Category Archives: Press Freedom

Photographer Sentenced to Two Years in Burmese Prison

By Brad Leclerc | Published November 17, 2008

From Reporters Without Borders…

Reporters Without Borders and the Burma Media Association are outraged by the two-year sentence passed today on Ein Khaing Oo, a 24-year-old woman journalist employed by the weekly Ecovision Journal, for taking photos of Cyclone Nargis victims. She was arrest in Rangoon last June.
“This unjust sentence comes amid a wave of unprecedented [...]

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UK Photographers – Have You Got Your Photography License?

By Chris Garrett | Published November 3, 2008

No? You haven’t got your photography license?
Oh dear.
Then Middlesborough police want a word with you …

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You May Not be Labeled a Terrorist After All

By Brad Leclerc | Published October 29, 2008

I’m sure at least some of you remember the crazy “anti terror” campaign posters around the UK a while back (pictured below). Well the backlash from that bizarre, and more than a little creepy, event has finally starting catching up with them it seems.

According to ‘Amateur Photographer‘, the UK government is set to release a [...]

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Bus Spotter = Terrorist

By Chris Garrett | Published June 24, 2008

Boing Boing reports of another unfortunate photographer having to give up because of the war on public photography:
A Gloucester bus-spotter (“omnibologist”) is being forced to abandon his 40-year-old hobby of snapping pictures of busses and trams because security kooks keep calling him a terrorist and even a pedophile.
The sad thing is none of us should [...]

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You Can’t Film Here, Give Me Your ID

By Chris Garrett | Published June 9, 2008

Regardless of the law, it seems more and more photographers and film makers are going to get stopped and hassled for photography in public places. Check out this excellent video.

You Can’t Picture This // Current

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More on Photographers as Terror Suspects

By Chris Garrett | Published April 30, 2008

Damian might want to swap his Sigma 500mm for something more inconspicuous. It seems law enforcement around the world are on the lookout for anyone taking photographs.
Tourist or Terrorist?
Many would assume the men are tourists taking in the city’s sights, but law enforcement officials say they could be terrorists staking out possible targets.
The [...]

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Another Victory in the UK War on Photography

By Chris Garrett | Published April 22, 2008

Street photography is safe and legal in a public, outdoor space in the UK, right? Right? Um … check out this tale of brave and intelligent security guarding on Flickr
Two security guards from the nearby shopping center THE MALL came running over, we were surrounded by six hostile and aggressive security guards. They [...]

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Top Ten Things NOT Safe To Photograph

By Chris Garrett | Published September 22, 2006

Wow did this guy have a stroke of bad luck. Fotolia CEO Detained by Police for Taking Pictures

Early afternoon in Paris today, Fotolia CEO Thibaud Elziere was out for a walk and testing the new Nikon D80 digital camera. However, one image would change the rest of his day.

Walking down the Rue Vaneau in Paris, Thibaud captured an image of a CCTV camera [...] Within minutes, Thibaud was approached by the French Police and detained for the better part of the day.

Unknown to Thibaud he had captured the CCTV camera of the French Prime Minister’s personal residence and caused a great security concern. According to Thibaud, there were no signs or warnings about photography in the area. A simple click and his day was ruined.

The police questioned him about what he was doing in the area, if he had any terrorism connections, about his work, and why he would want to take a picture of a CCTV camera. Thibaud relates that his first answer of “taking pictures for fun” did not satisfy them. He soon outlined his connection with Fotolia and testing the camera. After 8 hours of questioning and background checks, they returned his camera and escorted him home.

It seems from what I read in the article this could have happened to any one of us. You take a picture of a building, for whatever reason, next thing you know you are being questioned by policemen about if you have any terrorist connections. What can you do, stop taking pictures of houses?

We are increasingly being warned not to take pictures of anything (or anyone) which might be construed by the paranoid as a terrorist threat but how was he supposed to know this was the home of someone important without any signs or notices. Just CCTV present does not necessarily imply that the resident is someone of national or defense importance, the guy might have an expensive car etc.

So now we have a new entry in the top ten things you can’t safely photograph

  1. Underground/Tube/Buses
  2. Refineries or other Industrial plant
  3. Police
  4. Government buildings
  5. Bridges
  6. Tunnels
  7. Shopping malls
  8. Airports
  9. Office Buildings
  10. Houses

Have I missed any?

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Pulitzer Winning AP Photographer Detained by US Without Hearing or Charges

By Chris Garrett | Published September 21, 2006

Associated Press says one of their photographers has been detained for five months by the US military without hearing or charges. The photographer was part of a team that won a Pulitzer last year.

More at Wired News

The U.S. military in Iraq has imprisoned an Associated Press photographer for five months, accusing him of being a security threat but never filing charges or permitting a public hearing.

Military officials said Bilal Hussein, an Iraqi citizen, was being held for “imperative reasons of security” under United Nations resolutions. AP executives said the news cooperative’s review of Hussein’s work did not find anything to indicate inappropriate contact with insurgents, and any evidence against him should be brought to the Iraqi criminal justice system.

Hussein, 35, is a native of Fallujah who began work for the AP in September 2004. He photographed events in Fallujah and Ramadi until he was detained on April 12 of this year.

“We want the rule of law to prevail. He either needs to be charged or released. Indefinite detention is not acceptable,” said Tom Curley, AP’s president and chief executive officer.

Source:Richard’s Notes

Obviously there are two sides to this story but you would have thought if there was any evidence against this chap then something would have been done in those 5 months. It is a sorry time when just the accusation of “terrorism” is enough to lock someone up for months on end without even a passing wiff of any legal movement.

It seems the allegations are about his associations. I knew a policeman who had informants in the criminal underbelly of the city where he worked. There are also long histories of journalists getting friendly with criminals to uncover big stories. Could be this is the case here. Could also be of course that the AP were duped and he really is a terrorist, they do say they knew very little of him before working with the guy.

Either way though, just an allegation really ought to not be enough?

With any big story like Iraq it is important to get good, accurate reporting and images that aim to tell as true a story as possible. Actions like this could cause a chilling effect on photographers getting involved.

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The War on Photographers

By Chris Garrett | Published August 1, 2006

PopPhoto has a great article on photographers falling foul of the police and security guards for taking pictures called The War on Photographers

amateur and professional photographers all over the country are being stopped and harassed with no legal basis. As digital cameras proliferate wildly, so do attempts to restrict what you can shoot and how you can use the picture. And not all attempts to quash photography have to do with national security concerns. Some invoke copyright and trademark protection, others the privacy both of celebrities and ordinary people. But you can fight back. Knowing your rights and restrictions as a photographer is a good first step. When cases reach the point of legal proceedings, they’re usually settled in the photographer’s favor, according to lawyers who have represented photographers in court. However, sometimes your own understanding of the law isn’t enough. According to his suit, when Jim McKinniss told the police officers that he was on public property and thought it was legal to photograph, “One of the officers asked if [I] had heard about September 11 and asserted that, since the terrorist attacks…it was illegal to photograph bridges, airports, and refineries.”

This is a crock. There’s no law in California or anywhere else in the U.S. that prohibits shooting such places from a public locale. You can even photograph inside airports, if you don’t point your camera at security checkpoints.

“These laws just don’t exist,” explains McKinniss’s attorney, Robert Myers, who took his case pro bono. “A law that attempts to prohibit photography from places open to the general public would be unconstitutional.”

The piece features some great, quite scary, stories plus some tips on how to handle the situation if it ever happens to you.

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