Schriftelijke bijdrage Adam Johnson
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To whom it may concern,
Yesterday, 8 May 2024 at about 17:30 in the vicinity of Rokin, I was protesting in solidarity with UvA students who had been violently expelled from their pro-Palestinian protest at the university. The protests were, before and after the expulsion, entirely peaceful. They made clear, reasonable demands of the UvA administration and were committed to non-violence.
At Rokin, there were dozens of ME police officers. Many of the ME officers were not in proper uniform, only a tactical vest bearing the word “Politie” and a balaclava. Their names and badge numbers were not displayed. After moving back to give the protestors some space, the riot police suddenly rushed at the crowd, warning us to get back whilst swinging their batons. Not allowing adequate time to do so, a police offer struck me on the arm with his baton.
The pain was immediate and intense. I went to A&E afterwards for an X-Ray, believing I had a broken arm. Fortunately it was just a bad bruise, but I nevertheless find myself in great pain and without the full use of my left arm and hand.
This display of violence from the police against peaceful protestors is disgraceful and wholly incompatible with a democratic society. I trust that strong measures will be taken to prevent incidents such as this from occurring again.
Yours faithfully, Adam Johnson