If Martin Salter MP gets his way, the Thought
Police will be knocking on your door.
Blair's government is planning to introduce
yet another unnecessary, unworkable law which gives the police even more unprecedented
powers to enter our homes.
In the Criminal Justice Bill scheduled to
be discussed in April 2007 the Home Office plans to criminalise the possession
of images which are regarded as being ‘abhorrent’.
It wants to legislate that possession of
images it says are “pornographic” and which it says depict a loosely
defined “violence” carry a sentence of up to three years in prison.
This is regardless of how the images are
created – they could be theatrical, professionally photo-shopped, simulated by
stunt people or simply shots taken out of context. That will not matter – what
they are criminalising is a depiction rather than an action.
Indeed the main proponent of the proposals
- Martin Salter MP – says it is right that juries define the terms, regardless
of how many innocent people have their lives ruined in the process.
Hence the main test of the law will not be
any particular act that someone has committed, or criminal intent, just whether
a jury believes she or he owns images which are pornographic and which are
“abhorrent”.
While supporters of the Bill pretend these
plans are simply an attempt to close a loophole, their argument ignores the
fact that the Obscene Publications Act is based on a test of depravity and
corruption, a much higher bar than set out in the new plans.
It also ignores the fact that the new law
would make it a criminal offence to look at something it is legal to do: e.g.
roleplay. This would potentially make Acting and Dance schools places of depravity, and therefore places of criminal activity.
And – as Rabinder Singh QC points out – it would be almost
impossible for people to know whether they have broken the law – until they're
found guilty in court.
A
Thought Crime.
This is an issue of censorship as well as
individual liberty.
Individuals and activist organisations
created backlash
to oppose the proposals.
Petition your MP and Visit the Backlash
website to see how you can oppose this new legislation.
Many in the media, among civil rights
groups, the judiciary, the police and even in parliament oppose the plans.
Whilst I completely agree that we must
protect the most vulnerable in our society, the Obscene Publications Act
already serves to do that.
The risk with this new draconian law will
be that once passed, using the Legislative and Regulatory Reform Act, a
Minister can change its terms of reference using a Statutory Instrument to
widen the coverage of what is deemed to be ‘abhorrent’, to include virtually
anything.
Then we really will be into the realms of
George Orwell’s Thought Police.
