Officers praised for their work on EDL march
SOUTH Yorkshire Police officers came under attack as clashes erupted between far right groups in Rotherham town centre.
Twelve men were arrested as officers faced violence during their policing of an EDL march on Saturday 13 September. “Sporadic” outbreaks of disorder erupted as hundreds of people marched through the town and bottles and other missiles were thrown at police officers.
No police officers were hurt but two 26-year-old men received minor injuries however and were taken to hospital.
Neil Bowles, Chairman of South Yorkshire Police Federation, said the operation marked another cancelled rest day for his members. “They are getting very common,” he said.
“Obviously family plans go out the window when something like this has to be policed, which is just part and parcel of what our members put up with for being a police officer. I just wish that proper recognition would be given to officers.”
He added: “The officers all coped extremely well. They were not provoked by the violence shown and of course we were very thankful to our colleagues from across the country who assisted on mutual aid.”
An estimated 1,000 people, including members of the English Defence League and Unite Against Fascism, took to the streets of Rotherham.
Around 1,500 police officers policed the event to ensure the safety of local residents and those taking part in the protests, a spokesman for the force said. 10ft barricades were erected around the town centre and mounted branch and public order officers were brought in from South Yorkshire and surrounding forces.
Ch Supt Hason Harwin, Police Commander for Rotherham paid tribute to all the officers who gave up their weekend to police the volatile event. He said: “The protests have passed with only sporadic outbreaks of disorder and people have been arrested.”
“I would like to thank all officers and partners involved in the operation for their professionalism leading up to the event and throughout today. Most importantly I’d like to thank the members of the public and business owners who worked with us to ensure minimal disruption.”
An 18-year old man from Rotherham was arrested on suspicion of assaulting an officer, while others were taken into custody on suspicion of causing racially aggravated alarm and distress, public order offences, damaging a mosque and possession of an offensive weapon.
The EDL gathered at the Town Hall at 1pm and marched to Main Street at around 1.30pm. They left the site at around 6pm and dispersed from the area. The UAF gathered in All Saints Square at 1pm and made their way to the Town Hall, where they remained throughout the demonstration.