Muslims being demonised, says Livingstone
James Sturcke
Tuesday October 24, 2006
Guardian Unlimited The mayor of London, Ken Livingstone, today said the row over whether Muslims should wear veils had parallels with the hounding of Jews in Nazi Germany.
Speaking at the launch of the first ever report into Muslims living in London, Mr Livingstone said much of the ongoing debate about Muslim dress implied the community "was somehow at fault" for being at the centre of the storm.
Mr Livingstone said the "vast amount of verbiage" about the issue had been "quite breathtaking" and that very little was said about barriers the community faces in Britain, such as the "systematic pattern of discrimination against Muslims in employment".
"It is quite clear that the problems we have in Britain are not because Muslims wish to be separate ... I think the entire debate has been totally lopsided as though Muslims were somehow at fault for this," Mr Livingstone said.
"That echoes very much the demonology of Nazi Germany when Hitler said it was the Jews' fault and the problems were brought upon themselves. There is a faint echo of that in a lot of the rubbish we have been seeing in the media recently."
Mr Livingstone added he had never asked a Muslim woman to remove her veil and that the decision by British Airways to demand that an employee took off a necklace bearing a crucifix was "absolute nonsense".
He also implied criticism of Jack Straw, who sparked the veil debate by revealing he asked Muslim women to lift their veils during his constituency surgeries.
"If you are a powerful man and a person comes to see you for help, I think the majority of people would not be able to refuse [a request to remove their veil]. As for not being able to see their face, so much of politics is conducted on the telephone," he said.
In the report's foreword, Mr Livingstone praised the "incalculable debt" the world owes to Muslim culture, science, learning and commerce. However, Muslims in London face "serious discrimination and prejudice", he said today.
The study, compiled from a range of data, said that one in 12 Londoners was Muslim. Only 15% of Muslim women aged over 25 were employed full time, compared to 37% of women in the general population.
It also found that Muslims are disproportionately victims of religiously aggravated crime.
It made a number of recommendations, including the improving of monitoring and research, the investigation of forms of discrimination and improving the representation of Muslims in local, regional and national government.
Muhammad Abdul Bari, the secretary general of the Muslim Council of Britain, said the "groundbreaking" report documented the needs of the Muslim community and identified policy initiatives.
He also welcomed this weekend's inaugural celebrations of Eid, one of the most auspicious days in the Muslim calendar, in Trafalgar Square. It is hoped the celebrations will become a regular fixture in the capital like Chinese new year and Diwali.
Last week, Mr Livingstone won his high court appeal against a month-long suspension for likening a Jewish reporter to a Nazi concentration camp guard.
Guardian Unlimited © Guardian News and Media Limited 2006
|