"It goes absolutely against the principle of freedom in academia," Ian Gibson

LONDON, March 21 (IslamOnline.net & News Agencies) – British universities are helping intelligence agencies listen to Muslim and foreign students' phone calls and intercept e-mails, another proof that the world has become a different place for Muslims after September 11 attacks, a British newspaper report uncovered on Sunday, March 21.

The report revealed by the Sunday Telegraph said that most of the country's universities co-operate with the Special Branch, Britain's police unit concerned with national security, and the domestic counter-intelligence agency MI5 in the surveillance, Agence France-Presse (AFP) reported on Sunday, March 21.

Unnamed security sources and university officials admitted that the scheme was set up after the September 11, 2001 attacks on the United States.

"Since September 11, we are co-operating with the security services in a much deeper way than before. We take it very seriously," one senior university official said.

Red Flag

An official connected to British and American security declared that details of students' telephone numbers, email and home addresses are being passed by universities to the police, MI5 and the Foreign Office, the AFP said.

A particularly close eye is kept on students from so-called "red flag" countries such as Pakistan, Iran, Egypt, Libya and Syria.

"They are helping the security services look at students from the red flag countries. It's pretty well known that it's happening," said the official who also has links to a leading university.

"With all the forms students fill in it is not difficult to get their mobile phone numbers or emails, or find out what kind of activities they are doing or where they hang out."

The paper added that MI5 and MI6 have also used academics to recruit British students.

Criticism

The declaration interrogated criticism for the British policies as considered a violation of the students’ human rights.

Ian Gibson, the Labour chairman of the Commons science and technology committee, said that his committee had heard evidence that foreign students were being spied on, something he considered against the principle of freedom in academia, the Telegraph said.

"I think there will be a number of universities that are doing this," Gibson said.

"It goes absolutely against the principle of freedom in academia and allowing people to associate with whom they like or think what they like," he added.

Chris Weavers, a vice-president of the National Union of Students, criticized the security assumption that individuals from certain countries might form risk.

"I think there needs to be very strong justification for any such surveillance. Just assuming that any individual from a certain country might be a risk is utterly unrealistic," Weavers said. 

However, he admitted: "We've seen many people from the United Kingdom who have been involved in terrorists attacks."

Meanwhile, the paper clarified that it is illegal for the police or security service to intercept directly e-mails or telephone calls without a warrant or permission from the Home Secretary. Both, however, are exempt from the Data Protection Act.

On the other hand, Robert Key, the MP for Salisbury and a Conservative member of the select committee, welcomed the surveillance.

"Given the current security situation I wouldn't be against it as long as the Government was in complete control of the situation," Key said.

Now, Scotland Yard Special Branch officers monitor e-mails and mobile telephones and universities are expected to pass on suspicious meetings, activities or absences.

Several students are believed to have been ordered to leave Britain as a result of such monitoring under the pretext they had links to extremist groups.

Since September 11, the international student community in both the U.S. and Britain has greatly changed.

On a press release on 22 February, 2002 obtained by IslamOnline.net, the Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR) denounced the HR 3077 bill which is currently awaiting a vote by the U.S. Senate which would endanger freedom in academia.

The bill proposes amendments to parts of the Higher Education Act of 1965 dealing with international studies programs at universities nationwide.

One of the prime changes to the legislation includes establishing a federal advisory board, which would oversee all of these international studies programs.