A Refutation of Smears Against MPACUK

8/22/2019 A Refutation of Smears Against MPACUK

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A Rebuttal of the Political Smear Campaign against MPACUK:

Muslim Public Affairs Committee UK (MPACUK) is a grass-roots organisation that aims to empower

British Muslims to become active citizens, making our voices heard in mainstream politics, media

and civil society. We believe that it is our Islamic duty to strive for the cause of justice and contribute

toward the common good.

Because of our commitment to human rights, and to freedom, justice and equality, we are vocal

critics of the unethical foreign policy which the British government has pursued in the wars on

Afghanistan and Iraq, and the so-called War on Terror. We also believe that Israels oppression of

the Palestinian people is a horrific injustice, and we take a strong anti-Zionist stance. Our concerns

also focus on issues in our own society, principally the rise of Islamophobia and the erosion of our

civil liberties. And we are outspoken advocates of reform within the Muslim community as well

pushing for a more engaged outlook, and championing womens rights and the need for a revival of

the authentic role which our mosques should play.

As a result of our position on these issues MPACUK has gained some powerful political opponents

amongst those who are against our views. But instead of engaging in debate on the issues, political

opponents of our policies have frequently taken the easy option of pursuing a smear campaign

intended to malign MPACUK and undermine our reputation. Sadly the growing Islamophobia we

witness today, where Muslims face widespread suspicion and hostility, makes it all too easy to target

a Muslim group in this way.

This document aims to set the record straight, and address the false accusations that have been

levelled at MPACUK. It is necessarily a lengthy document as our political opponents have trusted to

the tried and tested principle of propaganda that if you throw enough mud some of it will stick! This

document seeks to dig beneath all that mud and uncover the facts. We hope that on the basis of the

evidence laid out below any fair-minded person will be convinced of the fact that these smears

against our organisation are purely malicious and unfounded.

Who we are:

The Muslim Public Affairs Committee began with a handful of individuals on an e-group back in the

year 2000 when the Palestinian Intifada began and has grown into a movement with branches across

the country, Britains biggest Muslim website and a growing social media following.

MPACUK is driven by dedicated volunteers with an elected and accountable leadership. It is a not-

for-profit organisation dependent upon donations from the public.

What we stand for:

MPACUKs policies are clear and open, and can be seen in practice in the work which we do:


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MPACUKs Vision

Muslims will strive for freedom for the Ummah (the global Muslim community), bringing about

justice, security and peace, and enabling a revival of Islamic civilisation.

Muslim countries will be free from oppressive regimes, occupation and outside interference, and therights of all citizens will be safeguarded.

Muslim minorities will be able to live as equal and valued citizens, free to practice their faith and

free from discrimination or demonisation.

A secure Muslim Ummah will fulfil its Islamic responsibilities toward Allahs creation, supporting the

universal rights of humanity.

http://www.mpacuk.org/about-mpacuk.html

What Others Say About MPACUK:

The principled positions and good work undertaken by MPACUK has been recognised by others in

the public arena, both Muslims and non-Muslims. For example:

I am impressed by the capable and dedicated young people I have met through MPACUK. I think we

need stronger and more determined action to challenge the disaster of UK foreign policy, the

erosion of civil liberties and the alienation of the Muslim community. MPACUK has a very important

part to play. Clare Short (MP for Birmingham Ladywood until 2010) (1)

"MPACUK addresses issues of concern for young Muslims from all backgrounds, encouraging the use

of the ballot box to make a change in accordance with the British democratic values of free speech

and lobby.Institute of Community Cohesion (Universities of Warwick, Leicester, Coventry and De

Montfort) (2)

MPACUKs approach is based firstly on the need for Muslim community empowerment. MPACUK

demonstrates its participationist approach to British society and politics committed to democracy

Dr Anthony McRoy, author and researcher on Christian-Muslim relations. (3)

MPAC represents a new generation of Muslim activists, with no ties to the social structures of "back

home" and even less loyalty to self-serving "community leaders". Faisal Bodi, writing in The

Guardian (4)

"MPACUK has become a growing force among young Muslims" Time Out Magazine named an

MPACUK spokeswoman number 17 in their top 100 influential 'movers and shakers' list (5)


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Our Values in Action:

Human Rights

We condemn all abuses of human rights whatever the identity of the victims, or the perpetrators.

We aim to follow the Islamic teachings of justice: "O you who believe! Stand out firmly for justice, aswitnesses to Allah, even as against yourselves, or your parents, or your kin, and whether it be

(against) rich or poor: for Allah can best protect both. Follow not the lusts (of your hearts), lest you

swerve, and if you distort justice or decline to do justice, verily Allah is well-acquainted with all that

you do." [Srah al-Nis: 135 (6)

We have not only championed the human rights of our Muslim brothers and sisters, but we have

stood up for the rights of all, Muslim and non-Muslim. For example when the teacher Gillian Gibbons

was arrested in Sudan for naming a teddy bear Muhammad, MPACUK organised a demonstration

outside the Sudanese embassy calling for her release. (7)

Active Citizenship and Democracy

MPACUK empowers Muslims to contribute to wider British society as equal citizens promoting the

common good. MPACUK encourages Muslims to contribute actively within mainstream politics,

media and civil society, holding our political leaders accountable and engaging in the democratic

process.

We have promoted voter registration drives, both through mosques and online and community

media, and have received praise from the Electoral Commission for our efforts. We also worked with

the Department of Constitutional Affairs to increase voter registration in the Muslim community (8).

Some people in the Muslim community mistakenly believe that they are prohibited to vote by their

religion and we also provide information to counter this misconception (9).

MPACUK is almost unique amongst Muslim groups in taking the message of political participation to

the streets, distributing leaflets in the run up to elections, informing the public of their MPs voting

record and statements on key issues (10). We believe that the ability of the people to remove

elected representatives who have failed to represent their views is the lifeblood of democracy and

our Operation Muslim Vote campaigns in the 2005 and 2010 elections were instrumental in helping


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voters to achieve this in several constituencies (11). The efforts of two of our activists in the 2005

General Election were followed in the Channel 4 documentary, Operation Muslim Vote (12).

MPACUK also encourages people to engage with their elected representatives on issues that concern

them and to join and become active within mainstream political parties. Equally we push our

community to pro-actively engage with other important aspects of public affairs and civil society,

from making their voices heard in the media to volunteering in roles such as becoming a school

governor, to making a contribution on environmental issues and actions, to joining organ donor

registers (13). We are committed to contributing to society and reinvigorating our democracy, and it

was with this objective in mind that MPACUK has supported electoral reform, campaigning for a yes

vote in the referendum on the Alternative Vote (14).

This spirit of engagement is illustrated by the work we have done to strive for better relations

between the Muslim community and the police. In a climate where communities are losing

respect and trust for the police, MPACUK have had banners on our website encouraging

Muslims to join the police force and have invited members of the police force to speak atour open days (15).

Community cohesion

MPACUK aims to overcome divisions in our society and promote community cohesion, for example

promoting Mosque Open Days, where the wider community are invited to come and meet their

Muslim neighbours and encouraged to air any questions they may have related to the Muslim

community (16). MPACUK has contributed to government consultations on working to improve

community cohesion (16a)

MPACUK uses all means available to us whether that is our popular website, public events or internal

training to promote an understanding of the fact that there is no contradiction between being

Muslim and being British, and it is our Islamic duty to contribute to our society. We try to dispel the

myth that disagreeing with certain government policies means you cannot identify as British (17).

We have promoted national events that can bring communities together such as supporting our

national sports teams and athletes, and occasions such as the Olympics or the Queens Jubilee and

the Royal Wedding (although of course we have nothing against those with republican views!) (18).

We have worked together with many different organisations from different religious and non-

religious backgrounds. For instance to mark the anniversary of the Israeli Occupation we joined

together with over 40 other organisations to form the Enough Coalition for Palestine Muslim,

Christian and Jewish groups as well as trade unions, secular charities and campaign groups (19). We

have often hosted speakers from different non-Muslim backgrounds, MPACUK speakers have taken

part in interfaith events, our local branches have organised joint events with organisations such as

Unite Against Fascism, and we have supported campaigns run by groups from different religious

and secular backgrounds (20).

Equality and Diversity

MPACUK opposes all forms of racism, religious intolerance and discrimination. For instance we

openly condemn examples of anti-Semitism and seek to promote a proper understanding of the

highly respected status of Jews within Islam as People of the Book (21). We also strive to educate

the community that Israel and its supporters do not represent all Jews, and highlight the good work

being done by many Jews fighting for Palestinian rights through articles on our website, and through


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hosting speakers from groups such as Jews for Justice for Palestinians at our events (22). We have

highlighted the importance of standing together to fight prejudice and discrimination (23).

MPACUK is non-sectarian and is almost unique amongst Muslim organisations in having a

membership which includes both Sunnis and Shias from a wide variety of different Islamic schools of

thought and backgrounds, and we seek to foster respect for differences of opinion. Equally MPACUK

does not judge Muslims on the basis of superficial appearances of Islamic practice such as the hijab

or beard. We have also always welcomed members from diverse ethnic backgrounds. (24)

Tackling Extremism

MPACUK have always spoken out against Muslim extremists such as Anjem Choudary and Omar

Bakri (25). Following the protests by extremists during the Danish cartoons controversy MPACUK

appeared on the BBC to condemn the aggressive message of the extremist protestors and call for

the arrest those individuals that were carrying placards promoting violence (26). And just as we

campaigned for Gillian Gibbons, we also vocally supported the campaign for Norman Kembers

release (27). MPACUK also vehemently condemned the actions of the small group of Muslims whograbbed headlines with their notorious poppy burning publicity stunt (28).

MPACUK have unequivocally condemned terrorism perpetrated by Muslims but we have also gone

one step further and called for both the Muslim community and the government to address the root

causes of terrorism and take effective action to prevent further attacks (29). We aspire to make our

contribution to such efforts through our work promoting a political pathway to address the anger

and grievances so many Muslims feel as a result of unethical foreign policy. We also first published

our 5 Point Plan to Tackle Terror in response to the 7/7 atrocity, outlining steps which we believe

the Muslim community should take to help prevent terrorism (30).

Womens Rights

MPACUK is an outspoken critic of the discrimination and misogyny that can be found within sections

of the Muslim community due to certain un-Islamic cultural traditions (31). We have always

promoted the true status of women in Islam (32). MPACUK has campaigned for womens rights in

the mosque, including the right to facilities that are of an equal standard to men, and the right to

take an equal part in decision-making, and to serve on mosque committees and as chair of the

mosque. Our ground-breaking work on these issues was documented by the Channel 4 documentary

Women Only Jihad (33). MPACUK has also worked to counteract the marginalisation of Muslim

women in the political sphere with initiatives to empower Muslim women as voters (34). MPACUKhas always had women well represented within the leadership and management of the organisation

and became the first major national Muslim organisation to elect a female leader (35).

False Accusations:

The source of the false accusations levelled against MPACUK has almost invariably been those with a

pro-Israel agenda who oppose our campaigns for Palestinian rights, or others who see us as a threat

to their own political interests, such as MPs whom we have campaigned against. Inevitably we have

also earned abuse from others from opposing ends of the spectrum both Islamophobes such as the


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EDL and Muslim extremists such as Anjem Choudary and his supporters. However this document will

focus on allegations levelled by those with more mainstream credibility.

Extremism

The recurring allegation that MPACUK is an extremist organisation was finally tested in court in2010, in front of High Court judges presiding in a special election court and MPACUK was

resoundingly vindicated. During the 2010 election MPACUK had endorsed Phil Woolass Lib Dem

opponent, and the MP had cited this as a basis for claiming in his election leaflets that the Lib Dem

candidate had "wooed Islamic extremists. Therefore Woolass allegat ion that MPACUK are

extremists became central to the legal case that was subsequently brought against him for

breaching election law by publishing lies about his opponent.

Woolas was found guilty, ejected from parliament and issued with a ban from standing for public

office. The final judgement clearly outlined the fact that the evidence contradicted Woolass

allegation that MPACUK are extremists. The supposedly extremist hate leaflet produced byMPACUK was described by the judges: The most that can be said is that it identifies policy stances

or statements of the Respondent which are considered to be not in the interest of Muslims and urges

Muslims when voting to select the candidate who will best protect Muslim interests. To describe that

as a hate leaflet is extravagant.The lack of any evidence that MPACUK are an extremist

organisation, and the fact that we are a peaceful political organisation, was also highlighted in the

election court judgement. (36)

The case exposed internal emails between Woolas and his team which revealed that the allegations

against MPACUK were part of a last ditch strategy to win the election by stirring up hatred of mad

Muslims - "If we don't get the white folk angry he [Woolas]'s gone." During the course of the caseeven Phil Woolass own QC sought to distance his client from his election agents description of

MPACUK as extremists, saying it was his own colourfully described opinion. (37)

Unfortunately Phil Woolas MP is not the only politician who has attempted to deflect our efforts to

expose their political record by resorting to smears of extremism against MPACUK. For example in

the run up to the 2010 general election Mike Gapes MP told his local newspaper the Ilford Recorder

that the reason MPACUK were campaigning against him was that: "They are unhappy at my opinion

that women in Saudi Arabia should be able to vote, and that I am against public executions. They say

this makes me anti-Muslim." (38) These blatant and outrageous lies were all the more breathtaking

when we had clearly outlined the reasons why we were campaigning against him: his support forIsrael and its actions, as a member and former Vice-Chair of Labour Friends of Israel, and his support

for the Iraq war and for the extension of detention without charge (39).

Meanwhile Andrew Dismore MP (whom we had also campaigned against due to his pro-Israel, pro-

war stance) used a parliamentary debate to portray MPACUK as a sinister and shady extremist

organisation and call for the government to take action against our activities: It has no offices or

fixed premises, and exists as a website. It is not a charitable organisation, listed company or political

party, and it should perhaps be registered by the Electoral Commission. (40) In fact it is publicly

available information that like most campaigning organisations we are a registered non-profit

company, as our political activities are of course not eligible for charitable status (41). Regarding theissue of registration with the Electoral Commission, they clearly advise that registration is only for


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those organisations wishing to exceed the specified spending limit on election literature, and so does

not apply to groups like MPACUK (42). Furthermore running a website without first buying or renting

office space is common practice for grassroots volunteer-run organisations, and it is difficult to

imagine how this should constitute a concern at all, let alone an issue worthy of debate in

Parliament.

Other accusations of extremism have focused on MPACUKs use of the Islamic term jihad a

Quranic Arabic term which means to strive or struggle. This term is applied in many contexts

within Islam, from the effort toward spiritual purification to the Islamic concept of a just war fought

within strict rules about proportionality and protection of civilians. At MPACUK we use the term

jihad to describe our democratic political struggle to defend human rights, freedom and justice (43).

In this context we have also spoken about the jihad against terrorism (44). However some

journalists and others in the public arena have taken our use of this Arabic term out of context and

used their own extreme misinterpretation of its Islamic meaning in order to portray MPACUK as

supporters of terrorism, and even as a violent terrorist organisation (45).

MPACUK have also been accused of extremism and glorification of terror on the basis of grossly

distorted and malicious misinterpretations of some comments made by an MPACUK spokesperson

on his personal facebook page. Most people share the belief that when you are attacked it is right to

defend yourself and to defend innocent children and those too weak to protect themselves. This is a

basic teaching of Islam which all Muslims will agree upon. In fact the UN charter also enshrines the

right to self-defence, and the Geneva Conventions protect the right to resistance against

Occupation. However when Asghar Bukhari responded to comments questioning the Palestinian

right to resist military occupation, saying: Muslims who fight against the occupation of their lands

are mujahedeen the so-called Centre for Social Cohesion think-tank (whose director authored a

book on Neo-conservatismwhy we need it) produced a briefing accusing him of glorification of

terror, calling for the BBC to stop inviting MPACUK to provide spokespeople, and reporting the

matter to the police.

Of course no charges were brought if such comments constituted the offense of glorifying

terrorism then so would any comments supporting the French Resistance in World War II! It is

however a shame that police time should need to be spent dealing with politically-motivated

malicious reports against Muslim spokespeople, instead of trying to prevent crime! (46)

Sadly the political smear campaign against MPACUK by pro-Israel groups extended into student

politics, and in 2004 MPACUK was conflated with two organisations whom we have always

vociferously opposed and was banned from campuses under an NUS no-platform policy. The

motion stated that: Hizb ut-tahrir (HUT), Al-Muhajiroun (AM) and the Muslim Public Affairs

Committee (MPAC) are responsible for supporting terrorism and publishing material that incites

racial hatred. In addition the motion claimed that, MPAC are holocaust deniers, are constantly

publishing anti-Semitic conspiracy theories, inciteful racist material and material inciting activists to

break the law through their website. (47)

The false accusations of anti-Semitism and holocaust denial shall be thoroughly addressed in the

next section. However we can already see from the other claims that the NUS ban was based on

blatant lies about MPACUK as an organisation. If such accusations were true surely MPACUK

members could have been reported and charged for the crimes of incitement to racial hatred and


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incitement to commit an offence? But of course the police and the courts, unlike the NUS

conference, require evidence against the accused! There is not one shred of evidence to support the

claims made against MPACUK in the NUS motion, and yet this verdict was passed against us without

any opportunity being afforded for the organisation to defend itself against these accusations.

The NUS unfortunately has a track record of such Islamophobic actions for example it passed a

motion calling to ban the respected liberal academic Tariq Ramadan, before the motion was

subsequently overturned when campaigners exposed the lies upon which it had been based (48).

Without the high-profile and powerful support that an internationally renowned Oxford University

Professor such as Tariq Ramadan has, MPACUK has not had a similar opportunity to have the motion

against us overturned.

The baseless and malicious NUS motion against MPACUK has been repeatedly used by our political

opponents as a stick to beat us with, exploiting the credibility that an organisation such as the NUS

carries. For instance the neoconservative think-tank The Henry Jackson Society (successor to the

Centre for Social Cohesion) set up a project with the Orwellian name ofStudent Rights, and

published a report in which the NUS ban was cited as justification for extensively monitoring and

reporting on the political views expressed on the personal facebook and social media accounts of

two MPACUK members who happened to be university students. In some cases this report totally

distorted the content of these posts through citing only the title of a video or article posted or linked

to even when this totally contradicted the views the students themselves had expressed about this

content. (49)

Students Rights has also accused MPACUK of extremism because we have warned that

Islamophobia, if left unchecked, could ultimately lead to a nightmarish future where we could see

acts of genocide against Muslims in Europe, just as the anti-Muslim hatred whipped up against

Bosnian Muslims culminated in genocide (50). Academics studying the history of genocide have

concluded that the road to such atrocities begins with prejudice and the stirring up of hatred (51).

We believe that with the rapid rise of anti-Muslim propaganda and physical attacks against Muslims

it is necessary to question how much worse things could become in the future if nothing is done to

stop this, alarming as such a possibility is to contemplate (52). As the government-funded Holocaust

Education Trust states: If we understand where prejudice leads, we can stop it in its tracks. (53)

However the accusations that such views amount to radicalisation and whipping up paranoia are

especially ironic given that they are principally promoted by the Harrys Place blog (54), which says

that Muslim anti-Semitism could lead to a new Holocaust (55), a view also promoted by the Israeli

leaders it reveres (56), and which regularly labels Muslim political activists as fascists and spouts so

much propaganda about the threat supposedly posed by Muslims that it has been recommended by

far-right groups such as Stormfront and the EDL (57).

We have also sometimes seen Islamophobic prejudice at play in the way that phrases used in

MPACUK material have been misinterpreted in a way that would almost certainly not have occurred

if the authors had been non-Muslims. For instance occasionally material has been published using

Britain and America as short-hand for the British and American governments (language which is in

fact in contravention of MPACUKs editorial policy which states that we should always make the

distinction explicit). However such phraseology is common in political discourse on international

affairs, and yet it seems that when used by Muslims it can be taken not as legitimate criticism of the


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foreign policies of these nations but misinterpreted as evidence of a fundamental hatred of British

and American people an especially bizarre conclusion if the writer is British themselves!

Discrimination Against Women

MPACUK has been accused of discrimination against women on the basis of the fact that we haveresponded to requests by Muslim women for segregated seating to be made available at some

public events which we have organised (58). In fact making such allowances facilitates the

participation of those Muslim women who follow strict interpretations of Islamic modesty, who

would otherwise exclude themselves from such public events if mixed seating arrangements were

forced upon all participants. To equate such provision with discrimination against women is a result

of a patronising attitude which claims that Muslim women cannot decide for themselves whether

they should choose to follow practices such as gender segregation in seating arrangements. By

contrast MPACUKs strong support for womens empowerment can be seen not only in our

campaigning work as outlined previously but also in the prominent role that our female members

play within the organisation and the fact that many of our speakers at these public events are

women.

Homophobia

MPACUK has also been accused of homophobia without any basis, purely on the Islamophobic

presumption that all Muslims hold homophobic beliefs, and also on one occasion for the bizarre

reason that we have campaigned against a war on Iran (59). This accusation has been made despite

the fact that during elections we have given our support to candidates who happened to be

homosexual, and have argued against a minority of Muslims who have claimed that purely because

of a persons sexuality Muslims should not vote for certain candidates in fact we exposed andreported a Labour party activist who was using this argument outside a mosque to try to persuade

Muslims not to vote for the Liberal Democrat candidate (60).

Anti-Semitism

Despite our clear and unequivocal position against anti-Semitism (61), opponents of MPACUK have

attempted to label MPACUK as anti-Semitic. Jewish writers such as Tony Greenstein and Mark Elf

have refuted these accusations against MPACUK as being an attempt to smear a pro-Palestinian

Muslim organisation as have other anti-racists (62). However attempts to equate our anti-Zionist

stance with anti-Semitism recur with tedious regularity.

Anti-Zionism does not equate with anti-Semitism. Zionism is a political ideology, and anti-Zionism is

a stand against the discriminatory policies and practices of Israel. It is clear Israel does not speak for

all Jews even though some Zionists try to claim this, and some of Israels most prominent critics are

Jewish. Equally some of the most fanatical Zionists are not Jewish but fundamentalist Christians.

Academics such as the Harvard professors Mearsheimer and Walt have documented how the

blurring of this clear distinction and confusion of anti-Zionism with anti-Semitism is commonly used

to deflect criticism of the state of Israel (63). Recent examples of those standing up for the

Palestinian people who have faced accusations of anti-Semitism include journalists such as Robert

Fisk (64), politicians such as the former U.S. President Jimmy Carter (65), and even organisations

such as Christian Aid (66). "The main purpose behind these periodic, meticulously orchestrated


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media extravaganzas is not to fight anti-Semitism but rather to exploit the historical suffering of the

Jews in order to immunise Israel against criticism." (Norman Finkelstein)(67). Rather than fighting

anti-Semitism such political smear campaigns can only devalue its meaning.

During the 2005 general election Lorna Fitzsimmons MP sought to discredit our campaign against

her with by levelling accusations of anti-Semitism against MPACUK (68). However the facts are well

documented in Channel 4s documentary Operation Muslim Vote which followed our campaign

closely (69). The documentary showed how MPACUK campaigned against Lorna Fitzsimons due to

her pro-war, pro-Israel stance and not for any other reason.

During the election campaign MPACUK agreed to sponsor a leaflet produced by the Association of

Rochdale Muslims (ARM). The text was written by ARM and based mainly on information MPACUK

provided in our own leaflet about the MPs political record. However the MPACUK volunteer

responsible failed to check ARMs final version of their leaflet and therefore did not pick up that in

their leaflet they had described Lorna Fitzsimmons MP as "a Jewish member of the Labour Friends of

Israel. As soon as this was brought to our attention MPACUK asked the Association of Rochdale

Muslims not to distribute these leaflets and issued a public statement to make clear that, We

deeply regret that this leaflet was taken as implying that Muslims should vote against Lorna

Fitzsimons on the basis of her being Jewish. (70)

However to suggest as Lorna Fitzsimmons and others did, that Muslim voters would not vote for a

Jewish MP shows deplorable anti-Muslim prejudice and a groundless assumption that Muslim voters

are anti-Semitic. This Islamophobic assumption is clearly disproved by the factual record in

constituencies such as Bethnal Green and Bow (where the Jewish MP Oona King was elected by the

constituency with the highest number of Muslims, until she voted for the Iraq war). And the

accusation that MPACUK campaigns against candidates based on their religious background rather

than their policies seems even more ridiculous when you consider the fact that we also campaigned

against Khalid Mahmood MP (71).

MPACUK produced our own election leaflets and materials, published prior to the Association of

Rochdale Muslims leaflet, and these clearly outlined the reasons we were campaigning against Lorna

Fitzsimmons her pro-Israel, pro-war political record (72). Our campaign was successful in helping

to ensure she was voted out. However since her defeat Lorna Fitzsimmons went on to become chair

of the pro-Israel media lobby group BICOM and her fellow supporters of Israel in politics and the

media have repeatedly recycled her claims of anti-Semitism against us (73).

Andrew Dismore MP repeated these allegations in a parliamentary debate and also accused

MPACUK of anti-Semitism and blood libel in relation to our campaign against Mike Gapes MP (74).

Many respected human rights organisations have documented the plight of civilians, including

children, killed by the Iraq war, and by Israel. Yet Dismore equated our strong condemnation of Mike

Gapes support for these policies to the anti-Semitic blood libel a myth common in the history of

European Christian anti-Semitism. Such an outrageous comparison seems even more tendentious

considering that, as far as we are aware, Mike Gapes is not Jewish. But this is not even the most far-

fetched accusation of blood libel that has been levelled against MPACUK. On one occasion Engage,

an organisation that aims to counter the boycott of Israel, accused MPACUK of anti-Semitic blood

libel on the basis of an article about Israels human rights abuses against Palestinian children, even

though this article was actually written by a Jewish Israeli blogger! (75)


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As well as being accused of anti-Semitism for content written by Jewish writers, MPACUK has also been

accused of anti-Semitism for allegedly publishing material taken from neo-Nazi anti-Semitic websites.

Given our vocal opposition to the far-right and neo-Nazis, and the virulent Islamophobia of such people we

find it amazing that we have been accused of propagating their material. The more mundane truth of the

matter is that it is inevitable that different websites commenting on political events from totally opposite

perspectives will nonetheless sometimes link to the same news stories. In one example where we wereaccused of sourcing material from a far-right website, a simple Google search revealed that the article in

question, a factual news story related to Israel, which was allegedly reproduced from a neo-Nazi website

was in fact published by 37 other websites including Al Jazeerah, which was the source from which

MPACUK had obtained the material. However such claims of MPACUK propagating neo-Nazi material

(claims which originate from pro-Israeli blogs such as Harrys Place) have been widely circulated and even

accepted on face-value by the MPs in the All-Party Parliamentary report on anti-Semitism. (76)

This All Party Parliamentary Groups (APPG) report, which levelled crude accusations of extremism and

anti-Semitism against MPACUK amongst many others, was widely criticised by pro-Palestinian Jewish

groups as being biased and based on a flawed definition of anti-Semitism which confuses legitimate

criticism of Israel with anti-Jewish speech (77). The APPGs inquiry and report was subsequentlyconclusively discredited by the findings of a court judgement in a case which centred on the allegations of

anti-Semitism made against the University and College Union in the APPG report (78). The judges wrote of

the APPGs inquiry that: the fairness of which was, to put it at its very lowest, open to question and also

heavily criticised the Chairman of the APPG who commissioned and set the parameters of the report, the

MP who chaired the inquiry, and several of the key witnesses who contributed to the findings of the

APPGs report.

As we can see from the above examples MPACUK has been repeatedly smeared on the basis of lies,

hearsay and deliberate misrepresentation. It is regrettable that on a handful of occasions genuine

mistakes have been made by MPACUK members which have been seized upon by our political

opponents. While MPACUK has a strict editorial policy in line with our values of equality, diversityand opposing all forms of prejudice, unfortunately in a few instances content has slipped through

that does not meet these standards and contradicts our values. In all such instances material that

contravenes our values and policies has been rapidly removed and where relevant an apology has

been issued.

MPACUK is a volunteer-run organisation with no professional staff or offices so when there has been

a shortage of volunteers available we have sometimes made the mistake of allowing new members

to post material on our website or social media without having gone through adequate training to

ensure they understand and agree with all MPACUKs values. MPACUK has published new online

material on a daily basis for more than 10 years so the handful of occasions when regrettablemistakes have been made represent a miniscule proportion of the material we have produced.

Well-respected professional organisations with much greater resources than MPACUK have also

occasionally made such mistakes and published material which has caused offence. For instance the

New Statesman published a front cover image that showed the Jewish Star of David piercing a Union

Jack under the headline A Kosher Conspiracy an offensive conflation of the Zionist lobby with the

entire Jewish community in a way that evoked classic anti-Semitic imagery (79). Another example

was the posters published by the Labour Party during the 2005 election depicting the opposition

leader Michael Howard, who is Jewish, as a flying pig and as a 'Fagin' figure evoking an archetypal

anti-Semitic stereotype. (80) However in such cases where the material has been withdrawn andapologies issued these mainstream organisations have not been thereafter continuously branded as


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anti-Semitic. But just as even more negative stereotypes of Muslims are frequently seen in

mainstream media and politics without any apologies being issued, we can observe a similar double-

standard where mistakes made by Muslim organisations are treated differently to those made by

others.

Holocaust Denial

Perhaps the most distressing falsehood that has been propagated against MPACUK is the accusation

that MPACUK are holocaust deniers. This offensive accusation has been refuted by MPACUK, and

others who understand that it is no more than a vicious smear against a pro-Palestinian Muslim

group. For instance Tony Greenstein is a founding member of the Palestine Solidarity Campaign and

a member of Jews against Zionism. In his Guardian blog he made reference to the Parliamentary

inquiry into anti-Semitism, particularly to allegations of Holocaust denial made against MPACUK by

Mitch Simmons of the Union of Jewish Students. Tony Greenstein wrote; the parliamentary inquiry

took on trust the allegations of Mitch Simmons that the Muslim public affairs committee believes

Holocaust-denial material to be "acceptable" - though a cursory search of MPAC's website

demonstrates otherwise: "If anyone denies the Holocaust they are very wrong - Holocaust denial is

an evil that must be opposed." (81)

We believe very strongly that the memory of the victims of the Holocaust should be honoured and

that the lessons of this terrible chapter in history should be applied to the present. MPACUK has

marked the anniversary of the liberation of Auchwitz, for instance publishing an interview with a

survivor (82), and a podcast of the reflections of an MPACUK member who had visited the site of the

infamous concentration camp (83). We have criticised the exploitation and abuse of the memory of

the Holocaust as a propaganda tactic used in Israels PR efforts to gain the sympathy and support of

international public opinion (84), a tactic which has been extensively described by the Jewish

academic Norman Finkelstein himself the son of Holocaust survivorsin his book The Holocaust

Industry.

The persistent accusations of holocaust denial against MPACUK can often be traced back to one

sensationalist newspaper article. In the article, described as a stich up by the Islamophobia Watch

monitors, the journalist Jamie Doward attempted to link MPACUK with the discredited historian David

Irving, who had recently been imprisoned in Austria for holocaust denial (85). Jamie Doward had a track

record of attempting to smear Muslims with accusations of anti-Semitism and extremism with his

newspaper having been forced to issue corrections on multiple occasions due to fundamental inaccuracies

in his reporting in stories concerning Muslims (86). His article on MPACUK was again a completely

distorted story which culminated in totally unjustified conclusions attached as an appendix to this

document is the full text of MPACUKs complaint to the newspaper detailing the inaccuracies and

omissions that led to such a gross misrepresentation of our organisation. Fortunately the smears

contained in this article have been publicly refuted by writers from a range of backgrounds (87). However

for the record the full facts of the case are laid out below.

The article was based on a mistake made six years previously, before MPACUK even existed, by an

individual who subsequently became a prominent member of MPACUK. At that time, acting as a private

individual with no associations to any group, Asghar Bukhari supported and sent money and letters to

anyone who he perceived as people who stood up to Israel, and their powerful lobbies within Britain and

the world. At that time, David Irving championed himself as exactly that, fashioning himself as a

respectable historian, and writing articles opposing the Israeli lobby and Israels treatment of thePalestinians - and appealing for funds for the libel case in which he denied accusations of anti-Semitism


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and Holocaust denial. Six years and two Irving court cases later, Jamie Doward somehow came across a

letter and small cheque to David Irving from Asghar Bukhari.

Asghar Bukhari's mistake 6 years previously had been to judge on the basis of the limited number of David

Irving's articles he had seen, and assume that accusations of anti-Semitism against him were simply

another smear campaign. It is significant to note that Jamie Doward's article mentions that Asghar Bukharioffered to send Irving a copy of, 'They Dare to Speak Out' by former US Senator Paul Findley (88). But what

Doward failed to mention was that this book devotes an entire chapter to the valiant work of Jewish

activists who oppose Israel's treatment of the Palestinians, further proving that Asghar Bukhari did not

espouse any anti-Semitic views and was motivated purely by his support for anti-Zionist views which Irving

had expressed.

In 2000 when this incident occurred Irving was attempting to defend himself in a libel case and the key

principle in our legal system is 'innocent until proven guilty'. And it was reported in the mainstream media

during this period that respectable historians expressed sympathy toward Irving (89). When it

subsequently became clear that Irving does in fact hold despicable views Asghar Bukhari had no hesitation

in stating that his letter and cheque had been a deeply regrettable mistake and in unequivocally opposing

David Irvings views (90). However Jamie Doward seemed to assume that Mr Bukhari must have had the

ability to see into the future and know that David Irving would be convicted 6 years later of holocaust

denial!

When so many mainstream critics of Israel are falsely accused of anti-Semitism, you can't condemn an

individual for being sceptical about accusations such as those that were in this case later proved true

against David Irving. And in such circumstances you can't expect principled individuals to just run to

distance themselves as soon as the cry of anti-Semitism is started, without seeing any evidence behind the

accusations - because otherwise you fall right into the trap that is exploited by smear campaigns - "the

charge of anti-Semitism is a very effective tactic: anti-Semitism is something no one wants to be accused

of" (Mearsheimer and Walt 2006 - two Harvard professors who were also smeared after their academic

study on the Israeli lobby).

Twisting an innocent gesture of support, even if gravely mistaken, into more than it was, is just another

Islamaphobic attack aimed at undermining and harming the brave individuals who support the Palestinian

cause and the cause of British Muslims. As Robert Fisk wrote: "If we want a quiet life, we will just have to

toe the line, stop criticizing Israel" (91)

Conclusion

We believe the evidence contained in this document speaks for itself and hope that fair-minded

individuals will be convinced of the falsehood of the numerous allegations and smears that have

been made against MPACUK. We hope that, armed with the facts, principled individuals and

organisations will be able to stand against the dirty politics of smears campaigns and ad-hominem

attacks, and support the right to come together and engage within the democratic process on the

political issues that we as citizens care passionately about.


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Appendix - Letter to The Observer re. Right of reply to Irving article:

Date: Tue, 21 Nov 2006 00:48:17 +0000 (GMT)

Subject: request for right of reply

To: [email protected]

Dear Mr Pritchard,

I am writing on behalf of MPACUK (Muslim Public Affairs Committee UK) in regards to the article

'Muslim leader sent funds to Irving' (19/11/06).

http://observer.guardian.co.uk/uk_news/story/0,,1951773,00.html

We appreciate that the article provides balance by accurately quoting Asghar Bukhari's response on

this issue. However we are concerned that certain inaccuracies and omissions within the article

result in a damaging misrepresentation of MPACUK and one of our members.

We would therefore be very grateful is you would consider our case for the publication of:

1) A correction: Asghar Bukhari is not a supporter of David Irving and has clearly and publicly stated

this. The article itself is inconsistent as at the end of the 7th paragraph it quotes Asghar Bukhari as

saying, "I also believe that anyone who denies the Holocaust is wrong", yet in the opening sentence

Jamie Doward claimed that he "is today exposed as a supporter of David Irving, the controversial

historian who for years denied the Holocaust took place". Surely someone who condemns Holocaust

denial cannot be a supporter of a Holocaust denier? The fact that Asghar Bukhari offered to sendIrving a copy of 'They Dare to Speak Out' - a book which devotes a whole chapter to the good work

of Jewish activists who oppose Israel's treatment of the Palestinians demonstrates that he did not

subscribe to anti-Semitic views. Asghar Bukhari has admitted that in 2000 he made a grave mistake

in sending Irving a gesture of support in ignorance of Irving's anti-Semitism and Holocaust denial, but

since Irving's abhorrent views have been proven he has no hesitation in opposing him.

2) A clarification - it is misleading to quote Lorna Fitzsimmons without mentioning that she is

currently head of BICOM (Britain Israel Communications and Research Centre - a leading pro-Israeli

lobbying organisation). See -

http://www.asianleader.co.uk/ViewArticle2.aspx?SectionID=4177&ArticleID=1861442

This case appears similar to an incident where your sister paper The Guardian issued a correction

making clear Louise Ellman MP's affiliation to Labour Friends of Israel, as it was felt to be relevant

context to her accusations of anti-Semitism against a Muslim pro-Palestinian activist. See -

http://www.guardian.co.uk/guardianpolitics/story/0,,1110131,00.html

3) A right to reply, in order to correct the following misleading and unbalanced aspects of the article:

a) The date of the letter is a crucial context to the story yet it is only mentioned half way through the

article - until that point the reader would naturally assume that the incident reported was current,

not that it occurred 6 years ago in a completely different set of circumstances. For example the
http://observer.guardian.co.uk/uk_news/story/0,,1951773,00.htmlhttp://www.asianleader.co.uk/ViewArticle2.aspx?SectionID=4177&ArticleID=1861442http://www.guardian.co.uk/guardianpolitics/story/0,,1110131,00.htmlhttp://www.guardian.co.uk/guardianpolitics/story/0,,1110131,00.htmlhttp://www.asianleader.co.uk/ViewArticle2.aspx?SectionID=4177&ArticleID=1861442http://observer.guardian.co.uk/uk_news/story/0,,1951773,00.html


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prominent sub-title "Islamic activist admits he donated cash to jailed historian who denied the

Holocaust" would lead the reader to think that the donation was after Irving became a "jailed

historian", not 6 years before he was convicted. The chronology is crucial in this story - the Observer

itself reported during this period in 2000 that serious historians, who could not be suspected of

fascist sympathies, expressed sympathy toward Irving -

http://www.guardian.co.uk/irving/article/0,,194410,00.html.

Yet the chronology is again distorted by the quote from Karen Pollock which states 'David Irving was

described by a High Court judge as a falsifier of history and a false denier' but fails to mention that

Asghar Bukhari's donation was to support the libel trial - therefore before the judge had reached this

conclusion.

b) Jamie Doward mentions MPAC four times and describes Asghar Bukhari as a founder member and

spokesperson, yet omits to mention the fact that he wrote the letter as a private individual before

MPAC even existed.

c) The article is unbalanced in that two independent sources are quoted condemning Asghar Bukhari

(HET and Lorna Fitzsimmons), and no independent sources are quoted defending him, when possible

sources to represent the alternative view existed, such as Islamophobia Watch (see

http://www.islamophobia-watch.com/islamophobia-watch/2006/11/19/observer-stitches-up-

mpacuk.html )

Finally we would like to mention that we are concerned to see that published corrections we found

when looking at previous articles by Jamie Doward were all part of negative stories about Muslims

and sincerely hope this is purely coincidence.

http://education.guardian.co.uk/higher/worldwide/story/0,9959,1462408,00.html

http://observer.guardian.co.uk/uk_news/story/0,6903,1278580,00.html

http://www.mcb.org.uk/media/letter131.php

Below is a copy of a letter to the editor submitted for publication:

The Muslim Public Affairs Committee UK (MPACUK) exists to fight religious and racial prejudice. That

is the very reason we oppose Zionism - a racist political ideology that believes in a state for a

particular racial and religious group, not for all its citizens equally. An ideology that endorses an

'ethnically pure' state, as advocated by the new extreme-right deputy prime minister of Israel,

Avigdor Leiberman.

Like every advocate for the human rights of Palestinians, from Ken Livingstone to Christian Aid we've

endured the false smear of anti-Semitism. And through inaccuracy and omission Jamie Doward's

article falsely associates us with the abhorrent views of David Irving ('Muslim leader sent funds to

Irving', 19/11/06). The article is inconsistent - accurately quoting Asghar Bukhari "I believe that

anyone who denies the Holocaust is wrong", and yet still claiming to expose him as a supporter of

Holocaust denier David Irving. Asghar Bukhari is not a supporter of David Irving and has clearly and

publicly stated this.

The crucial fact that this incident took place 6 years before Irving was convicted of Holocaust denial
http://www.guardian.co.uk/irving/article/0,,194410,00.htmlhttp://www.islamophobia-watch.com/islamophobia-watch/2006/11/19/observer-stitches-up-mpacuk.htmlhttp://www.islamophobia-watch.com/islamophobia-watch/2006/11/19/observer-stitches-up-mpacuk.htmlhttp://education.guardian.co.uk/higher/worldwide/story/0,9959,1462408,00.htmlhttp://observer.guardian.co.uk/uk_news/story/0,6903,1278580,00.htmlhttp://www.mcb.org.uk/media/letter131.phphttp://www.mcb.org.uk/media/letter131.phphttp://observer.guardian.co.uk/uk_news/story/0,6903,1278580,00.htmlhttp://education.guardian.co.uk/higher/worldwide/story/0,9959,1462408,00.htmlhttp://www.islamophobia-watch.com/islamophobia-watch/2006/11/19/observer-stitches-up-mpacuk.htmlhttp://www.islamophobia-watch.com/islamophobia-watch/2006/11/19/observer-stitches-up-mpacuk.htmlhttp://www.guardian.co.uk/irving/article/0,,194410,00.html


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is only mentioned half way through the article. The Observer itself reported during this period that

respectable historians expressed sympathy toward Irving (16/4/2000). Jamie Doward omits the fact

that in 2000 when Asghar Bukhari sent a small donation, it was to support the ongoing libel case

Irving was fighting in which he denied accusations of anti-Semitism and Holocaust denial. Asghar

Bukhari made this grave mistake in ignorance of the full facts, assuming Irving was being falsely

smeared. Another glaring omission is the fact that Asghar Bukhari wrote the letter as a private

individual before MPACUK even existed.

Interestingly Jamie Doward mentions that Asghar Bukhari offered to send Irving a copy of, 'They

Dare to Speak Out' by former US Senator Paul Findley - a book which devotes an entire chapter to

the valiant work of Jewish activists who oppose Israel's treatment of the Palestinians. The real

scandal today is the Palestinian children killed in their sleep last week in Beit Hanoun, the Lebanese

children who continue to be killed by Israeli cluster bombs, and the pro-Israel lobby that justifies

this.


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Notes and References:

1) http://www.mpacuk.org/mpacuk-success-pack.html-0 (page 1)

2) Understanding and appreciating Muslim diversity: towards better engagement and participation,

2008, p.23, Nadeem Baksh, Ted Cantle, Judith Lempiere, Daljit Kaur

3) From Rushdie to 7/7: The Radicalisation of Islam in Britain, Anthony McRoy, The Social Affairs

Unit, 2006.

4) http://www.guardian.co.uk/politics/2005/may/05/election2005.religion Ties that no longer bind:

A new generation of Muslims is breaking with Labour, Thursday 5 May

5) Time Out Nov 29-Dec 6 2006, p. 28 http://www.timeout.com/london/things-to-do/londons-100-

top-movers-and-shakers-2006-9

6) http://www.mpacuk.org/os/content/view/5648/103/

7) http://www.mpacuk.org/content/view/4211/

8) Hansard - written answer on Voter Registration (7 Nov 2005: Column 166Wcontinued)

http://www.publications.parliament.uk/pa/cm200506/cmhansrd/vo051107/text/51107w43.htm

9) http://www.mpacuk.org/content/blogcategory/32/53/

10) Operation Muslim Vote 2005 and 2010, by-election campaigns In Brent East, Leicester South,

Southall and Bradford West, Alternative Vote Referendum.

11) http://www.mpacuk.org/story/090510/operation-muslim-vote-new-dawn.html

http://www.mpacuk.org/content/view/637/39/

12) Channel 4 Dispatches 2006, produced by Ken Kirby

13) http://www.mpacuk.org/story/030911/muslim-action-guide.html

http://www.mpacuk.org/content/blogcategory/49/65

14) http://www.mpacuk.org/story/060411/vote-yes-5th-may.html

15) http://www.mpacuk.org/content/view/2203/39/

For instance Ch. Insp. Mick Gillick (Head of Diversity) at West Midlands Police spoke at the MPACUK

Birmingham Open day (7/8/06) and a representative of Scotland Yards Muslim

Contact group spoke at the MPACUK Ilford Open Day on (Bob Lambert 16/7/06).


http://www.mpacuk.org/story/040613/what-mosques-must-learn-edl-demo-york.html

http://www.mpacuk.org/os/content/view/899/
http://www.guardian.co.uk/politics/2005/may/05/election2005.religionhttp://www.timeout.com/london/things-to-do/londons-100-top-movers-and-shakers-2006-9http://www.timeout.com/london/things-to-do/londons-100-top-movers-and-shakers-2006-9http://www.mpacuk.org/content/view/4211/http://www.mpacuk.org/content/view/4211/http://www.timeout.com/london/things-to-do/londons-100-top-movers-and-shakers-2006-9http://www.timeout.com/london/things-to-do/londons-100-top-movers-and-shakers-2006-9http://www.guardian.co.uk/politics/2005/may/05/election2005.religion


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16a) http://www.publications.parliament.uk/pa/cm200405/cmselect/cmhaff/165/165ii.pdf

17) http://www.mpacuk.org/content/view/1319/39

18) http://www.mpacuk.org/os/content/view/771/

http://www.mpacuk.org/story/290411/congratulations-happy-couple.html

http://www.mpacuk.org/os/content/view/812/106/

http://www.mpacuk.org/story/070812/one-nation-under-gold.html

http://www.mpacuk.org/story/080311/cricket-world-cup-2011-%E2%80%93-who-are-you-

supporting.html

19) http://peacenews.info/node/5708/campaign-profile-enough-coalition

http://electronicintifada.net/content/emma-thompson-bids-palestinian-rights/3079

http://www.waronwant.org/news/events/previous-events/14652-20000-at-enough-coalition-

demonstration

20) http://www.mpacuk.org/story/220711/stop-islamophobia-week-siw-established.html


http://jfjfp.com/?p=830

https://www.facebook.com/events/518758444806438/


http://www.mpacuk.org/content/view/4818/


http://www.mpacuk.org/story/220610/join-mpacuk-birmingham-unite-against-fascism-public-

meeting.html

Open Discussions in association with Gulf Cultural Club - Ramadan interfaith event 22/7/13,

Catherine Heseltine from MPACUK





http://jfjfp.com/?p=830


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http://www.mpacuk.org/story/110410/pro-palestinian-jewish-mp-says-zionist-jews-own-tory-

party.html


http://www.mpacuk.org/story/011210/zionist-persecution-jews-zionazi-police-exonerate-officer.html


24) The relevant sections of MPACUK aims and values document & team charter:

MPACUK is non-sectarian and welcomes membership from any Muslim who shares our aims and

values and is committed to working in accordance to our Team Charter.

MPACUK does not judge Muslims on the basis of superficial appearances of Islamic practice (e.g.

hijab or beard) and does not seek to interfere in matters that are between a person and his or herLord.

MPACUK is a meritocratic organisation. We believe in appointing the best person for the job

based on their competence and commitment, not on their ethnicity, gender, age, Islamic school of

thought, family connections or any other irrelevant factor.

MPACUK is independent. We do not have any affiliation to any specific political party or

movement, or to any one sect or Islamic school of thought.

MPACUK opposes all forms of racism, religious intolerance and discrimination.




26) http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/uk/4676524.stm



28) http://www.mpacuk.org/story/081210/islamic-ethics-dummies-who-burn-poppies.html

http://www.mpacuk.org/story/151110/poppies-and-money.html


http://www.mpacuk.org/story/130613/mpacuk-action-alert-aftermath-woolwich.html

http://www.mpacuk.org/story/150413/boston-our-thoughts-are-you.html

http://www.mpacuk.org/story/090613/woolwich-attacks-after-condemnation-what-next-british-

muslims.html
http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/uk/4676524.stmhttp://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/uk/4676524.stm


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http://www.mpacuk.org/story/070611/muslim-group-warns-government%E2%80%99s-anti-terror-

strategy-will-back-fire.html



31) http://www.mpacuk.org/content/blogcategory/47/66/

32) http://www.mpacuk.org/story/300812/burqa-myths-1.html

http://www.mpacuk.org/true-role-muslim-women.html

http://www.mpacuk.org/story/011012/empowered-muslim-women.html

http://www.mpacuk.org/story/190213/women-islam-defying-stereotypes.html

http://www.mpacuk.org/story/231109/muslim-suffragettes-women-only-jihad.html

http://www.mpacuk.org/story/200912/allah-liberated-women-1400-years-ago.html

33) Channel 4 Dispatches, 30th October 2006, 'Women Only Jihad'

34) http://www.mpacuk.org/story/110410/operation-muslim-women-vote.html

35) http://www.mpacuk.org/story/160710/first-muslim-woman-leader-elected-mpacuk.html

36) http://www.judiciary.gov.uk/Resources/JCO/Documents/judgments/judgment-oldham-election-

05112010.pdf

Page 34. Points 172 to 174: Judges' description of MPACUK and our leaflet

Page 35. Point 178. Judges' conclusion that MPACUK do not fit the criteria for extremism

37) http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-manchester-11714903

http://www.guardian.co.uk/uk/2010/nov/05/phil-woolas-ejected-parliament-election

http://www.oldham-chronicle.co.uk/news-features/8/news-headlines/47104/no-grounds-to-back-

up-false -statements

38) Ilford Recorder, 29/4/2010, page 27

http://edition.pagesuite-professional.co.uk//launch.aspx?eid=d19d7fe2-cc21-44aa-ab3c-

3809241ec2be

39) http://www.mpacuk.org/story/250310/ilford-south-campaign-leaflet.html


40) http://www.publications.parliament.uk/pa/cm200708/cmhansrd/cm080515/debtext/80515-

0010.htm
http://www.mpacuk.org/content/view/824/39/http://www.mpacuk.org/story/110410/operation-muslim-women-vote.html%2035http://www.mpacuk.org/story/110410/operation-muslim-women-vote.html%2035http://www.mpacuk.org/story/160710/first-muslim-woman-leader-elected-mpacuk.htmlhttp://www.judiciary.gov.uk/Resources/JCO/Documents/judgments/judgment-oldham-election-05112010.pdfhttp://www.judiciary.gov.uk/Resources/JCO/Documents/judgments/judgment-oldham-election-05112010.pdfhttp://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-manchester-11714903http://www.guardian.co.uk/uk/2010/nov/05/phil-woolas-ejected-parliament-electionhttp://www.oldham-chronicle.co.uk/news-features/8/news-headlines/47104/no-grounds-to-back-up-false-statementshttp://www.oldham-chronicle.co.uk/news-features/8/news-headlines/47104/no-grounds-to-back-up-false-statementshttp://edition.pagesuite-professional.co.uk/launch.aspx?eid=d19d7fe2-cc21-44aa-ab3c-3809241ec2behttp://edition.pagesuite-professional.co.uk/launch.aspx?eid=d19d7fe2-cc21-44aa-ab3c-3809241ec2behttp://www.mpacuk.org/story/250310/ilford-south-campaign-leaflet.htmlhttp://www.publications.parliament.uk/pa/cm200708/cmhansrd/cm080515/debtext/80515-0010.htmhttp://www.publications.parliament.uk/pa/cm200708/cmhansrd/cm080515/debtext/80515-0010.htmhttp://www.publications.parliament.uk/pa/cm200708/cmhansrd/cm080515/debtext/80515-0010.htmhttp://www.publications.parliament.uk/pa/cm200708/cmhansrd/cm080515/debtext/80515-0010.htmhttp://www.mpacuk.org/story/250310/ilford-south-campaign-leaflet.htmlhttp://edition.pagesuite-professional.co.uk/launch.aspx?eid=d19d7fe2-cc21-44aa-ab3c-3809241ec2behttp://edition.pagesuite-professional.co.uk/launch.aspx?eid=d19d7fe2-cc21-44aa-ab3c-3809241ec2behttp://www.oldham-chronicle.co.uk/news-features/8/news-headlines/47104/no-grounds-to-back-up-false-statementshttp://www.oldham-chronicle.co.uk/news-features/8/news-headlines/47104/no-grounds-to-back-up-false-statementshttp://www.guardian.co.uk/uk/2010/nov/05/phil-woolas-ejected-parliament-electionhttp://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-manchester-11714903http://www.judiciary.gov.uk/Resources/JCO/Documents/judgments/judgment-oldham-election-05112010.pdfhttp://www.judiciary.gov.uk/Resources/JCO/Documents/judgments/judgment-oldham-election-05112010.pdfhttp://www.mpacuk.org/story/160710/first-muslim-woman-leader-elected-mpacuk.htmlhttp://www.mpacuk.org/story/110410/operation-muslim-women-vote.html%2035http://www.mpacuk.org/story/110410/operation-muslim-women-vote.html%2035http://www.mpacuk.org/content/view/824/39/


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41) MPAC UK LIMITED, Companies House register

42) http://www.electoralcommission.org.uk/regulatory-issues/legthirdparty.cfm

43) http://www.mpacuk.org/story/260810/j-word.html

http://www.mpacuk.org/story/250911/introduction-jihad.html-0

http://www.mpacuk.org/content/blogcategory/38/51/


45) http://www.islamophobia-watch.com/islamophobia-watch/2008/12/10/toubes-latest-idiocy-

now-mpac-are-jihadists.html

http://hurryupharry.org/2009/01/07/mpacuk-calls-for-jihad-again/


http://www.islamophobia-watch.com/islamophobia-watch/2008/12/22/the-witch-hunt-of-asghar-

bukhari.html

47) NUS Conference 2004 AMENDMENT NO: 5 AMENDMENT HEADING: NO PLATFORM

48) http://www.islamophobia-watch.com/islamophobia-watch/2005/1/9/islamophobia-and-tariq-

ramadan.html

49) http://www.studentrights.org.uk/userfiles/files/SRSocialMedia(1).pdf

50)

http://www.studentrights.org.uk/article/1926/mpacuk_spokesman_tells_students_the_fate_of_the

_bosnian_muslims_will_befall_them

51) http://www.mpacuk.org/story/120611/mpacuk-launches-stop-islamophobia-week.html

http://www.mpacuk.org/story/100713/never-forget-genocide-your-brothers-srebrenica.html

http://www.mpacuk.org/story/040712/raheem-kassam-spooky-student-rights.html

52) http://www.genocidewatch.org/aboutgenocide/8stagesofgenocide.html

53) www.het.org.uk

54) http://hurryupharry.org/2012/07/04/mpacuk-whipping-up-paranoia/

55) http://hurryupharry.org/2012/01/10/egypt-one-nation-for-new-holocaust/

http://hurryupharry.org/2012/08/29/in-defense-of-the-holocaust-obsessed/

56) http://www.ynetnews.com/articles/0,7340,L-4365132,00.html

57) http://www.islamophobia-watch.com/display/Search?moduleId=5533211&searchQuery=harry%27s+place
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http://www.islamophobia-watch.com/islamophobia-watch/2008/6/20/nazis-recommend-harrys-

place.html

http://www.islamophobia-watch.com/islamophobia-watch/2011/3/18/edl-recommends-harrys-

place.html

58)

http://www.studentrights.org.uk/article/2075/segregation_by_gender_advertised_at_mpacuk_conf

erence

59) http://www.workersliberty.org/story/2010/04/16/unite-against-fascism-gives-platform-anti-

semites

60) http://www.mpacuk.org/story/151110/mohammed-obe-tufails-homophobic-rant-elwyn-

watkins.html

61) http://www.mpacuk.org/faq#n653

62) http://www.guardian.co.uk/commentisfree/2007/may/31/vettinginpractice

http://jewssansfrontieres.blogspot.co.uk/2006/10/jew-controls-mpacuk.html

http://www.islamophobia-watch.com/islamophobia-watch/2005/4/20/dont-let-muslims-infect-our-

political-life.html

63) Mearsheimer, J. and Walt, S. The Israeli Lobby http://www.lrb.co.uk/v28/n06/mear01_.html

64) http://www.counterpunch.org/fisk04272006.html

65) http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2007/01/19/AR2007011901541.html

66) http://blogs.telegraph.co.uk/news/damianthompson/100041313/jewish-chronicle-accuses-

christian-aid-of-anti-semitism-for-linking-west-bank-settlers-to-child-sex-abuse/

67) Finkelstein, Beyond Chutzpah, 2005, p.21

68) http://www.mpacuk.org/content/view/10/554/111/

69) Channel 4 Dispatches 2006, produced by Ken Kirby

70) http://www.mpacuk.org/content/view/556/

71) http://www.mpacuk.org/story/110510/mpacuk-sisters-masterful-campaign-mesmerised-khalid-

mahmood.html

72) http://www.mpacuk.org/content/view/10/509/111/


74) http://www.publications.parliament.uk/pa/cm200708/cmhansrd/cm080515/debtext/80515-

0010.htm
http://www.islamophobia-watch.com/islamophobia-watch/2008/6/20/nazis-recommend-harrys-place.htmlhttp://www.islamophobia-watch.com/islamophobia-watch/2008/6/20/nazis-recommend-harrys-place.htmlhttp://www.islamophobia-watch.com/islamophobia-watch/2011/3/18/edl-recommends-harrys-place.html%2058http://www.islamophobia-watch.com/islamophobia-watch/2011/3/18/edl-recommends-harrys-place.html%2058http://www.islamophobia-watch.com/islamophobia-watch/2011/3/18/edl-recommends-harrys-place.html%2058http://www.studentrights.org.uk/article/2075/segregation_by_gender_advertised_at_mpacuk_conferencehttp://www.studentrights.org.uk/article/2075/segregation_by_gender_advertised_at_mpacuk_conferencehttp://www.workersliberty.org/story/2010/04/16/unite-against-fascism-gives-platform-anti-semiteshttp://www.workersliberty.org/story/2010/04/16/unite-against-fascism-gives-platform-anti-semiteshttp://www.mpacuk.org/story/151110/mohammed-obe-tufails-homophobic-rant-elwyn-watkins.html%2061http://www.mpacuk.org/story/151110/mohammed-obe-tufails-homophobic-rant-elwyn-watkins.html%2061http://www.mpacuk.org/story/151110/mohammed-obe-tufails-homophobic-rant-elwyn-watkins.html%2061http://www.mpacuk.org/faq#n653http://www.guardian.co.uk/commentisfree/2007/may/31/vettinginpracticehttp://jewssansfrontieres.blogspot.co.uk/2006/10/jew-controls-mpacuk.htmlhttp://www.islamophobia-watch.com/islamophobia-watch/2005/4/20/dont-let-muslims-infect-our-political-life.htmlhttp://www.islamophobia-watch.com/islamophobia-watch/2005/4/20/dont-let-muslims-infect-our-political-life.htmlhttp://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2007/01/19/AR2007011901541.htmlhttp://blogs.telegraph.co.uk/news/damianthompson/100041313/jewish-chronicle-accuses-christian-aid-of-anti-semitism-for-linking-west-bank-settlers-to-child-sex-abuse/http://blogs.telegraph.co.uk/news/damianthompson/100041313/jewish-chronicle-accuses-christian-aid-of-anti-semitism-for-linking-west-bank-settlers-to-child-sex-abuse/http://www.mpacuk.org/content/view/10/554/111/http://www.mpacuk.org/content/view/556/http://www.mpacuk.org/story/110510/mpacuk-sisters-masterful-campaign-mesmerised-khalid-mahmood.htmlhttp://www.mpacuk.org/story/110510/mpacuk-sisters-masterful-campaign-mesmerised-khalid-mahmood.htmlhttp://www.mpacuk.org/content/view/10/509/111/http://www.mpacuk.org/content/view/1060/39/http://www.publications.parliament.uk/pa/cm200708/cmhansrd/cm080515/debtext/80515-0010.htmhttp://www.publications.parliament.uk/pa/cm200708/cmhansrd/cm080515/debtext/80515-0010.htmhttp://www.publications.parliament.uk/pa/cm200708/cmhansrd/cm080515/debtext/80515-0010.htmhttp://www.publications.parliament.uk/pa/cm200708/cmhansrd/cm080515/debtext/80515-0010.htmhttp://www.mpacuk.org/content/view/1060/39/http://www.mpacuk.org/content/view/10/509/111/http://www.mpacuk.org/story/110510/mpacuk-sisters-masterful-campaign-mesmerised-khalid-mahmood.htmlhttp://www.mpacuk.org/story/110510/mpacuk-sisters-masterful-campaign-mesmerised-khalid-mahmood.htmlhttp://www.mpacuk.org/content/view/556/http://www.mpacuk.org/content/view/10/554/111/http://blogs.telegraph.co.uk/news/damianthompson/100041313/jewish-chronicle-accuses-christian-aid-of-anti-semitism-for-linking-west-bank-settlers-to-child-sex-abuse/http://blogs.telegraph.co.uk/news/damianthompson/100041313/jewish-chronicle-accuses-christian-aid-of-anti-semitism-for-linking-west-bank-settlers-to-child-sex-abuse/http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2007/01/19/AR2007011901541.htmlhttp://www.islamophobia-watch.com/islamophobia-watch/2005/4/20/dont-let-muslims-infect-our-political-life.htmlhttp://www.islamophobia-watch.com/islamophobia-watch/2005/4/20/dont-let-muslims-infect-our-political-life.htmlhttp://jewssansfrontieres.blogspot.co.uk/2006/10/jew-controls-mpacuk.htmlhttp://www.guardian.co.uk/commentisfree/2007/may/31/vettinginpracticehttp://www.mpacuk.org/faq#n653http://www.mpacuk.org/story/151110/mohammed-obe-tufails-homophobic-rant-elwyn-watkins.html%2061http://www.mpacuk.org/story/151110/mohammed-obe-tufails-homophobic-rant-elwyn-watkins.html%2061http://www.mpacuk.org/story/151110/mohammed-obe-tufails-homophobic-rant-elwyn-watkins.html%2061http://www.workersliberty.org/story/2010/04/16/unite-against-fascism-gives-platform-anti-semiteshttp://www.workersliberty.org/story/2010/04/16/unite-against-fascism-gives-platform-anti-semiteshttp://www.studentrights.org.uk/article/2075/segregation_by_gender_advertised_at_mpacuk_conferencehttp://www.studentrights.org.uk/article/2075/segregation_by_gender_advertised_at_mpacuk_conferencehttp://www.islamophobia-watch.com/islamophobia-watch/2011/3/18/edl-recommends-harrys-place.html%2058http://www.islamophobia-watch.com/islamophobia-watch/2011/3/18/edl-recommends-harrys-place.html%2058http://www.islamophobia-watch.com/islamophobia-watch/2011/3/18/edl-recommends-harrys-place.html%2058http://www.islamophobia-watch.com/islamophobia-watch/2008/6/20/nazis-recommend-harrys-place.htmlhttp://www.islamophobia-watch.com/islamophobia-watch/2008/6/20/nazis-recommend-harrys-place.html


23/23


75) http://jewssansfrontieres.blogspot.co.uk/2006/10/jew-controls-mpacuk.html

76) http://www.antisemitism.org.uk/wp-content/uploads/All-Party-Parliamentary-Inquiry-into-

Antisemitism-REPORT.pdf

77) http://jfjfp.com/?p=23498

78) http://www.judiciary.gov.uk/Resources/JCO/Documents/Judgments/eemployment-trib-fraser-v-

uni-college-union-judgment.pdf

79) http://www.guardian.co.uk/media/2002/feb/07/pressandpublishing.politics

80) http://www.marketingweek.co.uk/labour-party-withdraws-election-posters/2023843.article

81) http://www.guardian.co.uk/commentisfree/2007/may/31/vettinginpractice

82) http://www.mpacuk.org/os/content/view/5760/102/ - survivor interview

83) http://www.mpacuk.org/content/view/3309/ - reflections on Auchwitz podcast

84) http://www.mpacuk.org/content/view/1330/39

85) http://www.islamophobia-watch.com/islamophobia-watch/2006/11/19/observer-stitches-up-

mpacuk.html

86) http://education.guardian.co.uk/higher/worldwide/story/0,9959,1462408,00.html

http://observer.guardian.co.uk/uk_news/story/0,6903,1278580,00.html

http://www.mcb.org.uk/media/letter131.php

87) http://jewssansfrontieres.blogspot.co.uk/2006/11/asghar-bukhari-didnt-bankroll-irving.html


88) http://www.guardian.co.uk/uk/2006/nov/19/secondworldwar.religion

89) http://www.guardian.co.uk/uk/2000/apr/16/irving.comment


91) Robert Fisk, The Independent - 16/5/02
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