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bmsd's letter to Al-Muhajiroun/Islam4UK

08/01/2010

Mr Anjem Choudary
UK Head of Al-Muhajiroun AKA Islam4UK


Dear Mr Choudary,

We were alarmed and disappointed to hear about your planned procession through the town of Wootton Bassett. While we acknowledge that freedom of expression and assembly are cherished rights – codified in Articles 10 and 11 of the Human Rights Act – they are both qualified, and offset by various restrictions, necessary in a democratic society, including those relating to public safety and disorder. Therefore, interference with these rights is permissible as long as it is in response to a “pressing social need.” As you are no doubt aware, the Home Secretary has the authority to ban any protest where there is a possibility of serious public disorder.

In any event, your decision to hold this demonstration in Wootton Bassett will cause unnecessary distress to the friends and relatives of fallen British servicemen and women. Your plans to parade empty coffins through the town centre in order to highlight issues you feel strongly about, where the coffins of the repatriated fallen soldiers pass through on a regular basis, is insensitive towards the families of the soldiers.

We also believe that your plans will have disastrous implications for community relations as a whole. Consider Islam4UK’s protest at the Royal Anglian Regiment’s homecoming parade through Luton in March 2009, where a dozen of your members shouted abuse at the soldiers and held placards with offensive messages saying, "Anglian soldiers go to hell," and "Butchers of Basra.” This led to angry scenes breaking out between Islam4UK’s protestors and bystanders at the parade, where two people were arrested for public order offences. The Islamic Centre in Bury Park received a number of death threats, promising “revenge” for the actions of Al-Muhajiroun (or Islam4UK). In May 2009, the building was firebombed, causing significant damage to the property. [1]

As a broader point, we deplore the politicisation of Wootton Bassett by any group. Your conduct makes you the equal of Nick Griffin, who also attempted to hijack a homecoming service there last year to promote his equally hateful British National Party.
 
It is important to highlight the suffering of innocent civilians in any conflict. It is never acceptable to do so in a manner that involves disrespecting the memory of fallen soldiers, who serve admirably in exceptionally difficult circumstances. Those who opposed the conflicts in Iraq and Afghanistan signed petitions and demonstrated in more appropriate locations such as Hyde Park. Others donated money to relevant charities and undertook humanitarian work in these conflict zones. None of them mocked the dead.
We would like to remind you that specific allegations of mistreatment have been addressed through the appropriate channels, and investigations of these are ongoing. For example, the Law Lords in the Al-Skeini case (where the Iraqi hotel receptionist Baha Mousa died in British army custody after sustaining multiple injuries) held that the Human Rights Act applies to the actions of British troops in the detention of prisoners on operations outside the UK. In July 2008, the Ministry of Defence agreed to pay £2.83 million to those who were mistreated in Basra. The report and recommendations of the Baha Mousa Inquiry are due to be published in Autumn 2010.
 
You write in your open letter (dated 3rd January 2010) to the families of British soldiers who have died, or who are currently serving in Afghanistan, that the country has a “Muslim population who do not deserve their innocent men, women and children to be killed for political mileage.” It is notable, however, that you have not mentioned the numbers of Afghan civilians killed by the Taliban? The Afghanistan Conflict Monitor’s “The Plight of Afghan Civilians” report (January 2009) states that 3,917 civilians were killed in 2008, and over 2,300 of these were killed by insurgents loyal to the Taliban.  [2]

Your letter also states, “It is our desire to end the cycle of violence and the quagmire in which we find ourselves in today in Afghanistan.” We would then ask you why you are directing your grievances to the service personnel themselves, as they have no choice regarding where they are deployed or the length of their duty in particular conflicts, yet continue to serve with tremendous courage.

We therefore call upon you to move the protest venue to a more appropriate location, and spare the residents of Wootton Bassett the misery of seeing the memories of fallen soldiers being used as a political stunt. If you persist with your plans to hold the procession in Wootton Bassett, British Muslims for Secular Democracy and our associates will counter-demonstrate with Union Jacks, to show that the vast majority of British Muslims do not agree with such tactics and are happy to publicly oppose them.

Yours sincerely,

 

Dr Shaaz Mahboob
Vice-Chair
British Muslims for Secular Democracy

 

[1] http://www.lutontoday.co.uk/lut-news/Arsonists-attack-Islamic-Centre-.5234449.jp

[2] http://www.afghanconflictmonitor.org/2009/01/afghan-unrest-killed-4000-civilians-in-2008-report.html