We Urge the Home Secretary to Provide Refuge and Sanctuary to Asia Bibi in the UK

November 12, 2018 Article

We have today, signed a letter with numerous organisations and individuals, asking the Home Secretary to provide the option of sanctuary and refuge to Asia Bibi, who was released after 8 years of false imprisonment in Pakistan.

Faith Matters has consistently highlighted the extremism of groups like Tehreek-e-Labaik and its leader, Khadim Hussain Rizvi, who has inflamed tensions in Pakistan by rousing extremist mobs to attack the Government. Faith Matters also managed to work with Twitter to close down all of Rizvi’s Twitter accounts. Rizvi, on the other hand, has consistently tried to terrorise the Government of Pakistan into doing his bidding by pushing them to crack down on minorities such as Ahmadi Muslims.

We believe that the United Kingdom has had a history of providing shelter to those who are persecuted, from Kinder Transport children through to East African Asians and to those persecuted in developing countries throughout the 1980’s and 1990’s.

Asia Bibi’s case shows how fragile and insecure Islamist extremists are when they are frightened of a woman who is of another faith. They have taken away her freedom for 8 years and then chased her away from her own country. However, it is not Asia Bibi who has been weakened. She has shown how spiritually defunct and imbecilic Islamist extremists are.

Asia Bibi should be offered sanctuary in the United Kingdom. Her presence in the United Kingdom will send out the right message that people who are persecuted because of their faith are welcome in our country. It will also send out a strong message to Islamist extremists in the UK. If you cannot respect the rights and presence of Asia Bibi, maybe it is you who should not be in this country.

 

The post We Urge the Home Secretary to Provide Refuge and Sanctuary to Asia Bibi in the UK appeared first on Faith Matters.

Categories: Asia Bibi, Home Secretary, Islamist extremists, Khadim Hussain Rizvi, Opinions

Islamophobic hate mail targets schools and mosques in London and Yorkshire

November 12, 2018 Article

A racist and Islamophobic letter sent to a south London mosque echoes a similar hate campaign against mosques and Islamic schools in 2013.

The latest campaign features imagery which seeks to defame the Prophet Muhammad and a DVD-R disc with the pornographic title ‘The Finale The P**** Girls of England’.

Tell MAMA has verified at least three different versions of this hateful material.

Variations include handwritten remarks about paedophilia, as others reference sexual acts, or deploy the highly offensive racial slur ‘n—–‘.

The author(s) of each letter uses variations of the spelling Muhammad, which includes Muhammud (misspelt), Mohamed, and Mohammed.

Tell MAMA can confirm that the letters have, so far, targeted schools, mosques, and community groups in the London borough of Redbridge, in south London, and parts of Yorkshire.

The letters use the same single-use first-class stamp and were sorted and processed in Romford, with one such letter, seen by Tell MAMA, was processed at the mail centre in Romford on October 31.

Due to the offensive nature of the materials, we have declined to share the images in full. Nor do we want to encourage copycat crimes.

As with a similar hate mail campaign in September 2013, one of the images also used he phrase ‘Ashraf Al Mursaleen’ – a term of reverence, which means the most honourable of messengers. Given this information was, however, in the public domain, it could, also, be a copycat.

The handwriting in the letters seen by Tell MAMA suggests that this latest campaign has some coordination, or, is from one individual. In the example below, there is a similar gap between the first and second letters, as the letters G and L in ‘girls’ also contain stylistic similarities.

A direct comparison of lettering from sources sent to Tell MAMA.

We are reissuing our safety tips and practical advice for community members.

What to do if you receive hate mail

 

All letters and envelopes must be kept and handled minimally to preserve evidence

Place the letter and the envelope in a clean and sealable plastic bag to stop further contamination

Call the non-emergency 101 number to contact the police (or Tell MAMA can do this on your behalf)

We are liaising with the relevant police forces on this issue which, again, is being treated with the utmost seriousness.

Our safety tips for individuals and Islamic institutions are free to download.

You can get advice through our confidential and free helpline on 0800 456 1226. Or through our free iOS or Android apps. Report through our online form. Or contact us via WhatsApp on 0734 184 6086.

 

 

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Categories: Hate Mail, London, News, Yorkshire