Thu, 12 Jun 2008

Taking a stand against the slow strangulation of fundamental British freedoms by this government

After members of Parliament voted 315 to 306 to extend the detention period from the current 28 days, a politician resigned from Parliament to protest against the insidious and monstrous erosion of civil liberties in Britain and fight against the slow strangulation of fundamental British freedoms by this Government. His statement can be watched on the Beeb and a full transcript is published by the Independent:

[...] In truth perhaps 42 days is the one most salient example of the insidious, surreptitious and relentless erosion of fundamental British freedom.

And we will have shortly the most intrusive identity card system in the world. A CCTV camera for every 14 citizens, a DNA database bigger than any dictatorship has, with thousands of innocent children and millions of innocent citizens on it.

We have witnessed an assault on jury trials, a bolt against bad law and its arbitrary use by the state.

And shortcuts with our justice system, which will make our system neither firm nor fair and a creation of a database state opening up our private lives to the prying eyes of official snoopers and exposing our personal data to careless civil servants and criminal hackers.

The state has security powers to clamp down on peaceful protest and so-called hate laws to stifle legitimate debate, whilst those who incite violence get off scot-free.

This cannot go on, it must be stopped, and for that reason today I feel it is incumbent on me to take a stand. [...]

A gesture that restores some faith in politicians. Some of the debates are encouraging as well. The Counter-terrorism bill will hopefully be defeated by the Lords.

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