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Islamic Human
Rights Commission 2007:
A Decade of Fighting Injustice
Libéré,
Liyakat Polin : « Mo fine quitte prison zordi avec l’honneur »
TéléPlus WebTV
Je n'ai toujours pas
compris quel crime ce Monsieur a commis pour avoir mérité 15 ans
d'enfermement .
Le Directeur des
Poursuites Publiques, comme il est d'usage en occident, fait chanter des
suspects pour clore le dossier, à la demande du gouvernement et selon leurs
critères.
Muhammad Cehl Fakeemeeah
est innocent! Donc, Le gouvernement sioniste et sa Gestapo et
le Judiciaire ont tout manigancé.
"L'Escadron de la
mort" fut inventé par les putes des médias sionistes, et je l'ai
toujours su!
"Grâce
présidentielle", quelle connerie!
BAFS
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BdnTtH2IOkA
SPEAKERS
Palestine
Performance by Blakstone
Prisoners of Faith
Challenging Islamophobia
IHRC
Security & Civil
Liberties
Performance by Kamal Uddin
On
November 11th 2007 the Islamic Human Rights Commission celebrated its 10th
anniversary of fighting injustice. The venue was the London Muslim Centre
in Whitechapel late on a Sunday afternoon.
The atmosphere was great with bursts of comedy between the speeches, and
nasheeds and poetry by Blakstone and Kamal Uddin. The speeches were
inspiring, and the case studies and personal accounts of prisoners of faith
were heart renching with even the most restrained person in the audience
melting to shed a few tears. The event was split in to five segments - each
covering a different area with its own panel of speakers.
PALESTINE
The first panel was on Palestine with Dr Daud Abdullah of the Palestine
Return Centre as its first speaker. He saw the reason for the dire
situation in Palestine spanning decades as resulting from Muslim dependence
on others to defend them. He pointed out that this is where the IHRC is
unique - it is an organisation based on Islamic principles and its here to
defend Muslims.
Palestine panel, Rabbi Ahron Cohen addressing the audience
Unusually the other two speakers comprising of the Palestine panel were
both Jewish Rabbis. This is perhaps an indication of how the IHRC works -
it seeks out purveyors of truth and justice and wherever it finds them it
makes alliances with them in the struggle for justice. The politics of
prejudice has no place at the IHRC. Rabbi Ahron Cohen is from the UK branch
of the Neturei Karta, and Rabbi Weiss represents the Neturei Karta
International based in the USA. Most readers will know by now that the
Neturei Karta are fundamentally opposed to zionism and the zionist state
and see the dismantling of the zionist state as the only viable solution to
the problem. Rabbi Ahron Cohen, who is in his 80s, is a retired lecturer.
His home in Salfords was recently attacked by zionists as punishment for
standing with Muslims on Quds
Day in solidarity with the Palestinians. Rabbi
Weiss specially flew in from New York to attend the anniversary.
1: Dr Daud Abdullah
Dr Daud Abdullah
Dr Daud Abdullah is the
Secretary General of the Muslim Council of Britain, and a senior researcher
at the Palestinian Return Centre. He also lectures in Islamic Studies at
Berkbeck, University of London. He spoke on the importance of the IHRC to
the global Muslim community:
"Muslims
are at the receiving end of human rights abuses in every corner of the
globe. And if we do not as a people stand up and defend our corner no one
sadly will do it for us. This is the reason why we have the situation
ongoing in Palestine for decades, and in so many parts of the world because
we have for too long been dependent on others to defend our corners, to
speak on our behalf. To bring to the table our own perspectives, our own
views our own aspirations and concerns - and this is the void that the
Islamic Human Rights Commission has come to fill.."
 1:
Dr.Daud Abdullah Video (MP4 format) (40Mb)
1:
Dr.Daud Abdullah Audio (MP3 format) (6Mb)
2: Rabbi Ahron Cohen
Rabbi Ahron Cohen
Rabbi Ahron Cohen is the spokesman of the Neturei Karta UK. He is also a
retired lecturer from a Jewish College in Hitching and is particularly
involved in educating the youth. He condemned the support western
governments have given Israel and makes the point that their support of
zionism is actually harming Jews.
When
one looks at the shameful and harrowing human rights crimes of the zionist
regime against the Palestinians, and then at the same time we look at the
almost inexplicable support by so many western countries led by the United
States and by this country, the United Kingdom, for the zionist regime..
one must conclude that this is either international stupidity on a colossal
scale or sadly international criminality bringing together a series of
underling agendas, or maybe a mixture of both - stupidity and criminality.
What the underling agendas may be one can only conjecture. At its most
generous level one can adopt the assumption that it is a distorted and
misplaced wish to be seen as not anti-Semitic.. Zionism does not represent
the Jews and Judaism - the two are totally different and anti-zionism is
not anti-Semitic and this basic mistake, this confusion that anti-zionism
is anti-Semitic should be realised by the western nations, and they should
realise that supporting zionism helps to drag down the name of the Jewish
people in to shame.
He identified the "zionist cancer" as the cause of strife in the
region.
I
just want to declare with regards to Palestinians and with regards to
Muslims generally - there is no animosity between Judaism and Islam, Jews
and Muslims have lived together in harmony for centuries in many many
communities - in Palestine and many many other places until the advent of
the zionist cancer.
And prayed for a brighter future which will be zionist-free, and one in
which the need for an Islamic Human Rights Commission will disappear.
We
hope and pray that by the time of the 20th anniversary of the founding of
Islamic Human Rights Commission comes round the need for their activities
will have long since disappeared, in particular we pray for the speedy,
total, peaceful dismantling of the zionist state known as Israel..
 2:
Rabbi Ahron Cohen Video (MP4 format) (38Mb)
2:
Rabbi Ahron Cohen Audio (MP3 format) (5Mb)
3: Rabbi Yisroel Dovid Weiss
Rabbi Yisroel Dovid Weiss
Rabbi Yisroel Dovid Weiss is the spokesperson for the Neturei Karta
International - Jews against Zionism. After explaining how zionism was not
compatable with the true teaching of Judaism he recalled his personal
experience of worlking with the IHRC at the World
Against Racism conference and shared his thoughts on what the Islamic
Human Rights Commission is about.
They
were set up 10 years ago, a commission called the Islamic Human Rights
Commission, this commission if you notice it doesn't say human rights for
the Islamic society - its Islamic human rights for the world, in other
words this was set up not specifically for the Islamic people. this Islamic
Human Rights Commission was set up to do human rights, we say godly rights
compassion and kindness not just for the Islamic people but for all the
people through out the world. How do i know this? Because simply I lived
it!
Six years ago we had a problem.. Unfortunately the zionists have control of
the media throughout the world, they have usurped our name, the star of
David, everything, all our symbols, the name - the Jewish sate they call
it, everything they have taken, and we have very little power to be able to
speak up. We have God - that's the greatest power. But what we have to do -
a person is obligated to do is very hard. Six years ago we wanted to go to
Durban South Africa and speak up, this was the world conference against
racism, and we decided we have to go up and speak, but we weren't given a
platform to speak, so who did we turn to? We turned to the Islamic Human
Rights Commission because not only are they for the human rights for
Islamic people but they are for the Jewish people also so we turned to
them..at that time we became very close.. they helped us constantly, every
step of the way, they stood up for us tirelessly.. Massoud gave us his
platform - we said we can't speak in south Africa he said you know what
you'll speak on our - the Islamic Human Rights platform - he didn't know us
- he said you'll speak on my platform, come and speak by us. He helped us
materially, whatever we need - food and drink anything we needed - what
ever we needed on the Sabbath - we can't carry signs - anything we needed
done who do we turn to - the Islamic Human Rights Commission - to Massoud.
The rabbis of the Neturei Karta present a plac to IHRC chairman Massoud
Shadjareh as a token of their appreciation. Its inscription reads
"..Neturei Karta representing Orthodox Jewry congratulates the
Islamic Human Rights Commission on the 10th anniversary of its founding.
Above all we salute the leading light of the commission, our trusted friend
and colleague Mr Massoud Shadjareh and his distinguished wife and partner
Arzu on their dedicated and tireless, and fearless efforts in the face of
fierce opposition in promoting the causes of human rights in general and
the cause of the Palestinian people in particular in their oppression under
the zionist heel. We wish to express out deep felt appreciation for the
respect of the Jewish religion, love of the Jewish people, and especially
for their unstinting assistance given to the Neturei Karta in its mission
of highlighting the difference between Judaism and Zionism.."
I
figured I have to come from New York I just flew in today - that's why I'm
rambling I'm tired I didn't sleep through the night but I had to come from
New York to just bring this message the world should know the Islamic Human
Rights Commission is not just for Human Rights for Islam its Islamic Human
Rights as the word is godly human rights for the Palestinian people [and]
for the Jewish people - if you look on this wall [pointing to IHRC display]
you'll see that its a whole wall showing pictures of how the Jews are being
oppressed in Palestine today they are constantly being beaten and stepped
on by the zionists [the IHRC has taken up cases of anti-zionist Jewish
rabbis beaten and imprisoned by Israel] - but unfortunately our voices are
being stifled and we hope with Gods help that us together with the Islamic
Human Rights Commission should be able to accomplish..that the world should
recognise that this issue of zionism is not a Jewish issue..
3:
Rabbi Dovid Weiss Video (MP4 format) (55Mb)
3:
Rabbi Dovid Weiss Audio (MP3 format) (7Mb)
"Rock Hard" written & performed by Blakstone
I ain't just a Rock see,
I'm part of your earth, Your Soil,
Giving Brith to you Olive trees,
Making your oil,
I've been shelter for the dead martyrs,
Brothers who toil,
Laid to rest with a hole in their chest,
???? goes the rest,
I'm defence of your womenfolk,
When they arrest them and undress them,
What you waiting for?
Now pick me up,
Pebble rebel, I'm your lock stock,
Your smoking barrel,
I'm the bullet for your slingshot,
Must have a barrel
Choose me, I was a part of a bigger boulder,
Salahuddin's army catapults, they threw me over,
That's my CV,
Yeah I lost a little bit of weight,
But Lean is the new Black,
You deny me my fate Ya Akhi,
I want it back,
I don't mean to sell myself, but see,
These armoured tanks, they ain't nuthin bruv,
They scared of me,
Newfound hero, yeah ground zero,
The foundation of a nation,
Subawata'ala's best creation,
What's it gonna be,
Little man, let me ruck,
Bring them tanks, I don't give a stuff,
I shout takbeer!
They been crushing me for years now, No fear!
Now pick me up, and wipe your tears back, you hear?
They say the good die young,
Now thats my word son,
I've seen them fall one by one,
And never turn n run,
They ain't scared to prance on these soldiers,
If you let 'em,
Trust heaven or Hell,
Its the fate that awaits,
They must bring the ruckus,
To these IDF monstrous thugs,
..
MP3
(5Mb)
PRISONERS OF FAITH
Prisoners of Faith panel, Imam Achmad Cassiem addressing audience
The second panel was on the Prisoners of Faith Campaign. Its first speakers
was Imam Achmad Cassiem who himself was a prisoner
on Robben Island having taken up the armed struggle against apartheid
in South Africa at the tender age of 15. The chairman of the Islamic Human
Rights Commission, Massoud Shadjareh, spoke next followed by Sister Faiza
Haq who is the campaign co-ordinator for the Prisoners of Faith Campaign.
4: Imam Achmad Cassiem
Imam Achmad Cassiem
Imam Achmad Cassiem is the National Chairperson of the Islamic Unity
Convention (South Africa). At aged 15 he joined the armed struggle against
the oppressive apartheid regime in South Africa and at the age of 17 he was
one of the youngest people to be imprisoned on Robben Island. Imam Achmad
Cassiem is also an advisor to the Islamic Human Rights Commission. Before
he stated his talk he praised the Islamic Human Rights Commission with the
following words:
Congratulations
to the birth of an idea, to the birth of those people who adopted that idea
and then made the intention to implement that idea and carry it through to
its successful conclusion. Congratulations to the Islamic Human Rights
Commission, to its leadership, its directorship and to all the people
working in the background to make the progress that they have done thus
far.
His talk titled "The prisoners of faith and the faith of
prisoners" was truly inspiring. He focused on the prisoners, but
rather than talk about their suffering he uniquely discussed what are the
qualities required of a prisoner of faith - the faith of prisoners! He
looks at the detention and subsequent martyrdom of Imam Abdul Haroon by the
apartheid regime to illustrate his ideas.
When
we have facts hanging in the air and they are unattached to a principle
then they don't mean very much. But the moment we have grasped a principle
then all the facts start to make sense. Prisoners of Faith and the faith of
prisoners rotates around three important concepts. One is subber or
patience, the second one is sacrifice because one cannot have patience if
you are not prepared to sacrifice, and thirdly the concept of shahadah or
martyrdom because if we have not been taught how to face failure then our
lives become difficult, if we have not been taught how to face suffering
our lives become even more difficult, and if we are not taught how to face
death our lives are utterly miserable when it happens to us or to those
close us. In view of that I would like to take the example of one prisoner
whose name is very well known. But it was always in dispute as to what
exactly what role did he play in the liberation struggle against the
apartheid terrorist regime. His name is al-Shahid Imam Abdul Haroon. And I
use this example because I was born and bread in South Africa and a great
movement was launched on the basis of his sacrifice. that movement will be
celebrating its 30th anniversary on the 9th of December in Cape Town and it
is called Qibla from the Quranic term which refers to the direction which
Muslims adopt when they accept the Kalima Shahada. Its not only their
geographic orientation but their intellectual, moral, spiritual, social,
economic and every other dimension of their existence is in that direction.
So it not only gives direction, it is direction..
He went on to explain the
importance of the work carried out by the IHRC from the perspective of a
prisoner.
I
want us to just imagine what is happening in other parts of the world. Not
thousands but hundreds of thousands of prisoners, and they don't have to be
Muslims to be humiliated, they don't have to be Muslims to be insulted,
they don't have to be Muslims to be tortured. And that is why for an
organisation like the Islamic Human Rights Commission to investigate cases
of torture and detention in Mauritius, in America, and all over the world is
a major achievement. because we are inside the prisons, we don't get this
information - anything that will boost your moral, anything that will force
you to resist is kept away from you. Imam Haroon managed to smuggle out a
letter written on a biscuit paper - white wrapping inside some of the cream
cracker packets, and he writes to Barney Desai who is late now, Barney
Desai was the barrister here in London, look at the mans attitude - he says
"Barney, I'm sorry I've forgotten my typewriter at home" - look at
the mans attitude! And at the postmortem they revealed his stomach was
empty, because for a 133 days he fasted everyday and had one meal per day
at sunset. So yes we can have many prisoners of faith but what is the faith
of prisoners? Do they believe in the cause which they stand for? And how
much are they prepared to sacrifice?
4:
Imam Achmad Cassiem Video (MP4 format) (43Mb)
4:
Imam Achmad Cassiem Audio (MP3 format) (8Mb)
5: Massoud Shadjareh
Massoud Shadjareh, next to image of former prisoner of faith sister Gul
Aslan
Massoud Shadjareh went through some of the early cases of prisoners of
faith that the IHRC has successfully campaigned on behalf of, including
that of Mu'allim Ibrahim Al-Zakzaky in Nigeria:
When
we started IHRC one of our first projects was to stand up for those who are
imprisoned who have been denied all their liberties and who are facing not
just imprisonment, torture but indeed they are looking at death in the eye,
and they are facing death. One of the first people we campaigned for was
Mu'allim Ibrahim Al-Zakzaky and 1000 of his supporters which were put in
prison. All his comrades were put in prison and then eventually all their
wives were put in prison and then all their children were put in prison
including a three year old child who was ill in the prison and then what
the Nigerian authorities were saying is that they should receive money to
feed the prisoners when they have put the whole family and whole community
in prison..
Massoud Shadjareh with slide showing former prisoner of faith Mu'allim Ibrahim
Al-Zakzaky
On the importance of supporting the prisoners:
One
thing is very important, when you talk to the people in prison, what they
say is that at that time they are made to feel alone, they are made to feel
that no one cares. For receiving that sort of support - from campaigners
writing letters or sending Eid cards or writing on their behalf it means a
lot - loads more than discharging our responsibility.
5:
Massoud Shadjareh Video (MP4 format) (15Mb)
5:
Massoud Shadjareh Audio (MP3 format) (3Mb)
Presentation used in speech: click right half
to move forward, left half to move back (or use keyboard arrow keys)
6: Faiza Haq
Sister Faiza Haq
Sister Faiza Haq is the IHRC campaign co-ordinator for the Prisoners of
Faith Campaign. She explained the campaign is essentially a letter writing
campaign and that people can support the campaign by downloading the
campaign packs for individual prisoners of faith which contain model
letters to send. We have included links to the packs below.
6:
Faiza Haq Video (MP4 format) (18Mb)
6:
Faiza Haq Audio (MP3 format) (3Mb)
Presentation used in speech: click right half
to move forward, left half to move back (or use keyboard arrow keys)
CHALLENGING ISLAMOPHOBIA
Challenging Islamophobia panel
The third panel was on "Challenging Islamophobia". Its first
speakers was Dr Saied Ameli. He spoke on islamophobia from a sociological
perspective and commended IHRCs role in combating it. Imam Al-Asi talked of
the zionist factor in islamophobia, something which is often overlooked. He
put it quiet bluntly that if there had not been a zionist occupation of
Palestine, islamophobia would not have been an issue today. Beena Faridi
who is a front-line case worker at IHRC dealing everyday with cases of
islamophobia, shared some of her cases with us.
7: Dr Saied Ameli
Dr Saied Ameli
Dr
Saied Ameli is a member of the Department of Communications at the
faculty of Social Sciences at the University of Tehran and is also the
director of the Institute of North American and European Studies, also at
Tehran University. Dr Ameli has been key in the production of IHRC's
research projects and has been a major contributor to all six volumes on British Muslims. He recalled the humble
beginnings of the IHRC:
It is
my honour to be involved in the 10th anniversary of the IHRC, it reminds me
the day that IHRC started in 1997 in a very poor house by a very rich
heart. It started by a very little hand but with very great ambition.
And went on to talk about islamophobia by exploring how the IHRC has
challenged islamophobia by first doing proper research on the issue at a
time when others hadn't even recognised it. Dr Ameli's research background
in Cultural Globalisation gives him a unique perspective
on Islamophobia, with this insight be explained how islamophobia works on
several levels:
I
don't think islamophobia happens by accident in the media, definitely there
is an ideology, hidden ideology, an adverse ideology besides the phobic
representation of Muslims in the media. Islamophobia was a push policy, to
push back Muslims to their homelands; islamophobia was a policy to prepare
war against Muslims - it was a sort of legitimization of war if it was
necessary. I think islamophobia was a policy to destroy Muslims from within
as well, to bring Muslims to the point that we should accept that we are
not civilized enough and you can see in some of the Muslim countries how
they demonize the culture, how they demonize the ideas of the young
generation. Islamophobia was about encoding the community of faith -
Muslims and Islam by violence and images of hate, which are encoded by
hatred and marginalization.
Islamophobia is a resocialization process. When i say resocialization
process it means that islamophobia is to be desocialized away from one's
own culture and to be resocialized into another culture. When Muslim feels
that Islamic culture is not good - this part of the islamophobia policy -
to bring Muslims to the point that they feel they are lacking something and
they should change their own culture and they should merge to the western
culture to feel who they are.
One dimension of islamophobia is very obvious which you can see in the
media. Even if you look at the last issue of Economist still you can see
that they are showing a picture which as soon as you see the picture you
decode it as Islam and Muslims - it doesn't need to say anything - the
picture says everything.
There is also a covert aspect of islamophobia which is ideologic, which I
think we need time to understand that ideology which is trying to make
segregation between Muslims and the rest..
7:
Dr Saied Ameli Video (MP4 format) (47Mb)
7:
Dr Saied Ameli Audio (MP3 format) (7Mb)
Presentation used in speech: click right half
to move forward, left half to move back (or use keyboard arrow keys)
8: Imam Al-Asi
Imam Al-Asi
Imam Muhammad Al-Asi is the elected Imam of Washington DC Islamic Center
but has been forced to lead jummah prayers outside on the street for the last 20
years after being forcefully ousted by the Saudi Embassy. Senior member of
the Institute
of Contemporary Islamic Thought, he is working on the first english
language tafsir of the Holy Qur'an. In addressing islamophobia he spoke of
the zionist factor:
I
think any attempt at speaking about islamophobia by omitting the zionist
factor is almost useless. In other words if I was to become very simplistic
and we were all to assume that there is no zionist israeli occupation of
Palestine of the Holy Land I don't think we would be hear today, honestly!
I don't think islamophobia would have been an issue. The world would still
have its problems, we would probably still have our disagreements and
agreements, the ebb and flow of them as they have been through out history,
we've always have had these types of issues. But the chronic stage we have
reached in today's world I think can be traced directly and bluntly to the
zionist usurpation and occupation of the Holy Land.
And I will submit to you that this is the basis of the conflict in
relationships between the Muslims on one side and the Jews on the other
side, now I don't mean the authentic Jews that we have here, I mean by the
Jews those who consider themselves Jews second but consider themselves
Zionist first, and also a very large segment of the Christian community -
the Christians have also come under the influence of the zionist lobby in
the United States and the zionist clout throughout the world, therefore we
have zionist evangelicals who believe in the legitimacy of the current
illegal state of zionist Israel as much as the founding fathers of that
nation state. If this will make out brethren - the attendees from the
Jewish faith in the audience - a little more comfortable don't feel very
bad that the zionist have stolen more or less the Jewish religion and
almost monopolized it in world public opinion because that's what they have
done also to the Islamic religion and the Christian religion.
That's how serious the problem is, because if you take the issue of just
the average person out there who is watching the media whether he's in
Britain or whether he's in America, in Europe, anywhere in the world, if
there is an issue pertaining to lets say the Muslims in Arabia and the BBC
or CNN want an informed opinion of lets say an uprising in Mecca - who will
they get to speak about it? Now if you don't know that, there is a lot of emptiness
in your train of thought. They will inevitably bring you some so called
"scholar" who is, when you look in to that persons background, a
committed zionist and he is speaking about an Islamic issue! And we can go
down the road like this, and have to submit after it all that we have, the
world has a zionist problem. Not only the Jewish community, but the world -
the Muslims have that problem, and the Christians have that problem...
Imam Al-Asi
He spoke about zionist influence on university campus's:
We
have in the United States something called Campus Watch. What is that? Its
simply a spying body of people - students and faculty - who report any type
of scholastic or school room activities or presentations that are critical
or against the Israeli nation state. In other words there are students in
the classroom who are informers on the professors, or the instructors who
are giving their presentations who don't agree with zionist policy. Who set
up this body of Campus Watch through out the United States? Daniel Pipes,
Martin Kramer and probably one or two others - Steve Emerson. who ever has
a hand in that project. This is becoming like the most totalitarian aspects
of life. The United States for those of you who are as old as I am, the
United States was very critical of the Soviet Union and the other communist
countries that had people spying on people, members of one family spying on
members of their own family, when now we are beginning to visualize the
same thing happening. If there is a professor who is a Palestinian or who
sympathizes with the Palestinians, he could be of the Jewish faith,
sympathizes with the Palestinians he gets written or is added to this list
of academic personalities who are considered to be irreconcilable with the
policies of the expansionist zionist Israeli nation state.
He spoke of the dire need to support and expand the IHRC to across all
Mosques:
We
don't need one Islamic Human Rights Commission - we need more than that! We
don't need an Islamic Human Rights Commission that is every decade
improving from going from a little office place to another office place -
this should be an effort that is worldwide that involves all the Muslims
and should be integral part, I think, of the Islamic centres and Masajids
we have here - after jummah prayers, after congregational prayers, to have
these issues live and clear or else we violate the brotherhood that we all
share. How can we be breathing the air of freedom, and some people just
because they fall under that cloak of suspicion now are isolated behind
bars. That's a violation of, not only our brotherhood, but also of our
humanity.
8:
Imam Al-Asi Video (MP4 format) (50Mb)
8:
Imam Al-Asi Audio (MP3 format) (7Mb)
9: Beena Faridi
Sister Beena Faridi
Sister Beena Faridi has a background in law, she has been a case worker at
IHRC since 2005. Her heavy case load involves issues of anti-terror laws,
prisoner discrimination, employment rights, family law, mental health,
immigration, police misconduct, and racially and religiously motivated
crime. She spoke of the rise of islamophobia since 9-11:
In 1999 a survey that IHRC conducted found that 35% of Muslim respondents
had encountered some form of discrimination, in 2000 this had risen to 45%
and after 9-11 in the year 2004 it was a staggering 80%..
When ever Muslims are in the news or in the media you'll see an increase of
attacks on Muslims. So when 7-7 occurred I was getting about 5 or 10 cases
a week, this increased to about a 100 a week. When there was the alleged
bomb plots in the year 2006, two Mosques were attacked - I think they were
torched. And when Jack Straw made his comments we had a niqabi who was
punched in the face and another niqabi who had a pie thrown at her..
She gave examples of the cases she is currently dealing with. They are wide
and varying, including one interesting one regarding employment:
An
interesting case I'm dealing with at the moment in terms of employment is
that of a police officer. He had served for the police over 14 years -
quiet high level, and he was in effect suspended because his security
clearance was revoked. The basis of this was his son had attended a Mosque
where there was "an extremist" cleric. Now this cleric was
incredibly well respected in the community and had even organised meetings
with the police themselves for community cohesion but such is guilt by
association in our times that you could be guilty of terrorist links on the
bases of who your son hands around with at the Mosque.
9:
Beena Faridi Video (MP4 format) (50Mb)
9:
Beena Faridi Audio (MP3 format) (7Mb)
IHRC
Sister Yvonne Ridley holding up a watercolour by detainees of HMP Long
Lartin, all held without trail and without charge. The painting was donated
for auctioning to raise money for the IHRC
Sister Yvonne Ridley hosted this section which included some fund raising
as well as speeches. Yvonne Ridley is a peace activist and a renowned
journalist who currently works at Press TV. Detainees of Britain's own Guantanamo - HMP
Long Lartin, held without trial, without charge, some since 1999, donated a
watercolour painted by one of the detainees, Br.Riad, to help raise money
for the IHRC.
10: Cehl Fakeemeeah
Cehl Fakeemeeah
Cehl Fakeemeeah was a prisoner of faith in Mauritius for three years. He
was freed after the IHRC campaigned on his behalf. He shared aspects of his
painful ordeal:
Cehl Fakeemeeah in wheelchair
after torture - with three broken ribs
he required 20 bottles of blood to survive.
In
the eyes of my lawyers I was kidnapped, it was on the 4th of December 2000,
I was kidnapped and disappeared from life to reappear in a wheelchair with
three ribs broken and needed badly 20 bottles of blood to survive..
Brothers and sisters, should I not try to make you live just one moment of
the crimes perpetrated on me unjustly? In a room 6 feet by 9 feet with two
bulbs, 100 watts in each corner and two accurate cameras on me, they put me
under their feet with my hands handcuffed at the back, naked - completely.
15 officers of the police were there, and they made my body black with
blood. they tried to extract a false confession from me. I concede what
happened to me at that time - the worst atrocity that you can imagine.. 5
times I fell unconscious, and I was bleeding by the nose and by the mouth.
No one knew where I was, yet the Almighty he knew, and he expressed his
assistance in the form of this commission [the IHRC] that was well aware of
its duty.. in such a small 6 feet by 9 feet, I was kept for 23 hours [of
the day], [let out] only 30 minutes in the morning just to walk outside,
and walking outside it was 20 feet by 10 feet. No single man should be
outside when I was walking, and no police has the right to talk to me - who
can survive in such a circumstance. I did nothing, they put 23 cases
[charges] on me, and not one single case [charge] stood when I was released
after three years of constant campaigning by the commission, and constant
supporting me inside the prison - I became Hafiz of the Qur'an in that
circumstance!
He acknowledged the work of the Islamic Human Right Commission as a
"divine response" to injustice:
After what I have under gone, I believe that the Islamic Human Right
Commission emerges, since a decade, as a divine response to stand against..
injustices, crimes that our world of today is suffering more and more, and
that I was a victim of. I feel the obligation today to express my
gratefulness to all of you. You have been by my side, and we together have
to be by the side of anyone who seeks this type of assistance. I stand
today, as I will stand in the court of God, as a first hand witness of the
achievement [of IHRC], and for such achievement we have to give our
shoulders, hearts, conscienceness, and consciences to it. Brothers and
sisters, we have to support, we have to contribute. I am here to stand as a
witness that the job is being done.
Cehl Fakeemeeah has written an inspiring book about his spiritual journey
during his imprisonment: "Among the Divine Evidences of the 3rd
Millennium"
10:
Cehl Fakeemeeah Video (MP4 format) (50Mb)
10:
Cehl Fakeemeeah Audio (MP3 format) (7Mb)
11: Yvonne Ridley presents Cases
Sister Yvonne Ridley
Yvonne Ridley presented some IHRC cases including the case of Mariam
Hafezji:
Mariam
Hafezji, an elderly Muslim woman living on her own in London, was
terrorized in her home by a group of Orthodox Jewish teenagers from the
neighbouring Jewish school for over two years.
She received death threats and they destroyed her garden fence which
separated her kitchen from the school. They called her a Paki and a
Palestinian and indicated they would slit her throat. She was a virtual
prisoner in her own home.
The school refused to take any action and for two years the police ignored
her pleas for help. It was only after the Islamic Human Rights Commission
took up her case and made public the scandalous inaction of the police that
they finally opened a criminal investigation.
CCTV footage of the attacks on her home and the threats she received were
broadcast on Channel 4 News on 26th March 2005
The Channel 4 report on the Maryam Hafezji case (26 March 2005):
11:
Yvonne Ridley Video (MP4 format) (50Mb)
Ch4
News 26 Mar 2005 Video (MP4 format) (16Mb)
11:
Yvonne Ridley Audio (MP3 format) (7Mb)
12: Dr Abdul Wahid
Dr Abdul Wahid
Dr Abdul Wahid is the leader of the National Executive Committee of Hizb ut
Tahrir Britain. He criticized western countries selective talk of human
rights, and praised the IHRC:
The
real problem we have seen with those governments and some of the
organizations as well is they are very selective in their application of
the human rights agenda. the are selective by nor applying the standards
they uphold to themselves! If the British government applied the law even
handedly on itself regarding the prisoners in Long Lartin, regarding its
own actions overseas under its own terrorism law we'd find it falling
pretty short. we wouldn't know where to start if we were talking about the
United States government and its record in Guantanamo, and even going to
the individual cases like bother Massoud mentioned earlier of Omer Abdel
Rahman. And we see them very selective about how they talk about human
rights regarding their allies. You don't hear much talk from ministers
about the human rights record of Pervez Musharraf, you didn't hear much
talk about the human rights record of Abdul Aziz ibn Saud when he was here
having tea and coffee at the palace the other week. But you do hear about
Burma, and Zimbabwe. And what we've got use to is seeing that human rights
is talked about in a very selective way, according to the political
interests, the national interests, the governmental interests of any
particular government in any particular place.
And maybe that's why 10 years ago when an organization called the Islamic
Human Rights Commission came along on the scene, that was willing to point
the finger in any direction where there were violations of rights - that
was a very welcome thing.
12:
Dr Abdul Wahid Video (MP4 format) (50Mb)
12:
Dr Abdul Wahid Audio (MP3 format) (7Mb)
13: Muddassar Arani
Muddassar Arani
Muddassar Arani is the Britain's leading Muslim human rights lawyer, and an
adviser to the Islamic Human Rights Commission. She recalled the cases of Sulayman
Zain-ul-Abidin who was wrongly arrested after "Friends of
Israel" MP Andrew Dismore pressed the police hard to prosecute
him, and Nureddin Sirin who was imprisoned in Turkey for nearly 20
years for organizing a Quds Day rally, and spoke on the importance of
supporting the prisoners by writing to them, etc.
I recall way back in 2002 when Massoud [IHRC chair] said to me there is a
little gathering, a small gathering, a few of us, a few brothers and
sisters, come along and speak. It was a Sunday, I was working hard in the
office and a client of mine who's past away, some of you may know him -
Sulayman Zain-ul-Abidin was with me, he traveled with me from my offices to
IHRC function. He was the first Muslim to be arrested after the events of
9-11, to be charged and then to be acquitted. He was acquitted on the 8th
of August 2002, he passed away on the 22nd of December 2002. I have very
fond memories of Sulayman Zain-ul-Abidin. And that was the first time I
ever spoke for IHRC on a stage. I was expecting to go in to a small room to
speak to two or three brothers or sisters, instead I was put on a stage and
I thought o my God what do I say.. I jumped up and down the stage thinking
o my God what do I say, what do I say? Massoud I'm going home, get me off
the stage. And he said to me it doesn't matter its only a few of us. It was
a massive room full of brothers and sisters and then Raza said to me you've
got 15 minutes on the stage. And I sat there going what the hell am I going
to talk about? Massoud then said to me here's your leaflet "Know Your
Rights" talk about that if nothing else. My God he couldn't shut me up
afterwards. I have very fond memories of that day, cause I recall that was
the first time I spoke on stage, being a nervous wreck, and I recall those
wonderful moments i had with Sulayman Zain-ul-Abidin. Please don't forget
the brothers, whether they are alive or not, whether they are with us or
not. There is a lot of suffering that is taking place, and we have to do
our utmost to assist. There are so many cases that we have dealt with, and
each one is so important, and its so difficult to talk about them in so
short space of time.
Another case that I think has touched my heart a lot was a case of a
Turkish brother [ Nureddin Sirin ].He was imprisoned and tortured. Massoud
came to me and requested that I represent him. I took on the case, said
yep, no problem, lets take on the case. I didn't know this brother, I've
never met him, not to date I have never met him. We took the challenge on
and we succeeded. And when we learnt he was being tortured in Turkey for
handing out a leaflet for a demonstration against Israel. When we learnt he
was being tortured we turned up in Turkey, we made a lot of noise, we
publicized the case, we stopped the torture taking place, we won the case
in the European courts. And for a man who was imprisoned for 20 years of
his life, he is now a free man!
There are so many cases of this nature, we have to speak up against torture,
we have to do our little bit to assist. Don't be frightened of assisting
because if we become frightened of assisting individuals then who will
fight for them?
13:
Muddassar Arani Video (MP4 format) (32Mb)
13:
Muddassar Arani Audio (MP3 format) (7Mb)
14: George Galloway
George Galloway
George Galloway is the Member of Parliament for the Respect Party. He
talked of the double standard in who is labeled a terrorist, and spoke
passionately for the Muslims who are oppressed in this country by the
anti-terror laws, and ended by saluting the IHRC for its work.
I am humbled actually by the testimony which has gone before. The case
studies, some of them here in the flesh, of those who have been the victims
of the human rights abuses which the Islamic Human Rights Commission has
tackled and prevailed is clear as any evidence could be of the importance
of supporting them here on their tenth anniversary.
This little boy in this picture [pointing to IHRC poster "Whose Side
Are You On" with the Palestinian boy challenging an Israeli tank] is
dead, his name was Faris Odeh. He confronted this tank with a stone for
which the illegal occupier killed him. He was 14 years old. He climbed out
of his school class room window during classes to confront this tank in his
little refugee camp in Gaza. He is known by the western hypocrites as the
terrorist and the tank driver, and the gun man in the turret is called the
legitimate government force. I was asked earlier by Press TV about the
question of terrorism. Terrorism has become a word, self evident in all the
testimony we have heard, totally bankrupt of meaning. Terrorism is what the
"other guy" does or as Peter Ustinov put it, the great European
Jewish intellectual, "terrorism is the war of the poor and powerless,
war is the terrorism of the rich and powerful". That's the real
dichotomy. This boy is not a terrorist, he was a freedom fighter, now he is
a martyr. And the resistance facing the tanks in Iraq are freedom fighters,
also. We must be clear that because a label is hanged around someones neck
by the rich and powerful, that he is a terrorist, think twice, think ten
times, think two hundred times about the definition and who is doing the
defining.
This is a bad time for human rights for Muslims. The Islamic Human Rights
Commission isn't going out of business anytime soon. The Muslims under
occupation in Afghanistan, Iraq, Palestine; the Muslims about to be
attacked in the Islamic Republic of Iran by the same criminals who killed
Faris Odeh, with the same weapons supplied by the same armorer as killed
Faris Odeh. The Muslims living under the tyrants in the dungeons under
torture and murder in nameless prisons beyond our reach. But as Yvonne
Ridley correctly identifies, there are Muslims in Britain in 2007 whose
human rights have been taken away from them, whose freedoms and liberties
are daily confronted and abused. I represent this area, 40% of my
constituents are Muslims. The young Muslim boys in this area are stopped by
the police night after night after night, just like you were at Heathrow
airport, for no reason other than that they are Muslims in the East End of
London.
The prisoners that Yvonne referred to, the people framed on terrorism
charges, more than 1000 Muslims have been arrested in Britain since 9-11
under the various terrorism acts. Less than 1 in 10 of them were ever
brought to trial, and less than 1 in 10 of those were ever convicted, and
most of those were convicted of other offences other than terrorism, and
yet in the queens speech last week they announced yet another terrorism
bill. And they are about to try and force through the House of Commons a
doubling of the period in which people - let be clear we are talking about
Muslim people, no one else is being arrested for terrorism in Britain
today, Muslim people being held 23 hours a day in a cell, endlessly
interrogated without charge, without trail, making us the longest period of
detention of any democratic country anywhere in the world. Shame on the
men, Muddassar Arani said, shame on the members of parliament who vote for
this and who voted for the previous doubling of the period of detention. I
give you my word, I will oppose it with every breath in my body and I will
support the Islamic Human Rights Commission in every way that I can and I
will try to persuade others to do so with me, I salute the IHRC..
14:
George Galloway Video (MP4 format) (50Mb)
14:
George Galloway Audio (MP3 format) (7Mb)
SECURITY AND CIVIL LIBERTIES
Security and Civil Liberties panel
The last panel was on "Security and Civil Liberties". Its first
speakers was Fahad Ansari, he spoke of the double standard in
implementation of the unjust anti-terror laws. Moazzam Begg, a former
Guantanamo detainee, spoke about the need for courage in the face
oppression. Raza Kazim spoke of his four years of experience liaising with
the Met police on behalf of the Muslim community. IHRC chair Massoud
Shadjareh ended the day with a few words on the importance of unity.
15: Fahad Ansari
Fahad Ansari
Fahad Ansari is a researcher and spokesperson for the Islamic Human Rights
Commission, his area of expertise is anti-terror legislation.
My
role at IHRC has been specifically on anti-terror legislation, what i have
noticed in the last four years is how bad the situation has got in this
country. I think it can be summed by with what happened last week with the
conviction of our dear sister Samina Malik, the first woman to be convicted
under the terrorism act.
Samina Malik
Caught writing poetry - thought crime
CHARGED AS A TERRORIST!
Now
what was Samina guilty of? Did she blow anything up? No. Was she caught by
the police with a big cache of explosives? No. Was she caught tying a
suicide belt around her waist? No. So what did Samina do? She wrote some
poetry, she downloaded some manuals of the internet out of curiosity,
something that many people do, probably many people in this room have the
same manuals on their PCs. What they raised in court, specifically, the
words she used in her poems. She called herself the "lyrical
terrorist" and she wrote stuff like this: "The desire within me
increases everyday to go for martyrdom, the need to go increase second by
second"". I'm sure this is a sentiment that rings true with most
people in this room, and for Muslims its something which if you don't have
this sentiment, according to the Prophet (SAW) if you die without this in
your heart you will die in a branch of hypocrisy. So if Samina Malik is a
terrorist, then I'm afraid the entire Ummah is a Ummah of terrorists.
Now you see whats happened to Samina Malik and you contrast this with
another case about 6-7 months ago of some former members of the BNP - that
white fascist supremesist organization - Robert Cottage and David Jackson
both who were caught with the biggest cache of explosives in the West
Yorkshire region with notes about assassinating Tony Blair and talking
about blowing up Mosques and Islamic Centres around the UK with plans and
blue-prints for those Mosques. They weren't even charged under the
Terrorism Act. They were found guilty, actually only one was found guilty,
and received a sentence that was very light - maybe one and a half years in
prison! Samina Malik who had non of this, who just had an ideology in her
head, and this was enough to find her guilty of being the worst of the
worst in today's society.
Former BNP members Robert Cottage and David Jackson
Caught with biggest cache of explosives
and plans on assassinating Tony Blair and blowing up Mosques.
NOT CHARGED AS TERRORISTS
Maybe
Samina Malik could have written something like what I'm about to read which
was stated by another religious leader, a world religious leader, last
month. On the 20th October 2007 the following was said: "The
contemporaneous inclusion of such a large number of martyrs to the list of
the Blessed shows that the supreme witness of blood is not an exception
reserved only to a few individuals, but is a realistic possibility for the
entire Christian people. We are in fact talking about men and women who
vary in terms of age, vocation and social background but who paid with
their life their faithfulness to Christ and the Church. Their example bears
witness to the fact that the baptism commits Christians to participate with
courage to expand the kingdom of God going so far as sacrificing their very
lives." This wasn't Yusuf Qaradawi, this was Pope Benedict XVI, the
leader of the Catholic church who said these words on the 20th October 2007
while he was beatifying those catholics who died in the Spanish civil war.
Now Samina Malik said "the desire within me increases everyday to go
to martyrdom", Pope Benedict XVI seems to be glorifying martyrdom
quite a bit as well, yet he won't be prosecuted for glorifying terrorism.
And this is the irony of the terrorism laws today. And because of this,
because they have cracked down so much about what we believe in our hearts
and what we think in our heads, we have this issue of more and more Muslims
being arrested, every week Muslims are being arrested, and more and more
are being convicted, so you can't help but think maybe some of these guys
are going to do something, or were going to do something, but as George
Galloway said, as Yvonne Ridley said there have a been close to about 1500
arrests with about 50 convictions, and not all for having explosives.
The Living Martyrs
by
Samina Malik (extracts)
In our beds did we sleep.
While in our broken lands did mothers sleep.
The chaos and the pain.
Blood pouring everywhere like rain.
Common for a sister became rape.
By that stinking kuffar ape.
The child born free of sin.
Rewarded with gun rattle.
Piercing through his father's head.
Unaware he is now dead.
Until girl is taken from her mother's hand.
And she has now become sand.
And this is from those claiming to be humane.
Driving me insane
For the living martyrs are awakening.
And Kuffars world soon to be shaking.
We stand firm to our belief.
Knowing with Allah is only relief
The
point is, this isn't about terrorism, this is something, I have realised,
this is not about violence, this is about what they call extremism. And Tony
Blair defined extremism quiet well couple of years ago when he defined it
as "The ideology of evil", now I'm going to quote directly from
the ex-Prime Minister. He said "they demand the elimination of
Israel" 1-the first factor to be in the ideology of evil - demand the
elimination of Israel. The rabbis here [pointing to the Neturei Karta] are
part of that ideology. Secondly - "the with drawl of all westerners
from Muslim countries irrespective of the wishes of the people and
governments" - that's number two, now Tony Blair put it "the with
drawl of all westerners" but to be honest I think most Muslims would
ask for the with drawl of western troops. Then he says "irrespective
of the wishes of the people" is quiet ironic since most of these
people live under dictatorships and tyranny's supported by Britain. And
thirdly "the establishment of effectively Taliban states and Sharia
law on route to a Caliphate of all Muslim nations" - Sharia and the
Khalifa in the Muslim world! So the elimination of Israel, the removal of
western troops and Sharia and Khalifa - these are the ideology of evil.
Now if you want to do a hand count, I don't know how many police officers
are here, so if you don't want to put up your hand its perfectly
understandable, but in your hearts you know if you believe in these things
or not. And so if you do, if you believe in the issue if Palestine, and
freedom for Palestinians; you believe in Jihad, an integral part of our
deen; you believe in Sharia and you believe in the Khilafa - you are an
extremist, and you are a terror suspect. And be proud, because as Malcolm X
said when he was asked "are you an extremist?" He said "yes,
I am an extremist. The black race here in North America is in extremely bad
condition, you show me a black man who isn't an extremist and I'll show you
one who needs psychiatric attention!" I think I'll be glad to call
myself an extremist after that! Now this will only lead to more people
being arrested, the future is bright the future is orange - Guantanamo
orange!
Last week the times reported about a leaked document from Whitehall which
stated that the amount of terrorist prisoners by the year 2016 is estimated
to increase to 1600, currently there is 131, so in the next 9 years that
will increase to 1600. So obviously a lot more people are going to go
behind bars. Now what do we do - we know the chances of probably a third of
the people in this hall in prison are quiet high - what are we going to do?
Does that mean we do what we can to avoid prison. Do we out of our fear of
prison become prisoners of our fear? Or do we speak up and continue to
fight the struggle, continue to speak out about injustice and continue to
do what is right and what Allah has commanded us to do.
Look at how the Sahaba handled fear - in the battle of Ahzab when they were
surrounded by the confederates, the allies, the UN of the time, the entire
world was surrounding them and trying to wipe them out, from before them
and behind them they were surrounded, the Muslims, and Allah describes
their fear that their hearts came in to their mouths and their eyes were
bulging. And what did they say, they said this is what Allah and his
messenger promised us and Allah and his messenger have spoken the truth.
When they saw the oppression they realised that as you are Muslim and you
stand for justice you will be persecuted, you will be oppressed, but this
is what Allah and his messenger promised us. And Allah says this increased
them in faith and submission, not in fear, in faith, in Iman and Taslima
because through out history its been shown those who stand for justice have
gone to prison, they have gone through what the brothers call the madressa
of Yusuf (AS). And this is character building, if you find yourself in this
situation know that you are in good company and those people who traverse
this path ended up in Janna and this is where our ultimate destination
should be..
15:
Fahad Ansari Video (MP4 format) (50Mb)
15:
Fahad Ansari Audio (MP3 format) (7Mb)
16: Moazzam Begg
Moazzam Begg
Moazzam Begg is a former Guantanamo detainee who has devoted his efforts to
publicly exposing the heinous crimes committed by US soldiers and to
campaign for the release of other detainees. His recent book is "Enemy
Combatant - A British Muslims journey to Guantanamo and back".
There is something which is very important that we need to recognise for
all of us as Muslims, as people who are activists, and that is courage, courage
brothers and sisters. because courage is what we lack in the face of
oppression. Its the courage that Imam Cassiem was talking about earlier on
- we all know how to live, does anyone know how to die? We all know how to
be free, but who knows how to be incarcerated? Who knows how to be
imprisoned and locked up? The Prophet (SAW) said that the dunya, this
temporal life, is the prison of the believer and it is the paradise of the
disbeliever. So as Muslims we should understand that prison is part of our
destiny in a sense, in one way or another. One of the greatest scholars of
Islam said what can my enemies do with me because my paradise and my
gardens lie within me in my chest, where ever I go they are with me, and my
imprisonment is my solitude in the time I use to reflect, and my death, my
killing is martyrdom, and my expulsion from my land is tourism. These were
the statements of those people of old who understood what it was that to
reach the ultimate prize, you have to pay the ultimate price.
One of the things that people fail to recognise today when we talk so often
about the Qur'an that we all love so much that we put on the highest
shelves in our houses and afford the greatest of respect was that this
wasn't revealed in a book to begin with. It was revealed in the hearts of
men, the first of whom was Prophet Muhammad (SAW). And in the hearts of men
it remained up until the day of the battle of Yamamah, when the great liar
killed so many people who had memorized the Qur'an that the Sahaba feared that
should we not write this Qur'an in to a book it would be lost forever
because the first people to go forward charging in the face of oppression
and enemy are those very people who have recited and mastered this Qur'an
in their hearts.
Moazzam Begg
And
one of the things I learnt also, just like the brother from Mauritius said,
that during those three years he memorized the Qur'an. In Guantanamo now
today, in Britain today, in many of the prisons today they have become
verily madressa schools, schools of learning and understanding where people
are in almost fire, a furnace. And that furnace forges that steel that
remains in the hearts of the believers and they come out, when they do, if
they do, stronger. And as Muslims, and non-Muslims as people of the
scriptures, we know as Fahad had earlier mentioned that the story which is
most often repeated and remembered by people who are imprisoned without
charge without trial is the story of Yusuf (AS) - the Prophet Joseph.
Everybody who is in prison will remember this story and read this story again
and again with tears in their eyes as they read it. When he returns home,
or when his family return to him and they say indeed are you Yusuf? And he
said today there will be no revenge, there will be no revenge today. Come
all of you, whatever oppression you did to me, there will be no revenge
from me, I am a Prophet of Allah..
This is where courage, brothers and sisters, comes in to it, how much are
you ready to stand, how much are you ready to take and how much are you
ready to give. Because ultimately that is what any fight for justice is
about, because the oppressor will not give you justice, oppressors never
give justice, that is why they are called oppressors. So in the end it will
be about your personal sacrifice, how much are you as an individual ready
to give up for those injustices. Allah Sub'hanahu wa Ta'ala says in the
Qur'an, its an order that he gives - Don't oppress, do not be oppressed!
16:
Moazzam Begg Video (MP4 format) (50Mb)
16:
Moazzam Begg Audio (MP3 format) (7Mb)
17: Raza Kazim
Raza Kazim
Raza Kazim is the senior spokesperson for the Islamic Human Rights
Commission and represented the IHRC at meeting with the Metropolitan Police
raising concerns with regards to the treatment of Muslims at the hands of
the police and others. These meetings were ceased after the IHRC cut all
official ties with the Met police when the police lied to the Muslim
community that they did not have a shoot to kill policy which was proved
false following the fatal shooting of Jean Charles de Menezes by armed
police officers in July 2005. Raza Kazim didn't mince his words as he
castigated the police force for its insincerity towards the Muslim
community:
At
the end of four years [of meetings with the Met Police] when we finally cut
our ties, I came out thinking of the police as insincere (to put it
politely), hypocritical, having double standards.
They sent people to Israel, initially they denied that they had sent
officers to Israel to find out how to deal with suicide bombers, when I
asked them would you have done the same thing and sent, after the Brixton
riots, people to South Africa under the apartheid regime - would you have
sent people there to find out how to deal with black people? They didn't have
an answer to that.
When brother Moazzam Begg was coming back we asked them the question
brother Moazzam Begg and the others should be released on just
compassionate grounds if nothing else.. they said oh no they have to be
questioned, we said there is president for this - Saudi nurses were held
back, you didn't question them you reunited them with their families on
compassionate grounds, at least for humanity, for basic human rights just
let them go to their families first. We said to them you are under the
influence of the politicians from America and they no we're not how dare
you question our professionalism. And we find out within the last nine
months that actually they were, they had to do it, they were told by their
masters in America that they had to do it, and that they had lied to us!
I asked the question do you have a shoot to kill policy when they sent
people over to Israel, they said no, initially they denied [sending people
to Israel] and then they said they didn't have a shoot to kill policy over
a number of years and then it was finally, tragically, proven that they did
have.
When Shaikh Qardawi was insulted by John Stevens - he was sent a letter, I
walked out of the meeting saying how dare you insult someone who is senior
within the Muslim world and calling him a terrorist with out actually
trying him in any way, shape or form.
At the end of his talk, Raza did recognize one particular individual in the
police force who he described as "fighting for justice" within
the police to try and not demonize the Muslim community:
In
all of that - insincerity, lies, deception, there was one guy that I met, i
was speaking about him after wards I said he seems like a nice guy but he's
a copper.. over a number of years, some of the cases we have fought for, we
would not have been able to get the help to the Muslim community without
the crucial support of that particular individual and the team he was in
effect leading, and sometimes I asked the question are you part of the good
cop bad cop routine where you are the good guy and we get beaten up by the
other people, the Muslim community that is gets beaten up by the other
people. And over the years one thing I felt very strongly, within the
Islamic Human Rights Commission we felt, the sincerity with which the cause
for justice has been fought for within the police to try and not demonize
the Muslim community by the papers that individual has written, by the
comments that individual has written has in effect made us think on the
fact that he is no longer going to be with the police any longer.. [IHRC]
needs to acknowledge and say a gesture of thanks for the work that he has
done in order to help the IHRC to help the Muslim community.. I would like
to invite Detective Inspector Robert Lambert to the stage to receive a
gesture of out thanks for the help he has given..
Detective Inspector Robert Lambert receiving award by the Islamic Human
Rights Commission, the inscription reads:
"The Islamic Human Rights Commission is proud to present this award
to Inspector Robert Lambert (Head of Muslim contact Unit), upon his
retirement from the Metropolitan Police Service. In appreciation for his
integrity and commitment to promoting a fair, just and secure society for
all, which, is a rarity and will be greatly missed."
During the IHRC's dealing with the Metropolitan Police, in all the lies,
insincerity and deception there was one person the IHRC encountered who
genuinely "fought the cause of justice within the police force to try
and not demonize the Muslim community" - that was Detective Inspector
Robert Lambert. Detective Inspector Robert Lambert is the head of the
Muslim Contact Unit at New Scotland Yard. On his retirement from the police
force the Islamic Human Rights Commission invited him to join them in the
struggle for justice.
I've been to many Islamic Human Rights Commission functions - Islamophobia
Awards - often the Metropolitan Police has been in strong contention and
indeed I remember one year telling the head of our diversity department at
New Scotland Yard, I said we've won an award at the Islamophobia Awards. He
said "Good, Bob, things are looking up!" I said "No, its a
not that kind of award.."
Massoud Shadjareh
Massoud Shadjareh is the chairman of the Islamic Human Rights Commission.
I hope inshallah, that not only will we unite and work to eliminate
injustice for all, but also what we need to do is make sure all our
friends, all our neighbours, all our communities to rise up, because this
is not something that we could discharge this to just by a small group of
us. So this is really a task, no its an Ammana on the shoulder of all of us
to make sure we will raise the numbers of people who are confident, who are
courageous, who are actually willing and committed to stand up and
challenge injustice, of, not just today, but indeed the injustice that is
on the horizon in the future. And as one of the rabbis said that we hope
that in 10 years time there will be no need for us to rise up and to
challenge injustice, and injustice will be defeated.. but it will not
happen if we are not going to make the commitment that is needed to be
made, and we need all of us to unite for that..
17:
Raza Kazim Video (MP4 format) (35Mb)
17:
Raza Kazim Audio (MP3 format) (7Mb)
"Suffering" written & performed by Kamal Uddin
Chorus:
Laa ilaaha illallah Muhammad ur Rasoolullah x2
I feel it in my body I feel it in my heart
The sufferings of my Muslims oh where do I start
There tortured round the world just for being who they are
Come tell me what is wrong in believing in Allah
Chorus
I see it in the papers I see it on the news
The way they live their lives it’s not that they can choose
To loose the ones you love almost every single day
I swear until there’s peace I shall never stop to pray
Chorus
I hear the children crying I hear the children scream
If only I could tell them that this is but a dream
Just hold tight to your faith and you’ll soon realise
That for you there’s no reward besides eternal paradise
Chorus
I feel it in my body I feel it in my heart
The sufferings of my Muslims oh where do I start
There tortured round the world just for being who they are
Come tell me what is wrong in believing in Allah
Chorus
MP3 (2Mb)
Page URL: http://www.inminds.com/ihrc10years.php
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HOW PAUL BÉRANGER AND ANEEROOD JUGNAUTH FRAMED MUHAMMAD CEHL
FAKEEMEEAH
Muslims in Mauritius face persecution
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By Siraj Wahab,
Arab News Staff
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JEDDAH,
25 July — Known to Arab traders in
the 5th century, visited by the Portuguese and then colonized and
plundered by the Dutch, Mauritius has had a checkered history. In 1710,
the French and a century later the British, settled the island on a more
permanent basis. In 1968, Mauritius became an independent state within
the British Commonwealth and in 1992, a Republic.
The
island is famous for its great natural beauty, unbroken virgin coral
reefs and lush vegetation. It has become a popular holiday destination
for European and American tourists and is developing a healthy offshore
banking industry.
The social demography reflects the ebb and flow of the cultures that have
flowed through the island over the centuries. About 50 percent is Hindu
and 17 percent Muslim, the balance consisting of a mix of Christian,
Buddhist and other faiths. Constitutionally, there is no discrimination
on the grounds of religion, it being a secular state. But appearances can
be deceptive. The glossy images of Mauritius belie the anger seething in
the Muslim community at the treatment of Cehl Muhammad Meeah, a local
Muslim leader and political figure.
A
recent report by Osama Daneshyar, British-based barrister working with
the Islamic Human Rights Commission, highlights the systematic abuse of
human rights in general and the torture and brutality meted out to Cehl
Meeah in particular.
The leading figure in what appears to be a personal, almost messianic
campaign of victimization is Chief Inspector Radhoa, who says he “doesn’t need evidence and all that bull shit.”
Torture, sensory deprivation and isolation from family and lawyers to
extract confessions “continues in violation of the constitution and has,
according to Chief Inspector Radhoa, been encouraged and accepted by the
government,” says Osama Daneshyar in his report. Indeed, “since the
allegations of torture and brutality have been leveled against him, he
has been decorated by the prime minister and promoted to the rank of
chief inspector.”
Cehl Meeah was born in Mauritius in 1958. He began to teach the Qur’an
to groups of children in the local mosque when he was 15. At 21, he won a
scholarship to Umm Ul Qura University in Makkah where he studied Islamic
jurisprudence and returned to Mauritius in 1991.
Here he entered political life, working with the Hezbollah Party (not
connected save by name, with the Lebanese Hezbollah). Simultaneously, he
inaugurated a primary school and over 50 Islamic centers around the
island where Arabic and Qur’anic studies are taught.
He initiated free drug-detoxification programs in response to the
open trafficking of drugs on the streets, notably in the Muslim areas —
Plaine Verte — and openly in front of the police who take no action. Careful groundwork in the
community saw Cehl Meeah and one other member of the party elected as
councilors in the municipal elections of 1996. Also in 1996, three
horrific killings took place. The victims were members of minor political
parties opposing the Hindu-dominated government. One of the self-confessed
perpetrators, Toorab Bissessur and Hateem Oozeer, according to published
press interviews and reports, was paid nearly SR40,000 by Deputy Prime
Minister Paul Berenger soon afterward.
In early December 2001, Cehl Meeah was arrested and charged with the
three murders in 1996 after he had offered to help the police with the
investigation when asked to do so. Toorab Bissessur and Hateem Oozeer
submitted the allegations to the police. They are both former members of
Hezbollah and are strongly suspected of infiltration to destabilize it.
Ironically they are graduates of the detoxification programs. Both were members of the majority Hindu party led by
Paul Berenger.
It was when Chief Inspector Radhoa arrived
that the catalogue of abuse opened. To prevent him from seeing
his lawyer, he was taken out of the back door of the police station and
to CID headquarters. True to the style, Chief Inspector Radhoa began his
way of extracting confessions.
It started with several hours of beatings,
resulting in four broken ribs, dislocated shoulder and a face reduced to
pulp. That was just for a start. Metal
objects were inserted under his fingernails, and a baton into his anus.
His private parts were burned with cigarettes, soles of his feet
bludgeoned. This left him in a comatose state, with his lawyer and family
unaware of his whereabouts.
When eventually he was found in hospital, his doctor and lawyer were
prevented from visiting until many of the injuries had subsided to some
degree. Even so, independent medical evidence confirmed them. But
still Chief Inspector Radhoa failed to get his confession. He explains
that the injuries were caused during “a confrontation between Mr. Meeah
and Mr. Bissessur, and when the latter attempted to attack Mr. Meeah he
(the inspector) immediately jumped in to prevent it.” When Cehl Meeah
goes to trial, the government-controlled press has so publicized the case
that, in the words of Jaques Panglose of Counsel — a legal organization
on the island — “there is not a single person in Mauritius who does not
believe as a result of the press that Mr. Meeah is guilty and that even
if the jury was made up of 12 Muslims, they would convict him before
having to listen to the evidence.” Why has this dreadful train of events
come about? The answer lies in the threat to the establishment offered by
what seems to them to be an organized Muslim political party. Paul
Berenger was supported by almost 90 percent of the Muslim community when
he started the MMM (Mauritian Militant Movement), in the early 1970s,
despite its being overwhelmingly Hindu. That party’s abysmal record of
lack of support for the Muslim community over the years led to a deep
dissatisfaction in the community.
When Cehl Meeah began Hezbollah in the early 1990s and demonstrated his good
intention by the community programs he started, the MMM suffered an
immediate 34 percent decline in Muslim voters. Paul Berenger saw the
writing on the wall.
Polls indicate that in the next elections, that percentage will be nearer
64 percent. This will relegate the MMM into a minority position, forcing
at best a coalition and a consequent release of the stranglehold the MMM
has on the political and law enforcement establishments on Mauritius.
The personal annihilation of Cehl Meeah’s
credibility and thus Hezbollah seems to be a desperate attempt by the
entrenched government to hold on to power. Like the national
symbol of Mauritius, the Dodo, that hope is doomed to extinction.
— sirajwahab@arabnews.com Boycott
Israel Campaign | |
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