An ex-colonel’s family fled the Nazis’ genocidal rampage in the late 1930s. And now, 90 years later, British cops have arrested Chris Romberg for opposing Israel’s genocide in Gaza.

Chris Romberg—’The government is escalating its authoritarian repression of dissent’

75-year-old Chris Romberg is a retired colonel and descendant of Holocaust survivors. And after his arrest earlier in the year for opposing genocide and supporting Palestine Action, police have arrested him once more this week for challenging the group’s proscription again. Speaking to the Canary, he said:

I protested (and was arrested) on Monday at the Home Office because I remain appalled at the continued conduct of the government of the country I served for decades as a military officer. They maintain their complicity in the genocide in Palestine that has not stopped despite the sham ‘ceasefire’.

My father and grandparents had to flee the Nazi Holocaust. Like many others with such a family history, I am disgusted at the government’s actions.

At the same time, the government is escalating its authoritarian repression of dissent. This is dangerous and shameful and must be resisted.

Speaking specifically about the highly controversial ban of non-violent direct-action group Palestine Action, he said:

The disproportionate and internationally criticised ban remains in force and prisoners are on hunger strike. The Home Secretary’s hypocritical role in suppressing protest needs to be called out.

Comparing this week’s protest with the last one he participated in, he insisted:

The energy and determination were just as high if not higher. People of all ages and walks of life are not stopping their opposition to the ban and the genocide.

‘Unnecessary political wastage of police resources’

Romberg has asserted previously that “the fault must be with our politicians, the government responsible for this legislation”. And he told us:

We were right outside the Home Office, obviously an embarrassment for the government, so it did not surprise me that the police should be under pressure to deal with the protest as quickly as possible. I was arrested within minutes. There was a very large deployment of police considering the scale and peaceful nature of the protest. This unnecessary use of police resources seems once again to be based on political considerations. Police have discretion about operational decisions; is this really how the people of London want their police to spend their time, effort and money?

While police held Chris Romberg “in a cell for 4 hours,” this time, he noted the “courteous and professional” treatment he received. And he added that:

Listening to them, it was clear that they did not consider arresting peaceful protesters with cardboard signs a good use of their time and in no way helped keep the people of London safe.

In August, he explained to Skwawkbox how the military always taught him and his colleagues:

that what we do must always be in accordance with international military law. And every year, service personnel are taught this and reminded of it and reminded of the lessons of history, in particular in Germany but elsewhere too, of those who have blindly followed orders when the orders that they were following were not actually legitimate.

While national laws may change depending on who’s in charge, he said:

the Geneva Conventions and the Genocide Convention should take precedence.

Around the country, people of conscience like Chris Romberg have been standing up for international law and against the government’s complicity with Israel’s genocide. And they are a true inspiration. Because all genocide is wrong, and no one should feel comfortable with politicians treating opposition to genocide as a crime.

Featured image via Skwawkbox

By Ed Sykes

This post was originally published on Canary.