Radical Islamism Down Under

Muslims must resist democracy, says Hizb ut Tahrir

The various statements and speeches made at the ‘Uprising in the Muslim World’ conference organised by Hizb ut Tahrir in Sydney on July 3, 2011, provide an insight into the radical Islamist mind that has come to dominate community discourse ever since this year’s ‘Arab Spring’. Clearly, the dislodging of long-time rulers in Tunisia and Egypt, and the effort to squeeze out the Presidents of Syria, Yemen and Libya, are not seen as the first step towards establishing democracy, but the restoration of ‘Khilafat’.

Community leaders aligned with Hizb ut Tahrir spoke on ''The Muslim World in the 20th century: Totalitarian Western oppression'' and ''Western endeavours to frustrate the Islamic revival''. The official statement issued by Hizb ut Tahrir says among others, the following point was ‘established’:

“The Muslim World wants Islam, not secular liberalism. The spin to the contrary is persistent yet hollow. Calls for ‘democracy’ have been misconstrued by some and hijacked by others as being calls for liberal democracy as we know it in the West. They may be such for the small minority of secular elite in the Muslim World, but for the vast majority of Muslims they merely represent calls against dictatorship and for representative and accountable governance. Public opinion in the Muslim World on the role of Islam in society is not a controversial matter at all. All those who are politically active on the grassroots level, as we are across the entire Muslim World, know that the people en masse are in favour of change on the basis of Islam.”

Hizb ut Tahrir is proscribed in Germany for preaching and practising anti-Semitism. Russia declared it a criminal organisation in 1999. The group rejects democracy and urges Muslims in Australia to boycott elections. A similar stance is adopted by the group in Britain.

A perusal of what was said at the Sydney conference will show how utterly wrong the Left-liberal commentariat is in its assessment of the Arab street. But the Left-libbers won’t admit that they have got it all horribly wrong. As is their wont, they will insist that they are right, never mind the evidence to the contrary.

Ironically, it is the Left-liberal intelligentsia’s adoring indulgence of their excesses that has emboldened radical Islamists around the world, including in Australia. The Left-libbers’ urge to rationalise Islamist extremities and justify their outrageous utterances as well as deeds has led us to a situation where we can only watch in horror as the vitriolic campaign of hate of groups like Hizb ut Tahrir gather momentum and gain traction.

Australia is not alien to such provocative Islamist utterances. The former ‘Grand Mufti of Australia’, Sheikh Taj al-din al-Hilali, wanted for inciting terrorism in the country of his origin, Egypt, is given to describing women who do not wear the burqa as “uncovered meat” and blaming them for “enticing rapists”.

On one occasion, while addressing the faithful after Friday prayers at Lakemba Mosque in Sydney, Sheikh Taj al-din al-Hilali rose to the defence of a serial rapist, Bilal Skaf, asserting, “If I come across a crime of rape, kidnap and violation of honour, I would discipline the man and teach him a lesson in morals and I would order the woman to be arrested and jailed for life. Why? Because, if she hadn’t left the meat uncovered, the cat wouldn’t have snatched it... If one puts uncovered meat out on the street or the footpath or the garden or the backyard without a cover, then the cats come and eat it. Is it the fault of the cat or the uncovered meat?”

[Related article: Like 'uncovered meat']

Also see my earlier post: Veil of darkness