These laws criminalize causing anxiety by sending messages that are ‘dangerously offensive’ or by providing content o ‘indecent, obscene or threatening nature’ via an electronic communications network.Only in 2023, officers from 37 police units made 12 183 arrests – about 33 per day.
The Times reports that this means an increase of 58% compared to 2019 erstwhile 7734 arrests were reported.At the same time, government data show that the number of convictions and convictions dropped by almost half.
While any cases were resolved through out-of-court settlements, the most commonly cited reason was ‘evidence difficulties’, Especially erstwhile the victims refused to continue.Statistics sparked public outrage and civilian rights groups accused authorities of over-control of the net and questioning freedom of speech by utilizing ‘unclear’ communication rules.The Times drew attention to the case of Maxie Allen and Rosalind Levine, who were arrested on January 29 after expressing concerns in a private group of parents on WhatsApp about the recruitment process for their daughter's school.
Six uniformed officers arrived at their house, detained them in front of their youngest child, and took them to the police station.The couple were questioned for harassment, malicious communication and nuisance in the school after the school accused them ‘letting suspicions’ as president of the Supervisory Board.
They were fingerprinted, searched, and locked in a cell for 8 hours.“It was hard for me to get the impression that I was surviving in a police state” – said Allen in an interview with the regular Mail, adding that the messages did not contain ‘no offensive language or threats’But they were just "a small sarcastic."
Translated by Google Translator
source:https://www.rt.com/news/615320-12000-brits-arrested-social-media-posts/
