“I am a photographer…not a terrorist”….
Cross posted from HarpyMarx
From the Counter-Terrorism Act 2008
Terrorist offences
76 Offences relating to information about members of armed forces etc
(1) After section 58 of the Terrorism Act 2000 (collection of information) insert—
“58A Eliciting, publishing or communicating information about members of armed forces etc
(1) A person commits an offence who—
(a) elicits or attempts to elicit information about an individual who is or has been—
(i) a member of Her Majesty’s forces,
(ii) a member of any of the intelligence services, or
(iii) a constable,
which is of a kind likely to be useful to a person committing or preparing an act of terrorism, or
(b) publishes or communicates any such information.
(2) It is a defence for a person charged with an offence under this section to prove that they had a reasonable excuse for their action.
(3) A person guilty of an offence under this section is liable—
(a) on conviction on indictment, to imprisonment for a term not exceeding 10 years or to a fine, or to both;
I am indebted to Madam Miaow who brought my attention to this media event organised by Mark Thomas, National Union of Journalists (NUJ), British Journal of Photography, and Marc Vallée to protest outside New Scotland Yard by simply, taking photographs.
Under this new Act it is will be an offence to take a photograph of police officers ‘likely to be useful to a person committing or preparing an act of terrorism’. And if guilty you could be looking at a 10 year stretch!
So, photographers on a demonstrations, protests and so on could be defined as terrorists. This attacks our core civil liberties as photographers involved in documenting police actions whether violent or not can be arrested under Section 76.
This erodes basic human rights and freedom of expression. Documentation of events are an important aspect in a democracy, this legislation gives further powers to the cops to stop anyone documenting any kind of disturbance or altercation with Her Majesty’s Finest.
This exposes further the authoritarianism of NL. It is more akin to a lousy tin-pot dictatorship than a democracy. And what basis can they stop someone taking photos? The cops already have so much to pick from the Public Order legislation.
Also, this Section has has the capacity to stop images of police violence from being made public. Again, the uses of documentation are vital to tell the public what is going on, from the Miners’ Strike, Wapping, Poll Tax and the anti-Bush demo last summer and so on and so on.
This section has serious and far reaching implications and consequences.
On Monday 16th February, the Counter-Terrorism Act will come into force. Turn up to New Scotland Yard at 11am.
Marc Vallee says:
The plan is simple, turn up with your camera and exercise your democratic right to take a photograph in a public place.
I’ll be there with my camera…!!!
It is becoming an offence to criticise the establishment with them using the excuse of ‘terrorist’…
There was a post about this on Indymedia over a week ago.
It is probably in part an attempt to stop people from taking pictures of illegal activity by police.
Comment by Faust — 11 February, 2009 @ 1:24 pm
This is outrageous and will make it impossible to make complaints about officers unless you’ve got their number down.
Of course, any photo of a policeman you publish for any reason “could be useful” for someone preparing an act of “terrorism”. But why should we have to take responsibility for that, a consequence we can’t legislate for?
On one of the Gaza demos at the embassy someone I know had her arm broken by the police (http://thecommune.wordpress.com/2009/01/10/activists-arm-broken-as-police-clamp-down-on-gaza-protest/) as they dragged her up by her arm.
We didn’t get their numbers down and there wasn’t useful CCTV from the surrounding shops (why is private individuals taking pics not OK when CCTV filming all of us is?) but we did get photos of the policemen’s faces afterwards. So that could be useful evidence… which would now be illegal to capture!
Comment by David Broder — 11 February, 2009 @ 1:27 pm
Faust: Indeed it is a way of stopping you documenting any kind of illegal activity by the cops. It is beyond disgusting. An utter violation of civil liberties.
I remember film/pix evidence was used in various court cases re Poll Tax ‘riots’ and other protests were the cops got violent. One case was chucked out because the photographic/film evidence showed the cops starting the attack on the person when they (cops) ‘claimed’the opposite and the defendant was being accused of starting an affray!!! And even when the person was in hospital having their the wounds in their head stitched back together, the cops were arresting them!!
With this Act will people still be able to document this kind of evidence?
David: And cops hide their numbers so you can’t take a record. Indeed the cops can film us but we can’t film them. It will give the cops greater freedom to start rucks and there aint much we can do ‘cept to be prosecuted!
Comment by Louise — 11 February, 2009 @ 1:41 pm
On Jan.10, police filming and photographing outside the Israeli embassy were intense, and this aspect of police activity seems to be treated as an even higher priority than in the past. But photos/filming of the police by the citizenry are to be discouraged.
Cameras are more widely available to the public than in the past, and this clearly bothers the police.
Comment by Faust — 11 February, 2009 @ 1:47 pm
Faust:Yes, I have seen the cops have really upped the ante when it comes to filming demonstrators. There are a couple of them as well doing it as opposed to one or two.
Comment by Louise — 11 February, 2009 @ 2:18 pm
And that was just the obvious ones in uniform. How many of the ones in civilian clothes were cops/intelligence services is an unanswered and unanswerable question. There seems to be generally a greater hunger for info on protesters than before. On the 24th, protesters were arrested, although I didn’t see it, and one reason given was that people were covering their faces, so the cops seized them. The urge to film everyone and everything goes hand in hand with intolerance of people who wear masks. Are we moving towards fascism in slow motion? Because it certainly feels like it.
Comment by Faust — 11 February, 2009 @ 2:24 pm
To be honest Faust it feels like a tin-pot dictatorship. The cops can seize you for what they consider reasonable. The pic I took of the woman being dragged off by the cops at the top of the post (on one of the Gaza demos) and I think it was because (might be wrong) was protesting about having her pic taken by the cops…!! We have to just lump our pic being taken and if we speak out good chance we will be arrested. It is utterly obscene.
On the issue of covering your face there is some legislation that gives powers to the cops to arrest you (can’t recall which legislation).
Comment by Louise — 11 February, 2009 @ 3:18 pm
Fascism is quite compatible with tinpottery. Anyway, the technical means present in all the filming the cops do is not so tinpot - the same with CCTV.
In Nazi Germany, the Gestapo seemed to be everywhere, yet it depended to a large degree, not on anything hi-tech, but on private citizens, often nosy or spiteful rather than necessarily convinced Nazis, sending in denunciations.
Comment by Faust — 11 February, 2009 @ 3:57 pm
Maybe the police photo’s will be used by this lot - http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-1138755/Secret-police-unit-set-spy-British-domestic-extremists.html
Obviously says a lot about the ruling classes perspective on the likely effects of the economic meltdown.
Comment by BenP — 11 February, 2009 @ 7:16 pm
9. Yes. I think the economic background has a lot to do with it. Cops in many countries tended to break up demos during the Depression with more ruthlessness than before it. There will also be more of the “enemy within” stuff.
Comment by Faust — 11 February, 2009 @ 7:28 pm
Another point - it was amusing to read Daily Mail readers’ fulminations about New Labour destroying our civil liberties. As opposed to Maggie doing it…
Comment by Faust — 11 February, 2009 @ 7:31 pm
#5 “the cops have really upped the ante when it comes to filming demonstrators”
The good people at FITwatch monitor this situation on all our behalfs - http://fitwatch.blogspot.com/
Comment by Strategist — 12 February, 2009 @ 12:16 am
I’m pretty sure that not liking perfectly benign laws like this one is a thought crime — and let me be the first to publically denounce this and all other unwholesome thoughts directed against an obviously non-repressive and non-fascist state that has nothing to hide from its citizens. Taking photos in public of public gatherings must not be allowed because it might cause the public to question the benevolence of the state and you wouldn’t want to do that, would you?
Comment by NCM — 12 February, 2009 @ 1:18 am
On Thursday 8th Feb. I was assaulted by a police officer after the anti-Gaza massacre demo outside the Israeli Embassy had been dispersed. It was the night that there had been a pro-Israeli war demo at the same time, which of course, meant trouble.
I’d left my Jews for Boycotting Israeli Goods banner behind when there was trouble and so decided to hang around to see if I could find it. For my own safety, I sat at the bus stop with another lady. Then, some policemen walked by, one of whom recognised me. He said, ‘You were at the demonstration!’ (as if demonstrators aren’t allowed to sit at bus stops), yanked me out of my seat and started to push me! I don’t know what he was trying to do to me but he had no right to do that - and he was a big chap. Thankfully, a group of Muslims saw this and bundled over me to protect me from him. 2 other officers pulled him away. I then jumped up, ran towards him and took a photo. It didn’t come out properly but he was one of the few black men there so I would probably recognise him, plus I later heard that someone has video footage. Thankfully, someone took his number (3407) so I will go to police complaints, once I’ve got the video link.
Comment by Deborah Fink — 14 February, 2009 @ 9:32 pm