Tens of thousands of people without face masks on marched in central London on Saturday to protest against the COVID-19 lockdown measures and vaccine passports, a Sputnik correspondent reported.
Chanting "freedom" and holding placards reading "Medical apartheid is wrong," "Not to vaccine passports" and "This is Tyranny," the protesters took to the streets in open defiance of the coronavirus rules still in place and the Metropolitan Police advising people not to attend any large gathering.
"This is all about freedom," a young man carrying a placard reading "No vaxx passports. I do not consent" told Sputnik as the several hundred-metre-long march was reaching Parliament Square.
According to Dan, as the protester identified himself, he has nothing against people getting the COVID-19 vaccine, but he also believes that the government's intention to use COVID-19 certifications to access entertainment and sporting events, and eventually to travel abroad, is discriminatory.
The massive Freedom March, as its organiser called it, started in Hyde Park, went through Oxford High Street, the Embankment, in the north bank of Thames river, and Parliament Square before returning to its point of departure, where the crowd listened to live music in a festive atmosphere.
Lockdown restrictions in England began easing on 8 March with the reopening of schools, and since April 12 pubs and restaurants were allowed to serve clients in outdoor seating areas.
Up to six people from two different households are allowed to meet outdoors, as part of the government's roadmap out of the lockdown which, according to the UK Prime Minister Boris Johnson, will see all legal limits on social contact removed by June 21 at the earliest.