Kettling

Kettling (also known as containment or corralling) is a police tactic for controlling large crowds during demonstrations or protests. It involves the formation of large cordons of police officers who then move to contain a crowd within a limited area. Protesters are left only one choice of exit controlled by the police – or are completely prevented from leaving, with the effect of denying the protesters access to food, water and toilet facilities for an arbitrary period determined by the police forces.

The tactic has proved controversial, in part because it has resulted in the detention of ordinary bystanders as well as protestors. In March 2012 kettling was ruled lawful by the European Court of Human Rights following a legal challenge.

Tactics

The term "kettle" is a metaphor, likening the containment of protestors to the containment of heat and steam within a domestic kettle. Its modern English usage may come from "kessel" – literally a cauldron, or kettle in German – that describes an encircled army about to be annihilated by a superior force. A cauldron is expected to be "boiling" with combat activity, the large enemy forces still quite able to offer "hot" resistance in the initial stages of encirclement, and so are to be contained, but not engaged directly.