Freedom and civil liberties must not be forsaken – MAB

Posted on by Bob Pitt

The Muslim Association of Britain expressed grave concern over the Prime Minister’s statements at the press conference earlier today, in which he outlined a number of radical measures and proposed extreme legislative changes.

There can be no doubt that during these difficult times we must all stand together to preserve our country’s unity, safety and prosperity, whilst at all times and at all costs, maintain what we take great pride in; our freedoms and liberties.

The suggestion of the Prime Minister that he may move to change the Human Rights Charter in order to allow for extra-ordinary measures to deport, ban and eradicate those who carry views other than “ours”, is worrying to say the very least.

Mr Blair in his statement used vague and loose language which may lead to ban legitimate freedom of speech and support for just causes. We agree with the Mayor of London in his statement today that if the Prime Ministers proposals were to be implemented 20 years ago they would have meant banning Nelson Mandela or anyone supporting him.

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FOSIS opposes Blair’s crackdown

Posted on by Bob Pitt

The Federation of Student Islamic Societies (FOSIS) is very concerned and casts doubt on the potential effectiveness of some of the measures announced by the Prime Minister today.

FOSIS President Wakkas Khan commented: “There’s no question that we, together with the Muslim community and the rest of British society believe that the safety of our country and the security of our people must receive utmost consideration. It is vital that we do not resort to quick-fix measures hoping only new laws and legislation will solve the problem at hand. Anti-terror measures need more consultation and consideration from all parts of society.

“The government’s measures must not infringe upon the rights and freedoms of its citizens. Proscribing groups that are understood to be non-violent is certainly a step in the wrong direction. Hizb-ut-Tahrir is clearly understood to be a non-violent organisation with strong and vocal opinions which Muslim community may agree or disagree with. This does not warrant a ban on this group as such actions will only be counterproductive.

“We are extremely worried by the Prime Minister’s effort to link asylum and immigration with the new anti-terror measures, which might only help racist elements in society.

“Mr. Blair needs to clarify whether he aims to silence the voices that support Palestinians’ struggle for freedom and other peoples’ struggles against brutality and occupation around the world.”

FOSIS press release, 5 August 2005

Race attacks show ‘low’ increase

Posted on by Bob Pitt

Racist attacks in Scotland have risen by almost a quarter since the London bombings, according to police figures. There were 438 incidents reported from 7 July to the end of the month. That was up by 79 on last year, with 64 of those directly linked to the bombings. Senior officers said they were glad the increase was “relatively low” and that the figures showed people had adopted a mature attitude to the atrocities.

BBC News, 4 August 2005

However, see also here and here.

Daily Express condemns BBC’s pro-Muslim ‘bias’

Posted on by Bob Pitt

Fury over BBC’s bias to Muslims; They pack TV terror debate with anti-British audience

By Martin Evans

Daily Express, 4 August 2005

BBC bosses faced a furious backlash last night after they were forced to admit that they packed a TV terror debate with Muslims.

Angry viewers complained that the programme was anti-British and failed to offer a balanced view on the danger posed by Islamic extremists.

They were incensed that the opinions and feelings of the victims of the London bombings, which claimed 52 innocent lives and left 700 injured, were not given enough airtime in BBC1’s Questions of Security.

Instead, the “news special”, which was watched by millions, was dominated by militant factions in the audience who were heavily critical of the police and security services.

BBC bosses admitted they deliberately set out to give Muslims a louder voice in the debate hosted by Huw Edwards.

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CAIR ‘silences its critics’

Posted on by Bob Pitt

“Following the London bombings, Washington, D.C.-based radio host Michael Graham of the Disney owned 630 WMAL devoted a show to the attacks, saying that followers of Islam were terrorizing Great Britain. Some of Mr. Graham’s statements – such as ‘Islam is at war with America’ and ‘Islam is a terrorist organization’ – resulted in a campaign by CAIR to get him fired.”

Steven Stalinsky of MEMRI argues that Graham was correct, and that Islam is indeed an organisation of terror against non-Muslims.

Front Page Magazine, 4 August 2005

Anti-Muslim hatred transcends hijab

Posted on by Bob Pitt

IHRC is deeply concerned at the message being sent out by Zaki Badawi’s attributed statement that Muslim women should remove their hijab to avoid being attacked in the wake of 7/7. The devastating rise in faith hate crimes post 7/7 cannot simply be linked to the wearing of hijab. Whilst incidents against Muslim women have risen, it is worth noting that there have been many complaints both by women who do not wear hijab and also women who are not Muslim but who have been mistaken to be Muslim.

IHRC press release, 4 August 2005

Ethiopian refugee beaten and humiliated by police during London raid

Posted on by Bob Pitt

Girma Belay was in the wrong place at the wrong time. As he sat in a flat in Stockwell, south London, waiting for a friend to bake Ethiopian bread, he was seized at gunpoint by anti-terror police with laser-sighted weapons, forced to strip naked, punched, beaten and humiliated. With the red laser beam blinding him, he heard someone shout, “Take him out.”

Held for six days at Paddington Green police station, Mr Belay is a shattered man. Tortured by flashbacks and gripped by fear, he clenches his fists and weeps when he describes what happened. He repeats to himself the words of one detective on his release: “Sorry mate – wrong place, wrong time.” But it does not seem to help.

Guardian, 4 August 2005

In this instance, as in the Stockwell tube shooting, the victim wasn’t even a Muslim. But what the heck, he was Ethiopian, he lived in Stockwell – what more do you want?

Melanie Phillips et al will no doubt be pleased to know that there are at least some police officers who refuse to be hamstrung by Ian Blair’s abject capitulation to political correctness