Four men jailed for thought crime

none | 18.07.2007 16:06

Four men have been jailed - three of them for six years and one for four years - for speaking their mind at a demonstration in London

Four men jailed over cartoon demo

Four men have been jailed for their part in protests outside the Danish embassy in London, against cartoons satirising the Prophet Muhammad.

Mizanur Rahman, 24, Umran Javed, 27, and Abdul Muhid, 24, were each jailed for six years for soliciting to murder after telling a crowd to bomb the UK.

http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/uk_news/6904622.stm

none
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Additions

not accused of thought crimes - double standards nether-the-less

18.07.2007 19:27

While these people were clearly guilty of more than just though crimes (they wrote those crimes down on a placard) the charges and sentence are an interesting example of double standards since the publication of the cartoons was defended as free speech but apparently free speech doesn't extend to writing 'bomb the uk' on a placard if you happen to to be a follower of islam (but remember, it IS okay to write bomb Afghanistan or Iraq and fine to encourage people to participate in or support such acts).

Compare and Contrast

18.07.2007 20:50

BNP leader cleared of race hate

http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/uk_news/scotland/2473967.stm
"BNP leader Nick Griffin and party activist Mark Collett have been cleared of
inciting racial hatred after a retrial at Leeds Crown Court."

Judge discharges bomb plot jury

http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/uk_news/england/lancashire/6291156.stm
"A jury in the trial of two men with British National Party (BNP) links
accused of plotting explosions has failed to reach a verdict."

BNP man's jail term welcomed

http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/uk_news/scotland/2473967.stm
"The four-month jail sentence on a British National Party member who incited
racial hatred in Glasgow has been welcomed by the Crown Office."

Conclusion? - a racist judicial system...

none
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Who's next?

19.07.2007 11:42

"1 - 2 - 3 - 4! NAIL A SCIENTIST TO THE FLOOR!"

(Common chant on anti-viv marches)

How long before they jail AR activists for inciting crucifixion?

Worried

Comments

Hide the following 5 comments

murder is a crime

18.07.2007 17:02

If - for example - a bunch of people publically called for you to be killed, would you be happy?

The problem isn't 'Thought Crime', is it? The problem is a poor cartoon and a bunch of zealots who think their religion is more important than other peoples' free speech.

The real problem is angry men with guns everywhere. I blame the parents!

normal-person

Cartoons are mightier than the sword or word

18.07.2007 17:33

The extremely amusing cartoons of Adolf Hitler in the British press at the start of the last war, obviously so upset him, that he attacked Russia....his first mistake....so be warned.

Long John
mail e-mail: midxion@tiscali.co.uk

Democracy?

19.07.2007 08:40

We now live in a society where people are imprisoned merely for using words and they have the cheek to call it a democracy. What next?

Itsme

same rules for everyone, surely?

19.07.2007 14:44

We are all probably agreed that it was right to prosecute the BNP for racial hatred, when they distributed their filthy leaflets.

So it should be right to prosecute other people who try and stir up hatred - including calling for people to be beheaded.

Democracy should mean that I don't have to fear threats from anyone based upon belief or race. It doesn't mean you have the right to threaten me, nobody has that right!

Having said this, Tony Blair should be at the front of the queue for prosecution on this subject - maybe we can all agree on that?

I wish the original poster of this would come back for some dialogue?....

normal-person

Same rules?

20.07.2007 04:15

The fact remains you can now be punished much more severely merely for using words than you can for killing someone with a car or using ABH or GBH. Given the choice I would much rather be verbally abused than physically abused.

This is more about repressing dissent than it is about preventing crime.

Itsme