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Now I will say from the start that I have no idea who this group are and that as far as I can remember I have not heard their name before.
The issue though is one of freedom of speech and upon this point I will speak. First the beginning of the story on the BBC: Hizb ut-Tahrir barred from London university debate
The University of London has cancelled the appearance of a speaker from an Islamic group that opposes democracy and integration into British society.
A representative of Hizb ut-Tahrir was due to appear at Queen Mary college in east London to debate Sharia law in the modern world.
But the group was told it could not take part after students campaigned about its "blatantly aggressive" views.
The university's union said the debate organisers acted to avoid controversy.
It does seem that a co-ordinated demonstration from a few students who currently believe that their politics lean to the left is all that it takes to prevent a university debating society from doing their job properly. Though I defend their right to a freedom of protest I believe the right to a freedom of speech outweighs it (particularly in front of an invited audience) unless the organisation concerned has been specifically banned.
Further on in the article it suggests that the group could be banned in the future and it has been considered before but at the moment they are not. As for the assertion from the university’s union that, “the debate organisers acted to avoid controversy” I dismiss that totally. Surely the point in the invitation was to court controversy and rejuvenate interest in debating societies.
Rather than a no platform policy I believe that a free speech policy would serve the student body better. Allow the representative of this organisation to speak for himself so that the students may form their own opinions based upon what they have heard for themselves rather than from their professors.
