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View Point

By Brent White

Friday, March 2, 2001

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Restraint needed
during ADB meeting

AS Honolulu prepares for the Asian Development Bank (ADB) meeting at the Hawaii Convention Center from May 7-11, it is time to remind ourselves that freedom of expression is the bedrock principle upon which a democracy depends.

Recently, both state and city officials have made comments leading one to fear that they may have lost sight of this fact.

For example, the Hawaii Tourism Authority has indicated its intention to help fund the city's efforts to prevent "illegal mass demonstrations or protests on public sidewalks, streets or other public areas." Meanwhile, Assistant Honolulu Police Chief Boisse Correa has indicated that HPD is "planning for the worst case scenario."

These comments are disturbing.

First, there is nothing illegal about "mass demonstrations or protests on public sidewalks, streets or other public areas." In fact, the First Amendment unequivocally guarantees the right of individuals to peaceably assemble for the purpose of mass demonstrations.

Moreover, public sidewalks, streets and other public areas are exactly the places where such protected expression is supposed to occur. In a democracy, we should welcome mass demonstrations, not discourage them.

Second, HPD is apparently preparing for a heavy-handed crackdown on protestors during the ADB gathering. In doing so, the police are laying the groundwork for a confrontation rather than building the framework for peaceful protests.

IN order to ensure peaceful protest and the protection of everyone's civil rights, here are a few things we hope HPD will keep in mind:

It is absolutely critical to diffuse the fearful, overwrought atmosphere that is being created about civilians exercising their free speech rights. If officers are fearful and feel besieged before the ADB meeting even starts, they're much less likely to use their best judgment and reason when responding to the challenges that an event of this magnitude presents.

The exercise of freedom of speech in a democracy is not always neat and orderly. People engaged in protest are often noisy and unruly. But demonstrators milling boisterously in the streets do not constitute a riot and do not warrant heavy-handed tactics by the police. They have a legitimate right to express their anger at what they see as the destructive policies and practices of the ADB. Police must ensure that their rights to assemble and to express these political views are respected.

Even if there is unlawful conduct by a few, it may not be used as an excuse to restrict the lawful conduct of others. A small number of people can be arrested without punishing everyone else in a peaceful march or demonstration. When dealing with individuals who are breaking the law, police must use force proportionately and with discretion. Tear gas and pepper spray are not appropriate weapons to use against those who pose no threat to an officer or public safety. Using more force than is necessary to maintain order is likely to inflame a crowd and escalate a confrontation. It may also jeopardize the safety of bystanders.

The world is watching. Honolulu is not a police state nor should it become one during the ADB meeting. Not only is a heavy-handed and highly visible police presence inconsistent with democracy, it also creates huge risks. When people see hundreds of police dressed in riot gear with batons swinging, and police dogs and mounted officers ready to attack at the slightest provocation, peaceful situations become tense ones, and tense situations become volatile.

THE Constitution will not be suspended because the ADB is in town. Nor does the mere potential for a disturbance justify the suspension of our constitutional rights or a crackdown on peaceful demonstrators.

Whatever the activity on Honolulu's streets, sidewalks, parks or public spaces during the ADB meeting, we expect our police to respond in a restrained manner. Moreover, the unfortunate course of alarmism, division and fear-mongering in the process of planning for the ADB meeting should cease immediately.

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Brent White is legal director of the
American Civil Liberties Union of Hawaii.