This weekend the radical Muslim organisation, Hizb ut-Tahrir, holds its Khilafah conference at the Troxy conference centre in London 's East End - the same venue, coincidentally, as that used by UKIP last October for its party conference.

When Tony Blair was still PM, Labour did consider banning them - though it clearly did not consider it worthwhile actually doing so.

Meanwhile local politicians – Conservative & Labour – seem agreed that HT is a ‘questionable’ organisation.


Conference: Khilafah - The Need for Political Unity

Minister attacks ‘Islamic state’ party plans for East End conference
14 August 2008

by Ted Jeory

A GOVERNMENT minister has condemned a decision by radical Muslims to stage their annual party conference in London's East End on Saturday.

Labour's Transport Minister Jim Fitzpatrick said the Islamist organisation Hizb ut-Tahrir, which wants Britain to be an 'Islamic' state, was being deliberately divisive choosing Stepney for its conference.

The Poplar & Canning Town MP's comments were backed by Tower Hamlets Tory Opposition councillor Tim Archer, who described Hizb ut-Tahrir's decision as "disgusting. "

Cllr Archer added: "The last thing we need in Tower Hamlets is a questionable organisation getting its claws stuck into our communities. "

Hundreds of young Muslims are expected at the former Troxy cinema in Commercial-road on Saturday for the yearly gathering of a party banned in several countries around the world.

The party, which does not take part in elections, bemoans in its pre-conference leaflets the "destruction of the Islamic Khilafah State over 80 years ago."

Party leaders say that marked "the beginning of dividing the Muslim World into countless nation states governed by a plethora of Kings, dictators and Western-backed 'democrats'. "

The 'Muslim Ummah' now needs "a new leadership" that will "utilize her resources" to address global problems, the leaflets add.

Their conference, Khilafah, The Need for Political Unity, comes a week after Tower Hamlets' new borough police commander Paul Rickett warned that extremists could be targeting 'vulnerable' members of the East End 's large Bengali population.

MP Mr Fitzpatrick told the Advertiser that he had 'no time' for Hizb ut-Tahrir, an outfit former Prime Minister Tony Blair considered banning.

"There's a strong feeling they should be banned," said Mr Fitzpatrick.

"It's an organisation that preaches intolerance and division and there should be no place for it.

"So it's disappointing that they're coming to Tower Hamlets when so many people are working hard to build up community relations."

Tim Archer, who is standing against Mr Fitzpatrick at the next General Election, said: "It's quite frankly disgusting that this organisation will be holding a conference in Tower Hamlets."

But Taji Mustafa, of Hizb ut-Tahrir, said: "It is hard to understand how a conference which is discussing the political future of the Muslim world and presenting a positive series of solutions is divisive."

"Politicians and media that comment on such matters without correctly establishing what the purpose of our conference is do themselves no credit and do a great injustice to those whom they represent or inform."


East London Advertiser - Minister attacks ‘Islamic state’ party plans for East End conference
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Interesting. I've never been to the Hizb website before, to be honest, I don't know much about them, but in the Media Pack they have the following is stated:

Originally Posted by :
Our meetings are conducted openly and whoever is interested, regardless of their political and intellectual outlook, has the right to participate and to discuss the contents of the meeting regardless of his or her personal stance towards Islam or the subject matter.

This is more than can be said for other parties who might also be holding an event this weekend.

Now. I don't see Hizb as a political party in the UK, they seem to be more along the lines of Dissident Congress in that they are a movement, not a party.

They make a clear invitation non-Muslims to attend so it surely wouldn't be hard for the state to have a snoop and uncover some evidence that they are planning illegal activities, and if other people are so worried, why don't they go see and discuss the issues for themselves?

I think these might be the people who tell Muslims not to vote because it is 'not islamic', something which I personally disagree with.
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