Monday, May 08, 2006
Court backs Government shock!
The Court of Appeal have ruled that Brian Haw must dismantle his one-man, five-year protest outside the House of Commons and leave poor Tony Blair alone. Mr. Haw is understood to be reluctant to leave voluntarily.
No doubt Government Ministers will be celebrating the removal of the makeshift shelter and the display of anti-war banners, placards and flags that Mr. Haw has erected opposite the House of Commons. The significance of this judgement however, goes beyond an improved urban environment. It signals a final victory for the Government in its effort to undermine freedom of speech and of expression.
The imposition of a 1km protest-free zone around Parliament Square is just one of many ways that this Government has usurped traditional British values. It is a measure that a South American dictator would be proud of.
No doubt Government Ministers will be celebrating the removal of the makeshift shelter and the display of anti-war banners, placards and flags that Mr. Haw has erected opposite the House of Commons. The significance of this judgement however, goes beyond an improved urban environment. It signals a final victory for the Government in its effort to undermine freedom of speech and of expression.
The imposition of a 1km protest-free zone around Parliament Square is just one of many ways that this Government has usurped traditional British values. It is a measure that a South American dictator would be proud of.
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To be fair to the government (and I'm not usually), there have been 157 protests within that exclusion zone since the legislation came into force - although admittedly some quite stupid arrests have been made since then too, such as the woman reading out the names of the war dead at the Cenotaph.
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