Conservative Muslim Forum

Last updated

The Conservative Muslim Forum is a group within the British Conservative Party. It aims to increase Conservative Party's knowledge and comprehension of issues and circumstances that have particular relevance to Muslim communities and develop suitable responses. It also seeks to increase support for the Conservative Party within the Muslim community. Anyone who is eligible to vote in British general or local elections regardless of race, colour or creed may become a member of the Conservative Muslim Forum. It will however be necessary for a person applying for membership of the Conservative Muslim Forum to be an existing member of the Conservative Party or apply for such membership simultaneously. [1]

Contents

Baron Sheikh founded the Conservative Muslim Forum in 2005. [2] Baron Sheikh served as the Conservative Muslim Forum's Chairman until 2014 when the Deputy Chairman, Mohammed Amin, became the new Chairman. [3] Mohammed Amin continued as Chairman until June 2019 when he was expelled from the Conservative Muslim Forum following his strong public criticism of the 'moral integrity' of Boris Johnson. [4] Members of the Executive Committee are listed on the Conservative Muslim Forum website. [5]

Objectives

The Conservative Muslim Forum's objectives, as set out on its website [6] are:

  1. Engage with Muslims of all persuasions and encourage them to participate in political life at all levels, from grassroots to Parliament.
  2. Engage with Muslims and all other communities and encourage them to support and vote for the Conservative Party.
  3. Undertake campaigning for the Conservative Party at elections and other times.
  4. Encourage Muslims to make effective and positive contributions to the development of an inclusive and cohesive society in the United Kingdom.
  5. Work to maintain and build bridges with all communities and religions within the United Kingdom.
  6. Strive to maintain unity, brotherhood, tolerance and goodwill between all persuasions of Muslims and with the wider community and strengthen its social and cultural heritage.
  7. Collate factual information on issues and circumstances relevant to Muslims of all persuasions in the UK.
  8. Create an enabling environment to influence policy development from within the Conservative Party and safeguard the interests of Muslims.
  9. Strive to improve the quality of life of all Muslims through addressing issues including health, education, women's issues, disability, integration and mentorship of prospective Parliamentary and other candidates within the Conservative Party's wider objectives.

Policies

The Conservative Muslim Forum has a page on its website setting out its "Approach to policy positions." [7] It tells readers that a review of the Forum's website pages "will show very few that have any policy aspects. You will also see that those which do touch on policy matters seek to be consistent with the policy of the Conservative party."

Notwithstanding the above, the Conservative Muslim Forum supports the right to Halal and Kosher slaughter [8] and that wearing niqab and burqa should not be prohibited by the state except where special considerations apply such as security. [9]

When the UK Government announced the results of its review of the Prevent strategy, [10] the Conservative Muslim Forum issued a statement supporting the conclusions of the review. [11]

The Conservative Muslim Forum encourages "Muslims to be involved with all of the organisations that provide an opportunity to serve our society" and has links to the Army, Royal Air Force and Royal Navy recruitment websites on its own website. [12]

In June 2018, the Conservative Muslim Forum accused the Conservative Party of a failure to take action on Islamophobia and joined calls made by the Muslim Council of Britain for an independent inquiry into the issue. [13] In addition, 350 mosques and 11 umbrella organisations across the UK have urged the Conservatives to launch internal inquiry into Islamophobia claims. [14]

Parliamentary mentions

On 23 February 2015, the House of Commons held a Westminster Hall debate in response to an e-petition, with Philip Hollobone, the Conservative MP for Kettering moving "That this House has considered the e-petition relating to ending non-stun slaughter to promote animal welfare." During the debate, at 5.35pm Richard Harrington, the Conservative MP for Watford, mentioned that there was a counter e-petition: "However, the chairman of the Conservative Muslim Forum, Mohammed Amin, had a counter-petition called 'Protect religious slaughter in the UK and EU', which has received 125,000 signatures." [15]

Criticism

In 2007, the Conservative Muslim Forum was criticised by some commentators: the organisation claimed that British relations with Israel could "damage Britain’s relationships with 1.5 billion Muslims worldwide, including those in Britain," and calls on the party to be more sympathetic towards Iran's nuclear ambitions. [16]

Melanie Phillips, a columnist for the Daily Mail newspaper and The Spectator magazine, has said of its report An Unquiet World: A Response, that, "The recent paper written for the Tories by the Conservative Muslim Forum is a deeply troubling document. Set up to provide a dialogue with Britain's Muslims and advise on tackling Islamist extremism, the group merely demonstrated depressingly that it shares many of the culturally belligerent attitudes driving that extremism." [17]

Nile Gardiner, in the National Review Online criticized the same report, suggesting that it "openly appeases Islamic radicalism." Gardiner said in the same article that, "The establishment of the Conservative Muslim Forum is a dangerous flirtation with Islamic extremism that should be brought to an end." [18]

See also

Related Research Articles

Michael Fabricant British Conservative politician

Michael Louis David Fabricant is a British politician. A member of the Conservative Party, he has served as the Member of Parliament (MP) for Lichfield in Staffordshire, formerly Mid Staffordshire, since 1992.

Islamic Human Rights Commission Islamic non-profit organisation based in London

The Islamic Human Rights Commission (IHRC) is a non-profit organisation aligned with the Islamic Republic of Iran based in London. Its stated mission is to "work with different organisations from Muslim and non-Muslim backgrounds, to campaign for justice for all peoples regardless of their racial, confessional or political background." The group is based in London and was established in 1997. The organisation, since 2007, has consultative status with the United Nations Department of Economic and Social Affairs.

The Muslim Council of Britain (MCB) is a national umbrella body with over 500 mosques, educational and charitable associations affiliated to it. It includes national, regional, local, and specialist Muslim organisations and institutions from different ethnic and sectarian backgrounds within major parts but not all British Islamic society.

Shahid Malik British politician

Shahid Rafique Malik is a British Labour Party politician, a technology and media industry chairman, a visiting professor, and chairman and adviser to a number of non-profit organisations.

The Muslim Public Affairs Committee UK (MPACUK) is a London-based British Muslim lobby and civil liberties group founded to address what it perceived as the under-representation of Muslims in British politics. The organisation is active primarily in electoral campaigns and media appearances.

Sayeeda Warsi, Baroness Warsi British-Pakistani lawyer and Conservative politician

Sayeeda Hussain Warsi, Baroness Warsi is a British lawyer, politician, and member of the House of Lords who served as co-Chairwoman of the Conservative Party from 2010 to 2012. She served in the Cameron–Clegg coalition, first as the Minister without portfolio between 2010 and 2012, then as the Minister of State for the Foreign and Commonwealth Office and as the Minister of State for Faith and Communities, until her resignation citing her disagreement with the Government's policy on the Israel–Gaza conflict in August 2014.

Islamophobia Watch was a website which was initiated in January 2005 as a non-profit project to document material in the media, and in society at large, which it perceives to advocate Islamophobia. The site ceased by the end of January 2015.

Maajid Nawaz British radio presenter, activist and former Islamist

Maajid Usman Nawaz is a British activist and radio presenter. He was the founding chairman of Quilliam, a counter-extremism think tank that sought to challenge the narratives of Islamist extremists and, until January 2022, was the host of an LBC radio show on Saturdays and Sundays.

Mohammed Shafiq is a media commentator on British Muslim issues.

Conservative Party Conference (UK)

The Conservative Party Conference (CPC) is a four-day national conference event held by the Conservative Party in the United Kingdom. It takes place every year around October during the British party conference season, when the House of Commons is in recess. The event's location has alternated between Birmingham's International Convention Centre (ICC) and Manchester's Central Convention Complex since 2008. Previously, it had alternated between Blackpool and Bournemouth.

Mohammed Amin (businessman) British businessman

Mohammed Amin is a British businessman who has been Chairman of the Conservative Muslim Forum, an affiliated group within the British Conservative Party, since mid-2014. The Conservative Muslim chief is reported in June 2019 as having been expelled from the Tory Muslim group following his strong public criticism of the 'moral integrity' of Boris Johnson. He resigned from the Conservative Party on 23 July 2019 when Johnson was announced as the new leader. He writes regularly about political and community cohesion issues on the ConservativeHome website.

The Conservative Women's Organisation (CWO) represents the female members of the Conservative Party in England, Wales, and Northern Ireland.

Mo Ansar British political and social commentator (born 1974)

Mohammed "Mo" Ansar is a British political and social commentator.

Afzal Raja Amin is a British former Conservative Party aspirant politician and former prospective parliamentary candidate for Dudley North constituency for the 2015 general election until his resignation over claims of conspiring with the involvement of the English Defence League. He served as an officer in the British Army for eleven years.

Islamophobia in the media refers to negative coverage of Islam-related topics, Muslims, or Arabs by media outlets in a way that is hostile, untrue, and/or misleading. Islamophobia is defined as "Intense dislike or fear of Islam, especially as a political force; hostility or prejudice towards Muslims", and the study of how and to what extent the media furthers Islamophobia has been the subject of much academic and political discussion.

Islamophobia in the United Kingdom refers to a set of discourses, behaviours and structures which express feelings of anxiety, fear, hostility and rejection towards Islam or Muslims in the United Kingdom. Islamophobia can manifest itself in a wide range of ways; including, discrimination in the workforce, negative coverage in the media, and violence against Muslims.

Muslim engagement and development (MEND) is a UK NGO. It focuses on media monitoring, advocacy in Westminster and improving the media/political literacy of British Muslims. The aim of the organisation is to tackle Islamophobia and to encourage political, civic and social engagement within British Muslim communities.

Motion 103, also known as M-103, was a non-binding motion in the 42nd Canadian Parliament stating that the members of the House of Commons called on the Government of Canada to condemn Islamophobia in Canada. It also called on the Standing Committee on Canadian Heritage to carry out a study on how racism and religious discrimination can be reduced and collect data on hate crimes. The motion was introduced by Iqra Khalid, the Liberal MP representing Mississauga—Erin Mills.

Allegations of Islamophobia in the UK Conservative Party have been made, including against senior politicians, such as Boris Johnson, Michael Gove and Zac Goldsmith.

Harris Bokhari OBE is the founder and a trustee at the Patchwork Foundation, for which he won the Diversity Champion of the Year Award in early 2018. The Patchwork Foundation is a charity that aims to "promote and encourage the positive integration of disadvantaged and minority communities into British democracy and civil society."

References

  1. ↑ "Conservative Muslim Forum - Membership". 16 April 2011. Archived from the original on 2011-04-16.
  2. ↑ "Conservative Muslim Forum - About us - Overview". www.conservativemuslimforum.com.
  3. ↑ "Conservative Muslim Forum - News/Events - News & Past Events". www.conservativemuslimforum.com. 2014-07-07.
  4. ↑ "Conservative Muslim chair says he was expelled from group for questioning Boris Johnson's 'moral fitness'". ITV plc. 21 June 2019. Retrieved 14 July 2019.
  5. ↑ "Conservative Muslim Forum - Executive - Committee Members". 14 November 2010. Archived from the original on 2010-11-14.
  6. ↑ "Conservative Muslim Forum - About us - Objectives". www.conservativemuslimforum.com. August 2018.
  7. ↑ "Conservative Muslim Forum - About us - Policy positions". www.conservativemuslimforum.com. August 2018.
  8. ↑ "Conservative Muslim Forum - News/Events - News & Past Events". www.conservativemuslimforum.com. 2013-03-28.
  9. ↑ "Conservative Muslim Forum - News/Events - News & Past Events". www.conservativemuslimforum.com.
  10. ↑ "Prevent strategy 2011". GOV.UK.
  11. ↑ "Conservative Muslim Forum - News/Events - News & Past Events". www.conservativemuslimforum.com. 2011-06-13.
  12. ↑ "Conservative Muslim Forum - Links - Recruitment". www.conservativemuslimforum.com. 2018-08-02.
  13. ↑ "Tories have not tackled Islamophobia, Conservative Muslim Forum saysa". BBC News . 6 June 2018. Retrieved 4 July 2018.
  14. ↑ Khan, Shehab (4 June 2018). "More than 350 mosques urge Conservatives to launch internal inquiry into Islamophobia claims". The Independent . Retrieved 4 July 2018.
  15. ↑ Westminster, Department of the Official Report (Hansard), House of Commons. "House of Commons Hansard Debates for 23 Feb 2015 (pt 0001)". publications.parliament.uk.
  16. ↑ Porter, Andrew (18 October 2007). "Muslim Tories: 'Iran has right to nuclear arms'" – via www.telegraph.co.uk.
  17. ↑ "The indissoluble link | Melanie Phillips". www.melaniephillips.com. Archived from the original on 2011-06-09.
  18. ↑ "Conservatives for Terror?". National Review . 23 October 2007.
This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.