Dear gair rhydd,
Just what have you been putting in your opinion writers’ coffee this week? Both Lucie Apampa and Rasputin have launched scathing attacks into the Government’s anti-terrorism policies without giving proper thought and consideration as to why the Government is acting the way it is or proposing the policies it has.
Firstly, ‘What’s the big ID-ea?’ (A pun worthy of the ‘The Sun’!) is certainly premature: nothing has been finalised yet, no one knows just what ID cards will contain, how they will work, how effective they will be, how much they will cost and so on. Now as long as I don’t have to directly pay for an ID card I don’t really mind; if a police officer stops me in the street and asks to see it, even if I have every legal right to walk away, I will almost certainly hand it over and be co-operative.
I realise the police are doing an extremely difficult job attempting to protect the public and I think they deserve our understanding, patience and co-operation. I have nothing to hide so as long as the police are reasonable I will comply judiciously with their requests.
Criticising ID cards because they won’t, by themselves, stop any terrorist acts being committed seems a little silly. Well, of course they won’t – they are just one potential weapon in a whole arsenal the state has at its disposal. By themselves, they are relatively insignificant and an annoyance; however, when employed in juxtaposition with the rest of this arsenal of anti-terrorism policies then the whole becomes far more effective than its constituent parts.
There’s really no question of ID cards conflicting with or further impeding civil liberties – the police already have the power to stop and search if they have reasonable grounds to and, if it is so wished, the state can find out everything about me, all my personal details, all the skeletons in my closet, everything. So giving PC Plod the right to ask for a piece of plastic with my name on it doesn’t change anything one iota.
Secondly the article ‘Keeping the faith, keeping the facial hair’ was an immense despondence to read. Rasputin claims that, in the current climate and in the eyes of the state (specifically the police and security services) then being a Muslim automatically equates one as being a terrorist.
This is nonsense: not even the most paranoid and maniacal security officer locked away in the bowels of Thames House thinks that every Muslim is a terrorist. Actually the opposite is true: the police and security services, after decades of dealing with Irish-based terrorism and Soviet Bloc agents, are entering new and uncharted territory.
The fact is the police and security services need the cooperation and active support of the Muslim community to win this fight against terrorism, much like the support of large sections of the Irish community, on both sides of the border, and the Dublin Government was instrumental in winning the last fight against Irish terrorism.
Far from holding all Muslims in contempt, the police and security services are actively recruiting Muslims into their ranks. For the latter, this is the first time they have ever recruited publicly, demonstrating just how important the assistance of the Muslim community is.
Secondly, whilst we have suffered one significant terrorist attack (London on 7/7) and a few botched ones, (Glasgow airport, for example), dozens of attacks have been stopped and many terrorist suspects arrested by the security services acting on tips from within the Muslim community itself. If this information ceases then it is almost assured that some future attacks will be successful, potentially eclipsing even 7/7.
Nonetheless, given that the terrorist groups operating in Britain or planning to attack our interests on a national or international scale are, since the Irish terrorist groups have silenced their guns, predominantly – perhaps even exclusively – Muslim, then it is perfectly understandable that the police and security services will pay closer attention to people from this ethnic demographic than anyone else in regard to anti-terrorism.
This is not a racist comment; simply a statement of fact. It is unfortunate that anyone who looks likely to be Muslim is more likely to be paid closer attention, especially at vulnerable places such as airports, but it is very necessary and we all must just smile and get on with it. All very well for me to say, you might think – I’m a normal-looking white man and thus unlikely to be picked out for an individual search in an airport.
Unfortunately, this is not the case, since due to a piece of metal in my face I tend to set off the alarms every single time I go through security at an airport, which is fairly frequently, and it’s even more annoying coming back where it can be difficult to explain to the heavily-armed foreign police officer that it’s my face setting off the alarm and not a hidden firearm.
So I know what’s it’s like to get frisked by a large chap with a gun and a dog, but I just let them do their job, discover for themselves that I’m not carrying any contraband and then just get on with my flight. I would be more concerned if such precautions weren’t being taken, since it would suggest that security isn’t taken as seriously it should be.
So if you’re a Muslim (or even a hobo-esque chap with a decidedly dodgy-looking beard) and you get stopped and searched at an airport or train station, or you think a police officer is paying closer attention to you more than anyone else, be aware that they’re not doing it because they automatically think you’re a terrorist, or because they want to annoy you or get pleasure out of frisking your arse, but because they are trying to protect you, me and everyone else in society.
You may not like it – you may even take offence – but the police and security services are simply trying to do their job in incredibly difficult and dangerous circumstances and if they decide that a small inconvenience for you is necessary to protect society then let them do their jobs, smile, be co-operative and thank them when they send you on your way. It’s far easier and better than just bitching about it.
Mark
