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IN the UK these days, there is a very fine line dividing strict Muslim religious observance from radical militancy. Anybody with a long, unkempt beard is suspect of supporting Sharia law and the return of the Caliphate.
These views surfaced most recently in the ongoing furore over the phony Trojan Horse plot for the alleged takeover of a number of state schools in Birmingham by a group of Muslim zealots. While the anonymous letter that sparked off this controversy is almost certainly a fabrication, the concern and anger it has generated are very real.
Michael Gove, the education secretary, wrote in the aftermath of the London 7/7 attacks that instead of just “beating back the crocodiles” [i.e. Islamic terrorists], the government should “drain the swamp” [of Muslim extremism]. So when the Trojan Horse letter reached his attention earlier this year, he instigated four different inspections in 21 Birmingham schools alleged to be the targets of this alleged takeover. One of them was conducted by a former anti-terrorism police officer.
‘The campaign to bring to heel Birmingham’s schools in the process is a wider threat in a country where war-fuelled Islamophobia is already rampant.’
Last week, a report on its inspection was released by Ofsted, the schools inspection authority, and contained no mention of radicalisation. However, it did accuse some of the schools of gender discrimination and segregation for seating girls at the back of the class. One school was also accused of inviting a Muslim scholar with known extremist views as a guest speaker. Eleven schools were criticised for “not teaching children enough about the threat of extremism”; four have been recommended for take over by other boards; and five have been singled out for “special measures”.
Many teachers, parents and board members of these schools have protested that they have been teaching mostly deprived Muslim children from some of the poorest parts of Birmingham, and have raised the standards over the last few years. This was acknowledged in previous Ofsted reports. They also complain that these schools are the victims of political point scoring and Islamophobia.
But more than the Ofsted report, what has raised this issue’s profile is the recent public squabbling it has caused between Gove and the powerful and popular home secretary, Theresa May. Gove, who worked at The Times before becoming a Conservative MP, leaked his annoyance over May’s inaction in the face of the perceived threat from Islamic radicalism to his former colleagues.
When the story appeared in The Times the following day, May’s closest adviser, Fiona Cunningham, released a letter the home secretary had written to Gove a couple of months ago, urging him to act in the Trojan Horse affair. This very public disagreement between two of the most powerful figures in the cabinet was grist to the opposition’s mill. And as the story broke on the day the Queen delivered her annual speech, David Cameron was furious that the internal squabbling had diverted public attention from his government’s policies laid out in the Queen’s speech.
Both secretaries had their knuckles rapped by the PM, and Gove issued an apology. Cunningham fell on her sword and resigned for releasing May’s letter to Gove. But although the political fallout has been contained, the whole debate over political Islam has not gone away.
The media here has been full of stories about the Birmingham schools. Reports that Western women had been referred to as “white prostitutes” caused outrage. The Daily Mail said: “Anyone who wondered why young Britons go off to Syria to fight for the enemies of our peaceful and tolerant way of life should wonder no longer.”
But more liberal voices have pointed out that most of the allegations contained in the Ofsted report should be seen in the context of local religious sensibilities. One father, when asked on TV if he objected to separate seating arrangements for boys and girls, replied that he preferred this segregation as it was in accordance with Muslim beliefs. Another said that as they were now in Britain, he would like to see his children brought up according to local customs.
Cameron weighed in by declaring that schools should be teaching “British values”. When BBC’s Radio 4 rang me to ask what Pakistanis thought these values were, I replied that most Pakistanis made no distinction between British and Western values in general. The widespread perception is that the West is tolerant of sexual promiscuity and alcohol, both of which run counter to Islamic beliefs.
In a recent Guardian column, Seumas Milne writes: “But the campaign to bring to heel Birmingham’s schools and humiliate the Muslim community in the process is a wider threat in a country where war-fuelled Islamophobia is already rampant. Dog-whistling to Ukip bigotry might seem a cute electoral trick.
“However, it risks driving Muslims from participation in public life, pushing Muslim pupils out of the state sector and boosting the extremism the government claims to be battling. Gove’s assault on Muslim schools isn’t about British values: it’s a poisonous campaign of discrimination and intimidation.”
Clearly, British politicians and a large segment of the public are feeling increasingly uncomfortable with the radicalisation of young Muslims in their country. But before Pakistani readers start feeling indignant over the negative perception of their British Muslim brethren, let us not forget how we treat our own minorities.
Published in Dawn, June 16th, 2014
