Huda Ammori, co-founder of Palestine Action, has made history by winning the right to judicially review the UK government’s decision to allow this. The administration previously prohibited the organization in August using anti-terrorism legislation. Palestine Action became a proscribed organization earlier this month. This classification puts it on par with terrorist organizations such as Hamas, al Qaeda, and ISIS.
Palestine Action is an anti-occupation, direct action UK-based activist group. Through nonviolent direct action, they block the doors of arms makers that sell weaponry to the Israeli state. Though originally planned as a collaborative effort, the UK government led by James Cooper imposed the ban without ever consulting the group. This ruling has already alarmed many legal scholars and civil rights activists. Judge Martin Chamberlain of the High Court has given Ammori permission to pursue a judicial review. He declared it is “reasonably arguable” that the ban disproportionately violates Palestine Action’s rights to freedom of expression, assembly and association under the European Convention on Human Rights (ECHR).
The ramifications of the ban are significant. The new law criminalises the act of being a member of Palestine Action. Relatedly, it forbids soliciting support for the entity. This piece of legislation has sparked massive protest throughout the UK. Demonstrators are flooding the streets in London, Edinburgh, Manchester, Bristol, and Truro. Since July 5, police have detained more than 200 people affiliated with the group. For most of them, it’s terrorism charges for just holding up supportive signs.
Ammori’s legal challenge follows a series of high-profile actions by Palestine Action activists, including a break-in at Britain’s largest air base in central England in June. At the time of this incident, nonviolent direct action activists had recently destroyed two military aircraft. These recent episodes have brightened the spotlight on them and intensified the focus on the group’s actions. As such, it has been designated a terrorist organization under British law.
The UK government continues to assert that the proscription order is vital for national security. Yvette Cooper, the senior government official responsible for domestic security, affirmed the renewal of the proscription order against Palestine Action Group. She framed the decision not as abandonment of Palestine, but as the only way to focus on public safety.
“Importantly, this proscription decision is not about Palestine, nor does it affect the freedom to protest on Palestinian rights,” – Yvette Cooper
Volker Turk, a high-profile former refugee advocate, recently raised alarm on the use and application of such laws. He stated that these measures “are being applied to conduct that is not terrorist in nature and risk hindering the legitimate exercise of fundamental freedoms.”
A judicial review of the ban is scheduled for this September. This provides Ammori and Palestine Action an extremely important opportunity to make their argument against the government’s decision. Negotiations are beginning to boil over on this high-stakes issue. Activists and legal experts alike are closely watching for developments in this pathbreaking challenge.
