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Muslims Threatened in the West?
CAIRO, Oct 17 (IslamOnline & News Agencies) - The West is moving towards eliminating the Muslim presence in the United States and Western Europe in the light of aggressive campaigns Muslim minorities are facing following the September 11th attacks, said Mohammad Al Sayed Saeed, Deputy Chairman of the Political and Strategic Studies Center, in the Egyptian semi-official
Al Ahram newspaper.
In a workshop organized by IslamOnline, Saeed said that Islamic da'wah (propagation) is the main loser in this crisis, adding that in the past, thousands of people could have reverted to Islam in the West, but today, "we expect that Islam will be completely eliminated from the U.S. within the next 10 years."
"There are procedures taken that already proves this, such as closing the doors to immigration to the United States and to Europe, and the decreasing education[al] opportunities and scholarships."
Saeed is the director of the Cairo Center for Human Rights, who writes in several newspapers in the Arab world. He is considered an authority in matters of human rights, NGOs (non-governmental organizations) and civil society, and has written much within the fields.
He added that Muslims in the U.S. and the West are living in an acute crisis and that both their existence and lives are now threatened.
During a television program on al-Jazeera, prominent Muslim scholar Sheikh Yousef al-Qaradawi, called Sunday for Muslims in the West to remain strong, have patience, and not leave their lives, which they have established in the West over the years.
He warned them from heeding false alarms calling for the return of all Muslims to their original countries to save themselves from an aggressive Western campaign that has harmed Muslims living in the
West.
"The presence of Islam in the U.S. and in the West came as a result of Islamic long-term efforts which has become deep-rooted over the last few decades. Those efforts have been fruitful and have resulted in the establishment of Islamic centers and charity schools," said Qaradawi.
He called for Muslims to reject thoughts of leaving the West, to participate actively in the communities in which they live, and to integrate with it to respond to suspicions and obscurities with steadiness and confidence.
Muslims in the U.S. specifically, and in the West in general, have faced incidents of harassment during the last few weeks including verbal abuse, and threatening mail (both snail and electronic) and phone calls. Muslims were also exposed to harassment in the workplace, shopping malls, and transportation, and in all public places.
There was more than one reported case of physical harassment on Muslims reaching the level of beatings and even murder, as well as attacks on mosques and Muslim places of worship; schools; Islamic centers, many of which were demolished; libraries, which have had their windows smashed; and bookstores gutted by fire.
Meanwhile, U.S. newspapers reported that of the nearly 700 people who have been detained since September 11th in connection with the investigation into that day's deadly terrorist attacks, many are reporting violations of their human and civil rights.
A Washington Post article Monday said that the level of secrecy surrounding the detention of these men - from everything from immigration violations to material witness orders - is arousing concern among civil rights advocates.
An unknown number of "Middle Eastern" men being held in solitary confinement in Manhattan's Metropolitan Correctional Center and are not allowed to contact each other, their families, and only occasionally their lawyers, the
Post said.
One man, 23-year-old Yazeed Al-Salmi, was detained as a material witness and was released last week after testifying before a grand jury about his encounter with one of the suspected hijackers, the
Post article reported.
"They don't call you by name. . . . They call you [expletive] terrorist," Al-Salmi, a Saudi student from San Diego, said of his jail guards. During his "humiliating and terrifying" detention, the
Post said, he missed three weeks of school and was evicted from his apartment.
Al-Salmi said that on September 23rd, FBI agents woke him up by banging on the door. He said he was thrown against the wall, and heard only that he was a "material witness" before he was taken away. Although he was told early on that he was not a suspect, Al-Salmi said in the article, he was not allowed to see his family and was deprived of a toothbrush and shower.
Meanwhile, in the U.K., Home Secretary David Blunkett unveiled in parliament on Monday emergency draft legislation to tighten Britain's anti-terrorism, extradition and asylum laws in the wake of the September 11th terror attacks on the United States.
Blunkett told the House of Commons the anti-terrorism bill would "strike a balance between respecting our fundamental civil liberties and ensuring they are not exploited."
The bill, which Blunkett first touched upon at the ruling Labor party's annual conference a fortnight ago, would include tougher powers requiring amendment of human rights laws to remove suspected terrorists from Britain.
"These legislative measures will protect and enhance our rights, not diminish them," said Blunkett.
"Justice for individuals and minorities will be reaffirmed, and justice for the majority and the security of our nation will be secured," he said.
Blunkett said the bill would address the problems of nuclear, chemical and biological weapons, adding that the new legislation would facilitate exchange of information between law enforcement agencies and would allow communications companies to retain details of calls they have handled.
Police and customs officers would be handed greater powers, including authority to demand the removal of "facial covering or gloves" to help with identification of suspects.
Should the proposals become law, it would mark a huge shift to the right for Britain, which has often been accused of being lax on asylum and soft on extremists, reported Agence France-Presse (AFP).
Blunkett also said he would make incitement to religious, as well as race, hatred a crime, intended at protecting Muslims but also at cracking down on Islamic "extremists".
On Thursday, the U.S. Senate endorsed a bill designed to give law enforcement authorities new tools to fight terrorism that include expanded wiretap powers and the authority to detain immigrants suspected of terrorism for up to seven days, news agencies reported.
The bill grants the administration broader authority to block money laundering and seize the assets of suspected terrorists.
In a statement, U.S. President George W. Bush praised the passage of the bill, saying that the Senate has given law enforcement "these essential, additional tools to combat terrorism and safeguard America against future terrorist attacks."
The major provisions of that compromise include the authorization of "roving wiretaps", so that law enforcement officials can get court orders to wiretap any phone a suspected terrorist would use. Current law requires a court order for each phone number, which most say is outdated with the advent of cellular and disposable phones.
Another major provision is to allow the federal government to detain non-U.S. citizens suspected of terrorism for up to seven days without specific charges. The administration originally wanted to hold them indefinitely.
The bill would also allow law enforcement officials greater subpoena power for e-mail records of terrorist suspects.
In the Senate version, the measures do not expire. The House bill "sunsets" the provisions - or lets them lapse - after two years.
This is not the first time the West has been hit by "war hysteria". During the Second World War, especially after the Pearl Harbor attack in December 1941, an anti-Japanese fever swept over the United States.
Ill-treatment of Americans with Japanese ancestry in different places was common
Most importantly, this hysteria led to an executive order from president Franklin Delano Roosevelt authorizing the relocation of American citizens of Japanese ancestry.
Nearly 120,000 citizens were taken from their homes without official charges and towards those who showed no signs of disloyalty to the country, and were placed in what were called "internment" camps in isolated desert areas (Arizona, California, Colorado, Utah and Wyoming).
Living conditions in the camps were in very harsh and residents there were subject to continuous interrogation. The order, however, was rescinded in 1944, and the last camp was closed in 1946.
In 1988, the Civil Liberties Act included within it an apology from the U.S. government to its Japanese citizens over the injustice that took place, with the government offering $20,000 to each of the victims.
For that purpose, the Office of Redress Administration (ORA) was founded to locate and pay the victims and establish a report on the findings. Nearly 82,220 cases were paid, 1,475 remain unknown, and some cases were unclear as to whether or not they were eligible.
With additional reporting by Hammam Abdel Mabood
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