What about leaving out "against" as in eg "they are protesting the government spending cuts", it just sounds wrong to my ears.
Would anyone say "they are demonstrating the government spending cuts"?
Another example: "At Greenham Common women's peace camp, for example, where there was a continuous presence over 19 years to protest nearby nuclear weapons facilities, there was a more relaxed attitude to part-time protest.", it also left out "the" in front of "Greenham".