Harmony Foundation Hails UAE Cutting Funds for Citizens to Study in UK over Refusal to Ban Muslim Brotherhood

Pune:Dr. Abraham Mathai, founder-chairman of the Harmony Foundation, has praised the United Arab Emirates restricting funding for citizens to study at British universities over tensions with the UK for its decision not to ban the Muslim Brotherhood as a terrorist organization.

The UAE has excluded British universities from a list of institutions eligible for state scholarships while including universities in Israel, France and the US, the Financial Times reported on Jan.8.

In the year ending September 2025, 213 students from the UAE were granted visas to study at British universities, a drop of 55 percent from the year ending September 2022.

“This move reflects that the Emirati officials don’t want their kids to be radicalized on campus,” Dr Mathia said.

The Muslim Brotherhood was founded in Cairo in 1928 and is one of the world's largest and best-known political Islam groups.

It has long maintained that it is a peaceful organization that wishes to participate in politics democratically.

But it is considered a major threat by many autocratic governments in the Middle East and North Africa.

The Muslim Brotherhood is banned in Egypt, Saudi Arabia, Bahrain and the UAE.

“The UAE’s decision deserves profound appreciation and worldwide commendation,” Dr. Mathai said, hailing it as a beacon of foresight in safeguarding the UAE’s relatively secular and socially liberal system.

The UAE, under its far-sighted leadership, has demonstrated remarkable vision by proactively withdrawing educational funding in the UK to safeguard its young citizens from the negative reach of radical ideologies, he noted.

Dr. Mathai, also former vice chairman of Maharashtra State Minorities Commission, said that all forms of extremism have no place in the UAE, where the Emirates government has enacted strict laws to protect its citizens from extremist ideologies that fuel terrorism.

“This decisive measure to prevent potential exposure to Islamist radicalization on British university campuses, driven by concerns of the Muslim Brotherhood and political Islam, positions the UAE as a global leader in the fight against international terrorism rooted in radical Islamic extremism,” he said.

He also asserted that radical and repressive interpretations of Islam act as a cancerous force, eroding peace, harmony, and coexistence worldwide. “Even other Muslim countries have banned the Muslim Brotherhood, including Egypt, where it was founded, as well as Bahrain, Saudi Arabia, and Jordan. This shows that its radical ideology is not accepted or tolerated by many governments, including those in the region where it originated.”

Dr Mathai said the UAE’s principled stance reflects a deep commitment to nurturing a society rooted in moderation, innovation, and genuine intercultural harmony—values that have transformed the UAE into a global exemplar of progress and inclusivity.“By placing the long-term well-being of its youth above short-term conveniences, the UAE shows a path of moral clarity and resolute guardianship, earning sincere gratitude and admiration from all who cherish peace and authentic cultural advancement,” he pointed out.

Dr Mathai said that the UAE’s exemplary action offers a critical lesson the UK must learn to confront and stop radicalism at its roots.

He said the Muslim nations like the UAE have shown that they can take an unequivocal stand against such threats, and it is high time the UK follows suit by taking strong and decisive measures to cleanse British universities of the contamination posed by the spread of Islamic extremism linked to the Muslim Brotherhood.

“Sharia law, in its radical interpretations promoted by such groups, has no place in modern, pluralistic societies,” Dr Mathai said.

The Harmony Foundation urges global leaders to emulate the UAE’s commitment to protecting youth from being radicalized and to foster environments where moderate voices prevail and true harmony thrives across nations, he said.