Free speech?

There was me thinking that free speech was alive and well in the UK. That was until I decided to contribute to the BBC's Have your Say column, which had the title  "Should the public be told why Jon Venables has been recalled to prison?" I gave what I thought to be a balanced account on why I thought that the information about his recall should not be released into the public domain. Here is the exact copy of what I posted.

Venables has obviously done something serious enough for him to be recalled back to prison. If so, there is a very good chance he will have to face another trial. If the public are told the reasons for his recall any future trial would be compromised. I personally do not see why the exact details of his recall should be made available. If he was stupid enough to breach his bail conditions then he should be prepared to serve a longer sentence. What worries me is the frenzy the media can whip up with cases like this, which in turn brings out the very worst in human nature. You get the vigilanties, hell bent on reeking revenge on anyone they think is responsible, this could include family, partners or friends. Venables and Thompson served 8 years for their crime, which in Venables case was not enough. To any parent what they did was one of the worst types of crime imaginable, so releasing details of his recall would only make the matter worse.

I was warned that my comments could be classed as "Breach Contempt of Court laws" and because of this my comments were removed. What makes me laugh, is the fact that Jack Straw said when interviewed on television that Venables had done something serious for him to be recalled. So my faith in the BBC has been shaken by their over zealous reaction. Their reputation as being a soundboard for the ordinary man in the street has been damaged as far as I am concerned. I have therefore now removed my details from their records and in future will give their sites the widest of berths possible.