The government is set to publish its controversial definition of Islamophobia, now rebranded as “anti-Muslim hostility” in an attempt to prevent what it describes as the “prejudicial stereotyping and racialisation” of Muslims and the “creation of practices and biases” that disadvantage Muslims in British institutions.
In practice, what this definition will achieve is the creation of a de facto Muslim blasphemy law — one that will silence legitimate criticism of Islam and may, perversely, fuel anti-Muslim hostility within communities.
The Free Speech Union has campaigned against the government’s plan to establish a non-statutory official definition of Islamophobia on the grounds that it will have a chilling effect on free speech and suppress legitimate challenge and criticism of Islam. The inclusion of “prejudicial stereotyping” as a form of anti-Muslim hostility risks shutting down discussion of highly sensitive but vitally important issues, such as the grooming gangs scandal and Islamist extremism.
In an article for The Times, the Shadow Equalities Minister, Claire Coutinho MP, raised a salient point by highlighting how authorities and public services have, in recent years, failed to act to protect citizens for fear of being branded racist.
Across the country, councils and police forces failed to protect vulnerable girls from rape and abuse committed by predominantly Pakistani Muslim grooming gangs, because of concerns about being labelled Islamophobic.
In the case of Sara Sharif, authorities reportedly shied away from asking why an eight-year-old child had suddenly begun wearing a religious head covering, again for fear of being accused of racism. In reality, Sara’s father had forced her to wear a hijab to conceal the abuse he was inflicting on her. She was later murdered by him.
Coutinho also points to the case of the security guard who had a “bad feeling” about the Manchester Arena bomber but chose not to approach him for fear of appearing prejudiced.
The government now appears intent on reviving Britain’s archaic blasphemy laws, despite Parliament abolishing them 17 years ago. Britain has a proud history of religious tolerance and, as the Equality and Human Rights Commission (EHRC) has repeatedly emphasised, already has robust laws in place to protect against religious discrimination and hatred — including Islam.
In a country where the government has been accused on numerous occasions of presiding over a culture of two-tier justice, the introduction of an official Islamophobia definition that affords one religion greater protection than others will only reinforce that perception.
In its relentless pursuit of this unnecessary definition, the government may ultimately end up causing greater harm to British Muslims by undermining a core British principle: that everyone is equal before the law. It may also further hinder and deter people from doing their jobs, particularly those tasked with protecting citizens.
Read more from Claire Coutinho MP in The Times.