Police in Belgium have arrested a UK human rights activist for holding up a sign which challenged transgender ideology.
Lois McLatchie Miller was arrested in Brussel for wearing a billboard which read: Children are never born in the wrong body.”
She was detained alongside Canadian child protection advocate Chris Elston, who is known as “Billboard Chris”, after they were surrounded by an angry mob.
In spite of the pair’s peaceful conduct, police arrested Ms McLatchie Miller and Billboard Chris rather than address the aggression of the crowd.
They were taken to police stations, ordered to remove their clothes and detained for several hours before they were finally released without charge.
Paul Coleman, executive director of ADF International, said: “The Belgian authorities not only failed to uphold the fundamental right to speak freely, they turned the power of the state against those who were peacefully exercising their rights at the behest of a mob.
“This is the type of authoritarianism we challenge in other parts of the world, and it’s deeply disturbing to see it here in the very heart of Europe.
“While we are grateful our colleague has been safely released, we are deeply concerned by her treatment at the hands of the police in Brussels.”
He added: “We will not stand by while peaceful citizens are criminalised for speaking out on vital issues – especially when it’s the safety and wellbeing of children at stake.”
The arrests of the pair came a year after a Brussels mayor attempted to shut down the National Conservatism Conference, citing ideological disagreement with the speakers.
ADF International intervened then with emergency legal action that forced the restoration of the event.
As a legal organisation, ADF International is now assessing all legal options to uphold free speech rights in Belgium.
<em>(Photos courtesy of ADF International)</em>
