The Muslim Association of Britain has formally written to the editor of the Observer stating that a catalogue of inaccuracies, errors and distortions have appeared in Observer over the past few weeks by both Nick Cohen and Anthony Barnett.
Memri and orientalism
A useful discussion of the Guardian letters dispute over MEMRI at Lenin’s Tomb, 14 September 2005
Defeat of political Islam is cause for celebration
“The Ontario government’s decision to reject the introduction of Islamic arbitration courts in its jurisdiction is an important victory against the spread of political Islam in Canada and a severe blow to those who preach it.
“This victory could not have been celebrated without the tireless activism of Canadian Muslims such as Homa Arjomand, a woman who fled her native sharia-ruled Iran and knows first-hand the inequities of Islamic law.”
A right-wing Zionist applauds the efforts of the Worker Communist Party of Iran and condemns mainstream Jewish organisations in Ontario for their capitulation to political Islam.
But where did everyone get the idea that comrade Arjomand, a leading figure in a far left sect characterised by its extreme, dogmatic secularism and fanatical Islamophobia, is a Muslim? Well, it could just be that they were encouraged in that illusion by exchanges like the following, from a TV interview:
Interviewer: Ms Arjomand, if we could get your bona fides, are you a Muslim? And have you had personal experience of sharia law?
Homa Arjomand: Yes, I have. I was born and raised in a Muslim family, and I lived in an Islamic state, Iran, and I experienced lots of horrible, horrible things … I fled Iran….
See the video clip here.
Of course, it was to the advantage of the WPI to pass themselves off as Muslims because it gave their opposition to the proposed arbitration courts much greater credibility than it would have had if they’d come clean about their actual politics. And in their role as “Muslims” they provided a useful cover for the right-wingers and racists with whom they promoted the same hysterical caricature of Islam.
Karen Hughes and American Muslims
“Her message however does have one fundamental philosophical problem. She seems to think that at some level just countering the geopolitical ideology and radical rhetoric of the extremists will result in winning the hearts and minds of Muslims and reducing the anti-Americanism that is swelling the ranks of Jihadis everywhere. This assumption is a recipe for failure.
“Just because the Jihadis are wrong in claiming that Islam teaches violence and demands that every Muslim wage Jihad against all non-Muslims, it does not necessarily mean that US policies of supporting dictators (in Pakistan and Uzbekistan), maintaining close ties with monarchs and emirs, attacking countries on false assumptions, bringing death and devastation to entire nations and practicing torture, are right. If she listens closely to Muslims, and actually looks at the consequences of US policies in the Muslim World, Iraq for example, she will realize that US image in Muslim eyes will not be restored until there is a palpable change in US policy.”
Muqtedar Khan, Middle East Online, 12 September 2005
‘5,000 suicide bombers in Germany’, Bavarian interior minister claims
Germany is home to between 3,000 and 5,000 potential Islamic suicide attackers, a senior security official touted as the country’s next interior minister has been quoted as saying.
Guenther Beckstein, currently interior minister in the German state of Bavaria, said on Monday in an interview with the online Netzeitung newspaper that he was worried small cells of “fanatics” could prepare attacks without detection.
“In Germany we have between 3,000 and 5,000 of these Islamists who are prepared to use violence and do not shrink from suicide attacks,” Beckstein was quoted as saying.
He said they included individuals who are ready to fight in Iraq and Chechnya.
Liberal Islamophobia panders to racism
“Why is it that a significant section of liberal and left-leaning opinion has signed up with such relish to the ‘clash of civilisations’ argument? Its champions in the media may not phrase it as such, but you can hear the creak of the drawbridge being pulled up: they believe they are surrounded by enemies – Muslims and their dastardly non-Muslim apologists – and must defend to the last man the checklist of universal Enlightenment values that sustain their mission. Their most ferocious firepower is directed at former allies on the left whom they regard as yet to see the light.”
Madeleine Bunting takes on Nick Cohen et al in the Guardian, 12 September 2005
Over at Nick Cohen’s favourite blog, Marcus complains: “She fails to mention that the ‘thorn in the side of the muscular liberals’ as she approvingly describes al-Qaradawi incited the murder of a gay person because of his sexuality as recently as last month according to gay rights group Outrage. ‘The scholars of Islam, such as Malik, Ash-Shafi`i, Ahmad and Ishaaq said that (the person guilty of this crime) should be stoned.”
Harry’s Place, 12 September 2005
Meanwhile, the obscure “Aljazeera” magazine that was the source of this fairytale has removed the report from their website, GALHA have withdrawn their press release based on the “Aljazeera” story – but Outrage and Harry’s Place continue repeating the slander unencumbered by any concern for the facts.
McGuinty government rules out use of sharia law
“Seeking to end months of debate, Premier Dalton McGuinty now says ‘there will be no sharia law in Ontario’ – an announcement that should quell a growing public-relations crisis concerning the use of Islamic law, but which also exposes Queen’s Park to attacks from other religions. Following widespread condemnation of a plan that would formally allow the tenets of sharia to be used in resolving family disputes, the Premier said he’ll make the boundaries between church and state clearer by banning faith-based arbitrations…. Many moderate Muslims say they are overjoyed by the Premier’s announcement. ‘I’m so happy today. It’s a victory for the women’s rights movement’, said Homa Arjomand, an Iranian immigrant who has launched a campaign to stop sharia in Ontario.”
Globe & Mail, 12 September 2005
Homa Arjomand a “moderate Muslim”! But that is of course how she has dishonestly presented herself in the course of her inflammatory campaign.
Robert Spencer, too, is dead chuffed at this “hard-won victory for human rights”, although he thinks the ban should be restricted to Islamic arbitration.
Dhimmi Watch, 12 September 2005
For Yusuf Smith’s response to Spencer, see Indigo Jo Blogs, 12 September 2005
Half of Finns hold at least some suspicions about Islam
About half of Finns have at least some suspicions about Islam, while a very small minority – about ten percent – have a positive attitude toward the religion. Finns take a positive view of people who resemble them in appearance, culture, or other characteristics. Attitudes become more negative, the more people deviate from the prevailing to skin colour, culture, or some other characteristic.
Author hopes her book will help Christians come back to Christ
“Notre Dame de Paris Mosque is an anti-utopia, the action takes place in the mid-21st century. Islam becomes the EU state religion, while Christians and other Europeans are forced to live in ghettos. A small group of the Resistance movement refuses to live according to the Sharia laws and fights for their rights with the new masters of Europe.” Thus the plot of a new novel by Elena Chudovina, who has been dubbed Russia’s answer to Oriana Fallaci.
Roman Silantyev, executive secretary of the Interreligious Council in Russia, argues that Muslims have only themselves to blame, and that the novel is a result of the “consistent anti-Christian campaign” waged in the Islamic mass media.
This is ‘tackling extremism’?
Andrew C. McCarthy asserts that the Blair government cannot fight terrorism by co-operating with Inayat Bunglawala, Tariq Ramadan, Yusuf Islam … or indeed any other influential Muslim figure who is, in fact, opposed to terrorism. Note, too, that this US right-winger uses Nick Cohen as the source for his accusation that the government is “hell-bent on a strategy of ‘engagement’ with militant Islam”.