Over a 150 Muslim women gathered in Manchester do discuss the challenges facing them in modern day Britian calling for an Islamic state as the solution to the world's global problems.

The seminar organised by the women branch of Hizb ut-Tahrir Britain, Dr Nazreen Nawaz, was held at the Pakistani Community Centre on Stockport Road, Longsight.

Women's media representative of Hizb ut-Tahrir Britain told the audience Muslim women were under pressure to constantly re-evaluate their Islamic identity  and to question whether their Islamic beliefs fit into British society and to adopt values that are at odds with their religious convictions.

She said: "The hijab, the role of women, Islam’s punishments, liberation of occupied land, prohibition of homosexuality, the global Islamic bond between Muslims and championing the call for a caliphate for the Muslim world have all been labelled oppressive, backward, intolerant, barbaric, unacceptable and a threat to British society."

She said government projects including Muslim women’s advisory groups pushing women to play a key role in tackling extremism and radicalisation amongst young Muslims was not the way forward.

She said: "Fancy labels like 'women’s empowerment projects' are being pushed to women in compliance with government policy to advocate a "British secular version of Islam" to the Muslim community.

"In truth, it is simply bribery, to buy Muslim women into fighting specific Islamic ideas in their community.

"Labels of "extremism" are scare-tactics and will be fruitless in silencing the support of Muslim women for Islamic governance in the Muslim world.

"Muslim women must resist pressures that bully them into compromising Islam and turning their backs on the injustices faced by Muslims globally,"  she added.

Member of Hizb ut-Tahrir, Dr Samia Hussain said Muslim women must challenge the government to enable them to engage in productive discussion surrounding a woman’s position in Islam.

She said: "Muslim women must challenge the Western secular liberal values, expose their flaws, and present Islam as a solution to the plethora of problems caused by these ideas both in the West and the Muslim world".


26th June 2009

Source: Asian News