A blemish on Muslim image

Since the arrest of the terrorists early this month (June 3) the media in Canada have dedicated 80% of the news and analysis to the terrorists, their back ground, life style and day to day activities. The US government immediately tightened the border with Canada. Canada was blamed by a US senator for taking in too many immigrants without checking their backgrounds.

The 17 people who were arrested are alleged to be members of the homegrown terrorist cell plotting attacks in Canada. Many of them are very young, five of them are in their teens and school goers. All of them are Muslim by faith. One of them Steven Bikash Chand converted to Islam taking the name Abdul Shakur. They all are Canadian nationals. Their parents came from various ethnic backgrounds. Full first page photographs of these terrorists were being printed in the dailies. 12 of them were charged under terrorism provision of the criminal code for knowing, participating in, or contributing to, directly or indirectly, a terrorist group, or facilitating a terrorist activity. Three of them were charged concerning smuggling of guns (from USA). Nine of them were charged with training for the purpose of terrorist activity. The four men charged under the provision of criminal code were alleged to have either recruited or trained others for the purpose of terrorist activity. Six men were charged with intent to cause an explosion at the direction of or in association with a terrorist group. Out of the 12 accused one Fahim Ahmed, a 21 year old young man, has been laid with four charges and the rest of them, on average, accused with two charges. However, no Bangladeshi individual was found in this group.

This group ordered three tons of ammonium nitrate, an agricultural fertilizer, to use as explosive to blast key installations like the Parliament building, CN tower and CBC headquarters etc. One ton of similar explosive was used by convicted killer Timothy McVeigh in his 1995 bombing of Federal Building in Oklahoma City in USA that killed 168 people.

Details of allegations are: They planned to storm the Parliament Building in Ottawa; take federal politicians hostage; kill the hostages if the government refused to recall Canadian troops from Afghanistan; demand the release of “Muslim prisoners” being held in Canada (No specific names); blow up the media outlets including CBC headquarters in Toronto; behead Prime Minister Stephen Harper.

The day after the arrest of these terrorists, one mosque was vandalised. However general public reaction was cool as the Canadian people are tolerant by nature and believe in multiculturalism. The Muslim religious leaders condemned such plan of actions by the so-called young, adventurous, home grown terrorists.

Internet was the main linkage between them. They even openly chat on the internet. They used some religious places for interaction as alleged by the police who were tracking them for quite some time.

The Toronto arrest has been linked with more information about the activities of some young people in London. An internet café was raided and one young man by the name of Abid Khan, a British Pakistani, was arrested there. British police seized computer equipment etc. While looking for a 15-year old boy by the name of Sultan Khan London police searched the house of a spiritual leader, Yakub Munshi, (probably Bangladeshi) twice but found nothing. He is a leader of Tablighi Jamaat in London.

These are the adventurous young boys who are totally disillusioned between Islamic values and western way of life. They did not assimilate well with the Canadian/western culture. The outcome is the outburst of such a dangerous consequences. Their parents and some of their peers are to be blamed for inculcating fanaticism in them. Efforts should have been made to guide them within the mainstream of the society by their parents and teachers at all levels. They should be told that by practicing Islam or any other religion one could also easily be assimilated into a modern society and culture. Canada is a country which gives freedom and facilities to practice multiculturism and religion to all the immigrants.

Some moderates and columnists while analyzing the issue, gave their opinion saying that the present Prime Minister of Canada Mr. Stepheen Harper may be blamed to some extent for his latest decision to stop aid to Palestinian people for electing Hamas government through popular democratic process, and also for sending troops to Afghanistan while scenes of massacre by allied troops in Afghanistan and Iraq are shown in the media...

Canada did not have any enemy while Mr.Jeon Critean was the Prime Minister. The Muslim world was very well disposed to Canadian government and its policies. Why so now?

Mr. Thomas Walkom a popular columnist wrote in the Toronto Star, “Also the time chosen by police to arrest those terrorists last week come at convenient time for the Harper government. A rise in the public fear quotient could increase popular support for his decision to keep Canadian troops in Afghanistan another two years to wage war against Taliban and other insurgents.”

So far 27 Canadian soldiers have been killed in Afghanistan. Capt (Ms) Nicholai Goddard died in an encounter with resistance forces of Afghanistan and her funeral took place on 8th of May and was shown live in the electronic media.

Polls show that public support has been slipping for that war .The spectre of terrorism at home, however, might convince more Canadians that the Afghan war is necessary. The arrest also came at a time when Parliament is conducting a mandatory five-year review of Canada's new anti-terror laws. Before the arrests, there was a possibility that parliamentarians might recommend that the Harper government ease up on some of those laws. That now seems unlikely.

Whatever may be the case, at the end of the day the Muslims living in the western world are, in general, sufferers. Out of 750,000 Muslims living in Canada, 17 disgruntled and derailed youths were enough to blacken the faces of the Canadian Muslims who are law abiding citizens contributing to the economy and culture of the country and working hard to make Canada their home. It is the same with the Muslim population living in UK and USA who are, today, subjected to mental torture because they are Muslims who believe in a faith that has nothing to do with terrorism.

The writer is a former ambassador of Bangladesh.