PROSCRIBE HIZB UT-TAHRIR CONSTITUTES AN UNPARALLELED ASSAULT ON FREEDOM OF SPEECH: CAGE

Tue 16 January 2024:

The decision to proscribe Hizb ut-Tahrir constitutes an unparalleled assault on freedom of speech and association, UK human rights group CAGE, which was set up to defend victims of the “war on terror” said in a statement.

Britain on Monday (14, January) declared the global Hizb ut-Tahrir movement to be a proscribed “terrorist group”, making it a criminal offence to belong to what it described as an anti-Semitic organisation, Reuters has reported.

According UK human rights group CAGE, Hizb ut-Tahrir is a non-violent political and religious movement that is not and has never been connected with terrorism. The accusation that, after decades of peaceful activism, HuT is now concerned in terrorism because of a single press release issued by the Palestinian branch of the movement reveals the government’s subservience to Israeli policy.

UK DECLARES HIZB UT-TAHRIR TO BE A ‘TERRORIST’ GROUP

Under international law, the Palestinian people have a right to resist Israeli occupation. The press release by the Palestinian branch of HuT issued shortly after the 7 October operation is reflective of that position with the emphasis only being on military targets. To equate this with HuT Britain being concerned in encouraging terrorism is duplicitous and designed to suppress any support for Palestinian resistance.

Instead of tackling the threat to national security and community relations posed by the thousands of British citizens who will return from Israel having participated in a genocidal military campaign, the Home Secretary seems intent on leading the UK further into authoritarianism. With this decision, Britain aligns itself with countries known for their large-scale repression of human rights or rabid support for Israel, including Bangladesh, China, Pakistan, Saudi Arabia, Jordan, Uzbekistan, Egypt, Kazakhstan, Tajikistan, Kyrgyzstan, and Germany.

PIERS MORGAN SPARKS BACKLASH BY CALLING MUSLIM WOMEN ‘OPPRESSED’

We call upon civil liberties groups, legal rights NGOs and political commentators to recognise that this unprecedented decision represents a serious abuse of the powers of proscription entrusted to the Home Secretary. Whilst the current target is a non-violent Muslim political party, as in the past, the precedent created will be utilised to proscribe any organisations that oppose the policies of the State.

Proscription means that it will be a criminal offence in Britain to belong to or promote the group, arrange its meetings, and carry its logo in public. Those breaching the rules could face up to 14 years in jail.

Hizb ut-Tahrir, according to Wikipedia, was founded in 1953 as a political organization in then-Jordanian-controlled Jerusalem by Taqi al-Din al-Nabhani, a Palestinian Islamic scholar from Haifa who was educated in Egypt and served as a qadi (religious court judge) in Mandatory Palestine. He formulated a program and a “draft constitution” for the establishment of a Caliphate.

Hizb ut-Tahrir operates in 32 countries including in Britain and other Western nations, with a long-term goal of establishing a caliphate ruled under Islamic law, the Home Office said. It has been banned by Germany, Egypt, Bangladesh, Pakistan and several Central Asian and Arab nations.

SOURCE: INDEPENDENT PRESS AND NEWS AGENCIES

______________________________________________________________

FOLLOW INDEPENDENT PRESS:

WhatsApp CHANNEL
https://whatsapp.com/channel/0029VaAtNxX8fewmiFmN7N22