Protesters plan 'Innocence of Muslims' protest outside parliament
The British response to the anti-Islamic film 'Innocence of Muslims' will ratchet up a gear this weekend, when thousands of demonstrators are expected to protest outside parliament.
The short amateur movie, which attacks the Prophet Mohammed, has sparked riots in cities across the world.
So far Britain has been largely unaffected by the outrage, but organisers expected 4,000 demonstrators to congregate outside parliament tomorrow to announce a 'strategy' in response to the film.
Campaigners are using the row to push for a law protecting religions from "abuse".
While Britain has escaped relatively unscathed, there is still the potential for protests against the film to become controversial in themselves.
In 2006, a protest against a Danish newspaper which published cartoons of the Prophet Mohammed saw demonstrators carry placards calling for those who insulted the figurehead to be killed.
The demo prompted a change in the law to allow prosecutions of those holding the placards, in a move which discomforted civil liberties advocates.
Campaigners' demands for a law against "abuse" of religion is not unthinkable. New Labour tried to get a law banning the hatred of religion onto the statute book but that section of the racial and religious hatred bill was voted down by MPs.
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Tags:
- civil liberties ,
- free speech ,
- islam ,
- religion
