LONDON: Three years since promising to establish a working definition of Islamophobia, the UK government will be questioned on the issue in parliament on Tuesday amid a growing backlash for its inaction.
Home Office statistics show Muslims are the most targeted faith group in England and Wales, accounting for more than 40 percent of religiously motivated hate crime.
Meanwhile, a slew of scandals has revealed anti-Muslim sentiment within the Conservative Party.
In 2018, a group of MPs and peers drew up a working definition to be adopted, stating the absence of one was allowing Islamophobia to “increase in society to devastating effect,” The Independent reported.
Describing Islamophobia as a “type of racism that targets expressions of Muslimness,” the definition was accepted by Labor and other opposition parties but rejected by the Conservative government.
In May 2019, the late James Brokenshire — then the communities secretary — said the government would establish a working definition of Islamophobia, adding: “To get a firmer grip on the nature of this bigotry and division we agree there needs to be a formal definition of Islamophobia to help strengthen our efforts.”
An expert adviser was hired but his work was halted after Boris Johnson became prime minister, The Independent reported.
Imam Qari Asim said that several letters to ministers have gone unanswered, including one requesting a meeting with current communities secretary, Michael Gove.
Asim claimed he was given no office, no financial resources, no staff, and no terms of reference to create the definition, and that the government demonstrated a “lack of meaningful engagement.”
According to The Independent, Gove fired him without notice in June after accusing him of supporting “a campaign to limit free expression” in connection with a controversial film depicting the life of the Prophet Mohamed’s daughter, which Asim denied.
In a letter responding to his dismissal, the imam said the government had “reinforced perceptions that it is not serious about addressing growing anti-Muslim hatred in this country.”
No new advisers have been appointed and there is no ongoing work on defining Islamophobia.
According to The Independent, Gove recently spoke out against the creation of a definition during a debate on extremism in September.
“I think there are dangers if a university or another organization, which should be the home of free debate, uses a definition like that to police what people can say in order to penalize them for it,” Gove said.
Marking the start of Islamophobia Awareness Month, Labour MP Afzal Khan will raise a point of order on Tuesday, asking why successive prime ministers have not responded to any of his letters about bigotry in the past two years.
“Their lack of action since 2018, coupled with the damning allegations made by Conservative MP Nusrat Ghani, all show that they simply do not take the issue seriously,” he told The Independent.
“Year after year, British Muslims are victims of the highest proportion of religiously motivated hate crime. This trend shows no sign of abating under the Conservative government.
“Yet, this revolving door of chaos has meant that consecutive prime ministers have failed to tackle Islamophobia and deliver on their promises.”
Yasmin Qureshi, the shadow minister for women and equalities, warned that the “scourge of Islamophobia is on the rise,” with hate crimes targeting Muslims up year-on-year.
“The Conservatives are the only political party in the UK to reject the APPG on British Muslim’s definition of Islamophobia,” she told The Independent. “Now Michael Gove has broken his promise to develop an alternative.
“With the revolving door of prime ministers scrabbling round to fix the mess they’ve created with the economy, it’s clear that tackling Islamophobia is an afterthought.”