Three dangerous, terrorist groups will be banned under plans
announced by the Home Secretary today.
A draft proscription order has been laid in Parliament which will
proscribe Palestine Action (PA), as well as two further groups:
the Maniacs Murder Cult (MMC) and the Russian Imperial Movement
(RIM).
This will make it a criminal offence to be a member of one of
these groups or to invite or recklessly express support for them.
Parliament will now consider and debate the draft Order and if
passed, the Order will make it an offence punishable by up to 14
years in prison to belong to or support the groups.
Proscription is ideologically neutral. By deciding to proscribe
these three organisations, the government is demonstrating its
zero tolerance approach to terrorism, regardless of its form or
underlying ideology. National security is the government's first
priority and it will not shy away from this
responsibility.
As previously put to Parliament by the Home Secretary on 23rd
June, her intention to proscribe Palestine Action after
following its orchestration and enaction of aggressive and
intimidatory attacks against businesses, institutions and the
public, which has crossed the thresholds established in the
Terrorism Act 2000.
Home Secretary said:
National security is the first duty of any government, we will
always take the action needed to protect our democracy and
national security against different threats.
Maniacs Murder Cult, Palestine Action and the Russian Imperial
Movement have each passed the threshold for proscription based on
clear national security evidence and assessments.
The right to protest and the right to free speech are the
cornerstone of our democracy and there are countless campaign
groups that freely exercise those rights. Violence and
serious criminal damage has no place in legitimate protests.
These include attacks at Thales in Glasgow in 2022; and last year
at Instro Precision in Kent and Elbit Systems UK in Bristol. The
attack on the Thales defence factory in Glasgow, caused over £1
million worth of damage to parts essential for submarines. Staff
fled for safety as pyrotechnics and smoke bombs were thrown in
evacuation areas.
Such acts do not represent legitimate acts of protest and the
level of seriousness of Palestine Action's activity has met the
test for proscription under the Terrorism Act 2000.
MMC is a white supremacist, neo-Nazi organisation that is
transnational and predominantly online. It aims to encourage
individuals to engage in acts of violence against those it
perceives as “anti-social”, to further its causes.
MMC leaders and members have claimed a number of violent attacks
globally. MMC supplies instructional material which provides
information that can be used by an aspiring attacker to increase
their capability or motivation to conduct a terrorist attack
posing a threat to the UK.
Proscription will help deter individuals from engaging with MMC's
violent and misanthropic content. Further supporting social media
platforms to remove MMC content and the Police in their efforts
to respond to individuals found in possession of such
material.
RIM is a white supremacist, ethno-nationalist organisation which
seeks to create a new Russian Imperial State. Via its
paramilitary unit, the Russian Imperial Legion, RIM has fought
alongside Russian forces in Putin's illegal invasion of Ukraine,
directly advancing its own ideological causes.
RIM manages a paramilitary training programme called Partizan,
which increases the capability of attendees to conduct terrorist
attacks. In 2016, two Swedish nationals attended Partizan before
committing a series of bombings in Gothemburg, Sweden.
Proscribing RIM will continue the steadfast support of Ukraine in
its resistance to Russian aggression and demonstrate the UK's
commitment to countering future threats from Extreme Right-Wing
Terrorists.
Should Parliament vote to proscribe, the right to peaceful
protest will remain protected. As will the ability to defend the
rights of the Palestinian people and to oppose actions of the
Israeli government. The government has carefully considered the
nature and scale of Palestine Action's activities to ensure
legitimate protest is not affected.
The proscription orders will be debated in Parliament during this
week. If approved, the orders will come into over the weekend.
This will mean that a total of 84 organisations are proscribed by
the UK.
