Rights groups say proposed police powers for England and Wales are pandering to ‘culture war nonsense’
  • jet@hackertalks.comEnglish
    19·
    11 months ago

    Doesn’t the MOH encourage people to wear face masks to stop the spread of covid, especially if you have a infection?

    • abrinael@lemmy.worldEnglish
      131·
      11 months ago

      I always wondered if the push against face masks had some element involved that wanted to ensure everyone could be identified more easily.

  • AutoTL;DR@lemmings.worldBEnglish
    6·
    11 months ago

    This is the best summary I could come up with:

    Protesters who wear masks could face arrest, up to a month in jail and a £1,000 fine under proposed measures that human rights campaigners claim are pandering to “culture war nonsense”.

    Police in England and Wales will be given the power to arrest people if they are wearing face coverings at specific demonstrations, the Home Office has said.

    The move is in direct response to the four protesters being cleared of criminal damage after toppling a statute of slave trader Edward Colston in Bristol in 2022 .

    Ministers will also make climbing on war memorials a specific public order offence, carrying a three-month sentence and a £1,000 fine.

    Shami Chakrabarti, the human rights lawyer and peer, said: “Should rape victims or refugees peacefully protesting really be punished for covering their faces to protect their identities?

    The home secretary, James Cleverly, said that recent protests had seen “a small minority dedicated to causing damage and intimidating the law-abiding majority”.

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