London, Aug 11, IRNA – A radio advert urging the British public to report suspicious behaviour to anti-terrorism police has been banned from being broadcast after being ruled as potentially offensive to law-abiding people.
The advert for the Anti-Terrorist Hotline, drawn up by the Association of Chief Police Officers (Acpo), suggested that recluses, misanthropes and eccentrics could be terrorists.
“The man at the end of the street doesn’t talk to his neighbours much, because he likes to keep himself to himself. He pays with cash because he doesn’t have a bank card, and he keeps his curtains closed because his house is on a bus route,” the broadcast said.
“This may mean nothing, but together it could all add up to you having suspicions. We all have a role to play in combating terrorism. If you see anything suspicious call the confidential Anti-Terrorist Hotline. If you suspect it, report it,” it warned.
But the Advertising Standards Authority (ASA) said the ad could describe the behaviour of a number of law-abiding people within a community and ruled that it could cause “serious offence” and should not be broadcast again in its current form.
The Metropolitan Police, speaking on Acpo’s behalf, claimed that the behaviour referred to was based on trends identified by the police and evidence given in recent terrorism trials.
The government’s Prevent extremism programme, which involves funding community groups but is currently under review, has also been criticised for stigmatising Muslims and causing Islamophobia by being an elaborate system of spying.