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Raising the Barricades
Europe’s New Anti-Terror Measures

Dina Abdel-Mageed **

Aug 16, 2005

A sense of insecurity is sweeping Europe, raising concerns about the future of European Muslims (Reuters Photo).

“Coming to Britain is not a right 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.”

— British Prime Minister Tony Blair (The Mirror)

For many people, the statements made by the British prime minister during his final conference before his summer holiday are a reflection of a new trend that sweeps Europe; the growing fear of attacks similar to those of July 7, especially among the countries that have troops in Iraq, has initiated a significant response on the legislative level. As a matter of fact, we witness today an increasing tendency in European countries for introducing anti-terror measures and to tighten immigration and asylum laws. In the words of Tony Blair, “the rules of the game are changing.”

Most European countries have either introduced or are in the process of introducing new anti-terror bills. A sense of insecurity is sweeping Europe, raising concerns about the future of European Muslims. Many people think that things will not be the same anymore for Muslims living in European countries.

In Britain, where the most recent assaults took place, the anti-terror measures are still under debate. A raft of anti-terror laws was presented by Tony Blair. Most probably the parliament, which will be brought back early from its summer break, will discuss the proposed legislative modifications in September. As reported by BBC News, the major points of the new law package are these: (1) providing the home secretary with more powers regarding the deportation and exclusion of people from Britain; (2) amending the Human Rights Act to facilitate the implementation of the new deportation measures; (3) refusing asylum to those connected to terrorism; (4) banning Hizb ut-Tahrir and the successor organization of Al-Muhajiroun; (5) creating a commission to provide advice concerning the possible means for a better integration of the Muslim community; and (6) creating a list of preachers who will be prevented from entering Britain.

Various groups within British society are concerned about the possible consequences of implementing the proposed anti-terror measures. Human rights advocates are expressing their fears that the suggested legislative changes might lead to human rights violations. As reported by BBC News, Shami Chakrabarti, director of civil rights group Liberty, has expressed his opposition to the British Prime Minister’s new terror plan. He argues that “Mr. Blair has attacked key human rights and would jeopardize national unity.”

Some observers also suggest that the proposed amendments to human rights laws will face opposition on the European level. In his analysis of Blair’s new act, John Pienaar argues that changing British human rights laws “might well lead to a further challenge in the European Court of Human Rights.” The amendments will be opposed on different levels, he wrote, “in the courts, outside Parliament with the human rights lobby and perhaps inside the Commons.”

"McCarthyite" Paranoia

Voices from outside and inside the Muslim community express their concerns about the impact of the new anti-terror laws on British Muslims. Many observers expect that the proposed measures will affect Muslims the most. According to Liberal Democratic leader Charles Kennedy, banning Muslim organizations, closing mosques, and deporting people might result in “inflaming tensions and alienating people.” Some people consider the change a violation of civil rights.

The current attitude towards Muslims in Britain has “a trace of ‘McCarthyite’ paranoia.”

“Many educated, reasonable and rational Muslims do feel threatened by such changes in the law, and their potentially selective application. Their feelings, consistently ignored for many months, should be welcomed as a barometer of society’s health and given due consideration—not rejected as the noises of a moaning minority,” wrote Abdul Wahid, a member of Hizb ut-Tahrir’s executive committee, in Open Democracy. He argues that the current attitude towards Muslims in Britain has “a trace of ‘McCarthyite’ paranoia.”

According to a Guardian/ICM poll, two-thirds of Muslims have thought about leaving Britain after the London attacks. The British police, as reported by the Guardian, have recorded more than 1,200 incidents that they called Islamophobic during the three weeks that followed the bombings. The fact that British Muslims are put under pressure on both the societal and legislative levels, many observers argue, is isolating further the community from the larger society. Abdul Wahid even goes to the extent of drawing parallels between the current situation and the “expulsion of Muslims from Andalusia in the 15th century.”

Probably what the British government needs to do now is to put the desires and fears of 1.6 million British citizens into consideration during the process of decision-making. In the words of Laura Sandys, British policymakers should “look at their decisions through the eyes of all British citizens.” Commenting on the position young British Muslims are in, she says that the problem is that “their, our, government is not living up to the values—of transparency, justice, and civilised behaviour—that these young people want to endorse.”

Europe Losing Its Democratic Character

Muslim men pray while waiting to get on a ferry to Tangiers in the Spanish southern port of Algeciras July 31, 2005 (Reuters Photo).

Dr. Azzam Tamimi, the director of the Institute of Islamic Political Thought in London, told IslamOnline.net in an interview that “the impact of introducing new anti-terror laws and regulations will not only affect the Muslims but everyone that lives in Europe or passes through it. It is for this very reason that an entire spectrum of organizations and prominent personalities has been expressing their opposition to the restrictions threatened by Prime Minister Tony Blair.”

He believes that those laws will affect Muslims the most, but they will not be the only ones who suffer. He makes the point that “Europe is losing gradually its democratic character; step by step it is moving in the direction of what it has always labeled as the third world where human rights are not respected and civil liberties are almost nonexistent,” which he believes to be “the price Britain is paying for having a government that insists on a neo-colonial policy that does not care about the human rights and civil liberties of nations elsewhere.”

Responding to a question about how Muslims feel about the new anti-terror measures, Tamimi states, “The Muslims are concerned that the British government is seeking to impose further restrictions instead of taking the initiative of revising its foreign policy which is the reason why Britain was targeted.”

“Muslims must resist finger pointing at themselves; they are simply not responsible for the atrocities of the 7th of July.”

Tamimi thinks that British Muslims can affect the ongoing debate on the proposed measures. He argues that they can exercise such an influence by not giving in to pressure and by defying intimidation. For him the answer lies in Muslims joining “ranks with the British civil society in order to fight a government which is bent on usurping the people more of their basic rights and liberties under the pretext of protecting the country from terrorism.” According to him, “Muslims must resist finger pointing at themselves; they are simply not responsible for the atrocities of the 7th of July or the attempted and failed ones on 21 July.” Analyzing the roots of terrorism, Tamimi argues that “it is Tony Blair and his cronies who brought the threat to Britain when they lied and took the nation to war in violation of international law.”

Commenting on the Guardian poll mentioned above, Tamimi says, “I do not think that things are that bad in Britain so as to warrant such flight. … The majority of the people of Britain would want Britain to remain a true democracy; Muslims should join them in the struggle to make sure this does not change.” He has an optimistic view regarding the future of Muslims in Europe: “The future is known only to Allah. I expect, however, that the current crisis will be surpassed and things will improve with the passage of time.”

Other European Countries Follow Suit

Other European countries took steps similar to those taken by London. Immediately after the London bombings, new measures to combat terrorism passed the lower house of the Italian parliament, which means they have become law. The new anti-terror measures includes surveillance of the Internet and phone networks, and hiding one’s facial features is outlawed, which means that women who wear niqab (face cover) can face punishment.

As reported by BBC News, it has been the members of the Northern League political party—junior partners in Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi’s coalition—”who insisted on including new rules on women’s dress, which they knew might cause offence to Muslims in the latest package of anti-terrorism measures.” The new laws are expected to affect the lives of more than a million Muslims who live and work in Italy today.

What we witness now urges us “to question the easy talk of freedom of speech, tolerance, human rights and democracy that falls from the lips of powerful men.”

France, which is known for its strict anti-terror regulations, has activated its already existing laws after the attacks. The French Interior Minister, Nicolas Sarkozy, told Le Parisian newspaper that new security measures authorizing monitoring phone calls and installing cameras in underground stations are going to be adopted. More strict immigration laws are being considered as well.

In Germany, there is an increasing tendency to keep a close eye on Muslims and their activities. “We have to know what’s going on in every mosque,” Bavaria’s interior minister, Günter Beckstein, told the Berliner Zeitung newspaper. Such statements reflect the new attitude towards Muslims, an attitude characterized by less trust and tighter security measures.

In other European countries—like Belgium, Spain, Denmark, and Norway—more voices are calling for deporting those who are considered “hatred-preachers.” In Denmark, for instance, Immigration Minister Rita Verdonk, a hardliner, managed to convince the parliament to pass a law that bans foreign imams from 2008 on. Also, the Spanish interior minister declared last week that Spain “cannot tolerate sermons which help fertilize terrorism.”

Such developments on the legislative level pose new challenges to European Muslims. Also, they raise many questions about the Western rhetoric of democracy and civil rights. In the words of Abdul Wahid, the proposed measures should urge Muslims as well as non-Muslims “to question the easy talk of freedom of speech, tolerance, human rights and democracy that falls from the lips of powerful men.”

Sources

Abdul Wahid. “Tony Blair and Hizb-ut-Tahrir: ‘Muslims Under the Bed.’” Open Democracy. 9 August 2005. Accessed 11 August 2005.

“At-a-Glance: New Terror Plans.” BBC News Online 5 August 2005. Accessed 10 August 2005.

“Blair Vows Hard Line on Fanatics.” BBC News Online 5 August 2005. Accessed 10 August 2005.

“Dealing With Europe’s Hate-Preachers.” Deutsche-Welle Online 23 July 2005. Accessed 11 August 2005.

Dodd, Vikram. “Two-Thirds of Muslims Consider Leaving UK.” The Guardian Online 26 July 26, 2005. Accessed 11 August 2005.

“Greater Surveillance of German Muslims?” Deutsche-Welle Online 14 July 2005. Accessed 9 August 2005.

“Italy Adopts Anti-Terror Package, France Follows Suit.” IslamOnline.net 31 July 2005. Accessed 11 August 2005.

“Italy Prepares for New Terrorism.” BBC News Online 4 August 2005. Accessed 10 August 2005.

Piennaar, John. “Analysis: Blair’s New Balancing Act.” BBC News Online 5 August 2005. Accessed 11 August 2005.

Roberts, Bob. “Rules Britannia: Blair Reveals His 12-Point Plan to Tackle Terror.” The Mirror Online 6 August 2005. Accessed 10 August 2005.

Sandys, Laura. “Wanted: More Honesty, Less Denial.” Open Democracy 8 August 2005. Accessed 11 August 2005.

** Dina Abdel-Mageed is staff writer for the Muslim Affairs section of IslamOnline.net. A graduate of the American University in Cairo, she holds a BA in political science with a specialization in public and international law.

The articles posted on this page reflect solely the opinions of the authors.

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