The  London School of Economics (LSE) has stood by PhD student Reza Pankhurst throughout controversy stoked by media reports concerning his membership of Islamist group Hizb ut-Tahrir (HT).

Employed as a graduate teaching assistant within the Government department, the university stated that “We are not aware that Mr Pankhurst is a member of a proscribed organisation or has broken any laws or LSE regulations. He did not disguise his past when he applied to the School. The School has not received any complaints from students who have been taught by Mr Pankhurst.”

Although HT is legal in Britain, it is banned in Egypt, where Pankhurst was imprisoned and allegedly tortured in Egypt in 2004 after being accused of trying to overthrow the Egyptian government.

Concerns have been raised about the extremist nature of the organisation;
which the Tories have said they would ban and the government have criticised for its allegedly racist and anti-democratic views. The National Union of Students (NUS) officially gives the organisation a ‘no platform’ policy, which has led to questions about Pankhurst preaching to LSE’s Islamic Society (ISoc).

Media outlets linked Pankhurst to “new concerns about Islamist radicalisation on campus” (The Times), following the arrest of former UCL student Umar Farouk Abdulmutallab and allegations that he was converted to a terrorist ideology while at university.

The assertion that Pankhurst created a private ‘Brothers’ Circle’ within the society in order to promote the views of HT to a selected Muslim audience has been refuted by both Pankhurst and the ISoc in LSE’s student newspaper, The Beaver.

Pankhurst said in an interview with The Guardian that he felt he was a victim of a “McCarthyite witch-hunt” against Muslims. He reiterated his stance on extremism and stressed that no private and clandestine meetings were taking place. The media, he argued, were creating a false image of his activities, stemming from discrimination against Muslims.

LSE students hoped to propose a motion entitled ‘Defend the LSE community – Stop the Islamophobic Witch Hunt’ at their Union General Meeting (UGM). However, London Student understands that Sabbatical Officers were fearful of passing such a strong statement, in case it was perceived as a defence of HT, and submitted last-minute amemndements – which resulted in the withdrawal of the motion a day before the UGM.

Estelle Cooch, who proposed the motion, said: “The amendments that they sent me included lengthy abhorrent quotes from HT about murdering Jews and homosexuals and as a result there was no way we could vote against their amendments without looking like we supported HT.

“A number of students had asked to be taken off the ISoc mailing list because they were scared about getting their visas revoked by simply being linked to the ISoc at LSE. Some had received abusive emails about Reza and many students were too scared to come to UGM and vote.”

Pankhurst will continue teaching classes of second and third years students twice a week on the undergraduate course ‘States, Nations and Empire’.
 
February 1, 2010

By Leia Clancy

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