From today, it is illegal to photograph the police (UK)

[katty]

more: http://www.guardian.co.uk/commentisfree/2009/feb/16/protest-police-liberty-central

Calling the police to account
From today, it is illegal to photograph the police, despite the fact that they use increasingly aggressive techniques to record us

On the day that it becomes illegal to take pictures of police engaged in counter-terrorist operations – in practice a ban on taking pictures of the police – it is worth noting events in Brighton recently where police set up outside a cafe and photographed people attending a meeting about the environment.

According to the Brighton Argus, members of the Cowley Club, which was hosting a meeting of Earth First, "were confronted with four uniformed officers outside the Somerfield store, opposite the venue, snapping visitors using a paparazzi-style lens". One of the club members, David Biset, said the police were behaving in a deliberately "intimidating manner". He said:

Avenues of dissent are being closed down and police feel able to treat politics as a police matter. There was no suggestion of anything going on outside the building. The police have no reason to be there beyond intimidating people. You shouldn't be put on a database simply for attending a meeting.

The local MP, David Lepper, agrees that the police operation was designed to scare activists rather than prevent crime,

[Raineyb]

1. How do they expect people to protect their rights vis a vi the police?

Oh, right, they don't. Here in NYC there have been cases thrown out in court after video tape came out that the police were lying. Making the photographing of police illegal is aiding tyranny.

Regards

[truebrit71]

2. Wow...so if there's a Rodney King type incident the cameraman goes to jail...

...this is BEYOND fucked up...

Glad I left that little island so many years ago...

[crikkett]

4. How about shooting innocent men in the Tubes?

???
That was anti-terrorist.

[Ghost Dog]

8. Me too. Saw it coming. So sad.

And will have (further) terrible consequences.

:(

[crikkett]

3. run for cover

it's about to hit the fan

[Lost in CT]

5. good lord they are British police most don't even have guns.

What are they going to do scold you? Give you a fair warning?

[truebrit71]

6. The ones you need to worry about certainly are armed...and with plenty more than halitosis...

...the age of the "Bobby" is long, long gone.,..

[Lost in CT]

7. I'm being snarky of course... stupid law.. but England is often like

North korea with better resturants.

[truebrit71]

10. ..and drastically superior beer...

...you would have thought that a nation that almost lost a war and it's freedom to fascism would do anything and everything it could to avoid doing it to themselves...

Guess not..

[Lost in CT]

11. Yes the beer is much better. nt

[DCKit]

9. Guess we'll just have to resort to under cover surveillance.

It's not as if they're going to quit doing what they're doing.

Has G.B. gone completely over to the pod people, or what? There's some serious dissonance when supposed democratic, formerly liberal-with-socialistic tendencies countries end up being run by right wing fascists.

Recent incidents in Great Britain, France, Canada and Greece have been creeping me the hell out. Oh, and I'm not leaving out the good ol' U.S. of A. - we'd been tending right since 1981, but I understand the ignorance here. Don't like it, but understand it.

[vinylsolution]

12. Perhaps the chief of Brighton's police....

.... would care to explain what kind of threat those environmentalists posed?

And where did the original order come from, to monitor and intimidate the people at this meeting?

What happened to the photos taken by the officers there?

This incident reminds me of police photographing and taking car number plates of people at union meetings in the 1970's.

[Karenina]

13. Did the retired Dame from M15 say

POLICE STATE?

(like it already isn't... :rofl::rofl::rofl: )

Yes, girls and boys, I believe she did! LINK? (C'mon y'all, help a technologically-challenged o' lady out here.)

[truebrit71]

14. Link here...

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=view_all&address=191x26300

[soothsayer]

15. the uk and australia are going berzerk. of course we will follow suit.

i'm worried.

[Ghost Dog]

16. Here's a video response to this:

http://www.fknnewz.com/view/241/-outraged-why-arent-you-1/

And here's another, related, I suggest (Tom Robinson Band: Power in The Darkness): http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qPouip93yBE