A few questions regarding freedom of speech & hate speech in the UK?

The percentage of the Population who are muslim in the Uk has risen sharply over the past few decades.

It appears that the other answerer is right. The only people who have freedom of speech in the UK appear to be the muslims.

A very vocal pro-Al Qaida preacher has been permitted to spew his particular form of hatred unchallenged for a long time, while authorities were reluctant to act. This fellow has influenced many young people to join the Taliban and Al Qaida, and may be indirectly responsible for the London bus and subway bombings a few years ago. The anti-western clerics are mostly still in Britain, still preaching hate, and are only "watched" by the authorities.

Recently, it appears that British veterans and traditional rational education have also lost their voices. A basic platform to muslim antisemitic hate is Holocaust denial. Iran is the loudest voice of denial, and it appears that Iranian immigrants have been given a greater voice in education than those who served to defend their country or educate them.

In the interests of the PC crowd, the Holocaust has been dropped from the public school curriculum. It appears that Britain has decided that Auschwitz, Dachau, Bergen-Belsen (Which British and some Canadians liberated) and all the other death camps where 6 million or more Jews and others were systematically exterminated, are to be forgotten.

If you check with the net news last spring with Commonwealth military veterans, they were all aghast with this news. Everyone was posting pictures of the death camps, of course mostly Bergen-Belsen, and lamenting this horribly wrong-headed decision.

Is it any wonder that so many British protesters show up whenever President Bush arrives in London? It appears that muslims, particularly the Irianian-British, rule the media, and now history education there.

Perhaps British people should do some soul-searching, while their soldiers are fighting for the rights and freedom of Afghans in Helmand, Afghanistan, and take better care of their media and education.

What would be next? Sharia Law? Some people are already attempting it, in the muslim communities.

Unfortunately, hate speech is and should be protected by the laws ensuring freedom of speech. What is defined as 'hate speech' differs depending on a person's political inclinations, etc. There are some instances of it that most people can agree on (I.e. clan rallies in the US). Most of the time, however, it's subjective. The idea of free speech is based upon the presumption that overly hateful rhetoric won't capture the sentiments of most of the general public. It also insures that people will have their say in a public forum so that our culture's ideologies don't grow static. Professing that you didn't believe in a God used to be classed as a form of hate speech. Now, everyone has freedom to express their ideas on the matter of religion. I don't think any other area of life should be different.

In UK, you have total freedom of speech, provided you stay within the laws on slander and incitement.

Lots of people here claim to not to have freedom to speak, and claim they have less freedom of speech than minority groups - but none of them EVER give genuine examples of situations where they have been prevented from saying what they want to.

Too many people feel they should have the right to express an opinion without criticism - without others saying "You're talking crap, mate".

You do not have this, nor should you. The Danish cartoonist had every right to publish his cartoons - the Muslims had the right to say "we find that offensive" - but not to threaten violence.

Remember that alongside your freedom of expression, is my freedom to tell you you're talking rubbish.

EDIT: And I think you'll find I made that distinction. The right to say "I feel that is offensive" - fine. Resorting to violence - unacceptable.

Not all Muslims who found those cartoons offensive rioted, but I'll agree, too many did.

I throw the question back to you - any evidence that you can't say what you think about minority groups or religions (subject to slander and incitement laws) without the state preventing you speaking? No, of course not.

No there are no laws in the UK that consider criticism of Islam to be hate speech. Trust me when I say this, if there was a law like that in place, many people would be prosecuted under hate speech of Islam. Your free to criticize any religion.

The truth is people there of all religions and even people with no religion who just like to attack other religious beliefs and so on. In my honest opinion everyone should just butt out of other people's belief. I've always been curious as to why people care if someone wears a cross or hijab or turban or a t-shirt that says satan rules. It doesn't affect their lives in anyway. I have friends of all religions and we get on fine. I think people just want something or someone to hate. Muslims make up about 3% of the population and everything is blamed on them. The media do a good job stirring as well like they do with everything else.

My advice to you is just live your life. Your agnostic like me, stop thinking too much about other religions and don't be quick to believe what you hear in the media or see over the internet about any religion.

If someone is telling lies on purpose about a religion to create a false impression this would be considered hate.

If someone is telling the truth about a religion that shows it in a bad light this is not considered as hate.

The Danish cartoons were showing the truth about Islam and therefore there is no case to answer.

Muslims seem to be unable to accept ideas that are not in the Islam straight jacket and take it as a personal attack.

The fury of the muslims threatening to carry out acts that were in the cartoons shows that they were accurate and true.

I think your question has been quite well answered after 7/7 the British were asked by the government for calm and not to retaliate against the Muslim community which we did not.When people say the Muslims can say what they like it is true to a degree because if they did some homework they would find out that a very large amount of New Labour funds come from prominent Muslims.Of course i would say in return for this they will expect many concessions which in a lot of peoples eyes including mine they are getting.

I would say our Labour government are playing a dangerous game they may keep catching the terrorist Muslims at the moment in this country but it is only a matter of time until one cell slips the net.Then for all this division they have caused i believe will really come home to roost.There an underlying festering boil in this country and its a matter of time.Yes you would be arrested for preaching hate against your previous religion.

For the poster above Sharia law has been going on in mosques in this country for a long time now the Governments latest concession is Sharia law for Muslims for divorce and such matters but that's a lie they are already dealing with much worse crimes such as knife crime in there own community and our Government know this there excuse is well if these people do not come forward what can we do!!!

I say lay the law down but as you can read they are frightened to do this.

I doff my cap to you for such a well thought question.

In Britain you can pretty much say what you like. Criticism of Islam is fine until you cross the line of trying to prevent freedom of religion, then you might get tagged as someone promoting hate speech.

For example a UK website hosted the movie Fitna, which is critical of Islam and there was no attempt by authorities to stop it.

There were some threats from Islamist groups though.

To answer your question, no, you would not be prosecuted for criticising your old religion.

The first link below should hopefully answer your questions, hope it is of use.

And yes, individual countries have their own laws, though the EU has a watered down law to cover things as well. Teh Danish cartoons would not be covered either by EU or UK law if they were published here (as they have been by a far right group).

I'm sure this won't be any kind of great answer but people - outside the press - are readily criticised for any kind of racial viewpoint in Britain - if it is negative towards Muslims. Nothing really can be said in a general terms as people know they can be fired (like mps who have been).

The press spin things out of all proportion in the UK as their is an undercurrent of racism here. I believe that is totally natural and normal - because people with different cultures, ideas and ways of life are bound at times to be hostile or indifferent to others - that's being human.

I don't agree with extremism...and this case is unbelievable in the UK - A known terrorsist (re Daily Mail) wanted for plotting atrocities is allowed to stay in Britain and claim thousands of pounds in benefits. Fact. He can't be turfed out because of his human rights. He's a nasty, foul mouthed worthless idiot - yet he stays here because of European conventions.

Were a soft touch and one great nation but we are losing our identity due to mass immigration and towns blazoned with no go areas where 95% of the residents form one cultural ghetto...

FOR obvious reasons I feel that this Q & A has been taken into a higher level than the norm. If I'm wrong than correct me. I'm in the U.S and you could possibly having the same problem there. As you may well know!