In the publicity for the 'Rally for Revival' organised by the radical Islamic group Al-Muhajiroun in 1996, the group issued a press release referring to London as 'the capital' of international Islamic organisations.
Many Islamic groups from overseas have indeed established themselves (and especially their leaders) in the UK, claiming political asylum.
The leader of the Saudi dissident group, the Committee for the Defence of Legitimate Rights, Dr. Muhammad al-Masa'ari, is the most celebrated example of this tendency, and in 1996 he successfully fought off an attempt by the British government to deport him to Dominica. Rachid Ghannouchi, the leader of the Tunisian Islamists An-Nahdah, is resident in the UK, as is the leader of the Bahraini Islamists, many Algerian leaders of the Islamic Salvation Front (FIS), Egyptian Islamists, the leader of the militant Sunni Pakistani group Sipah-i-Sahabah, Kashmiri dissidents and many others. The leader of Al-Muhajiroun, Omar Bakri Muhammad, is an asylum-seeker from Syria and currently applying for UK citizenship, despite the fact that on the 1997 TV programme, The Tottenham Ayatollah, he indicated a reservation about obeying British law, even with driving licences.
The reasons for the presence of these people in the UK are quite complex. For some, it is because of the historic colonial links Britain possessed with some Middle Eastern and Asian countries. For others, especially the Algerians and Tunisians, it is the precise lack of such connections. For example, so close is France to Algeria that the French government has been aiding and equipping the Algerian regime in its fight against the Islamists, and has not been reticent in pursuing French Muslims of North African origin thought to be involved with the Islamists. Clearly, Britain is a safer haven for North African Islamists than France.
The major reason, however, is that Britain has a long record of affording asylum to political dissidents, whatever their views, and allowing them to engage in political activities against the regimes they oppose, even if those regimes are friendly to the UK. For example, the Russian Marxist Social Democratic Party at the turn of the century operated from Britain in its campaign against the Tsar, and the Bolsheviks were formed as a result of a London conference in 1902. Despite its own distaste for communism and the fact that after the Triple Entente Russia was a major ally of Britain, the government allowed the group to continue their activities.
History of dissidents
During the 1960s and 1970s, Arab and Iranian nationalist and socialist dissidents found asylum here, as did opponents of the apartheid regime in South Africa. Britain also gives shelter to Tamil, Kurdish, Timorese, Sikh and a host of other radicals who are engaged in guerrilla warfare against their opponents. Islamist dissidents are simply the latest in a long line of revolutionaries who have found Britain to be a safe haven. Moreover, unlike countries such as Germany, those granted asylum are not required to desist from political activity in the UK.
Another related reason is that Britain has a relatively large Muslim population (1.2 - 1.4 million) and Arab population (300,000 - 500,000), the majority of whom, unlike their equivalents in some European countries, enjoy citizenship and are increasingly organised and ready to provide 'logistical support' for foreign dissidents. Masa'ari has spoken at events organised by the Muslim parliament and Al-Muhajiroun; the FIS have spoken at rallies and events of both of these groups as well as the Islamic Society of Britain. At events held by various Islamic groups, stalls have been set up by groups supporting Bahraini, Palestinian and Tunisian dissidents. When Masa'ari was threatened with deportation, British Islamists warned that they would continue his 'war of the faxes' against the Saudi regime.
There has been some disquiet about the presence of such figures and organisations in this country, with respect to political ethics and international relations, especially as it affects trade. One reason the British government tried to deport Dr. Muhammad al-Masa'ari was that Saudi Arabia was disturbed at his fax campaign, and threatened trade relations. At the time of the 'Rally for Revival', a number of governments, led by Egypt, complained that Britain was allowing itself to be used as a base for violent revolutionaries, and has persisted in this accusation. Algeria has made similar pronouncements. After a series of suicide bombings against Israeli civilians by the Palestinian Islamist group hamas, the Israeli government accused the UK Muslim charity Interpal of being a funding agency for the Islamist guerrillas, although the UK Charity Commissioners were unable to confirm this. It is certain, however, that British Muslim groups have raised funds for violent activities overseas. Boxes soliciting funds for Mujahadin in Bosnia, Algeria, Chechenya and Nigeria have been openly displayed at Islamic conferences. The Tottenham Ayatollah showed footage of British Islamists raising money for hamas and Hezbollah.
Funds for violence
The Home Secretary, Jack Straw, has announced plans to curb such activities. How this will be done remains to be seen, especially if British Muslims, rather than refugees, are the main instigators of raising money for violent radicals overseas. The situation is complicated by the fact that in many cases the regimes the Islamists oppose are devoid of legitimacy and are often violently oppressive. However, it is rare that Islamists themselves propose Gandhi-like peaceful resistance to such regimes. Further, however oppressive the regimes, Islamists do not escape the accusation that they are guilty of the same disease, especially with regard to the rights of non-Muslim minorities. The issue is not primarily whether Britain should allow refugees to engage in any political activity, it is whether any complicity in violence should be permitted, and it is here that there may be a case for government action. If Islamist refugees in Britain were to desist from this kind of activity, and state their support for genuine communal equality, the issue would probably not arise.
Centre for Islamic Studies and Muslim-Christian Relations
London Bible College
