The UK Online Safety Act affects freedom of expression.
Its hefty requirements risk undermining the ability of small, non-profit and public-interest websites to operate.
Read the joint briefing from ORG, Big Brother Watch, @eff and Index on Censorship ⬇️
#onlinesafetyact #onlinesafety #osa #freedomofexpression #ageverification #ukpolitics #ukpol
Over 550,000 people signed the petition against the UK Online Safety Act.
This is one of the largest public expressions of concern about a UK digital law in recent history.
We need you to tell your MP why they need to attend the debate on 15 December ⬇️
https://action.openrightsgroup.org/tell-your-mp-attend-debate-online-safety-act
#onlinesafetyact #onlinesafety #osa #freedomofexpression #ageverification #ukpolitics #ukpol
UK Human Rights Report: Current Threats and Government Actions
Monthly report on human rights in the UK
December 2025
Amnesty has for many years, focused its efforts on human rights issues overseas. Recent actions by governments of both persuasions have meant a greater focus on the threats to rights here in the UK. Only this very week, the prime minister and other ministers are in Europe trying to seek agreement to a ‘modernisation’ of the ECHR arguing it is necessary to tackle the immigration ‘crisis’. In this post, we review aspects of our rights which are current or under threat.
Freedom of Expression
The outcome of November’s High Court hearing of the legal challenge mounted by Liberty and Amnesty to the ban on Palestine Action is still pending. Amnesty’s Director of Communications claims that ‘the Government’s ban is a disproportionate misuse of the UK’s terrorism powers and breaches articles 10 and 11 of the European Convention on Human Rights – which protect freedom of expression and freedom of assembly and association.
“We have seen the chilling consequences of this decision across the country – with thousands of arrests in recent months. These mass arrests, and the silencing that organisations and individuals have felt, is a clear and frightening example of how the UK is misusing overly-broad terrorism laws to suppress free speech. Terrorism powers have never been used against what was previously direct-action protest and if this precedent is allowed to stand, it opens up a bleak future for protest rights in the UK.”
Amnesty is seriously concerned at reports of the worsening condition of members of the Filton 24 who are on hunger strike after the damage to two aircraft at Brize Norton last year as protest against the Israeli Elbit Systems’ involvement in Gaza. None of the prisoners have been charged under the Terrorism Act but prosecutors have said both offences had a “terrorism connection”. Amnesty has consistently opposed the use of anti-terrorism powers in these cases claiming they have been used to justify excessively lengthy pre-trial detention and draconian prison conditions.
Arrest of Britons overseas
Amnesty International is urging the UK Government to develop a clear and consistent approach to the unjust imprisonment of British people overseas, including a new strategy that should include as a minimum:
The UK Government’s failures on this issue, highlighted in a recent BBC drama and documentary on the case of Nazanin Zaghari Ratcliffe, continue today. British nationals, including Ahmed al-Doush, are not receiving the level of diplomatic support required to secure their release. Ahmed was arrested while on a family holiday in Saudi Arabia in 2024 for social media posts. The Manchester-based father of four was convicted under terrorism legislation and sentenced to 10 years in prison, later reduced to eight.
The UK Government has failed to advocate for Ahmed, not taking a position on his case, despite being provided by information indicating that his detention is a freedom of expression case. Amnesty International continue to campaign so that Ahmed can be reunited with his family and urges the UK Government to advocate for his release if he is being held solely for exercising his right to freedom of expression.
Use of Facial Recognition by police
A Government consultation into police use of facial recognition is set to launch imminently.
Liberty has been calling on the Government to follow the example of other countries which have introduced laws around police use of facial recognition technology – and has urged Ministers and police forces to stop expanding its use until those laws are in place. Alarm has been raised at the finding that faces of children are included on the records of some police forces.
Liberty wants the inclusion of the following safeguards:
Change declared to European Convention on Human Rights
After the UK recently joined Denmark and Italy in pressing for a rethink of aspects of the European Convention on Human Rights (ECHR), especially in relation to migration law, the Council have now taken the first steps to reshape how European courts interpret human rights. Amid fierce debate over the balance between ECHR and national migration controls, ministers made a joint declaration which will now task 46 foreign ministers with drafting a political declaration to be adopted at the next meeting in May 2026.
The Council oversees the ECHR while its court enforces those rights across 46 member states including all 27 EC countries. Greater national flexibility is demanded in response to human smuggling, border security and the expulsion of offenders.
Sir Keir Starmer and other heads of state have restated that, while wishing to see some ‘modernisation’ of the Convention, there is no intention of abolishing it. The move is seen as a response to protest from far-right groups across Europe and ‘uncontrolled’ immigration and the perception that the right to family life inhibits states from deporting convicted foreign criminals.
Human rights groups are raising concerns at the dilution of the original Declaration of Human Rights as non-negotiable, universal and inclusive of all minorities.
#britonsOverseas #echr #elbitSystems #facialRecognition #freedomOfExpression #humanRights #liberty #terrorism
Belarus: Where Independent Work is Branded Extremism
PEN Belarus launched a new website to highlight work that is being censored in their country, highlighting a growing campaign against free expression.
https://publishingperspectives.com/2025/12/belarus-where-independent-work-is-branded-extremism/
#Belarus #BookBans #DmitriStrotsev #FreedomofExpression #NadiaKandrusevich
From dodgy age verification to censorship, the UK Online Safety Act has gone wrong.
That's why over 500k people have told the government to think again.
MPs will debate this petition on 15 December.
Tell your MP to turn up for our digital rights ⬇️
https://action.openrightsgroup.org/tell-your-mp-attend-debate-online-safety-act
#onlinesafetyact #onlinesafety #osa #censorship #freedomofexpression #ukpolitics #ukpol #ageverification
The UK Online Safety Act is already producing harmful unintended consequences.
ORG urges MPs to support a more balanced, evidence-based and rights-respecting approach that protects children without harming freedom of expression, privacy or the existence of small sites.
Read our briefing ⬇️
#onlinesafetyact #onlinesafety #osa #censorship #freedomofexpression #ukpolitics #ukpol #ageverification
PEN International Announces Literary Auction to Support Work
Celebrated international writers donate items to first PEN International Literary Auction to support the protection of freedom of expression and speech.
https://publishingperspectives.com/2025/12/pen-international-announces-literary-auction-to-support-work/
#AliSmith #AnthonyDoerr #ElifShafak #FreedomofExpression #FreedomofSpeech
Türkiye: Authorities should ensure the implementation of #HumanRights standards on #FreedomofExpression, peaceful assembly and association
https://www.coe.int/en/web/commissioner/-/t%C3%BCrkiye-authorities-should-ensure-the-implementation-of-human-rights-standards-on-freedom-of-expression-peaceful-assembly-and-association
A dozen #FBI agents fired this year for having knelt during a #RacialJustice #protest in 2020 sued the bureau’s director, #KashPatel, & the #Trump admin on Monday, arguing that they had been unjustly punished for de-escalating a potentially dangerous situation.
The suit involves one of the largest groups of former law enforcement officials to challenge the Trump admin in court over its continuing purge of personnel at the #DOJ & FBI.
A Dozen #FBI Agents Sue #KashPatel After Being Fired Over Kneeling at #Protest
A 5-year-old photo of agents kneeling at a DC protest after #GeorgeFloyd’s murder led to the firing of about 16 agents.
#Trump #DOJ #law #FirstAmendment #FreedomOfExpression #FreeSpeech
https://www.nytimes.com/2025/12/08/us/politics/kash-patel-fbi-lawsuit-george-floyd-protest.html?smid=nytcore-ios-share
Prevent ≠ safeguarding. It's about surveillance.
The UK ban on Palestine Action and a vague interpretation of 'extremism' has meant that people engaging in the Palestinian solidarity movement have been swept up into the Prevent Duty.
We must not criminalise dissent!
https://www.theguardian.com/uk-news/2025/nov/23/palestine-action-ban-home-office-prevent-scheme
#prevent #preventduty #surveillance #ukpolitics #ukpol #freespeech #freedomofexpression #Palestine #PalestineAction
https://unharnessed.substack.com/p/the-dirt-under-the-fingernails-of
#freedom #humanrights #socialjustice #freedomofspeech
#Democracy
#HumanRights
#FreeSpeechCrisis
#Censorship2025
#CivilLiberties
#FreedomOfExpression
#writingcommunity
https://www.instagram.com/peninternational?igsh=Z2J1NGVmZGlocnly
PEN International
Representing over 200,000 writers worldwide, fighting for #freedomofexpression
Rory Branker - Day of the Imprisoned Writer 2025 Promoting Literature & Defending Freedom of Expression Worldwide
*Yalqun Rozi (China – Xinjiang)
Writer, Journalist, Editor, Publisher, Literary Critic
Imprisoned
*Mzia Amaglobeli (Georgia) #Journalist Imprisoned
*Mohamed Tadjadit (Algeria)
Poet, activist
Imprisoned
Alberta moves to make quackery great again while protecting egregiously unprofessional behaviour
Believe in ordinary people, grow civic spaces
Texas teachers are being forced to deadname transgender students under a new state law
https://fed.brid.gy/r/https://www.advocate.com/politics/texas-teachers-deadname-transgender-students
