David Cameron, photo via wikipedia.org

British Prime Minister: State multiculturalism in the UK has failed

British Prime Minister David Cameron has criticized "state multiculturalism" in his first speech as prime minister on radicalization and the causes of terrorism. He also signaled a tougher stance on groups promoting Islamist extremism, reports Michael Ireland, Chief Correspondent, ASSIST News Service.

At a security conference in Munich, he argued the UK needed a stronger national identity to prevent people turning to all kinds of extremism, according the BBC on its website.

The speech angered some Muslim groups, while others queried its timing amid an English Defence League rally in the UK, the BBC said.

The BBC reported that as Mr Cameron outlined his vision, he suggested there would be greater scrutiny of some Muslim groups which get public money but do little to tackle extremism.

He argued that government ministers should refuse to share platforms or engage with such groups, which should be denied access to public funds and barred from spreading their message in universities and prisons.

"Frankly, we need a lot less of the passive tolerance of recent years and much more active, muscular liberalism," the prime minister said.

"Let's properly judge these organizations: Do they believe in universal human rights -- including for women and people of other faiths? Do they believe in equality of all before the law? Do they believe in democracy and the right of people to elect their own government? Do they encourage integration or separatism?

"These are the sorts of questions we need to ask. Fail these tests and the presumption should be not to engage with organizations," he added.

The BBC says the Labour MP (Member of Parliament) for Luton South, Gavin Shuker, asked if it was wise for Cameron to make the speech on the same day the English Defence League staged a major protest.

Luton Labour MEP (Member of the European Parliament) Richard Howitt, a keynote speaker at the counter-rally to the EDL demo in Luton, added: "The attack on multiculturalism surrenders to the far-right ideology that moderate and fundamentalist ideas cannot be distinguished from each other, and actually undermines respect and co-operation between peoples of different faith.

"The phrase 'muscular liberalism' in particular sadly endorses the climate of threat, fear and violence which is present on the streets of Luton today," Howitt said.

The BBC goes on to say that in a joint statement, Luton council and Bedfordshire police said a "tiny handful" of people from various backgrounds had a message of hate, but the majority in Luton lived in harmony and were not "cut off" from each other.

Meanwhile, the Muslim Council of Britain's assistant secretary general, Dr Faisal Hanjra, described Mr Cameron's speech as "disappointing."

He told BBC Radio 4's Today program: "We were hoping that with a new government, with a new coalition that there'd be a change in emphasis in terms of counter-terrorism and dealing with the problem at hand.

"In terms of the approach to tackling terrorism though it doesn't seem to be particularly new.

"Again it just seems the Muslim community is very much in the spotlight, being treated as part of the problem as opposed to part of the solution."

The BBC says that in the speech, Cameron drew a clear distinction between Islam the religion and what he described as "Islamist extremism" -- a political ideology he said attracted people who feel "rootless" within their own countries.

"We need to be clear: Islamist extremism and Islam are not the same thing," he said.

The BBC reported the UK government is currently reviewing its policy to prevent violent extremism, known as Prevent, which is a key part of its wider counter-terrorism strategy.

A genuinely liberal country "believes in certain values and actively promotes them," Cameron said.

"Freedom of speech. Freedom of worship. Democracy. The rule of law. Equal rights, regardless of race, sex or sexuality.

"It says to its citizens: This is what defines us as a society. To belong here is to believe these things."

He said under the "doctrine of state multiculturalism," different cultures have been encouraged to live separate lives.

'I am a Londoner too'

"We have failed to provide a vision of society to which they feel they want to belong. We have even tolerated these segregated communities behaving in ways that run counter to our values."

Building a stronger sense of national and local identity holds "the key to achieving true cohesion" by allowing people to say "I am a Muslim, I am a Hindu, I am a Christian, but I am a Londoner... too," he said.

Security minister Baroness Neville-Jones said that when Cameron expressed his opposition to extremism, he meant all forms, not just Islamist extremism, the BBC explained.

"There's a widespread feeling in the country that we're less united behind values than we need to be," she told Today, adding: "There are things the government can do to give a lead and encourage participation in society, including all minorities."

But the BBC also reported the Islamic Society of Britain's Ajmal Masroor said the prime minister did not appreciate the nature of the problem.

"I think he's confusing a couple of issues: national identity and multiculturalism along with extremism are not connected. Extremism comes about as a result of several other factors," he told BBC Radio 5 live.

The BBC went on to state that Former home secretary David Blunkett said while it was right the government promoted national identity, it had undermined its own policy by threatening to withdraw citizenship lessons from schools.

He accused Education Secretary Michael Gove of threatening to remove the subject from the national curriculum of secondary schools in England at a time "we've never needed it more."

"It's time the right hand knew what the far-right hand is doing," he said.

He added: “In fact, it's time that the government were able to articulate one policy without immediately undermining it with another."

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TAGS: United Kingdom David Cameron multiculturalism terrorism Islamist extremism English Defence League rally fundamentalist

[02/07/2011]

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