Today in Islamophobia

Today in Islamophobia: The United Nations’ top court will resume hearings into the alleged genocide against Myanmar’s Rohingya minority on Monday, with the military junta expected to represent the country in place of Aung San Suu Kyi, meanwhile in India, Human Rights Watch reports that “Indian authorities are wrongfully prosecuting activists and protest organizers under India’s anti-terrorism law two years after 53 people were killed in communal violence following peaceful protests against discriminatory citizenship policies,” and Gulbahar Haitiwaji, a Uyghur woman, details her experience in China’s concentration camps in a new memoir. Our recommended read of the day is by Philippe Marlière for Open Democracy on the French presidential elections and how the “citing of a poisonous anti-Muslim conspiracy theory has infected France’s political discourse.” This and more below:

France

The French presidential election is in a far-Right quagmire | Recommended Read

There are two themes that have taken centre stage in the run-up to the first round of the French presidential election. One is a naked nationalism and the fear of foreign invasion. The other is ‘the enemy within’, the label the far Right has imposed upon France’s Muslim community. Set in a reactionary climate, this presidential campaign is poised to descend into a racist and nationalistic quagmire by the time people cast their votes on 10 April, that is if it has not already. Even by the rancid nature of this particular campaign, a new low was reached last Sunday when the conservative candidate, Valérie Pécresse of Les Républicains, warned of the danger of a “Great Replacement” at a Paris rally. So preposterous and extremist is this conspiracy theory that even far-Right candidate Marine Le Pen has refused to engage with it. By contrast, Éric Zemmour, another far-Right hopeful, has made the “Great Replacement” theory the central issue of his campaign. The conspiracy theory, which has been cited by those who carried out mass killings in Christchurch and El Paso, was developed by French writer Renaud Camus, who described it as a “genocide by substitution” of the French indigenous population, and compared it to the genocide of the European Jews during the Second World War. In the epilogue of his 2011 Le Grand Remplacement book, Camus cites Enoch Powell’s “Rivers of Blood” speech as a major influence on his work. It can also be argued that the French far Right’s obsession with the “Muslim threat” is reminiscent of Édouard Drumont’s Jewish France. In the late 19th century, Drumont, an antisemite, argued that there was allegedly a “Jewish plot” to destroy Europe. Today, Muslims have seemingly replaced Jews in the so-called clash of civilisation against European culture. This white supremacy theory, which in truth originates from a larger and older “white genocide” conspiracy theory popularised in American neo-Nazi circles has now entered the mainstream of French politics through Pécresse, a conservative candidate. What is more, her speech was punctuated with thinly veiled attacks on Muslims and immigrants. True to the French elites’ obsession with the hijab, she declared that “Marianne [the name given to the female symbol who embodies the French Republic] does not wear a veil”. Pécresse’s intervention, billed as a major campaign speech, underscores France’s dramatic shift to the right. Critics have argued that the race now has three far-Right contenders who are credited with almost 50% of voting intentions altogether. That said, Pécresse may be ultimately vindicated: according to a recent opinion poll, up to 67% of French people worry about the “great replacement”. read the complete article

Conservative Valerie Pecresse is struggling in her bid to unseat Macron

Pecresse points Macron as an opportunist and a weather vane at her rally. When he took the presidency five years ago, Macron claimed he was neither left nor right. He's clearly shifted right, leaving his center-left voters feeling abandoned. There is no candidate in the fractured left-wing landscape who has a real chance in this presidential race. Pecresse, too, is chasing a French electorate that's moved to the right, pushed by fears of radical Islam, insecurity and immigration. But she may be overdoing it. In her latest rally, Pecresse mentioned the discredited, far-right conspiracy theory the great replacement. It contends that white Christian populations are being intentionally replaced by nonwhite immigrants. Though she was dismissing the theory, as a mainstream candidate, Pecresse was hugely criticized for uttering its name. That theory is a staple of this upstart candidate's campaign. Right-wing TV pundit Eric Zemmour's charisma and anti-immigrant, anti-Muslim discourse are electrifying crowds and turning a once predictable race on its head. The unlikely populist is from a Jewish family that emigrated from Algeria. He's running neck and neck with Pecresse and with the far-right standard bearer, Marine Le Pen. Zemmour is attracting conservative Catholic voters who've long shunned the Le Pen family and supported the mainstream right. Political analyst Christian Makarian says Zemmour could reshape French politics. "He's the game changer, potentially the game changer of the right. He's the only man who can reconciliate the far right and the classical parliamentary right." read the complete article

India

India: Biased Investigations 2 Years After Delhi Riot

Indian authorities are wrongfully prosecuting activists and protest organizers under India’s anti-terrorism law two years after 53 people were killed in communal violence following peaceful protests against discriminatory citizenship policies, Human Rights Watch said today. The authorities should immediately drop politically motivated charges and release the 18 activists and others detained. People responsible for abuses should be appropriately prosecuted, including supporters of the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP)-led government who instigated the communal violence and police officers who did not impartially enforce the law. “Indian authorities have been targeting activists for harassment and arrest instead of impartially investigating allegations that BJP leaders incited violence and police officials were complicit in attacks,” said Meenakshi Ganguly, South Asia director at Human Rights Watch. “The authorities should prosecute those responsible for the violence and stop using these investigations to silence critics of the government.” Hindu mobs, armed with swords, sticks, and bottles filled with gasoline, targeted Muslims in several neighborhoods in northeast Delhi, burning their homes, shops, mosques, and property. Forty of the 53 people killed in the violence were Muslim; a policeman and a government official were among the Hindus who died. Police investigations into the riots have been marked by bias, delays, inaccuracy, lack of proper evidence, and failure to follow proper procedures, Human Rights Watch said. The Delhi police filed 758 First Information Reports – police registrations needed to begin criminal investigations – into the riots. But two years later, according to a report filed by the police in the Delhi High Court, investigations are pending in over half the cases. Only 92 cases have reached trial. In a number of cases, judges have called out the Delhi police for delay in investigations, for failing to heed court orders, or for failing to appear in court. The independent Delhi Minorities Commission conducted an investigation that found that the violence was “planned and targeted” and that some policemen actively participated in the attacks on Muslims. In contrast, the Delhi police have filed politically motivated charges against 18 activists, students, opposition politicians, and residents – 16 of them Muslim. read the complete article

In hijab row, critics say India's BJP looking for votes in southern state

A series of religious laws promoted by India's ruling Hindu nationalist party in the southern state of Karnataka, including a ban on the wearing of hijabs, is raising concerns the divisive measures will stoke sectarian tensions more prevalent in the country's north. Prime Minister Narendra Modi's Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) recently banned wearing the hijab in classrooms in Karnataka, the only one of India's five southern states it rules. A proposal to make religious conversions largely illegal is being considered by the local legislature. The moves have become an issue of contention involving India's Muslim minority. Opposition parties and many political analysts accuse the BJP of fomenting tensions in Karnataka to consolidate its appeal to majority Hindus, like they say it has elsewhere in the country. Modi's office did not immediately respond to a request seeking comment. The BJP has denied that Karnataka's Feb. 5 hijab ban, a recent bill aimed at mainly preventing conversion of poor Hindus to Christianity and Islam, and a 2021 law prohibiting the slaughter of cows - considered sacred in Hinduism - were designed to pander to the majority community. BJP's Karnataka spokesperson Ganesh Karnik blamed Muslims for seeking what he called a different identity by insisting on wearing the hijab in class, and said the dispute could unite Hindus. "They look at every issue as a victim," said Karnik. "If they take a stand, the Hindu community will also take a stand. Our young girls and boys will be disturbed (thinking) why are they being given a special privilege?" He said the BJP was confident of retaining power in Karnataka state elections next year and then expanding further in the region. "We are expanding, we will rule more southern states. If not today, tomorrow, if not tomorrow, the day after," Karnik said. Muzaffar Assadi, a political analyst who teaches at Karnataka's University of Mysore, said the hijab issue targets youth who would be 18 and eligible to vote in time for next year's state election and the national election, which is due in 2024. "They are potential voters, so you just rake up the issue, create a wedge and ultimately you have a base for the next election," said Assadi. Muslims say the hijab row is another example of their marginalisation since Modi first took office in 2014 on a platform of good governance and a strong Hindu identity. read the complete article

Intolerant India: A state devoted to the humiliation of Muslims

Over the years, the Incredible India campaign chose various Bollywood stars as brand ambassadors, trying to drum up domestic as well as international tourism. Then in early 2016, a little over one year after current Prime Minister Narendra Modi took office (despite having been accused of condoning the 2002 massacre of Muslims while he was chief minister of the Indian state of Gujarat), Bollywood superstar Aamir Khan, who is Muslim, did not have his contract renewed to be the public face of the marketing campaign. At issue were statements that the star had made concerning the rising rates of Islamophobia in the country. Since then, Prime Minister Narendra Modi has designated himself as the brand ambassador for Incredible India. A more apt slogan for the country that exists today would be “Intolerant India.” As the New York Times, the Los Angeles Times, and other news outlets have noted, an unabashed Hindu nationalism is now carrying out organized campaigns meant to single out and persecute Indian Muslims. Last December, a meeting of a Dharma Sansad (“Religious Parliament”) told Hindus to turn India into a Hindu state by exterminating Muslims, an act that was not condemned by Prime Minister Modi. That last bit is not surprising; Modi has championed laws like the Citizenship Amendment Act, which introduced a religious qualification for citizenship that discriminates against Muslims. In the state of Uttar Pradesh, Chief Minister “Yogi Adityanath” (a name he has chosen for himself) is in step with Modi, with a record of hateful statements, such as: “If one Hindu girl marries a Muslim man, then we will take one hundred Muslim girls in return. . . . If they kill one Hindu man, then we will kill one hundred Muslim men.” That statement shines light on how misogyny, Islamophobia, and toxic masculinity are all tied up together in the devolution of India from a democracy to a tyrannical majoritarian state, where the humiliation of Muslims is just part of the political landscape. read the complete article

Twitter takes down Gujarat BJP post featuring caricature of Muslims being hanged

Twitter on Sunday removed an offensive post by the Bharatiya Janata Party’s Gujarat unit that featured a cartoon depicting a group of Muslim men being hanged in in the wake of Friday’s court verdict that sentenced 38 people to death in the 2008 Ahmedabad blasts case. The background of the cartoon showed the tricolour and the scene of the blasts. “Satyamev Jayate [Truth alone triumphs],” the caption to the post read. “No mercy to the perpetrators of terror.” The tweet has been taken down for violating the platform’s rules on hateful imagery. As of Monday morning, several posts featuring the cartoon could be seen on Facebook. Some accounts on Instagram, which is owned by Facebook, have also posted the cartoon. As of Monday morning, the posts have not been taken down. Several people who objected to the post on Facebook got a response from the platform stating that the caricature did not violate its community standards, according to Boom Live. The Gujarat BJP put out the tweet five days after the party’s unit in Karnataka tweeted the names and addresses of some of the girls who have moved the High Court seeking permission to wear hijabs in educational institutions. Sharing minors’ identities without their consent contravenes sections of the Juvenile Justice Act, the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences Act and the Indian Penal Code. read the complete article

Online “auctions” of women are just the latest attacks on Muslims in India

Rehbar was one of more than 100 Muslim women whose names and photographs were displayed on the fake auction site, which was hosted anonymously on GitHub in early January.  Following a massive social media backlash, GitHub took down the website, which was called “Bulli Bai”—a slur against Muslim women. But the event was only one of the latest online incidents targeting Muslims in India—and Muslim women in particular, many of whom have been vocal about the rising tide of Hindu nationalism since Prime Minister Narendra Modi came to power in 2014.  In July of last year, another fake auction site, called “Sulli Deals,” displayed profiles of more than 80 Muslim women. In the social audio app Clubhouse, Hindu men are “auctioning” off parts of Muslim women’s bodies and openly issuing rape threats. And in December, Hindu leaders organized an event in the city of Haridwar calling for genocide against Muslims. Soon after, videos containing provocative speeches went viral on social media.   In the first few weeks of January, police made arrests related to both online auction sites. But all told, critics say, the Indian government is not doing nearly enough to stem the targeting of Muslim women online. “If our government continues to remain silent in the face of this kind of hate-mongering, the message it will send out is that such criminal behavior targeting minorities will go unpunished,” says Geeta Seshu, founder of the Free Speech Collective, an initiative of journalists, lawyers, and civil society activists. An independent hate crime tracker documented more than 400 hate crimes against Muslims in India over four years, until his Twitter account was suspended in 2021. Muslim women targeted by the auction sites have included journalists, activists, lawyers, politicians, radio hosts, pilots, and scholars; they’re active on social media and speak out about issues, and specifically about rising Islamophobia in India. “I think the attack was to silence those who are vocal on social media,” Rehbar says. “This was a hate crime against Muslim women particularly.” read the complete article

China

Beijing Olympics come to an end, but plight of Uyghur Muslims goes on: ‘Games were a slap in our faces’

While the Olympic circus moves on, for the families of Uyghur Muslims trapped in detention camps in Xinjiang province the sporting event has served as a “slap in the face” and a stark example of global inaction in the face of their plight. A UN human rights panel has previously said it has credible reports that more than a million Uyghurs have been detained by the Chinese authorities in a campaign that some critics have described as “cultural genocide”. The Chinese government says the detention centres are voluntary vocational training centres, and on the eve of the Games agreed to a visit to the region by UN rights chief Michelle Bachelet — on the condition the trip should be “friendly”. read the complete article

The Forced Smiles of Beijing’s Olympics

At the opening ceremony of the Beijing Winter Olympics earlier this month, 20-year-old skier Dinigeer Yilamujiang placed the last torch into the snowflake-shaped cauldron. She later said, “My country gave me such an important task, and I must do it very well, with immense pride and joy in my heart.” Indeed, the task was much more important than it seems. But it was more than likely not a voluntary one. Dinigeer, a talented skier but not an exceptional one, was almost certainly chosen because she is a Uyghur. Beijing’s message is clear: Although “hostile Western forces” used China’s mistreatment of Uyghurs as an excuse to diplomatically boycott the Olympics, Dinigeer’s smile shows the world that reports of state repression of Uyghurs are lies. This is an old tactic of the Chinese Communist Party—and of other dictatorships. Minorities wearing forced smiles are trotted out to show that nothing is wrong. The human rights community has not hesitated to dub the Beijing event the “Genocide Olympics.” In Dinigeer’s homeland, Uyghurs, Kazakhs, and other Turkic peoples are being subjected to a horrific humanitarian disaster. At least a million have been held in concentration camps—called “reeducation centers” by the Chinese authorities, with the alleged purpose of fighting terrorism, extremism, and separatism—or charged with crimes against the state and sent to a growing prison system. In fact, what is being practiced is state terrorism. The reasons given for detention in the camps include wearing a beard or headscarf, having more children than permitted, clicking on foreign websites, having closed one’s own restaurant during Ramadan, storing so-called reactionary photos on cellphones, and more. Dinigeer often travels abroad to compete, but many of her fellow Uyghurs have been imprisoned in concentration camps for having studied or traveled abroad, contacted friends and relatives outside the country, or even tried to apply for passports. Dinigeer may not have family members imprisoned in the camps, but she likely has relatives and friends in the camps; almost every Uyghur has someone they know who is or was imprisoned. Uyghurs are either prisoners or hostages. Dinigeer is the Helene Mayer of Chinese leader Xi Jinping’s Olympics. read the complete article

A Uyghur woman releases her memoir, detailing 3 years in a Chinese reeducation camp

Gulbahar Haitiwaji has written a scorching memoir as one of the few people who've been able to tell their story. Her book, "How I Survived A Chinese Reeducation Camp: A Uyghur Woman's Story," written with Rozenn Morgat of Le Figaro and translated by Edward Gauvin - and Gulbahar Haitiwaji and her daughter Gulhumar, who will be translating, join us now from Paris. GULHUMAR HAITIWAJI: "I was - been living in France for 10 years at that time when a colleague in Karamay in Xinjiang called me on WeChat and told me to go back to China to make my administrative papers for anticipated retirement. As I never had any political activity in France and I also returned to China several times before, I had no doubts about this special request. Ten minutes after I arrived to the company, three policemen came from the police station and take me to there. And I had a full day of interrogation there. They showed me a picture of my daughter at the demonstration for the rights of East Turkestan in Paris, which I was not aware of." "Before they took me to that prison, they took me to the hospital of the city to take some fingerprints. They also take blood samples. After that, they forced me to sign an official accusation of public disorder in the reunion. That was the official name of the accusation. And they gave me their yellow uniform, which is the prison uniform. They put me to a cell - really small. But we were up to 40 women there. Normally the cell is made for nine people only. And all day we spend learning by heart the internal rules of the cell. They also attach us to a metallic chair during all the interrogation. The food is terrible. We only have some rice soup or vegetable soup. The worst part was when I was attached to the bed during 20 days without any reason." "There was not a big difference in the camps compared to the prison I'd been just before. The only big difference for me was that we don't have any chain on our foot. But we have to stay 11 hours every day in class. Before starting to eat or when the teacher comes in the class, we have to get up and say really loud three gratitudes - to the country, to the Communist Party and to Xi Jinping. And after a while, they gave to all of us a personal notebook and asked us to note everything - all our true feelings. But we all knew that it was a trap. We only noted our thanks and our gratitude to the system. We can't speak in Uyghur, and we cannot look at each other. We are always in line like robots." read the complete article

United Kingdom

Birmingham Trojan Horse affair: The Dudley student behind controversial podcast

The student journalist behind the podcast that has reignited discussion about the Trojan Horse affair has spoken about the ‘dark shadow’ it still casts across Birmingham and its Muslim population. The controversy is back in the headlines after Hamza Syed, originally from Dudley, joined forces with a renowned US podcaster to try to pin down who wrote the letter that sparked the chain of events back in 2014. Speaking to BirminghamLive from his current base in New York, 35-year-old Hamza said he had been ‘blown away’ by the reaction to the podcast, released by the New York Times earlier this month - including calls for a new public inquiry. In it Hamza and New York Times journalist podcaster Brian Reed embark on a three year quest to try to prove who they believe fabricated the letter that purported to be an exchange between co-conspirators in a plot to Islamify schools. The letter proved to be incendiary. It triggered a lengthy probe, with national intervention led by then Education Secretary Michael Gove leading to several substantial inquiries - one led by a counter terrorism chief - more than 20 urgent Ofsted inspections, sackings, resignations and school closures. Eight years on, and the podcast has been the catalyst for renewed discussion about the lasting impact. Operation Trojan Horse, depending on who you speak to, either showed up the reality of the threat posed by hardline Islamic ideology to ‘British values’; or was a scandal created in a climate in which all Muslims were viewed with suspicion and as potential terrorists. “So many people reacted with fear to our questions about Trojan Horse, as if there was something to hide,” said Hamza. “The council did not want us to do this story, people refused to engage with us,” he claimed during our online hangout. “It felt like we faced a conspiracy of silence around this, and more than once we were encouraged to back off. "Nobody died, nobody is in prison, those implicated were largely vindicated, yet there is a sense that this is somehow a dangerous story we must not speak about, or ask questions about." read the complete article

Netherlands

Study: Dutch Muslims spat on, beaten, discriminated in Islamophobic crimes

Muslims in the Dutch capital Amsterdam believe that Islamophobia is "becoming increasingly normalised in society," with many of them experiencing discrimination and hate crimes based on their outfit and names, according to a study. A study into Islamophobia and anti-Muslim hate crimes conducted by the Amsterdam municipality found that Muslims living in the city regularly face discrimination, the English-language newspaper NL Times reported on Sunday. It said that researchers in the study found that "respondents believe the normalisation of Islamophobia is fuelled by the increasing influence of the extreme-right spectrum of politics." "The media also plays a role, with many respondents saying that the way Muslims are portrayed has a polarising effect and contributes to a negative self-image," the study showed. "The Muslim community also has a role in this, with some respondents saying incendiary preachers harm society by magnifying the differences between secular and Muslim Amsterdam." Citing a local newspaper, Het Parool, the NL Times said: "They [Muslims] report being unable to find an internship because of their religion, being called names for wearing a hijab, and facing hate speech on social media without anyone batting an eye, researchers found." read the complete article

Myanmar

Myanmar junta to take place of Suu Kyi at ICJ hearings into Rohingya genocide claims

The United Nations’ top court will resume hearings into the alleged genocide against Myanmar’s Rohingya minority on Monday, with the military junta expected to represent the country in place of Aung San Suu Kyi. The claim that Myanmar’s military carried out genocide was brought to the international court of justice (ICJ) by the Gambia after a brutal 2017 military crackdown that forced an estimated 700,000 Rohingya to flee over the border to neighbouring Bangladesh. UN investigators have since alleged the military’s operations were carried out with “genocidal intent”. Previously, Aung San Suu Kyi travelled to the court to defend Myanmar against claims the military carried out mass murder, rape and destruction of Rohingya Muslim communities. She is now being held in detention at the behest of the military, which seized power in a coup last year and charged her with a raft of alleged offences. Campaign groups and human rights lawyers have raised concern over the issue, with the Myanmar Accountability Project stating it was “clear the junta has no basis on which to represent the state of Myanmar in any UN body, such as the ICJ or any international organisation.” A representative of the Rohingya Student Network, who spoke from Cox’s Bazar in Bangladesh, told the Guardian the case represented not only the prospect of justice for Rohingya people but also the “hope to bring a federal democracy in Myanmar for all those who are fighting [for an end to military rule] in Myanmar right now”. read the complete article

New Zealand

Islamophobic assault on students: Victims' families await news on disciplinary action

The families of the victims of an Islamophobic assault at a Dunedin school have not been told of the discipline the attackers will face, the Otago Muslim Association says. Hoda Al-Jamaa was sitting with her friends at Otago Girls' High School last week when three students approached and started beating her while they filmed the attack. The 17-year-old had her hijab ripped off and suffered a concussion. Last week, a member of Dunedin's Muslim community told RNZ it was not the first time the girls had faced Islamophobic abuse at the school. Otago Muslim Association chairperson Mohammed Rizwan said the three victims had since returned to school. "They actually started back at school last week. As for Hoda, she did start back but she was getting headaches and couldn't concentrate, so she's at home to allow her to recover," he said. The victims had not received any apology or message from their attackers, Dr Rizwan said. The families had been told there was a disciplinary meeting last Thursday, but they were not informed of its outcome. read the complete article

International

Bella Hadid’s statements about the hijab come at a pressing time for Muslim women

This month has been an unfortunately eventful one for hijabi women in Europe and South Asia. Just this week, France’s bill that proposes banning the hijab in sports was passed on to the country’s National Assembly, even after provoking widespread dismay from Muslims worldwide. Les Hijabeuses, a collective of French hijabi athletes, planned a protest in the form of a football game outside of the National Assembly earlier this month — but the demonstration ended up being banned by French police. Halfway across the world in India, images of Muslim students and teachers being forced to remove their headscarves before entering school grounds are going viral on social media, after educational institutes in southern India (a country with over 200 million Muslims) controversially banned the hijab. The humiliating footage has been spread across Instagram and Twitter, where many non-Muslims have also vocalized their disdain for this blatantly Islamophobic injunction. Meanwhile in New York, when Bella Hadid strutted down the Proenza Schouler runway in a fitted hood, I couldn’t help feel that niggling feeling again — the one that I couldn’t shake when Kanye West wore a full face-covering mask in Paris in violation of the country’s niqab ban, or when Vogue France praised Julia Fox’s headscarf but remained silent when the country’s senate voted to ban hijabs on women under 18, or when Kim Kardashian donned a head-to-toe black get-up at the Met Gala, bearing unsettling similarities to a burqa. Bella’s hooded New York Fashion Week appearance was by no means the first hijab-like accessory we’ve seen on western runways, but it occurred at a time where sentiments surrounding the hijab are at an all-time high worldwide. Thankfully, last night, the supermodel used her platform to help shed light on the plight of hijabi women who are facing injustices across the globe by posting a series of Instagram images of hijabi women. “The very same western countries that ban or hate the veil use it as a symbol to exoticize Star Wars characters and runway models,” writes Sarah Mainuddin in her book, Demystifying the Niqab. Muslim women are being denied their rights to cover up all over the world; meanwhile, hijab-like garments are perpetually flaunted in fashion as “cool” and “trendy”. Now, as Muslim women the world over find themselves at a crossroads when it comes to politics impacting their freedoms to cover their hair, perhaps fashion — an industry that has helped champion other causes like sustainability, queerness and body positivity — can help drive further change, dispelling misconceptions about Muslim women and endorsing their freedoms to dress how they wish to. read the complete article

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