Police called to anti-lockdown protest in Glasgow city centre
Officers said they are there to ensure public safety.
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Your support makes all the difference.Police were called to manage an “unplanned” anti-lockdown demonstration in Scotland’s largest city.
The event mainly focused on protesting against the vaccine pass scheme in place across the UK.
In order to attend some events and venues in Scotland, people are required to show evidence of a negative lateral flow test or their vaccine passport – the latter being a record of how many jags they have received to prove they have been fully vaccinated.
The protest is believed to have been organised by Scotland Against Lockdown, a group that runs campaigns against mandatory facemasks, the Scottish and UK Governments’ Coronavirus Act 2020, social distancing and mandatory vaccines, according to its social media pages.
Protesters gathered at Glasgow Green at 1pm on Saturday and, according to police, they have begun an unplanned procession through the city centre.
Crowds of activists marched in Argyle Street during what the campaign group called a “Freedom Rally”.
Some of them were pictured carrying placards saying “Do you trust your ‘govern’ment with your life?” and “vaccine passports means your body will be owned by the state forever”.
One witness said about 1,000 people were taking part.
A police spokesman said: “Officers are currently facilitating an unplanned procession in Glasgow City centre to ensure public safety and minimise disruption to the community.”
Speaking about the demonstration, a Scottish Government spokesperson said: “Covid-19 vaccinations are entirely voluntary in Scotland, and those for children will only take place with the appropriate consent.
“Getting vaccinated saves lives and helps protect the NHS by making it much less likely that people will need hospital treatment if they do get Covid
“Deliberately spreading misinformation about the vaccine is irresponsible and reckless, and anyone doing so should be ignored.”