Carriage tour between protests
As the carriage passed by in which Charles III, accompanied by Queen Camila, was heading to his coronation in London, Anna Edwards did not fervently wave a British flag, but raised a banner that read “Not my king”.
Like her, hundreds of Republican protesters rallied in Trafalgar Square early on Saturday, placing huge yellow flags reading “abolish the monarchy” along the royal couple’s tour on this historic day.
“I stand for democracy and I think people should be able to choose whether or not they want a monarch as head of state,” said Edwards, a 33-year-old Londoner.
“I am not particularly anti-monarchist, but I am in favor of the election,” she told AFP as hundreds of protesters arrived in a festive atmosphere.
Republicans remain a minority in the UK but have become more visible since the death of the popular Elizabeth II in September.
The coexistence was cordial between the demonstrators and the rest of the crowd, until when the royal procession approached, the supporters of the monarchy booed those who shouted “he is not my king!”, and “down with the crown!”. And they began to sing the national anthem, “God Save The King”, while waving British flags.
The organizers of the protest were arrested before it even started.
“We abolish the monarchy, not the right to protest,” the group tweeted hours later, assuring that “the entire Republic core team remains in custody.” “No reason has been given to us,” he added.
About twenty members of the environmental group Just Stop Oil, which in past protests have blocked roads by sticking to the asphalt, were also arrested.
The police, which deployed 11,500 officers for the occasion, announced that they would not tolerate any disturbances.