re-"ire an officer to +"stify ha,in a Areasonable s"spicionB that a person may be abo"t to commit a crime( 0he searches are the most prone to acc"sations of racial profilin H and increased by a sta erin 2,240G in 'ewham from 2007<2010(1 ')*.s own casewor& incl"ded s"pport for one yo"n man, )a"ro 5emetrio, who alle ed he had been racially ab"sed after he was stopped in his car, arrested and placed in a police ,an the day after the 2011 riots H we helped him to ma&e his case p"blic after the 9rown *rosec"tion Ser,ice ref"sed to prosec"te the officers responsible(10 %ollowin a p"blic o"tcry and a re,iew of the
5 See ??9 'ews> .*olice criticised for terror raid. http>EEnews(bbc(co("&E1EhiE"&E6426141(stm
6 See .Dey Statistics 2014., $ston<)ansfield 9omm"nity In,ol,ement Cnit, a,ailable at http>EEwww(aston< mansfield(or ("&Ewhat<we<doEcomm"nity<in,ol,ement<"nitEci"<p"blicationsE 7 .$fter the #iots. H archi,ed at http>EEwebarchi,e(nationalarchi,es( o,("&E20121004112142Ehttp>Eriotspanel(independent( o,("& 8 )etropolitan *olice, .%o"r days in $" "st. http>EEcontent(met(police("&E'ewsE)*S<report<into<s"mmer< disorderE1400007460114E1227246742726 1 See the final report of 'ewham co"ncil.s 9rime and 5isorder Scr"tiny 9ommission A#e,iew of Stop and Search *roced"res in 'ewhamB, 'o,ember 2011, a,ailable from http>EEwww(blowe(or ("&E2011E11Ewhats<in<newhams<stop< search<scr"tiny(html 10 See http>EEwww(nmp(or ("&E2012E04Eeast<london<police<officer<taped<in(html and .*olice face racism scandal after blac& man records ab"se., the Guardian 40 )arch 2012 http>EEwww(the "ardian(comE"&E2012EmarE40Epolice<racism< blac&<man<ab"se

OLYMPIC POLICING DURING THE 2012 'SECURITY GAMES' | Newham Monitoring Project
case, the 9*S re,ersed its decision and, in )ay 2012, a wa,e of other cases came forward totallin 21 alle ations of racism by police officers, spar&in a series of re,iews and a n"mber of s"spensions(11 0his case, whilst shoc&in , was also sadly reminiscent of reports we ha,e recei,ed for years from yo"n people, partic"larly from blac& and minority bac& ro"nds, abo"t their treatment at the hands of the police( 0he only difference was that )a"ro 5emetrio had mana ed to capt"re his e!perience on his mobile phone( O"r concerns abo"t the Olympics policin operation was that 'ewham teena ers 6many of whom li,e in temporary or o,ercrowded homes7 en+oyin the lon s"mmer brea& from school wo"ld ine,itably be o"t on the streets and were li&ely to become tar ets for stops and searches( In addition, altho" h the ma+ority wo"ld not ha,e tic&ets for Olympic e,ents, many wo"ld ra,itate o"t of c"riosity towards Stratford, which had already become a ma net for yo"n people with the openin of the @estfield Stratford 9ity shoppin mall( 0he )etropolitan police clearly shared this ,iew> in )ay 2012, it confirmed a three month dispersal ;one that wo"ld .specifically co,er Stratford 0own 9entre, incl"din the )a istrates. 9o"rt, the main transport h"bs in Stratford and the areas alon @est =am Lane commonly &nown as the @est I"adrant.(12 0his was e!tended for a f"rther three months in $" "st 2012 and enabled police officers or *olice 9omm"nity S"pport Officers to order a ro"p of two or more people to lea,e the area and, if they don.t li,e within it, to ban them from ret"rnin for "p to 24 ho"rs( #esearch by the Foseph #owntree %o"ndation 6F#0714 has shown that dispersal orders ris& displacin crime to the immediately s"rro"ndin nei hbo"rhoods and tend to ha,e the impact of sti matisin all yo"n people as potential perpetrators of anti<social beha,io"r, altho" h they are most li&ely to be its ,ictims> Dispersal orders potentially criminalise youthful behaviour on the basis of the an ieties that young people congregating in groups may generate among other people. !s such, the power is potentially less concerned with the agency of individuals than the assumptions that are made about what they might do. "or many, meeting friends and peers in local public spaces constitutes a fundamental aspect of developing their sense of identity and control, as well as providing space in which to forge their independent capacity to manage risk and danger. In the months before the Olympics, the police sent what F#0 describes as a .symbolic messa e. to the area.s residents to stay away from p"blic spaces, seemin ly dri,en by an "nderlyin fear H intensified by the pre,io"s s"mmer.s riots H abo"t yo"n people from 'ewham scarin ,isitors and "psettin the dri,e for the .perfect /ames.( 0he h" e p"blicity and e!citement that the /ames had enerated meant, howe,er, that this messa e was "nli&ely to be heeded( In plannin o"r response to the Olympics policin operation, we felt that the ri hts of local people to basic ci,il liberties, li&e freedom of mo,ement and association, "nrestricted by harassment or intimidation, sho"ld be ,i oro"sly defended( 8arly on, we decided to monitor and record concerns abo"t the local impact of the Olympics policin and sec"rity meas"res, with three &ey ob+ecti,es>

11 .@atchdo recei,es 21 alle ations of )et police racism in two months., the Guardian 41 )ay 2012 http>EEwww(the "ardian(comE"&E2012EmayE41Ewatchdo <21<alle ations<met<racism 12 See http>EEwww(nmp(or ("&E2012E02Epolice<anno"nce<olympic<dispersal<;one(html 13 .0he Cse and Impact of 5ispersal Orders., Foseph #owntree %o"ndation, October 2007 http>EEwww(+rf(or ("&Ep"blicationsE"se<and<impact<dispersal<orders

OLYMPIC POLICING DURING THE 2012 'SECURITY GAMES' | Newham Monitoring Project
Stren thenin the response of 'ewham comm"nities and yo"n people )onitorin and challen in "nfair or discriminatory practices 9o<ordinatin a comm"nity<led response in partnership with others

@e be an to promote the need to monitor the Olympics policin operations for the d"ration of the /ames and in $pril 2012, in a Guardian A9omment is %reeB article,14 we anno"nced that we planned to "se ,ol"nteer 9omm"nity Le al Obser,ers on the ro"nd> With systems of accountability as weak as they usually seem, we are doing all we can to reach out to and strengthen the response of local black and minority communities in advance of the Olympics, by disseminating rights information, providing support and recruiting volunteers to monitor the police on the ground. 0his report doc"ments the e!periences of local people, partic"larly in relation to policin , as witnessed by o"r team of ,ol"nteers( It also sets o"t o"r e!periences o,er the co"rse of the Olympics and *aralympics d"rin the s"mmer of 2012 and what lessons others can draw for or anisin comm"nity<based monitorin of the policin of ma+or e,ents(

14 .0otal policin . at London 2012 is a recipe for more racial discrimination, 8stelle d" ?o"lay, the Guardian 6 $pril
2012 http>EEwww(the "ardian(comEcommentisfreeE2012EaprE06Etotal<policin <london<2012<olympics<racial

OLYMPIC POLICING DURING THE 2012 'SECURITY GAMES' | Newham Monitoring Project

Community Legal O servers during the Olympics

Community Legal Observer volunteers at the photo-call in tratford on !" #uly !$%!

In )ay 2012, ')* p"t o"t a call for ,ol"nteers to monitor the Olympics policin operation as trained 9omm"nity Le al Obser,ers( 0his went o"t to o"r e!istin s"pporters, on o"r website, ,ia social media and thro" h the established networ&s we are part of, partic"larly the or anisations that ma&e "p the 'etwor& for *olice )onitorin 6'et*ol7( It was also pic&ed "p by campai ners from the 9o"nter Olympics 'etwor&( 0he res"lt was phenomenal> o,er 100 people ,ol"nteered for trainin , which too& place at the =arold #oad 9omm"nity 9entre on 1th and 12th F"ne( 0he trainin sessions set o"t the role of a 9omm"nity Le al Obser,er 69LO7, which was to> )onitor the policin of the comm"nity, especially the "se by police of contro,ersial tactics s"ch as stop and search and dispersal ;ones( $ct as a deterrent to police misbeha,io"r, by wearin hi<,isibility bibs and remindin indi,id"al police officers that their actions are monitored( #eass"re and inform people of their basic le al ri hts, by distrib"tin ri hts cards that incl"de ')*.s 44<ho"r emer ency helpline n"mber to call for ad,ice or in the e,ent of an arrest( )onitor arrests, by recordin anythin witnessed d"rin an arrest and by assistin an arrestee to obtain le al representation( #ecord details of s"spected assa"lts on people by police and attempts to obtain statements from any witnesses(

@e also made it clear that when actin as a 9LO and wearin an identifiable 9LO bib, ,ol"nteers were not acti,ists, lawyers, ne otiators with the police, spo&espersons for the local comm"nity, stewards or medics( 9LOs ha,e no le al stat"s, are not imm"ne from arrest and do not pro,ide Ale al ad,iceB H they instead pro,ide s"pport and assistance on le al iss"es from a comm"nity perspecti,e(
6

OLYMPIC POLICING DURING THE 2012 'SECURITY GAMES' | Newham Monitoring Project
0he trainin co,ered the Olympic AlandscapeB, laws specific to the /ames and an o,er,iew of h"man ri hts iss"es and the law in relation to stop and search powers, dispersal ;ones, c"rfew powers, arrest and detention( @e also e!plained how ')* wo"ld coordinate and s"pport the 9omm"nity Le al Obser,er team( :ol"nteer shifts be an on %riday 27th F"ly, the e,enin of the Openin 9eremony, with a photo<call in 0heatre S-"are in Stratford and 9LOs handin o"t ')*.s new stop and search ri hts card in their distincti,e red bibs o"tside Stratford station( 0hro" ho"t the Olympics, an a,era e of 10 ,ol"nteers in small teams co,ered fo"r shifts o,er a daily 12 ho"r period, and ,ol"nteers distrib"ted o,er 7,000 ri hts cards to local people( 9LOs also spent a considerable portion of their time tal&in to people abo"t their ri hts and their concerns( 9omm"nity Le al Obser,er teams reported re "larly to the ')* office, where ,ol"nteers and staff lo ed incidents on a daily timeline "sin a model of bac&<office s"pport de,eloped by /reen and ?lac& 9ross for le al obser,ation at demonstrations and protests(

"he response o# the local community

$lon side o"r monitorin of central Stratford near the Olympic *ar& and o"tside the Li,eSites 6the co"ncil< mana ed screens in local par&s7, time spent on estates and residential areas tal&in to local people, especially yo"ths and their parents, indicated o,erwhelmin s"pport for the 9omm"nity Le al Obser,ers pro+ect( ?y oin o"t to meet people where they li,e, we were able to b"ild "p a "ni-"e insi ht abo"t policin on the Olympic periphery and meet yo"n people who challen ed commonly held stereotypes abo"t, in partic"lar, yo"n men han in o"t on the street H e,eryday we were met with some of the most en a ed and reflecti,e responses( @e spo&e to people from a ran e of race, ethnicity and faith bac& ro"nds( 0he common ,iew of yo"n people we spo&e to was that while the police presence had increased d"rin the Olympics, their on oin contact with police, lon before the start of the /ames, was already abnormally hi h and any additional tar etin they faced was .nothin new.( )any said they were fre-"ently stopped and searched, sometimes daily and more than once( 0hey felt that the police tar et .&nown faces. and many e!pected to be stopped if they were in ro"ps of two or more( @e were also notified of a n"mber of alle ed assa"lts by officers and also ho"se raids carried o"t on ro"nds that concerned "s( 0he ri hts cards we distrib"ted were well recei,ed and disc"ssions with local people abo"t their e!periences with the police pro,ed ,ery prod"cti,e( Jo"n blac& people in partic"lar e!pressed their concerns and an!ieties abo"t stop and search( @hilst some were "naware of their ri hts in relation to pro,idin their names and addresses, others told "s that in reality it was impossible to in,o&e this ri ht beca"se where they had done so before, they had been threatened with arrest(
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OLYMPIC POLICING DURING THE 2012 'SECURITY GAMES' | Newham Monitoring Project

#ur $L#s handed out rights cards to a group of ten %& year'old !sian boys, who appeared very e cited to use the information provided the ne t time they are stopped by the police. ! few days later, the boys met the same $L#s again and told them that they had been stopped and searched several times since the first encounter with our volunteers and that they told the police officers it is their right not to give them their names and addresses. (owever, they had relented and given this information as a result of feeling intimidated. #ne officer told them, )these won*t take you anywhere), as he took the rights cards off each of them. The group was given new rights cards and saved N+P)s ,mergency (elpline number in their mobile phones. #ur $L#s also led a stop and search role play e ercise with them, which provided an opportunity to understand and more easily remember what they should be told by a police officer who stops them, what their rights are and the importance of getting a receipt at the end of the search. The boys agreed to participate in a stop and search workshop organised by N+P and offered to let all their friends know about their rights and about N+P)s helpline number. During another shift, our $L#s spoke with a small group of young men who said that they are constantly harassed by the police. #ne told the $L#s that during a stop'and'account, he suddenly snee-ed. This annoyed the police officers who had stopped him and, as a result, he was issued with a penalty notice for spitting. !nother young male says he was routinely targeted on suspicion of drug dealing, despite the fact that he has no criminal history related to drugs. @e recei,ed a hi h n"mber of reports of yo"n men bein ro"tinely strip<searched in the bac& of ,ans, which is alarmin , b"t sadly corresponds with feedbac& we had athered tho" h o"r e!istin comm"nity o"treach with yo"n people( 0his iss"e seemed to ha,e been lar ely "nreported beca"se many yo"n people were "naware that this practice is ille al and that strip searches sho"ld only ta&e place in c"stody "nder the a"thorisation of a c"stody ser eant( =owe,er, many told "s that if offered the choice between this &ind of search in the bac& of the ,an or in a c"stody s"ite, they felt a reater threat from bein ta&en to a police station and wo"ld opt for the former( *eople we spo&e to were rel"ctant to tal& e!tensi,ely and in detail abo"t how the searches were cond"cted and we are concerned that a combination of embarrassment and lac& of ri hts< awareness is pre,entin stories li&e these from enterin the p"blic domain( Since last s"mmer, we ha,e raised this iss"e with the Independent *olice 9omplaints 9ommission(

"he response o# the police

')* contacted the local police prior to the start of the pro+ect and recei,ed a written ass"rance o"r presence wo"ld be welcomed and facilitated( $t the start of the Olympics, most police officers at street<le,el seemed to ha,e no idea who we were or what we were doin ( 0hey seemed to accept o"r presence for the first few days b"t a notable shift occ"rred once it became apparent we were monitorin their acti,ities for the d"ration of the /ames and intended to ta&e o"r role serio"sly( $ltho" h we were still reeted re "larly by police, ,ol"nteers also end"red sarcasm and criticism, incl"din ne ati,e comments abo"t their role 6and the odd r"de hand est"re7( One officer beha,ed partic"larly a ressi,ely towards 9LOs obser,in ,ehicle stops, demandin to &now .what &ind of le al trainin do yo" ha,e.(
8

OLYMPIC POLICING DURING THE 2012 'SECURITY GAMES' | Newham Monitoring Project
On a n"mber of occasions, police officers attempted to press 9LOs to pro,ide their personal details, se,eral times claimin that they were re-"ired to do so as .police witnesses. in circ"mstances where they had not witnessed any incident( @e s"spected these re-"ests were little more than attempts to intimidate o"r ,ol"nteers( @e were repeatedly told by yo"n people that police officers confiscated ')*.s ri hts cards from them when they were stopped( On )onday 6 $" "st, police told 9LOs that they were now e!cl"ded from any 0ransport for London land 6incl"din the b"s station7 beca"se of alle edly .a ressi,e beha,io"r. when obser,in a stop and search(

"he response o# the local council

Cnfort"nately, 'ewham co"ncil was acti,ely obstr"cti,e( On 40 F"ly, sec"rity wor&in for the co"ncil pre,ented a ro"p of 9omm"nity Le al Obser,ers from enterin the Li,eSite p"blic screenin of Olympic e,ents at Stratford *ar&, acc"sin the 9LOs of .ma&in it easy for criminals and i,in them tips. by handin o"t ri hts<information cards abo"t stop and search to members of the p"blic( ')* sent an email immediately to the co"ncil.s =ead of 8,ents, S"e )einers, e!plainin the p"rpose of o"r pro+ect and raisin a complaint abo"t this incident( =owe,er, ,ol"nteers on a s"bse-"ent shift, who had mana ed to enter the par&, were as&ed to lea,e by )s )einers beca"se ')*.s ri hts cards were considered .litter.( 0hey offered to stop handin o"t cards b"t were still told to lea,e(12 ')* complained to the co"ncil abo"t the e!cl"sion of o"r ,ol"nteers and the worryin attit"de of sec"rity "ards towards the members of the p"blic "sin the par&( Cnfort"nately, the co"ncil then pro,ided "s with another, entirely different +"stification for the bannin of ,ol"nteers en a ed in informin local people abo"t their le al ri hts( Its =ead of 9omm"nications, 5o" las 0rainer, claimed that the li,e<screen par& areas were part of a .corporate e,ent. and that as a res"lt, the co"ncil does not allow or anisations .to come into the par& with a branded presence H incl"din the wearin of branded shirts or bibs(.16 In eneral, we fo"nd that local a"thority enforcement officers and co"ncil<employed sec"rity staff had a si nificantly ne ati,e and anta onistic attit"de towards local people, and yo"n people in partic"lar(

15 See http>EEwww(nmp(or ("&E2012E07Enewham<co"ncil<bans<h"man<ri hts<le al(html 16 See http>EEwww(nmp(or ("&E2012E08Enewham<co"ncil<responds<to<complaint(html 1

OLYMPIC POLICING DURING THE 2012 'SECURITY GAMES' | Newham Monitoring Project

!hat our monitoring revealed

"he use o# stop and search powers
9omm"nity Le al Obser,ers fo"nd that police were rarely pro,idin people with receipts when stop and search powers were "sed H this was recorded by o"r ,ol"nteers on almost e,ery day d"rin the Olympics( *olice appeared to fre-"ently chec& people.s identification as if this was a matter of co"rse rather than related to the specific ro"nds for the search( 9LOs spo&e to lar e n"mbers of yo"n people abo"t the iss"e of whether to i,e police their name and address d"rin a search 6"nder police powers where pro,idin this information is not re-"ired7( )ost yo"n people were "naware of their ri hts b"t those who had tried to assert them and ref"sed to i,e their personal details said officers threatened to arrest them or obtained their details by other means, by oin thro" h a wallet or e!tendin the ro"nds of the search by s" estin an item in their possession may be stolen 6forcin them to pro,ide a name and address to pro,e their innocence7( )any felt that &nowin their ri hts simply wasn.t eno" h( $ommunity Legal #bservers spoke to one %. year old who said that during the second week of the #lympics, he was stopped three times in one day outside /tratford /tation. (e told the $L#s0 )the first time 1 was stopped, the police officers said they were searching me for weapons. The second time it was because 2of3 the way 1 was dressed. 1 was told 1 looked like 1 was on something. The third time 1 wasn*t given any reason at all.) In some cases stop and search powers were "sed repeatedly by police officers so that people be in to feel harassed and deterred from atherin where they normally socialised( $L#s spoke to three young !sian men, who said they had moved on when they realised they were being watched by the police, but that the officers continued to pursue them. They added that this has not been the first time they have been watched, stopped and searched for possession of drugs and that the previous evening, one had his phone taken from him by a police officer even though a check showed it had not been stolen. The group said that as a result of the #lympics, they had changed their daily activities to save them from hassle from the police. @e had se,eral reports of incidents where the "se of stop and search powers led to an alle ation of assa"lt a ainst police officers( %or e!ample, a ro"p of yo"n $sian boys in traditional Islamic clothin were ret"rnin home d"rin the ni ht from #amadan prayers at their mos-"e, when the police stopped and searched 6 or 7 of the yo"n boys in %orest /ate( One member of the ro"p reported that he had been assa"lted d"rin this stop and search by one of the officers( 0al&in to members of the p"blic re,ealed that the police were still "sin powers "nder section 60 of the 9riminal F"stice and *"blic Order $ct 1114 6"sed .in anticipation of ,iolence.7(17 One indi,id"al said that he had been threatened with dispersal ;one powers near Stratford *ar& b"t that officers had bac&ed down when he stood his ro"nd( 0here were reports of harassment near local shops and within Stratford *ar&, with the s" estion that police beha,ed differently in to"rists areas in order not to create a ne ati,e impression(

17 See http>EEwww(le islation( o,("&E"&p aE1114E44EsectionE60 10

OLYMPIC POLICING DURING THE 2012 'SECURITY GAMES' | Newham Monitoring Project
=owe,er, we also fo"nd that Olympic to"rists who were stopped were pro,ided with ,ery little information H those we saw 6or spo&e to afterwards7 said they were not told what power they were bein stopped "nder> officers simply said, .we need to search yo".( +r !, a &4 year old tourist, was stopped and searched by two plain clothes police officers on the opening day of the #lympics on the suspicion of buying or selling tickets. !t no time was information provided on his rights or the reason for the stop and search and officers also failed to give him a receipt. 1t was only after speaking to one of our $L#s that +r ! went back to the officers that stopped him and obtained a receipt 5 and discovered why he had been stopped in the first place. !n !merican tourist was stopped and searched outside /tratford Picturehouse in Theatre /6uare, on the grounds that he was taking pictures of the parking area ne t to the bridge and police officers felt he was therefore acting suspiciously. The officers did not introduce themselves, they did not tell him the power they searched him under and did not issue him a receipt. They did, however, ask him for his name, date of birth and previous criminal record, none of which he was re6uired to provide in law. $L#s gave the man information about his rights and advised him to get in touch with N+P again if he wished to pursue a complaint. Cltimately, &nowin yo"r ri hts is no "arantee a ainst a fr"stratin and intimidatin enco"nter with the police( 0he followin incident, in,ol,in a yo"n $sian man who asserted his ri hts when he was stopped and searched in Stratford, encompasses many of the iss"es we heard abo"t repeatedly d"rin the Olympics> While waiting for my partner at /tratford station, 1 was approached by three officers yelling )take your hands out of your pockets). !s they gathered around me, 1 asked what they wanted and was told they had planned to 7ust ask me some 6uestions but because 1 was being 8aggressive* and 8anti'police* they were now going to carry out a stop and search. #ne officer began the search without any e planation, so 1 asked why they were failing to follow 89#W1/,L:* ;an acronym used in police training as a reminder of information officers must provide when they perform a stop and search %<=. The officer was very unhappy 1 asked this and after consulting his colleagues, he said 1 was suspected of placing drugs in my socks. #fficers were very rude as they then began the search and asked many 6uestions, which 1 chose not to answer. They also threatened me with arrest when 1 refused to provide my name and address. +y partner arrived as the search was almost completed. !s 1 e plained what had happened, one of the officers called out to her0 )does he lie like this to you all the time>) They then said 1 was free to leave but 1 reminded them that they had forgotten to offer me a record of the search and 1 wanted one. The officers kept insisting to my partner )he is free to go, he is a free man) but she politely said, )1 think he wants his receipt, even if we*re late). #ne of the officers then filled in a search record and handed it to me, which said 1 had been seen pulling up my socks and had appeared agitated around a sniffer dog 5 which hadn)t even arrived until after the search had begun. 1 immediately challenged the search record and
18 See http>EEscont"tor(wordpress(comE2012E11E16Esnea&<pre,iew<of<sc<reso"rce<centre<post<stop<and<searchE 11

OLYMPIC POLICING DURING THE 2012 'SECURITY GAMES' | Newham Monitoring Project

said it was false. #ne officer again told my partner that 1 was a liar and walked away to write up his notes. Luckily 1 had paper and a pen with me and was able to note the officers) badge numbers. 1 am now pursuing a formal complaint. 0he yo"n man is a casewor&er for 'ewham )onitorin *ro+ect, pro,idin ad,ice and trainin on police stop and search powers( It is hardly s"rprisin that, in similar circ"mstances, someone who is far less confident abo"t their ri hts wo"ld find those ri hts are i nored(

"he treatment o# homeless people

5"rin the Olympics, the dispersal ;one in Stratford tar eted not only yo"n people, b"t anyone deemed "ndesirable to the ima e of the Olympics, especially the homeless( @e obser,ed police stoppin homeless people on most days, "s"ally to try to mo,e them on( 0hose we spo&e to said they were approached by police contin"ally and many complained of a ressi,e treatment by police officers> #n the third day of the #lympics, three officers from the Territorial /upport 9roup ;the +etropolitan Police)s specialist public order unit= attempted to arrest a homeless ,astern ,uropean man for drunkenness in a public place. When $L#s arrived, the man was lying on the ground, disorientated and largely unresponsive. The police officers were visibly unhappy with the presence of the $L#s, calling the volunteers 8useless* for being unable to assist homeless people, even after they e plained this was 6uite obviously not part of their community legal observing role. The police officers then promptly left, offering no e planation why they had initially attempted to arrest the man, sarcastically adding 8they will look after you* and pointing at the $L#s. Dismissively leaving a distressed member of the public in this way was e tremely unprofessional, but fortunately our $L#s were able to provide some help after the police left, providing water and directing him to a place to sleep. #n another occasion, the day before the $losing $eremony, our $L#s intervened to prevent police officers and security staff, who also appeared to be involved in the 8clean'up* operation around /tratford station, from removing and destroying a homeless man)s sleeping bag and ground sheet. The security staff responded contemptuously to the idea that the homeless might have a right to their possessions and had we not stepped in, there seems little doubt that these items would have been confiscated. Later, during the Paralympics, a homeless man who spends most of his time around /tratford was abused and punched in the chest because of his homelessness. (e reported the incident to the police, describing his attacker as a well'dressed man in a suit, but rather than dealing effectively with the assault, the homeless man was himself threatened with arrest.

12

OLYMPIC POLICING DURING THE 2012 'SECURITY GAMES' | Newham Monitoring Project $rrests
0he arrests o"r 9LOs witnessed near the Olympic *ar& were carried o"t by lar e n"mbers of officers H often ro"ps in e!cess of 10( 0here were arrests for alle ed tic&et to"tin on most days( One man who spo&e to "s after his release said that the c"stody ser eant at the police station he was ta&en to had ref"sed to let him call o"r 8mer ency =elpline n"mber to re-"est a lawyer( Other arrests were more typical of o"r on oin casewor& H and were +"st as arbitrary> ! ?@ year old young black man was waiting to be let into his friend)s house but was arrested by plain clothed police officers for acting suspiciously. (is friends informed officers that they knew him but the police continued to put him into handcuffs and call for back'up. (is friends managed to film him protesting that he did not understand why he was being arrested and then being carried to the police van. !t the police station he was told he had been stopped for public disorder and swearing, but he was not charged. (e went on to pursue a complaint against the police over his treatment.

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OLYMPIC POLICING DURING THE 2012 'SECURITY GAMES' | Newham Monitoring Project

Organising community legal o servation what we learnt

Local in#ormation is essential
?efore the start of the Olympics, o"r e!pectation was that the massi,e increase in sec"rity associated with the /ames wo"ld e!acerbate e!istin concerns abo"t oppressi,e local policin , rather than necessarily create entirely new ones( $s a casewor&< based ci,il ri hts or anisation with more than 40 years of e!perience wor&in in the main Olympic host boro" h, we had a wealth of &nowled e that pro,ided a local conte!t so that o"r 9LOs had some idea of what they mi ht e!pect( It meant, for e!ample, that we already had a clear pict"re of hotspot areas for the "se of police powers of stop and search and of the policin of dispersal ;ones in the boro" h( )ost local comm"nities o"tside of east London do not ha,e or anisations with ')*.s remit, which means that other or anisers of comm"nity le al obser,in will need to allocate time and reso"rces to tal& to those most affected by hea,y<handed local policin H yo"n people in eneral, and members of blac& comm"nities 6especially yo"n men7 in partic"lar( /atherin information and trends abo"t people.s e!periences of the police is a ,ital part of plannin 9LO trainin (

*t is worthwhile recruiting and training as large a pool o# volunteers as possi le

Cnli&e le al obser,in d"rin a demonstration or protest, where the commitment of ,ol"nteers is meas"red in ho"rs, ')* faced drawin "p a rota co,erin "p to 12 ho"rs a day for the si! wee& d"ration of the /ames, in,ol,in teams of at least three 9LOs( @hilst some of o"r st"dent ,ol"nteers were able to i,e more time o,er the s"mmer, others were only a,ailable for e,enin shifts( @e were, therefore, fort"nate to attract o,er 100 people to ta&e part in 9LO trainin ( 0his meant that we had a lar er pool of ,ol"nteers to draw "pon, with 84 people participatin in rota shifts( 0he ,ol"nteers who came forward were di,erse in terms of a e, ethnicity and incl"ded teachers, lawyers, st"dents, local residents and acti,ists(

*t was important to ensure CLO training #ocused on o servation and common sense
9LOs are not lawyers and o"r trainin emphasised that their role was to ather e,idence rather than to inter,ene, which means that specialist le al e!perience was "nnecessary( $nyone co"ld participate H ,ol"nteers simply needed common sense, an ability to &eep calm and a preparedness to record whate,er they witnessed( @hilst the trainin pro,ided bac& ro"nd on iss"es most li&ely to affect local residents, especially yo"n people, it also foc"sed on what to record if witnessin an arrest, how to reco nise different police ran&s and how to deal with confrontational beha,io"r by indi,id"al officers(

"he most e%perienced legal o servers are needed at the start

It was helpf"l to ha,e more seasoned 9LOs actin as team leaders and o"t on the streets with
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OLYMPIC POLICING DURING THE 2012 'SECURITY GAMES' | Newham Monitoring Project
new ,ol"nteers on the first days of le al obser,in , when we were "nclear abo"t the police reaction to an initiati,e they had not enco"ntered before( In practice this meant at least one member of ')*.s staff team and ,ol"nteers who had pre,io"sly ta&en part in le al obser,ation for /reen and ?lac& 9ross 6/?9 Le al7 d"rin protests( 0he first e,enin , with the Olympics openin ceremony, was e!ceptionally b"sy beca"se of the decision by the police to arrest and detain a lar e n"mber of cyclists ta&in part in a 9ritical )ass ride( =owe,er, we were +"st as concerned abo"t doc"mentin the lower<profile, day<to<day incidents, and the presence of e!perienced ,ol"nteers helped to b"ild the confidence of the 9LO teams to deal with the sit"ations that had been o"tlined d"rin the trainin (

Community Legal O serving is not +ust documenting incidents ut tal(ing to people

0ime spent tal&in to local people abo"t their e!periences and handin o"t ri hts cards was +"st as ,al"able as the monitorin of police acti,ity( 0his is part of the e!panded role of 9LOs that differentiates them from le al obser,ers at protests, and o"r ,ol"nteers told "s this was the most en+oyable part of their shifts> No one ever responded negatively, about 4@A with curiosity, wanting to know more, and a great many with delight that such a pro7ect e isted... 1 got the sense from many 1 spoke to that in discovering there were actions they could take to protect their rights, and that there was an organisation out there to support them, they felt empowered again to stand up for themselves when they felt they were being treated unfairly. The cards we handed out had become well recognised by the final shifts 1 did. #n more than one occasion 1 offered out cards to be told that the person 1 was offering it to already had one, or their friends had one and they knew what it was about.

,ac( o##ice support #or volunteers on the streets is essential

')* adopted some of the e,ol,in ood practice "sed by /?9 Le al 6borrowin with permission from the /?9 London "ide for re ional ro"ps7 to ens"re 9LOs had constant contact with a staffed office for s"pport and "idance and to report re "larly on what they had seen and heard( 0his was co,ered by at least one member of the ')* staff team and ens"red we were able to analyse trends and, when necessary, follow "p with more detailed le al ad,ice or referrals to solicitors in the e,ent of an arrest(

-ecording a timeline helps to manage evidence gathered

$ ain, ')* drew "pon the e!perience of /?9 Le al in "sin a ,ery detailed timeline of e,ents consistin of ?ac& Office call lo s, 9LO notes and, on occasion, emails from members of the p"blic( One ,ol"nteer was responsible for coordinatin the daily "pdatin of the timeline spreadsheet, on which all e,idence athered was noted( 0his incl"ded descriptions of indi,id"al enco"nters with officers, incidents of the "se of police powers, details of chan es in police presence or mo,ements of ,ehicles, 9LOs perceptions of the eneral mood or le,el of tension and any comm"nity feedbac& recei,ed(

-egular volunteer meetings and #eed ac( are essential

@e enco"ra ed ,ol"nteers to phone in with emer in de,elopments d"rin each shift and also
12

OLYMPIC POLICING DURING THE 2012 'SECURITY GAMES' | Newham Monitoring Project
pro,ided a simple template to help 9LOs type "p their notes( It was also helpf"l to ha,e a dedicated email address H we set "p olympicsKnmp(or ("& H to ens"re that incomin information was directed to the ,ol"nteer coordinatin e,idence and added to the timeline e,ery day( In addition, we held wee&ly open meetin s for ,ol"nteers to address their e!periences d"rin shifts, address specific concerns and debate chan in tactics by 9LO teams(

'Cycle patrols' y CLOs ena led us to cover #ar more ground

One of the ideas that emer ed from the wee&ly 9LO meetin s was to or anise 9LO shifts with teams of cyclists, which wo"ld enable ,ol"nteers to co,er a far lar er area( 0his was a ma+or s"ccess> it meant that 9LOs were able to respond -"ic&ly to information pic&ed "p from tal&in to local people and on a n"mber of occasions, to attend and witness incidents in the streets and estates well away from the main Olympic ,en"es(

$ cele ration o# our CLO volunteers' wor( was important and upli#ting
$fter ,ol"nteers had wor&ed so closely to ether, it was important to or anise an e,ent at the end of the Olympics and *aralympics period to than& e,eryone for their commitment and hard wor& o,er the s"mmer( 0his too& place a few wee&s after the /ames were o,er and incl"ded a first loo& at some of the &ey trends that emer ed from the e,idence athered( 9LOs also recei,ed a s"rprise memento of their ,ol"nteerin d"rin $" "st and September H a medal bearin the famo"s .h"man ri hts sal"te. protest by 0ommie Smith, Fohn 9arlos and *eter 'orman at the 1168 )e!ico Olympic /ames(
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OLYMPIC POLICING DURING THE 2012 'SECURITY GAMES' | Newham Monitoring Project

$))./0*1 1& "he Olympics a day' y'day rea(down

0his section doc"ments notable e,ents and a sample of the many acco"nts reported bac& to ')* by 9omm"nity Le al Obser,ers .on the ro"nd. d"rin the Olympics( In many cases, these are first<hand eye<witness acco"nts from contemporaneo"s notes that are reprod"ced ,erbatim in the interests of transparency( @e ha,e made e,ery effort to ens"re acc"racy, often comparin m"ltiple acco"nts of one incident and ha,e ens"red that confidentiality is protected in all cases( @hilst ,ol"nteers wor&ed to a ,ery hi h standard ens"rin they concentrated on doc"mentin facts, there may in places be errors or inacc"racies for which we can accept no liability(

2riday 23 4uly 2012

Opening Ceremony

On the openin day of the world.s bi est international sportin e,ent one partic"lar incident dominated the attention of o"r 9omm"nity Le al Obser,ers and casewor&ers( $fter monitorin two peacef"l protests in Stratford d"rin the day 6an #)0 protest at the station and a 0amil demonstration at the top of ?"rford #oad7, 9LOs witnessed the arrest that e,enin of 184 9ritical )ass cyclists, many on Stratford =i h Street( @hen as&ed for the reasons for the arrests, one officer said AI can arrest yo" all, so co"nt yo"rself l"c&y(B ')* coordinated with /reen and ?lac& 9ross Le al who pro,ided arrestee s"pport and coordinated with lawyers( O"r 9LOs monitored the "se of stop and search powers on three to"rists on s"spicion of tic&et to"tin , who were also threatened with dispersal orders( 0he plain<clothed police officers who carried o"t the searches failed to iss"e a receipt "ntil prompted by 9LOs( /enerally, a si nificant n"mber of police officers with machine "ns were patrollin the Stratford station and @estfield area, police cl"sters were positioned in the same areas and police sniffer do s were inspectin par&ed bicycles o"tside the station(

Saturday 25 4uly 2012

0here was an almost non<e!istent police presence in the early afternoon, away from the entrance to Stratford station, b"t at 4(40pm in Stratford *ar&, 9LOs noted an increase in the n"mbers of members of the p"blic and, conse-"ently, the police presence was hi h( $ teena e irl in li ht s"mmer dress was bein repeatedly swiped in what appeared to be an "nprofessional manner with a hand<held metal detector by a male sec"rity "ard( 0owards the end of the day in Leytonstone, while a homeless man was bein searched by police, two of his female friends were bein dist"rbed and harassed by two into!icated men, ca"sin them a reat deal of distress( 0he two men conse-"ently stated that they were off<d"ty police officers( 0he police e,ent"ally arri,ed at the scene and the two .off<d"ty officers. were -"estioned( $ member of the p"blic started recordin this, b"t one of the attendin officers too& away his phone and deleted the ,ideo( $fter insistin he had e,ery ri ht to record a police officer in the co"rse of his d"ty, the officer became increasin ly an ry and sho"ted at him to A et bac&(B

Sunday 26 4uly 2012

In the mornin of the second day of the Olympic /ames, o"r 9LOs monitored a stop and search carried o"t on fo"r #omanian men( Later on, a stop and search pic&poc&etin operation was carried o"t at Stratford ?"s Station in the early afternoon, which appeared to be tar etin eastern 8"ropeans(
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OLYMPIC POLICING DURING THE 2012 'SECURITY GAMES' | Newham Monitoring Project
9LOs also monitored the AOpen o"r 0owpathB protest on ?ow #oad, Stratford =i h Street and headin towards 9arpenters #oad( $t $bbey Lane, the police presence was ,ery hi h b"t no problems were recorded( $ yo"n $sian man contacted ')* re ardin the s"dden presence of a police officer o"tside a ho"se he was at, who was repeatedly &noc&in on the door and as&in him to come o"t .for a chat. b"t wo"ld not e!plain any f"rther what it was abo"t( 0he police officer had left a mobile n"mber and was spendin the day waitin in a car par&ed o"tside the ho"se( ')* contacted the officer by phone and e!plained that his presence and beha,io"r was of concern and that he sho"ld e!plain what he wanted, allowin the man to ma&e an informed decision abo"t what to do( 0he officer ref"sed to i,e f"rther details b"t passed ')*.s details on to a more senior officer who called bac& later to also s" est the man come o"t to spea& to the police( 0his officer was rel"ctant to identify which branch of the police he was from b"t briefly stated the iss"e was to do with the Olympics and that he was from SO12( ')* pointed o"t that this is the anti<terrorist branch and stated it wo"ld be ad,isin the man to see& le al representation for any meetin with the police( 0he man was then able to proceed with s"pport and the iss"e resol,edL no case was bro" ht a ainst him(

Monday 70 4uly 2012

$ yo"n $frican man ridin his bi&e attempted to enter Stratford *ar& where he had been eatin his l"nch e,ery day for years( 0here were no notices in place informin ,isitors that search points had been installed in the par& for the d"ration of the Olympic and *aralympic Li,e Screenin ( $ sec"rity "ard +"mped in front of the yo"n man, rabbed hold of his bi&e and ref"sed to allow him to enter the par&( O"r 9LOs spo&e to the yo"n man and a,e him a ri hts card( $s the 9LOs went bac& into Stratford *ar& after endin the con,ersation with the yo"n man, the sec"rity "ards as&ed for some of o"r cards( 9onse-"ently, the ne!t ro"p of 9LOs that tried to enter the par& in the afternoon were banned for Ama&in it easier for criminals and i,in them tips(B See page 6 #or #urther details In the e,enin , an arrest too& place by the entrance of @estfield Shoppin 9entre( 0wo white males 6non<?ritish by accent7 were detained and -"estioned by ten police officers who were s"bse-"ently +oined by fo"r other officers and then a f"rther se,en H ma&in a total of 21 police officers for an arrest of two people( 0he two men were arrested for theft(

"uesday 71 4uly 2012

0erritorial S"pport /ro"p officers carried o"t .Operation 9"bo.11 stops and searches on ,ehicles at the +"nction of #omford #oad and :icara e Lane 6close to ?ow 9o"nty 9o"rt7( O"r 9LOs monitored the operation from 11am "ntil 1(20pm when the operation stopped( 0hey handed o"t ri hts cards to dri,ers and passen ers after it had finished( )ost dri,ers that were stopped were either blac& or $sian( @hen three people were arrested, o"r 9LOs as&ed the arrestin officer what police station they wo"ld be ta&en to( =e ref"sed to disclose this information, and threatened the 9LO with arrest(

!ednesday 1 $ugust 2012

*olice 9omm"nity S"pport Officers cond"cted a stop and search on *rince #e ent Lane, altho" h they are only lawf"lly entitled to carry o"t a stop and acco"nt and not a search( $ll ,ehicles passin thro" h the +"nction of 0oll ate #oad and *rince #e ent Lane were chec&ed by the police(
19 See http>EEcontent(met(police("&E'ewsE'ewham<police<sei;e<22<,ehiclesE1400001204811E1227246742726 18

OLYMPIC POLICING DURING THE 2012 'SECURITY GAMES' | Newham Monitoring Project

$t Stratford ?"s Station, police officers appeared to be ,ery defensi,e abo"t o"r 9LOs writin down their bad e n"mbers, despite the fact that the bad e n"mber is p"blic information(

"hursday 2 $ugust 2012

O"r 9LOs were approached by officers o"tside Stratford *olice Station who as&ed o"r ,ol"nteers to stop ma&in a note of car re istration n"mbers, altho" h no le al ro"nds were i,en( $ro"nd 8!9el and alon #oyal :ictoria station, officers from 5erbyshire *olice 9onstab"lary were patrollin the area( )embers of a faith ro"p called .0eam Islam., who were handin o"t leaflets o"tside Stratford station, said the police had been tryin to et rid of them from the space at the bottom of the steps "p towards @estfield Shoppin 9entre since 27 F"ly, altho" h all other faith campai nin ro"ps had not been challen ed( 0hey were forbidden from "sin lo"dspea&ers or me aphones, altho" h 9hristian campai ners "sed theirs( 0hey were also ad,ised to A&eep awayB from 9hristian ro"ps, altho" h o"r 9LOs had monitored ood<nat"red disc"ssions between the two faith ro"ps( One police officer tal&in to 9LOs in Stratford said, Ayo" ma&e o"r li,es diffic"lt,B whilst a female officer standin with a lar e ro"p of other officers said AletBs mo,e away from these "ysB when seein o"r ,ol"nteers on d"ty( 0owards the end of the day, a ro"p of $sian boys, all "nder 18, were arrested near Stratford Station( 0he police presence was ,ery hi h> fi,e ,ans were par&ed o"tside Stratford Shoppin 9entre and abo"t 14 officers ,isible( 'one were local officers b"t from =o"nslow 60M7, )erton 6:@7 and @andsworth 6@@7 and none were prepared to i,e information to o"r 9LOs abo"t the reasons for the arrests(

2riday 7 $ugust 2012

9LOs distrib"ted ri hts cards and spo&e to yo"n people abo"t their ri hts inside the %oc"s 812 foyer in Stratford, which pro,ides both flats for yo"n parents and an open door ser,ice for yo"n people who want access to employment and trainin ser,ices( 0he mana er was &een to find o"t more abo"t ')* to incl"de information in wor&shops for yo"n people who li,e at %oc"s 812( $n $merican to"rist was stopped and searched o"tside Stratford *ict"reho"se in 0heatre S-"are, on the ro"nds that he was ta&in pict"res of the par&in area ne!t to the brid e and police officers felt he was therefore actin s"spicio"sly( 0he officers did not introd"ce themsel,es, they did not tell him the power they were searchin him "nder and did not iss"e him a receipt( 0hey did, howe,er, as& him for his name, date of birth and pre,io"s criminal record, none of which he was re-"ired to i,e, altho" h he was not aware of this( 9LOs a,e the man information abo"t his ri hts and ad,ised him to et in to"ch with ')* a ain if he wished to p"rs"e a complaint( $n arrest too& place opposite the Stratford shoppin centre, where a woman was handc"ffed beca"se she was fo"nd in possession of a &nife with which she was c"ttin bread( 9LOs witnessed the arrest( 0he police officers tried to insist they become witnesses, demandin their names and addresses( $ yo"n $sian man was stopped and chased by the police as he ref"sed to i,e his name and address(

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OLYMPIC POLICING DURING THE 2012 'SECURITY GAMES' | Newham Monitoring Project
$ro"nd Stratford station there were three other incidents in,ol,in stop and search and one in,ol,in stop and acco"nt %i,e $sian boys, three of whom 9LOs had or anised an imprompt" stop and search street role< play e!ercise for, were arrested at Stratford station( See page 5 #or #urther details

Saturday 8 $ugust 2012

0his day mar&ed the one year anni,ersary since the death of )ar& 5" an( 0he mornin started -"ietly b"t the police presence near Stratford, especially plain<clothed officers, increased thro" ho"t the day( 9LOs handed o"t ri hts cards to yo"n people in local barber shops, which were enth"siastically recei,ed( $n older 9aribbean man was sceptical abo"t ma&in complaints a ainst the police, sayin any complaint wo"ld be disre arded d"e to the colo"r of his s&in( 9LOs also met with yo"th wor&ers from 9omm"nity Lin&s who too& ri hts cards to pass on to the yo"n people they wor& with( $ yo"n white boy, a ed aro"nd 12, was stopped fi,e times on that day and said he was intimidated by hea,ily armed police( =e also said that police were .tar etin &nown faces(. $ yo"n blac& man reported an intimidatin stop by si! officers in Stratford *ar&, on the ro"nds that they s"spected his bi&e was stolen( =e felt the b"st cards held important and empowerin information for him and friends(

Saturday 8 $ugust 2012

9LOs witnessed armed police stoppin and searchin a man for ta&in photos of the Olympic site( 0hey did not inform him of the powers they were "sin , the ro"nds for the search, their bad e n"mbers or the station they were based at( 0hey also failed to pro,ide him with a receipt( $n $sian man approached 9LOs to tell them abo"t a stop and search o"tside his ho"se( $ yo"n man told 9LOs he had been pic&ed o"t from a lar e crowd by police and stopped( 'o reason was offered by the officers and he ass"med it related to his clothes and cap( $ blac& teena er responded to a 9LO offerin a ri hts card by sayin . i,e me one of those, yo" people sa,ed my life a few days a o( I.ll i,e it to my friend(. 9LOs spo&e to sec"rity staff at Stratford *ar&, who reported a lar e n"mber of .snatches. by police o"tside the par&( One said it was a shame he co"ld only arrest people in the par&( @hen -"estioned on his "se of the term .arrest,. he said he co"ld detain people indefinitely "ntil the police arri,ed, and considered this comparable to the power of arrest( 9LOs obser,ed the stop and search of a 'i erian man by police interested in his ,ideo camera( 0he officers as&ed o"r ,ol"nteers how they .rated police performance. and e!pressed ratit"de for the assistance 9LOs pro,ided the pre,io"s e,enin to a woman who was distressed and into!icated( 9LOs felt that officers were deliberately tryin to distract them from monitorin the stop and search ta&in place( 9LOs obser,ed a *olish man who was stopped by police( =e told o"r ,ol"nteers that he had been as&ed to lea,e the area for 24 ho"rs beca"se he had been standin some paces away from his ba ( 9LOs tryin to obser,e a man stopped and searched on s"spicion of tic&et to"tin were obstr"cted by 0ransport for London staff when the search was mo,ed into Stratford station( 0hey
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OLYMPIC POLICING DURING THE 2012 'SECURITY GAMES' | Newham Monitoring Project
were also told to remo,e their tabards( $fter complyin , 9LOs were then told they co"ld not ma&e notes( $ police officer then informed ,ol"nteers they were in breach of 0ransport for London bye< laws and threatened them with arrest(

Sunday 9 $ugust 2012

9LOs obser,ed police officers stoppin a #omanian man carryin a tele,ision, on s"spicion of theft( 0he 0: had come from a s&ip and the man was ta&en in a police ,an to show officers where he had fo"nd it( 0he same 9LOs fo"nd him later that day, released witho"t char e H he bro" ht them a ba of croissants as a ift for the help they had pro,ided( 9LOs noted officers with machine "ns were patrollin crowds b"t that one was not displayin his sho"lder identification n"mber(

Monday : $ugust 2012

0here was a enerally calm atmosphere all day with lower police le,els than o,er the wee&end, altho" h the n"mber of pri,ate sec"rity staff remained the same( 0here were ,ery few people, partic"larly yo"n people, on the streets in the area aro"nd Stratford( $ mother approached 9LOs for s"pport from ')* for her sons who had been arrested the pre,io"s ni ht for racially ab"si,e beha,io"r( She said she and her sons had fre-"ently been ,ictims of racial ab"se and had reported it many times( She belie,ed the alle ations were false( $ltho" h there was a solicitor present she was &een to ha,e the s"pport of ')*( 9LOs were told by police that they were e!cl"ded from any 0ransport for London land 6incl"din the b"s station7( One officer alle ed pre,io"sly .a ressi,e beha,io"r. when obser,in a stop and search, claimin the decision to pre,ent ,ol"nteers from monitorin the incident had been to .protect the s"spect.s pri,acy. 6re ardless of the indi,id"al.s wishes7( 0he search had yielded no res"lts( 0he officer added that the police wo"ld mo,e f"rther searches into restricted areas 6s"ch as 0fL property7 to pre,ent f"t"re 9LO obser,ation( 0wo London ?oro" h of 'ewham Law 8nforcement officers stopped a yo"n co"ple for litterin , ,ideoed their identifications and fined them 320(

Monday : $ugust 2012

9LOs noted that officers from @est )ercia *olice were inconsistent in displayin their sho"lder identification n"mbers and saw armed police whose sho"lder n"mbers were not clearly ,isible( 9LOs spo&e to a blac& woman who had complained to police abo"t bein p"shed aro"nd by /4S sec"rity staff( 9LOs obser,ed a ,ehicle stop of fi,e yo"n $sian men by si! officers for s"spicio"s beha,io"r 6indicatin in opposite direction to ro"te ta&en7( $ll fi,e were searched and ,ol"nteers noted that one was s"b+ected to an identification chec&( 0wo receipts were re-"ested( 0here were no ca"tions or arrests( :ol"nteers obser,ed the arrest of an older blac& man, who was remo,ed in a ,an for alle ed dr"n&enness in a p"blic place( =e complained his arm had been h"rt by the officers( 0here was a consistently positi,e reaction from local people and from Olympics ,ol"nteers recei,in ')*.s ri hts cards( *eople ta&in the cards fre-"ently offered recollections of police related e!periences where the information on the cards wo"ld ha,e been rele,ant and "sef"l(
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OLYMPIC POLICING DURING THE 2012 'SECURITY GAMES' | Newham Monitoring Project
In Leytonstone, a mi!ed<race man in his 20s waitin for a friend to let him in to his ho"se was stopped, handc"ffed and searched on the floor by plain<clothed officers for .s"spicio"s beha,io"r.( =is friends, who were shoc&ed at the ro" h treatment, filmed the search( 0he man was then ta&en to the police station despite it bein "nclear whether he was "nder arrest( ')* pro,ided follow<"p s"pport(

"uesday 3 $ugust 2012

It was a enerally -"iet day, which 9LOs spent handin o"t ri hts cards and tal&in to local people( 0here was one stop and acco"nt, insti ated by pri,ate sec"rity staff after a disc"ssion with indi,id"als filmin .0eam Islam. in Stratford( *olice were heard referrin to 0eam Islam as .the )"+ahadeens, or )"+as, or whate,er they.re called(. 9LOs spo&e to a 0ransport for London sec"rity staff member abo"t his role( =e in t"rn e!plained the close cooperation between different sec"rity ro"ps and the e!istence of an .in,isible line. in )eridian S-"are to separate lar e ro"ps of )"slims and 9hristians(

!ednesday 5 $ugust 2012

$ yo"n man reco"nted to 9LOs how his wrist was bro&en when he was arrested( =e was s"bse-"ently released witho"t char e( Lar e n"mbers of officers were obser,ed cond"ctin a ,ehicle stop and search operation( *olice were chec&in dri,in doc"ments "nder section 164 of the #oad 0raffic $ct 1188 and the passport of at least one of the dri,ers( 9LOs handed ri hts cards to a ro"p of blac& 14 year old boys who had been watchin the police operation and one made a comment, "sin stron lan "a e and la" hter, that the cards sho"ld also be i,en to the police( Officers who heard this came o,er and rabbed the boy from his bi&e( 0hey demanded his name and address "nder section 20 of the *olice #eform $ct, which is desi ned to pre,ent anti<social beha,io"r 6defined as acti,ities li&ely to ca"se harassment, alarm or distress to others7( 0he boy was briefly handc"ffed, b"t his restraints were then remo,ed while his personal details and bi&e were chec&ed and his phone was ta&en( 0he boys were e,ent"ally allowed to lea,e witho"t arrest, with officers threatenin the ro"p that they wo"ld be informin their parents and s" estin they dri,e them home( 0hey declined and obtained a receipt of the search( One of o"r 9LOs felt that> .It appeared that the police, once they had stopped this boy and his friends, were tryin to find somethin to do them for(. Officers in a police ,an were noted &eenly watchin three yo"n $sian men waitin for a b"s( @hen two be an wal&in away, they were followed by an officer( 0he man remainin at the b"s stop was approached by 9LOs and said his friends had left to a,oid hassle and dispersal as they are constantly watched, stopped and searched for dr" s( =e had himself been stopped the pre,io"s ni ht and had the ownership of his phone chec&ed( $ ro"p of yo"n $sian boys told 9LOs that they had been stopped and searched the ni ht before d"e to a robbery in the area by people their a e( $n officer beha,ed a ressi,ely towards 9LOs obser,in ,ehicle stops, demandin to &now .what &ind of le al trainin ha,e yo" had(. 5isc"ssions by 9LOs with members of the p"blic re,ealed the police were "sin section 20 powers 6for anti<social beha,io"r7 and powers "nder section 60 of the 9riminal F"stice and *"blic Order $ct 1114 6"sed .in anticipation of ,iolence.7( One indi,id"al said he had been threatened with dispersal ;one powers near Stratford *ar& b"t officers had bac&ed down when he stood his ro"nd( 0here were reports of harassment near local shops and within Stratford *ar&, with the s" estion police beha,ed differently in to"rists areas to a,oid creatin a ne ati,e impression(
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OLYMPIC POLICING DURING THE 2012 'SECURITY GAMES' | Newham Monitoring Project

One indi,id"al reported carryin a b"st card at all times and e!pressed interest in ,ol"nteerin with ')*(

!ednesday 5 $ugust 2012

$ ro"p of yo"n blac& men reported constant stops and that ro"ps of two or more were dispersed, altho" h they enerally tried to stay away from the police to a,oid bein searched( 0hey admitted s"bmittin to ,ol"ntary strip searches in ,ans beca"se .once they et yo" to the police station, yo" don.t et o"t(. $ltho" h they were aware they were not obli ed to i,e their names when they were stopped, they e!plained that if they ref"sed the police wo"ld loo& at their phones and, if re istered "nder a different name, arrest them for theft( 0hey e!pressed the belief that the increased police presence was associated with increased hassle from the police( Local a"thority enforcement officers and police were obser,ed cond"ctin an identification chec& on an $sian mar&et stall holder( One enforcement officer e!plained to a 9LO that the police were called for non<compliant stall holders and the ,ol"nteer reported that this appeared to be accepted by stall holders as standard proced"re( 9LOs had a re-"est from a yo"th wor&er for a ,isit from ')* to their yo"th ro"p, where yo"n blac& men e!pressed the opinion that the Olympics were bein "sed as an e!c"se to hassle them more( Some indi,id"als had been stopped "nder section 60, the police tellin them that .they don.t want "s there(. $ local a"thority enforcement officer told a 9LO abo"t ,iolence in the area, sayin .yo" can et stopped or yo" can et stabbed,. e!pressin the opinion that e,eryone sho"ld be stopped all the time( 9LOs spent time spea&in to yo"n people( One yo"n $sian man told o"r ,ol"nteers he felt discriminated a ainst by sec"rity "ards at @estfield who ob+ected to him wal&in slowly "p the steps to the entrance( $ ro"p of yo"n people reported that the police were remo,in ')*.s ri hts cards from them when stopped( $nother ro"p of 12 year old irls said they were stopped and searched almost e,ery day and that it had become worse d"rin the Olympics period, while a ro"p of men in their late 20s and early 40s also reported daily stops and searches( One blac& man said he felt racially profiled and altho" h before the Olympics, he and his friends were stopped in ro"ps of three or more, since late F"ly he was +"st as li&ely to face a stop and search on his own or with one other person( One $sian man told the 9LOs that he felt "nd"ly harassed beca"se he and his friends were stopped b"t ne,er char ed( =e also e!pressed the belief that he had been tar eted beca"se of his reli ion and dress( $nother reco"nted detention witho"t char e for two days( 0hey belie,ed ')* and the 9LOs were doin an important +ob and noted the 9LOs were often present at recent stops(

"hursday 6 $ugust 2012

0ransport for London cleaners held a peacef"l pic&et o"tside Stratford station( 0here was an incident with a protester who was ab"sed by a member of the p"blic and who complained to police( 0his was initially disre arded "ntil other officers corroborated the complaint( $ member of the press was as&ed by officers to stop ta&in photos, "ntil 9LOs inter,ened and chec&ed with the protester that he was happy to be photo raphed( $ ro"p of yo"n boys who had pre,io"sly spo&en to 9LOs and ta&en ri hts cards reported a later stop and search on s"spicion of theft d"rin which officers too& the cards from them, remar&in .they will ne,er et them anywhere(. 0he boys said that ri hts cards are consistently remo,ed from them d"rin searches by police( 0hey also said that they are stopped and searched daily d"rin #amadan when they are en ro"te to and from 0araweeh 6e,enin prayers7
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OLYMPIC POLICING DURING THE 2012 'SECURITY GAMES' | Newham Monitoring Project
and in ro"ps of yo"n friends( 0hey felt tar eted both beca"se they are $sian and yo"n 6all were aro"nd 14 years old7 and beca"se they were wal&in aro"nd in ro"ps of two or more( 0hey had only heard an e!planation of the le al powers "sed by officers a ainst them when one of them was e,ent"ally arrested despite sayin he had only witnessed an incident( 0he boy described feelin .instantly criminalised. by his treatment and by officers ta&in 5'$ samples( $ ro"p of yo"n blac& men reported stops and searches on a re "lar basis, sometimes se,eral times in one day( 0hey were ,ery sceptical abo"t the prospect of chan in what they saw as discriminatory and racist tar etin , or what chan e or help 9LOs co"ld brin abo"t by le al obser,in , one sayin that .only wealth can pro,ide protection(. $nother ro"p of yo"n men also said they were re "larly stopped and searched and that increased police n"mbers for the Olympics made little difference to the attention they recei,ed from the police e,ery day( One wanted to challen e the police to +"stify a spot fine and another the constant harassment he recei,ed despite ha,in no criminal history( ?oth were responsi,e to and positi,e abo"t ')* and the 9LO pro+ect( 9LOs witnessed police officers -"estionin a small ro"p of yo"n $sian boys in a b"llyin manner, as&in for names and addresses( 0he boys later described this as representati,e of their normal interactions with the police( 0hey seemed intimidated "ntil informed of their ri hts and i,en ri hts cards( Officers then mo,ed on(

2riday 10 $ugust 2012

9LOs witnessed an incident between two indi,id"als that led to an arrest( 0wo officers handled the sit"ation before a lar er n"mber of officers arri,ed on the scene( O"r ,ol"nteers were then press"red to act as witnesses b"t declined to do so( Later, 9LOs spo&e with a yo"n man who said the Olympics had pro,ided few +obs for people in the area, despite them applyin for wor&( =e had been threatened with arrest the pre,io"s ni ht at Stratford station when toppin "p his Oyster card, for commentin to a ,ol"nteer that Athe Olympics are shit(B

2riday 10 $ugust 2012

9LOs also spo&e with a yo"n blac& man who had been arrested beca"se he fitted the description of someone s"spected of a crime locally( =e had cooperated f"lly with police and was released, awaitin 990: foota e that wo"ld e,ent"ally clear him( =e told o"r ,ol"nteers how he had been stabbed when he was 14 years old( 0his ,iolent assa"lt had not ta&en place in 'ewham b"t he still felt "nsafe in Stratford, which had not been helped by the treatment he ro"tinely recei,ed from the police( Officers were obser,ed enforcin the decision by sec"rity staff to ref"se entry into Stratford *ar& of a *olish man wantin to ta&e his "s"al short<c"t home as he was alle edly tipsy and .r"de to sec"rity(. =e sho"ted .I.m not a criminal. as he was manhandled o"t of the par& by officers and ref"sed to ta&e another ro"te( 0he police &ept repeatin to him that the par& was pri,ate property( $ total of fi,e officers threatened him with arrest b"t finally escorted him across the par&( $ police officer was obser,ed by 9LOs placin a sleepin ba and ro"nd sheet into a r"bbish sac& whilst an onloo&in sec"rity "ard la" hed, sayin .yo".re destroyin someone.s home(. 9LOs challen ed this beha,io"r and were later able to find the homeless man and re"nite him with his possessions( :ol"nteers ,isited a play ro"nd and handed o"t ri hts cards to o,er 22 people, meetin a warm, positi,e response from a di,erse ethnic mi! of parents of all a es(
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OLYMPIC POLICING DURING THE 2012 'SECURITY GAMES' | Newham Monitoring Project

Saturday 11 $ugust 2012

9LOs spo&e to an older white man who had li,ed in Stratford all his life( =e felt that yo"n people and ethnic minorities were tar eted by police and that ab"si,e beha,io"r tended to come from yo"n er officers( =e ar "ed that less r"deness and a ression by the police wo"ld create more tr"st and better relations between them and the wider comm"nity( #i hts cards were i,en to a sec"rity officer of a local colle e who reported that st"dents were often tar eted in stop and searches and that he had obser,ed this d"rin colle e brea& times( =e was ner,o"s to et personally in,ol,ed b"t happy to be able to pass on the information( $ 9LO was approached by a photo rapher who felt he had been badly treated by sec"rity at the li,e screen in :ictoria *ar& in 0ower =amlets(

Sunday 12 $ugust 2012

Closing Ceremony

It was relati,ely -"iet earlier in the day with few people aro"nd, altho" h a yo"n irl, part of a ro"p of 12<14 year olds &een to ta&e ri hts cards from 9LOs, reported witnessin many stops and searches that day near to ?ow 9o"nty 9o"rt( 9LOs spent m"ch of the day tal&in to people and handin o"t ri hts cards H the only people to decline to ta&e them were two women who e!plained they were plain clothes police officers( $ 0amil h"n er stri&e protest on Stratford =i h Street proceeded peacef"lly with minimal ,isible monitorin by police( $ yo"n blac& man in his 20s approached 9LOs after recei,in a ri hts card from a friend( =e had recently been forced to call an amb"lance after s"fferin an asthma attac&, b"t instead two police cars arri,ed, handc"ffed him and too& him to the station( =is 5'$ was ta&en b"t he still had no idea of the reason for his detention and had been told no le al aid was a,ailable "ntil after the Olympics( 0here was a ,ery lar e police presence in )orrissons car par& in Stratford later in the day beca"se of a pre<arran ed protest, opened with p"blic prayers, of a lar e ro"p of )"slim men with a banner readin .0eams of 0error(. *olice ,ans with hea,ily armed officers were present b"t left when the ro"p started to mo,e, within a ,ery ti ht police escort, to )eridian S-"are and Stratford station( 0hey were then mo,ed to a contained area and allowed to protest before they were escorted bac& to the car par& within a closed cordon of officers and disbanded peacef"lly(

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OLYMPIC POLICING DURING THE 2012 'SECURITY GAMES' | Newham Monitoring Project

$))./0*1 2& "he )aralympics a day' y'day rea(down

!ednesday 26 $ugust 2012
'oticeably less police presence than d"rin the Olympic /ames, with only two ,isible police officers o"tside Stratford station at 1pm on the day of the Openin 9eremony for the *aralympic /ames( $ #employ protest was held o"tside the station that passed witho"t incident( "here were no Community Legal O server shi#ts #rom 70 $ugust to 1 Septem er 2012

Sunday 2 Septem er 2012

9LOs spo&e to a homeless man o"tside Stratford Shoppin 9entre abo"t his e!periences since the start of the Olympics( =e said that there had been far more police attention on him b"t con,ersely, when he reported an assa"lt a ainst him by a well<dressed man who p"nched him in the chest, the police let his assailant o and came close to arrestin him instead( 0ransport for London e!pressed their concerns to 9LOs handin o"t ri hts cards in )eridian S-"are in Stratford( ')* stron ly belie,ed that it had been sin led o"t, especially as faith ro"ps had ,isited the S-"are in lar e n"mbers on e,ery day of the Olympics d"rin r"sh ho"r, handin o"t leaflets and tal&in to passers<by(

Monday 7 Septem er 2012

$t the ,ery end of Stratford b"s station, where the police par& their ,ehicles, an arrest too& place in the early afternoon( 0he man who was arrested told 9LOs that he was initially stopped by police officers who said they wanted to chec& on his welfare as he was limpin sli htly( 0hey as&ed for his name and address and he a,e it to them( 0hey failed to inform the man of the reason why he was stopped and after they searched him, he was arrested on s"spicion of stealin a laptop( 0he man informed officers abo"t a doctor.s appointment that afternoon and e!pressed his concern that if he was ta&en to the police station, he wo"ld not ha,e access to a doctor(

"uesday 8 Septem er 2012

0he eneral atmosphere was calm b"t 9LOs had an interestin con,ersation with a ro"p of 16< 18 years old yo"n people o"tside Stratford station( One of them said that he was stopped on a,era e 4 to 4 times e,ery month, and that on the second )onday of the Olympics 66 $" "st7 he had been stopped three times o"tside Stratford station on the same day> The first time 1 was stopped, the police officers said they were searching me for weapons. The second time it was because 2of3 the way 1 was dressed. 1 was told 1 looked like 1 was on something. The third time 1 wasn*t given any reason at all.

!ednesday 9 Septem er 2012

On =am *ar& #oad, well away from Stratford.s main shoppin area or the Olympic *ar&, a *olish man on a motorcycle was stopped and -"estioned witho"t e!planation by three armed officers(

26

OLYMPIC POLICING DURING THE 2012 'SECURITY GAMES' | Newham Monitoring Project "hursday : Septem er 2012
It was enerally -"iet on the streets with a noticeably lower police presence( 9LOs spent m"ch of their time handin o"t ri hts cards and tal&in to local people( )any, partic"larly teena ers and both boys and irls, spo&e abo"t constantly facin stops and searches( One 12 year old boy who was i,en a ri hts card described his arrest when he became an ry and started sho"tin after he was stopped for somethin he had not been in,ol,ed with( =e was char ed when resistin arrest( 9LOs were also called o,er by a ro"p of yo"n $sian boys who had many reports of ab"si,e beha,io"r by officers, with some incidents filmed 6this was followed "p by ')*.s bac& office s"pport7 Three young men ;one white, one black and one !sian= told $L#s that they were constantly stopped and searched and wanted to know more about N+P. #ne said )keep doing this guys, 1)m sure you)ve done a great 7ob so far. 1)ll definitely check the N+P website tonight when 1 get home.) !nother said, )you give up your free time to do this, that)s ama-ing.)

2riday 3 Septem er 2012

0his was a partic"larly -"iet day in 'ewham, with a low police presence( 9LOs contin"ed to tal& to local people and distrib"te ri hts cards(

Saturday 5 Septem er 2012

$ yo"n $sian man told 9LOs that he had been stopped and searched beca"se of a bicycle theft( =e had witnessed other cyclists stopped for the same reason on *ortway in Stratford( 9LOs saw a white male cyclist stopped on his bi&e and then allowed to mo,e on, b"t a blac& cyclist e!periencin a len thy interro ation when he was stopped( *olice officers threatened him with a fi!ed penalty notice for .contin"in to straddle the bi&e after bein as&ed to et off it(. Officers failed to pro,ide an e!planation when -"estioned abo"t the difference in treatment of the two cyclists and when as&ed for details abo"t the le al basis for threatenin a fi!ed penalty( Otherwise there was a enerally peacef"l atmosphere in the Stratford area( 9LOs spo&e to do;ens of people, many mentionin an erosion of confidence in the police and a lac& of confidence in ma&in a complaint( $ *olish man said he had been stopped in Stratford e,ery day d"rin the Olympics period on his way bac& from wor&( 0wo women too& ri hts cards for themsel,es and friends sayin .this information is essential(.

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OLYMPIC POLICING DURING THE 2012 'SECURITY GAMES' | Newham Monitoring Project

$c(nowledgements
'ewham )onitorin *ro+ect wo"ld li&e to than&> $ll 84 ,ol"nteers who too& part in comm"nity le al obser,in d"rin the Olympics and *aralympics in $" "st and September 2012 ')*.s staff team for the lon ho"rs and e!tra wor& they contrib"ted from $pril to October 2012 Indi,id"al s"pporters who donated f"nds to co,er the costs of 9LO tabards and the medals i,en to all ,ol"nteers( /reen and ?lac& 9ross Le al 6 reenandblac&cross(or Ele al7 for their in,al"able ad,ice and s"pport in settin "p the infrastr"ct"re and bac& office that made comm"nity le al obser,ation possible( 9armen 8nicoa and Sophia 9hendoh 6interns from the Cni,ersity of 8sse!7 and ,ol"nteer )ary %reedman, for s"pportin the ')* ?ac& Office and their massi,e contrib"tion to compilin the data athered by 9LOs d"rin the Olympic period( ')* ,ol"nteer 8leanor Dilroy for proofreadin the report

Coordinated y& !ritten y& )hotos& )u lished y&

8stelle d" ?o"lay De,in ?lowe and 8stelle d" ?o"lay De,in ?lowe Nflic&r(comEcopwatcherO 'ewham )onitorin *ro+ect 17 =arold #oad Cpton *ar& London 814 0S8 020 8470 8444 www(nmp(or ("& 5ecember 2014

)u lication date&

P 'ewham )onitorin *ro+ect 2014( 0he contents of this report are licensed "nder a 9reati,e 9ommons $ttrib"tion<Share$li&e 2(0 CD> 8n land Q @ales License(

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