salaam
New religious hate laws unveiled
Inciting religious hatred is to be made a criminal offence under plans unveiled by Home Secretary David Blunkett.
The government failed to get laws introducing the offence passed by Parliament in the wake of the US terror attacks in 2001.
In a speech in London, Mr Blunkett revived the proposals.
He said he was returning to the plans as there was a need to stop people being abused or targeted just because they held a particular religious faith.
http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/uk_politics/3871867.stm
[b]
Q&A: Religious hatred law[/b]
http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/uk/3873323.stm
What is the government proposing?
But what if someone hates a religion because they think it's a threat?
So current hate laws don't cover religious people?
But isn't it illegal to discriminate on religious grounds already?
And isn't incitement already a crime?
What about if I want to criticise a faith for good reason or just for fun - isn't this curtailing my freedom of speech?
Where does blasphemy fit into all this?
these are all answered in the BBC Q & A on Religious hatred law.
so is this law a good or bad thing for Muslims? has the government gone too far?
pls discuss
wasalaam
Thank god for that!
However it needs good wording to protect everyone, not just a few communities.
"For too long, we have been a passively tolerant society, saying to our citizens 'as long as you obey the law, we will leave you alone'" - David Cameron, UK Prime Minister. 13 May 2015.
Salam
Bad law. Harmful to everyone.
It should never pass in a free soiciety like Britain.
Omrow
The main reason for these laws is to get Muslim preachers like Omar Bakri etc behind bars.
I'd be surprised if most of the prosecutions under such laws are not against Muslims.
Irfan,
I hope it acheives that with guys like Bakri. He and Nick Griffin should have to live in directly opposite cells. If it gets ignorant preachers locked up for incitement, great.
I also think the bill [i]is[/i] designed primarily to protect the Muslim community but of course, also for all British communities.
One danger of the law is failing to acknowledge the difference between a legitimate but contemptuous analysis of religion, and a powerful incitement to hate. Actually there are lots of things which would weaken enforcement. Basically this law is barely workable on it's own, I think, but provides support in cases where the evidence also points to other hate crimes. This is because otherwise incitement to hate would be considered an unrelated activity, and would not make useful evidence if not marked 'law'.
They should be locked up together, they'll find they have alot in common.