Ian Allsop is happy to be criticised, but hopes you won’t offend him if you choose to do so.

I was already nervously toying with the idea of writing something about Muslim charities and terrorism on the morning of 7 January, when I heard what had just happened in Paris.

As someone who has been known to use satire in a magazine to poke fun, I didn’t feel I could stay silent – although I can’t say anything that hasn’t been said elsewhere, often more eloquently.

And there has been a tremendous amount written in the wake of the horrific incident at Charlie Hebdo, including a stack of rubbish about freedom of expression.

Muddled thinking

This notion seems to have got entwined with the right to offend. We should, of course, be free to say what we want even if it does offend people. But that isn’t the same as offending people being an aspiration – and generally I would say that the less we upset others the better.

Nobody can defend the murderous reaction to the offence caused by Charlie Hebdo and I don’t agree that they brought it on themselves or didn’t have the right to publish the cartoons. But I have held back many times on writing what I feel about subjects – ranging from the serious to the trivial – not for fear of reprisals but out of politeness.

I have quite strong views on aspects of the religious debate but am sensitive to the feelings of others, whatever their faith. I also recognise that faith is an important part of what underpins charity, whether through the historical roots of many organisations, or the ethos of those working within them.

The other charge levelled is that, Charlie Hebdo aside, people criticise Christian values in a way that they never would Islam. I confess I would be more comfortable mocking Christianity, but only because I have grown up with it and understand it more.

Far from promoting other faiths in preference to our ‘own’ (whatever that means), I am grateful that my children have a far more rounded awareness of all religions from what they are taught at school than I did. Done properly it helps breed tolerance, not division and extremism. In fact, constantly stating things are divisive is in itself often divisive.

Somehow pinning responsibility upon all Muslims risks exacerbating the problem. It will only further muddy things in the charity sector, where there were already hints of an anti-Muslim charity feeling, especially given reported links between some and extremism, and the Charity Commission’s high-profile remit to help in the fight against terrorism.

Freedom of expression also includes Muslim charities being able to speak out and clarify their position, especially in an area where misinformation is prevalent in the mainstream media. However, freedom of expression should not be confused with being able to say what you want even if it ignores something trivial like the truth.

Sadly any expert, self-appointed or otherwise, can state complete fiction with no accountability other than having to apologise afterwards.

No greater satire

There can be no greater satire than our leaders seeking to defend our freedoms by introducing new laws and safeguards which restrict our freedoms.

And let us not forget that this freedom of expression debate comes at a time when many charities claim that the Lobbying Act effectively gags them in the build-up to the general election.

All of which makes it important that charities continue to raise their voices, while observing the rules around political campaigning of course. As I write this, Oxfam has just released research showing that the share of the world’s wealth owned by the richest 1 per cent increased from 44 per cent in 2009 to 48 per cent last year. Far from there being ‘no money left’, there is. It is all still there, just not where it is most needed. Soon that 1 per cent will own everything.

Oxfam highlighting this is exactly what it should be doing. Yes, it is political but only in the context of how it shapes the society we live in. And aside from the unfairness of it all, such inequalities also help provide the conditions in which extremism can flourish in the first place.

There. I’ve had my say. Feel free to criticise me. Just don’t feel you have a duty to offend me in doing so.

Ian Allsop is a freelance editor and journalist, and regular contributor to Charity Finance