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Paid protesters or professional protesters[a] are people who participate in public outrage or objection in exchange for payment.[1][2] The expression may be directed against individuals, organizations and governments or against protests against the government with the aim of breaking up or discrediting a protest. In some contexts, people may be hired for optics to show increased public participation in the democratic process.[2] Two parliaments have debated paid protesting, the Kyrgyz parliament[1] and the Indian parliament,[3] and allegations without evidence were frequently made by former United States President Donald Trump and his supporters throughout his presidency.[4][5][6]

The larger the crowd, the less likely is it that they entirely consist of professional or paid protesters.[7] Paid protesters may not be aware of the matter in consideration.[8] Similar terms that have been used to refer to similar concepts include paid protest, rent-a-crowd, rent-a-mob, activists-for-hire, protest-on-hire, fake protesters/ fake protests and mercenaries.

Conspiracy theories about paid or professional protesters and coordinated protests by groups like antifa and "global elites" (i.e. George Soros conspiracies or QAnon) were common throughout the presidency of Donald Trump,[9][10][11][12][13] and both right-leaning and left-leaning misinformation circles promote allegations of paid or otherwise organized protesters.[10]

Examples

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In Kyrgyzstan, the acronym OBON, which expands to "Otryad Bab Osobogo Naznacheniya"[14] in the Kyrgyz language and can be translated as "special-assignment female units", refers to hired female protesters. The benefits of this is that it is a cheap way to populate a protest site as well as reduce the probability of violent confrontation with the police and other security forces.[1] The remuneration for this has also been discussed by Kyrgyzstan media.[1]

In Indonesia, reports of paid protests surfaced during the 2017 Jakarta gubernatorial election, the 2014 Indonesian presidential election and during the 2001 clash between two Indonesian Presidents Megawati Sukarnoputri and Abdurrahman Wahid.[2] During the 2013–2014 Bulgarian protests various accusations were made against groups of protesters and counter-protests being paid.[15][16][17] In 2014, protesters in Pakistan told BBC that they were hired to protest for Imran Khan and Tahirul Qadri.[18]

In 2018, the Additional Solicitor General of India used the phrase in the Supreme Court of India, "We are in an era where there are some professional protesters who like to protest outside the apex court, Parliament, President’s house or Prime Minister’s house. They don’t like any other alternative place for protests".[19] The Shaheen Bagh protests in India were accused of being a paid protest. The protesters in turn put up posters and conveyed through the media that it was not a paid protest and that the protesters were not doing it for money.[20][21][22]

A poster of Shaheenbagh protest describing not to give money to any protesters or volunteer to join the protest
A poster (top left) at the Shaheen Bagh protest reads: "No Cash, No Paytm, No Account" (Don't give money to any volunteers)
Photographed, 11 Jan 2020

Former U.S. President Donald Trump often made unfounded claims about paid or professional protesters throughout his presidency.[6][23][24][25][26] For example he used the phrase "professional protesters" in a tweet following protests against his election victory.[4] Similar accusations were made against participants in the Dakota Access Pipeline protests in 2016 and 2017.[27] There have been public claims of organizations such as Crowds on Demand providing paid protesters, or pay for protesting.[28][29][30][31]

In the United Kingdom, concerns and accusations related to paid protests have been reported. During the visit of Tamim al-Thani to London in 2018, a paid protest took place outside Downing Street.[32][33]

Variants

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In Indonesia, the term "nasi bungkus brigade" or the "boxed lunch crowd" has been coined to refer to paid protesters.[2][34] The Hindi phrase andolan jeevis translates to "protest lifeforms". The phrase was used by the Indian Prime Minister in the parliament of India.[35]

See also

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References

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Notes

  1. ^ Not to be confused with professionals who protest.

Citations

  1. ^ a b c d Kim, Alexander; Osmonalieva, Asyl; Sikorskaya, Inga; Rasulov, Bakhtiyor (6 January 2012). "Rent-a-Mob Protests in Central Asia". Institute for War and Peace Reporting. Archived from the original on 14 August 2020. Retrieved 14 February 2021.
  2. ^ a b c d Andrews, Sally (3 February 2017). "Packed Lunch Protesters: Outrage for Hire in Indonesia". The Diplomat. Archived from the original on 12 November 2020. Retrieved 2021-02-14.
  3. ^ "'Protests liberated India,' say farmer unions in response to PM Modi's 'andolan jeevi' comment". Scroll.in. 9 February 2021. Retrieved 2021-02-14.
  4. ^ a b Cummings, William (10 November 2016). "Trump calls protests 'unfair' in first controversial tweet as president-elect". USA TODAY. Retrieved 2021-02-14.
  5. ^ Jervis, Rick. "Allegations of fake protests spread as anti-Trump fervor grows". USA Today. Retrieved 2021-02-14.
  6. ^ a b Choi, Matthew. "Trump claims 'paid protesters' during Kavanaugh confirmation 'haven't gotten their checks'". Politico. Retrieved 2021-02-14.
  7. ^ Kiger, Patrick J. (30 May 2017). "Do Paid Protesters Really Exist?". HowStuffWorks. Retrieved 2021-02-14.
  8. ^ MacMahon, Martin (21 January 2020). "'Ashamed, embarrassed': Burnaby woman says she was paid $150 to support Meng Wanzhou outside court - NEWS 1130". www.citynews1130.com. Retrieved 2021-02-14.
  9. ^ Hinnant, David Klepper and Lori. "Is George Soros paying protesters? Soros' conspiracy theories surge as protests sweep nation". USA TODAY. Retrieved 2021-02-14.
  10. ^ a b "The World Was Primed for Protest Conspiracy Theories". Wired. ISSN 1059-1028. Retrieved 2021-02-14.
  11. ^ "Opinion | George Floyd protests, George Soros, and a dangerous right-wing conspiracy". NBC News. 5 June 2020. Retrieved 2021-02-14.
  12. ^ "George Soros conspiracy theories surge as protests sweep US". AP NEWS. 2020-06-21. Retrieved 2021-02-14.
  13. ^ Doctorow, Cory (2017-01-18). "Obviously fake "paid protester" site sets right wing media aflutter". Boing Boing. Retrieved 2021-02-14.
  14. ^ Marat, Erica (2018-03-01). "5: Kyrgyzstan". The Politics of Police Reform: Society against the State in Post-Soviet Countries. Oxford University Press. ISBN 978-0-19-086151-3.
  15. ^ "Специално за отхвърлянето на президентското вето БСП и ДПС си докараха хора от страната срещу антиправителствения протест в София, управляващите използват своите симпатизанти като жив щит срещу опита на протестиращите да окупират НС" (in Bulgarian). mediapool.bg. 16 August 2013. Retrieved 15 April 2014.
  16. ^ "Предлагали по 80 лв. на студенти за участие в контрапротест" (in Bulgarian). burgas.topnovini.bg. 3 November 2013. Archived from the original on 15 December 2013. Retrieved 15 December 2013.
  17. ^ "Георги Флоров: aгенциите за статисти набират платени протестиращи" (in Bulgarian). blitz.bg. 12 September 2013. Retrieved 15 December 2013.
  18. ^ "Pakistan Qadri protesters 'paid'". BBC News. 8 September 2014. Retrieved 2021-02-14.
  19. ^ PTI (2018-04-24). "It is an era of 'professional protesters': Centre tells Supreme Court". The Indian Express. Retrieved 2021-02-14.
  20. ^ ""No Cash, No Paytm" Posters At Shaheen Bagh To Refute Claims Of Paid Protests". The NDTV. 19 January 2020. Retrieved 21 January 2020.
  21. ^ "BJP IT cell chief claims Shaheen Bagh protesters paid Rs 500/day". The Siasat Daily. 16 January 2020. Retrieved 21 January 2020.
  22. ^ "Shaheen Bagh women send defamation notice to BJP IT cell chief Amit Malviya over paid protest charge". India Today. 20 January 2020. Retrieved 2020-01-22.
  23. ^ "Trump lashes out at "professional protesters"... before praising their passion". Newsweek. 2016-11-11. Retrieved 2021-02-14.
  24. ^ "The US is protesting against a system that normalises Donald Trump". Hindustan Times. 2016-11-14. Retrieved 2021-02-14.
  25. ^ Gillin, Joshua (February 27, 2017). "No evidence that protesters are paid to disrupt Republican town hall meetings". PolitiFact. Retrieved February 26, 2024.
  26. ^ Bump, Philip (October 5, 2018). "The irony of Trump's debasing allegation that Kavanaugh protesters are paid". Washington Post.
  27. ^ Brown, Alleen (May 6, 2017). "Oklahoma Governor Signs Anti-Protest Law Imposing Huge Fines on 'Conspirator' Organizations". The Intercept. Retrieved December 11, 2021.
  28. ^ Lecher, Colin (2017-01-17). "This 'paid protester' service is likely fake, but the online conspiracy machine doesn't care". The Verge. Retrieved 2021-02-14.
  29. ^ Schneider, Dan (22 July 2015). "1-800-HIRE-A-CROWD: The business of generating fake enthusiasm, from flash mobs to the campaign trail". The Atlantic. Retrieved 14 February 2021.
  30. ^ Austin, Marin (17 February 2016). "Concerned Citizens Turn Out to Be Political Theater". NBC4 Los Angeles. Retrieved 14 February 2021.
  31. ^ "Politician who accused protesters of being 'paid' is now getting invoices from them". The Independent. 2017-02-15. Archived from the original on 2022-05-24. Retrieved 2021-02-14.
  32. ^ Waterson, Jim (2018-07-23). "Questions raised over paid protest timed for Qatari leader's No 10 visit". The Guardian. Retrieved 2021-02-14.
  33. ^ "Concerns raised over paid protest in London for Qatari Amir". www.iloveqatar.net. 24 July 2018. Retrieved 2021-02-14.
  34. ^ Varagur, Krithika (3 February 2017). "Behind Jakarta Protest, Tangled Web of Money and Material Support". Voice of America. Retrieved 2021-02-14.
  35. ^ Joshua, Anita (9 February 2021). "Protesting farmers hand PM a lesson for his 'Andolan Jeevi' comment". Telegraph India. Retrieved 2021-02-14.

Further reading

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Humour and satire

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