Reader Kevin Beasley calls my attention to this article:
Controversial anti-terror measures planned in the aftermath of the July 7 bombings and brought into force yesterday have been given a hostile reception by MPs and civil liberty lawyers who branded them absurd and a curtailment of free speech.
The new laws, included in the Terrorism Act 2006, make it a criminal offence to say or do anything that glorifies terrorism. They also give more powers to the Government to ban groups which publish material that seeks to support any form of terrorism.
But MPs and civil liberty lawyers said the laws were unnecessary, as there was already legislation in place to combat terrorism.
The Labour MP Jeremy Corbyn described the glorification ban as "absurd". He said: "The legislation is misguided and the whole concept of glorification is frankly absurd, and will end up entrapping the innocent and preventing legitimate debate." He argued that one person's terrorist was another's freedom fighter: "Nelson Mandela was branded a terrorist by Margaret Thatcher," he added.
He said arguing for campaigns such as that to free West Papua from Indonesian rule could leave people exposed to prosecution.
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