The right to demonstrate, a right enshrined in the US constitution, but also recognized by all democracies, is a legal means of making it clear to a government of your disapproval of some current actions. It also may be used to demonstrate approval for some positions which you strongly support. Also large demonstrations also may require a license or police permission to proceed; in a democracy this license will almost always be granted. However when demonstrations interfere with other people’s normal rights to go about their daily business, to use a public highway, to use public transport, or even to walk on the sidewalk, then they are no longer legal or legitimate. Even worse some so-called demonstrators may destroy or deface property or create other nuisances. They think this may generate additional publicity which they crave.
Once the legal line has been crossed, the police or other authorities must step in to create order. The problem faced by the police is that some demonstrations involve huge crowds which the police find impossible to control. The resulting chaos is not acceptable, however reasonable the point of the demonstration may be.
It is a basic principle of training that rewards for good actions and punishments for undesirable actions should be immediate and predictable if they are to be effective in changing behavior. Therefore it’s important that the police are given appropriate tools to do their job.
Imagine a large crowd of thousands of raucous demonstrators overflowing on to a public highway, blocking traffic; or on a city street immobilizing busses or other public vehicles or even preventing anyone from using the sidewalk. The police don’t have the manpower to deal with these situations. In a dictatorship it’s simple, the security forces simply open fire killing or wounding a few people; order is restored. In a democracy, it’s more difficult, but it doesn’t have to be impossible. The police must be allowed to arrest some people who are committing a public nuisance; they may then be handcuffed and transported to a police station. There they will be held till processed, which as there may be many of them will take some time; there will be only one clerk to deal with them. The processing will involve taking down their particulars, identifying and photographing them. At which point they will be asked to sign a confession admitting that they had committed a public nuisance by blocking traffic and given the option of immediately paying a small fine, say 300 NIS and being released, or alternatively remain incarcerated until they could appear in court, or perhaps be released on bail of say 10,000 NIS. They should also be informed that repeat offences would be treated more seriously. This would be an unpleasant experience for the typical protester who generally would not have had much experience of being treated as a common criminal.
It would not be long before the number of protesters would diminish exponentially, and those that remained would be less likely to cause trouble.
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