(Don’t) Say ‘Cheese’!
From now on, watch where your camera lens is pointing. Because, as of 15 February, if you snap a police officer you could face ten years in jail thanks to Section 26 of the Counter Terrorism Act coming into force.
The act states that anyone "eliciting, publishing or communicating information" connected to the police or intelligence services, and the armed forces, which is deemed "likely to be useful to a person committing or preparing an act of terrorism" can now face arrest.
Photojournalists and amateur photographers alike are none too happy about this law, which they see as impeding their right to report. Consequently, on the day the law came into force, they gathered outside Scotland Yard for a photo shoot named I’m a Photographer – Not a Terrorist.
The Met police told the BBC that "For the offence to be committed, the information would have to raise a reasonable suspicion that it was intended to be used to provide practical assistance to terrorists. Taking photographs of police officers would not, except in very exceptional circumstances, be caught by this offence."
But what the law says, and the way its interpreted on the ground are often very different. Particularly if you’re reporting on something which doesn’t show the police in a good light. “I can see it now,” wrote photojournalist Marc Vallée, who specialises in covering protest movements, speculating on the police response, “‘If you don't stop taking pictures of me hitting this protester on the head, I'm going to nick you under section 76 of the Counter-Terrorism Act 2008.’"
But while police may now be able to move you on, they can’t confiscate your camera and they certainly can’t delete images. Although if it ever comes to it, you may need to remind them.
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(Don’t) Say ‘Cheese’! (text) by Olly Zanetti is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 3.0 Unported License.Comments (4)
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It's just another law that allows the Police to do whatever they like to enforce the status quo and stifle dissent. But obviously, as they say, if you are a law abiding citizen, you have nothing to worry about...
...the only problem with this is that each new law like this makes criminals of ordinary, decent people, and severly reduces the number of 'law-abiding citizens' down to people who do whatever they are told.
"Police using anti terror to delete images
Icon_article Published: Wednesday 01 April 2009 21:30 by Imc London Mobile
Tagged as: environmentalism g20 workers_struggles
Neighbourhoods:
Police officers are using anti terror legislation outside #climatecamp to make people delete images of police off cameras under threat of camera seizure or arrest.
More later"
source http://london.indymedia.org.uk.....les/977
If they are to go by the letter of the law, the video of a unprovoked attack by a police man on Tomlinson (http://www.guardian.co.uk/uk/v.....t-video ) would be inadmisable.
So they can record us 24/7 when we are commiting no crime at all, but when it is illegal for us to film the police committing criminal offences...
we are all seriously fucked!!!