Some months ago I was invited to speak at Islam Expo. I agreed despite being fully aware of the nature of the event and the uneven make-up of the debate that the organisers wanted me to take part in.
But the fact that one of the people behind the event is now trying to sue the blog Harry's Place persuaded me, as it has Martin Bright, political editor of the New Statesman, to withdraw from the event. The government minister Stephen Timms has now followed suit.
Apologies to anyone who was hoping to come to hear me. Beneath I am pasting-in the letter I wrote to the organisers of Islam Expo last night explaining my reasons for pulling out:
Dear -
Further to my previous emails I have learned that one of the key figures in Islam Expo is in the process of suing the highly admirable blog Harry's Place.
I am fully aware of the bias involved - and many of the unpleasant figures behind - Islam Expo. I have followed the event on both previous years and have always been fully aware of the highly prejudicial and biased nature of the forum.
However, I believe passionately in freedom of speech. This means that I have often taken to platforms and had to talk opposite people whose views I find morally distasteful and worse. I knew that this was going to be the case at Islam Expo. Among the pannelists in the uneven panel you intended to put me on were Seamus Milne, and Anas Altikriti. Milne has previously come close to libelling me in print. He - like Altikriti - has views which I abhor. But I am willing to speak with such people, and make my case in almost any venue which cares to have me.
However, the event of Mohammed Sawalha's legal action against Harry's Place makes it impossible for me to be on your platform. A concerted attempt to prevent writers from highlighting the agendas or affiliations behind your event ridicules the very idea of an open debate.
I will not come on a platform hosted by people carrying out legal action against a deeply admirable and informed proponent of free speech. I hope your debate benefits from its newly re-found uniformity.
Sincerely,
Douglas Murray
Well done, Douglas, and those who follow suit.
It would have been great to even out the bias to some degree and to give the panel more balance, but to do so under such circumstances could be construed as legitimising the constant attempts by some muslims in this country to stifle free-speech just because they don't happen to like what is being said.
Yes, I went today hoping to see Douglas Murray participate in the debate, however there was no debate & all the panelists had exactly the same biased views. I sat through most of it but when Seamus Milne began with the tired old 7/7 is all our fault, British foreign policy, our presence in Iraq is all to blame etc etc, I decided to make my exit :-(
Who cares? Would prefer to listen to my grandmother farting.