Brit jailed for burning the Koran
By Melancton Smith • Tuesday April 12, 2011 6:05 AM PDT • 1 Comment
The Daily Mail (U.K.) reports that a British National Party candidate was jailed for burning a copy of the Koran. He was charged with violation of section 29 of the Public Order Act. Under this statute, “A person who uses threatening words or behaviour, or displays any written material which is threatening, is guilty of an offence if he intends thereby to stir up religious hatred.”
No doubt that burning a copy of the Koran should not be a “recommended” form of speech, but it nonetheless is political speech that makes a point. While we might not agree with the point made be the speaker, it is part of the public debate. It is unfortunate to see such a law in the UK, the land from which many of our cherished liberties sprang.
But, as speech codes are becoming more accepted, we must wonder how long until such statutes will be common in the U.S.
Tags: Civil Liberties, Civil Society, Criminal Justice, Culture, England, Immigration, Law, Liberty 
The British government jails one of its own citizens because his burning the Koran is considered “threatening words or behavior”, illegal under Section 29 of the Public Order Act. But that same Koran says “kill them [unbelievers] wherever you find them” (2.191, 4.89), “do not take Jews and Christians for friends” (5.51), and “may Allah destroy them [Jews]” (9.30). Are not the Koran and its supporters not equally in violation of that law?
The problem here is more than growing intolerance and the government’s willingness to abridge free speech. The British government is letting itself be bullied into applying the law unequally, and thereby favoring the most intolerant and potentially most violent elements of society.
Alan Watson | Apr 12, 2011 | Reply