The High Court in London has granted a possession order and other injunctions allowing Occupy London protestors to be evicted from St Paul's Cathedral and the surrounding area. In City of London v Samede, the defendant protestors relied on Articles 10 and 11 of the European Convention on Human Rights (the rights to freedom of expression and freedom of assembly) and claimed they outweighed the Corporation's unqualified right to possession.
The case was essentially about the limits on "lawful assembly and protest on the highway" - and whether those limits could be extended to an encampment who claimed to be exercising their rights under the ECHR, but were also stopping others who wanted to exercise their Article 9 right to worship as they choose (the protestors were blocking the cathedral). The Court found that, given the Corporation's right to possession, the interference to the protestors' rights was justified and proportionate in view of the need to protect the rights and freedoms of others:
"The freedoms and rights of others, the interests of public health and public safety and the prevention of disorder and crime, and the need to protect the environment of this part of the City of London all demand the remedy which the court's orders will bring."
Permission to appeal was refused but the High Court stayed enforcement for 7 working days to 27 January. The protestors have not yet been evicted, with St Paul's Cathedral and other supporters appealing to the City of London to not forcibly evict the protestors, and to carry out a peaceful daytime eviction.
Click here to see a piece by Garden Court Chambers Blog on the case.
Click here to read a summary of the judgment on UK Human Rights blog.
Click here to read the case.