Lord Pearson in Washington

Glasgow man harassed by “Muslim thugs”

I was in Glasgow a couple of weeks ago, to see George Thorogood play at the Armadillo.  Unfortunately I didn’t know about The Pakistani Cafe, which is is run by Jimshaed Sharif, an avowed atheist who has lived in Scotland for many years. (For a review of Jimshaed’s place, go to South Side Happenings.)  I’ll definitely be visiting next time I’m in Glasgow.

Jimshaed appeared in the Daily Record yesterday saying, “Muslim thugs have threatened to kill me and petrol bomb my cafe because I play music and serve customers alcohol.

“I am being targeted because I do not share their Islamic beliefs and I think this is shocking. We are supposed to live in a free country and I just want to live a free man.

I consider myself Scottish because I was brought up here and even though I was born in Lahore a Muslim, I no longer hold any religious beliefs.

“I am being punished because of this and it is not right.”

Jimshaed says that he’s been told to shift books that he leaves for his customers to read, that he shouldn’t serve alcohol (in Glasgow, mind!) and that he shouldn’t play music.  Jimshaed says he’s going to keep right on playing Tom Waits and serving beer to his customers.  He’ll just wear a bulletproof vest so he doesn’t get stabbed for his troubles.  Another blogger has suggested that the availablity of non-religious literature at The Pakistani Cafe has “offended” these Muslim thugs as much as Jimshaed serving the odd beverage.  Whatever it was that got their goat, well done Jimshaed for standing up to them!

I wasn’t nearly as impressed with the media’s handling of this story.  Anna Smith did cover it in the News of The World today, and that’s as it should be.   She said that the behaviour of these thugs shamed Muslims.  She backed Jimshaed to the hilt.  But she labels the “Muslim thugs” who are trying to intimidate Jimshaed as “extremists” who have a “twisted view of their religion.”  How does she know?  She then ties herself in knots by insisting that “they have their staunch religious beliefs and we have to respect that.”  Ms. Smith, I do believe you’re trying to have your cake and eat it!  The best that she can come up with, as she tries to justify her mind-bending stance, is to say that she refuses to believe that the Muslim community as a whole wants their community to be dragged down by morons.  She refuses to believe something … and that’s it.  No investigation into who these “Muslim thugs” might be, what their beliefs actually are, or the way their behaviour is actually perceived by other Muslims.  And the way she frames it is not helpful either.  Sure, Muslims won’t want their community to be dragged down by anyone.  That’s a given.  But that’s simply not the issue.  So, a less than brilliant column by Anna Smith there.  Although I do agree with her that these thugs (she finally manages to use the word) might not want to enjoy the freedoms we do, but they’re always free to go somewhere else.   Pakistan for instance.

85 shariah courts in the UK

There are as many as 85 sharia courts operating in Britain, according to a new report.

Academic Denis MacEoin, the report’s author, said the existence of the courts practising Islamic law could lead to different legal standards being applied to Muslim and non-Muslim citizens.

He said many of the courts operate out of mosques and their rulings are closed off to non-Muslims.

In previous reports it was claimed there were only five sharia courts in the UK, working in London, Manchester, Bradford, Birmingham and Nuneaton.

He said: “This is not a matter of eating halal meat or seeking God’s blessing on one’s marriage. It is a challenge to what we believe to be the rights and freedoms of the individual, to our concept of a legal system based on what parliament enacts, and to the right of all of us to live in a society as free as possible from ethnic-religious division or communal claims to superiority and a special status that puts them in some respects above the law to which we are all bound.”

His report, published by the think-tank Civitas, includes a list of previous sharia judgements which he believes give an indication of the type of ruling being handed down by the courts working in the UK.

Among the examples quoted are laws banning a Muslim woman from marrying a non-Muslim unless he converts to Islam and the removal of a wife’s property rights in the event of divorce.

The report states: “Among the rulings … we find some that advise illegal actions and others that transgress human rights standards as they are applied by British courts.”

Source: AOL News.

Jonathan Oloyede speaks out

Jonathan Oloyede, a pastor in Whitechapel, says, ”I used to be a Muslim.  The Muslims don’t just want to build a mosque.  They want to take over.”  Pastor Oloyede was born in Nigeria.  I wonder if those who cry “racism!” whenever anyone mentions Islam would believe it applies here.  Of course they’ll probably be unaware of what the pastor said, since it’s unlikely to be reported in the mainstream media.

Source:  The Voice.

Anjem Choudary ranting again

RADICAL Muslim Anjem Choudary has brushed aside a Scotland Yard probe into his inflammatory speeches to demand that Britain should become a Sharia state.

His voice rising with passion and ­vigour, he told his growing army of followers in central London on Friday night: “Let me tell you something – the Sharia will be implemented in Pakistan, it will be implemented in India and Bangladesh and even down the road in Downing Street.”

He was sharing a platform with four other senior members of Islam4UK, a new organisation which is attracting the sort of believers who loyally followed hate preacher Abu Hamza before he was locked up.

Muslims around the world will rise and eventually conquer the White House, said Choudary, comparing the struggle ahead with that faced by Muslims hundreds of years ago, who constantly brushed the dust of battles from their eyes as they conquered nations.

by James Murray in the Sunday Express.

Read more …

The Sunday Times on 15th March

The Sunday Times has more on Anjem Choudary today.  (See these two articles). They have a recording of Choudary speaking at a meeting last year, at which he said spending money on oneself and one’s family was the work of Satan.  It’s much better, apparently, to promote Islam and to give money to the mujahideen.  Patrick Mercer, chairman of the Commons sub-committee on counterterrorism, wants Choudary to be investigated, and if it is found that he has broken the law by inviting another to provide money or other property for terroristic purposes, then Mercer says that he must be charged.  Choudary is a trained solicitor and does not deny that the recording exists, but says he never told people to send money to mujahideen in Afghanistan or Iraq. Choudary claims that he only advised people to give money to those “propogating Islam by the word”.  Maybe this is the kind of thing he means.

Muslim protestors: Royal Anglian Regiment are cowards

anti-army protest

At a homecoming march by the 2nd Battalion of the Royal Anglian Regiment, a group of Muslims carrying banners saying “Baby Killers” and “Butchers of Basra” shouted abuse at our soldiers.

The protest has been linked to one of several Islamic groups that have arisen in the UK following the disbanding in 2004 of Al-Muhajiroun.  Anjem Choudary, a former leader of Al-Muhajiroun who now speaks for Ahle Sunnah al Jamah (The Majority of the Muslims), led a meeting on September 11th last year, at which a speaker by the name of Saiful Islam praised Osama bin Laden and blamed America for 9/11.  Islam is then quoted as saying that if British troops did not withdraw from “Muslim lands” then all Muslims, as members of the ummah, would stand alongside Al Qaeda, and another 9/11 “will take place” in the UK.  Choudary was last to speak at the meeting.  He stated that his goal was for Britain to become “an Islamic state”.  He took a slightly cheerier view than his sidekick though, saying this may come about through “pure conversion”.  According to him, Muslims “do not integrate into Christianity” but any human traffic heading in the other direction can travel down that one-way street easily enough.  No doubt looking out for the spiritual welfare of us ignorant Brits, Choudary added helpfully, “We will ensure that one day you will integrate into the shariah, Islamic law.”

Choudary tends to his own flock as well.  A week later he held a meeting in East London entitled “Muslim Youth: The Spark of The Fire” which featured as a speaker Abu Uzair, whose views are well known.  He told the BBC years ago: “We don’t live in peace with you any more.  The banner has been risen for jihad inside the UK, which means it’s allowed for bombers to attack. [...]  I may be British but I am a Muslim first, a Muslim second and a Muslim last.” Andrew Dismore MP, referring to this meeting, said that groups like these “always target children”.  Mr. Dismore, who had called for the British government to ban Al-Muhajiroun, said that although Choudary’s old organisation is now defunct, people like Choudary “just keep reinventing themselves” and that another of Choudary’s projects, islam4uk, is “another side of the same coin”.

The Royal Anglian Regiment is described on islam4uk’s website as “pathetic and cowardly”.  It is asserted that their cowardice is shown by “their uncanny knack for death by friendly fire”.  It is also alleged by the anonymous author of an article entitled “A Cowards Return” that the purpose of the Royal Anglian Regiment’s homecoming march was “to demonstrate their skill at murdering and torturing thousands of innocent Muslim men, women and children”.

It seems to me that these Islamic preachers and protesters are threatening community harmony, and therefore public safety, in the UK.  They certainly incited some serious hatred, which Chris Huhne thought Fitna could have done, if a bunch of pensioners in the House of Lords saw it.  (They did.  It didn’t.)  I think the Muslims protesting at that march were doing exactly what Jacqui Smith thought Geert Wilders might do, and she stopped him from entering the country.

What do Jacqui Smith, Chris Huhne and Nazir Ahmed have to say about all this?  Ahmed is still in the nick, so we’ll excuse him for keeping a low profile for the moment.  But the other two?  Their silence so far speaks volumes.

Scottish police put Muslims first

Scottish Daily Mail 28-02-09

POLICE IN RACE BIAS OUTRAGE

Scottish forces ordered to give priority to crimes against Muslims

by Dean Herbert
 

Police in Scotland have been ordered to give special priority to crimes where the victims are Muslim.

In a move that last night sparked a fresh row over political correctness, a senior officer revealed that the race and religion of a victim has now become a crucial factor in how police respond to crime.

Inspector Tom Galbraith, of Lothian and Borders Police’s diversity unit, told a conference on tackling terrorism that it was important to stop Scottish Muslims feeling “vulnerable” in case they were driven towards radicalism.

Mr. Galbraith said the force encouraged officers to consider the religious or ethnic backgrounds of victims to assess their needs in dealing with hate crimes.

He said that both an attack and a perceived lack of action by police could turn Islamic youths into future terrorists.

Mr. Galbraith also revealed that police officers, Special Branch and BAA security staff were being given special lessons about Islamic culture after Muslims complained that being questioned when entering the country about whether they pray and attend mosques was offensive to their faith.

Speaking at a national security conference in Edinburgh on Thursday, Mr. Galbraith said, “It is not about treating everybody the same.

If I have a young Asian man who has been subjected to a hate crime, I would rather put more resources into that than if it had happened to a white male because the white male is far less likely to end up becoming radicalised.”

He later confirmed that his remarks were in line with Lothian and Borders Police policy, saying that cases of hate crime were assessed “by need”.

He added: “You have to consider cases according to need.  The idea of treating people all the same is a bit naive and we have to remember that there are vulnerable individuals who can be put on the path of radicalism.”

Last night, the police were criticised for being too politically correct in dealing with hate crimes.

Conservative Justice spokesman Bill Aitken said: “I’m afraid we are now living in a society in which some people are more equal than others.

“Not accepting assault against some people is a serious matter and the law is required to be proactive in each and every case.

“There is no room for political correctness in the fight against crime.”

Richard Cook, Scottish spokesman for the Campaign Against Political Correctness, added: “I think people will be extremely concerned that victims are being treated differently according to their religion, colour of their skin and where they live.”

Inspector Tom Galbraith

During the conference, Mr. Galbraith also said that police officers and airport security staff were being given lessons in Islamic culture to avoid offending arrivals.

He said: “Sometimes they will be asked “Do you pray?” or “Do you visit mosques?” when they arrive in the country.

“This kind of thing is derogatory to the Islamic faith.  A lot of people then wonder what is wrong with going to mosques in this country.

“It is about making an effort in learning about other cultures and faiths.”

He later confirmed that training in Islamic culture was now on-going among officers.

Mr. Galbraith joined Lothian and Borders police in 1988.

He presently works in the diversity unit under the “prevent” strand of the UK counter-terrorism strategy.