UK: Why Bishop of Rochester is right about 'no-go' areas

By MANZOOR MOGHAL, chairman of the Muslim Forum
7th January 2008, Daily Mail:

A race apart? Muslim women on a Birmingham street

Bishop Michael Nazir-Ali's warning that Islamic extremism is creating 'no-go' areas in parts of Britain has provoked a predictable barrage of outrage.

He has been condemned for making 'inflammatory' remarks, distorting the truth about our inner cities and 'scaremongering' against the Muslim population.

But, paradoxically, this reaction from the politically-correct establishment is an indicator of the weight of his case. If our ruling elite were not so worried that his views would strike a chord with the public, it would not have been so anxious to condemn him.

His statement about the dangers of the rise of radical Islam matches the reality of what people see in our cities and towns, where the influence of hardliners is undermining harmony and promoting segregation.

As a Muslim community representative myself, I have often been concerned in the past about some of the comments of Bishop Nazir-Ali, who has built a reputation as one of the Anglican Church's few outspoken critics of Islam.

Yet in this case, I feel he is correct in highlighting the problem of cultural apartheid that is developing in some of our urban areas.

It is not good enough just to dismiss his opinions and hope that the whole issue will go away, for the failure to achieve real integration in our society is far too serious an issue to be ignored ...

And 'peace' to you too, madam. Check the one on the right: 'oh no, they can see me!'. Um, yeah sure.