Does the incident involve protestor action?
Consider whether to contact the relevant police authorities as soon as your organisation becomes aware of any protest. An appropriate incident management (IM) team member should assume responsibility for establishing a low key and informal relationship with the local police.
Information gathering and risk analysis
If you have received advance notice of a protest, consider establishing adequate information-gathering systems to identify and monitor:
- the nature of the protest
- whether the protest is peaceful or violent
- the scale of the disturbance and number of protesters involved
- the target of the protest
- whether it is targeting employees, clients, consultants or subcontractors
Information-gathering systems can include monitoring local media and the internet. You should also consider whether to share with police any significant or critical information.
On the basis of the information gathered, the IM team should seek to determine the level of risk posed to (i) employees and third parties and (ii) installations/sites/equipment.
Consider the following actions:
- forewarning employees, clients and sub-contractors and giving clear instructions on how to behave if a disturbance occurs
- advising non-essential employees at risk not to enter/leave the premises or, if employees are already on the premises, taking appropriate measures to evacuate non-essential employee
- liaising with police to more accurately assess the level of risk posed to your organisation and to better determine the appropriate response from the authorities
Securing your site and dealing with trespassers
Secure the site targeted against trespass/sabotage. Key steps include:
- ensuring that security personnel are properly dispatched and understand what they can/cannot lawfully do
- depending on the nature of the action and on the nature of the site(s) being targeted, consider the need to relocate/protect equipment which could be damaged by protesters, or take appropriate measures to ensure 24-hour surveillance
Media relations
Click here for information on media relations.
Injunctive relief
Assess whether there is a need to seek prohibitory/mandatory injunctive relief to prevent/limit protester action.
Is it necessary to notify insurers?
Click here for information on notifying insurers.
Corporate security plan
If the organisation has a corporate security plan, consider whether it can be implemented to ensure that any actions taken in relation to protesters are consistent with the Voluntary Principles on Security and Human Rights.
Protests in different jurisdictions
Liaise with local management to ensure that their dealings with protesters are compliant with local legal requirements. For example, local legal rules may vary in relation to issues such as: whether trespassers can be removed from your property and with what degree of force/coercion (if any); what liabilities may result from use of excessive force; and whether your employees can undertake a citizen’s arrest.
