Swiss Minaret ban: Response and Reaction

Swiss Minaret ban: Reaction and Response
from People of different colours

Dr. Mozammel Haque

The proposal to ban the building of minarets had been put forward by the Swiss People's Party, (SVP), the largest party in Parliament, which says minarets are a sign of Islamisation. More than 57% of voters and 22 out of 26 cantons - or provinces - voted in favour of the ban.

“The last surveys suggested around 34% of the Swiss population would vote for this shocking initiative. Last Friday, in a meeting organised in Lausanne, more than 800 students, professors and citizens were in no doubt that the referendum would see the motion rejected, and instead were focused on how to turn this silly initiative into a more positive future,” tracing the background, Professor Dr. Tariq Ramadan wrote in The Guardian, London, on Sunday, 29 November, 2009.

Professor Ramadan observed, “Today that confidence was shattered, as 57% of the Swiss population did as the Union Démocratique du Centre (UDC) had urged them to – a worrying sign that this Populist Party may be closest to the people’s fears and expectations. For the first time since 1893 an initiative that singles out one community, with a clear discriminatory essence, has been approved in Switzerland. One can hope that the ban will be rejected at the European level, but that makes the result no less alarming. What is happening in Switzerland, the land of my birth?”

That is the opinion and observation of no less a person than the son of the soil, a renowned scholar and Professor of Islamic Studies at the University of Oxford. But, of course, he is a Muslim by religion and practice. But people of other religious faith also denounced the ban.

Religious leaders across the world have criticised Switzerland's referendum vote to ban the building of minarets. The Vatican has condemned the Swiss ban on the construction of Islamic minarets as a 'blow to freedom of religion'. The Vatican on Monday, 30 November, 2009, endorsed a statement by the conference of Swiss Bishops criticising the vote for heightening "the problems of cohabitation between religions and cultures". Muslim figureheads from Indonesia and Egypt, as well as Switzerland were denouncing the vote as a blow to religious freedom. Egypt's Grand Mufti Ali Gomaa described the ban as an insult to the feelings of the Muslim community in Switzerland and elsewhere.

Not only the religious leaders of different faith groups have condemned the action, but political leaders of different countries distaste the action. The government opposed the ban, saying it would harm Switzerland's image, particularly in the Muslim world. France's Foreign Minister Bernard Kouchner was "scandalised" by the Swiss decision and said it represented a "show of intolerance.” He said it was a "negative" move because banning the construction of Muslim mosque towers amounts to "oppressing a religion".

He told France's RTL radio: "I hope that the Swiss will go back on this decision rather quickly.”

The Amnesty International said, Swiss minaret ban would be discrimination against religion. A ban on the construction of minarets would breach Switzerland’s obligations to uphold freedom of religion, Amnesty International said ahead of a referendum on Sunday 29 November 2009 on a constitutional amendment. “Contrary to the claims of the initiators of the referendum, a general prohibition of the construction of minarets would violate the right of Muslims in Switzerland to manifest their religion,” said Nicola Duckworth, Europe and Central Asia Programme Director at Amnesty International. She also added: “A ban on the construction of minarets while, for example, allowing those of church spires would constitute discrimination on the basis of religion.”

Switzerland is home to some 400,000 Muslims and has just four minarets. After Christianity, Islam is the most widespread religion in Switzerland, but it remains relatively hidden.

Response from Britons, Muslim and non-Muslim
Muslim groups in Switzerland and abroad condemned the vote as anti-Islamic. Irrespective of colour, ethnicity and religious affiliations, British people, from the Parliament to the leaders of the community and religious and non-religious groups and academic scholar, were united in their denunciation of the vote to ban the construction of minarets.

Lord Nazir Ahmed of Rotherham
Lord Nazir Ahmed of Rotherham, Peer of the House of Lords of the British Parliament said, “The general consensus in the Muslim community is that the minaret ban in Switzerland is a radical, alarmist and deplorable act of Islamophobia.”

“I understand that Switzerland is party to both the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights and to the European Convention on Human Rights. In my view, the Minaret Ban is a blatant breach of the civil liberties set forth in these conventions and has placed Switzerland on a collision course with its international human rights obligations,” Lord Ahmed said.

Lord Ahmed argued, “The Muslim community of Switzerland should in no way be denied the rights and facilities to practice their faith; nor should the ban be used to pursue the Swiss government’s hidden avenue of frustration with Moammar Gaddafi and the Libyan crisis. The 300,000 ordinary, practicing Muslims of Switzerland should not be made victims of the political games being waged by Switzerland against Libya.”

Lord Ahmed also observed, “The mere idea of a minaret leading to extremism reveals the clearly discriminatory bias that underpins this decision. Rather than pose a security threat, religious monuments enrich society and promote a collective identity. In contrast, the minaret ban shows the Swiss Government utilizing scare mongering tactics and playing the ‘Muslim card’ in populist political point scoring. This fans the fires of hatred and creates a needless clash of civilizations.”

“Switzerland’s actions will fundamentally influence its reputation in the eyes of Muslims around the globe. As a member of the UK Parliament and Muslim community, I stand by any decisions the greater Muslim community might make concerning withdrawal from business and banking in Switzerland,” maintained Lord Ahmed and urged the “Swiss government to review their decision as this could have long lasting consequences on your country’s relations with the 1.5 billion Muslims in the world.”

Ken Livingstone, former Mayor of London
Former London Mayor, Ken Livingstone, said: "The ban on minarets in Switzerland, a country that only has four minarets, is an attack not only on Muslims, but on the most basic freedoms in society.” “Let this referendum be a rallying call for all democrats - we must challenge Islamophobia and racism if we are to stop the far right,” he added.

Dr Edie Friedman, Jewish Council for Racial Equality
Dr Edie Friedman, Executive Director of the Jewish Council for Racial Equality said: “It is a very sad day when such an important religious symbol is put to the vote. That anyone should even consider this is unbelievable. This could have very dangerous consequences, sending out the wrong message to the rest of the world. Far from cementing positive relations between people, this can only sew division and disharmony. I hope that common sense prevails, this decision is reversed and building a cohesive society in Switzerland is taken up with renewed vigour.”

Bruce Kent, Vice President of Pax Christi
Bruce Kent, Vice President of Pax Christi, said: “I am dismayed at this decision which is manifestly discriminatory. As a Christian, I live in an area where we have a beautiful mosque and minaret which cause no offence to anybody and contribute to the beauty of the environment.”

Dr. Muhammad Abdul Bari, Muslim Council of Britain
Secretary General of the Muslim Council of Britain (MCB), Dr. Muhammad Abdul Bari, said in a statement, “The Swiss referendum results show how far and how quickly Europe is moving in the wrong direction in its attitudes and policies towards Muslims and other minority groups in Europe.”
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“Mosques and minarets in our European cities are manifestations of the proudly indigenous nature of Islam in Europe. It is tragic that the far right is stripping away at our illustrious heritage of coexistence between different faiths and cultures in Europe and replacing it with their warped and xenophobic outlook,” he said and added, “This is no less than a battle of ideas for the future of a plural and progressive Europe.”

Dr. Syed Aziz Pasha, Union of Muslim Organisations
Dr. Syed Aziz Pasha, General Secretary of the Union of Muslim Organisations (UMO) of UK & Eire, said, “The British Muslims are shocked to learn that the Swiss people has expressed their hostility for such a measure. Either it is sheer ignorance or Islamophobia that the whole affair is a disgusting phenomenon. It is difficult to understand in the modern liberal atmosphere which is prevailing in the West.”

“The Swiss government should ignore this decision because it contravenes the provision of the European Convention of Human Rights to which it is a signatory,” Dr. Pasha said and added, “Succinctly; it is in the interest of Switzerland not to antagonize the religious sensibilities of 1.5 billion Muslims throughout the world.”

“The Swiss people must understand that the minarets of the Mosques are symbols of Sovereignty of Allah and the brotherhood of all human beings as enunciated in the Qur’an,” Dr. Pasha argued.

Swiss-born Professor Tariq Ramadan
Writing in The Guardian, Swiss born Professor Tariq Ramadan, Professor of Islamic Studies at the University of Oxford, said, “Every European country has its specific symbols or topics through which European Muslims are targeted. In France it is the headscarf or burka; in Germany, mosques; in Britain, violence; cartoons in Denmark; homosexuality in the Netherlands – and so on. It is important to look beyond these symbols and understand what is really happening in Europe in general and in Switzerland in particular: while European countries and citizens are going through a real and deep identity crisis, the new visibility of Muslims is problematic – and it is scary.”

Tariq Ramadan, a Swiss citizen, is professor of contemporary Islamic studies at Oxford University, maintained, “Over the last two decades Islam has become connected to so many controversial debates – violence, extremism, freedom of speech, gender discrimination, forced marriage, to name a few – it is difficult for ordinary citizens to embrace this new Muslim presence as a positive factor. There is a great deal of fear and a palpable mistrust. Who are they? What do they want? And the questions are charged with further suspicion as the idea of Islam being an expansionist religion is intoned. Do these people want to Islamise our country?”

According to Tariq Ramadan, the solution lies in the following, “I have been repeating for years to Muslim people that they have to be positively visible, active and proactive within their respective western societies. In Switzerland, over the past few months, Muslims have striven to remain hidden in order to avoid a clash. It would have been more useful to create new alliances with all these Swiss organisations and political parties that were clearly against the initiative.”

Tariq Ramadan, a Swiss citizen, is professor of contemporary Islamic studies at Oxford University. His most recent book is What I Believe

Banning of Dutch MP from UK Entry;Reaction and Response

Dr. Mozammel Haque

Dutch Freedom Party MP, Geert Wilders, was invited by Lord Pearson, a member of the UKIP Party, to attend a parliamentary session to discuss the European Union and Islam where the Islamophobic film ‘Fitna’ was apparently to be shown in the House of Lords. He was excluded by the Government from entering the United Kingdom for public security.

Now the question comes up why he was banned? Dutch MP Mr. Wilders describes the Holy Qur’an as a fascist book” and compared it to Hitler’s Mein Kampf. He has called for the Qur’an to be banned. Mr. Wilders also links the Islamic Holy Book to terrorism. The film ‘Fitna’ caused outrage across the Muslim world when it was posted on the internet last year. Mr. Wilders faces trial in his own country for inciting hatred. Earlier, this year, a Dutch court ordered prosecutors to put Mr. Wilders on trial for inciting hatred and discrimination by making anti-Islamic statements.

Under the circumstances, Mr. Wilders was denied entry by the Home Office amid fears his presence would endanger public security. The Government said it would not allow extremism and hatred to be spread through the communities of Britain.

The Home Office said there was a blanket ban on Mr. Wilders entering the UK under EU law enabling member states to exclude someone whose presence could threaten public security. “The Government opposes extremism in all forms,” it said in a statement, adding that it had tightened up rules on excluding those engaging in “unacceptable behaviour” in October.

“It will stop those who want to spread extremism, hatred, and violent messages in our communities from coming to our country.”

Reaction
The Home Secretary has the power to stop people entering the UK if she believes there is a threat to national security, public order or the safety of UK citizens. The British Foreign Secretary, David Miliband, MP. said the home secretary made a decision on an individual case. “We have profound commitment to freedom of speech but there is no freedom to cry ‘fire’ in a crowded theatre and there is no freedom to stir up hate, religious and racial hatred, according to the laws of the land,” he added.

Commenting on the decision to exclude Geert Wilders Cohesion Minister Sadiq Khan, MP., said: “Actions that incite hatred towards an individual or group that undermine our shared values are unacceptable.

“The Government opposes extremism in all its forms and we will stop anyone who wants to spread extremism, hatred and violent messages in our communities from coming to our country. We act consistently in making decisions to refuse anyone entry, having taken all the factors in each case into account,” Minister Khan added.

“Our aim is to foster community cohesion in this country and we will do that by promoting a sense of shared values that includes respect for the rule of law, freedom of speech, equality of opportunity and respect for others,” said Minister Khan and added, “We have legislation in place to protect people from incitement and hate crime which we have and will continue to enforce.”

Commenting on the BBC’s Panorama programme shown last night (!7 February 2009), Sadiq Khan said: “The preventing extremism work that we have been doing with communities up and down the country is in partnership between local communities and local authorities. We have invested highly in some of the most vulnerable communities in our country.

“The Panorama programme made some very serious allegations about prevent work being used to spy on British Muslim communities. This is untrue,” Minister Khan also said.

Cohesion Minister Sadiq Khan also said, “Prevent is about stopping people from being drawn into violent extremism and it is about working with Muslim communities at every level to build their resilience and enable them to challenge robustly the ideas of those extremists who seek to undermine this country’s shared values. We continue to expand our relationships to ensure we are talking to, and working with, those at the grassroots. Our emphasis is on engaging with those within our communities who acknowledge the problem of extremism, who voice this acknowledgement and who are actively seeking to address the problem.”

“Parents of all faiths and communities want to keep their children safe from radicalisers. We are committed to helping them to do that, and the money we are providing to local authorities for Prevent work is being used to do just that,” Minister Khan observed.

Lib Dem Home Affairs spokesman, Chris Huhne, said even with freedom of speech, there was a line to be drawn.

Keith Vaz, chairman of the Home Affairs committee, insisted that Fitna could incite violence in its audience.

Response from Muslim Parliamentarians
Labour Peer Lord Ahmed, who expressed his concerns to the Parliamentary authorities about Mr. Wilders’ visit, said he welcomed the Home Secretary’s decision to ban the MP from entering the UK. Lord Ahmed said “this man is facing serious charges of inciting hatred and discrimination in Amsterdam, and has incited hatred amongst the communities in the UK.”

“This film creates hatred, and further segregates communities,” he reportedly said.

Lord Ahmed continued, stating “we are peace-loving citizens of the UK and do not want to see extremist groups incite hatred. This is something we campaign against.”

Lord Patel of Blackburn said, in an interview with me, “The government is absolutely right. The person, in the name of freedom of speech, tries to divide the community on the basis of religion, should not be allowed in our country, where the government is trying to unite the all faith communities and also all heritage communities and belief in community cohesion.

“So, under the circumstances, how can any government of the world, allow the person who spreads racial prejudice and tries to divide the community,” said Lord Patel.

Support from Muslim Community leaders
The Muslim Council of Britain, the Umbrella organisation of the British Muslims, said Mr Wilders was “an open and relentless preacher of hate”. “Geert Wilders has been an open and relentless preacher of hate, there is little difference between his views and those of the far right. We have no problem with the challenge of criticisms to our faith, but the film that will be screened tomorrow by Lord Pearson and Baroness Cox is nothing less than a cheap and tacky attempt to whip up hysteria against Muslims. Mr Wilders' xenophobic and repugnant views has been identified by a Dutch court, and is now confirmed by his official exclusion to the United Kingdom. It now time to ask why Peers of Realm who promote such demagogues without any censure are allowed to be regarded as mainstream, responsible leaders in our community,” said The Muslim Council of Britain.

Dr. Syed Aziz Pasha, General Secretary of the Union of Muslim Organisations (UMO), said to me in an interview, “We, the British Muslims, are glad that our government has refused entry to the Dutch M.P. – Mr. Geert Wilders, because his presence will cause discord between faith communities. Our Union, for the last 39 years, have been striving to promote good relations with all faith communities. So, we do not want anyone to come to this country to create discord and friction in this multi-faith society. We are also very much concerned how some members of the House of Lords has screened this film in the House of Lords knowing fully well that it is a blasphemous film intended to incite religious hatred, which is legally forbidden in this country.”

“People have wrong conception about Holy Qur’an. It should clearly be understood that this is a literal Word of Allah the Almighty sent for the guidance of the whole mankind and unless the entire Holy Qur’an is completely read and understood it is impossible to take a few passages and make unwarranted comments,” said Dr. Pasha and added, “People of intelligence and fair-mindedness acknowledge the fact that the Holy Qur’an brought about an intellectual revolution. Europe which was in a state of darkness became civilized on account of the contribution Muslims made through the Universities of Saville, Granada and Toledo.”

Dr. Pasha also mentioned, “All the modern sciences owe a great deal of debt to the Holy Qur’an and the Muslims as a result of which Europe now is a civilized continent. One example which we can quote is that of Ibn Sina (well-known in the West as Avicenna) – his book on medicine was a textbook in the Universities of Europe for forty years. It is enough to say that the Holy Qur’an is the fountain head of all knowledge and humanity owes a debt of gratitude to Allah the Almighty for sending this unique revelation through Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him) to conveyed to the humanity at large.”

Dr. Pasha said, “We want to make it clear that women were treated like chattel in the Western world until the Holy Qur’an was revealed which raised the status of women to that of legal equality with men. It is travesty of truth to say Islam treats women as inferior. The Muslim women enjoy the life of dignity and honour and upholders of high moral standard.”

Mohammed Shafiq, chief executive of the Ramadhan Foundation, also supported the Home Secretary’s decision. “His fascist views are not welcome in our country where we pride ourselves as a multi-faith society,” he said. “This is not about freedom of speech but about stopping the incitement to religious hatred this man promotes.”

After he was sent home Thursday a Dutch foreign ministry spokesman said: “The United Kingdom has the right, just like the Netherlands, to refuse people entry for reasons of safety and security. “Of course we acknowledge that right, but we do not agree with the way it is being exercised in this case.”

Opinion of the Press
The Observer editorially observed on Sunday, the 15th of February, 2009, “Geert Wilders’s short film Fitna is a poisonous dose of brutal propaganda, designed to foment fear and hatred of Muslims.”

“But that is not its only purpose. Mr Wilders, a Dutch MP, is touting his shoddy little oeuvre around Europe to provoke outrage, stoke aggressive reaction and thereby promote the real product – himself,” wrote The Observer editorially.

The editorial continued, “How sad then that the Home Office should oblige that ambition by barring Mr Wilders from the UK. How sad also that members of the upper chamber of parliament should conspire to erect the stage on which Mr Wilders can play out his deluded fantasy of a political crusade: Lord Pearson and Baroness Cox by inviting him to show his film; Lord Ahmed by asking that he be banned.”

Writing in The Sunday Times, on 15 February, 2009, Minette Marrin wrote, “Those who insist that freedom of speech within the law must be absolute are also missing the point; there are times when public order trumps free speech, as the wildest of libertarians must agree. Careless talk can cost lives and grown-up governments have a duty of pragmatism. So if the home secretary rightly judged that Wilders is a man likely and possibly anxious to stir up serious trouble, then she was right to have him put on the next plane home at Heathrow last Thursday. But did she judge rightly? Or was she guilty of the poor judgment, moral funk and cultural appeasement that we have come to expect of new Labour?”

She also observed, “It is difficult to avoid thinking the man must be as aggressively silly as his preposterous cockscomb hairdo; he has urged the Dutch government to ban the Koran as “fascist” and he is facing prosecution there for incitement to hatred and discrimination. He seems to be entirely the wrong man to make a balanced, thoughtful case about anything.”

About the nature of the film ‘Fitna’, Marrin commented, “Fitna is extremely unbalanced and, in that sense, misleading.”

Commenting on Mr. Wilders’ statement on the Qur’an, Marrin wrote, “To call the Koran “fascist” as Wilders has done is stupid, empty and needlessly offensive.”

Comparing this issue with the Salman Rushdie affairs vis-à-vis freedom of speech, Catherine Bennett mentioned in The Observer, on 15th of February 2009, “A year later, Norman Tebbit agreed that the “villain” Rushdie had “betrayed” and “degraded” Islam. On the Labour side, a lot of us will never forget Lord Hattersley, then plain Roy and deputy leader of his party, explaining why the paperback of The Satanic Verses should not be published. “The proposition that Muslims are welcome in Britain if, and only if, they stop behaving like Muslims is a doctrine which is incompatible with the principles which govern and guide a free society,” he argued.”

“Whatever “behaving like Muslims” actually meant,” Bennett raised the question and quoted from the former member of the radical Islamic political group, Hizb-ut-Tahrir, Ed Husain, 34, who authored the book ‘Islamist’ and presently one of the directors of the controversial counter-extremism think-tank, The Quilliam Foundation. “Today, Muslim Ed Husain tells us: “Geert Wilders should be allowed in because this is a country that has pioneered freedom of speech, from Milton and Locke through to Mill,” wrote Bennett in The Observer on 15th of February, 2009.

The Foundation, set up ten months ago, which have been given almost £1 million of public money, says that it is working to tackle the extreme Islamist ideology coming out of mosques, universities and madrasas in countries such as Syria and Pakistan.

The Second Islamic Finance and Trade Conference in London

The Second Islamic Finance and
Trade Conference in London

Dr. Mozammel Haque

The Two-days Second Islamic Finance and Trade Conference (IFTC), sponsored by International Holdings, Jadwa Bank, MAIC, UEM and Islam Channel and supported by the Organisation of the Islamic Conference, the Islamic Development Bank, the City of London, the Department of UK Trade & Investment and the World Islamic Economic Forum, was held at Park Plaza Victoria, London on 28 and 29 October 2008.

Secretary of State for Justice, Jack Straw, M.P.
Lord Chancellor and Secretary of State for Justice, Jack Straw, M.P. said, “I represent a constituency with a very large Muslim community – one third of the population of Blackburn, in fact, are followers of the Islamic faith. It is also a great pleasure to speak to such an illustrious group of people – leading figures across the worlds of finance, business and academia – and to support a conference which is furthering the important aim of making the United Kingdom “the gateway to Islamic finance and trade”.

Speaking about the relationship between Islam and Britain, Lord Chancellor said, “The relationship between Islam and Britain is not a new one; this country has been greatly enriched over the course of centuries by the Muslim history and heritage and by its learned and vibrant culture. Chaucer refers to Islamic scholars and physicians in the prologue to his Canterbury Tales as early as 1386:

“With us there was a doctor of physic;In all this world was none like him to pickFor talk of medicine and surgery; …
Well read was he in Esculapius,And Deiscorides, and in Rufus,Hippocrates, and Hali, and Galen,Serapion, Rhazes, and Avicen, …”

“But an even earlier connection – with a financial connotation – between Islam and Britain exists in the form of a gold coin displayed not far from here in the British Museum. The coin dates back to the 8th century and to the reign of King Offa of Mercia. Because of what were believed to be good trade relations between this country and the Islamic nations of the East, the coin contains both the mark of England – “There is no deity but God, without partners” – and an Arabic inscription of the shahadah – the first pillar of Islam,” mentioned the Secretary of State for Justice.

Speaking about the Islamic faith in Britain, Lord Chancellor said, “The Islamic faith is also now a vital and established part of British life. Islam is the second largest and the fastest growing religion in the UK, and British people are, more than ever before, enjoying and experiencing its religious and cultural traditions.”

Speaking about the contribution of the British Muslim community, the Secretary of State for Justice said, “One of the most important contributions of the Muslim community – indeed, to the tune of over £31 billion each year, by some estimates – is to our financial sector and economy.”

“This Government is proud to have supported the development of the Islamic finance sector ever since 2003, when we first began to work towards establishing a level tax and regulatory playing field between conventional and Islamic finance. That same year, Howard Davies – then chair of the newly created Financial Services Authority – invited an audience of Middle East bankers to discuss the establishment of an Islamic bank in this country. As a result of this and the hard work of some in the audience, the first branch of the Islamic Bank of Britain opened in 2004 in Birmingham,” mentioned Jack Straw, M.P.

Lord Chancellor also said, “We have made significant progress since then; most obviously with the fundamental reform of stamp duty to facilitate Islamic mortgages and the extension of relief on those mortgages to companies as well as individuals. But also by introducing measures to remove barriers for other Sharia-compliant products and by addressing tax and regulatory issues so as to encourage the issuance of sukuk.”

Mentioning about the effects, the Secretary of State for justice said, “Islamic finance is now one of the most innovative financial service sectors in the UK. There are now five standalone Islamic banks, and over 20 conventional banks with Sharia compliant windows. A number of sukuk have been listed on the London Stock Exchange. And London has established itself as a major global hub for Islamic finance and the key centre in the Western world.”

Speaking about the Islamic Finance and Trade in the United Kingdom, Straw, M.P. said, “We, as a Government are committed to developing still further Islamic trade and finance in the United Kingdom. This is partly – of course – because we want this country to benefit from the many opportunities Islamic trade and finance afford. We see much to gain from this – for London, in reinforcing its reputation as the leading financial centre in the world, and for the United Kingdom as a whole, in making our economy stronger and our financial services more competitive.”

Speaking about the contribution Islamic finance world has to make, Jack Straw, M.P. said, “I was talking just before with colleagues about the important contribution the Islamic finance world has to make in redeveloping our institutions – to ensure that our financial instruments are asset based. But benefit to the economy – enormously important though it is, particularly in the prevailing economic circumstances – is not the sole basis for our commitment to Islamic finance and trade. It is also because we consider that everyone in the UK ought to have access to financial services which suit their faith, regardless of their faith.”

The Secretary of State for Justice said that there are “something worth repeating: British and Muslim are complementary not contradictory. The most eloquent, living proof of this is in the people that are here this afternoon – and in those who will shortly be accepting the esteemed Islamic Finance Awards. British Muslims are where Britain and Islam intersect. Celebrating their success is the best way of showing that these two identities can and do thrive in the same place, in the same person, in the same country.”

“I have spoken about Sharia compliant products. I now want to say a word about Sharia more widely. Because the same thinking which underpins our approach to both. Of course those who live in this country will always be governed by English law and will be subject to the jurisdiction of English or Scottish courts,” the Lord Chancellor said and added, “But given the fact that speculation abounds on this point, let me say once again: There is nothing whatever in English law that prevents people abiding by Sharia principles if they wish to, provided they do not come into conflict with English law. There is no question about that. But English law will always remain supreme, and religious councils subservient to it.”

While concluding his speech, the Secretary of State for Justice, said, “It is the very diversity of Britain – and the opportunities afforded to everyone – which underpins our success, our dynamism and what makes so many individuals and families want to settle here. Our policies in relation to Islamic finance and trade, like our policies across the board, must continue to promote that diversity.”

Straw, M.P. also said, “This Government’s commitment to embracing Islamic finance and trade also derives from the fact that it is a way of forging links between countries and building relationships between peoples across the world. A way of reminding us that there is far, far more that unites than divides us.”

“I would like to finish where I began, by paying tribute to the vital contribution of Muslims to life in the United Kingdom, not least in terms of Islamic trade and finance. I am enormously admiring of your achievements, your successes, and of the way you use your talent and your time in service of the broader community,” concluded the Secretary of State for Justice.

Stephen Timms, M.P.
The Labour M.P. for East Ham, Stephen Timms, made some points from his standpoint as a Minister in the Treasury at the Muslim Council of Britain’s Second Islamic Finance and Trade Conference. “At the first conference, when he was Chancellor of the Exchequer, Gordon Brown underlined his goal that London should be the world centre for Islamic finance – and we have made good progress since then. It is a goal which is even more important in a period of turbulence in the world economy like the one we are in at the moment,” Stephen Timms mentioned.

The Labour M.P. for East Ham said, “We are already the West’s major centre for Islamic finance. 18 sukuk have been listed in London, worth some $13 billion between them. We have five dedicated Islamic banks, and over twenty conventional banks that offer Islamic financial services. There are more banks in Britain offering Islamic finance than in the whole of the rest of Western Europe put together. Around the world, Islamic finance assets have been growing at a rate of almost 20% per year since 2000 – and are now worth perhaps $700 billion worldwide.”

“Over the past five years we have made a series of reforms to establish a level playing field – in tax and regulation – between conventional and Islamic finance. There has been real progress, enabling development of genuinely competitive Sharia’ compliant mortgages, Individual Savings Accounts and Child Trust Funds,” Timms, M.P. said and added, “We have been looking at the potential of the Government offering its own, sterling-denominated, sovereign sukuk. We will be providing an update on progress at the Pre-Budget Report in a few weeks time.”

The Labour M.P. for East Ham also mentioned, “Before the end of the year, arising from our work with the Islamic Finance Experts Group, we will be publishing a document with UK Trade and Investment, setting out clearly the UK Government’s future approach to Islamic finance, and focusing attention on what needs to be done to make further progress. We have in Britain community and commitment; skills and scale; expertise and connections around the world. It’s an opportunity that we want to see realised for the benefit of Britain as a whole – strengthening London’s position as – not just one of the world’s leading financial centres – but as the world centre.”

Sir Iqbal Sacranie
Earlier, while opening the Islamic Finance and Trade Conference, Sir Iqbal Sacranie, the chair of the Advisory Group for the Islamic Finance and Trade Conference, said, “ The IFTC was launched in 2006 when the then Chancellor of the Exchequer and present Prime Minister, Gordon Brown, M.P. set a challenge to make Britain the gateway to Islamic Finance and Trade. This has remained at the heart of our aims and objectives for this initiative.”

Speaking about the purpose of the IFTC, Sir Iqbal said, “The primary purpose of this platform is to promote, enhance and expand the trading relationships between the UK and Muslim countries. We do this in order to attract inward investment for Britain whilst creating business opportunities for our trading partners in Muslim countries. The result of which, we believe, will be to generate prosperity for both. Seeking international solutions to the current financial crisis, “This requires a global framework for managing our economies and setting up international rules and regulations for finance and trade. It is only right that British Muslims be offered an opportunity to contribute to the establishment of such frameworks.”

“We believe that cross-fertilisation of ideas of people of diverse backgrounds and experiences offer us the best chance of discovering the most effective solutions to the challenges we face today. With a growth rate of 15% per annum, Islamic finance has been attracting some of the best minds and leading experts from the financial and banking community in the last few years,” said Sir Iqbal and added, “This conference will debate how we can build a more stable world economy. We call upon all delegates to contribute to this exciting agenda and help face the challenges of the future.”

Sir Iqbal also said, “The Islamic principles that govern trade and finance seek to promote investment and unlock cash flow. As a result of recent rise in oil prices there has been a significant increase in the liquidity of many Muslim countries.”

“London, with its unique reputation and unrivalled expertise in structuring customized financial transactions for a diverse range of clients has the ability to unlock the potential of this increased liquidity through Islamic finance. The IFTC is not a place to only talk business but to do business,” noted Sir Iqbal.

Dr. Muhammad Abdul Bari
Mentioning about the contribution of two million strong British Muslim community, Dr. Muhammad Abdul Bari, the Secretary General of the Muslim Council of Britain (MCB), said, “The IFTC is but another demonstration of what Muslims are doing to contribute to the wellbeing of our nation. In this gathering of investment bankers, lawyers, policy makers and business people we hope to create new partnerships and strengthen existing ones between the UK and Muslim countries.”

Dr. AbdulBari hopes the Second IFTC (Islamic Finance & Trade Conference) “will serve to rekindle interest in the nascent Islamic finance provision which has started in this country over the last few years. The government has pledged to provide a level playing field for Islamic financial products and the emerging framework for their provision in the UK will serve as a solid starting point.”

Referring to the 2012 Olympic Games in London, Dr. AbdulBari expressed his happiness that “The IFTC organizers have found areas where Islamic financial products can potentially be utilised to help actualize the 2012 Games, despite the credit crunch.”

“I am confident that this initiative will serve us all well. I am also hopeful that the broader debate on Islamic finance and trade during the two days of the IFTC will be followed up by meaningful co-operation by participants to help us chart our way out of the present financial crisis,” concluded Dr. AbdulBari.