Judges uphold government’s move to proscribe group under terrorism laws
Palestine Action has officially been banned in the UK after senior judges rejected a last-minute appeal against the government’s decision to proscribe the group as a terrorist organisation. The ruling came late on Friday evening, hours before the ban came into effect on Saturday.
The Court of Appeal dismissed a bid by the group to pause the ban, concluding that the decision to proscribe an organisation lay with the government and not the judiciary. The panel, comprising Lady Chief Justice Baroness Carr, Lord Justice Lewis and Lord Justice Edis, noted that the courts had no role in assessing the political merits of such a move, stating: “The merits of the underlying decision to proscribe a particular group is not a matter for the court. This is a matter, under the relevant Act of Parliament, for the Secretary of State, who is accountable to Parliament for the decisions that she makes.”
The ban follows a draft order laid before Parliament earlier this week seeking to amend the Terrorism Act 2000 to include Palestine Action. The Home Secretary Yvette Cooper formally announced the move on 23 June, citing what she called a “long history of unacceptable criminal damage” by the group. She described a recent attack on RAF Brize Norton, in which £7 million worth of damage was allegedly caused to two military aircraft, as “disgraceful”.
With the ban now in place, expressing support for or being a member of Palestine Action is a criminal offence, punishable by up to 14 years in prison.
At a High Court hearing earlier on Friday, Mr Justice Chamberlain denied an interim injunction that would have delayed the ban. In a detailed 26-page ruling, he concluded that the potential harm of refusing temporary relief was outweighed by “the strong public interest in maintaining the order in force.” He also said that some of the concerns raised by the group’s representatives were “overstated”.
The court heard arguments from Raza Husain KC, acting for Palestine Action’s co-founder Huda Ammori, who described the ban as “ill-considered” and accused the government of engaging in an “authoritarian abuse” of its powers. He argued that the move marked an unprecedented step in targeting a civil disobedience group that did not advocate violence.
Following the ruling, Ms Ammori criticised the government’s action, claiming it criminalised “thousands of people across Britain” for supporting a protest movement. She maintained that the group would continue to “defend fundamental rights to free speech and protest” and to “stand up for the rights of the Palestinian people.”
The judges also declined to grant a stay on the ban pending any potential appeal to the Supreme Court.
Palestine Action joins a list of 81 organisations already proscribed under the UK’s terrorism laws, which include Hamas, al-Qaeda, and the neo-Nazi group National Action.
