Abu Qatada, one of the UK’s most dangerous extremist preachers, has been released from jail tonight. But what is really behind this BBC tag line? Whilst I believe that this man should not be at liberty to spread his message of terrorism freely around the UK, should he really be locked up for six years without being charged?
Another man, also evil in his own way, Ali Dizaei, the ex commander of the Metropolitan Police, has today been found guilty of perverting the course of justice, will serve a further three months in prison. Three months for misuse of his powers of position. There doesn’t seem to be much justice between the two, does there?
Now don’t get me wrong, I don’t want Abu Qatada set free, I too would prefer to see him deported, if for no other reason than to save thousands of pounds of taxpayer’s money. But I can only see one way to soften the hatred in his heart, and that is through dialogue. Only by reasoning, by talking to al-Qaeda, will we find a lasting peace between our civilisations.
As the Buddha taught us, even the most evil person has a portion of Buddhahood within them. Whether that potential is allowed to blossom is open to conjecture, but it exists never the less. If we continue to demonise these people, we will only reinforce their hatred and set them more strongly against us. We must engage in dialogue if this cycle of destructive hate is ever to be broken.
The Search For Enlightenment 
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