to think they shouldn't send you to prison for taking a picture of a corpse

[pisacake]

www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-4611862/Man-jailed-posting-Grenfell-Tower-victim-picture.html

Apparently Mr. Mwaikambo, who is of Tanzanian origin or extraction, opened a body bag at the Grenfell Tower and posted the picture on Facebook.

I'm not sure about Tanzania, but I am in Indonesia and it's very common to post selfies with dead (i.e. in the moments after they die) relatives etc. on Facebook. There was a case earlier this year where a Western man died and the local newspaper published multiple shots of him dead, dressed only in his underpants with blood coming out of his nose etc. Those photos remain online.

Obviously this is not the done thing in England, but it seems that someone they have come up with a fairly arbitrary charge (sending obscene materials over the internet) - there's no law against what he did, per se - and whacked a rather stiff sentence on him.

I'm not saying he was right to do it, but it seems that there is an excessive sentence for someone who broadcast to a fairly limited number of people (he has a couple of hundred friends on Facebook), something which inherently is more about outrage at the fire than the fact of what he did.

The law used is obscenity, but the photos are no more obscene than going to Tanzania/other parts of Africa and taking pictures of dead Africans to be broadcast on the news, or photos of the deceased Gaddafi (widely distributed in Western media) or whatever. The obscenity is the fire, but Mr. Mwaikambo is in no way responsible for that.

Let's see how quickly the landlords / property managers / council inspectors are prosecuted for allowing these residents to die in their homes.

Sentencing is not only to punish or rehabilitate a defendant. It is also to act as a deterrent.
It was in the public interest to sentence this man to a custodial sentence. It sends out a clear message to the public that such intrusion is completely unacceptable.

YABU As others have said it doesn't matter what cultural norms he might have in his home country, they aren't applicable here in the UK.

Frankly his actions show a complete lack of respect for the deceased and their family. He deserves his punishment.

He deserves to go to jail. Can you imagine if a family member had seen the picture.
It doesn't bare thinking about what condition the body was probably in.

YABU. I presume the judge decided if it was obscene - interpreting the law like that is part of their job, lack of knowledge of the law is very rarely an appropriate or acceptable defence, and as an immigrant, the idea we can't learn other social and cultural norms that those of our birth culture is pretty insulting as are the generalizations - Indonesia has over 250 million people, Tanzania over 50 million people, plus their diasporas - there is almost nothing cultural that that amount of people will all do and you've no idea whether the man did so was in any way connected to that.

Can I ask you op. How would you feel. If this was a member of your family

I think it was disproportionate given other offences which do not get custodial sentences. He is being made an example of, and while I see that needs to happen, it is unfortunate for him as an individual. I would imagine it was traumatic for everyone in the area, including him, and he won't be the only one to have behaved erratically that day.

I can see why in the shock of the event he may not have seen the difference between doing this and what the media do.

I am not condoning it, just trying to understand the circumstances under which someone could have thought it was ok.

Why do people take photos of dead people in the countries that you mention, OP?

I can understand someone wanting to take a photo of their stillborn baby, and perhaps (although it's not something I would do) I can understand someone wanting 'one last photo' of a loved one who has just died.

But why do people in the countries you mention want to take photos of dead people that they don't know, and why do their FB friends want to see them?

Most of the people who died would have had very little respect during their lives. To deny them dignity in death is beyond horrific. Of course this isn't the big issue or the big crime here but it's degrading, inappropriate and callous.

He unzipped a body bag.
He took a photo of a dead person.
He put that photo on the Internet.

I'm surprised he only got 3 months! I don't care what other cultures do, we don't do those things in the Uk, and I'm bloody well glad of that.

The judge said:

'It is an aggravating feature that when people said to you 'This is really sick, just call the police' and 'call the cops rather than post photos', you didn't.
'You didn't remove the photos.

Perhaps if he had taken the photos down as soon as people started commenting, he might have got a lesser sentence - but he didn't. People told him he was wrong to do this and he carried on doing it.

The judge also said:

'These offences are so serious that a community order or financial penalty would not mark the seriousness of the offence.'

I have to say I agree with the judge.

If there had been a sensible official response to the fire then there would have been an organised central point where they had photos of people - dead or alive - and his photo could have been given to them, and they would have found the family. It would have been done properly and with respect.

How much of his decision making at the time was influenced by the lack of an orchestrated reponse from official channels? Quite a lot, I imagine. If he'd been able to take the photo to somewhere where it would be useful then he may well not have even thought of putting it on FB.

I blame the government!

We don't accept the 'other cultures do it' argument for other acts considered criminal in this country.

Agree with the judges comments. If it was an error of judgement he'd have taken the pics down.

I think the OP should change it's name to Pisstake. That is what this surely is. Only a weirdo or troll would not be utterly disgusted and sickened by what this revolting man did.

Yabu, this is a civilised country though a lot of the time I wonder if there's much civility left!!

What he did was disgusting, to disturb a dead body then try and twist the circumstances blaming emergency services for it being left.

He's a cretin and deserves to be treated like the animal he is.

Were Alun Kurdi's family consulted before his picture was shared?

Yes - Alan's aunt posted those pictures on Facebook and wanted them shares so the world would know what was happening. Very different to what was happening here

What is it with these attention-seeking OPs about attention-seeking members of the public? Vile both, lacking brain cells and respect for others.

I'm ashamed to be a human being sometimes.

Frankly his actions show a complete lack of respect for the deceased and their family. He deserves his punishment

Agreed. I'm surprised at the OP trying to whip up sympathy for him.

Getting in the way of rescue work to photograph a corpse should be punished.

Yes, the corpse is dead and won't care, but people wanting to take photos at the scene of an accident get in the way of people who might still be alive being rescued.

"Cultural differences" would have been an argument if someone had shared a picture of their dead relative. Considering that he found it necessary to rip open the body bag, I would assume he was neither related to nor friends with the dead person.

It's just shows a complete lack of respect/compassion for the dead and their relatives his quote alongside it shows that clearly.

There are lots of things that other cultures thing are normal which many in this county and others find bizzare/disturbing/awful (inset appropriate emotion)

We shouldn't accept things just because they are a cultural norm. Sometimes we need to realise that "norm" or not it is wrong and in this case illegal.

Let's see how quickly the landlords / property managers / council inspectors are prosecuted for allowing these residents to die in their homes. A long time I'm sure, if at all.
They caught this man, sentenced him, now he's in prison, within a couple of days! Makes you wonder why other things don't move along so fast.

I'd have preferred he was made to do community service than a custodial, he's not exactly going to learn positive cultural norms in prison.

how vary dare he