The Sunday Times reports that “the Scout Association has ditched its traditional pledge of loyalty ‘to God and to the Queen’ in favour of a series of multicultural options. Muslim Scouts can opt to swear to Allah, while atheists can drop God altogether and budding republicans can pledge themselves to the state rather than the monarch…. The changes have horrified some prominent former Scouts. Stephen Pound, the Labour MP and chairman of the all-party parliamentary Scout group, called the changes ‘profoundly retrograde, uncalled for and potentially extremely divisive’.”
Fascist demonstrates need for new law
In a racist diatribe based on a News of the World report of the conviction of one Dulu Miah on a manslaughter charge in Ipswich, Nick Griffin of the BNP underlines the need for a new anti-incitement law:
“Miah appears to be in the usual mould for such racist killers. Let’s say it before the new ‘law’ gags us on this as well: He’s an Asian. But he’s not a Hindu, and Hindus hardly ever attack their non-Hindu neighbours. He’s not a Sikh, and we wouldn’t expect him to be, because Sikhs hardly ever attack their non-Sikh neighbours (in fact, when it comes to violent crime, both groups seem to have a lower offending rate than the national average). No, he’s a Muslim. And why should anyone expect anything else, because the vast majority of the killers of the white victims of racist attacks in Britain are Muslims. ‘Fight those of the Unbelievers who live near to you, and show them how harsh you can be.’ (The Koran. Surah 8.123)”
Don’t panic, I’m Islamic
Don’t Panic, I’m Islamic meets Muslims who speak openly about what it means to be a British Muslim – at a time when the nation is fighting a ‘war on terror’. “If you have a Muslim name or wear a beard, we are all tarnished with the same brush,” says Tariq, a PR executive. World events are forcing young Muslims to confront a crisis over their identity. Tariq changed his name to Daniel Jacob in order to get a job after a series of rejections for employment that he was amply qualified – as Daniel, job offers flooded in.
Don’t Panic, I’m Islamic is on BBC 2, Sunday 12th June, 19:00
Over 70% of Londoners back law against religious hatred
Nearly three-quarters of the people of London support the British government’s proposals to introduce a new law to outlaw the incitement to religious incitement, according to a new poll.
The poll, carried out on behalf of the Mayor of London Ken Livingstone, found that 72 per cent of Londoners support new bill, introduced for the third time by the British government on Thursday.
Only 15 per cent said that they opposed making a new law, which is aimed to protect Muslims from the abuse they have suffered since the so-called war on terrorism by extending the existing incitement to racial hatred against people to grounds of their religion.
Speaking at his weekly press conference on Thursday, Livingstone welcomed the findings, insisting that “people of all faiths are entitled to equal protection.
“Some religious groups, such as Jews and Sikhs are already protected from incitement to hatred under race relations laws, but members of other religions, such as Muslims and Christians, are not. This makes no sense at all,” he said.
“The new law will provide important protection and reassurance for Muslim and other communities that have experienced growing abuse and targeting by extremists,” said the mayor of the most diverse capital in the world.
He rejected the massive campaign being whipped up by both right wing politicians and libertarians in opposition to the proposal, insisted that the bill, “will not restrict the right of people to criticise religions in literature, art or other fields.”
The mayor said it was just the same as the outlawing of incitement to racial hatred in 1986, which “did nothing to restrict artistic freedom.”
A difficult question
“Race and religion are different – which is why Islamophobia is a nonsense and religious hatred must not be outlawed.” Thus the standfirst to an article in today’s Guardian.
Now, who do you think wrote this article? Was it:
a) a Muslim of South Asian/Middle Eastern/African origin with direct experience of the association between racial and religious hatred, manifested in Islamophobia; or
b) a white secularist who has suffered none of this sort of hatred and never will?
Difficult, I know, so we have provided a picture clue.
Defending an anti-incitement law
Thoughtful reply to Polly Toynbee at Talk Politics:
“Underneath it all the fundamental principle of the bill, that we should offer some protection to law-abiding citizens against personal attacks predicated on their holding particular religious beliefs is basically sound. How can any reasonable person argue otherwise if they’ve ever seen the likes of Nick Griffin skirting around current race relations legislation simply by substituting the word ‘muslim’ for ‘paki’. Its an unsustainable position however you look at it – unless you’re a member of the BNP.”
… or a blogger at Harry’s Place.
Dog returns to vomit
Harry’s Place resumes its attack on Yusuf al-Qaradawi as an anti-semite, with the use of material provided by … yes, I know, this does all have a wearying familiarity … the Middle East Media Research Institute.
Perhaps the author of that post would be advised to consult another piece from MEMRI which gives a fuller and relatively accurate of Qaradawi’s position on Judaism. (Quite why MEMRI published this latter excerpt is unclear – it was in the context of a widely publicised attack on their self-proclaimed objectivity, and was perhaps a defensive manoeuvre. Whatever the explanation, the change of line didn’t last long.)
British imam highlights increase in Islamophobia
Fear and suspicion of Muslims has increased in the European Union countries since the September 11 attacks and the problem deserves as much attention as anti-semitism, British imam Abduljalil Sajid told an international conference on racial and religious intolerance yesterday.
“Islamophobia has replaced anti-semitism as the new sharp end of racist issues in the world wherever you go”, Mr Sajid told the conference organised by the Organisation for Security and Co-operation in Europe. According to EU findings, “hatred against Muslims increased tremendously” after the September 11 attacks, Mr Sajid said.
The imam criticised the conference’s draft final statement for not explicitly using the term Islamophobia, adding that Europe has to face the reality that millions of its people are now Muslims. Despite this, EU countries have no established system to monitor or record crimes against Muslims, he said.
Morning Star, 10 June 2005
See also Islam Online, 10 June 2005
Another boost for Ayaan Hirsi Ali
“Well before van Gogh’s murder, she had become a major hate figure among Dutch Muslims, who accuse her of stirring up Islamophobia on behalf of a cabal of right-wing politicians and columnists. Since the murder, a surprising number of native-born Dutch intellectuals have come around to the Muslim point of view.”
Security targets Canadian Muslims: Report
Canadian security agencies use unacceptable intimidation tactics, aggressive behavior and threats of arrest against Canadian Muslims while investigating allegations of terrorism, according to a leading Muslim group.
The Canadian Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR-CAN) has said the Canadian Security Intelligence Service (CSIS) and Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP) used intrusive tactics such as discouraging legal representation and threats of arrest under the Anti-Terrorism Act, to compel individuals to accept interviews.
Security officials also used to ask intrusive and inappropriate questions, give improper identification and solicit informants through intimidation, the Muslim group said in a statement, a copy of which was e-mailed to IslamOnline.net Wednesday, June 8.
“It’s safe to say that the overall consequence has been one of alienation, loss of trust in our security agencies and civil cynicism. The results are quite alarming,” said Riad Saloojee, the council’s executive director.
A survey conducted by the Muslim civil liberties group showed that Canadian Muslims were routinely singled out and harassed by the security agencies. Eight percent of respondents to the survey, which included around 467 people, mostly young Arab males, said they were “visited” by the RCMP or CSIS officials.
Nearly half of respondents said visits by security officials made them feel fearful, anxious and nervous, while about one-quarter said they felt harassed and discriminated against. “What we found was that people are very scared in the Muslim community, even the people who filled out the survey were concerned about their safety,” council spokeswoman Halima Mautbur told CBC News Online.
The survey also showed that the interrogators asked questions on how the interviewed is committed to Islam, how often a day does he pray and what does he think of the Iraq invasion-turned-occupation. “They suggested that having a commitment to your faith is dangerous in this post 9/11 world or that it could get you into trouble,” Mautbur said.