J
JMJ_Pinoy
Guest
****Blair ready to isolate radical Muslims **
Militant clerics could be deported, some mosques shut
Jeffrey Fleishman, Los Angeles Times
Saturday, August 6, 2005**
London – With his nation shaken by last month’s bombings, British Prime Minister Tony Blair announced tough new anti-terrorism measures Friday that include shutting down radical mosques and deporting Muslim clerics who preach violence and hate.
Blair’s plan is designed to isolate religious extremists while giving wider powers to British counterterrorism forces in a country increasingly unnerved by militants. The proposals are an indication that the recent attacks on London’s transit system, which killed 52 people in addition to four suicide bombers on July 7, have forced the government to re-examine the line between civil rights and national security.
“Let no one be in any doubt, the rules of the game are changing,” Blair said during a 90-minute news conference.
12-point proposal
The prime minister’s 12-point objective is to rid the country of foreign Islamic militants and crush extremist voices among British citizens. Blair said his government was working on agreements with other nations to guarantee that people whom Britain would return to the Middle East and Africa would not be tortured or abused.
But emphasizing his determination for tougher anti-terror regulations, Blair said he would seek to amend human rights legislation if the courts don’t support his proposals for deportation and banning certain political parties.
“Coming to Britain is not a right,” Blair said. “And even when people have come here, staying here carries with it a duty. That duty is to share and support the values that sustain the British way of life. Those that break that duty and try to incite hatred or engage in violence against our country and its people have no place here.”
The measures, in many ways, run counter to Britons’ long-held view of their nation as one of the most open, multicultural societies in the world. Fear of global terrorism and rhetoric about jihad and radicalism by fringe Islamic organizations in Britain appear to have provided a mandate for changes that only a few years ago would have been nearly impossible.
Human rights groups and liberal members of Blair’s Labor Party immediately criticized the measures, which also call for making it a crime to “glorify” terrorism and cracking down on Web sites and bookshops peddling militant writings. Opponents said the plan would violate free speech and other civil rights.
“We don’t win by mimicking the profound authoritarianism of those who are plotting against this country,” said Shami Chakrabarti, director of the human rights group, Liberty. “I think it is very worrying that the prime minister has jeopardized our national unity today both in terms of community relations and in terms of consensus politics.”
Charles Kennedy, leader of the Liberal Democrats, said Blair’s broad plan, much of which needs parliamentary approval, risked “inflaming tensions and alienating people.”
London Mayor Ken Livingstone said he supported tougher laws, but he added that Blair’s plan “is so vague that 20 years ago, it would have meant banning Nelson Mandela or anyone supporting him.”
Challenge to Parliament
It is expected to be debated rigorously in Parliament by liberal politicians who unsuccessfully battled anti-terrorist legislation in 2002. But Conservatives largely embraced the proposals as a crucial shift in what they have viewed as a government too lenient on immigrants and foreign agitators.
The plan is forcing Britain, much like the United States did after the Sept. 11 attacks, to reflect on how far to push police powers. The measures do not appear as extensive as some imposed by the Bush administration, but they certainly move Britain in an authoritarian direction regarding civil liberties. This nation has long prided itself on multiculturalism, but following the July 7 and July 21 attacks, Blair’s approach seemed have found resonance.
CONTINUED ON NEXT POST…
Militant clerics could be deported, some mosques shut
Jeffrey Fleishman, Los Angeles Times
Saturday, August 6, 2005**
London – With his nation shaken by last month’s bombings, British Prime Minister Tony Blair announced tough new anti-terrorism measures Friday that include shutting down radical mosques and deporting Muslim clerics who preach violence and hate.
Blair’s plan is designed to isolate religious extremists while giving wider powers to British counterterrorism forces in a country increasingly unnerved by militants. The proposals are an indication that the recent attacks on London’s transit system, which killed 52 people in addition to four suicide bombers on July 7, have forced the government to re-examine the line between civil rights and national security.
“Let no one be in any doubt, the rules of the game are changing,” Blair said during a 90-minute news conference.
12-point proposal
The prime minister’s 12-point objective is to rid the country of foreign Islamic militants and crush extremist voices among British citizens. Blair said his government was working on agreements with other nations to guarantee that people whom Britain would return to the Middle East and Africa would not be tortured or abused.
But emphasizing his determination for tougher anti-terror regulations, Blair said he would seek to amend human rights legislation if the courts don’t support his proposals for deportation and banning certain political parties.
“Coming to Britain is not a right,” Blair said. “And even when people have come here, staying here carries with it a duty. That duty is to share and support the values that sustain the British way of life. Those that break that duty and try to incite hatred or engage in violence against our country and its people have no place here.”
The measures, in many ways, run counter to Britons’ long-held view of their nation as one of the most open, multicultural societies in the world. Fear of global terrorism and rhetoric about jihad and radicalism by fringe Islamic organizations in Britain appear to have provided a mandate for changes that only a few years ago would have been nearly impossible.
Human rights groups and liberal members of Blair’s Labor Party immediately criticized the measures, which also call for making it a crime to “glorify” terrorism and cracking down on Web sites and bookshops peddling militant writings. Opponents said the plan would violate free speech and other civil rights.
“We don’t win by mimicking the profound authoritarianism of those who are plotting against this country,” said Shami Chakrabarti, director of the human rights group, Liberty. “I think it is very worrying that the prime minister has jeopardized our national unity today both in terms of community relations and in terms of consensus politics.”
Charles Kennedy, leader of the Liberal Democrats, said Blair’s broad plan, much of which needs parliamentary approval, risked “inflaming tensions and alienating people.”
London Mayor Ken Livingstone said he supported tougher laws, but he added that Blair’s plan “is so vague that 20 years ago, it would have meant banning Nelson Mandela or anyone supporting him.”
Challenge to Parliament
It is expected to be debated rigorously in Parliament by liberal politicians who unsuccessfully battled anti-terrorist legislation in 2002. But Conservatives largely embraced the proposals as a crucial shift in what they have viewed as a government too lenient on immigrants and foreign agitators.
The plan is forcing Britain, much like the United States did after the Sept. 11 attacks, to reflect on how far to push police powers. The measures do not appear as extensive as some imposed by the Bush administration, but they certainly move Britain in an authoritarian direction regarding civil liberties. This nation has long prided itself on multiculturalism, but following the July 7 and July 21 attacks, Blair’s approach seemed have found resonance.
CONTINUED ON NEXT POST…
