Category Archives: State Oppression

Demonising Muslims will not reduce terror

Posted on by Bob Pitt

Yasmin“The London bombings pose stark dilemmas for those on the left and British Muslims in particular. The vast majority of us believe in allowing people to express their differences and practice their culture and religion, without being pushed into one set of homogenous thoughts. Should those freedoms be surrendered by supporting some of the measures being proposed by Tony Blair? Is it really credible to suppose that we should forget the international policy issues bound up in Iraq, Afghanistan, Palestine, and Kashmir?

“The media (left and right) seem to think that what happened on July 7th is all to do with Islam and that Muslims want to impose their way of life in the west, destroy our liberal democracies and want to oppress women, and they think that the Hijab is a sign of that. That is just plain wrong. The lessons of history highlight the perils of targeting a religious group through propaganda.”

Yasmin Qureshi in Chartist, September/October 2005

Anti-terror law a threat to free speech

Posted on by Bob Pitt

“Muslim extremists should not be allowed to use the force of religious authority to propel their followers into committing acts of violence. Helping organise terrorist cells should also be illegal, even if the person involved doesn’t actually detonate the bomb or procure the explosive. I don’t have any problem with that. But the idea that people can be prosecuted for simply expressing views about terrorism takes us into very disturbing territory. Like the proposed legislation on religious hatred, it constitutes a threat to freedom of speech.

Take George Galloway, who was in his usual robust form last week in New York debating Iraq with the journalist Christopher Hitchens. Two months ago, Galloway gave an interview to Al Jazeera in which he praised Iraqi militants in the most glowing terms. ‘These poor Iraqis,” said the former Labour MP, “ragged people with their sandals, with their Kalashnikovs, with the lightest and most basic of weapons … are writing the names of their cities and towns in the stars. With 145 military operations every day, they have made the country ungovernable by the people who occupy it.’

“Now, any way you look at that it is exalting and celebrating terrorism. Should George Galloway be imprisoned for seven years for making these remarks? Of course not, the very idea is an offence against freedom.”

Ian Macwhirter in the Sunday Herald, 18 September 2005

Not sure the folks at Harry’s Place would agree with that last point.

Muslim groups, others call for Romney apology

Posted on by Bob Pitt

A coalition of Muslim and civil-libertarian organizations yesterday demanded that Gov. Mitt Romney apologize for suggesting earlier this week that some mosques be wiretapped. The American-Arab Anti-Discrimination Committee of Massachusetts delivered a letter, co-signed by 21 other organizations, saying Romney’s comments depicted Muslims living in the United States as potential or actual terrorists.

“Governor Romney, the safety of Massachusetts is built upon the trust all residents – citizens and immigrants – have in their government,” the letter stated. “Your willingness to profile and scapegoat an entire community based on religious affiliation only serves to erode trust and increase fear.”

Lowell Sun, 17 September 2005

See also Boston Globe, 17 September 2005 

Clarke’s draft bill proposes new offence of glorification

Posted on by Bob Pitt

The government’s proposed anti-terrorism laws published yesterday are so widely drawn that anyone who “glorifies, exalts or celebrates” any terrorist act committed over the past 20 years could face a sentence of up to five years in prison. But the small print of the draft terrorism bill published yesterday shows that the home secretary is preparing to go even further and draw up a list of historical terrorist acts which if “glorified” could mean a criminal offence being committed.

A Home Office spokeswoman said 9/11 was such an example; it would become a “listed event”, the appropriate ban lasting longer than 20 years. However, the 1916 Irish Easter Rising would be exempt. Shami Chakrabarti, the director of Liberty, said the offence of “glorification” was so broad it meant the home secretary was now acquiring powers to determine which historical figures were terrorists and which freedom fighters.

Guardian, 16 September 2005 

Muslim fears at terror plans

Posted on by Bob Pitt

The government has unveiled its package of proposed anti-terror measures – and for many Muslims in Britain it is deeply troubling. No leading Muslim argues against tough measures to prevent terrorism because it is a danger to everyone: the list of the London victims included black and white, rich and poor, Muslim and non-Muslim. But many still regard the government’s response as being, at best, cack-handed and, at worst, having the potential to infuriate an anxious, young constituency that already feels that it is under the spotlight.

BBC News, 16 September 2005

Hunger strikers pledge to die in Guantánamo

Posted on by Bob Pitt

More than 200 detainees in Guantánamo Bay are in their fifth week of a hunger strike, the Guardian has been told. Statements from prisoners in the camp which were declassified by the US government on Wednesday reveal that the men are starving themselves in protest at the conditions in the camp and at their alleged maltreatment – including desecration of the Qur’an – by American guards.

Guardian, 9 September 2005

‘Radical Muslims’ meet to discuss ban

Posted on by Bob Pitt

A radical Islamic group yesterday drew 1,000 delegates to a London conference as it debated how to fend off Prime Minister Tony Blair’s plans to ban it in Britain.

Hizb ut-Tahrir leaders also used the forum to react angrily to new claims that the organisation – already barred from operating in universities – is engaged in a secret campaign to recruit students to its cause.

The political group, which advocates the establishment of a theocratic state and Islamic governance in the Middle East, is likely to be targeted by the Government in any crackdown on alleged radicals in the wake of the London bombings.

Dr Imran Waheed, the Birmingham-based spokesman for Hizb ut-Tahrir in the UK, denied accusations the group has supported violence or is responsible for the radicalisation of young Muslims.

He said the conference, held at a Quaker meeting house in Euston, central London, was intended to prove his organisation was not engaged in “evil ideology”.

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Indy stitches up Hizb

Posted on by Bob Pitt

The lead story in the Independent on Sunday is headlined: “Islamic group in secret plan to recruit UK students.” Yes, it’s the Independent pursuing its vendetta against Hizb ut-Tahrir.

The article seeks to make an amalgam between Hizb and the now defunct al-Muhajiroun, stating that they “both deny supporting violence”. This was clearly not true of al-Muhajiroun, who under Omar Bakri’s buffoonish leadership held provocative rallies celebrating 9/11, whereas Hizb has repudiated terrorism.

The article, which mixes in references to al-Qaida and the London bombings, is clearly intended to present Hizb as some sort of terrorist threat – a charge rejected even by those, including the MCB, who strongly oppose Hizb’s sectarian interpretation of Islam – and to provide backing for the government’s undemocratic plans to proscribe the organisation.

Update:  Read Hizb ut-Tahrir’s response here.