Does Britain back MQM’s violence? By Shiraz Paracha
The British government shares some responsibility for violence in Karachi as wanted criminals use their UK bases to incite hate and violence in Pakistan.
Altaf Hussain, a British citizen and a mafia style leader of a linguistic group, everyday violates the British ‘Criminal Justice and Public Order Act 1994’ and the ‘Racial and Religious Hatred Act 2006’ by inciting hatred and encouraging bloodshed in Pakistan.
Under the Criminal Justice and Public Order Act 1994 the following are arrestable offences in Britain:
a) Deliberately provoking hatred of a racial group.
b) Distributing racist material to the public.
c) Making inflammatory public speeches.
d) Creating racist websites on the Internet.
From his London headquarters, Hussain gives hours long hate speeches over the phone to supporters of his party, the Muttahida Qaumi Movement (MQM), in Pakistan. The MQM applies latest telecommunication technology to instantly spread Hussain’s hate speeches to thousands of people in different Pakistani cities.
In British law a hate speech is defined as:
“A gesture or conduct, writing, or display which is forbidden because it may incite violence or prejudicial action against or by a protected individual or group, or because it disparages or intimidates a protected individual or group. The law may identify a protected individual or a protected group by race, gender, ethnicity, nationality, religion, sexual orientation, or other characteristic”.
The British law forbids “communication which is hateful, threatening, abusive, or insulting and which targets a person on account of skin colour, race, nationality (including citizenship), ethnic or national origin, religion, or sexual orientation. The penalties for hate speech include fines, imprisonment, or both.”
A fugitive, Altaf Hussain, is wanted in many criminal cases including murder and abduction in Pakistan. He absconded to the United Kingdom in the early 1990s. Surprisingly, he was given British citizenship. Ever since he has been involved in crimes against people of Pakistan and his mercenaries have turned Karachi into a city of death and destruction.
Several of Hussain’s lieutenants in London are criminal gangsters who have been accused of murdering innocent people in Pakistan.
MQM foot soldiers in Karachi often use force to collect ‘donations’ from ordinary citizens. They intimidate traders and businessmen of urban Sindh by demanding either give money to MQM, or risk losing businesses and even lives.
Every month hundreds and thousands of British Pounds are sent to Altaf Hussain and his gang in London. It is robbed money often collected at gunpoint. The MQM is also involved in murders, abduction and torture of its opponents. Most crimes are probably committed with the knowledge and approval of the MQM bosses in London.
The question is why the British government has been facilitating a criminal gang which is running death squads in Karachi? Why the British government has allowed Altaf Hussain to spread havoc on the streets of Karachi? Why the MQM is allowed to bring robbed money to Britain from Pakistan? Why a hate group that is involved in mass scale violence is allowed to operate in Britain?
Indeed Britain is indirectly sponsoring a criminal mafia that has paralyzed the main hub of the Pakistani economy. Is there a hidden British agenda?
Shiraz Paracha is a journalist and analyst. His email address is: [email protected]
Though i would generally agree with Mr Paracha regarding the hateful politics of MQM the way you have presented the case against the British government it leaves some points of clarification. When you raise the possibility of British government collaboration of a sort its very important to look at the laws. In order to blame the British government one first has to proove that law has been breached in Britian.
The point is why no one has brough a case up in UK against his racism or hate speech. Its not that easy. Because Pakistani governments , establishment and all political parties who blame MQM and let me say rightly so work with them and thats why we never had a transparent legal process either in Pakistan or abroad against the Mutihida.
In absence of this every we thing say is “hersay” on which law doesnt move.
If Mr Hussain speaks hatefully or promote violence whilst in UK , its very easy. But he is clever , he never speaks in a direct way which can come under legal scrutiny.
and lets accept there hasnt been much complainst against him in UK. We havnt actually pursued it. If some organizations and activists group were moniterring him it would not have been that difficult.
In absence of a transparent legal process in his country or origin and lack of active complaints against him in UK , i will be very uncomfortable of British government acted against him. Because it will open a gate for persecution against lot of groups and people who get assylum in UK and who really need it unlike MQM. We dont really want “a perception based prosecution” . It will change Europe beyond recognition. War on terror had already actually done it and i am not very happy about it either
dear one can smell the hate that u have and many others like u have against MQM, these allegations are not new for MQM..you have seen PMLN and the London round table conference….u have seen Imran Khan, filling his pettation even in London… you have to admit MQM as reality like others..MQM is the fastest growing & evolving organization in Pakistan..and it’s future is MQM.
GA ALTAF