Dear Prime Minister
We write to you regarding the banning of the Muslim Brotherhood (MB) by the Government of the Kingdom of Jordan.
As you will be aware, earlier this week the Jordanian government officially outlawed the Muslim Brotherhood organisation within the country.
The Jordanian Muslim Brotherhood has been an integral part of Jordan’s political landscape since its founding in 1945. Since its inception, the movement has remained committed to non-violent political engagement, seeking to empower the people of Jordan and the wider region.
It was therefore with shock that we received news of the Jordanian government’s decision.
However, while the criminalisation of the MB was undertaken by Jordan, the trail of responsibility can also be traced back to our own corridors of power.
Over two decades of “thoughtcrime” legislation and policies targeting Muslim political activity in the West have served as a template for foreign governments to repress opposition figures and organisations.
The proliferation of anti-terror laws, so-called counter-violent extremism policies, and the routine harassment and criminalisation of groups and individuals whose politics do not align with those of the British state have not only eroded freedoms at home but have also set a dangerous precedent for governments abroad.
By redefining peaceful political activities as terrorism or non-violent extremism — often to appease Zionist interests and to advance British neo-imperialism — successive governments, beginning with Tony Blair’s first Labour administration, have effectively given the green light for others to strip people of their fundamental rights.
The fight against terrorism has increasingly become a pretext for dismantling democratic freedoms such as the right to protest, support liberation movements, and oppose state-sponsored human rights abuses. Under the false guise of protecting the public, our governments have set us on a slippery slope towards authoritarianism.
Since October 7, 2023, state repression has intensified, seeking among other things, to insulate the government from criticism over its complicity in Israel’s genocide against Gaza. Activists, academics, and even ordinary citizens have been intimidated, harassed, and arrested merely for exercising their lawful and democratic right to oppose government policies.
If the United Kingdom wishes to be a credible leader in championing freedom and democracy around the world, it must first end the ongoing erosion of civil liberties at home. Only by restoring and upholding the rights and freedoms of its own citizens can the UK call out abuses abroad with any moral authority. Until then, any claim made by the government about its belief in the rule of law, democracy, and human rights will continue to ring hollow.
We urge you to urgently review the repressive laws on our own statute books that have undoubtedly contributed to this dangerous global trend. Only by doing so can the United Kingdom reclaim the moral authority needed to credibly stand up for human rights abroad — beginning with publicly condemning the Jordanian government’s banning of the Muslim Brotherhood.
Yours faithfully
Massoud Shadjareh
Chair, IHRC
