On Liberty Paperback – International Edition, 1 Oct. 2015

This is an important book because the fundamental ideals of democracy under the rule of law, Liberty, Equality and Fraternity, encoded as human rights law nationally and internationally are constantly scapegoated, assailed and flouted. Ideals are never fully attained but national ideals were never more essential to civil society than now. The world itself, nations, and individuals lose sight of ideals, abandon them and fail for many reasons: the timber of humanity is crooked, social and political issues are conflicting and complex, the desperate circumstances of emergencies produce desperate even hysterical outcomes, we are awash with manipulative misinformation, climate change challenges the entire global economic system, and we find ourselves in an uncontrollable surveillance world. We must not lose sight of the right direction or allow ourselves to be set against one another.The UK is a heterogenous society with huge disparities of wealth, a dynamic constantly changing entity of many races, languages and religions. Only under a single, strong, respected and just rule of law in which every individual has the same rights can we live in peace and prosperity. Human rights are a keystone of a stable society: the right principles of mutual respect to abide by.In this ongoing and never-ending struggle, Shami Chakrabati, who became Director of Liberty in 2003, has fought passionately and with dedication against the ever present interests and forces that seek to erode respect for and legal status of human rights in the UK. Liberty was founded in 1934 as the National Council of Civil Liberties as a response to the abuse of Hunger Marchers by the Metropolitan Police after they had walked the length of the country to demonstrate against the destitution of the Depression. Under Shami Chakrabati, Liberty and its wide circle of influential advisors and supporters has campaigned, fought within the legislative system and taken significant individual cases through the courts, bringing the issues to the public as never before. Her book On Liberty is beautifully written, humbling and inspiring. It is also a moving personal and family memoir, for her Asian parents suffered racist abuse after accepting an invitation to move to the UK.

This is an important book that anyone concerned about our freedom and civil liberties ought to read. Shami Chakrabarti writes with great sympathy and understanding for everyone in need of the protection of the law - not only those most of us would automatically consider to be deserving. I began reading this book expecting to have all my own beliefs reinforced, and was quite surprised at how often it challenged my thinking. It also made me realise how much of the law's protection we stand to lose (indeed, in some cases, have already lost) if we are not vigilant. The writing style is accessible, and there are many personal anecdotes. However, I wouldn't describe this book as light reading. It goes into considerable detail about the law and the politics of the last few decades. The full text of the Human Rights Act is included as an Appendix.

Baroness Chakrabarti was famously director of the civil rights group Liberty and this half-biography, half-argument is a good read to explain the broader arguments in favour of protecting civil liberties.The tone is accessible and doesn't require much if any prior knowledge of British politic but although the arguments are universally applicable the content is clearly aimed at a British audience.Quite a short book - I read it on a long-haul flight. It was a quite enjoyable and easy read but don't expect sweeping revelations; the author sticks to simple and clear concepts throughout.Overall, I enjoyed it. Not groundbreaking as a book in itself but definitely worth a read.

At a time when there are proposals to scrap the Human Rights Act here in the UK, Shami Chackrabarti’s book becomes ever more important. The book is brief but what it lacks in length, it makes up for in its force of argument and clarity of legal thought. If this sounds at all soporific then I would simply urge anyone who cares about the society they live in to read this book.There are many myths surrounding the Human Rights Act that fuel the politician’s urge for the greater powers that can only benefit them and not the majority. The book clearly exposes these myths and evidences the reality. Suggestions that it should be politicians, as an elected body who have the ultimate sanction over an independent judiciary is carefully examined and shown to be a wanting argument. Any belief that a democratically elected parliament can be trusted to act in the interests of the people and not itself is highlighted in the account of parliaments attempt to introduce 42 days detention without charge for cases interpreted as terrorism. The shocking deal making, party whipping and plain manipulation of MP’s to vote in favour of draconian measures shows the need for law that cannot be circumvented. Even the speaker of the House of Commons wanted to prevent Chakrabarti from sitting in the strangers gallery during the debate should her presence cause “Labour MPs to be distracted by visible presences”. Really? Is that democracy in action or the cynical manipulation of democracy by a parliament more interested in itself than the people it claims to represent? And we can trust them?I would implore anyone who cares about the society they live in to read this book. It won’t take you long and you will at least be better informed about the issues. We are lectured at the hard won freedoms we enjoy today by the same people who want to take away a key feature that protects such freedoms.This brief book sits on my shelf as one of the most important publications of recent times.