Tommy Robinson: I don't care if I incite fear of Muslims
The far-right activist says: "If I
believe I'm morally right then I'm not bothered about what your law says.
Tommy Robinson has told Sky News he does not
care whether his message "incites fear" of Muslims as long as it
"prevents children from getting raped".
The English Defence League founder spoke about
being found guilty of contempt of court in May last year for videoing and
expressing views about suspects in a sexual grooming case in Canterbury.
He said: "If I believe I'm morally right
then I'm not bothered about what your law says."
The right-wing activist, whose real name is
Stephen Yaxley-Lennon, says he wanted to warn people about the men on trial in
Canterbury because they were on bail and he believed still posed a threat.
Image:Robinson told Sky News he does not care whether his message
'incites fear' of Muslims
He said: "I believe that forewarned is forearmed. All I
wanted to do was get a video of their faces and I want every single child and
parent who lives in that vicinity to know what those men were alleged to have
done.
"The judge let down the British public.
Those men should have been in a prison cell."
Challenged over whether he was attempting to
demonise the Muslim community, he said: "To be honest with you, I don't
care if it incites fear as long as it educates the children and prevents them
from being raped."
Four men were later convicted for gang rape in
Canterbury. However, Canterbury's top judge, Heather Norton, told Robinson:
"This is not about free speech... not about the freedom of the press, nor
about legitimate journalism, and not about political correctness.
"It is about justice and ensuring that a
trial can be carried out justly and fairly. It's about being innocent until
proven guilty.
"It is about preserving the integrity of
the jury to continue without people being intimidated or being affected by
irresponsible and inaccurate 'reporting', if that's what it was."
When during the interview it was explained to
Robinson how his actions could have prejudiced the jury and got the case thrown
out, he admitted: "At the time I wasn't aware of contempt of court laws or
rules."
He says he has since received legal training.
Image:Tommy Robinson, pictured arriving at the Old Bailey, says he
'wasn't aware of contempt of court laws or rules'
The interview comes as he was cheered by
hundreds of supporters outside the Old Bailey ahead of a fresh hearing into
separate contempt of court claims over a trial in Leeds. That case was
adjourned.
The right-wing activist was released from prison
last month after three leading judges quashed a finding made at Leeds Crown
Court in May, and granted him conditional bail from a 13-month jail sentence.
Robinson admitted that he'd asked his wife "Have you had
enough yet?" when he was jailed in May 2018.
