Extremism and Terrorism: The need for a whole-society response

The acute threat we face from terrorism will only be tackled when the whole of society understands and responds to the chronic threat from extremism, says Mark Rowley in his keynote valedictory address as Assistant Commissioner of the Metropolitan Police for Specialist Operations and National Lead for Counter Terrorism Policing delivered at Policy Exchange.

Giving the Colin Cramphorn Memorial Lecture, “Extremism and Terrorism: the need for a whole society response”, AC Rowley reflects on his time overseeing counter-terrorism operations in the UK, which saw not only five terrorist attacks but an unprecedented number of both Islamist and extreme right-wing plots thwarted.

Arguing that extremists use sophisticated propaganda and subversive strategies to create and exploit vulnerabilities that can lead to acts of violence and terrorism, AC Rowley calls out so-called representative Muslim bodies such as CAGE and MEND for fostering grievances and isolation and denounces Britain First’s fear-mongering tactics.

AC Rowley calls for a “whole society response” to address the combined challenges of terrorism and extremism – and urges the police and MI5, the private sector, those in involved in social policy, integration and education, the family courts and social services, mainstream and social media and communities to play a role.

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The schools watchdog, Ofsted, is facing questions over how it was able to rate the Lantern of Knowledge school as “outstanding” after an inspection held at a time when Haque was allegedly preaching hate to the children. In response to the conviction it said that Hague's activities were a matter of deep regret and said it was “hampered by limitations on our powers” to inspect out-of-school as “outstanding” after an inspection held at a time when Haque was allegedly preaching hate to the children. In response to the conviction it said that Hague's activities were a matter of deep regret and said it was “hampered by limitations on our powers” to inspect out-of-school settings.

In November 2015, Ofsted inspectors visited the Lantern of Knowledge school, two months after Haque started working there.

In their report, they said: “The strong sense of community, harmony and respect within the school reflects the school ethos and aims of leaders and governors to develop well-rounded citizens.

“The spiritual, moral, social and cultural development of pupils is outstanding. They have an excellent understanding of the world around them and make a positive contribution to their community.”

None of 7/7 bombers and British Muslim youths who are in Syria and Iraq are the product of Muslim schools. They are the product of British schooling which is the home of institutional racism with chicken racist native teachers. It is absurd to believe that Muslim schools, Imams and Masajid teach Muslim children anti-Semitic, homophobic and anti-western views. It is dangerously deceptive and misleading to address text books and discuss them out of their historical, cultural and linguistic context. It is not wrong to teach children that Jews are committing the same cruelty in Palestine what German did to them before or during Second World War. It is not wrong to teach children that anti-social behaviour, drinking, drugs, homosexuality, sex before marriage, teenage pregnancies and abortions are western values and Islam is against all such sins. This does not mean that Muslim schools teach children to hate westerners, Jews and homosexuals.

The British establishment is wrong in thinking that Imams are to blame for extremism. Imams are not solution to the problem for extremism. Extremism is nothing to do with Imams. Extremism is not created from abroad, it is coming from within. Britain fails to help Muslim communities feel part of British society. Race trouble is being predicted by the Daily Express, because of an ethnic boom in UK major cities. Muslim communities need imams for the solutions of their needs and demands in their own native languages. Muslim parents would like to see their children well versed in Standard English and to go for higher studies and research to serve humanity. The fact is that majority of Muslim children leave schools with low grades because monolingual teachers are not capable to teach Standard English to bilingual Muslim children. A Muslim is a citizen of this tiny global village. He/she does not want to become notoriously monolingual Brit.

Terrorism and sexual grooming is nothing to do with Masajid, Imams and Muslim schools. Those Muslim youths who have been involved in terrorism and sexual grooming are the product of western education system which makes a man stupid, selfish and corrupt. They find themselves cut off from their cultural heritage, literature and poetry. They suffer from identity crises and I blame British schooling.

Islam is restoring traditional British values such as shared responsibility and duty, a former archbishop has said. Rowan Williams said that Muslims had brought back “open, honest and difficult public discussion” in one of their “greatest gifts” to Britain. He used a speech to criticise sections of the press for portraying Muslims as “un-British” and complained of “illiteracy” about religion among figures in government. He told the Living Islam Festival in Lincolnshire that Christianity and Islam were shifting British values back towards the community. He said that Britain was an “argumentative democracy” where “we are not just individual voters ticking boxes but individuals and communities engaging in open, honest and difficult public discussion. One of the greatest gifts of the Muslim community to the UK has been that they have brought that back to the people.” Asked if he meant that Islam was rejuvenating British values, Dr Williams said: “Yes. I’m thinking of the way in which, for example, in Birmingham we have seen a local parish and a mosque combining together to provide family services and youth activities, both acting out of a very strong sense that this is what communities ought to do. ” “It’s really important that we respect and try to understand diversity of conscience and belief and conviction in our environment, ” he said. “These are not just about what makes us British, they’re about what makes us human.”

Indiscipline, incivility, binge drinking, drug addiction, gun and knife crimes, teenage pregnancies and abortion are part and parcel of British schooling. These are the reasons why majority of Muslim parents would like to send their children to Muslim schools with Muslim teachers as role models during their developmental periods. Only less than 5% attend Muslim schools and more than 95% keep on attending state and church schools to be mis-educated and de-educated by non-Muslim monolingual teachers.

Since 9/11, 80% of terrorist attacks worldwide were conducted by non-Muslim groups.[29]According to the FBI, 94% of terrorist attacks carried out in the United States from 1980 to 2005 were by non-Muslims and non-Muslims make up the majority of terrorists in Europe at 98%.[30]And yet, despite overtures of political correctness and diplomacy, the word “terrorism” has become synonymous with “Muslim” and “Islām”.

Though the vast majority of global terrorist attacks in the history of the world have been committed by non-Muslims, there is absolutely no way a non-Muslim could be ‘confused’ for a terrorist. Media moguls and those possessing geo-political power would never allow such a stereotype to persist. After all, where would the political benefit be in that?

Since the advent of Islām, those in power have sought to tarnish the name of Muslims using every demeaning term in their contemporary vocabulary. In a time when people feared soothsayers and magicians, Muslims were portrayed as such; in a time when the white man feared the ‘virile black man’ enticing their women, Muslims were labelled ‘moors’; when the Church feared the decline of their congregation and loss of control of Jerusalem, Muslims were called ‘Saracens’ (a derogatory term with etymological roots of ‘thief and plunderer’).[31]

Today, what is sought above all else by western powers is socio-economic and geo-political power; to achieve this an individualist, secular and consumerist ideology has been propagated encouraging a mass preoccupation with the self, the here and the now.[32][33] This is in direct opposition to the preoccupations of Muslims who, ideologically, do not fit into a neoliberal capitalist paradigm. We are taught to “feed the hungry, spread peace, maintain your kin relationships, and pray at night while others are asleep” – that is: be a community, be selfless and maintain a sincere connection with Allāh (subḥānahu wa taʿālā) and thus a constant awareness of the Hereafter. As Muslims do not fit ideologically with the desired framework, the “terrorist” label has been used against them, propagated incessantly by many media outlets to convey Muslims as incongruous to British society, incompatible with western norms, antagonistic to western governments. [34][35]

Linguistically, a terrorist is not, as we have been led to believe, a Muslim; and it is not limited to a Muslim criminal, it is not even the striking of terror in the hearts of the innocent in displays of anti-government sentiment. The first recorded use of “terrorism” and “terrorist” in 1795 was, in fact, related to the Reign of Terror on citizens instituted by the French government. [36] Thus, terrorism historically is when those in power engender fear in their people. Today, those in power have engendered fear in their population of the inexcusable actions of less than 0.00009% of all Muslims, [37] and as a result have caused hundreds of thousands of hate crimes, including murder, against innocent Muslims in the UK alone.[38]

Whether or not Darren Osborne made headlines as a terrorist is inconsequential. The “terrorist” label ascribed to Muslims has become ingrained in psyches of the western populace. No amount of tokenistic portrayals of non-Muslim criminals as terrorists will disentangle the term from its Muslim association; at least, not until policy makers, popular broadcasters and discriminatory institutions cease their double standards, cease their institutional attacks on British Muslim citizens as young as 4 years old, [39] [40] and cease their propagation of an “us and them” mentality which divides their communities into those who fear Muslims and those who do not – yet.[41]
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