South view of the building

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MIM: In 1994 the plans for the center were deemed " a mish-mash of Eastern and Western influences which cannot preserve or enchance the character of Oxford."

In 2004 the Islamic Center at Oxford is one more indication that it may soon be too late to preserve the character of Britain.

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A Spectre is Haunting Europe

"...The Center for
Islamic Studies is currently building in my old university a new
center for Islamic studies. I quote: "Along the lines of a traditional
Oxford college around a central cloistered quadrangle, the building
will feature a prayer hall with traditional dome and minaret tower."
It will open next year. I wonder what Gibbon would have said...

Gibbon might have asked where European culture was. He would have
remembered the many instances in which nations although physically
overpowered imposed their way of life on their would-be conquerors.
The Greeks upon the Romans, the Chinese upon the Mongols, Islam upon
the Turks and Hordes of Central Asia. Gibbon might have observed how
the actual majority of persons in Saudi Arabia, that most Islamic of
countries, are actually expatriates, many of them Christians, yet how
these expatriates were unremittingly pressured to conform to the
strictures of Islam. He might have asked why native Europeans, with
every advantage of literacy over the immigrant droves cannot bring
themselves to do the same. But would that would bring us to the other
missing major figure in Ferguson's argument. European Marxism.

Between the era of Christendom and today's decadent Europe, we had the
Continent Militant, the Church of the First, Second and Third
Internationals. The correct metric is not Anglican Church attendance
but membership in Greenpeace. And if only 1 in 10 Northern Europeans
attend church how many are religiously devoted to the precepts of the
United Nations? The two phenomenon are related. The absence of a
dynamic European identity is deeply connected to the soft Marxist
orthodoxy that mandates its demise and regards all its manifestations
as shameful. Europe is the grasp of a cultural suicide pact inked in
1848 and it will not survive until it rescinds it.

If America remains itself while Europe fades away, it may be in part
due to the absence of a Western Hemisphere Islamic hinterland ready to
overrun the Southern US border, but it will owe more to the fact that
America escaped the sorcerer's spell which has locked Europe in irons.
But perhaps people have already made their choice. America is, after
all, populated largely by those who rejected the gulags, worker's
parties, street rallies and manifestations of collective strength just
as Europe is peopled by those who decided to remain in spite of them.
Yet Europe is not doomed -- not yet -- if in the words of their own
sorcerer "they openly declare that their ends" -- the preservation of
their heritage and culture, are nonnegotiable. They must choose
between Marx and survival. What should they fear, if sharia is the
alternative? The Europeans have nothing to lose but their chains.

http://groups.google.com/groups?hl=en&lr=&ie=UTF-8&oe=UTF-8&threadm=9312d9f1.0404041822.41e6b30b%40posting.google.com&rnum=10&prev=/groups%3Fq%3Dcenter%2520for%2520islamic%2520studies%2520at%2520oxford%26hl%3Den%26lr%3D%26ie%3DUTF-8%26oe%3DUTF-8%

MIM: The sun has set on the British Empire and a " new Dark Ages of Mecca" is dawning.

http://www.oxcis.ac.uk/ website of the Oxford Center for Islamic Studies

The ICIS guest lecturers have included Prince Charles, The Malaysian Prime Minister Mathathir, and present and Jack Straw , MP Secretary of State of the British and Commonwealth Office. http://www.oxcis.ac.uk/mpl/index.html

Since the 1990's there have been persistent rumours that Prince Charles is a secret convert to Islam

In 2003 The Malaysian Prime Minister Mathathir Mohamed gave a well received speach in front of delegates from 57 Arab countries which was virulently anti Western and anti semitic..

Mathathir's inclusion as a lecturer at the OCIS and the 2002 visit to Malaysia by the center's director Ahmad Nizami (see article below) (which was funded by the British government via Jack Straw) , provides a clear "mission statement" regarding the Islamist agenda of the OCIS and it's affiliates.

http://www.adl.org/Anti_semitism/malaysian.asp

There is a feeling of hopelessness among the Muslim countries and their people. They feel that they can do nothing right. They believe that things can only get worse. The Muslims will forever be oppressed and dominated by the Europeans and the Jews. They will forever be poor, backward and weak. Some believe, as I have said, this is the Will of Allah, that the proper state of the Muslims is to be poor and oppressed in this world.

But is it true that we should do and can do nothing for ourselves? Is it true that 1.3 billion people can exert no power to save themselves from the humiliation and oppression inflicted upon them by a much smaller enemy? Can they only lash back blindly in anger? Is there no other way than to ask our young people to blow themselves up and kill people and invite the massacre of more of our own people?

It cannot be that there is no other way. 1.3 billion Muslims cannot be defeated by a few million Jews. There must be a way. And we can only find a way if we stop to think, to assess our weaknesses and our strength, to plan, to strategise and then to counter attack. As Muslims we must seek guidance from the Al-Quran and the Sunnah of the Prophet. Surely the 23 years' struggle of the Prophet can provide us with some guidance as to what we can and should do.

---------------------------------------------------------

------------------------------------

A Trust of which the Prince of Wales is patron is being taken to the High Court

over a center combining Islamic and Gothic styles that Muslims plan to build in
the heart of Oxford. A " dreaming spire " to be built is part of the problem
Merton
College, which owns the 1.6 acre site, has dismissed the plan as a "mish-mash
of Eastern and Western influences which cannot preserve or enhance the special
character of Oxford". It has asked the High Court to end a lease agreement
entered into in 1994 with the Oxford Center for Islamic Studies, of which the
Prince of
Wales is patron, on the basis that it was not properly consulted by the
center's trustees. The £20 million building earmarked for a sensitive site
between Magdalen College and St Cross Church is being financed by King Fahd of
Saudi Arabia and has the backing of the Prince of Wales. The center, for about
100 fellows and students, would include a 75ft dome and a 108ft tower - 36ft
lower than Magdalen. It was designed by Abdel Wahed al-Wakil, who is considered
to be the leading Muslim
architect in Britain. A spokesman for Merton College, which was appalled when
it first saw the design, said: "The matter is now being pursued through the
courts. We are moving towards a hearing later this year." The scheme has caused
bitter divisions within the university.

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http://www.meforum.org/pf.php?id=356

Prince Charles of Arabia

by Ronni L. Gordon and David M. Stillman
Middle East Quarterly
September 1997

Ronni L. Gordon and David M. Stillman are associate scholars of the Middle East Forum

[T]he effort for these years to live in the dress of Arabs, and to imitate their mental foundation, quitted me of my English self, and let me look at the West and its conventions with new eyes: they destroyed it all for me.
- T.E.Lawrence Seven Pillars of Wisdom¹

Prince Charles has often surprised his future subjects, but few shocks match the allegations of a newspaper article that appeared in October 1996:²

The idea of the Prince of Wales lugging around a prayer mat and turning to face Mecca five times a day sounds a tad unlikely - but, then again, so did confessing to adultery on prime-time television a couple of years ago. So perhaps no one should be shocked by the suggestion in a forthcoming book that Prince Charles has converted to Islam.

This claim was put forward by no less a personage than the grand mufti of Cyprus: "Did you know that Prince Charles has converted to Islam. Yes, yes. He is a Muslim. I can't say more. But it happened in Turkey. Oh, yes, he converted all right. When you get home check on how often he travels to Turkey. You'll find that your future king is a Muslim."³ "Nonsense," replied a Buckingham Palace spokesman, denying Charles's supposed conversion. Lord St. John of Fawsley, a constitutional expert, is no less dubious, commenting that "The Prince of Wales is a loyal member of the Church of England."⁴ Some time later, a leak to the press told of Charles's "desire to play a greater role in the Church of England," an apparent attempt to reinforce the prince's Anglican credentials.⁵

Rumors about the Prince of Wales's conversion to Islam may well be inaccurate; even so, the fact that spokesmen official and unofficial felt compelled to deny this fact results from persistent speculation about Charles's religious loyalties that arises out of his statements and actions of recent years. And these, in turn, reflect a larger trend in Western society....

CONCLUSION

...The denigration of the West at the expense of a foreign tradition that Charles engages in occurs quite commonly among the West's intellectual elite. For some it is Islam, for others Tibetan Buddhism, Maoist thought, or American Indian spirituality. In all cases, the alien is assumed superior to the familiar. Arthur Schlesinger replies to this that there remains

a crucial difference between the Western tradition and the others. The crimes of the West have produced their own antidotes. They have provoked great movements to end slavery, to raise the status of women, to abolish torture, to combat racism, to defend freedom of inquiry and expression, to advance personal liberty and human rights.²⁴

Should Charles persist in his admiration of Islam and defamation of his own culture, it could be, as The Independent puts it, that his accession to the throne will indeed usher in a "different kind of monarchy."

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http://groups.google.com/groups?q=center+for+islamic+studies+at+oxford&hl=en&lr=&ie=UTF-8&oe=UTF-8&as_qdr=all&selm=vqZy9.132747%24Yb1.130390%40sea-read.news.verio.net&rnum=8

In 2002, Farhan Nizami, the director of the Oxford Center for Islamic Studies bashed Israel on a UK government funded visit to Malaysia and stated that :"Muslims should stop being apologetic for the September 11 attacks on the United States and for Western ignorance about Islam".

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KUALA LUMPUR - A British Muslim scholar, on a visit to Malaysia
funded by his government, spoke on Wednesday of growing European
sympathy for Palestinians and said Muslims should not carry the
stigma of last year's September 11 attacks.

Farhan Nizami, director of Oxford University's Oxford Center for
Islamic Studies, said the two million Muslims in Britain as well
as non-Muslims "feel the pain" of Palestinians and followers of
the Islamic faith elsewhere."The feeling is very strong across the board in the British
society," he told a group of academics. "The position in Europe
on the Palestinian issue is also very different than what used to
be. The position is more towards the Palestinians."

The British High Commission (embassy) said Nizami's trip was
aimed at promoting a better understanding among Malaysians about
Islam and Muslims in Britain.Nizami made no mention of Iraq.

Britain has been criticized by Malaysia and many Muslim countries
for Prime Minister Tony Blair's support for U.S. President George
W. Bush's tough stance towards Iraq.

Iqbal Sacranie, Secretary-General of the Muslim Council of
Britain, last month warned the U.S. and Britain against further
alienating Muslims by using the United Nations to justify a war
against Iraq while continuing to disregard UN resolutions on
Israel.

Nizami said Muslims should stop being apologetic for last year's
September 11 attacks on the United States and for Western
ignorance about Islam.

"What I do not agree that Muslims should necessarily go around
the world apologizing for anything."

"There are people who are narrow-minded. When you are talking
about terrorism, there are terrorists who come in all shapes and
forms and colors and faith," he said. "It has nothing to do with
being Muslims or Jews or being Christians."

By Reuters

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MIM: At the "Freshers Fair" at Oxford aimed to give information about campus activities to incoming students ,the Islamic Union of Islamic Students distributed copies of their newsletter which warned against "hedonism" and contained a message about Muslim unity which stated that "the issue was a matter of life and death...and one which the believers must implement kill or be killed for it's implementation".

The organiser of the Freshers Fair did not accept ready to accept Emran Islam's explanation that the articles were "intended to stir debate on current Islamic issues" and are considering taking the publication to the head of the Univesity for further investigation.

Below Emran Islam's response.

He begins his letter by whining about "anti Islamic sentiment" at Oxford.

and claims that Islam does not "aim to impose it's viewpoints on others". In the next sentence he proclaims that that ,"Islam is the creed from which emanates (sic) the systems to organise personal and societal life ".and concludes by saying stating the credo of Daw'ah (the obligation to teach Islam to infidels), since the "correct and productive way of life for all human beings can only be Islam.

" The ISOC feels it to be its duty to widen the perspective of all who wish to engage, to encourage debate in the university about the correct and productive way of life for all human beings - a necessity and an obligation for the future generation of leaders.

http://216.239.51.104/search?q=cache:aWCWsprwbaYJ:www.oxfordstudent.com/2003-10-23/news/1+islamic+society+of+oxford&hl=en

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"Frightening"

OU Islamic Society defend "inappropriate material" at Freshers' Fair

Vishesh Srivastava

A controversial publication distributed at the Freshers' Fair has left the Oxford University Islamic Society (ISoc) at the centre of serious allegations over the document's criticisms of university life. The newsletter 'Al-Ehsan', given to freshers who signed up for the society, was sent anonymously to The OxStu with a letter describing the contents as "frightening".

Highlighted in the document were passages that could be interpreted as anti-university, anti-freshers' week, and anti-student union. Emran Islam, ISoc President, who compiled the newsletter, was quick to defend his choice of articles. Speaking exclusively to The OxStu, Islam emphasised that the articles, written by commentators who are not affiliated to the society, were included specifically to encourage debate on current Islamic issues.

Much of the criticism was directed at an introductory article about unity within Islam, which suggested that the issue was "a matter of life and death", and one which "the Believers must implement even if they have to kill or be killed for its implementation". This viewpoint, however, was described by Mr Islam as "referring only to the author's views on capital punishment, which are valid only within the historical context of a theoretical Muslim state, and not applicable to this society. Under no circumstance," said Mr Islam, "does ISoc advocate any form of violence."

Objections raised by other articles, however, about the nature of the university life were, according to Mr. Islam, "simply using real statistics to highlight what is really happening" and "intended to make people aware of the problems". One article criticised Freshers' Week as period of "pre-planned hedonism" which will result in "misery, pain and immense promiscuity". University culture is further described as promoting an environment in which "one in 50 female students will be raped, probably whilst under the effects of alcohol."

The same article accuses student unions of encouraging promiscuity through their welfare networks. Noor Drummond, ISoc's Male Welfare Officer, distanced the society from such a standpoint, saying that they were "in no way criticising OUSU", and would be "willing to direct any member to OUSU welfare". Both Drummond and Islam criticised the comprehensive distribution of free condoms, however, saying that it gives people the idea that university life is based around sex and that they too must conform. "It may be fine for some students, but this does not apply to everyone - many do not want to engage in such a lifestyle. Devout Christians too may find it revolting".

Defence of the publication has not found sympathy with OUSU's VP (Welfare) Rosie Buckland, who told us that "the fair is an inclusive event for everyone, and material of this nature should not have been there." She assured us that OUSU's welfare network "doesn't push people in any way. It's important we provide condoms - the message is not that people should have sex, but that they should use safe contraception if doing so."

The source of the complaint, meanwhile, remains unknown, though Mr Islam admitted to The OxStu that "for some years now there have been people who want to cause harm to the reputation of ISOC. There are some that would prefer that we were not involved with any promotion of Islamic ideas within the university". It has since become known that OUSU are considering taking the publication to Proctors for their perusal.

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OU ISOC Response

Dear Sir and Madam,

In the name of Allah, the Most Beneficient, the Most Merciful

It seems that since September 11th, Islam has been the focus of much negative press, as well as continuous stereotypes, which degrade and distort Muslims and Islam respectively. Oxford is a microcosm of the wider world, and even in Oxford, there appears to be a strong propagation of anti-Islamic sentiment.

Accusations have been made that the ISOC is anti-university, anti-freshers week and anti-student union. Such claims are INACCURATE. However, the ISOC has every right to discuss the most pertinent issues, which are applicable to Muslims and non-Muslims. OUSU's VP (Welfare) Rosie Buckland stated: "the fair is an inclusive event for everyone, and material of this nature should not have been there". In response to this, if the fair is INCLUSIVE FOR EVERYONE, then by definition the ISOC has the right to have its own viewpoint on the issues. Surely this is "inclusive for everyone?"

The ISOC does not aim to impose its viewpoints on others. However Islam is a creed from which emanates the systems to organise personal and societal life. It is a complete ideology (Deen) and as such it has its own viewpoint built upon its own philosophy which may or may not concur with the mainstream consensus. The ISOC feels it to be its duty to widen the perspective of all who wish to engage, to encourage debate in the university about the correct and productive way of life for all human beings - a necessity and an obligation for the future generation of leaders.

Yours faithfully,

Emran Islam
President, OU ISOC

http://www.oxcis.ac.uk/visit/vismain.html

Scholars available for the Oxford Center for Islamic Studies includes the Saudi ruler prince Saif Nahayan and Mohammed Bin Laden Osama's father .

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http://groups.google.com/groups?hl=en&lr=&ie=UTF-8&oe=UTF-8&threadm=19980130132201.IAA27829%40ladder03.news.aol.com&rnum=1&prev=/groups%3Fq%3Dcenter%2520for%2520islamic%2520studies%2520at%2520oxford%26hl%3Den%26lr%3D%26ie%3DUTF-8%26oe%3DUTF-8%26sa%3DN%26as_qdr%3Dall%26tab%3Dwg