Press Release
Cameron's Full Spectrum Response includes Silencing Political Voices

Speaking following the murders of a number of UK nationals in Tunisia, Prime Minister David Cameron said Britain faces an 'existential threat' that must be confronted through a 'full spectrum' response. Amongst these measures, Cameron spoke about taking on the 'extremist narrative' and those who condone it, claiming they acted as gateways to terrorism.

Taji Mustafa, Media Representative of Hizb ut Tahrir in Britain commented, "Like his mentor Tony Blair before him, Cameron insists on peddling the discredited conveyor belt narrative that argues that belief in normative Islamic values leads people to commit acts of violence. It is a flawed 'theory' that serious academics - and even MI5's own behavioural sciences unit - have debunked."

"By saying that he planned to take on those who do not condone violence but who express political and religious views that he is unable to argue against, (which he labels an 'extremist narrative') Cameron violates the very values he claims are so great. By targeting ideas rather than actual security threats, using the language of an 'existential threat' to the UK, he states his intent to continue launching ideological airstrikes at the same Magna Carta that he pretends to revere so much."

"By criticising those who 'think a Caliphate may not be such a bad idea' in the Muslim world, he utterly ignores the history of the region, which under the Caliphate was stable and had a system of governance that had legitimacy in the eyes of its people. The Caliphate is an integral part of normative Islam, well established in classical Islamic law, not some modern aberration. This Caliphate should not be confused with what we see in Iraq and Syria today."

"His own speech just a couple weeks ago at a security conference in Slovakia showed he would prefer a series of failed nation states in the Muslim world that can be exploited by Western powers, to a real Caliphate (as opposed to ISIS) that meets the beliefs of the people in the region and looks after their interests based on Islam."

"Cameron's approach would be comical if it was not so sinister - with teachers expected to spy on Muslim children, increasing surveillance powers that will affect everyone, and clamping down on legitimate political and religious views."

"Rather than address the root causes of the tragic murders of UK nationals in Tunisia, Cameron engages in nonsensical and cheap gesture politics, attempting to deflect attention from disastrous foreign policies that have delivered chaos and devastation in the Muslim world, which numerous studies site as a key contributor to global insecurity and violence."

Media Office of Hizb ut Tahrir

in Britain