Comedian concerned at measures to outlaw incitement of religious hatred

Victor

From The Guardian newspaper.

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Comedians reassured on new laws

Government says measures to outlaw incitement of religious hatred will not lead to prosecution for sketches or jokes

Stephen Bates, religious affairs correspondent
Thursday October 18, 2001
The Guardian

Downing Street summoned up its full powers of irony yesterday to dismiss the fears of the comedian Rowan Atkinson that the government's planned introduction of crisis measures to outlaw incitement to religious hatred would lead to the prosecution of comics satirising religion.

The former star of Mr Bean and Not the Nine O'Clock News wrote to the Times yesterday to say he was "aghast" at proposals that he thought might make it illegal to ridicule religion or lampoon religious figures.

"Laws governing highly subjective or moral issues tend to drag a very fine net and some of the most basic freedoms of speech and expression can get caught up in it. Comedy takes no prisoners," he wrote.

"It is the reaction of the audience that should decide the appropriateness of a joke, not the law of the land. The idea that you could be prosecuted for the telling of [jokes] is quite fantastic."

He feared that a sketch from Not the Nine O'Clock News showing Muslims at prayer in a mosque, simultaneously bowing low to the ground with the voiceover: "And the search goes on for the Ayatollah Khomeini's contact lens," might provoke prosecution.

Atheists and humanists such as the Guardian columnist Polly Toynbee have also expressed concern that legislation might be used to stifle religious debate or criticism of religious practices and beliefs.

The proposals announced by David Blunkett, the home secretary, in the Commons on Monday would make it a criminal offence to incite religious hatred and would extend the penalty for stirring up racial hatred - on the statute book for 36 years - from two to seven years' imprisonment.

Mr Blunkett told MPs: "Racists, bigots and hotheads, as well as those associating with terrorists, are prepared to use the opportunity to stir up hate.

"None of the measures is intended to stifle free speech, dialogue or debate. Fair comment is not at risk, only the incitement to hate."

He added in answer to a question: "What we are dealing with is hatred. I shall examine carefully the question of atheists and - I say this wryly - consider whether unpleasant and unhelpful comments about atheists could be included."

Some lawyers are concerned that any legislation might be unworkable, especially with freedom of speech being protected under the Human Rights Act and particularly because the government is planning to steer clear of defining what a religion is and which ones might qualify.

Groups whose religion also has an ethnic element, such as Sikhs and Jews, have been protected by the racial legislation, but not Christians - whose views have theoretically been protected by rarely invoked and antiquated blasphemy legislation - or Muslims.

Home Office sources yesterday pointed out that any prosecution under new legislation would have to be sanctioned by the attorney general or director of public prosecutions and could not be initiated privately, and that the operative words were "incitement to hatred".

Responding to Atkinson's fears that the law might outlaw the 1979 Monty Python film The Life of Brian - criticised by some outraged Christians at the time - a Downing Street spokesman replied: "We are able to tell the difference between comic sketches and comedy and the people who are trying to whip up and incite religious hatred."

The lawyer Geoffrey Bindman told Radio 4's Today programme: "There has been a law against incitement to racial hatred since 1965 and as far as I know no comedian has ever been prosecuted although there have been some pretty racist comedians."

A spokesman for the Church of England said: "We are in favour of laughter, so long as it is only laughter. Comedy does not incite violence."

The impressionist Rory Bremner said: "I think if there is a God it's very important that he has a sense of humour - otherwise you are in for a very miserable afterlife."