“U.S. Rejects Visa for Muslim Scholar,” from AP, with thanks to Morgaan Sinclair:
NEW YORK – The government has rejected a prominent Muslim scholar’s application to enter the country, contending that he gave support to a terrorist group, but his attorneys allege the U.S. is using charitable donations he made as a pretext for stifling his views.
Tariq Ramadan, a Swiss citizen who teaches at Oxford University, was denied a temporary business and tourism visa Thursday “based solely on his actions, which constituted providing material support to a terrorist organization,” said Janelle Hironimus, a State Department spokeswoman.
Hironimus said she could not reveal specifics about Ramadan’s case due to confidentiality rules regarding visa applications.
The American Civil Liberties Union said the U.S. government notified Ramadan he was being excluded because he donated $765 to French and Swiss organizations that provide humanitarian aid to Palestinians.
The ACLU said the organizations are legitimate charities in France, but the Bush administration contends the groups gave funds to the Islamic militant group Hamas, and has invoked a law allowing it to exclude individuals whom it believes have supported terrorism.
The ACLU said the decision to bar Ramadan amounts to censorship.
“This case is really about speech,” said Jameel Jaffer, an ACLU lawyer. “The government is using the immigration laws as a means of silencing and stigmatizing a prominent cleric.”
No, this case is about terror-financing charities and dissimulation.