Democracy cannot exist without the right to free speech.
Free speech should be robustly defended as a fundamental freedom.
The National Secular Society has defended free speech from religious threats since our founding. We played an instrumental role in abolishing "blasphemy" laws in Britain, but serious concerns remain. Blasphemy laws still exist in Northern Ireland. And throughout the UK, religious fundamentalists seek to impose their blasphemy taboos on others through violence and intimidation.
There are also increasing attempts to categorise offending religious sensibilities as 'hate speech', making criticism, mockery or perceived 'insult' of religion a criminal act akin to racial hatred or inciting violence – in other words, a 'blasphemy law by the back door'.
Without free speech no search for truth is possible; without free speech no discovery of truth is useful; without free speech progress is checked… Better a thousand fold abuse of free speech than denial of free speech.
We are further concerned by a developing 'culture of offence' in which any speech or action deemed likely to offend religious sensibilities is considered taboo. Enforced by a toxic mix of terrorism and religious deference, this is chilling free speech through self-censorship.
We also campaign against blasphemy laws around the world, where they continue to be used to target religious and political minorities. These are sometimes described by UK politicians as 'misuse' of blasphemy laws, but we contend there are never any legitimate uses for blasphemy laws.
Being offended from time to time is the price we all pay for living in a free society. Rather than trying to silence those we disagree with, we believe the answer to speech we don't like is more speech – better speech.
We therefore campaign to protect and preserve freedom of expression, including offensive, critical and shocking speech.
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Latest updates
NSS raises “serious” free speech concerns in press regulator code
Posted: Mon, 4 Apr 2022 13:29
A press regulator's standards code may restrict free speech and distort reporting through pro-religion bias, the National Secular Society has warned.
The NSS has said it is "extremely concerned" that the standards code and guidance of the Independent Monitor for the Press (IMPRESS) will "unnecessarily restrict freedom of speech regarding religion".
IMPRESS is consulting on revisions to its standards code, which aims to protect the public from "unethical news reporting". All IMPRESS members must adhere to the code.
IMPRESS members include the Islamic publications 5Pillars UK and The Muslim News.
FGM and religion
A new clause in the guidance says publishers should "avoid conflating religious, ideological or cultural practices or beliefs" and should acknowledge when there is "controversy" about how a practice or belief is described.
It gives the example of female genital mutilation (FGM), which it says is "often incorrectly written about as a religious practice when it is, in fact, a cultural practice".
In its submission to the consultation, the NSS said it had "serious concerns" about this guidance, calling it "ill-conceived, inaccurate and highly likely to result in distorted reporting and censorship on religious issues".
It said whether a practice or belief is 'religious', 'ideological' or 'cultural' is "never straightforward". This includes FGM which is sometimes practised for religious reasons. The NSS cited examples of Islamic schools which encourage the practice.
It said: "Preventing journalists from pointing out that religion is often an important motivation behind FGM not only distorts the truth – it also undermines efforts to end this atrocious form of violence against women and girls by understanding and tackling the root motivations".
It said the guidance "will be used to try and silence negative stories regarding religion".
The guidance says if there is doubt as to whether a practice or belief is religious, ideological or cultural, "publishers may wish to seek appropriate guidance from relevant experts before publishing the content".
The NSS warned this may prompt journalists to approach religious leaders for advice, who are "often strongly motivated to portray their religion in a positive light" and may not provide an objective viewpoint regarding controversial practices and beliefs.
'Burn in hell'
The guidance says publishers "must not encourage hatred or abuse against any group based on their protected characteristics".
But it has an exception for "threats" against certain groups to "burn in hell", which it said "should not be seen as language that encourages hatred".
The NSS said it "cannot comprehend" why the code permits publishers to say gay people or other groups should "burn in hell", but does not allow publishers to say FGM is a religious practice.
It said a threat to 'burn in hell' is "an extremely strong expression of hatred" and would "exempt religious forms of hate speech where other forms would be rightly prohibited".
Many incidents involving religious threats to 'burn in hell' have been investigated by the police as hate crime.
The NSS expressed concerns about other aspects of the code and guidance which may censor reporting around religion, including an implication that the terms "extremist Christians" and "radical Islamists" may breach the code.
It welcomed aspects of the guidance that acknowledged the importance of free speech, including the freedom to criticise religion, but said other clauses in the guidance "may conflict" with this and "must be addressed to ensure freedom of speech on topics that engage religion or belief".
NSS comment
NSS head of policy and research Megan Manson said: "News publishers should never publish with the intention of encouraging hatred or abuse. We all have a responsibility to help foster tolerance and cohesion in our society – not least news publishers.
"But the IMPRESS code and guidance will potentially distort or censor reporting on issues relating to religion. This will make it harder to hold religious organisations to account when they themselves encourage hatred or abuse, or otherwise cause harm."
IMPRESS's consultation closes on Friday. Its new code will be published this summer.
Image: fancycrave1, Pixabay.
NSS calls for better free speech protection in NI hate crime reform
Posted: Tue, 22 Mar 2022 16:25
The National Secular Society has warned proposed reforms to Northern Ireland's hate crime laws could undermine free speech.
The Department of Justice (DoJ) is consulting on a new Hate Crime Bill for NI based on recommendations made by Judge Desmond Marrinan in 2020. It includes proposals that would broaden the definition of hate crime, create a new aggravated offence for sectarian hate crimes, and potentially expand 'hate speech' laws to cover online content.
Free speech concerns and 'stirring up' offences
In its response, the NSS said "a vibrant civil society with robust freedom of expression" is best placed to tackle hate crime and hate speech.
It expressed specific concerns about proposals that would expand NI's 'stirring up hate' offences, which criminalise "threatening, abusive or insulting" forms of expression that are "likely" to stir up hatred or fear against particular protected groups, including those defined by "religious belief".
The DoJ proposes to replace the 'dwelling defence', which protects private speech within homes, with a 'private conversation defence' for the 'stirring up' offenses.
The DoJ said this would make it easier to apply the 'stirring up' laws to online content.
But the NSS said it saw "no compelling case" for removing the dwelling defence. It said the DoJ should instead create additional protections for other private conversations.
The NSS said the proposal to replace the dwelling defence "does not address serious free speech issues" posed by 'stirring up' offences, which would be "exacerbated" if these offences were expanded to cover online material more broadly.
The NSS highlighted the lack of free speech protections for discussions about religion or belief, which are present in counterpart legislation in other UK nations. Similar 'stirring up' offenses were introduced in Scotland's Hate Crime Bill last year, but key amendments added following lobbying by the NSS and other organisations help protect freedom of expression regard religion.
Judge Marrinan said there should be "no express defences for freedom of expression in relation to religion, sexual orientation or any other of the protected characteristics." In 2021 he implied 'abusing religion' should not be legal.
The NSS said the lack of protections for robust criticism or ridicule of religion poses free speech concerns for both religious and non-religious people alike.
Moreover, the law does not require intent for a person to be guilty of a 'stirring up' offence. It is sufficient that "hatred is likely to be stirred up or fear is likely to be aroused" by a person who uses, publishes or distributes "threatening, abusive or insulting" words.
The NSS said this is likely to "encourage censorship and chill free speech" on controversial issues, including the reporting of facts that highlight negative aspects of religion.
It also expressed concerns that the 'stirring up' offences only refer to "religious belief" as a protected group, excluding those who are nonreligious.
NI blasphemy laws
The NSS said it was "disappointed" the proposals did not include abolishing NI's blasphemy laws.
NI is the only jurisdiction in the UK with blasphemy laws. England and Wales repealed their blasphemy laws in 2008. Scotland repealed them last year via the Hate Crime Bill.
The NSS said there is "always the risk" the blasphemy laws may be invoked to silence criticism or ridicule of religion, and that their presence in NI "undermines efforts to repeal blasphemy laws worldwide". Blasphemy laws are widely used to persecute religious minorities, the non-religious and those who speak out against the status quo.
Strategies for combatting hate and sectarianism
The NSS proposed alternative strategies for tackling hate and division. These include reforming NI's education system which "divides young people along harmful, obsolete sectarian lines".
It expressed support for the Integrated Education Bill, which places a statutory duty on the Department of Education to provide further support to the integrated schools sector.
It said any plans to include sectarianism in hate crime legislation should be 'future proofed' to include non-Christian forms of sectarianism, including anti-Ahmadi Muslim hate and caste-based discrimination.
The NSS also said NI needs to crack down on charities promoting extreme and intolerant views. This includes Core Issues Trust, an organisation which is a registered charity in NI despite promoting homophobic "change orientated therapy" for gay people.
NSS comment
NSS chief executive Stephen Evans said: "Northern Ireland already has the most restrictive speech laws in the UK. Plans to further criminalise 'hate speech' online, coupled with the absence of free speech protections for robust discussion around religion, show an alarming disregard for freedom of expression.
"Laws prohibiting the 'stirring up of hatred' should always be accompanied by explicit and unambiguous protections for free speech so that we can all be clear that people are free to say and publish things that others may find offensive or insulting.
"It is also a huge disappointment that the proposals fail to include the abortion of NI's archaic and illiberal blasphemy laws.
"It should never be a criminal offence anywhere to offend religious sensibilities. Unfortunately, the proposed reforms are likely to increase censorship and chill free speech around religion for fear of falling foul of the law."
The consultation closes on Monday.
