this from daily mail newspaper in the U.K.

Muslim leaders summoned to talks with the Government on tackling extremism in their midst called for public holidays to mark their religious festivals.

The Whitehall meeting was set up in response to last week's airline bomb plot discovery.

Communities Secretary Ruth Kelly had prepared an uncompromising message on the need to tackle dangerous radicalism.

But, in what she admitted were 'sharp' exchanges, some senior Muslim figures turned the tables yesterday and made a series of demands which also included the introduction of Sharia law for family matters.

Dr Syed Aziz Pasha, secretary general of the Union of Muslim Organisations of the UK and Ireland, said: 'We told her if you give us religious rights, we will be in a better position to convince young people that they are being treated equally along with other citizens.'

Dr Pasha said Miss Kelly had agreed to look at the proposals, though her spokesman insisted later that she did not favour any legal change which would give 'special treatment' for the Muslim community.

Some of the 30 moderate Muslim leaders at the meeting told Miss Kelly that important days in their two main religious festivals - Ramadan and Eid-ul-Adha - should be made public holidays for followers of the faith.

Sharia law, which is practised in large parts of the Middle East, should also be introduced in Britain, they argued. While it specifies stonings and amputations as routine punishments for crimes, Dr Pasha said he wanted it only for family affairs.

Under the law, a husband pays his wife a dowry on marriage, and money and assets are shared out between family members in specified amounts after someone dies.

'We are willing to co-operate but there should be a partnership,' Dr Pasha said.

'They should understand our problems then we will understand their problems.'

A recent poll suggested that a third of British Muslims would rather live under Sharia law, while a similar number said they also hope Britain will one day become an Islamic state. But Dr Pasha claimed the legal changes he proposed would help convince young Muslims to integrate better into British society.

The Union of Muslim Organisations of the UK and Ireland claims to be a widely representative umbrella group. However, it does not include more influential and high-profile bodies such as the Muslim Council of Britain (MCB). Inayat Bunglawala, spokesman for the MCB, also attended the meeting but distanced his group from the calls for Sharia law.

He said: 'We believe one legal code should apply for all citizens of the UK. There is no place for multiple legal systems for people of different religious or ethnic backgrounds.

'If people object to a certain law they should campaign peacefully and democratically for a change - but only so that it applies to all people, not just Muslims.' The Government has accused Muslim leaders of a 'dreadful misjudgment' for claiming its foreign policy has fuelled the threat of extremism. An open letter, signed by three Muslim MPs, three peers and 38 community groups, said the 'debacle' of Iraq, combined with the recent failure to do more to bring about an immediate end to the Middle East conflict, had encouraged extremists who threaten Britain.

Three hours of talks

After more than three hours of talks with the senior Muslims, Miss Kelly insisted foreign policy in Iraq and the Middle East was not the 'root cause' of fundamentalism.

But she acknowledged there were 'different views' over aspects of Government policy and there had been a series of 'sharp and challenging exchanges'.

'There is a battle of hearts and minds to be won within the Muslim community, working with the Muslim community to take on the terrorist and extremist elements that are sometimes found within it, not just in the Muslim community, but elsewhere as well.'

Muslims must feel that if there was frustration on particular issue, there were ' democratic channels for that to be vented', she added. 'What I do accept is that there is a lot of anger and frustration out there in the community that needs to be properly expressed and vented through the democratic process.'

Deputy Prime Minister John Prescott and Communities Minister Meg Munn also attended the meeting. Moves being discussed include 'de-radicalisation forums' to help young Muslims engage with Government policy, improved spiritual guidance for Muslim university students and support for training of imams. Haras Rafiq, of the Sufi Muslim Council, said: 'The first thing that we need to do as a community is admit there is a problem.

'It is like being an alcoholic - we need to stand up and say these things and have an open and honest debate.'

Kharshid Ahmed, chairman of the British Muslim Forum, said: 'We believe that the threat is still external - it is people coming from outside and leading the radicalisation.

'We need to deal with that before people inside our communities are leading the radicalisation.'

There are currently eight permanent bank and public holidays in Britain. Three fall on religious days - Christmas Day, Good Friday and Easter Monday. The latter two are common law holidays - not specified by law as bank holidays as they were traditionally days of rest and to go to Church.

The other bank holidays were made law in 1871, to give their workers time off - causing other businesses dependent on the banks to follow suit.


http://www.dailymail.co.uk/pages/live/articles/news/news.html?in_article_id=400605&in_page_id=1770&in_page_id=1770&ct=5&expand=true#StartComments
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WOW!


See, I warned u guys about this!!! Is it just me or is anybody else feeling the rage burning under their feet about these stupid western empty suit politicians that will not send these 15th century animals back to were they belong,,,,,,like afghanistan or something,,,,,,

if they were,u are also

ayinla2005:

if they were,u are also

u are quite a slowpoke

Yeah Emeka83, I share your rage at the very idea of someone arriving as a voluntary immigrant in a secular democracy like the UK, and then becoming conceited enough to try and change the system of government in their newly adopted home from one that embraces freedom to one that subjugates women like pack animals, prescribes mutilation as a penalty for petty theft and death by stoning as punishment for adultery.

Prospective immigrants to ANY country in the world would do well to look really hard at the system of government in their intended destination, and then either cancel those travel plans if they are not prepared to assimilate the culture and political system of their new homeland, or alternatively go ahead and emigrate with the intention of being a true citizen of their adopted homeland in every sense of the word and with no hidden motive to "change the system" after getting there. In other words, the British authorities ought to spell out to any Islamic zealot who insists on Sharia law in the UK that a policy of "love it or leave it " is in effect, with jail and/or deportation from the UK available as a ready option to any fundamentalist who thinks otherwise.

Unfortunately for British Muslims,Britain has been a Christian stronghold from the Roman times.This is also evident in the Classic monasteries and churches like Westminster Abbey(built in the 10th century) and Salisbury cathedral.The Irish have been split into catholic and protestant camps and i don't think any Muslim has popped to claim a stake for Islam over there.
If Christianity cannot be legalized in Saudi Arabia or Iran(Islamic run nations),the British Muslims should Go to bed and hope sharia law will be instituted in the next life.Sooner or later they will be asking for the replacement of the British monarch with a Muslim shah or an ayatollah(like the Iranians)
Religion should be separated from politics.Whenever both are intertwined the consequences are underdevelopment,hypocrisy and the people that suffer the most are the common men and women who are meant to benefit from the good of religious and politically positive leaders.
peace.

except we can legalised christianity in saudi arabia , if not these muslimes zealots should mind them selves

Jakumo:

Yeah Emeka83, I share your rage at the very idea of someone arriving as a voluntary immigrant in a secular democracy like the UK, and then becoming conceited enough to try and change the system of government in their newly adopted home from one that embraces freedom to one that subjugates women like pack animals, prescribes mutilation as a penalty for petty theft and death by stoning as punishment for adultery.

Prospective immigrants to ANY country in the world would do well to look really hard at the system of government in their intended destination, and then either cancel those travel plans if they are not prepared to assimilate the culture and political system of their new homeland, or alternatively go ahead and emigrate with the intention of being a true citizen of their adopted homeland in every sense of the word and with no hidden motive to "change the system" after getting there. In other words, the British authorities ought to spell out to any Islamic zealot who insists on Sharia law in the UK that a policy of "love it or leave it " is in effect, with jail and/or deportation from the UK available as a ready option to any fundamentalist who thinks otherwise.

I totally agree with you Jakumo and emeka83,you just leave those animals, let them be jumping around, when they would have gotten the British government infuriated and fed up they would surely do something drastic about them, infact sharia law should be repealed in the nortern part of Nigeria with immediate effect.

u are fools for abusing all mus~lims. if you want to comment on the article do so but refrain from these stupid insults.

u are the type of idiots who keep progress at bay in Nigeria. emeka83, Jakumo and NINETOFIVE i'm talking to u. i dont have to tell u that all m*uslims will never become christians and christians will never become musl#ims. u have to get over that and find a way to live in peaceful co-existance. u dont agree with the article? share some useful knowledge not ur disgusting hatred.

better yet F off to Biafra or where ever u asses can kill and rob each other in peace (lol i couldn't help this!)