COVID-19 Tier 4 Guidance for Mosques and Community Centres
Cases of COVID19 are very high and most of England is now in Tier 4. Some mosques are deciding to voluntarily close out of precaution, while others are remaining open with tightened rules.
Read these key points on reinforcing your risk assessment rules and safety measures.
AGM 2021: Announcement of Secretary General and Deputy Secretary General Candidates
Candidates for the Secretary General (SG) and Deputy Secretary General (DSG) for the AGM Elections in January 2021 have been announced by the Election Commissioner Mr Khalid Sofi. Preparations have been underway for several months to enable online voting for the first time. The candidates are:
Secretary General - Ajmal Masroor and Zara Mohammed
Deputy Secretary General - Hassan Joudi
Click here to read the SG & DSG Candidate Manifestos.
Upcoming Election Timeline:
11 January – National Council (NC) elections – registered delegates must submit their nominations by 11 January 24 January– SG and DSG candidates’ online hustings (via Zoom) 25-26 January – delegates access online voting platform to cast their votes electronically 31 January – Online AGM with presentation of annual reports, announcement of election results and address by the newly elected Secretary General.
Observers will be able to register to attend the online AGM sessions during January by registering here.
'Forced Cremations' in Sri Lanka: MCB Launches Legal Action
“The ongoing ‘forced cremation’ policy by the Sri Lankan Government of COVID-19 deceased has included a 20-day old baby and over 100 Muslims according to a reliable source.
In response to this, the Muslim Council of Britain has set up a Taskforce headed by Assistant Secretary-General, Zara Mohammed, consisting of UK-based Sri Lankan representative bodies, lawyers, medical experts, and senior leaders of the community.
More evidence is mounting on the scale of the atrocities being committed by the Chinese Government against its Uighur Muslim citizens. The inquiry is exploring ways in which the UK Government can prevent UK companies from benefitting from forced labour in the Xinjiang region, support members of the Uighur diaspora community and strengthen the UK’s atrocity prevention mechanisms.
The British Islamic Medical Association has put together advice to Muslim communities on the Pfizer/BioNTech COVID-19 Vaccine, after consulting Muslim health care professionals, Islamic scholars & various Muslim umbrella bodies within the UK.
To read the full BIMA position statement, click here.
CfMM: Big Win Against The Telegraph
The MCB's Centre for Media Monitoring has successfully challenged The Telegraph via IPSO (Independent Press Standards Organisation) this month.
Due to our complaint 5 months ago, The Telegraph have reluctantly been forced to correct the misleading anti-Pakistani story published on their website's front page (and their tweet) falsely claiming *half of UK's imported infections* were from Pakistan (referring to only 30 cases).
The UK Government is undertaking a review of how it engages with faith communities in England, led by a Colin Bloom, an advisor to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government (MHCLG). The MCB hosted a webinar on 5th December 2020 exploring the consultation themes and encouraging Muslim communities to participate by the 11th December deadline. Speakers included Lord Nick Bourne (Conservative Peer and Former Minister for Faith), Rashidat Hassan (MCB), Fadi Itani (Muslim Charities Forum), Mohamed Omer (Gardens of Peace) and Someera Butt (An-Noor Primary School).
“To Allah we belong, and to Him is our return” (Quran, 2:156)
Professor Ataullah Siddiqui was one of the UK’s leading scholars on Islam and a figurehead of inter-faith relations in Britain. He was the Professor of Christian-Muslim Relations and Inter-Faith Understanding at the Markfield Institute of Higher Education, having also being its Director from 2001 to 2008.
Former MCB Secretary General Farooq Murad (2010-2014) has published an obituary for Professor Ataullah Siddiqui this month in The Guardian.Click here to read.
Muslim Women's Council launches it's first national report on the impact of COVID-19
"We are proud to present our first study on the impact of the COVID-19 lockdown on Muslim women in the UK, on issues ranging from home-schooling children and the impact on mental & physical health, to views on government handling of the crisis and challenges to civil liberties."
ConsortiuM is hosting a mentorship programme for Muslim professionals, focusing on: support, leadership development, sharing knowledge, career growth, making connections, and more.
To view all recent MCB consultation responses and submissions, please click here.
Coming Up
MCB in the Media this Month
It's been a busy month in the media with MCB engaging with multiple mainstream media outlets. Highlights include:
COVID-19
Evening Express: False COVID vaccine claims 'could hinder immunisation within Muslim Communities. “The potency of social media in the context of spreading misinformation and myths is a factor affecting Muslim and other communities nationwide,” a spokesman for the MCB told PA. “There is a very useful verse from the Koran which we have used in flyers about fake news, which urges Muslims to investigate information received ‘lest you harm a people out of ignorance and become, over what you have done, regretful"
Daily Mail: False Covid vaccine claims 'could hinder immunisation within Muslim communities'.
'Forced Cremations' in Sri Lanka
The Guardian: Muslim Council of Britain Challenges forced cremations in Sri Lanka. A taskforce set up by the Muslim Council of Britain has written to the Sri Lankan high commissioner in the UK demanding an immediate reversal of the “forced cremation” policy and its impact on Muslim and Christian communities. The MCB said it would also pursue “the necessary legal action to end this violation”.
Professor Ataullah Siddiqui Obituary
The Guardian: "Ataullah was the pioneer of the Muslim chaplaincy programme at the Markfield Institute, in response to the need highlighted by the Muslim Council of Britain. Seeking to combine the Christian expertise in chaplaincy with the Islamic traditions, he was also keen to support the development of the role and training of imams." - Former MCB Secretary General, Farooq Murad (2010-2014)
Labour Party Islamophobia
The Guardian: Allegations of Islamophobia in the Labour party go far beyond one party donor. "One study from the Muslim Council of Britain finds that most newspaper coverage of British Muslims is negative, including 78% of stories in the Mail on Sunday."
IPSO Code Review
Press Gazette: UK editors reject pleas to outlaw discrimination against ethnic and religious groups in IPSO code review. The Centre for Media Monitoring, set up by the Muslim Council of Britain, agreed it is “quite extraordinary that under the code as it currently stands, an article may breach the Public Order Act against incitement to racial or religious hatred but may still not be in breach of the Editors’ Code”.
Support a Voice for British Muslims
Become a Friend of MCB from just £5/month and help provide a strong community-rooted voice for British Muslim communities.
DDYS is a UK registered charity at the forefront of grassroots youth work within the Muslim community since 2007. We specialise in supporting Muslim youth and Parents offering ‘Real World’ solutions to the challenges Muslim youth and families face. We have been carrying out research on Muslim youth use attitudes, lifestyles and behaviour for over 12 years. We have delivered thousands of workshops and sold out nationwide conferences of our ‘ LOST- Muslim Youth In Crisis’ Tour; creating awareness of the urgent need to help Muslim youth navigate, achieve and succeed in life in these unprecedented times.
ConsortiuM is a network of 15+ Muslim Professional Networks seeking to harness the knowledge and skills of Muslim Professionals in the UK. Our vision is for ‘Muslims to be at the forefront in contributing to the UK being the best place to live, work and invest in’. We support networks operationally and strategically to deliver impactful projects and programmes for the community and have delivered successful programmes in Leadership, Media and Mentoring amongst others.
