Jail for 76 year old
I receive an e-mail.
A 76-year-old pro-life campaigner has become the latest victim of the steady destruction of freedom of speech under the Blair regime. Edward Atkinson's 'crime' was to send pictures of an aborted baby, and a video of an abortion, to the Chief Executive of the Queen Elizabeth Hospital Trust in King's Lynn. At a time when judges are being told by the Government not to jail muggers and burglars, he was sentenced to a month in prison last Friday.
Last week at Swaffham Magistrates Court, Mr. Atkinson was convicted of three counts of sending offensive literature or material to staff at the hospital between January and April this year.
The Norfolk hospital bosses not only informed the police but also struck Mr. Atkinson off the waiting list for a hip transplant. The police in turn referred the matter to the Director of Public Prosecutions, and then dragged the nearly crippled devout Catholic from his home when they arrested him and held him on remand for days until he appeared in court.
The decision to prosecute Mr. Atkinson, and his subsequent prison sentence, has cost thousands of pounds of taxpayers' money, and wasted a large amount of police and court time which would have been far better spent dealing with real criminals.
Freedom to campaign
At a certain level, this scandal isn't even about opinions either for or against abortion; it is a simple matter of freedom of speech and the right of every single British citizen to campaign on any issue. For example, the anti-hunting lobby should beware, as distributing pictures of dead foxes could lead to the same result. As should the pro-field sports people, should they decide to press their case with pictures of lambs or chickens mutilated by foxes.
The UK Life League, to which Mr. Atkinson belongs, is described by the media as a 'militant' anti-abortion group, but the truth is that 'militancy' that involves sending pictures which highlight the true horror of late-term abortion in particular cannot possibly harm anybody. The reality is that Ted Atkinson and his fellow campaigners are merely exercising what should be their absolute right to express their views and press their case.
Support
Ted is likely to be released within about ten days, so readers who wish to express their support, either for his views or simply for his right to campaign effectively for them, should write to:
Edward Atkinson, c/o HMP Norwich, Knox Road, Norwich, NR1 4LU, United Kingdom
AND e-mail the Prime Minister
A 76-year-old pro-life campaigner has become the latest victim of the steady destruction of freedom of speech under the Blair regime. Edward Atkinson's 'crime' was to send pictures of an aborted baby, and a video of an abortion, to the Chief Executive of the Queen Elizabeth Hospital Trust in King's Lynn. At a time when judges are being told by the Government not to jail muggers and burglars, he was sentenced to a month in prison last Friday.
Last week at Swaffham Magistrates Court, Mr. Atkinson was convicted of three counts of sending offensive literature or material to staff at the hospital between January and April this year.
The Norfolk hospital bosses not only informed the police but also struck Mr. Atkinson off the waiting list for a hip transplant. The police in turn referred the matter to the Director of Public Prosecutions, and then dragged the nearly crippled devout Catholic from his home when they arrested him and held him on remand for days until he appeared in court.
The decision to prosecute Mr. Atkinson, and his subsequent prison sentence, has cost thousands of pounds of taxpayers' money, and wasted a large amount of police and court time which would have been far better spent dealing with real criminals.
Freedom to campaign
At a certain level, this scandal isn't even about opinions either for or against abortion; it is a simple matter of freedom of speech and the right of every single British citizen to campaign on any issue. For example, the anti-hunting lobby should beware, as distributing pictures of dead foxes could lead to the same result. As should the pro-field sports people, should they decide to press their case with pictures of lambs or chickens mutilated by foxes.
The UK Life League, to which Mr. Atkinson belongs, is described by the media as a 'militant' anti-abortion group, but the truth is that 'militancy' that involves sending pictures which highlight the true horror of late-term abortion in particular cannot possibly harm anybody. The reality is that Ted Atkinson and his fellow campaigners are merely exercising what should be their absolute right to express their views and press their case.
Support
Ted is likely to be released within about ten days, so readers who wish to express their support, either for his views or simply for his right to campaign effectively for them, should write to:
Edward Atkinson, c/o HMP Norwich, Knox Road, Norwich, NR1 4LU, United Kingdom
AND e-mail the Prime Minister
.jpeg)
Comments