Militant Islam Monitor > Articles > Representative Tom Tancredo proposes "Jihad Prevention Act" against advocates of shar'ia here and abroad
Representative Tom Tancredo proposes "Jihad Prevention Act" against advocates of shar'ia here and abroad
September 24, 2008
Tom Tancredo
Tancredo Proposes Anti-Sharia Measure in Wake of U.K. Certification of Islamic Courts
"Jihad Prevention Act" would deny U.S. visas to advocates of ‘Sharia' law, expel Islamists already here
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According to recent news reports, a new network of Sharia courts in a half-dozen major cities in the U.K. have been empowered under British law to adjudicate a wide variety of legal cases ranging from divorces and financial disputes to those involving domestic violence.
"This is a case where truth is truly stranger than fiction," said Tancredo. "Today the British people are learning a hard lesson about the consequences of massive, unrestricted immigration."
Sharia law, favored by Muslim extremists around the world, often calls for brutal punishment – such as the stoning of women who are accused of adultery or have children out of wedlock, cutting off the hands of petty thieves and lashings for the casual consumption of alcohol. Under Sharia law, a woman is often required to provide numerous witnesses to prove rape allegations against an assailant – a near impossible task.
"When you have an immigration policy that allows for the importation of millions of radical Muslims, you are also importing their radical ideology – an ideology that is fundamentally hostile to the foundations of western democracy – such as gender equality, pluralism, and individual liberty," said Tancredo. "The best way to safeguard America against the importation of the destructive effects of this poisonous ideology is to prevent its purveyors from coming here in the first place."
Tancredo's bill, dubbed the "Jihad Prevention Act," would bar the entry of foreign nationals who advocate Sharia law. In addition, the legislation would make the advocacy of Sharia law by radical Muslims already in the United States a deportable offense.
Tancredo pointed to the results of a recent poll conducted by the Centre for Social Cohesion as evidence that the U.S. should act to prevent the situation in Great Britain from replicating itself here in the United States. The poll found that some 40 percent of Muslim students in the United Kingdom support the introduction of Sharia law there, and 33 percent support the imposition of an Islamic Sharia-based government worldwide.
"We need to send a clear message that the only law we recognize here in America is the U.S. Constitution and the laws passed by our democratically elected representatives," concluded Tancredo. "If you aren't comfortable with that concept, you aren't welcome in the United States."
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http://tancredo.house.gov/PRArticle.aspx?NewsID=1386
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| The Jihad Prevention Act |
FrontPageMagazine.com | Wednesday, September 24, 2008
International reaction was almost uniformly negative last week when news broke that Britain had officially granted Muslim Sharia courts permission to rule on everything from divorce to domestic violence. After all, in its strictest form, Sharia law requires the stoning of women accused of adultery, and the execution of converts from Islam, among other draconian punishments for offences that aren't even considered crimes in the West. In the U.K. and abroad, pundits and politicians denounced Britain's capitulation, but only one elected official responded with a daring proposal aimed at preventing Sharia law from gaining such a foothold in America.
That that politician was Rep. Tom Tancredo won't surprise observers of American politics. The Colorado congressman has long been an outspoken critic of the unofficial "open-borders" policy that encourages millions of undocumented immigrants – including would-be terrorists – to enter the U.S. each year. During his short-lived presidential campaign in 2007, Tancredo repeatedly raised the immigration issue during televised debates. He also aired a provocative television ad in which he promised to "stop all visas to nations that sponsor terrorism and [to] arrest and deport any alien who preaches violence and hatred."
The ad earned Tancredo scorn on the Left and also on some parts of the Right. Undaunted, he has now proposed a "Jihad Prevention Act" that "would bar the entry of foreign nationals who advocate Sharia law [and] make the advocacy of Sharia law by radical Muslims already in the United States a deportable offense." In his official announcement on September 18, Tancredo observed: "This is a case where truth is truly stranger than fiction. Today the British people are learning a hard lesson about the consequences of massive, unrestricted immigration."
"When you have an immigration policy that allows for the importation of millions of radical Muslims," he explained, "you are also importing their radical ideology – an ideology that is fundamentally hostile to the foundations of western democracy – such as gender equality, pluralism, and individual liberty. The best way to safeguard America against the importation of the destructive effects of this poisonous ideology is to prevent its purveyors from coming here in the first place."
Tancredo hopes his bill will spur public debate, and "send a clear message that the only law we recognize here in America is the U.S. Constitution and the laws passed by our democratically elected representatives…If you aren't comfortable with that concept, you aren't welcome in the United States."
So far, reaction to the "Jihad Prevention Act" has been muted on both sides, possibly because the media is providing wall-to-wall election coverage. Nonetheless, some prominent supporters have emerged. Having advocated similar measures in the past, the group Muslims Against Sharia praised Tancredo's initiative. So did scholar Andrew Bostom, author of The Legacy of Jihad. Bostom hailed Tancredo's "sane approach," adding, "Thank goodness for Congressman Tancredo's courage and clarity on this pressing matter!"
Tancredo also has an ally in columnist and author Diana West. In books like The Death of the Grown Up and in her syndicated columns, West has chronicled what she considers the decline of Western civilization, brought on by everything from a perpetually adolescent popular culture to radical Islam. "What I like about this proposed legislation," West said in an email interview, "is its clear, direct focus on Islamic law (Sharia)." Focusing on Sharia, West believes, is the "only way to grapple successfully with the repressive overlay of Islam on a society--understanding it as a function of law, and not religion." She points out that Tancredo's "bill allows us to see clearly through to the heart of the matter: the danger that unchecked Islamic immigration will bring about a constituency for Islamic law, leading to disastrous changes to our legal system."
To be sure, West does have some reservations about the bill. "I'm not sure how he proposes to determine which Muslim immigrants advocate Islamic law and which do not," she said. "I would prefer to see a general restriction on Islamic immigration to prevent the build-up of a demographic that wills Sharia. Moreover, West notes that this session of Congress is nearly over. Even if Tancredo's bill were "brought to a vote this week, I sadly doubt it will be passed." Still another problem is that there is scant enthusiasm in Congress for passing such a bill. With the notable exception of Rep. Sue Myrick, a Republican from North Carolina, the political class has failed even to address the conflicts between Islamic law and Western values – let alone to draft legislation to thwart the spread of Sharia in the U.S.
Europe may soon prove a model in this regard – the unhappy case of Britain notwithstanding. This December, Israel's Dr. Arieh Eldad, a former member of the Israeli Knesset, will host the Facing Jihad Summit in Jerusalem. The summit seeks to bring together "European lawmakers who are united in their shared belief that Islam today poses a serious threat to Western civilization." The idea is to create an alliance of politicians who can workshop legislation to prevent creeping Islamization, which they can then bring back to their home countries and create a voting block in the EU parliament. The attending parliamentarians will be joined by experts on radical Islam such as Daniel Pipes and Bat Ye'or, but bigotry will not be tolerated: Eldad emphasizes that the summit will bar "neo-Nazis and racist parties" like the British National Party. "Seven countries will be represented so far," Eldad told FrontPage.
And what of America? Eldad thought it likely that at least a few Capitol Hill politicians would attend the jihad summit. If so, Tom Tancredo might be an ideal delegate.
A blogger since 2000, Kathy Shaidle runs FiveFeetOfFury.com. Her new e-book Acoustic Ladyland has been called a "must read" by Mark Steyn. http://www.frontpagemag.com/Articles/Read.aspx?GUID=5D79605E-C8BF-4AA9-9096-6F846283F749
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MIM: A press release about the upcoming "Facing Jihad" Jerusalem summit.
Press release
EUROPEAN LAWMAKERS TO MEET REGARDING THREAT OF ISLAM AT DECEMBER 2008 JERUSALEM SUMMIT
SUMMIT HOST MK PROF. ARIEH ELDAD:
ISLAMIC EXPANSION THREATENS THE VERY BASIS OF WESTERN CIVILIZATION
(JERUSALEM; 3 SEPTEMBER 2008): Israeli Member of Knesset Professor Arieh Eldad (National Union) unveiled plans today for Facing Jihad, a summit of European parliamentarians united against the threat of Islamic expansion.
The summit, to be chaired by MK Eldad at the Knesset – Israel's parliament – in Jerusalem on December 14-15, 2008, will play host to some 30 European parliamentarians from Belgium, Denmark, Italy, the Netherlands, Sweden, Switzerland and the U.K., who oppose Islamization as well as immigration policies that disrupt social cohesion.
"Facing Jihad: a Lawmakers' Summit is the first opportunity fora newly-formed coalition of parliamentarians to assist each other in fighting the transformation of the European continent into Eurabia and in safeguarding the State of Israel as a Jewish nation and a beacon of democracy and freedom in the Middle East," said MK Eldad. "Islamic expansion must be stopped. If Jerusalem capitulates, then Europe will be next."
In addition to sessions expected to be led by European Parliamentarians and internationally renowned intellectuals, MK Eldad plans to hold a screening in the Knesset of Fitna, the controversial film by Dutch parliamentarian Geert Wilders about the reality of Islam. Mr. Wilders will also speak at the conference.
"I look forward to screening Fitna at the Facing Jihad summit in Jerusalem," said MP Wilders. "Europeans are already contending with Islamic expansion in their own backyards, and the time has come to discuss these threats with other like-minded legislators in Europe."
Facing Jihad: a Lawmakers' Summit, (www.facingjihad.com) sponsored by the Ariel Center for Policy Research, will focus on the principle that urgent action is required to defend traditional fundamental European rights such as the liberty of individuals, the rule of law, democracy, freedom of speech and the equality of all before the law, as well as the traditional identity and sovereignty of Western nations.
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ABOUT PROFESSOR ARIEH ELDAD, MK
Brigadier-General (res) Prof. Arieh Eldad, M.D., is an Israeli physician, writer and member of the Knesset, representing the National Union Party.
ABOUT THE ARIEL CENTER FOR POLICY RESEARCH
The Ariel Center for Policy Research (ACPR) was established in 1997 as a non-profit, non-partisan organization focusing on Israeli security policy, especially in connection with the Oslo political process. The ACPR believes a true peace can only be obtained in the Middle East if Israeli security and national interests are safeguarded.
http://facingjihad.com/in-the-media/press-release/
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