{"id":326575,"date":"2025-02-19T12:53:20","date_gmt":"2025-02-19T18:53:20","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.liveaction.org\/news\/?p=326575"},"modified":"2025-03-02T21:51:00","modified_gmt":"2025-03-03T03:51:00","slug":"pro-life-speech-prayer-threat-europe-uk","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/archive.liveaction.org\/news\/pro-life-speech-prayer-threat-europe-uk\/","title":{"rendered":"Are pro-life speech and prayer under threat in Europe and the UK?"},"content":{"rendered":"
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Last year, lawmakers in Scotland passed<\/a> one of the most extreme buffer zone laws in the world \u2014 one that allegedly includes warnings that praying, even inside a resident’s own home, could now be illegal.<\/p>\n

The \u201cAbortion Services (Safe Access Zones)\u201d legislation passed by a 118-to-one vote last June, and banned all pro-life activity within a minimum<\/em> of a 200-meter space of a hospital or abortion facility. The ban includes signs and displays, even on private property, and the extreme legislation quickly came under criticism.<\/p>\n

“MSPs have trampled on at least four European Convention of Human Rights and have introduced thought crime into Scottish society,” Michael Robinson, general secretary of the Society for the Protection of Unborn Children (SPUC), said, adding, “This is indeed a dark day in Scotland\u2019s history.”<\/p>\n

A chill to free speech… and a chilling warning<\/strong><\/h3>\n

The law fully came into force in September<\/a> 2024, and residents seemingly received a chilling warning that same month. According to a tweet from Kristan Hawkins, residents who live near an abortion facility were sent a letter warning them that praying, even inside their own homes, could be illegal.<\/p>\n

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Here is the letter the government of Scotland sent to residents who lived near an abortion facility, warning them that praying INSIDE their home could violate their law and how to report neighbors they thought were violating it.<\/p>\n

This was sent in September of 2024!<\/p>\n

Thank\u2026 pic.twitter.com\/sOhNHVdNc3<\/a><\/p>\n

\u2014 Kristan Hawkins (@KristanHawkins) February 15, 2025<\/a><\/p><\/blockquote>\n