By Iftikhar Ahmad
London School of Islamics, London, United Kingdom
The European Commissioner for Social Affairs has urged the Muslim community to adopt western values and way of life. The Home Secretary, Mr. David Blunket, has also urged Muslim parents to force their children to westernize themselves for better race relation and social adjustment in Western society.
The Black community, in spite of speaking the same language and sharing quite a few cultural and religious denominators, finds it difficult to adjust to the British way of life and society which is institutionally racist in character. The British Government should find ways and means to help the host community to learn to respect and understand those who are intrinsically different from them.
In the United Kingdom, Muslims would like to lead their life according to the laws of the land but the British society and the Government is an obstacle in their way. The Education Act of 1944 has given the right to set up community schools but there are so many social and economic impediments that it is impossible for the Muslim community to set up schools for each and every Muslim child in the United Kingdom. The silent majority of parents would prefer Muslim schools for their children. The British Government should help the Muslim community to set up schools for Muslim pupils. In my opinion those state schools where Muslim students are in the majority should be handed over to Muslim educational trusts and charities.
According to the Education Act of 1944, a teacher cannot get less salary if he performs his religious obligations. The law, however, does not apply to a Muslim teacher. In the 1970s I was forced to leave my full-time teaching assignment after five years of service because the ILEA refused to give me time off to attend my Friday afternoon prayers in a mosque. Recently, a Muslim teacher was given notice for taking a day off to celebrate the Eid festival. She felt insulted and submitted her resignation. On the other hand, a Jewish policeman was awarded compensation because the Police Authority refused to give him a day off every Saturday. He is not supposed to do any work on Saturday on religious grounds. Religious discrimination is the main factor for the younger generation of Muslims not taking up the teaching profession. Thus there is a shortage of teachers in schools where Muslim students are in the majority.