Brent Councillor Anton Georgiou spoke to the Kilburn Times and the Local Democracy Reporting Service recently about his experience of being stalked and called for better support for victims of stalking and especially those in public life.

Councillor Georgiou spoke candidly about his experiences – from receiving threatening messages and constant phone calls to his stalker sending him feces, emails containing pictures of himself covered in ejaculate and death threats. He talked candidly about the impact the messages and calls had on him personally and professionally as well as on his family and how this only increased when his stalker told him he’d moved to London from Ireland and how Anton could “run into him at any time.” leaving him afraid to leave the house.

The stalker was eventually arrested and sentenced to 21 months in prison earlier this month. However, he was released the very next day for time served having spent 11 months on remand despite having shown “no signs of remorse” according to Anton. The man breached the restraining order placed on him within hours and was rearrested a few days later and is now on remand again.

Anton went on to talk about how he felt being a Councillor placed him at additional risk as it required him to list things like his address and phone number publicly. He also highlighted the dangers posed by the fact that elected public servants obviously have to hold surgeries and attend public events as part of their roles. Meaning that those who wish to do them harm have an easy way to gain access to them – as we have seen with the deaths of Jo Cox and David Amess and attacks on politicians in other countries. 

The events Anton experienced give yet another cautionary tale as to why it is vital we do absolutely everything we can to support and protect our elected representatives and candidates who experience stalking and other forms of harassment as well as victims of stalking more generally. There have been too many examples of people not having stalking taken seriously by the police until they come to real and serious harm. Victims of stalking should not have to hide away or live in fear waiting for the next call, the next message, the next visit.

We must take this seriously at every level and whoever it is happening to, anything else is an insult to people like Anton who keep bravely sharing their experiences in the hope of making a real and lasting change in how we deal with this personalised terrorism.

[Editor’s note: This piece has been written with Cllr Georgiou’s knowledge and was approved by him prior to publication. The author believes strongly that it is for victims and survivors of crimes to decide where, when and how their stories are told.]

* Charley joined the Lib Dems in 2010, has stood in Local elections in Stoke on Trent and London and was PPC for Eltham in the 2019 General Election and a GLA list candidate in 2021. They have been a Youth Worker, Early Years Teaching Assistant and FE College Governor. They are currently an Emergency Services Worker in London and Chair of LGBT+ Lib Dems.