Abstract:Introduction: This paper identifies delegitimization strategies that illustrate a range of attitudes of the Polish police towards individuals who resist the government and challenge the state legitimacy. Materials and Methods: The research is embedded in the theories of macro-strategies of delegitimization, out-casting micro-strategies, and is based on qualitative intertextual analysis of police statements in order to explain how the police responded to social opposition and shaped their relations with protes… Show more
“…Protesters need the police to protect a given gathering. The police do not have total control over the protest, as part of it is handed over to the protesters, who have their coordinators (Rak, 2022).…”
Section: Theoretical and Methodological Frameworkmentioning
Since the pandemic outbreak, the Netherlands has been repeatedly gripped by protests over successive restrictions. Protesters were often characterized by aggression and violence, so they had to be demobilized to restore order to the streets. In some cases, the police were forced to use coercive measures. Nonetheless, the November 2021 protest in Rotterdam caused considerable controversy. During the demonstration, gunshots were fired at demonstrators for the first time in a dozen years. This article aims to attribute the strategy of police action during the Rotterdam protests to one of the two models determined by McPhail, Schweingruber, and McCarthy and operationalized by Rak. The study draws on qualitative source analysis and the content analysis technique. The most opinion-forming Dutch news sites, both Dutch- and English-language, were used as sources. These sources were supported by international news sites and channels on the streaming service YouTube. Additionally, the Rotterdam police’s Twitter account and the official politie.nl website were analyzed. A theoretically grounded hypothesis was posited that: during the Rotterdam protests in November 2021, the police, due to the dynamic development of the rally, used a model closer to an escalated force. However, it did not occur in its pure form.
“…Protesters need the police to protect a given gathering. The police do not have total control over the protest, as part of it is handed over to the protesters, who have their coordinators (Rak, 2022).…”
Section: Theoretical and Methodological Frameworkmentioning
Since the pandemic outbreak, the Netherlands has been repeatedly gripped by protests over successive restrictions. Protesters were often characterized by aggression and violence, so they had to be demobilized to restore order to the streets. In some cases, the police were forced to use coercive measures. Nonetheless, the November 2021 protest in Rotterdam caused considerable controversy. During the demonstration, gunshots were fired at demonstrators for the first time in a dozen years. This article aims to attribute the strategy of police action during the Rotterdam protests to one of the two models determined by McPhail, Schweingruber, and McCarthy and operationalized by Rak. The study draws on qualitative source analysis and the content analysis technique. The most opinion-forming Dutch news sites, both Dutch- and English-language, were used as sources. These sources were supported by international news sites and channels on the streaming service YouTube. Additionally, the Rotterdam police’s Twitter account and the official politie.nl website were analyzed. A theoretically grounded hypothesis was posited that: during the Rotterdam protests in November 2021, the police, due to the dynamic development of the rally, used a model closer to an escalated force. However, it did not occur in its pure form.
“…It is worth considering that those responsible for the Framework Programme should represent different political views and be able to conduct a constructive dialogue. The protests revealed that the image of the police in the eyes of the public has also deteriorated significantly (Rak, 2022). It eventually enabled National Television to take control of them and make evaluations, to enter the role of security services.…”
The study aims to show how the media took over the role of law enforcement by categorising who and how broke the law during women’s protests. These protests took place during the second wave of the pandemic. It all started with the judgment of the Constitutional Court, which decided to restrict abortion law in Poland. The method used in the study is a qualitative analysis of sources published on Tvp.info. The analysis made it possible to answer the question of how public television assessed and categorised the activity of protesters and why it is possible to talk about taking over the functions of the security services. As a result, the way the protests were reported became a form of mediatised control of protest. The research hypothesis is that National Television, as the ruling party's propaganda tool, was enabled in order to take over the police function of ensuring public order and security in crisis situations in relation to the protests. Based on the analysis, the paper introduces recommendations to the ruling party and subordinated national television in order to restore neutrality and realise the original functions of national television.
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