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Linking American and British Muslim Women
Thu 10th Apr 2008
I have just spent 5 days on the road on a project that is being run by Faith Matters, an interfaith and conflict resolution organisation that I founded in 2005. Faith Matters also runs Faith and Finance social regeneration projects.
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Read "Linking American and British Muslim Women" in full (520 words).
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Post Office Closures will Have a Devastating Effect on Local Communities
Thu 28th Feb 2008
The recent announcements that seven local post offices will be closing in the restructuring of Post Offices throughout the Capital will have a devastating impact on local communities. Those that affect Haringey include Highgate High Street, 100 Alexandra Park Road (N10), Ferme Park Road (N4), Salisbury Road (N22), 89 Weston Park (N8), Page Green (N15) and 434 West Green Road (N15).
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Read "Post Office Closures will Have a Devastating Effect on Local Communities" in full (580 words).
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Responses to the Archbishop Do Not Look At the Facts on The Ground
Sun 10th Feb 2008
Within 48 hours of the Archbishop making comments around religious inclusion and Shariah, there were press calls, comments and rabid responses for his resignation. This strain of fear is disproportionate and based on conjecture, myths and in some instances, xenophobia. But before I lay out these facts, there is something that I must clear up. The vast amount of Shariah Law covers financial elements, marriage and divorce and other codes for living life. It is not primarily around punishment. However, I for one as a Muslim and as a liberal to my very core, see Islam through the prism of emancipation and knowledge sharing. This means having the chance to question, to debate, to discuss and therefore Shariah is a theoretical and practical framework which must be looked through within a modern context. This therefore means ardently protecting women's rights, respect for diversity in all of its forms (the first convert to Islam was a black man), providing the space for dissent, education for all and emancipation from debt by taking out interest in financial transactions. These are just some examples of what I regard Islam to be about. It should be a driver against poverty, against fear and xenophobia and it should be a driver against ignorance. I have to also add, that I cannot accept two legal systems as a citizen of the UK and the resulting confusion and isolation for Muslims if this were to happen would in the long term, provide a foundation to those who want to portray Muslims as the 'other' and therefore somehow different. We should not give them that chance.
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Read "Responses to the Archbishop Do Not Look At the Facts on The Ground" in full (876 words).
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London is a Liberal City, That is Why We Need a Liberal Democrat Mayor
Thu 13th Dec 2007
Who can forget the fiasco in which Ken Livingstone clambered to be taken back into the fold of New Labour when his principles and policy making resonated with the socialist guard which he accused Blair of sidelining to the touchlines of Labour's political field? Who can forget the rhetoric from Ken on how employment opportunities are better than they ever were, when the reality is that unemployment has grown in the last 6 years in the capital. Worryingly, Ken seems to have forgotten that London is not just about inner city boroughs and their problems, it is about those boroughs like Enfield who have similar concerns and issues and where inflows of migrant communities mean that the demographics of 'outer' boroughs are changing rapidly.
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Read "London is a Liberal City, That is Why We Need a Liberal Democrat Mayor" in full (484 words).
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For God's Sake Musharraf, Free Imran Khan and Other Political Dissenters That You Have Detained
Thu 22nd Nov 2007
The fiasco in Pakistan continues. The strongman 'El Presidente' Musharraf continues to lock up anyone who dissents and the very basis of democracy is now gravely injured and lying on the side of the road somewhere between Lahore and Islamabad. The Analogy of Rome burning whilst we are all asleep is a very apt one. Who can forget history when today's 'friend' becomes tomorrow's rogue state and rogue administration. Yet, our own Foreign Office has not been robust in making it clear that dissidents like Imran Khan and the thousands of others detained need to be released and the General must never enforce martial law under the complete lie of an Islamist threat. It is clear that the Islamist threat was a smoke and mirrors routine where all opposition could be suppressed to keep Musharraf in power. What a manipulation of the powers of the State that was.
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Read "For God's Sake Musharraf, Free Imran Khan and Other Political Dissenters That You Have Detained " in full (330 words).
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Archive of earlier news stories.
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| Quotes of the Week |
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"Liberalism in Britain has lost a great champion, the Liberal Democrats, a great advocate and our public life, a great servant. "
Lord Paddy Ashdown
In memory of Lord Richard Holme, who died on 5 May
"If the Tories want to claim that they are going to cut corporation tax, they have to come clean about how they are going to pay for it. Cutting the main rate of corporation tax to 25% will cost more than £5bn a year. If David Cameron is to have a hope of sounding credible he must state clearly where the money will come from. Otherwise this will be seen as yet another unfunded tax cut. "
Vince Cable - Lib Dem Shadow Chancellor
www.libdems.org.uk - 2 May
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