Speaking at Mayor’s Question Time today, Ken Livingstone, the Mayor of London said:
“Last week I welcomed Sheikh Yusuf Al Qaradawi, President of the European Council of Fatwa and Research, to London. Professor Qaradawi is widely respected as one of the most eminent and moderate Muslim scholars in the world. I welcomed him to London just as I would the leader of any of the other great world religions to promote understanding between London’s diverse communities. I welcome dialogue with all religious leaders in London without necessarily agreeing with all of their views.
“I was appalled by the outpouring of lies and Islamaphobia against Professor Al Qaradawi in the tabloid media. I would point out that the Professor visited Britain at least five times during Michael Howard’s time as Home Secretary and Mr. Howard has never before raised any objections to his visits. Al Qaradawi has made at least 17 visits to Britain during the 18 years of the last Conservative government and again no questions were raised in the media by any members of parliament whatsoever.
“The hysterical outburst of racism and Islamaphobia generated by the tabloid media, with some politicians (who had spent previous weeks courting Muslim votes) now falling over themselves to echo the Sun and the Mail, was remarkable given that none of them took the trouble to ask Dr. Al Qaradawi himself for his real views.
“Virtually everything printed about Dr. Qaradawi by the tabloids was a lie. The Daily Telegraph for example attributed remarks about the victims of rape, repeated on BBC Newsnight, which it turned out had nothing whatsoever to do with the Professor.
“My staff have looked at the various websites, including those in Arabic, spoken to the Arab experts at the Foreign and Commonwealth Office, monitored all of Dr Qaradawi’s statements while he was in Britain. The conclusion is that he is not anti-Semitic, he does not call for the execution of homosexuals and he does not advocate domestic violence. In fact, in Islam, Al Qaradawi is known for his moderate views.
The pro-hijab conference held Monday, July 12, at the Greater London Authority, announced an international hijab solidarity day and an action plan to defend the right of Muslim women to take on the headscarf.