Ramzi Isalam says it is time the left sided with the victims of Islamist repression, not the fundamentalists. First published in Labour Left Briefing, February 2005
After the tsunami disaster, which aroused global sympathy and solidarity, the right-wing Muslim cleric, Dr Yusuf al-Qaradawi, provoked outrage with his statement that the victims deserved to die because their countries are playgrounds of “sexual perversion.” According to The Times and BBC, Qaradawi declared:
“People must ask themselves why this earthquake occurred in this area and not others…Whoever examines these areas discovers that they are tourism areas….where the forbidden acts are widespread, as well as alcohol consumption, drug use and acts of abomination…Don’t they deserve punishment from Allah?”
The morning Qaradawi’s appalling views were reported, Ken Livingstone held a press conference to defend the fundamentalist cleric. A news release issued by the Mayor’s office described Qaradawi as a moderate who combats “socially regressive interpretations of Islam.”
As a victim of Islamist repression, I am shocked the Mayor has dared to defend a reactionary cleric like Qaradawi, and that he has never offered support to those of us who have suffered at the hands of the Islamists.
Unlike Livingstone, I know what Qaradawi really stands for. When living in Algeria, I listened to his religious broadcasts in Arabic – uncensored and unedited to appease western liberals. I heard his Islamist bigotry firsthand. He advocated death for gay people like me, and encouraged husbands to beat disobedient wives. He has a far right political agenda, to create a worldwide theocratic state, where every person is subject to his intolerant interpretation of Islam. The hateful views of theologians like Qaradawi made my life hell.
In Algeria, Islamic fundamentalists have instituted a reign of terror where everyone opposed to their religious dogma is threatened with death: women, intellectuals, trade unionists, journalists and particularly gays. Over 100,000 Algerians have been murdered by the Islamists. Where are the protests from the left?
As a gay man, my life was a nightmare. I was beaten and threatened with death by the fundamentalists of the Groupe Islamique Arme (GIA). Two of my gay friends were murdered by them. I witnessed two young men being stoned in the street on the mere suspicion they were gay.
Gay sex is illegal in Algeria; punishable by harsh imprisonment. In jails, homophobic torture and rape are common. I don’t want to suffer that fate.
When I fled to Britain and claimed asylum, the Home Office judged my case based on its own biased reports on Algeria, which are now proven to be untrue. Nevertheless, it conceded: “In Algeria homosexuality is illegal and attitudes to homosexuality are not enlightened. It is therefore likely that homosexuals suffer discrimination, and on occasions are subjected to physical and verbal abuse.” Despite this admission, the Home Office concluded “you do not qualify for asylum.”
I could now face deportation to Algeria. I live every day fearing arrest and forcible repatriation. If I was sent back, I have a reasonable, well-founded fear that I would be jailed and tortured by the Algerian government – or be hunted down and murdered by the GIA.
The repression in Algeria is replicated in every Islamic state. That is why 2,500 of the world’s most revered Muslim intellectuals from 23 countries signed a petition to the United Nations last October. They named leading Muslim clerics, including Qaradawi, as ‘theologians of terror’, accusing them of opposing human rights. Some denounced Qaradawi as an apologist for “Islamo-fascism”.
The Mayor of London says it is important to have a dialogue with Qaradawi because he is an influential religious leader. When has the Mayor ever challenged Qaradawi over his anti-humanitarian views? Where is the genuine dialogue? Besides, Livingstone never dialogues with influential Christian fundamentalists such as Pat Robertson who, like Qaradawi, want to impose God’s law as the law of the land.
The Mayor claims Qaradawi has been misrepresented by left-wing critics. He cites apparently progressive statements made by the cleric; conveniently ignoring his anti-Semitic, homophobic and misogynistic comments. While Qaradawi does sometimes espouse moderate opinions, it is only in order to hoodwink western politicians and journalists. Like Stalin, he spouts fine-sounding words to please western liberals, but in the Middle East he speaks very differently. As with the naïve left-wingers who took Stalin’s ‘socialist’ rhetoric at face value, those who defend Qaradawi are guilty of the same gullibility. This collusion with the reactionary wing of Islam has got to stop.
Why isn’t Livingstone having a dialogue with liberal Muslims and giving support to the victims of Islamist repression? So many Muslims have suffered at the hands of the fundamentalists, not just in Algeria but in Iran, Sudan, Yemen, Afghanistan and Saudi Arabia. We never get any support from the left, let alone an invitation to City Hall. As a Muslim, I deplore Islamophobia, but I also deplore the left’s collusion with Islamist fundamentalism. This appeasement does not help Muslims; it sustains our oppression.
“People must ask themselves why this earthquake occurred in this area and not others…Whoever examines these areas discovers that they are tourism areas….where the forbidden acts are widespread, as well as alcohol consumption, drug use and acts of abomination…Don’t they deserve punishment from Allah?”
The morning Qaradawi’s appalling views were reported, Ken Livingstone held a press conference to defend the fundamentalist cleric. A news release issued by the Mayor’s office described Qaradawi as a moderate who combats “socially regressive interpretations of Islam.”
As a victim of Islamist repression, I am shocked the Mayor has dared to defend a reactionary cleric like Qaradawi, and that he has never offered support to those of us who have suffered at the hands of the Islamists.
Unlike Livingstone, I know what Qaradawi really stands for. When living in Algeria, I listened to his religious broadcasts in Arabic – uncensored and unedited to appease western liberals. I heard his Islamist bigotry firsthand. He advocated death for gay people like me, and encouraged husbands to beat disobedient wives. He has a far right political agenda, to create a worldwide theocratic state, where every person is subject to his intolerant interpretation of Islam. The hateful views of theologians like Qaradawi made my life hell.
In Algeria, Islamic fundamentalists have instituted a reign of terror where everyone opposed to their religious dogma is threatened with death: women, intellectuals, trade unionists, journalists and particularly gays. Over 100,000 Algerians have been murdered by the Islamists. Where are the protests from the left?
As a gay man, my life was a nightmare. I was beaten and threatened with death by the fundamentalists of the Groupe Islamique Arme (GIA). Two of my gay friends were murdered by them. I witnessed two young men being stoned in the street on the mere suspicion they were gay.
Gay sex is illegal in Algeria; punishable by harsh imprisonment. In jails, homophobic torture and rape are common. I don’t want to suffer that fate.
When I fled to Britain and claimed asylum, the Home Office judged my case based on its own biased reports on Algeria, which are now proven to be untrue. Nevertheless, it conceded: “In Algeria homosexuality is illegal and attitudes to homosexuality are not enlightened. It is therefore likely that homosexuals suffer discrimination, and on occasions are subjected to physical and verbal abuse.” Despite this admission, the Home Office concluded “you do not qualify for asylum.”
I could now face deportation to Algeria. I live every day fearing arrest and forcible repatriation. If I was sent back, I have a reasonable, well-founded fear that I would be jailed and tortured by the Algerian government – or be hunted down and murdered by the GIA.
The repression in Algeria is replicated in every Islamic state. That is why 2,500 of the world’s most revered Muslim intellectuals from 23 countries signed a petition to the United Nations last October. They named leading Muslim clerics, including Qaradawi, as ‘theologians of terror’, accusing them of opposing human rights. Some denounced Qaradawi as an apologist for “Islamo-fascism”.
The Mayor of London says it is important to have a dialogue with Qaradawi because he is an influential religious leader. When has the Mayor ever challenged Qaradawi over his anti-humanitarian views? Where is the genuine dialogue? Besides, Livingstone never dialogues with influential Christian fundamentalists such as Pat Robertson who, like Qaradawi, want to impose God’s law as the law of the land.
The Mayor claims Qaradawi has been misrepresented by left-wing critics. He cites apparently progressive statements made by the cleric; conveniently ignoring his anti-Semitic, homophobic and misogynistic comments. While Qaradawi does sometimes espouse moderate opinions, it is only in order to hoodwink western politicians and journalists. Like Stalin, he spouts fine-sounding words to please western liberals, but in the Middle East he speaks very differently. As with the naïve left-wingers who took Stalin’s ‘socialist’ rhetoric at face value, those who defend Qaradawi are guilty of the same gullibility. This collusion with the reactionary wing of Islam has got to stop.
Why isn’t Livingstone having a dialogue with liberal Muslims and giving support to the victims of Islamist repression? So many Muslims have suffered at the hands of the fundamentalists, not just in Algeria but in Iran, Sudan, Yemen, Afghanistan and Saudi Arabia. We never get any support from the left, let alone an invitation to City Hall. As a Muslim, I deplore Islamophobia, but I also deplore the left’s collusion with Islamist fundamentalism. This appeasement does not help Muslims; it sustains our oppression.
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