Ep.35 Twenty Years of British Terror Laws with Moazzam Begg
Twenty years ago, the then UK Labour government led by Prime Minister Tony Blair introduced anti-terror laws that, in time, would expand the British security state. An array of terrorism legislation that came as a result, has impacted the Muslim community and refashioned our relationship with institutions of government and the way we are perceived by wider society.
The language of terror, aimed at sedating the Muslim community, has led to self-censorship and community anxiety. It has also made us question one another and undermined our openness and warmth as a community that prides itself on good relations and communal practice. Today it is not uncommon to find Muslims in Britain speaking in hushed tones, showing two faces as if to return to a bygone era of deference, that our forefathers adopted to survive colonialism.
Our guest today, Moazzam Begg, is a brother that took a stand and through his public engagements gives hope to believers, uncompromised by state patronage. Moazzam first became a household name when he was unjustly incarcerated in Guantanamo Bay, and after three years where he witnessed torture and mistreatment in the name of the War on Terror, Begg returned to the UK, exonerated and determined to shine a light on the excesses of western states that openly profess human rights but privately act like lawless regimes.
Moazzam Begg is a campaigner for CAGE UK, an organisation vilified by government and the media. I start by asking him why he is marking this twenty-year anniversary and what it means for the Muslim community.