Kettling

For other uses, see Kettle (disambiguation).
Riot police kettling protesters at the Camp for Climate action, part of the 2009 G20 London summit protests
Police kettling protesters at the Opernring in Vienna, part of the protest against coronavirus restrictions

Kettling (also known as containment or corralling)[1] is a police tactic for controlling large crowds during demonstrations or protests. It involves the formation of large cordons of police officers who then move to contain a crowd within a limited area. Protesters either leave through an exit controlled by the police, leave through an uncontrolled gap in the cordons, or are contained, prevented from leaving, and arrested.

The tactic has proved controversial, in part because it has resulted in the detention of ordinary bystanders as well as protesters.[2] In March 2012 kettling was ruled lawful by the European Court of Human Rights following a legal challenge.[3]

  1. ^ Davenport, Justin (3 April 2009). "Police defend 'corralling' thousands of protesters for eight hours in City". Evening Standard. Archived from the original on 12 September 2012. Retrieved 20 April 2009.
  2. ^ Cite error: The named reference bbc1 was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  3. ^ "European court says 'kettling' tactics in 2001 lawful". BBC News. 15 March 2012. Archived from the original on 15 March 2012. Retrieved 15 March 2012.