Wave of student protests in U.K.

Hasan Suroor

LONDON: For the second time in two weeks, Britain was on Wednesday hit by a wave of angry student protests marred by clashes with police and sporadic incidents of violence resulting in injuries to at least 11 people.

The protests were against the proposed cuts in higher education funding and increase in university tuition fees.

In London, demonstrators vandalised and looted a police van, hurled wooden poles, bottles and other missiles as they tried to break through police barriers around Whitehall, where government offices are located. Tension mounted as students lit a fire and threw firebombs as they approached Downing Street on their way to Parliament Square.

Effigies of the Liberal Democrat leader and Deputy Prime Minister Nick Clegg were burnt to show anger against his “u-turn” on his election promise to oppose the tuition fee increase. There were plans to demonstrate outside the Lib Dem headquarters but police appeared determined not to allow a repeat of what happened two weeks ago when students broke into the Conservative Party headquarters and smashed property.

“There is a containment on Whitehall to prevent further criminal damage and we will look to disperse anyone being held as soon as we can…,” police said in a statement.

Fifteen people were arrested on various charges, including violent disorder, theft and criminal damage. Among the injured were at least two police officers.

Invoking the “spirit of the 1968 protests,” organisers warned of an “unprecedented wave of student revolt” as students “occupied” university campuses and staged “sit-ins” in many parts of the country. Some of Britain's most famous universities, including Oxford and Cambridge, were affected with students taking out marches and protesting outside government buildings.

Leader of the National Union Students Aaron Porter condemned the violence.

“There are no conditions in which violence is acceptable. We saw a couple of weeks ago the anger that students had with regard to the government's proposals… From my perspective I think it's really important that the campaign continues its momentum and we continue to hold the Government to account,” he said.

But some other student groups said everything was “fair in love and war.”

“We have the right to protest, we have the right to civil disobedience, we have the right to occupy our lecture halls,” one student leader said.

Prime Minister David Cameron's spokesman said people had a right to protest but there was “no place for violence or intimidation.”