Hizb ut-Tahrir is a group that supports a global theocracy. It’s been linked to the 2005 London bombings. Yet it’s suddenly developed an interest in democratic institutions. Sorta. It tried to use the Bankstown Town Hall in suburban Sydney for an Australia Day long weekend love in.

Not that it did it under its own name. It tried to make the booking under the name Risala. Council you see, has terms and conditions on the hire of its facilities that ban organisations that incite hatred, racism, or forms of religious, ethnic or s-xual discrimination.

Hizb ut-Tahrir falls down on all of these fronts. “No one likes the Jews except the Jews. Even they themselves rarely like each other,” the group says in one of its portentous pronouncements.

Know that the Jews and their usurping state in Palestine will, by the Help and Mercy of Allah (swt), be destroyed “until the stones and trees will say: O Muslim, O Slave of Allah. Here is a Jew behind me so come and kill him”. The signs indicate that this time is about to come In the forthcoming days the Muslims will conquer Rome and the dominion of the Ummah of Muhammad (peace and blessings be upon him and his family) will reach the whole world and the rule of the Muslims will reach as far as the day and night.

Yet these opponents of pluralist liberal democracy are yammering about “discrimination” over their cancelled booking. Their al Qaeda pals didn’t discriminate about who they killed or maimed on 9/11 or 7/7.

Labor MP Michael Danby has called for Hizb ut-Tahrir to be banned in Australia. Some of their strongest opponents include supporters of the Euston Manifesto, the British “democrats and progressives” who have declared:

We are committed to democratic norms, procedures and structures — freedom of opinion and assembly, free elections, the separation of legislative, executive and judicial powers, and the separation of state and religion. We value the traditions and institutions, the legacy of good governance, of those countries in which liberal, pluralist democracies have taken hold.

We decline to make excuses for, to indulgently “understand”, reactionary regimes and movements for which democracy is a hated enemy — regimes that oppress their own peoples and movements that aspire to do so. We draw a firm line between ourselves and those left-liberal voices today quick to offer an apologetic explanation for such political forces…

There’s plenty more on Hizb ut-Tahrir and their love of violence and hate of liberty at the excellent Labour-leaning British blog Harry’s Place.

But as many Crikey readers are “left-liberal voices… quick to offer an apologetic explanation for such political forces,” here’s a look at the first clause of the constitution of Hizb ut-Tahrir’s dream state:

Article 1

The Islamic ‘Aqeedah constitutes the foundation of the State. Nothing is permitted to exist in the government’s structure, accountability, or any other aspect connected with the government, that does not take the ‘Aqeedah as its source. The ‘Aqeedah is also the source for the State’s constitution and shar’i canons. Nothing connected to the constitution or canons is permitted to exist unless it emanates from the Islamic ‘Aqeedah.

Geddit? They hate you too – and everything you stand for. Unless, of course, you really loathe liberty so much that you don’t mind Sharia law.