Friday, June 18, 2010

Tory/Lib Dem Government bans hate preacher Zakir Naik from entering UK for saying 'every Muslim should be a terrorist', good call by Home Sec




















Dear All

The Tory/Lib Dem coalition has banned an Islamic hate preacher from coming to Britain.

Zakir Naik, a preacher believes 'every Muslim should be a terrorist'.

This has prompted Home Secretary Theresa May to use laws that can exclude anyone who writes or publishes material that can 'foment justify or glorify terrorist violence'.

In August 2006, Naik attended a conference in Cardiff which was the subject of controversy when Welsh MP David Davies called for his appearance to be cancelled.

Davies argued that Naik as a 'hate-monger'.

He concluded that Naik’s views did not deserve a 'public platform'.

Saleem Kidwai, Secretary General of the Muslim Council of Wales, disagreed with Davies, saying:

"people who know about him (Naik) know that he is one of the most uncontroversial persons you could find. He talks about the similarities between religions, and how should we work on the common ground between them".

This is at odds with Naik’s appearance in New Zealand and then the Australian capital at the invitation of Islamic Information and Services Network of Australasia. At that conference in Melbourne, senior writer and columnist Sushi Das commented:

"Naik extolled the moral and spiritual superiority of Islam and lampooned other faiths and the West in general", further criticizing that Naik's words "fostered a spirit of separateness and reinforced prejudice".

In writing this article I came across disturbing material that Naik has support in the Scottish political scene.

I would never have know this but for the internet which is a useful resource tool which flag up an article written in 2006 condemning Davies as an idiot for opposing Naik.

Home Secretary Theresa May said Naik was being excluded because repeated comments attributed to him was evidence of his 'unacceptable behaviour'.

She said:

“Coming to the UK is a privilege not a right, and I am not willing to allow those who might not be conducive to the public good to enter the UK.”

Website footage had shown the preacher making the claim that every Muslim should embrace terrorism and in that regard is considered published material which allows the UK Government to trigger a ban.

Naik said of Osama bin Laden:

“If you ask my view, if given the truth, if he is fighting the enemies of Islam, I am for him”. If he is terrorising the terrorists, if he is terrorising America the terrorist, the biggest terrorist, every Muslim should be a terrorist.”

It is clear that hate preachers pose a serious risk to national security in the UK and legislation should be subject to continuous review to exclude individuals who use religion as a back door method to preach hate.

Home Secretary Theresa May made a good call.

Yours sincerely

George Laird
The Campaign for Human Rights at Glasgow University

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