A women in Petrer, Spain was fined 800 Euros ($885) on Monday for taking a photograph of a police car parked in a handicap spot and posting it temporarily to her Facebook page. The Citizens' Security Law, which went into effect in July, aims to protect the safety of police and their families. Among many other infractions, it outlaws burning the national flag, protesting outside of parliament buildings, and distributing photographs of police officers that could threaten their operations. Many opponents also argue the law prohibits free speech. The officers claimed they were parked in the handicap spot because they were responding to a report of vandalism which they say was an emergency and that the photograph attacked their honor.
When the Citizens' Security Law went into effect in July, thousands gathered across Spain to protest. In February, the UN Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR) urged Spanish authorities to reject the law. Earlier that month, Amnesty International warned that separate proposed anti-terrorism measures would violate citizen's rights. Protesters also gathered to oppose the law when it was being considered in December.
(Published by Jurist – August 19, 2015)