BMMS February 1994

By way of balance to the extensive quotations from the Muslim press on the Archbishop of Canterbury's visit to the south of Sudan; the following quotations were taken from a speech which Dr Carey made to the House of Lords shortly after his return. In it he said, "I want to say first how sorry I am that my planned pastoral visit to Northern Sudan was aborted. I have made it clear to the Sudanese Government that I hope these plans can be reinstated." "I should like to make it clear that, although I am profoundly grateful for the unstinting practical help and advice of the Foreign and Commonwealth Office when I go overseas, I go solely as a representative of the Church, not of the Government. I make my own decisions and take full responsibility for them. It is wrong to blame the Foreign Office or anybody other than me."

Dr Carey made it clear that "it is my invariable practice to go overseas only as a guest of the local Church; but I always seek to go with the agreement of the government of the country concerned. Planning for the Sudan began on that basis." "My programme and arrangements for the visit were developed in consultation with Sudanese Government representatives. I was pleased also to accept an invitation to meet the President..." "It was less than two weeks before my scheduled departure that I was informed that the Sudan Government was insisting on my coming as their official guest. I judged that inappropriate. No reasons were given for their sudden change of plan, and no guarantees that I would be allowed the freedom to carry out my pastoral duties as I would have wished." No reply was received to a request to the Sudanese government to reconsider this change of plans. This led the Archbishop to call off his visit to the North and continue to visit Christians in the South only. Not to go to the South would have been "an unwarranted and cruel blow to people who feel forgotten and look to me as a spiritual leader".

The Archbishop went on to report on his visit to the Sudan by saying that "Sudan is crying out to the world for help". He spoke about a fresh appeal launched by many British churches to provide relief aid for humanitarian needs "of people in both North and South, regardless of race or religion". He spoke about Sudan "crying out for justice" and emphasised that the current conflict "is not a fight between Christian and Muslim. Muslim and Christian have been living together in Sudan for hundreds of years without conflict." He traced the source of the conflict to the desire of the people of the North to dominate the people of the South. The Southerners will continue to resist that domination, "if that domination means the imposition of religious law as binding upon all". He quoted the evidence of the UN Special Rapporteur, Dr Gaspar Biro, who concluded that "the Sudanese Government is responsible for the most far-reaching infringements [of human rights]". "I was myself told again and again that the Kartoum regime had committed all sorts of human rights violations falsely in the name of Islam".

Dr Carey essayed that "The problem is fundamentalism and intolerance". He quoted the words of a community leader in Nimule who said, "Fundamentalism is not only a threat to the integrity of Sudanese society but indeed a threat to world peace. Our war is not a war of ideologies. We are fighting in self-defence for survival. We have been oppressed and degraded enough". Dr Carey concurred with these sentiments. "Those words in my opinion have a definite ring of truth about them. The people of Sudan are crying out for those primary human realities which we in this land take for granted: freedom of religion, freedom of speech and equality of opportunity. These fundamental rights we are glad to acknowledge are enjoyed by religious minorities in our country. Surely we must point out that such rights are universal and reciprocal."

In conclusion, Dr Carey commented "we do have a continuing obligation to ask ourselves constantly what more can we do, going beyond humanitarian aid, to assist the many people in the Sudan, North and South, who are deprived of the very values which are essential to the human condition." He said, "I am however deeply unhappy that the international community seems powerless to do anything effective to advance the prospects of peace, human rights and religious toleration in the Sudan." "I have, of course, made arrangements to brief both our own Government and the United Nations about what I have heard and seen, and have urged them to leave no stone unturned." "I can assure Her Majesty's Government and the United Nations that they can count on the continuing support of the Churches in any constructive moves to ease suffering and persecution and advance the prospects of peace." [BMMS February 1994 Vol. II, No. 2, p. 1/2]

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Reporting Ramadan

The start of the month of Ramadan led to widespread coverage in many parts of Britain focusing on the nature of Ramadan as a spiritual exercise and the practicalities of observing the fast. Reports came from such places as Stoke on Trent and Halifax, which concentrated on the impact of fasting on Muslim children in schools, Gloucester, Bradford and Crawley. There were the usual concerns expressed over the precise date for the start of Ramadan given the problems over the sighting of the new moon. The local council in Bolton has arranged a sports festival, aimed at all the town's youth, to coincide with the month of fasting.

Questions of health relating to Ramadan have been covered with a lengthy article by a doctor in the Daily Awaz (18.02.94) detailing the benefits to the body which accrue from fasting. In Bradford, the city council and the Community Health department launched a joint campaign to encourage Muslims to give up smoking for good during Ramadan and to improve their general diet for the sake of their hearts. Heart disease was reported to be the biggest killer in the Bradford area.

A Ramadan-page was added to Channel 4's teletext service for the week leading up to the start of Ramadan. This gave updated information on the sighting of the moon and general guidance on keeping the fast. The service will be repeated for the last week of the fast (7-13 March, page 437) when the results of competitions for children launched in the first week will be announced. The service was paid for by Muslim businesses and organised by the UK Ruyatul Hilal Committee based at the Balham mosque. If this pilot project is successful, it is intended to repeat it for the whole of the fasting month in future years. The cost of renting the teletext page is reported to be £150 per day.

The Bradford-based "Fast FM" radio service is back on the air for Ramadan this year. It will broadcast 24 hours per day for the whole month and will carry live programmes from 0700 to 0300 each day. Programmes will be transmitted in English, Urdu and Punjabi and will focus on a wide variety of issues of importance to Muslims in the area. In addition, this year, it will be carried on the Yorkshire Cable FM network.

Christian leaders around the country have been sending messages of goodwill to Muslim neighbours to coincide with the fasting month. Such messages have been reported from Bradford, Wakefield, Halifax and London.

The Masjid-e-Noor Mosque in Gloucester has been given permission by the local council to broadcast the adhan every evening during Ramadan over a loudspeaker system. The decision has met with the approval of local residents. [BMMS February 1994 Vol. II, No. 2, p. 2/3]

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Focus on Hizb ut Tahrir

Following recent reports in the national press concerning the growing influence of Hizb ut Tahrir in Britain (see British Muslims Monthly Survey for January 1994), the issue has received attention both locally and nationally. A correspondent to The Guardian (12.02.94), which carried an earlier report (07.02.94), pointed to "the actual fragility of their erstwhile `Islamicity'", and went on to indicate that this was founded on "a spurious exegetical style" and the practice of "resolutely declaring Muslims whose opinions differ from their own to be `unbelievers'". Based on these two points, it was indicated that Hizb ut Tahrir concentrated on recruiting ill-informed Muslims to their ranks. A second correspondent stressed that they are a minority faction and that commentators did no service to justice by tarring all Muslim welfare and charitable institutions with the same sinister brush.

There was a row in the London borough of Tower Hamlets when Farid Qassim of Hizb ut Tahrir was invited to speak to a meeting at the Davenant Centre about the meaning of the Ramadan fast. Local councillors objected to the anti-semitic leaflets attributed to the group and teachers, who are seeking to encourage tolerance, complained at people coming in to stir up trouble (City of London Recorder 18.02.94).

Redbridge Council has investigated the circumstances surrounding the letting of Ilford Town Hall to a meeting organised by Hizb ut Tahrir in January. It discovered that the hall had been booked in the name of the "East London Islamic Forum", which proved to be unknown when enquiries were made with the police, to discuss peace in the Middle East and what prospects there were for Jews and Muslims to live in harmony (Ilford and Redbridge Post 26.02.94). "At the meeting, a speaker told the audience that Jewish authority in Palestine should be exterminated." The Chairman of the Leisure and Amenities Committee said, "I was very angry when I heard what had happened. They conned us by booking the hall under one name when they were really a different group... We're wiser after the event and will possibly be using better intelligence from the police special branch in future".

The question of Hizb ut Tahrir activity on university campuses was taken up by the Times Higher Education Supplement (25.02.94). It reported on a meeting held by the group at the University of Central England in Birmingham at which allegedly anti-semitic literature was distributed. Suha Farouk of Durham University said that students and lecturers were heavily represented in the Hizb ut Tahrir membership as it is a party which appeals to an intellectual approach. She said, "It has a membership of about 300 to 400, mainly students. Its main rôle here is to recruit foreign students who will become active when they go back to Islamic countries; on paper at least it's not interested in the West". Another meeting of the organisation at the Guildhall University, London, was reported, at which Israel was described as "an insult to humanity". The activities of the group were described by Dr Kalim Siddiqui as "grossly irresponsible".

Hizb ut Tahrir has also been implicated in unrest in Huddersfield where they have been linked to the "extremist" magazine Iqra. This magazine has been condemned by both Muslim and non-Muslim sources as offensive. The group are reported to be recruiting amongst Huddersfield University students (The Huddersfield Daily Examiner 25.02.94). Extracts from a copy of Iqra were printed which attacked the Church of England, Jews, the UN Secretary General, Salman Rushdie and the Queen. The magazine, and those behind it, were condemned by local Muslim leaders, some of whom did point out that there was a general feeling of fear in the community following the West's lack of intervention in the Bosnian conflict. One theme which ran through comments from local Muslims was the way in which young Muslims are being radicalised by their lack of job prospects, their perception of racial/religious discrimination and their judgement that Muslim leaders are not addressing the issues which challenge British Muslims today. [BMMS February 1994 Vol. II, No. 2, p. 3/4]

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Short Reports

Using eggs from aborted foetuses

Muslims are being asked to lend their support to a campaign being organised by the Society for the Protection of the Unborn Child to introduce a bill to prevent the use of eggs taken from aborted foetuses. The bill would make it illegal to take eggs from aborted female foetuses and transplant them into infertile women. One ethical problem with this is that the child born from such an egg would have an aborted foetus as its "genetic mother". Another is that the abortion to remove the foetus would have to be done in such a way that the foetus is removed alive from its mother so that the eggs are undamaged. It would then have to be killed. [BMMS February 1994 Vol. II, No. 2, p. 4]

Reactions to Hebron massacre

More than a thousand Muslims are reported to have held a protest march through east London on 27th February to condemn the massacre at the Hebron mosque. A leaflet was distributed by "the organisers" which claimed to show that the gunman had acted with the connivance of Israeli military personnel and which called for a Jihad for the liberation of Palestine. It is reported to have said, "We must not be fooled by the facade of the so-called `peace process'" (Daily Awaz 20.02.94).

The north London suburb of Stamford Hill was profiled in an article by The Guardian (01.03.94). Here Muslims and Hasidic Jews live peacefully side by side. Both groups were quoted as condemning the Hebron gunman as "a lunatic". The intermingling of the two communities in commerce and social concerns was portrayed, although there had been an incident where two Jewish boys had been attacked by Muslim youths in retaliation for the massacre. A local synagogue spokesman reacted to the assault by saying, "Every time there is trouble in the area we sit down and talk to our Muslim neighbours". Local Muslims were quoted as saying, "We share the same prophets and religious sites. It's just a different way of worshipping" and "There's a growing frustration in Islam at the way the West ignores the plight of the Palestinians and their treatment at the hands of the Israelis". [BMMS February 1994 Vol. II, No. 2, p. 4/5]

Portsmouth two reinstated

Abdul Mukith and Abdul Basith, who were banned from holding office in future in the Portsmouth mosque after irregularities regarding the voting lists (see BMMS for December 1993), have been temporarily reinstated by order of the county court pending a full hearing by the same court. [BMMS February 1994 Vol. II, No. 2, p. 5]

United stand against racism

The Indian Workers' Association (GB), Leicester Branch, has formed an anti-racist alliance to represent all communities in Leicestershire. It is reported that racial incidents rose by 50% in Leicester last year. Nottingham City Council is debating calls for tougher legislation on racial harassment after an increase in racial attacks including a neo-Nazi attack on a bookshop during which 32 people were arrested. A meeting was held in Kettering to draw attention to the growing wave of racial harassment in the area with a view to forming a Kettering-based Racial Equality Council. There is a community of about 700 Punjabis in the area and a total ethnic minority community of around 1,500 out of a total population of 77,000. [BMMS February 1994 Vol. II, No. 2, p. 5]

Islamic Conversations

The Channel 4 TV series Islamic Conversations with Ziauddin Sardar has been commented upon in Q News and the Daily Awaz. The Daily Awaz (14.02.94) noted that the interview with Leila Ahmed on "Women and Islam" dealt with a topic which is both volatile and important. The reviewer in Q News (18.02.94) was enthralled by Dr Hasan Turabi's engaging manner and command of the issues involved in the debate on the Islamic government in the Sudan. "In articulating the dynamics of the country's Islamisation efforts Dr Turabi makes nonsense of many of the wild criticism [sic] made of Sudan in the Western media and from fanatical and frantic Church officials." In commenting on Ziauddin Sardar's performance he noted, "the interviewer lacked the quickfire counter-questioning of a Jeremy Paxton or the tenacity of a Brian Walden". Several issues which were only partly dealt with were identified and the review concluded that "at times [it needed] to be rescued from slipping into being a party political broadcast on behalf of the Sudanese Islamic Movement".

The third interview in the series, with Hujattul-Islam Mohammad Masjed Jame'i, the Iranian ambassador to the Vatican, was noted by both papers. The Daily Awaz report (21.02.94) gave a brief outline of the areas which were discussed and gave an equal amount of space to biographical notes on the presenter and producer. The Q News review (25.02.94) was written by the author Gai Eaton. He noted the unbending demeanour of the Iranian diplomat and questioned what image of Islam this interview conveyed to the general British public. The contributions to a correct understanding of the relationship between Christianity and Islam and the concomitant short-comings were surveyed. Mr Eaton concluded, "It is the presentation rather than the content that worries me, and I doubt whether it achieves the purpose at which all such programmes should aim. That is to present the principles of Islam in the most effective and appealing way to an audience which is still in the grip of ancient prejudices and common misconceptions". [BMMS February 1994 Vol. II, No. 2, p. 5/6]

Dispute over community centre

There is a dispute in Sheffield between the local council and a Bangladeshi group over the use of a community centre. The centre is located above a mosque but was financed by grants from local and national government on the condition that it would be open to everyone. The Bangladeshi group now wish to limit the use of the centre on cultural grounds. Negotiations are continuing but a council official has indicated that, if a satisfactory solution cannot be found, the money will have to be repaid. [BMMS February 1994 Vol. II, No. 2, p. 6]

Search for missing boy

The six year-old boy, who is being sought by his father, who has not had any news of him since December 1993, and who is believed to be under the protection of the Islamic Mosque in Brixton (see BMMS for January 1994), has been made a ward of court after his mother failed to comply with a court order requiring her to allow his father access to the boy. The High Court has also given permission to solicitors acting for the father to search medical, social security and passport records in the hope of tracing him. The solicitors have also been given permission to engage the services of representatives from the Muslim Parliament to use their good offices to obtain information from the Islamic Mosque. Leaders from the mosque are not co-operating with the courts in their efforts to trace the boy. [BMMS February 1994 Vol. II, No. 2, p. 6]

Muslim youth attacked

After a "savage racial attack" on a Muslim youth in Bethnal Green, London, the Tower Hamlets Race Equality Council is calling for a race monitoring group. The 19 year-old youth was beaten up by a gang of around 20 white youths and sustained three fractures to his skull. [BMMS February 1994 Vol. II, No. 2, p. 6]

Fifth anniversary of Rushdie fatwa

The fifth anniversary of the issuing of the fatwa against Salman Rushdie by the late Ayatollah Khomeini was marked by the Rushdie support group, Article 19, arranging for letters to be handed in at Iranian embassies in nine Western countries asking President Rafsanjani to cancel the fatwa. The support of the British Prime Minister for such a course of action was forthcoming as was that of the Foreign Office. The Iranian response was to renew the fatwa.

The impact of the fatwa on British Muslims was explored in an article by Yasmin Alibhai-Brown in The Independent (14.02.94). She indicated the ways in which it had forced a new generation of British Muslims to re-think their understanding of Islam and seek to re-work their Islamic identity. She identified a broad spectrum of opinion amongst Muslim intellectuals but rejoiced in the intellectual fervour which was awakening. Women and girls are becoming more conscious of the rôle which they can play in society and are discussing the issues which touch women's lives no matter what culture or religion they come from. Whatever one may think about the fatwa and the events surrounding the publication of The Satanic Verses, it has had the positive effect of raising a certain consciousness amongst British Muslims. [BMMS February 1994 Vol. II, No. 2, p. 6/7]

Support for hospital patients

Discussions have begun at the Manor Hospital in Walsall to make access to spiritual leaders available for all patients. At present there are Christian chaplains appointed to the hospital but, with 10% of the local population belonging to other world faiths, there is the need to extend the service across all the religions. Facilities may be made available to provide a place to pray within the hospital for people of other faiths. [BMMS February 1994 Vol. II, No. 2, p. 7]

Quakers talk about Islam

The Society of Friends (Quakers) met in Ealing to hear a talk on My spiritual experience of Islam. The West Yorkshire Ecumenical Council met in the Ravensthorpe mosque to discuss the relations between Christianity and Islam. [BMMS February 1994 Vol. II, No. 2, p. 7]

Edinburgh lectures on Islam

The Islamic Outreach Society in Edinburgh has mounted a series of lectures about Islam aimed at non-Muslims. The programme will include sessions on the existence of God, prophets, life after death, heaven and hell and relations with other religions. [BMMS February 1994 Vol. II, No. 2, p. 7]

Doctor applies for 1,000 jobs

The CRE is to investigate the case of a doctor who has applied for more than 1,000 jobs. The doctor, who is a specialist in tropical medicine, qualified in Pakistan in 1978 and then had seven years overseas experience before coming to Britain in 1985. He has since studied at the London School of Tropical Medicine and has obtained two M.Sc. degrees. Currently he has had to accept a position as a junior doctor in a psychiatric hospital. [BMMS February 1994 Vol. II, No. 2, p. 7]

Islam and abortion

The question of abortion was discussed at length in Q News (11.02.94). There was a full-page interview with Dr Majid Katme, the Muslim co-ordinator for SPUC, and a survey of what the main Sunni law schools say about the permissibility of abortion. The stages of development of the foetus were explained and the various methods used in the abortion operation. [BMMS February 1994 Vol. II, No. 2, p. 7]

Praying in the market place

A decision to set aside one of the storerooms at the John Street market in Bradford for use by Muslims who wish to pray at work, has caused some concern amongst traders. The storerooms are in short supply and some traders would have preferred that it remained available for one of their number to use for their stock. [BMMS February 1994 Vol. II, No. 2, p. 7]

Combining media rôles

Michael Bukht, the controller of Classic FM, also known as Michael Barry of the BBC TV programme Food and Drink, was profiled in the Telegraph magazine (26.02.94). The profile concentrated on his management style at Classic FM but made reference to his being a practising Muslim with a strong devotion to family ideals and extended-family living. [BMMS February 1994 Vol. II, No. 2, p. 7]

Names and naming systems

The Judicial Studies Board has issued an advisory paper entitled Names and naming systems which is aimed at removing offensive styles of address to people of religions other than Christianity. The paper coincides with the second annual report of the Ethnic Minorities Advisory Committee which notes that all Crown Court judges and recorders are now given briefings on topics which are likely to have a religious or cultural impact on their work in administering the justice system. The chairman of the Society of Black Lawyers, Makbool Javid, indicated that the advisory paper could serve only to divert attention away from the "intense hatred certain members of the judiciary harboured against minorities, particularly Muslims" (Q News 18.02.94). [BMMS February 1994 Vol. II, No. 2, p. 7/8]

Industrial tribunal, Dewsbury

The industrial tribunal in Leeds has awarded the 17 men who had been disciplined for taking a day off to celebrate Eid ul-Adha in 1992 (see BMMS for March, October and December 1993) compensation of £1,000 each. The solicitor acting for the men announced that he was sure that "my clients are going to be happy with whatever the tribunal has awarded them. It was a matter of principle". [BMMS February 1994 Vol. II, No. 2, p. 8]

Relief work for Bosnia

A further relief convoy consisting of five 7.5 tonne lorries and two support vehicles was sent to Bosnia with approximately £130,000 worth of medicines, clothing and food organised by the Ahmadiyya Muslim Association.

Harrowing news of victims of the fighting in Bosnia was relayed to the Muslim communities of Blackburn and Preston by relief convoy workers who had delivered aid on behalf of the Gujarati Sunni Moslem Society.

Muslim leaders in Bury have written to their local MP's asking them to put pressure on the government to have the arms embargo on Bosnia lifted so that arms can be shipped to Muslims there so that they can defend themselves against Serb and Croat aggression. The strongly-worded letter expressed the view that the British government's policy in this regard "amounts to directly aiding and abetting Serbia, and now Croatia, in its devilish programme of ethnic cleansing and genocide" (Radcliffe Times 10.02.94). [BMMS February 1994 Vol. II, No. 2, p. 8]

Women's exhibition, Southampton

As part of the International Women's Week, an exhibition has been mounted in the Southampton Civic Centre library which chronicles the rôle of women in the Muslim community. It is being partly organised by the UK Islamic Mission in Southampton. [BMMS February 1994 Vol. II, No. 2, p. 8]

Book appeal

An appeal has been launched by Muslim students in Ilford, Essex, for Islamic books to help them build up their library in the local mosque. They have received gifts from two publishers but are seeking more gifts to extend their collection. [BMMS February 1994 Vol. II, No. 2, p. 8]

Sunrise Radio broadcast

Muslims in Southall staged an angry picket of the Sunrise Radio headquarters following a programme which contained allegedly insulting remarks about the prophet Muhammad. The remarks were contained in a call from a local person during a phone-in programme. There is something of a long-running dispute between Muslims and the radio station especially in the person of its chief executive Avtar Lit. The company has been asked for an apology to be broadcast and an explanation as to why the offensive call was not terminated. No apology has been forthcoming and the chief executive has indicated that the company did nothing wrong. There had been an attempt by Sunrise Radio to win back its Muslim listeners in the period leading up to Ramadan with broadcasts of the Qur'an and Hadiths and the recitation of the adhan five times each day. Muslim leaders have called for a boycott of the radio station and Muslim advertisers have begun to withdraw their advertisements in order to affect the company's revenue. The question is being investigated by the Radio Authority; a decision is awaited. [BMMS February 1994 Vol. II, No. 2, p. 8/9]

New imams conciliatory

The four newly-appointed imams at the London Central Mosque have set out their hope for a controversy-free term of office. The position of imam at the mosque has been blighted in recent years over such issues as the "alleged conversion" of Salman Rushdie, the unilateral declaration of a date for Eid and the absence of beards from the Egyptian imams appointed in 1991. The new imams are Dr Abdul Halim Mohamed, who has a doctorate in education from Cardiff, Dr Al-Marsafi, Shaikh Al-Sabbah, who studied Islamic education at Al-Azhar, and Shaikh Muhammad Al-Sharkawi, who is an expert on the history of Israel and a fluent Hebrew speaker. [BMMS February 1994 Vol. II, No. 2, p. 9]

Drive to learn English

Gloucester City Council has been debating the cost of translating council documents into Chinese, Bengali, Urdu and Gujerati. The view was expressed that more people from these language groups should be availing themselves of the council-run English language courses so that they would no longer need the services of the translators. It was noted that these courses are very poorly attended but perhaps this might be due to the fact that they are run in the evenings. [BMMS February 1994 Vol. II, No. 2, p. 9]

High incidence of heart disease

The problem of the high incidence of heart-related diseases amongst elderly people from Pakistani families has contributed to a scheme set up by Calderdale Council and Age Concern which will run in Halifax. The scheme intends to collect information on the needs of the elderly and to match those needs to better council provision. [BMMS February 1994 Vol. II, No. 2, p. 9]

Minorities population to double

Academics from Manchester University have published a study which predicts that Britain's ethnic minority population will double in the next forty years. The study, called The Ethnic Dimensions of the 1991 Census: A Preliminary Report, has been described as insensitive by Muslims involved in race relations. [BMMS February 1994 Vol. II, No. 2, p. 9]

Grant for autobiography

Nottingham City Council has granted Yacqub Mirza, a local writer, £3,000 to enable him to publish his autobiography. This book covers his upbringing in India (he joined the British Indian Army in 1939) and his life in Nottingham since moving there on retiring from the Pakistan army in 1958. [BMMS February 1994 Vol. II, No. 2, p. 9]

Mental health project, Gloucester

A new mental health project has been launched in Gloucester specifically aimed at members of the black and ethnic minorities. The project is funded by local and central government and employs workers from all ethnic groups represented in the area, it is hoped thus more easily to gain the confidence of potential clients who might be suffering from isolation or lonelines. [BMMS February 1994 Vol. II, No. 2, p. 9]

Council executive profiled

Imtiaz Ahmed, the Chief Executive of Leicester City Council, was the subject of a profile in Q News (25.02.94). He is the son of a diplomat, born in the USA. As Chief Executive of the city council he is responsible for interacting between the local community, local politicians and central government. This gives him an insight into the needs of people and possible strategies for implementing them. He spoke warmly of good community relations in Leicester and the need for people to work together towards common goals which can unite disparate groups. He identified the public relations side of his work as an area in which the Muslim population in general could learn to improve their performance so that they can be seen to be reasonably arguing a sound case. [BMMS February 1994 Vol. II, No. 2, p. 10]

Debate on male circumcision

The issue of male circumcision was debated in the March issue of Cosmopolitan. The tone of the article was to ask why this should be permitted given that female circumcision is illegal. The religious norms of Judaism and Islam were expressed but it was felt that many more boys are circumcised on "health" or cultural grounds than on religious ones. It was reported that around 95% of the male population of the USA has been circumcised. [BMMS February 1994 Vol. II, No. 2, p. 10]

Progress on discrimination compensation

The Labour MP Keith Vaz has been successful in gaining government support for his Race Relations Remedies Bill which will remove the upper limit of £11,000 compensation in racial discrimination cases. In future industrial tribunals will be free to set the level of compensation. This will bring British law in line with the rest of the European Union. The bill still needs approval from the House of Lords. [BMMS February 1994 Vol. II, No. 2, p. 10]

Gangs in Bedford

The Bedfordshire on Sunday newspaper carried a report on the growing tendency towards violent gangs amongst youths from Asian families in Bedford (20.02.94). A picture was painted of gang-land battles and fights for territory against white and Afro-Caribbean youths. A variety of weapons are being used and the police are reported to be launching special operations to avoid riots. The local Muslim and Hindu population has disowned these youths and despises their actions. [BMMS February 1994 Vol. II, No. 2, p. 10]

Selling postcards to Saudi Arabia

A Cardiff-based businessman, who converted to Islam eight years ago, has set up a deal to export his photographs of Makkah and Madinah to Saudi Arabia. He originally went to Saudi Arabia to work and took up photography as a hobby. Now he is a commercial photographer and specialises in architectural photographs. His photographs of the sacred shrines of Islam have been reproduced as postcards and he is preparing an order for half a million of them to be sent for sale in Saudi Arabia. [BMMS February 1994 Vol. II, No. 2, p. 10]

Challenge to immigration probation period

A row has erupted in Bradford after a Muslim woman challenged the law which requires that a couple, one of whom came directly from overseas, remain married for a year before permanent residency can be granted. On one side there are those who want the year's probationary period scrapped so that couples are not forced to stay together in an unworkable marriage. On the other side, there are those who are arguing that overseas marriage partners should have to remain in their marriages much longer, perhaps seven or ten years, before being granted permanent resident status. The latter group claims that some Muslims, especially women, are being forced into marriages so that overseas husbands can come to Britain, settle and gain residency before divorcing their wives. [BMMS February 1994 Vol. II, No. 2, p. 10/11]

Arranged marriages

In the light of the return of the BBC2 TV programme East on 16th February, the Glasgow paper, the Daily Record, carried an article (16.02.94) on the plight of girls from Asian families who feel obliged to enter arranged marriages even though they would prefer to select their own husbands. The tensions between growing up in a "love-match" society and the links to the culture of the sub-continent were explored. The cases of girls who had felt obliged to leave home rather than marry the man of their parents' choice were described. Readers were reminded of the case of Nasreen Akmal, whose marriage at the age of 14 to a young man in Pakistan was annulled last year. She was quoted as saying, "I am now an outcast in the Asian community in Glasgow. I get spat at in the street and shopkeepers refuse to serve me". [BMMS February 1994 Vol. II, No. 2, p. 11]

Cemetery vandalised

The Muslim section of the cemetery in Stoke on Trent has been the object of three separate vandal attacks in a period of two weeks. On each occasion up to 35 gravestones were pushed over. The Muslim section is in a remote corner of the graveyard where vandals are less likely to be intercepted. The council is now considering additional security measures to protect the graves. [BMMS February 1994 Vol. II, No. 2, p. 11]

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Updates

Education

BBC video on Islam

The BBC has produced a video film entitled Attitudes to Islam with the aim of improving relations between Muslims and non-Muslims. The film was shot on location in Pakistan and West Yorkshire. It aims to explore life in a Muslim society and explode some popular misconceptions and stereotypes. The film lasts 50 minutes and comes with a supporting booklet. It costs £26 from BBC Education, 201 Wood Lane, London W12 7TS. [BMMS February 1994 Vol. II, No. 2, p. 11]

New school in Peterborough?

Leaders from the Pakistani community in Peterborough have opened discussions with the local council about buying a disused school for £1.25m and then opening it as a girls' school for local girls from Asian families. The plan would be to apply to the government for grant-maintained status. Plans are still in the outline discussion stage. [BMMS February 1994 Vol. II, No. 2, p. 11]

Muslim school seeks pupils, Coventry

A Muslim school which opened in a local mosque in September now has a roll of 20 pupils and is seeking more children. The school is staffed by one female teacher, who teaches all subjects with two assistants and "a specialist for religious education". Parents are paying £7 per week for primary-age children and £10 for secondary pupils. The school's objectives are stated as "to save our Muslim children from the unIslamic and immoral teachings in state schools" (Coventry Evening Telegraph 18.02.94). [BMMS February 1994 Vol. II, No. 2, p. 11/12]

Bishop backs Bradford Muslim Girls' School

The Bishop of Bradford has given his support to the application of the Muslim Girls' Community School in Bradford to be granted voluntary aided status. The move was welcomed by the chairman of governors, Akram Khan-Cheema, who said that they currently had three Christian teachers and would be open to applications from Christian girls who wanted to enter the school. The application for state funding is currently with the Secretary of State for Education. [BMMS February 1994 Vol. II, No. 2, p. 12]

New study centre, Blackburn

Planning officers are recommending approval for plans to build a new Islamic study centre on Ash Street in Blackburn. The plans call for a community hall, four classrooms, a library, kitchen, offices and storeroom. The land has already been cleared ready for development. Only one local resident has complained about a possible increase in traffic. Off-street parking for 64 cars would be included in the plans. A decision from the planning authority is imminent. [BMMS February 1994 Vol. II, No. 2, p. 12]

Swanlea School, Tower Hamlets

The first new state secondary school in London for more than ten years has been officially opened in Tower Hamlets. The Swanlea School cost £9.55m and was built on derelict ground on the Whitechapel Road. It will have an intake of 210 pupils per year and the majority are expected to come from local Muslim communities originating in Bangladesh and Somalia. [BMMS February 1994 Vol. II, No. 2, p. 12]

Prayer room for one

The Cheslyn Hay High School in Cannock, Staffordshire, has made its photographic darkroom into a prayer room so that the sole Muslim pupil can have a place set aside for daily prayers. The 17 year-old boy has now become a rich resource for other pupils as he is in great demand to explain more about Islam to them. His friends at school have decided to support him during Ramadan by observing the fast in school with him. [BMMS February 1994 Vol. II, No. 2, p. 12]

Standards at Stratford School

Stratford School, in the East End of London, was at the centre of a dispute in 1992 between the headteacher and the governors. The school is grant-maintained and has only 577 pupils on roll, the majority of whom are Muslims. The original dispute centred on the management style of the headteacher and the poor results obtained by the teaching staff. Two of the governors attempted to force the headteacher's dismissal and were ultimately relieved of their office by the then Secretary of State for Education. The school has recently been the subject of a formal OFSTED inspection which found that standards were generally low. The report highlighted several areas which needed to be improved as a matter of urgency. The former chairman of governors, who was dismissed in 1992, has issued a further call for the headteacher's dismissal saying that she is patently to blame for the poor results. [BMMS February 1994 Vol. II, No. 2, p. 12]

Muslim school for Croydon?

One group in the Muslim community in Croydon is hoping to move towards setting up a Muslim girls' school under the government's grant-maintained proposals. It is thought that around 90 families out of the 10,000 Muslims in the borough would want their children to attend. The idea has been discussed in the community and voices have been raised against it on the grounds that Muslims should not be isolated away from the rest of British society. The debate focuses on the provision of good educational standards and the best use of limited resources and is being pursued by Muslims on both sides. [BMMS February 1994 Vol. II, No. 2, p. 12]

Religions unite aganist secularism?

Clifford Longley, formerly religious affairs correspondent to The Times, contributed an article to the Daily Telegraph (11.02.94) in which he set out the four schools of thought regarding religious education in state schools which are vying for the attention of the present government. He concluded that the best way forward was to see the common enemy as secularism and for religious people to make common cause against it. "A Muslim's best friend and ally, in this increasingly secular society, is not a race relations officer but a Christian priest or minister. Together they can defend the realm of the spiritual against the pressures and assaults of materialism. Divided, they will be swept away together. Promoting the teaching of Christianity in schools is a sound move for a Muslim, therefore, as long as the respect for other faiths continues to prevail. Some Muslims have seen this already. There is even said to be a mosque in the North of England where regular prayers are said for the conversion of England - back to Christianity." [BMMS February 1994 Vol. II, No. 2, p. 13]

Hussain appeal rejected

The appeal against her dismissal, lodged by Mrs Noshaba Hussain (see BMMS for September, October, November and December 1993, and January 1994), has been turned down by a panel of governors at the school. The former headteacher's union, the NAS/UWT, are still considering legal action on her behalf in the High Court. Mrs Hussain is reported to have sent "a weighty file" to John Patten, the Secretary of State for Education, asking him to quash the governors' decision. [BMMS February 1994 Vol. II, No. 2, p. 13]

Mosques

Burnley

The Lancashire County Council has agreed a grant of £25,000 per year for three years to help mosques in Burnley and Preston develop community projects. The money will be used to help provide a co-ordinator and secretary plus two development workers. [BMMS February 1994 Vol. II, No. 2, p. 13]

Burton on Trent

The East Staffordshire Council has ordered an enquiry into the state of the mosque and community centre in Uxbridge Street. The mosque is situated in a former school which has already been given a grant of £90,000 for repairs and which has applied for a further grant of £60,000. The council planning officers have found that the whole building is in a "disgraceful" state of repair. The chairman of the mosque committee accused the council of only funding "shoddy" repairs to the community centre. He said, "If Muslims pay Council Tax, I want to know why we don't get a reasonable share for the mosque" (Burton Mail 08.02.94). The committee has applied for permission to extend the mosque with the addition of a prayer room, dome and minarets (see BMMS for December 1993). There have been complaints from local people about any more tax-payers' money being spent on the building when the council is cutting back in other areas. The chairman of the mosque committee is again reported to have said, "There is a bit of a conspiracy against us" (Burton Mail 10.02.94). [BMMS February 1994 Vol. II, No. 2, p. 13]

Hartlepool

The Muslim Welfare Association in Darlington has been granted temporary planning permission for one year to use three rooms in a house in Hartlepool for prayer. [BMMS February 1994 Vol. II, No. 2, p. 13]

Leeds

Details have been released of the proposed £750,000 purpose-built mosque for the Harehills area of Leeds (see BMMS for January 1994). The finished building will be built of stone with a dome, two 6 feet minarets to the rear and two 35 feet minarets to the front which will be decorated in turquoise, green and gold. It will be completed in phases as the money becomes available. Phase one will see the main stone structure built which should be completed this year. Phase two will see the dome and minarets completed and finally the setting will be landscaped with a fountain in the forecourt. [BMMS February 1994 Vol. II, No. 2, p. 13/14]

Lewisham

Planning permission has been given for the conversion of a former school caretaker's lodge into an Islamic cultural centre in Eltham for the Lewisham and Kent Bengali Association. The house will accommodate the imam on the first floor and will be used by around 25 people who live locally. [BMMS February 1994 Vol. II, No. 2, p. 14]

Wembley

A campaign by local people has been successful in getting the former St Andrew's Church listed as having historic interest. This listing reduced the value of the building from £750,000 to £250,000 which enabled the Muslim Welfare Association to buy it as a mosque. The former church was dedicated for Anglican worship in 1904 and is in a North Italian style with a domed clock tower. [BMMS February 1994 Vol. II, No. 2, p. 14]

Wolverhampton

Plans to build a mosque near the Five Ways roundabout entrance to Wolverhampton are being resisted by local residents who fear that there will be increased traffic congestion and additional noise from the adhan being broadcast five times each day. The proposed mosque would have a 56 feet dome and an 80 feet minaret. There will be car parking for 60 cars and the site will be landscaped with a boundary wall. Planners are being advised to accept the plans by council officials. The mosque committee has said that it will accept a ban on the use of loudspeakers for the adhan. [BMMS February 1994 Vol. II, No. 2, p. 14]

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