BBC "chat show" host Robert Kilroy-Silk has been under relentless fire from a British Moslem pressure group and his own government since publication in the Sunday Express of a piece in which he criticized the Arab world. Unfortunately it seems the only place this column can be read in its entirely is in an abominably formatted press release from the tolerant souls at the Muslim Council of Britian.
Some excerpts from Kilroy-Silk's column:
. . . After all, the Arab countries are not exactly shining examples of civilisation, are they? Few of them make much contribution to the welfare of the rest of the world. Indeed, apart from oil - which was discovered, is produced and is paid for by the West - what do they contribute? Can you think of anything? Anything really useful? Anything really valuable? Something we really need, could not do without? No, nor can I. Indeed, the Arab countries put together export less than Finland.
We're told that the Arabs loathe us. Really? For liberating the Iraqis? For subsidising the lifestyles of people in Egypt and Jordan, to name but two, for giving them vast amounts of aid? For providing them with science, medicine, technology and all the other benefits of the West? They should go down on their knees and thank God for the munificence of the United States.
What do they think we feel about them? That we adore them for the way they murdered more than 3,000 civilians on September 11 and then danced in the hot, dusty streets to celebrate the murders? That we admire them for the cold-blooded killings in Mombasa, Yemen and elsewhere? That we admire them for being suicide bombers, limb-amputators, women repressors? I don't think the Arab states should start a debate about what is really loathsome.
But why, in any case, should we be concerned that they feel angry and loathe us? The Arab world has not exactly earned our respect, has it? Iran is a vile, terrorist-supporting regime - part of the axis of evil. So is the Saddam Hussein-supporting Syria. So is Libya. Indeed, most of them chant support for Saddam.
That is to say they support an evil dictator who has gassed hundreds of thousands of their fellow Arabs and tortured and murdered thousands more. How can they do this and expect our respect?
Why do they imagine that only they can feel anger, call people loathsome? It is the equivalent of all the European nations coming out in support of Hitler the moment he was attacked by the US, because he was European, despite the fact that he was attempting to exterminate the Jews - and Arabs.
Moreover, the people who claim we are loathsome are currently threatening our civilian populations with chemical and biological weapons. They are promising to let suicide bombers loose in Western and American cities. They are trying to terrorise us, disrupt our lives. And then they expect us to be careful of their sensibilities?
We have thousands of asylum seekers from Iran, Iraq, Algeria, Egypt, Libya, Yemen, Saudi Arabia and other Arab countries living happily in this country on social security. This shows what their own people think of the Arab regimes, doesn't it? There is not one single British asylum seeker in any Arab country. That says it all about which country deserves the epithet loathsome.
Given that Kilroy-Silk has said the column as he originally wrote it referred to Arab regimes and not every last individual Arab, and except for an erroneous designation of Iran as an Arab country, exactly what in this piece is untrue? Initially, the head of an Arab organization actually agreed with Kilroy-Silk, but later backpedaled.
Not only has he been suspended from his BBC program, but in an Orwellian twist Kilroy-Silk also faces a police investigation and possible criminal prosecution under the "Public Order Act" for committing the thought crime of accurately describing the Arab world. An excerpt from The Scotsman is chilling:
The Commission for Racial Equality has referred the matter to the police.
Trevor Phillips, head of the CRE, said he expected the MP-turned-presenter to be prosecuted for inciting racial hatred.
Mr Phillips said on Sky News: "Well this is now a matter for the police. What will happen is the police will investigate it, look at the Public Order Act and assess whether this could be interpreted as an incitement of racial hatred. There are clear legal tests for that.
"If it is then it will go the Crown Prosecution Service who will then discuss whether there's a case to be made and if there is a case to be made, Mr Kilroy-Silk will be prosecuted.
"I have to say, if it's deemed not to be a breach of the laws on racial hatred, we will have to have a pretty good look at those laws."
Just out of curiosity, how many radical Moslem organizations in Britain have been prosecuted for "incitement of racial hatred" against Jews under the Public Order Act?
For what it's worth, you can express your outrage over the suspension to the BBC at its contact page. You can also use our Take Action page to ask the US State Department to put down their wine glasses and lodge a protest with the British government against restrictive speech laws that reasonable people would associate with Saudi Arabia rather than a free democracy.
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