Banned

Earlier this week there was a story about whether an Islamic preacher can be kept out of the UK despite his avowed intention to return. As part of the surrounding coverage, there was talk about the UK government “banning” certain Islamic/Islamist groups.

When will governments learn that banning something doesn’t make it go away? Instead, it just goes underground (Oooh, sorry, connecting “Islamic radicals” and “underground” isn’t the wisest move, is it?) and becomes even more removed and secretive.

Banning anything makes it more glamourous and attractive, a sign of “rebellion” etc. etc. Whether it’s a chart single (think “Relax” by Frankie Goes to Hollywood, for a perfect example), a “sport” (cock-fighting, dog-fighting, badger-baiting, the list is endless), firearms (now an increasing problem – and yes, I did nearly say “exploding” problem – since the banning of handguns after Dunblane) or anything else – as soon as its banned, it becomes impossible to police.

In this case, any savvy “radical Islamic priest” is also going to be able to say “look how dangerous we are, the government tries to silence us, and yet we’re still here”. Being banned just adds “glamour” to the group, and then the longer they continue unabated, the more it looks like they’re the ones who are winning in this supposed War against Terror.