I flew all the way from Edmonton, Canada to London just to cover Tommy Robinson’s court hearing today. There were a handful of citizen journalists there like me, but I didn’t see any mainstream media there. Why?

Tommy is a journalist, a film-maker and a best-selling author. Just because the establishment doesn’t agree with his politics doesn’t mean he isn’t those things. In fact, his documentary films are viewed tens of millions of times — a much larger audience than even the BBC state broadcaster gets.

So you’d think that the BBC, the Guardian and all the rest of them would have been in court today. Because the subject of today’s hearing was the police trying to use the Terrorism Act to search through Tommy’s cell phone without a search warrant.

It’s an outrageous violation of Tommy’s privacy. But more to the point, it’s a violation of his freedom of the press. Tommy’s cellphone has confidential legal discussions with his lawyers — seizing his phone is tantamount to spying on him when he meets with his lawyers.

Maybe journalists don’t care about that, but you’d think they’d care about a journalist’s notes and confidential sources being seized by police. Could you imagine if the police seized the cell phone of Piers Morgan or Andrew Neil without a search warrant? And claimed that the Terrorism Act let them do it?

The Terrorism Act does indeed let police seize phones without a search warrant — if they’re going after terrorists! But not even Tommy’s worst critics would claim he’s a terrorist. Even the police who arrested him under the Terrorism Act told him, as they arrested him, that they knew he wasn’t a terrorist. They were just weaponizing that law against him, so they could read his private conversations.

Some of those private conversations, by the way, include victims of Islamic rape gangs. These are young British women and girls who have been victimized twice: first by rapists, and second by authorities who refuse to stop the rapists, and indeed have often tried to cover up the crimes.

On many occasions, the police themselves have compromised the safety of these girls. These girls spoke to Tommy on the understanding that their conversations would be private. Now the police are reading them, like some creepy voyeurs. And if history is anything to go by, they’ll likely reveal the private identities of these girls, putting them in danger again.

That’s what this court hearing today was about: the police willfully and gleefully abusing the Terrorism Act to go after a peaceful political journalist that happens to be a critic of the regime. If only they’d go after real terrorists this way. Like I say: where were the rest of Britain’s journalists? Where were the free speech groups, where was the National Union of Journalists?

They claim to be for freedom of the press. But only for their friends. If someone dares to disagree with them, they’re happy for him to be jailed and have his private records seized.

That’s why I flew all the way from Canada to report from the hearing today. And that’s why Rebel News is crowdfunding the cost of Tommy’s lawyers. Even though today’s hearing was brief, the legal bill will cost thousands of pounds. If you can help defray that cost, please do, by clicking here, or visiting www.SaveTommy.com.

Please donate to support our independent reporting of Tommy Robinson!

In the UK, deviating from the government’s approved narrative can now lead to prison terms, a chilling reality that threatens to silence dissent and reinforce a two-tier justice system. If they can jail Tommy Robinson for speaking out, no citizen is truly safe from retribution for criticizing government agendas. With Tommy banned from most platforms where he could defend himself, the mainstream media cannot be trusted to fairly represent his story. Rebel News believes the world must witness the truth about Tommy Robinson and understand the broader implications of his struggle. If you share our mission, please stand with Rebel News and help us cover economy-class airfare and budget accommodations in London for Rebel News to report on Tommy’s trials firsthand.

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