Protesters threw bangers at PSNI

Armed with placards, poster and whistles, around 20 protesters shouted at the police and chanted anti-police slogans, while others blew on whistles and geered. A number of ‘banger-type’ fireworks were thrown over the railings at police, but no-one was injured.

One male was arrested for breach of the peace and escorted away from the area where he was de-arrested, a PSNI spokeswoman said.

The meeting had been called for 10.30am, and the theme for discussion was pedestrian and cyclist safety, specifically related to those walking or cycling to school. A number of primary and post primary principals were scheduled to attend the meeting, which went ahead despite the protest outside.

In advance of that armoured vehicles carrying police were tasked to the council offices, where PSNI officers in high-visibility uniforms outnumbered the protesters by more than two to one. Members of a tatical support group were stationed on stand-by to one side of the council offices, outside the railings.

To one side of the council building, outside the railings, members of a PSNI tactical support group were on stand-by in case trouble flaired.

A spokesperson for the Council said: “The meeting was held at the Council offices despite a small protest outside of the building. Some members of the public and the protestors were unable to access the meeting room as it was at full capacity.

“Public meetings of the Derry DPP are open to all members of the public who have an interest in promoting community safety, reducing crime and building a safer, confident communities. Today’s meeting commenced at 10.30 am as scheduled and advertised in the local press and finished at approximately 11.45 am,” they said.

However, apart from the one male who was arrested and then released, the protest was largely incident-free.

Meanwhile, on the 32 County Sovereignty Movement website it was alleged the public were refused entry to the meeting.

“Although members of the 32CSM had gathered a half hour before the meeting was due to begin, a council official stated that the meeting was full and that no-one was allowed to enter the building for “health and safety reasons,” the online statement read.

The statement continued: “This was clear and planned attempt to keep protesters out of a so called ‘public meeting’. A public meeting is not public if no-one is allowed to enter the building at the designated time. The meeting also took place at 10.30am on a weekday morning when most people would be unable to attend.

They went on to claim that the police “chained the gates” surrounding the building, and “formed a ring of steel around the local government offices” further alleging that the offices were “surrounded by heavily armed members of the Tactical Support Group (TSG).”

The website said protesters had gathered “to highlight ongoing human rights abuses against Republican families” and claimed that “the DPP’s [sic] are a toothless tiger that serve one purpose, the propping up of the PSNI as credible ‘civic policing service’ in nationalist areas. Nothing could be further from the truth.”