Activists say taking British republican push 'directly' to monarchy in wake of palace protest

By Burak Bir

LONDON (AA) - The republican movement in the UK taking its campaign "for a full democracy directly to the Monarchy," an anti-monarchy group said after a surprise protest at Buckingham Palace in London.

Anti-monarchy campaigners on Saturday staged a protest inside the palace, the official London residence of the UK's sovereigns, by standing in the Grand Hall wearing T-shirts that spelled out "Not My King."

The protesters, local activists from different parts of the country, visited the palace as tourists. Six of the activists involved were briefly detained by security before being escorted out of the front gate.

Speaking to Anadolu, Ben Clinton, communications officer at Republic group, said this was an "amazing moment for British republicanism."

"A protest in the adopted home of the Royals is no mean feat — we're taking our campaign for a full democracy directly to the Monarchy," he noted.

Praising the rising support for the idea of republicanism, Clinton said there were currently 30 Republic Local Groups nationwide, organizing more than 9,400 members who are "advocating for a better future, one with an elected head of state."

"(King) Charles is not an untouchable monarch, he is not immune to criticism and doesn't enjoy the deference that protected the monarchy while his mother was on the throne," Graham Smith, chief executive of the group, had said in a statement following the first anti-monarchy protest inside Buckingham Palace.