http://www.guardian.co.uk/business/2...w-clark-arrest

Guardian Davos journalist's sinister encounter with the Swiss riot police

A policeman pulled me off the train, bound my hands behind my back and frogmarched me into an icy field by the rail track

What you don't do around something like the WEF, where security is drum tight, is photograph and attempt to video the police in action - especially if you a fresh-faced journalist from the Guardian...

Damn right!

Bloody lefty treehugger.

I'd have been furious. But then again, Davos this week is a place to avoid

Plus he was wearing a Banana Republic coat....

The police respond:

http://www.swissinfo.ch/eng/swiss_ne...l?cid=29382390

Tom

The comment on the report reads,
Well done to the Graubunden Police for standing their ground. This complaint would be expected from an Englishman, from a country that lacks any respect for authority and where killing someone may earn you a few months in prison. Just because he has access to a national paper does not mean he has any more rights than any one else in or visiting Switzerland.


Swiss Simon doesn't like us much!

I bet Swiss Simon is English

Interestingly, whilst EF has 492 members with "Swiss" in their "names".

I'm not suggesting a small minority are perhaps Swiss and it's a bit lame to have Swiss "something" as your username. But

Love
Swiss KB88111

There's some class comments on the Guardian piece as well, including:

So the police stop your train, a woman comes in having been tear-gassed by said police, they are in full riot gear and you, rather than think "I'll keep my head down and not make myself noticed", start waving your Blackberry around in their faces. No of course that won't bother them.

I felt a little bit sorry for the silly bugger, until I read this:

Arrogant post-imperialist do-you-know-who-I-am pillock, much?

Since when are you not allowed to photograph the police? Foolish reporter, shouldn't have been a reporter. If you see the police acting inappropriately, keep quiet, calm and remember, there's nothing to see here.

Agreed. At least the policeman spoke English. I don't suppose he had to and I bet the journo couldn't speak German, French or Italian (his English skills leave a lot to be desired too).

Another victory for totalitarism and lack of freedom, what next koshed for eating a KFC whilst passing though on the train?

The corporations and politicans are becoming more and more unaccountable to the very people who create their wealth and put them in power.

The police need to uphold their oaths of "upholders of the peace" and not act as bouncers/doormen for the ultra wealthy.

Guilty before proven innocent.

Not really although I see what you mean in some ways.

There had been violence in Davos from the riots and from what I understand, the police wanted to ensure they had as many of the rioters details as possible to make follow up enquiries easier. Nobody was found guilty of anything. If someone takes a pic of me and I don't know them, am I not in my rights to ask them to delete it? No probably not but I might still ask. The coppers checked and realised they couldn't so Mr Guardian man was sent on his merry way.

because the guardian reported doesn't have his own agenda, oh no

annoy a riot cop during a disturbance and any right minded person would expect some reaction, what a total non story

I've always wondered how come no rioters have figured out how to break the riot phalanx. I mean the greeks figured it out.

Do that and break havoc on those black dressed bi4tches...

Yes but technically they were detained without reason.

Which means their freedoms were abused. They should have got the rioters at Davos, not after the event.

It's assumed automatically you cannot do something, you're harassed then finally released after the numpty reads the book he should know off by heart. After all that's why he gets paid.

There's a whole world of difference between a individual asking to remove a photo and a member of the police.

I wouldn't call it a "non-story..." but I also wouldn't call it beyond belief. I have encountered many, many police (here and abroad) "ordering" bystanders to delete photos. This is by all accounts in Western reality not an order you must follow, as long as you are not interrupting police work. Understand they can make your day longer, depending on your attitude.

This, it seems, is a bitter journalist. I would be bitter as well...but I also know my rights, and how far I want to push a situation. He sounds like an instigator, not an observer..but I wasn't there.

Taking a picture is annoying him? What exactly provoked this reaction, since when has it been appropriate for the police to round up people based solely on what they're wearing, on a train, after the event? It's not like they were at the "disturbance", the disturbance was brought to them by the riot police.