Journey of Faith Conference

What is it with the Muslim population living in Western societies as a personal preference because it offers them stability and opportunity to attain a kind of lifestyle they can appreciate on a secular basis, with the freedom to practise their religion, along with other freedoms guaranteed to all those living in democratic countries, that they cannot understand about what they owe their adopted countries?

Muslim communities tend to be parochially ingrained, intent on setting themselves apart from the general community. It is understandable, this is where their comfort level is attained.

But without interaction with the general community representing people from all over the world in a country like Canada, how will an isolated community that deliberately takes pains to set itself apart, become a living part of a pluralist society? Become, in fact, more to the point, Canadian?

Perhaps the answer lies in the need to expunge the very idea of the usefulness of multiculturalism in Canada, and to ensure that people coming from backgrounds, cultures and societies so very different from Canada's understand before emigrating that they must adopt Canadian values.

The trouble with Canada, and with Canadians, is that we've swerved from such a huge degree from our original denial of entry to those whose backgrounds did not represent those of the founding communities; French and English, to embracing with wild enthusiasm a rainbow of ethnicity, culture and heritage, without thinking about Canada's ability to absorb and to cultivate an aura of Canadian-ness in the alphabet soup of origins.

Which has, in the last four decades, greatly disadvantaged social homogeneity.

It's quaint and colourful to have Chinatowns and Little Italys, and the like, but it is hugely dysfunctional to have enclaves of ethnic and/or religious groupings violently opposed to one another. And this, precisely, is what is developing within Canada.

And when an Islamic social community proudly invites as its high-lighted guest speaker an avid, rabid Islamist known for incendiary language and racist declarations, to a conference in Toronto, this is a signal that something has gone horribly wrong.

The founder of Mumbai's 'PeaceTV', a ranting-raving diatribist whose racist and hateful war-mongering speeches who insists that "every Muslim should be a terrorist" and Jews represent Islam's "staunchest enemy" has no place speaking to a hugely-attended conference in Canada.

He has been denied a visitor's visa to speak in Great Britain, and is being denied similarly a visa to Canada for the same purpose. We do need exceptional attention to be given to those who would come to this country to incite hatred.

We do not need nor wish any Canadian citizens to believe that someone who recommends capital punishment for homosexuals and the death penalty to be invoked for those who abandon Islam, and the encouragement of violence against women, should be welcomed to speak his mind here.

Dr. Zakir Naik of Mumbai is a dreadful problem for India. He should not become a like problem for Canada.

What is deeply troubling is that with full knowledge of his agenda and his beliefs and what his speech will consist of, the Canadian organizers of the Islamic Journey of Faith Conference invited this man to attend the conference and to speak as the featured guest. What kind of faith does this represent? What journey is being contemplated?

This is not an agenda that represents Canada's interests.

Clearly, those responsible for mounting the conference and for making plans to influence their community have not got the best interests of Canada in mind. Clearly, these people do not represent individuals capable of adjusting to and accepting Canadian values.