The problem with proscription is surely that the members will simply disband and reform under another name - have we learnt nothing from Northern Ireland?

It must be better surely to engage with Islam4UK, give them air-time and allow them to speak openly. If they really are making a good well-thought-out point then people will surely notice. If they are just spouting hate then people will notice that as well.

If here's anything to go by, the ban list just gets continually updated. Though there may be some catch-all 'proscribed organisation' bit of legislation or something anyway, not sure...

They're nobody until they've been on Question Time

But banning cannot work - by banning you just drive organisations underground.

If an organisation has an issue then it's better to engage with them on that issue rather than try to demonise them.

But then the government would have to admit Afghanistan is a colossal fcuk-up

The ban is probably just a neat way of containing them publicly, while the likes of Branch, 5 and 6 gather intel. Not that that makes them less of an influence...

Either way, the authorities surely have better things to do than be playing whack-a-mole with a handful of loonies.

Jon

Islam4UK boosted by ban, claims leader

http://www.guardian.co.uk/uk/2010/jan/1 ... rotest-ban



If it's true, those colleges are gonna find themselves on dodgy ground whether they let him in or turn him away (I'm assuming it's student groups who've asked him there)... He sounds like a right scrote, but he's probably right about being banned boosting his numbers, and he's definitely right that the government won't be able to silence his supporters.