British authorities are threatening to imprison those who share messages critical of Starmer’s government
How had they not thought of it before? I’m referring to the so-called “hate opinions,” the perfect excuse to impose strict censorship without having to use that unpleasant word. In response to the chaos across the country due to protests against issues related to immigrants, British authorities have made it clear that they intend to use this concept deliberately.
In reality, this is nothing new. Russia, an autocracy universally criticized for its lack of respect for freedom of expression, has arrested 400 people for comments on social media. In the United Kingdom, that number has already reached 3,300.
But now they have raised the stakes. It’s no longer enough to avoid commenting on social media about ideas that the government considers “heretical” (such as suggesting that there are too many immigrants in the country) to avoid arrest. Now, sharing such comments, even a simple “retweet,” can be sufficient grounds to face British justice.
Stephen Parkinson, Director of Public Prosecutions, made this clear in an interview with Sky News: it is not even necessary for a person to publish the content directly to be considered guilty of a crime.
Parkinson explained that social media users could be accused of “incitement to racial hatred” if they share “insulting or abusive” content that “is likely to incite racial hatred.” “So, if you retweet something like that, you’re republishing it, which could constitute a crime,” he said, noting that the police are actively monitoring social networks for such material.
“Perhaps people think they’re not doing anything harmful, but they are, and the consequences will fall on them,” Parkinson warned. Even, as Sky News clarified, sharing videos or photos of disturbances on social media without adding any commentary could be considered a crime.
Parkinson also stated that those who publish protest locations could face terrorism charges. “Since these are organized groups that could be motivated by ideological reasons and are promoting potentially very serious crimes, we might consider terrorism charges in these cases,” he concluded.
