Hamit Coskun had been convicted under the UK's Public Order Act 1986
Hamit Coskun has won his appeal against his conviction under the UK’s Public Order Act 1986 after he burned a Qur’an outside the Turkish consulate, reported the Law Society Gazette.
Coskun’s action was not regarded as disorderly or done before the hearing or sight of someone who was likely to be harassed, alarmed, or distressed, ruled Southwark Crown court justice Joel Bennathan and magistrates Guest and Graves.
In 2022, Coskun had sought asylum and refugee status in the UK. He went to the Turkish consulate in London bearing a copy of the Qur’an and shouted while he lit the book on fire.
Coskun was chased into the road by a knife-wielding man from a nearby building; the man spat and kicked Coskun after the latter fell. Coskun told police who arrived on the scene that he had been exercising his right to protest.
Coskun was convicted for using threatening or abusive words of behaviour or disorderly behaviour within the sight of a person likely to be caused harassment, alarm, or distress. The UK’s National Secular Society called the conviction “a form of modern blasphemy law,” per a statement published by the Gazette.
Bennathan pointed out in a statement published by the Gazette that there was “no offence of blasphemy in our law.”
“Burning a Koran [sic] may be an act that many Muslims find desperately upsetting and offensive. The criminal law, however, is not a mechanism that seeks to avoid people being upset, even grievously upset. The right to freedom of expression, if it is a right worth having, must include the right to express views that offend, shock or disturb,” the judge said in a statement published by the Gazette.
The decision noted that Coskun was on his own during the short incident, which lasted a few minutes. Moreover, his action was not targeted at one individual. The reaction of bystanders was not “determinative,” the ruling indicated.
“The decision reaffirms the vital principle that free speech protects the right to offend, shock, or disturb – even when it challenges deeply held religious beliefs. England and Wales rightly abolished its blasphemy laws more than a decade ago,” said Stephen Evans, National Secular Society chief executive, in a statement published by the Gazette. “This ruling helps ensure they are not reintroduced by stealth under the guise of public order, and that our commitment to free speech remains strong.”
