The UK law on terrorism and the British Muslim Kashmiri communities

Contemporary terrorism is linked to Islam, and thus the focus of counter terrorism work is on Muslim communities especially as far as the UK is concerned following the events of July 2005. The objective of this thesis is to analyse how, if at all terrorism and counter terrorism has affected British Muslims both according to law and according to their perceptions. The study focuses on a sample of British Kashmiri Muslims and seeks their perceptions of terrorism and the British counter terrorism policies and legislation. The study employs qualitative fieldwork techniques, alongside scholarly research on legislation and socio-legal literature. The findings contribute original analysis and fieldwork data to the academic literature and discussions on counter terrorism in general, and on the British Kashmiri Muslim community in particular. The thesis analyses the tensions between the government's counter terrorism agenda and the community's perception of those. This thesis highlights that some counter terrorism policies such as Prevent are effective in encouraging community co-operation, whilst other areas of active policing create anxiety and thus hinder community co-operation. In addition there is a clash of perceptions about what constitutes terrorism, especially regarding activities abroad, and it is this 'clash' that has to be addressed by those working with these communities. The research further identifies the potential vulnerability within this group and their social status within the society they live in. The findings emphasise that despite the anxieties related to the counter terrorism legislation, the interviewees accept national security requirements at home, but struggle to accept that foreign policy affairs in Kashmir should be affected by the United Kingdom's security laws.