Police spying meeting increasing resistance
Published May 20th, 2008First came FIT… the presence of Police Forward Intelligence Teams at football match crowds and the like.
Armed with cameras they maintained a high-profile presence to allegedly “deter” acts of hooliganism etc.
But somehow their remit then became extended such that they began to monitor protests, demonstrations, and so forth.
So then came fitwatch… a response on the part of political activists to such unwarranted encroachments on individual freedom of movement, association, and privacy.
More recently FIT and other police surveillance-type units have even been spotted outside public meetings attended by those wishing to engage with social, political, and environmental issues. Photographing and making notes about attendees willy-nilly.
There can be little doubt that at the very least this behaviour on the part of the police is intimidatory, and possibly could even be construed as harassment.
And equally there can be little doubt that the police must be only too well aware of how provocative such tactics are, especially to folk living in a supposedly “free” and “democratic” society.
And now the latest development… apparently FIT are no longer content to photograph and document political activists and the socially concerned. Oh no. Now they’re even targetting mainstream media photographers!
Which is of course meeting with some resistance. And at long last this dubious police practise (which should have been reined in long ago) is starting to be challenged in the courts.
Quite right too!
Check out these links…
Police ’spying’ powers challenged
Police in court over pictures at arms protest
Political Response to Police Surveillance of Journalists
And for a brief overview of surveillance in general see this interesting article on the BBC News website…
Written by fotdmike - Visit Website
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