Students’ campaign to oust Muslim lecturer — because he wants to stop potential jihadis
DISTURBING intimidatory tactics used by students to undermine antiterrorist measures on university campuses can be revealed today.
Activists are targeting anyone connected to the Government’s Prevent programme, which seeks to tip off the security services about potential extremists.
In one example, students at Islamic State executioner Jihadi John’s former university launched a direct action campaign to make a Muslim staff member’s life ‘hell’ for his involvement in the scheme.
Interfaith adviser Yusuf Kaplan was branded a ‘fake Muslim’ and demonstrators said they hoped he would ‘die’.
Thirty protesters stormed Westminster University’s headquarters to demand his sacking. They also went to Mr Kaplan’s office to hurl abuse through a megaphone, screaming ‘shame’ and chanting ‘say it loud, say it clear, Kaplan not welcome here’.
The intimidation is part of a nationwide plot by hard-Left students to sabotage Prevent, which was made a legal requirement on campuses after a string of Islamist terrorists were groomed at UK universities.
The protest against Mr Kaplan was supported by undergraduates across London, including student leaders from the School of Oriental and African Studies (Soas).
Westminster University last night condemned the calls to fire Mr Kaplan, as a terrorism expert said it was ‘completely unacceptable hounding’ of a man trying to protect students and the public. A Mail investigation found:
A student leader at University College London said that anyone arrested campaigning against Prevent was ‘doing something right’;
The anti-Prevent protest was backed online by Cage, the organisation dubbed ‘apologists for ter- rorism’ after describing Jihadi John as a ‘beautiful young man’;
Soas student union is being investigated by the Charity Commission for refusing to comply with Prevent and over concerns it is being used to promote ‘extremists or extremist views or any other unlawful activity’.
Westminster students joined with the Soas student union for a ‘three-day action’ against Prevent this month, culminating in a march through central London and the ‘hounding’ of Mr Kaplan.
An undercover Mail reporter attended a ‘crisis meeting’ about Prevent at a Soas lecture theatre, where journalists and non-students were kicked out before a Soas Master’s student warned those present not to record the speakers as ‘they might say things that put them in danger’.
Ex-public schoolboy Ayo Olatunji, a third-year medical student at UCL and student union leader, urged students to ‘disrupt’ Prevent, even if it meant arrest.
He said: ‘Look at history…the people who make the change are those who get arrested, or have been demonised…If that sounds like you in this climate then you’re doing something right.’
Farah Koutteineh, an international relations student and president of the Westminster University Palestine Society, told the meeting Mr Kaplan was the ‘core of the problem’.
She made a number of claims against him, including that he had ‘shredded Korans’, turned Islamic prayer rooms into multifaith rooms and tried to ban most of the society’s speakers.
The university said that when the prayer room became a multifaith room for use by all, including Muslims, unused Korans were left in it despite several months notice to remove all items.
The Korans were later disposed of according to Islamic principles after consulting religious leaders. It added that Mr Kaplan had no role in vetting external speakers.
At an eight-hour ‘protest workshop’ at Soas the next day, students plotted to target Mr Kaplan as they made banners denouncing him. One said, ‘I hope he dies’, some called him a ‘fake Muslim’ and others said, ‘let’s make his life
‘Let’s make his life hell’
hell’. Miss Koutteineh ran the workshop and was in the room when all comments were made.
Mr Olatunji was not at the workshop but the next day he joined her and 30 other students for a three-hour protest in London – which led to police being called.
Deputy vice chancellor Professor Roland Dannreuther tried to reason with the activists and said they were ‘vilifying’ Mr Kaplan.
Soas student union has boycotted Prevent since its introduction and the union openly promoted the three days of action online. Terrorism expert Professor Anthony Glees, of Buckingham University, said the targeting of Mr Kaplan was ‘totally unacceptable’. Prevent is ‘not an obligation on lecturers to spy on students’, he said, adding staff ‘have a duty of care…to prevent them being drawn into extremism’.
Westminster University said it supports students’ rights to make their voices heard through peaceful protest but ‘condemns the public naming of a member of staff and calls for his removal.’
Soas said its approach was ‘safeguarding the welfare our students and staff’ but this is ‘balanced against our fundamental commitment to academic freedom’.
Mr Olatunji said: ‘Yusuf Kaplan has been identified as a key figurehead in pushing for draconian implementation of this policy.’
Miss Koutteineh did not respond to requests for comment.
‘Totally unacceptable’