Moazzam Begg was imprisoned by the Americans without charge for over three years at the Guantanamo Bay camp. On 12 September 2005 he spoke at a meeting in Birmingham, entitled "Peace and liberty", telling about his own support for Muslim causes in the past and in the future.
"They know what will be the cause of terrorism it's not going to be these preachers they are talking about I swear as Allah is my witness that these so called preachers of hate have little or nothing to do with the proliferation of terrorism in this country or elsewhere. It's the reality of ths situation that is taking place."
"I began my journeys because I saw oppression. Many people who know me from before know that I was involved in aid convoys to Bosnia and elsewhere and supporting aid organisations and so forth and yes I supported people who were defending themselves in places like Chechnya and elsewhere financially and otherwise if the law doesn't allow me to do so any more then I will do so in whatever way I possibly can because..."
At this point Moazzam was interrupted by prayers. Reporter Vivian White spoke to him afterwards and got him to finish the point he was making:
"I was going to say that if the law doesn't allow me then I'll speak out against the law. Simple as that. If the law doesn't allow me to offer my support to those oppressed people around the country then I'll then I'll try and challenge the law in whatever way that I can. And I think that platforms like this are completely appropriate and relevant to that very same challenge."
In his interview for the Panorama programme he compared the proposed new power to detain suspects for 90 days without charge with what had happened to him.
"It strikes me as very odd that the right of habeas corpus which all of us have been brought up to believe and understand is intrinsic to British society is being eroded by things like this."
"I can see completely it's almost the beginning of a mirror of something like Guantanamo where people are held without trial for a number or - in Guantanamo it's a number of years here they're beginning with months, and the terms that they're using that they're going to build a case against someone during the time that they've been held in prison: now to do this is giving the Government carte blanche..."
"It's a great paradox also that the Government, after all did after three years negotiate my return to the UK, and they're implementing these almost mirrored draconian laws that have been practised by the United States themselves."