OK, so, ages ago, I had heard on DemocracyNow that the UK had made it illegal to photograph police officers. I mentioned this to a couple of British friends and they denied it, certain it wasn’t true. Well, thanks to a tweet from a different “the Pete”, I am now aware that it is effectively illegal to photograph a police officer or, really, anything in public.
The following comes from a FAQ at askthe.police.uk:
It is not illegal to take photographs or video footage in public places unless it is for criminal or terrorist purposes.
Uh-huh. Don’t be so sure. After they explain the civil ramifications of taking photos of individuals (you are open to a lawsuit) check out what else they say:
…it is a specific offence to elicit information (which would include photographs) about members of armed forces, police officers or the intelligence services, which is likely to be useful to a person committing or preparing an act of terrorism, or publishes or communicates information of that kind. The law does not state that the person who gets the information has to use the information for terrorism purposes, just that the information is likely to be useful to a terrorist.
I’ve emboldened the shocking bits. That keeps things pretty free for the cops to arrest pretty much whomever they damn well please, doesn’t it? As an American, I already know that cops can trump up anything in order to arrest you—I’ve been harassed by cops on many occasions just because they decided I looked suspicious. But to see it codified in this way is scary. BUT, predictably enough, there’s MORE:
Photographers need to be aware of this provision and be cautious when taking such photographs. The sort of occasion when it could cause a problem may be, for example, at an anti-war protest, when there may be a number of counter terrorism and intelligence operatives working in the area.
Why would there be “counter terrorism and intelligence operatives” working in the area of an anti-war protest?!?! Does the UKG not understand the concept of “ANTI-war”?? I’d like to make a pithy comment about how this is no surprise coming from the “land of George Orwell’s birth” here, but I’ve seen American cops make the same illogical leap.
It’s truly absurd for the UKG or any other government to think they can (or should) prevent intelligence from getting to terrorists. Stopping people from taking pictures in public places in this way is quite literally an example of how the UK has become a subtle police state. How any Brit can consider themselves “free” but live in fear of being arrested simply because they happened to take a snapshot at the wrong time of the wrong person is beyond me.
I have a hard enough time feeling “free” in my own country for similar reasons and I live in the alleged land OF the free!
What is going on with this world?
