UK Indian Muslims slam “irresponsible” reporting

[sonz]

The Council of Indian Muslims in the United Kingdom expressed shock at the alleged involvement of British-born Muslims of Indian origin in the recently foiled “terror” plot to blow up U.S.-bound planes.

“The whole saga is as painful and frightening for us as it is for other Muslims in the country,” CIM’s Chairman Munaf Zeena said in a statement on Tuesday.

“But for us this is a double tragedy because Indian Muslim youths do not have a record of being infected by the disease of terrorism. However, the alleged involvement of British born Muslims of Indian descent has shocked us all,” he added.

British police had extended the detention warrants for 23 of the 24 suspects arrested for their alleged involvement in the “terror” plot.

British media has reported that all those arrested were British-born Muslims, of Indian or Pakistani descent. Some reports also alleged that three of the suspects were converts to Islam.

Mr Zeena, who is also the Chairman of North London Muslim Community Centre and Co Chair of Muslim Jewish Forum, warned the media against jumping to conclusions.

“We have always deplored and opposed terrorism and will continue to cooperate with the police in its anti-terror campaign. However, because there is no information available to the public about the alleged plot and related evidence, it would be foolish for anyone to jump to conclusions.

“We are particularly concerned at the mischievous reporting in some of the press establishing, almost with certainty, that all of the alleged detainees are guilty… We have adopted the policy of wait and see until more information is available and would urge the media to do the same,” he stressed.

Mr Zeena also expressed concern over such “irresponsible” reporting, warning that it could be counterproductive for inter-communal relations in the United Kingdom.

“Until the accused are proven guilty, the media has no right to act in such an irresponsible way. We live in a multi-ethnic and multi religious society and irresponsible reporting and insensitive comments in the press will not be conducive to good inter-communal relations in India as well as in the UK,

“While trying to malign the whole Muslim community for an alleged crime, media people should not forget the fact that of all the 1000 arrests made in the past for the so called terror crimes, charges could be brought up only against seven percent and most of them were for petty crimes rather than terrorism.”

Since 2000, UK police have detained more than 700 people, many of them Muslims, under the government’s tough anti-terrorism laws. Only a few of those arrested were tried, while the vast majority have been released without charge.

Last week, the Muslim council of Britain, the UK’s largest Islamic organization, warned against blaming Britain's Muslim community as a whole for the alleged “terror” plot.

“There will also be a sense of unease about how the arrests may be used by some far-right groups and others to portray once again British Muslims as a community as a huge reservoir of potential terrorists… There's a weariness about what will follow. We have seen similar high-profile raids in the past where people have been arrested only to be released without charge,” said MCB spokesman Inayat Bunglawala.

[AFDAL]

“But for us this is a double tragedy because Indian Muslim youths do not have a record of being infected by the disease of terrorism. However, the alleged involvement of British born Muslims of Indian descent has shocked us all,”

Why do he think that indian muslim youths do not have the disease of terrorism. Come over to india and you will find every day in the media about the disease terrorism - means the falsification of the events and blaming it to the indian muslim youths .

“We have always deplored and opposed terrorism and will continue to cooperate with the police in its anti-terror campaign. However, because there is no information available to the public about the alleged plot and related evidence, it would be foolish for anyone to jump to conclusions.

Mr Zeena - he is right only on this line .