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Protests against the visit of the Pope to London [Part one]
Huge demo in central London
(Photos ©urban75, 18th September 2010)
Why protest against the Papal visit?
Here's the views shared by the groups opposing his visit:
* That the Pope, as a citizen of Europe and the leader of a religion with many adherents in the UK, is of course free to enter and tour our country.
* However, as well as a religious leader, the Pope is a head of state and the state and organisation of which he is head has been responsible for:
1. opposing the distribution of condoms and so increasing large families in poor countries and the spread of AIDS
2. promoting segregated education
3. denying abortion to even the most vulnerable women
4. opposing equal rights for lesbians, gay, bisexual and transgender people
5. failing to address the many cases of abuse of children within its own organisation.
6. rehabilitating the holocaust denier bishop Richard Williamson and the appeaser of Hitler, the war-time Pope, Pius XII.
* The state of which the Pope is the head has also resisted signing many major human rights treaties and has formed its own treaties ('concordats') with many states which negatively affect the human rights of citizens of those states.
* As a head of state, the Pope is an unsuitable guest of the UK government and should not be accorded the honour and recognition of a state visit to our country.
 protest-the-pope.org.uk/
There was a strong police presence on the march.
The march walks up Piccadilly towards Piccadilly Circus (where most of these photos were taken - I was hanging off some traffic lights to get a good view!).
Leading vehicle.
This bloke came out dressed as the Pope and blessed the crowd, before tearing off his outfit and stamping on it, to mass cheers.
«back to London homepage Protest The Pope march (part two) »
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Part One
Camera: Lumix LX5
