Infiltrating or just integrating? (From Asian Image)

Infiltrating or just integrating?

11:08pm Monday 1st March 2010 in

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Muslims are constantly being told to integrate and use democratic means to air their opinions. It seem now even that is out of bounds.

The Dispatches: Britain’s Islamic Republic on channel Four tonight brought about a mixed reaction from those seated around me.

Some were quick to judge programme makers for trying to make ‘Muslims look bad’, while others pointed out that it was Muslims like these that we must stand shoulder to shoulder against.

I, on the other hand felt the programme was indeed self-defeating.

Here, we had a group of so-called ‘fundamentalists’ who were simply using the system like many of other religions have done so in the past.

I would say the best example of this is the USA where communities have taken it upon themselves to ensure their constituents interests are taken seriously.

And if that does not happen then they decide to elect those that will listen.

This group of Muslims meanwhile had realised that it is not through constant marches and burning books that things change.

You cannot change the perception of people from the outside but must work with the system to ensure your views are heard.

Yes, their ‘dubious links’ (and they were dubious) to hardcore extremists might have alarmed some people.

This programme tended to claim that their intention was in some way to corrupt the system and eventually take it over?

Such claims have been heard before. Similar claims were made against the Jews of Europe.

If we were to suggest and air a programme on national TV which claimed the Jews were working on the inside to promote their own beliefs we would indeed be treading very dangerous ground.

Could we find ourselves ever to state a ‘fundamentalist’ group of Jews helped to elect an MP?

Or that a group of covert Jews were aiming to get their own way in local government?

But this programme did not want to expose the IFE. It did not want to give us an insight into the IFE.

We ended with as little knowledge of the group as we did when the programme had begun.

Even the undercover reporter told us nothing startling.

What we got instead was an idea that Muslims must now be looked at suspiciously even if they DO join the democratic process.

I have read and seen quite a lot in recent years that has made me re-evaluate things.

But to now make out that a community is ‘infiltrating’ the political process for it's own menacing reasons means the boundaries of common decency is shifting once more.