The UK now has political prisoners. Are you cool about that? Because I most certainly am not. Especially now, we learn that one such victim of the state, a 61-year-old grandfather, has tragically died in jail.
Just imagine the fuss, had Peter Lynch perished in a Russian gulag! Think how Labour MPs would moralise about human rights and the fundamental freedom to demonstrate, and indeed, to hold stupid or even unpalatable views?
Because when he made the very foolish decision to take part in this summer’s riots, joining an ugly protest outside an asylum seeker hotel in Rotherham, Peter Lynch – a man with no apparent criminal record – did not physically hurt anyone. He did not set anything on fire; or hurl any objects. He did not cause thousands of pounds worth of criminal damage. He was just a bit of an idiot.
Apparently, he called the police “scum” and directed a few foul remarks at occupants of the migrant hotel, labelling them “child killers” and “rapists.” Unpleasant? Sure! Unjustified? That too. I don’t condone what he said for one second. Nor am I saying that the scenes outside that hotel were anything other than reprehensible. The protest was ugly, and it was violent (though he himself was not attacking anyone.)
But did Lynch – who pled guilty to violent disorder - deserve to be sentenced to almost three years? Of course not! His sentence was wildly disproportionate.
How can it possibly have been justified when this government is busy releasing literally thousands of hardened criminals with very real victims? Relative to the treatment of actual paedophiles, who regularly get away with community service for the most disgusting of crimes – offences that have a devastating and life-long impact on little children – Lynch’s sentence was completely out of line.
Here’s what happened: confronted with a law and order crisis, triggered by widespread public fury over all manner of issues, a panicking Prime Minister, decided to make an example of a few individuals. In a brazen and totally misleading attempt to present deep-seated public concerns as the preserve of a few “far-right thugs,” Sir Keir Starmer used the machinery of the state to ruin the lives of a small number of very carefully selected individuals who in the heat of the moment, temporarily took leave of their senses.
They include Lucy Connolly, a childminder and wife of a Tory councillor, who in a rush of blood to the head, posted some stupid things on social media about burning down migrant hotels. Sure, she also called for mass deportations - but plenty of quite respectable people share that sentiment.
Meanwhile, Bernie Spofforth, a multimillionaire businesswoman who briefly posted misleading information about the Southport attacker before apologising and deleting her Tweet, was thrown in a police cell for 36 hours.
This stuff is insane, and it is ill-befitting of a civilized country. We are supposed to be a modern democracy, not Russia, China or any other kind of brutal dictatorship!
The death of Peter Lynch, the first political prisoner in the UK to die in custody, is a stain on our country. It utterly shames this government.
We no longer have a democracy. Our 'freedoms' are being eroded. We no longer have freedom of speech, we cannot longer pray silently on the street without being arrested. Son we will lose our freedom of movement and of choice. If you question the government you are declared 'far right' . We need a better way forward