From Soccer to Tae Kwon Doo
"Don't turn the Hijab into
a
political tool," says MCC
TORONTO - The Muslim Canadian Congress has expressed
concern and disappointment that the Hijab is once again
being used as a political tool by Islamists to further their
agenda in Canada
Recently, a Tae Kwon Doo team composed of five Muslim
girls, some of whom wear the hijab, withdrew their
participation from a tournament in Quebec as an act of
defiance, after they were advised to remove their hijabs
from underneath their protective helmets.
"The helmets were sufficient substitutes for the hijab,"
said Munir Pervaiz, Secretary General of the Muslim Canadian
Congress. "However, the parents of these very young girls--who
are not required to wear the hijab even according to the
strictest interpretations of Quranic injunctions--decided to
turn this into a political statement of Muslim identity," he
added.
Click here to
read the entire statement
April 18, 2007
Muslims are not
required to cover up
The hijab has nothing to do with morality,
say FARZANA HASSAN and TAREK FATAH
The Globe and Mail, Toronto
Originally a source of modesty,
the hijab, or Muslim head scarf, has become a political tool. Its
latest manifestation came this week with the sight of 10-year old
Muslim girls refusing to give up their hijab in a Quebec tae kwon do
tournament, when the helmets would have served the same purpose of
modesty and much more.
All Canadian women have, at some time in their lives, chosen to wear
a head cover. In blinding snow storms or freezing rain, the covering
of the head, irrespective of what religion one practises, is crucial
to one's survival. Halfway across the world, in the deserts of
Arabia, whether one was a Muslim or a pagan, the covering of one's
head and face was an absolute necessity -- not just when facing a
blistering sandstorm, but any time one stepped out of the home in
the searing sun. What was essentially attire for a particular
climate and weather has been turned into a modern symbol of defiance
and, at best, a show of piety by Islamists and orthodox Muslims.
Click here to read the
entire op-ed
March 20, 2007
MCC president and founder
get another death threat
Extremist says, "I will slaughter all of you"
An extremist, swearing in the name of Allah, has threatened MCC president
Farzana Hassan and founder Tarek Fatah, promising to "slaughter" them along
with all members of the Muslim Canadian Congress.
Toronto Police are
investigating the death threat, which was left as a message on
the telephone of MCC secretary general, Munir Pervaiz. Here is the full text of
the warning:
"This is a warning to Tarek Fatah
and Farzana Hassan and to all the members of your Munafiq (Apostate)
organization. Wa Allah al-Azeem (In the name of God who is great), I
swear… on all 99 names of Allah, if you do not cease from your campaign
of smearing Islam...Wa Allahi, Wa Allahi, Wa Allahi, (by God, by God, by
God), I will slaughter all of you."
Click here to listen to the actual
recording of the death threat
If you recognize the voice on this
threatening phone
message, please contact Toronto Police, 51 Division, at (416) 808-5100
March 22, 2007
Death threat targets moderates
Message
naming two community
leaders
being probed by police
By Michelle Shephard
OTTAWA–Toronto police have launched a hate crime
investigation into a phone call from a man who vowed
to "slaughter" members of a local Muslim group
unless they stop speaking publicly about Islam.
A message left Monday on the voice mail of the secretary
general for the Muslim Canadian Congress warned that
organization members must "cease from your campaign of
smearing Islam" or "I will slaughter you."
The message mentioned congress founder Tarek Fatah and
current president Farzana Hassan-Shahid by name. Both have
openly criticized the politicization of Islam and alleged
influence of Iran and Saudi Arabia in Canadian mosques.
[ To read the full Toronto
Star report, click here ]
March 9, 2007
CBC TV documentary:
How the moderate
Muslim
voice in Canada is being stifled
On March 6, CBC TV's The National aired a special documentary by Joan
Leishman exposing the violence and intimidation being used to silence
Canada's secular and liberal Muslims. The documentary outlines the inner
struggles within Canada's Muslim communities, pitting those like the MCC who
promote the seperation of religion and state against fundamentalists and
extremists who say there is no room for such seperation in Islam and who
want to introduce Shariah Law in Canada.
See the report here, in two parts
How the Moderate Muslim voice is being stifled: Part One
How the Moderate Muslim voice is being stifled: Part Two
October 11, 2006
MCC asks Attorney General
to
Intervene
in apostasy and blasphemy charges
Moderate Muslims being silenced by death threats
TORONTO�The Muslim Canadian Congress has written to the Ontario Attorney
General Michael Bryant, asking him to intervene, following "the recent pattern
of allegations against moderate and liberal Muslims by Islamic fundamentalists,
who accuse the former of being "anti-Islam" or "smearing Islam."
In the letter, the President of the MCC said, "It seems these tactics from
overseas are now being imported into Canada where ordinary liberal and moderate
Muslims are being bullied into silence by well funded Islamist organisations."
She wrote that in one case, "the name of a Muslim broadcaster was circulated to
tens of thousands of people after labelling him as the top anti-Islam individual
in the country."
The letter said that on the surface this may seem to be an innocuous dispute
within a minority community, but the danger such allegations present to
individuals accused of apostasy and blas-phemy is serious, and are "thinly
veiled death threats."
The letter said the Muslim Canadian Congress has been in the cross hairs of
the Islamists ever since they opposed the proposal to introduce Shariah in
Ontario. "It seems we are being targeted to avenge the defeat of their
campaign," wrote Ms. Hassan.
The letter appealed to the Ontario AG asking him "to look into this matter
with law enforcement agencies and your federal counterparts to work towards an
end to the use of religion to silence and threaten poltical opponents."
Ms. Hassan said, she was asking "for help and hoping that as Ontarians we can
count on our government to ensure our safety. We also hope that allegations of
apostasy and blasphemy are outlawed as they are nothing more than death threats
against fellow Muslims."
Click here to read Farzana Hassan's letter to the Attorney General of Ontario
February 21, 2007
CBC Radio reports on the threats and
bullying inside the Muslim community:
Muslim vs. Muslim in Canada
Recently, Canada's public broadcaster, CBC Radio ran a series on censorship
and intimidation of writers and journalists. As part of the series, CBC
radio reported on the threats some Muslims in Canada face from within their
own community.
The host of the show, Anna Maria Tremonti wrote on the CBC
website:
"Usually, when we talk about
journalists being threatened for what they write or broadcast, we're
talking about places other than Canada. But today we aired a story of
how powerful forces of censorship are actively at work here at home ...
a story that begins two years ago with the debate over Sharia law. We
heard from some Canadian Muslims with their divergent views on a
proposal to allow Sharia law arbitration decisions to be legally
enforceable in the settlement of divorce and custody issues for Muslims
living in Ontario...But the debate revealed a deep divide within the
Muslim community and accusations from some in the community that their
voices were being suppressed and they were even facing threats."
March 8, 2007
International Women's Day:
Muslim women struggling
for their basic human rights
By Raheel Raza
The Toronto Star
As women globally celebrate International Women's Day today and rejoice in the
strides they've taken in leadership, technology, education and employment, where
do we stand as Muslim women?
- The widows of Afghanistan are still struggling to become educated, find three
meals a day and have a roof over their heads.
- After an ethnic cleansing campaign, mass rape and genocide, the women of Bosnia
and Herzegovina are trying to rebuild their lives with little or no
international support.
- Women in Iraq are caught up in sectarian violence and continue to be killed at
an alarming rate.
- United Nations Development Program statistics show high illiteracy rates among
women in the Arab world.
- Sudanese women are suffering at the hands of extremists who want to enforce
their own brand of Islam.
- Blatant misuse of sharia laws in many countries have left Muslim women
vulnerable and unprotected.
The ‘erroneous view’ is the idea that a Muslim woman’s
authenticity is now determined by her way of dress or a head covering. The hijab
has become a political tool which is used against women who chose not to wear
one. The danger in Pakistan is that illiterate zealots take it upon themselves
to physically harm women who don’t appear as ‘good Muslims’.
[Click here to read the entire
article]
March 6, 2007
Girls wearing hijab on the soccer field:
How much diversity
should Canadians accept
By Farzana Hassan
The Montreal Gazette
The latest subject of a clash of identities within the cultural mosaic of Canada is an 11-year-old Muslim girl by the name of Asmahan Mansour.
Asmahan, who wears the hijab and leaves it on even when she plays soccer, was recently barred from participating in a tournament in Laval by a referee.
[Click here to read the entire
article]
February 12, 2007
CBC TV's Mosque Sitcom:
Little masquerade on the prairie
By Tarek Fatah
and Farzana Hassan
The Toronto Sun
Fifteen minutes into the first episode of the Little Mosque on the Prairie,
we looked at each other in bewilderment. A small group of us had decided to
watch the premiere, but midway through it, we had still not had our first laugh.
"This is worse than my son's high school play," gasped a Muslim playwright known
for his wit and cutting humour. "How could CBC put this farce on air in the name
of Muslims."
After giving the series the benefit of the doubt and going through the first
four episodes, we feel we must expose this travesty being committed in the name
of serving Canada's Muslim communities. Nothing could be further from the truth.
[Click here to read the entire
article]
October 24, 2006
"The niqab, or the face
veil, terrifies me"
Faith dressed in tribal garb as
Muslims debate
British ruling on niqab
By Mona Eltahawy
Director, Progressive Muslim Union of North America
The niqab, or the face veil, terrifies me. I am a Muslim woman for whom the
niqab says very little about religion but a whole lot about the erasure of a
woman's identity, her very existence as a human being in any society.
I am the first to admit that my views on the niqab are thoroughly grounded as
much in my own very personal struggles with the Hijab, which I wore for nine
years, as they are more generally with the obsessive focus on how Muslim women
dress - an obsession shared by Muslims and non-Muslims alike.
An argument I had years ago - while I still wore Hijab - on the Cairo subway
with a woman who wore niqab helped seal for good my refusal to defend the niqab.
The woman, dressed in black from head to toe, began by asking me why I did not
wear the niqab. I pointed to my headscarf and asked her "Is this not enough?"
I will never forget her answer.
"If you wanted a piece of candy, would you choose an unwrapped piece or one
that came in a wrapper?" she asked.
"I am not candy," I answered. "Women are not candy."
[To read the full article, click here]
October 14, 2006
"Let's Pull the Veil
off our Minds"
Muslims are at risk of ghettoizing ourselves
By Raheel Raza
Director, Inter-faith Affairs, Muslim Canadian Congress
Britain�s Cabinet Minister Jack Straw took a risk with his political future
(his riding has a large Muslim population) by his suggestion that Muslim women
should consider removing the veil from their face.
Instead of a knee jerk reaction, Muslims should accept Mr. Straw�s comments
at face value, take our heads out of the sand and pull the veils off our minds.
His intention was to invoke a debate, not start fireworks!
This dialogue is long overdue and it comes at a critical time for Muslims in
the West. Unfortunately some ignorant and bigoted people have misused this
situation to vent their angst at Muslims (e.g. the person who pulled the veil
off a woman�s face in England ) and others will use it as a political tool and
this has to be addressed.
For better understanding of the issues at stake, let me start the discussion.
[To read the full article, click here]
September 10, 2006
Five Years after 9/11, the
Bush-Blair
"War on Terror"
is a Colossal Failure
While Osama Bin Laden lives, over 100,000
have died
at the hands of terrorists and the
Anglo-American war machine
TORONTO - Five years after Al Qaeda terrorists attacked the United States and
killed thousands in New York, innocent Muslims around the world continue to pay
the price for no other reason than sharing a common faith with Osama Bin Laden.
And while Bin Laden lives, nearly a hundred thousand of his co-religionists
have died, and more die every day, and no end to the killing is in sight.
On the eve of the 5th anniversary of 9/11, 37 Muslims died in India in an
attack on a mosque. In the month leading up to this date, 1,500 Iraqis have been
killed in sectarian violence. In Gaza, while the world was distracted by the
crisis in Lebanon, over 200 Palestinians died in attacks by Israel as a UN
official reported that "living conditions for Palestinians have reached breaking
point." From Yemen to Pakistan and Nigeria to Indonesia, the last five years
have brought untold misery to Muslims everywhere.
To read the full article, click here
September 19, 2006
The Papal Insult:
MCC says, "comments unwise, but Muslims
should learn to turn the other cheek"
By Raheel Raza
and Tarek Fatah
The Toronto Star
TORONTO - It's ironic that while more than 1,000 delegates met at a congress
in Montreal called World's Religions After September 11, where they discussed
initiatives aimed at building greater understanding among followers of all
faiths, halfway across the globe Pope Benedict XVI was making a speech that
would have the opposite effect.
Now, despite his apology, the inflamed responses to his remarks continue
worldwide. Like all Muslims, we too felt deep anguish as once more our faith had
been ridiculed by no less a figure than the leader of the world's 1 billion
Catholics.
Click here to read the full article
September 18, 2006
MCC denounces the killing
of Catholic Nun in Somalia
TORONTO - The Muslim Canadian Congress has expressed horror and shock at the
senseless and vicious murder of a Catholic nun stationed in a hospital in
Mogadishu, Somalia.
Sister Leonella, 60, part of an SOS contingent engaged in an effort to
provide care and education to women and children in the hospital, was shot dead
by gunmen on Sunday. She had been associated with the Somali relief effort for
the last 38 years in a struggle towards the alleviation of poverty and
illiteracy in Somalia.
Click here to read the full statement
September 9, 2006
We Shouldn't Nuke
Iran ... or Coren
"Michael has mocked the memory of those innocent
people killed in Hiroshima and Nagasaki"
By Tarek Fatah
and Farzana Hassan
The
Toronto Sun
When Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad asked for "wiping Israel off the
map of this world," we recoiled with horror at his lunacy. Was he out of his
mind?
The Iranian president's remarks were rightly slammed across the world.
Barring Islamic radicals, most Muslim and non-Muslim commentators and columnists
in Canada condemned them as war-mongering and hate propaganda.
However, last week we were shocked to read an equally bizarre comment on
Iran. This time the proposal was not to nuke Israel, but to nuke Iran, and it
came from one of Canada's most politically incorrect -- and hence refreshing --
media personalities, Michael Coren.
To read the full article, click here
NOTE: On September 3, 2006, Toronto SUN columnist
Michael Coren wrote a piece in that newspaper headlined,
"We should Nuke Iran." The Muslim Canadian Congress was shocked and upset at
the call to nuke Iran. Here is the MCC response to Coren's article authored by
President Farzana Hassan and MCC founder Tarek Fatah that
appears in the Toronto SUN.
September 4, 2006
MCC urges Ottawa to reassess mission
in
Afghanistan:
"If they cannot build peace, bring our troops home"
MCC deeply saddened by the increasing number
of
Canadian casualties in Afghanistan: "Our sons and daughters do not need to
die or kill, to build a democratic Afghanistan"
TORONTO - The Muslim Canadian Congress has expressed deep concern over the
deteriorating situation in Afghanistan where Canadian troops are fighting their
biggest battle since World War II.
Farzana Hassan, president of the MCC, in a letter to Prime Minister Harper
said Muslim Canadians stand behind our troops, but we cannot watch silently as
we see the dead bodies of our sons and daughters come back from the battlefield.
n the letter, Ms. Hassan said, "if our troops cannot contribute to the
building and reconstruction of war ravaged Afghanistan, then we should seriously
re-asses our mission and mandate in Kabul. If there are no chances of building
peace, then we should bring our troops back home."
To read the full statement, click here
September 2, 2006
Free Jailed Muslim
Canadian in China:
MCC urges Ottawa to intervene vigorously for
the
release of Huseyincan Celil
TORONTO - The Muslim Canadian Congress has called on Foreign Affairs Minister
Peter McKay to pressure the Chinese government for access to Huseyincan Celil, a
Canadian citizen, currently being held illegally in China , where he faces a
possible death sentence.
Mr. Huseyincan Celil of Burlington was admitted to Canada as a political
refugee after escaping a Chinese prison. His crime was to form a political party
and argue for the democratic and human rights of an oppressed minority group of
Muslims in the western part of China , not far from Tibet . Canada rightly saw
that such political activity is no crime, rather an acknowledged human right.
To read the full statement, click here
August 26, 2006
Farzana Hassan on the split
in the MCC: We are Working
toward the same Goals
"Members of the MCC see themselves as
Canadians first,
and will defend this country's security and honour with force and integrity"
By Farzana Hassan
As the new president of the Muslim Canadian Congress, I wish to address the
concerns of the newly formed Canadian Muslim Union as well as those of the
larger Muslim community. I truly hope that my explanations will be received in a
spirit of tolerance, good faith and sincerity.
The Muslim Canadian Congress is a progressive Muslim group committed to
fighting extremism, gender apartheid and violations of the human rights of
marginalized communities. The organization has nothing but the interest of the
diverse Muslim communities living in Canada at heart, though we acknowledge that
at times the MCC has taken positions that run counter to the aspirations of
Muslims who identify themselves as conservative or traditional.
To read the full article, click here
Farzana Hassan is new President of MCC
"Fighting Islamic extremism and opposing
terrorism is a
crucial way of countering the rising tide of Islamophobia"
The Muslim Canadian Congress has a new President and a new Board of
Directors. The new President, Farzana
Hassan, is a novelist, writer, musician, women's rights activist who earned
an MBA from the University of Massachusetts and is working towards her Ph.D.
In a message to members of the MCC and the Muslim community, Farzana Hassan
issued the following statement.
August 25, 2006
Dear members of the MCC and the broader Muslim Communities of Canada,
Salaam Alaikum.
After being in business for five years and changing the way how Canadians see
their Muslim citizens, we are now ready to embark on new initiatives which would
enhance and expand our existing mission and objectives.
For the Muslim Canadian Congress, the interests of Canadian Muslims are
paramount. Members of the MCC are first and foremost Canadians, and this
acknowledgment of our common citizenship with other Canadians is above any other
identity that we hold dear to our hearts.
To read the full statement, click here
August 2, 2006
MCC asks Prime Minister Harper to change policy on Mid-East
You were elected by Canadians, not appointed by the White
House
The Muslim Canadian Congress is once again urging the Harper government to
adopt an independent Canadian stance on the current Mid East Crisis instead of
echoing that of the U.S. administration. The statement said "Mr. Harper's
Conservatives were elected by Canadian voters, not appointed by the White
House."
During the past three weeks, the Conservative government has taken unbalanced
and irrational positions that reflect a blatant departure from Canada's
historical role in the region as a middle power. click
here for full statement
July 30, 2006
Qana Bombing is Beyond Barbarism
MCC demands Israeli leaders be tried for War Crimes
TORONTO- The Muslim Canadian Congress has asked the UN High Commissioner for
Human Rights Ms. Louise Arbour to investigate the possibility of charging
Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert for War Crimes.
The MCC was reacting to the barbaric bombing of the Lebanese city of Qana
where more than 54 civilians, at least 34 of them children, died as result of an
air strike. The dead were part of displaced families that had been sheltering in
the basement of a house in Qana, which was crushed after a direct hit by an
Israeli bomb. click here for full statement
July 22, 2006
MCC demands Israel & Hizbollah heed
UN call for an
Immediate Ceasefire
Urges Hizbollah to hand over captured Israeli soldiers to
the Lebanese Government
TORONTO - The Muslim Canadian Congress has condemned the wholesale
destruction of Lebanon and the killing of hundreds of innocent Lebanese by
Israel. In a statement today, the MCC urged both Israel and Hizbollah to heed
the call of UN Secretary General Kofi Annan for an immediate cease-fire and a
complete cessation of all hostilities.
In the statement, the MCC called on Hizbollah to hand over the two captured
Israeli soldiers to the Lebanese government, after the ceasefire takes into
effect, so that the issue of prisoner exchange can be resolved between the
governments of the two countries. Such an exchange should and must lead to the
freedom of all Lebanese prisoners currently held in Israeli prisons.
click here for full statement
July 13, 2006
All-out War could break out because of Israel's Attack and
Blockade of Lebanon
MCC urges Prime Minister Harper to intervene with Israel
and the US
TORONTO - The Muslim Canadian Congress has called on Prime Minister Stephen
Harper to intervene in the Middle East crisis before an all-out war breaks out
as a result of Israel's attack and subsequent blockade of Lebanon.
In a letter to the Canadian Prime Minister, MCC secretary general El-Farouk
Khaki said Israel's air attacks on Lebanese infrastructure and civilian targets
has caused a number of deaths and widespread destruction. "Please call on your
Israeli counterpart and ask him to stop this violation of Lebanon's
sovereignty."
click here for full statement
July 11, 2006
MCC condemns Mumbai train bombings as a crime against
humanity
Letter to Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Singh describes
attack as "cowardly and barbaric"
Dr. Manmohan Singh
Prime Minister of India
Prime Minister's Office
New Delhi - 110011
India
Dear Prime Minister Singh,
I am writing on behalf of the Muslim Canadian Congress to offer my deepest
condolences to you, the people of India and above all the families of those who
died in the terrorist attacks in Mumbai today.
We condemn this cowardly and barbaric act of terrorism without reservation.
We consider this action as a crime against humanity. Those responsible for the
bombings of the Mumbai trains are individuals devoid of all humanity.
click here for full letter
July 6, 2006
The Rape of Gaza
Israel is getting away with murder
and the world is
letting it happen
by James J. Zogby
President, Arab American
Institute
Today I thought of Kitty Genovese. Some of you won't remember her, but many
in my generation will recall the horror and shame they felt after hearing the
story of how she was raped and stabbed to death on a New York City street in
1964.
What shocked the nation was the fact that 37 witnesses heard Kitty's cries
but did nothing to help. Years later, social scientists, studying this
disturbing passivity, termed it the "Genovese Syndrome."
That's how I feel about what is happening in Gaza today. Israel is getting
away with murder and the world is letting it happen.
click here for full article
June 23, 2006
MCC joins Hindu Council and Jewish Congress to demand
British Imam not be allowed to enter Canada
Communities say there is no place for hate mongers in
Canada
Honourable Monte Solberg
Minister of Citizenship and Immigration
365 Laurier Avenue West
Ottawa, Ontario
K1A 1L1
Dear Honourable Minister Solberg:
Muslim Canadian Congress (MCC); Canadian Council of Hindus (CCH); Egale Canada,
a national equality seeking group for lesbians, gay men, bisexuals,
trans-identified (LGBT) people and their families; and Canadian Jewish Congress
(CJC) urge you to take prompt action to refuse entry to Canada to Shaykh Riyadh
ul Haq, a British cleric who is scheduled to deliver a series of lectures in
Canada. We submit that Shaykh ul Haq is inadmissible to Canada pursuant to
sections 34 and 36 of the Immigration and Refugee Protection Act (IRPA).
The content of Shaykh ul Haq's public statements in his country of
citizenship, the United Kingdom, and elsewhere is readily accessible online. An
examination of this material raises a legitimate concern that he has in the past
and/or is likely to contravene provisions of the Criminal Code of Canada,
promoting hatred against identifiable groups on the basis of their religion or
sexual orientation (s. 319). click here for full letter
June 19, 2006
Muslim Canadian Congress
condemns Islamic extremism
Demands an end to foreign funding of religious institutions
TORONTO - The Muslim Canadian Congress has condemned the rise of Islamic
extremism among a small group of youth in Canada and has urged Muslim Canadians
to root out religion-inspired political activity.
In a statement released in Toronto today, in wake of the recent arrests of 17
Muslim men who are alleged to have planned terrorist acts, the MCC urged
Canadian Muslims that they need to be vigilant against the spread of extremist
interpretations of Islam in mosques, schools and universities by a section of
misguided fanatic youth and their mentors. click here
for full statement
June 12, 2006
The Poverty Of Fanaticism
Islamic Spirituality: the forgotten revolution
by Shaikh Abdal-Hakim Murad
'Blood is no argument', as Shakespeare observed. Sadly, Muslim ranks
are today swollen with those who disagree. The World Trade Centre, yesterday's
symbol of global finance, has today become a monument to the failure of global
Islam to control those who believe that the West can be bullied into changing
its wayward ways towards the East.
There is no real excuse to hand. It is simply not enough to clamour, as many
have done, about 'chickens coming home to roost', and to protest that
Washington's acquiescence in Israeli policies of ethnic cleansing is the
inevitable generator of such hate. It is of course true - as Shabbir Akhtar has
noted - that powerlessness can corrupt as insistently as does power. But to
comprehend is not to sanction or even to empathize.
click here for full article
June 7, 2006
Keep politics out of our mosques
Muslims cannot sit still while a fascist cult of Islamic
supremacy takes over places of worship
by Tarek Fatah
Three years ago when Kuwaiti Islamist scholar Tareq Al Suwaidian told a
Toronto crowd that "Western civilization is rotten from within and nearing
collapse ... it (the West) will continue to grow until an outside force hits it
and you will be surprised at how quickly it falls," he was lustily cheered by
the nearly 2,000 young Muslim men and women.
I was deeply offended by the hostile remark, but the thunderous approving
applause of the young audience simply stunned me. All I could do was muster the
courage and stage a polite walkout.
That day I resolved to fight this hostility toward the modern nation-state
and Western civilization that was engulfing a section of Canadian Muslim youth;
one that was being fanned by the leadership of the traditional Muslim
organizations and Islamic radicals who took inspiration from the ruling elites
of Iran and Saudi Arabia.
click here for full article
June 3, 2006
MCC expresses relief at arrest
of alleged terror cell
Urges community to confront extremism and radical ideas
TORONTO - The Muslim Canadian Congress has expressed relief at the arrest of
suspected members of a terror cell in Toronto.
In a statement released today, the MCC said the Muslim Canadians are in a
state of shock to learn that young members of their community would contemplate
carrying our terror attacks on fellow citizens.
"Thank God these men were stopped before they could carry out their
alleged plot," said Niaz Salimi, President of the MCC.
"We would like to commend the RCMP for pre-empting this action by
apprehending the suspects, but we hope that those accused will be tried with due
process, the presumption of innocence, and with full guarantees that their
constitutional rights and will be protected," she added.
click here for full statement
June 1, 2006
Misled by multiculturalism
Dogma of diversity has only created ghettos
by Tarek Fatah
One recent Friday, I attended an Iranian Canadian event in Toronto where I
was, perhaps, the only non-white, non-Iranian among the 1,000 immaculately
turned out guests. When I asked friends at the table why there were no black,
Chinese or Arabs at the event, I drew blank stares of bewilderment. Unsaid, but
easily understood in the silence was the answer: "Why would a Chinese
Canadian or an Indian Canadian be interested in an Iranian event?"
So, I pushed the envelope further and asked: "If you feel a black or
Chinese Canadian would not understand Iranian issues, why do you feel white
Canadians would? Are they better disposed to grasp international issues than,
say, an Arab Canadian?" I asked.
click here for full article
Wednesday, May 3, 2006
Why are we Muslims so silent on Darfur?
by Tarek Fatah
The remark by a prominent Muslim refugee-rights activist troubled me greatly:
"Zionists [are] abusing this issue," he announced curtly when he said he
would not be joining me and hundreds of other people on Sunday at a "Scream for
Darfur" rally at Queen's Park in Toronto.
This line of thinking, that Jews have somehow stolen the issue of Darfur's
genocide by actively campaigning against it, has been making the rounds in
cyberspace and needs a rebuttal. click here for full
article
February 28, 2006
Don't be silenced by extremists
A plea from 11 Canadian Muslim academics and activists
A curtain of fear has descended on the intelligentsia of the West, including
Canada. The fear of being misunderstood as Islamophobic has sealed their lips,
dried their pens and locked their keyboards.
With hundreds dead around the world in the aftermath of the now infamous
Danish cartoons, Canada's writers, politicians and media have imposed a
frightening censorship on themselves, refusing to speak their minds, thus
ensuring that the only voices being heard are that of the Muslim extremists and
the racist right." click here for full article
February 24, 2006
MCC questions motives behind
demand to ban debate on
religion
Accusations of Apostasy and Blasphemy should be outlawed
by Niaz Salimi
On February 23, Muhammad Elmasry of the Canadian Islamic Congress and Syed
Soharwardy of the Islamic Supreme Council of Canada told the Toronto Star they
want to see changes in Canada's Hate Laws that would make it possible to jail
writers who, in their opinion, insult or mock religious beliefs.
Both Mohamed Elmasry and Syed Soharwardy are asking for changes in Canada's
hate laws "so that offensive remarks or depictions of any religious figure are
considered a crime." click here for full letter
February 19, 2006
MCC condemns burning of Churches in Pakistan and Nigeria
MCC urges Muslims across the world to call off
demonstrations
TORONTO - The Muslim Canadian Congress has condemned attacks on Churches in
Pakistan and Nigeria that have led to the death of 15 Christians, including
women and children.
In an appeal to Muslims across the world, the MCC is urging them to resist
the temptation of participating in public demonstrations to express their anger
at the publication of the demeaning and insulting cartoons of Prophet Muhammad
in Denmark.
"We understand their pain, but Muslims should channel their anger not by
burning and pillaging, but by following the example of Prophet Muhammad himself,
who urged restraint and calmness in the wake of provocation," said Tarek Fatah,
spokesperson of the MCC. click here for full statement
February 22, 2006
Enough is enough
by Raheel Raza
A non-Muslim friend from my interfaith group has just left me a voice mail
thanking me for guiding him to a seminar about the life of Mohammad, which was
held in response to the cartoon controversy. Eric says "I found it enlightening
and moving. This is a heavy time for you so keep your dignity and humour and
you'll get through it." Thank you Eric. The past two weeks have been
spiritually, emotionally and physically trying for many of us caught up in the
jihad (struggle) to uphold respect and reverence for our Prophet while
condemning irrational and violent reactions in some parts of the Muslim world.
Now that the furor and fury is dying down a bit, I'm eating a Danish in
solidarity for ordinary Danish people who have been swept into the current
cartoon controversy. Just like I don't want to be blamed for the actions of a
few radical extremists, similarly I don't think all Danes should be blamed for
the mischief of an editor and an Imam.
I also have a message for Muslims, non-Muslims and Media. "Enough is enough -
grow up and let's learn to live together!" Why? Because the world is now a
global village and a joke in Denmark can have ripple effects causing tremors
from Delhi to Dakkar. As the Sufi poet Saadi wrote: Human beings are like parts
of a single body; if one part is wounded, the rest hurts. You, unmoved by the
pain of others, are not worthy of being called human.
click here for full article
February 10, 2006
Using a cartoon crisis to promote a conservative Muslim
agenda
by Natasha Fatah
Last week, in the midst of violent protests and heightened emotions over the
Danish cartoons of Prophet Muhammad, a conservative Muslim imam in the Middle
East went on television and told more than 200 million people that Danes were
burning copies of the Qur'an.
He was lying.
There were only rumours, and no proof, that some Danish Nazis threatened to
burn Islam's holy book.
This is just one example of how conservative Muslims are manipulating the
Muslim population.
click here for full article
February 7, 2006
What point to ban?
by El-Farouk Khaki
The boycott of Danish cheese by some Muslim owned stores is just another
example of how easy it is to provoke our community into validating the
stereotypes that exist about us.
Muslim Canadians must express their outrage not only at the cartoonist, but
also the extremists in the Middle East who say, "The solution is the slaughter
of those who harmed Islam and the Prophet."
The Muslim Canadian Congress strongly believes that as reprehensible as the
cartoons were, the issuing of death threats and asking for the killing of
journalists and cartoonists, must be condemned with vigour, as it is contrary,
not only to the letter and spirit of Islam, but also offensive to the civil
society we have chosen as our home. click here for full
article
Friday, February 3, 2006
Danish Cartoon Controversy:
What would the Prophet have done?
by Tarek Fatah
Keep to forgiveness (O Mohammed), and enjoin kindness, and turn away from
the ignorant.
- The Koran, Chapter 7, Verse 199
During his lifetime, Prophet Mohammed endured insults and ridicule on a daily
basis. His opponents mocked his message and used physical violence to stop him
from challenging the status quo.
At no stage during this ordeal did the Prophet lose his temper or react to
these provocations. Tradition has it that he would, instead, offer a prayer of
forgiveness to those who showed contempt for him.
Today, however, many followers of Prophet Mohammed are acting the exact
opposite. Reacting to the provocative Danish cartoons about the Prophet, they
are burning newspapers, threatening journalists, issuing bomb threats, yet
claiming they are standing up for the Prophet himself.
click here for full article
January 30, 2006
MCC reaction to Hamas victory in Palestine
The reality of democracy
By respecting the democratic wishes of the people, Ottawa
can help Hamas evolve into a mainstream political party
by Tarek Fatah and Jehad Aliweiwi
In December 1991, the militant Algerian Islamic Salvation Front (FIS)
surprised everyone by winning the first stage of national legislative elections.
The victory stunned the West and, before the FIS could win the crucial second
round of elections, the Algerian army stepped in and, with the tacit approval of
the U.S. and Europe, cancelled the elections.
Several years of savage civil war followed, in which not only tens of
thousands died, but also a fresh generation of Islamic militants was born. In
attempting to curb Islamic militancy in Algeria, the actions of the United
States and Europe achieved the exact opposite. click
here for full article
October 26, 2005
Sharia opponents demand apology
for Elmasry's
critical remarks
by Marina Jiminez
The Ontario government cancelled sharia tribunals last month, but the
controversy has not gone away.
Yesterday, in the latest salvo in the war of words over sharia, a Muslim
organization called on the leader of a rival group to retract accusations that
critics of sharia law are smearing Islam. click here for
full story
