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Should Flag Desecration Be Illegal in the United Kingdom?

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Should Flag Desecration Be Illegal?

Should it be illegal to desecrate/burn the British flag? In the USA, people have attempted to pass a constitutional amendment that would make it illegal. When this topic last went to vote, in 2006, it lost by just one vote. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Flag_Desecration_Amendment

What do you think? Is the British flag the visual embodiment of what it means to be British, and any attempts to desecrate it be treated as a criminal matter? Is it so insulting and disrespectful, not to mention politically charged when used by groups such as Islamic extremists, that it should not be tolerated under British law? Or, on the contrary, does freedom of expression stretch to flag desecration? Would it be contradictory to the values that the flag represents to make desecrating it illegal?

This is probably more of a relevant issue in the USA, where the flag is more revered and widely displayed, but I still think we can have this debate with the context of the UK.

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Reply 1

lucho22

It's illegal in Argentina - and so it should be. It's borderline treason...

Reply 2

psiren

Making a false idol out of an inanimate object is the real problem here
Burning it is simply an expression of free speech

Reply 3

carrotboy

imo its not really an important issue, the time used can be spent on creating better, more relevant laws

Reply 4

numb3rb0y

Start placing limits on freedom of expression and it's not really freedom of expression anymore, is it?

Reply 5

eulerwaswrong

there are far worse things that are being done atm which arent against the law. flag desecration is the least of our worries.

anybody seen futurama on here?

Reply 6

Psyk

No it shouldn't be illegal. Provided it's done with proper health and safety precautions in place I see it as a perfectly acceptable form of peaceful protest.

Reply 7

Slumpy

Overground

Or, on the contrary, does freedom of expression stretch to flag desecration? Would it be contradictory to the values that the flag represents to make desecrating it illegal?

I agree with this.
Also, who cares anyway? It's a bit of cloth:P

Reply 8

L i b

If it is done in such a way as to breach the peace then yes, it should be - and indeed already is.

However otherwise, no. A bit of fabric is not sacred. That said, I find the practice very distasteful.

Reply 9

J-E-N-O-V-A

Yes, why not? Anybody stupid enough to enter a country and publicly burn that country's flag deserves the lash.

It's like being a guest in somebody's house for a week and ******** on their pet dog. YOU DON'T DO IT, often.

Reply 10

numb3rb0y

J-E-N-O-V-A

Um... what about people born here?

Edit - I can see that being disrespectful to a country you chose to emigrate to is a bit stupid, but I was born in Britain, it's not as if I had a choice in the matter. I don't think I would ever burn a flag (what's the point? It's too cliché to really be a spectacle nowadays) but I don't think there's anything wrong with it.

Reply 11

J-E-N-O-V-A

numb3rb0y

Um... what about people born here?

They can get out. Like I will when I can afford to, unless we sort our country out by then.

We shouldn't get special treatment

Reply 12

SamTheMan

Overground

This is probably more of a relevant issue in the USA, where the flag is more revered and widely displayed, but I still think we can have this debate with the context of the UK.

Well the UK doesn't have the strong national identity that the US does. Whether you're from North Dakota or New Mexico you still revere the same flag. The same cannot be said for the UK.
We don't even have a national day (probably the only State without one), the national anthem isn't really widely recognised and forget about having a flag recognised.
The Scots, the Welsh and the English seem far more attached to their own flags (mainly due to football and rugby unfortunately, in the case of England at least).

Reply 13

L i b

SamTheMan

I'm not sure if we live in the same country here.

We do have a national day - the Queen's Birthday. Yes, it isn't widely celebrated, but flags are flown and events are scheduled, traditions (such as Trooping the Colour, the Birthday Honours etc) are observed.

As for the flags comment, just because different flags are used for sporting events doesn't mean we don't all recognise the same flag of our country. The Union Jack is probably one of the best known and most used flags on earth. It has become, even in modern times, a style icon.

The national anthem not recognised? It is probably the most recognisable national anthem on earth. It is well known and - in my experience - fairly widely used.

Reply 14

Bagration

Absolutely not.

Dissent is the highest form of patriotism.

Reply 15

littleshambles

Flag desecration shouldn't be illegal anywhere.

Unless someone else owns the flag, in which case it's criminal damage.

Freedom of speech and expression, maaaaaan.

Reply 16

J-E-N-O-V-A

Bagration

Absolutely not.

Dissent is the highest form of treason.

Surely burning a flag is the highest form of dissent?

Reply 17

Bagration

Woooh - **** - I put treason instead of Patriotism!

Reply 18

Ili

L i b

The national anthem not recognised? It is probably the most recognisable national anthem on earth. It is well known and - in my experience - fairly widely used.