[Gllug] OT: Getting a libelous website taken down ...

[Richard Jones]

On Thu, Jul 02, 2009 at 05:41:25PM +0100, Harry Rickards wrote:
> http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Universal_Declaration_of_Human_Rights#Legal_effect
> 
> "the Universal Declaration is a fundamental constitutive document of the
> United Nations". I may be completely wrong here, but doesn't that mean
> it's constitutional?
> 
> Article 19 of the declaration is:
> 
> "Everyone has the right to freedom of opinion and expression; this right
> includes freedom to hold opinions without interference and to seek,
> receive and impart information and ideas through any media and
> regardless of frontiers"

What you're looking for is the Human Rights Act (1988) which brings
most[1] of the ECHR into UK law.

https://secure.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/wiki/Human_Rights_Act_1998
https://secure.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/wiki/European_Convention_on_Human_Rights

This includes a section on freedom of expression, but as with all the
ECHR it is heavily tempered by provisos (ie. "what is necessary in a
democratic society" and Articles 17 & 18).

This has real consequences.  For example, expressing the view that
people who have religious beliefs are stupid (which is my opinion)
could be illegal under:

https://secure.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/wiki/Racial_and_Religious_Hatred_Act_2006

Rich.

[1] Now all?  Or are we still opting out of bits?

-- 
Richard Jones
Red Hat
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