She called her treatment „Kafkaesque.“ She said: „Jurors are not there to obey the judge. Judges are happy to say they are a law court, not a moral court, but I don't accept that.“
regressive
The government's increasing crackdown on peaceful protests has been described as „deeply worrying“ by UN Special Rapporteur Michel Forst, an environmental activist.
He said the laws being used to convict peaceful protesters under the Police, Crime, Sentencing and Courts Act 2022 and the Public Order Act 2023 are “regressive”. Stated. He pointed out that prior to these laws, it had been almost unheard of for ordinary people to be jailed for peaceful protest in Britain since the 1930s.
“As the United Nations Human Rights Committee has made clear, states have a duty to promote the right to protest, and private organizations and wider society can be expected to accept a degree of disruption as a result of the exercise of this right. „It may be possible,“ he said. .
In the latest video from the LAR conference, Mr Forst said he was more concerned about the repression in the UK than what he had seen in many other countries. „
„Since then, the situation does not seem to have improved. On the contrary, there have been various developments that have come to my attention that have further increased my initial concerns,“ he said, adding that several doctors have joined the peaceful He pointed to the fact that many people face the risk of having their licenses revoked for participating in such protests.
cheating
„Two or three years ago, no one went to jail for peaceful protest,'' said Raj Chadha, head of criminal defense, financial crimes and regulation at law firm Hodge Jones & Allen. .
„We've had some close calls, but now we've been defeated. It's almost the norm that if you commit sabotage, they go to jail. It's different. It creates a power relationship, the risks are different, and the mental burden on the defendant is different.“ ”
One of them is Dr Sarah Benn, a retired GP and NHS doctor. This week she was found guilty of professional misconduct by the General Medical Council (GMC) and her registration as a doctor was suspended for five months.
The professional body said it follows the jailing of Benn for holding up a placard that read „Stop New Oil,“ in violation of an injunction against all forms of protest obtained by US-based fossil fuel giant Valero. took action.
punishment
GMC spokesperson It was announced that Dr. Benn had been sent to the prosecutor's office on charges of violating the law rather than participating in peaceful protests against climate change. „Patients and the public rightly place a high degree of trust in doctors, but that trust can be eroded if doctors repeatedly fail to comply,“ they said.
but, British Medical Association He said the decision sent a worrying message to doctors about regulating matters unrelated to patient care or clinical skills.
Dr Latifa Patel, BMA's Principal Body Chair and Workforce Leader, said: 'The GMC has a duty to refer doctors to a medical tribunal if they receive a custodial sentence, but in cases like this, „The doctor's actions will not be charged with any crime.“ Pertains to the ability to practice medicine and does not pose a risk to patients, either in the past or in the future. ”
She said the GMC and the medical profession should reconsider the basis for referring Dr Benn to the medical tribunal, asking: „Why is a doctor suspended for punishment he has already received for participating in a medical tribunal? There is an urgent need to consider the rules,“ he added. Particularly since the climate crisis is also a health crisis, it is being legally held as a peaceful protest. ”
this author
Katherine Early is a freelance environmental journalist. ecologist.She tweets at @Cat_Early76.