The daughter of a Holocaust survivor has said proscribing Palestine Action was “a total erosion of our democracy” and that she plans to be arrested as part of a mass rally showing support for the protest group.
Carolyn Gelenter will be one of over 1,000 protesters in Parliament Square on Saturday, expected to write “I oppose genocide, I support Palestine Action” and hold the signs aloft.
The 67-year-old, whose Polish father survived the Holocaust, told the Standard she was spurred into action after the group was named a terror organisation in July, days after two Voyager planes were damaged at an RAF base in Oxfordshire.
The Jewish Londoner, who is not a member of Palestine Action, said she supports the right for groups to protest non-violently and is concerned the country is becoming more authoritarian.
She said: “I just feel so shocked by our Labour Government doing this and I think it’s time to really step up.
“I think it’s also important that people know that Israel does not equate with Judaism. It has got nothing to do with Judaism.
“It is a political philosophy of Zionism and a nation-state. It has absolutely nothing to do with my identification as a Jew.”
Ms Gelenter continued: “It is just taken that all Jews support Zionism and Israel. That is absolutely not the case.
I think it’s important for Jewish people like me to speak out because there is also a real rise in antisemitism… I think it’s important that people know many Jews don’t support what is going on today.”
The Met Police has insisted it has the resources to arrest anyone who shows support for the banned terror group on Saturday.
It comes as a further 24 people were charged over showing support for Palestine Action on Friday, bringing the total number being prosecuted so far to 138.
Campaign group Defend Our Juries (DOJ) has called on the head of the force Sir Mark Rowley to tell his officers not to arrest protesters at the mass rally, after police in Edinburgh, Totnes, Derry and Kendall all decided not to arrest sign-holders.
Ms Gelenter added that it was an “erosion of our democratic rights and free speech” to not be allowed to express support for Palestine Action and their protests.
She said: “By proscribing that group I feel it’s really important for people to understand the authoritarianism.”
Over 500 people were arrested, with over half aged 60 or older, at a similar mass protest supporting Palestine Action in August.
At the time, the Met Police said it was the most arrests it had made relating to a single operation in at least a decade.
Outlining the Met Police’s policing plans in the capital this weekend, Deputy Assistant Commissioner Ade Adelekan said: “Palestine Action is a group that has been proscribed by the UK Government. It is a criminal offence to be a member of it or to express support for it.
“Those participating in this protest and in previous such protests do so knowing that their actions are unlawful.
“I can be unequivocal, if you show support for Palestine Action – an offence under the Terrorism Act – you will be arrested.
“We have the officer numbers, custody capacity and all other resources to process as many people as is required.
“As we have shown in recent weeks, those arrested will be investigated and are very likely to be prosecuted.
“We have the plans and resources in place to deal with any eventuality. Attempts to overwhelm policing and the wider criminal justice system will not be successful.”
The Home Office is set to appeal against the High Court ruling allowing Palestine Action’s co-founder Huda Ammori to proceed with a legal challenge against the Government over the group’s ban.
Ms Ammori took legal action against the department over Home Secretary Yvette Cooper’s decision to proscribe the group under anti-terror laws, which made membership of, or support for, the direct action group a criminal offence punishable by up to 14 years in prison.
