High-profile arrests of prominent pro-Palestine reporters have provided enough evidence for us to ask: are the police breaking the law in their attacks on journalists?
The recent arrests have been carried out under s.12 of the Terrorism Act – but that sets a fairly high bar. Here’s David Miller to explain:
The use by the British government of Section 12 of the Terrorism Act has been seen as a new escalation by the state against journalists. Under Section 12, a person commits an offence if they “invite” support for a “proscribed” organisation or “[express] an opinion or belief that is supportive” of such an organisation.
By this standard, it would seem that the arrest of Richard Barnard was unjustified.
Mr. Barnard reportedly said, “When we hear the resistance, the Al-Aqsa flood, we must turn that flood into a tsunami of the whole world.”
“Al-Aqsa flood” is apparently a name used by Hamas for its attack on Israel, that took place on October 7, 2023. But it has also been used by a plethora of other organisations, most of which are not proscribed – and therefore may be seen as a generic name for that event.
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Mr Barnard did not mention Hamas by name, invite support for it or express an opinion or belief that was directly supportive of it.
David Miller’s article says supporting “terrorism” in the abstract is not illegal under s.12 but it could be argued that Mr Barnard’s words don’t even achieve that; they could be said to, but that’s in the mind of the listener.
He referred to “resistance”, which could be taken as resistance against Israel’s occupation of Palestinian lands. In that sense, as the Miller article states, it is perfectly permissible under UK law to call for it to spread across the world.
You see, International Law states that we all have a right to support the resistance of any indigenous people to occupation by outsiders that is carried out by all available means, including armed struggle.
So it seems the law is being abused in order to accuse innocent people. But I doubt that this fact will save them.
The Miller article points out that
A young man was found guilty of wearing a “Hamas headband” even though it merely had the Shahada on it – the Muslim proclamation of faith – [and was] not a Hamas headband at all.
This is where UK law is perverted to support political ends – and it is very dangerous ground indeed.
As free citizens with an internationally-recognised right of free speech, we need to be sure that our words will not be taken out of context, twisted and abused to fit the agenda of a politician who may not even be a UK citizen.
In fact, any such attack on us may itself be a crime as
The British Parliament has recently passed legislation to tackle foreign “interference”… Perhaps it is time that those who have interfered in the activities of the British police were investigated under the new National Security legislation for aiding a foreign power?
So there you have it. If you get arrested under s.12 of the Terrorist Act, get your solicitor to turn it around and demand that the complainant be arrested and investigated under the National Security Act 2023.
For clarity: of course, nothing in this article should be construed as supporting any terrorist organisation or condoning its acts.
Source: The UK attempt to criminalise dissent on Palestine
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Are the police breaking the law in their attacks on journalists?
High-profile arrests of prominent pro-Palestine reporters have provided enough evidence for us to ask: are the police breaking the law in their attacks on journalists?
The recent arrests have been carried out under s.12 of the Terrorism Act – but that sets a fairly high bar. Here’s David Miller to explain:
By this standard, it would seem that the arrest of Richard Barnard was unjustified.
“Al-Aqsa flood” is apparently a name used by Hamas for its attack on Israel, that took place on October 7, 2023. But it has also been used by a plethora of other organisations, most of which are not proscribed – and therefore may be seen as a generic name for that event.
Buy Cruel Britannia in print here. Buy the Cruel Britannia ebook here. Or just click on the image!
Mr Barnard did not mention Hamas by name, invite support for it or express an opinion or belief that was directly supportive of it.
David Miller’s article says supporting “terrorism” in the abstract is not illegal under s.12 but it could be argued that Mr Barnard’s words don’t even achieve that; they could be said to, but that’s in the mind of the listener.
He referred to “resistance”, which could be taken as resistance against Israel’s occupation of Palestinian lands. In that sense, as the Miller article states, it is perfectly permissible under UK law to call for it to spread across the world.
You see, International Law states that we all have a right to support the resistance of any indigenous people to occupation by outsiders that is carried out by all available means, including armed struggle.
So it seems the law is being abused in order to accuse innocent people. But I doubt that this fact will save them.
The Miller article points out that
This is where UK law is perverted to support political ends – and it is very dangerous ground indeed.
As free citizens with an internationally-recognised right of free speech, we need to be sure that our words will not be taken out of context, twisted and abused to fit the agenda of a politician who may not even be a UK citizen.
In fact, any such attack on us may itself be a crime as
So there you have it. If you get arrested under s.12 of the Terrorist Act, get your solicitor to turn it around and demand that the complainant be arrested and investigated under the National Security Act 2023.
For clarity: of course, nothing in this article should be construed as supporting any terrorist organisation or condoning its acts.
Source: The UK attempt to criminalise dissent on Palestine
Vox Political needs your help!
If you want to support this site
(but don’t want to give your money to advertisers)
you can make a one-off donation here:
Be among the first to know what’s going on! Here are the ways to manage it:
1) Register with us by clicking on ‘Subscribe’ (bottom right of the home page). You can then receive notifications of every new article that is posted here.
2) Follow VP on Twitter @VoxPolitical
3) Like the Facebook page at https://www.facebook.com/VoxPolitical/
Join the Vox Political Facebook page.
4) You could even make Vox Political your homepage at http://voxpoliticalonline.com
5) Follow Vox Political writer Mike Sivier on BlueSky
6) Join the MeWe page at https://mewe.com/p-front/voxpolitical
7) Feel free to comment!
And do share with your family and friends – so they don’t miss out!
If you have appreciated this article, don’t forget to share it using the buttons at the bottom of this page. Politics is about everybody – so let’s try to get everybody involved!
Buy Vox Political books so we can continue
fighting for the facts.
Cruel Britannia is available
in either print or eBook format here:
The Livingstone Presumption is available
in either print or eBook format here:
Health Warning: Government! is now available
in either print or eBook format here:
The first collection, Strong Words and Hard Times,
is still available in either print or eBook format here:
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