When a Government Forgets Who Holds Sovereignty

When a Government Forgets Who Holds Sovereignty: Condemning the Arrest of Elderly Protesters in London

Vincent Cordova 9-7-2025

On September 6, 2025 , the world witnessed a shocking display of state power in London. During a peaceful demonstration in Parliament Square , elderly and disabled veterans—men who once served their country—were physically removed from their wheelchairs and arrested for holding signs that read:

“I oppose genocide. I support Palestine Action.”

Among those arrested was Mike Higgins , a 62-year-old blind RAF veteran who relies on a wheelchair. Higgins was lifted from his chair by police officers and detained under the Terrorism Act 2000 —not for violence, not for incitement, but for expressing solidarity with a proscribed activist group. ( The Guardian )

Alongside him, Steve Masters , another veteran, was also detained. In total, over 425 people were arrested that day—many elderly or disabled—for little more than carrying placards in public. ( Sky News , Islam Channel )

The Facts We Cannot Ignore

- The Setting: A silent protest organized by Defend Our Juries to oppose the UK’s proscription of Palestine Action .

- The Law Used: The Terrorism Act 2000 , criminalizing even expressions of “support” for proscribed groups.

- The Numbers: More than 425 individuals detained, including veterans and disabled citizens.

- The Response: Human rights advocates, including Amnesty International , condemned the arrests as “disproportionate” and an attack on free expression. ( The Guardian )

- The Human Face: Higgins remains on bail until October, with the absurd restriction that all his communication must be in braille . ( The Guardian )

This was not policing for public safety. This was policing for silence.

Sovereignty Belongs to the People

A government’s legitimacy does not come from the ability to wield force. It comes from the consent of the governed. When police drag elderly veterans from their wheelchairs for holding signs, the government is no longer protecting its people. It is occupying them .

No government has sovereignty of its own. Sovereignty belongs only to the people. The state is a trustee, a steward, a servant—never the owner. When it forgets this, it ceases to be a government and becomes an instrument of domination.

The arrests in London expose a deeper crisis: states using “security” to cloak repression. Anti-terror laws—meant to prevent violence—are being weaponized to criminalize compassion and suppress conscience.

Why This Matters Everywhere

It would be easy to see this as a “UK problem.” It is not. Across the world, governments are learning from one another, copying each other’s laws, and normalizing the treatment of peaceful dissent as terrorism. The danger is that these tactics spread.

Today it is London. Tomorrow it could be Washington, Ottawa, or any city where people gather with signs and voices to speak against injustice.

When governments criminalize nonviolence, they betray their own people. They betray veterans who once risked their lives for freedom. They betray citizens whose only weapon is truth spoken aloud. They betray the very idea of democracy.

Our Stand

We condemn, in the strongest terms, the arrests of Mike Higgins, Steve Masters, and hundreds of others in London. We call on the UK government to immediately drop the charges and restore the fundamental right to peaceful protest.

But more broadly, we call on every government: stop using sovereignty as a shield. You are not sovereign. The people are. Your duty is not to silence them but to serve them.

If the world is to move forward, it will not be through criminalizing compassion. It will be through protecting dignity, defending free expression, and remembering that sovereignty is not a government’s to wield. It belongs to the people—always.

stop the genocide

people hold sovereignty not governments