The publisher of his report was the allegedly conservative (I say allegedly because there’s nothing conservative about sectarian bigotry) thinktank Policy Exchange. The tank describes itself as being
... committed to an evidence-based approach to policy development … in partnership with academics and other experts.
Since that time, PE has published another report about how a fair proportion of UK mosques were distributing allegedly extremist literature. Yet an investigation into the research methodology used in the report shows a substantial amount of fabricated evidence.
It’s interesting to note that the volunteers who allegedly visited the mosques on behalf of PE are apparently from an organisation called the "Sufi Muslim Council” which was recently endorsed by the UK government. The chairman of that council is a Sufi "teacher" named Sheik Muhammad Hisham Kabbani.
Sheik Kabbani follows a line of Turkish sufis known as “Naqshbandi”. This order of sufis was described in an article in the most recent issue of Quadrant as promoting jihadist political ideology and of being “Islam’s Trojan horse” in the West.
So there you have it. One conservative think tank uses to expose jihadist literature members of a group which another set of conservatives describes as themselves being jihadists. Go figure.
As for Gerard Henderson, methinks he should think twice before allowing his name to be tarnished by association with groups exposed as fabricators of evidence.
UPDATE I: Here is how an anthropologist critiqued the report.
UPDATE II: The anthropologist writes to the PE report author here, and receives a response here.
UPDATE III: A somewhat flippant response here.
Words © 2007 Irfan Yusuf
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10 comments:
It's important that we do not report on hate literature in mosques. And that the Muslim researchers are hunted down. Right?
Teams of young muslim students forged some reciepts. How did this researcher expect muslims to act honestly? Especially in anything which involved the money of non-muslims.
It is a non-issue. No-one expects muslims to act honestly. It is evident that much of this offensive material was supplied free by the Saudis and voluminously supplied and often free of charge. When asked for a reciept the young muslim students did what any self-respecting lying muslim would do and wrote their own.
A more important survey would be to go to muslim schools and muslim children's camps and try and find one that DID NOT supply offensive brainwashing material. Or find a muslim house that did not contain Protocols of the Elders of Zion.
There is one well known forgery which should be banned. Muhammed was illiterate. The Quran is a forgery and very offensive as are most of the Hadith's. The only people who have fabricated evidence are muslims.
marvin, did you leave the anonymous comments as well?
Some people are just a bundle of hatred and fear, aren't they?
Cheers,
Rhys.
Great to see Policy Exchange ppl read this blog regularly ...
Good lord, some lunatics commenting here.
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