No-G7 Organisers File Complaint Against Geneva Police Officers
Three activists from the No-G7 protest coalition have taken legal action following their forcible detention in a police cordon during a demonstration.
No-G7 Organisers File Complaint Against Geneva Police Officers
Françoise Nyffeler, Teo Frei and Donna Golaz, three prominent figures of the No-G7 protest coalition, have initiated criminal proceedings against the authorities. They allege they were blocked against their will for many hours by a cordon of police forces. The documents, submitted on 24 June to the Geneva prosecutor's office and reviewed by Le Temps, denounce acts of arbitrary deprivation of liberty, coercion and abuse of authority.
Lawyer Laïla Batou, already known for securing a conviction against the Swiss Confederation before the European Court of Human Rights in a case involving a disproportionate sanction against a gathering organiser, is representing the interests of the three complainants. The proceedings are aimed at unidentified perpetrators, namely all officials who participated in the operation.
In their petitions, the complainants demand the interrogation of several decision-makers. State Councillor Carole-Anne Kast, Commander Monica Bonfanti and Luc Broch, who was then responsible for the operation on the ground, are targeted. The petitioners also demand the communication of all written and oral correspondence exchanged between the services.
Another request concerns the removal of prosecutor general Olivier Jornot and his team from the investigation, in case they had approved the disputed measures. Finally, the three activists are demanding the deletion of all information collected during the intervention.
The complainants contend that their prolonged immobilisation in the police cordon constituted an unjustified breach of their freedom of movement and freedom of assembly.
Source: Le Temps