World witnesses another day of protests
GLOBAL SOLIDARITY Protests in Asia, Europe and Aus as secy of state accuses China of using US unrest to justify its own rights violations
Tens of thousands marched in Australia, Canada, the UK, Japan, Seoul and elsewhere in solidarity with the Black Lives Matter movement as Washington, DC geared up for what’s being anticipated as the largest ever protest in the US against racism in the wake of the custodial death of George Floyd.
Over 1,000 people marched in Sydney after winning a last-minute appeal against a Friday ruling declaring their rally unauthorised. In Brisbane, about 30,000 people gathered, forcing police to shut down some streets.
In the South Korean capital Seoul, protesters gathered for a second straight day to denounce Floyd’s death. Wearing masks and black shirts, dozens marched through a commercial district amid a police escort, carrying signs such as “Koreans for Black Lives Matter”.
In Tokyo, dozens of people gathered in a peaceful protest. In Paris, police banned a protest planned for Saturday, citing the risk of spreading Covid-19. In Britain, tens of thousands of people ignored official advice to avoid mass gatherings and came together to protest against the killing.
In Canada, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau made an unannounced appearance at an antiracial discrimination rally in Ottawa, and then proceeded to take the knee for around nine minutes, along with protesters.
US secretary of state Mike
Pompeo accused China of using the unrest in the US to justify denying its own people basic human rights. “As with dictatorships throughout history, no lie is too obscene, so long as it serves the party’s lust for power,” he said, referring to the Chinese Communist Party. “This laughable propaganda should not fool anyone.”
China has repeatedly criticised the US over the Floyd case.
The US is now witnessing a weekend of protests described as the broadest in its history, spreading even to smaller cities and small towns, including deeply conservative ones.
District of Colombia, which had another night of curfew on Friday, has seen a surging number of protesters, undeterred by the heavy presence of law enforcement. They demonstrated in front of the White House, which has been turned into a fortress with tall fences and concrete barricades and walked peacefully to the Lincoln Memorial nearby.
The protests, now into their 12th day, have spread to more cities than the previous high of 650 recorded by Women’s Marches of January 2017, just days after President Donald Trump moved into the White House, according to a research published in The Washington Post.
ELUSIVE ARTIST
‘JOINS’ PROTESTS Bristol-based graffiti artist, the elusive Banksy, joined a large number of people in London and elsewhere in the UK to protest against the killing of Floyd, despite home secretary Priti Patel and Scotland Yard advising against it in view of the coronavirus. Banksy, whose identity remains unknown but has gained worldwide acclaim for his work appearing on public buildings, commented on the ‘Black Lives Matter’ movement in a social media post accompanied by artwork featuring a burning US flag. He wrote, “At first, I thought I should just shut up and listen to black people about this issue. But why would I do that? It’s not their problem, it’s mine. People of colour are being failed by the system. The white system.
“Like a broken pipe flooding the apartment of the people living downstairs. The faulty system is making their life a misery, but it’s not their job to fix it. They can’t - no one will let them in the apartment upstairs.”
US PRESIDENTIAL RACE