ties that bind - sep 11

More documents

Recommendations

Info

Over a quarter of respondents (26 percent) expressed a concern about the profession – which included the perception that a military career was not prestigious, or a dislike of the armed forces because of opposition to war, or the belief that the culture and training are too unwelcoming. Nonetheless, there is a potentially untapped market here. In 2010 the Equality and Human Rights Commission revealed that: and 33% of Muslim women (of working-age) have no qualifications, and only 9% have a degree. 356 Muslim men are also most likely not to have any qualifications (24%) and again, least likely to have a degree (11%). 357 Between 2007 and 2009, Muslim men were also the least likely to be found working in managerial or professional or associate professional occupations (35 percent). 358 Indeed, they are the most likely to fill low skilled jobs. 36 percent of Muslim men were involved in plant and machinery factory work and in unskilled elementary work. 359 In the study looking at Muslim attitudes towards the armed forces, it was this category of respondents – those working in manual and low skilled jobs – who expressed the greatest likelihood of considering a military career (79 percent). 360 Support for this option was similarly high among the unemployed (59 percent) – another problem particularly acute in segments of the British Muslim community. 361 There is consequently a real opportunity for the armed forces to advertise itself to this category, explaining the lifelong skills and qualifications which a career, for example, in the Royal Engineers, can bring. This can help to challenge the concerns they have about the profession while offering them a tangible and structured career path linked to more conventional qualifications. Fears of racism and discrimination Significantly, what mattered to Muslim men the most (24 percent) was the perception of racism and lack of opportunity for progression. This is a problem that has been exacerbated in recent years. The public debate following the Macpherson label of ‘institutional racism’ – though originally applied only to the police force – has caused a wider shift in the way minorities perceive organisational cultures, including that of the armed forces. 362 This has been coupled with repeated media coverage of alleged bullying and racism within the armed forces – including embarrassing accusations that structures on Catterick garrison’s firing range resembled mosques. 363 This problem has been compounded by the ‘War on Terror’ and British military campaigns in Afghanistan and Iraq – conflicts used by Islamists to suggest that the British Army is somehow engaged in a ‘War on Islam’. The MoD has been committed to creating a non-discriminatory culture for years. According to Humayun Ansari, in the 1990s ‘[t]he armed forces introduced measures to cater for Muslim needs, such as ration-packs that included halal food, and allowed Muslims to pray five times a day unless it was impossible for operational or Conclusion – Reviving Muslim Service in the Armed Forces 356 How fair is Britain? Equality, Human Rights and Good Relations in 2010. The First Triennial Review (Equality and Human Rights Commission, 2010), p. 358 357 Ibid. 358 Ibid, p. 429. 359 Ibid. 360 Asifa Hussain and Mohammed Ishaq, British Pakistani Muslims’ Perceptions of the Armed Forces, Armed Forces and Society, Vol.28, No. 4, Summer 2002, p.607 361 How fair is Britain? Equality, Human Rights and Good Relations in 2010. The First Triennial Review (Equality and Human Rights Commission, 2010), p. 405 362 Sarah Neal, The Scarman Report, the Macpherson Report and the Media: How Newspapers Respond to Race-centred Social Policy Interventions, Journal of Social Policy (2003), Vol. 32, No.1, pp.55-74 363 http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/ england/north_yorkshire/860965 0.stm policyexchange.org.uk | 79
Ties that Bind 364 Humayun Ansari, The Infidel Within: Muslims in Britain since 1800 (London, 2004), p. 204 365 http://web.archive.org/web/ 20090114074807/http://www.m od.uk/DefenceInternet/DefenceN ews/MilitaryOperations/Pakistan PrimeMinisterMeetsEarthquakere liefTroopsAtDowningStreet.htm 366 Ibid. 367 http://www.mod.uk/ DefenceInternet/DefenceNews/M ilitaryOperations/PakistanFloodRe liefUpdate.htm 368 The BNP refers to this campaign, interchangeably, on its website as both: ‘the battle for Britain’ and ‘the battle of Britain’. For consistency, the correct name of the original RAF campaign to which the BNP are referring is used: ‘battle of Britain’. 369 http://bnp.org.uk/tag/bnpbattle-of-britain-road-show/; also see: http://bnp.org.uk/index. php?s=%C2%A3390%2C000 370 Asifa Hussain and Mohammed Ishaq, British Pakistani Muslims’ Perceptions of the Armed Forces, Armed Forces and Society, Vol.28, No. 4, Summer 2002, p.612 80 | policyexchange.org.uk ‘practical’ environmental reasons’. 364 Yet, despite these efforts, the MoD is struggling to allay the fears of many Muslims. However, challenging perceptions of racism will therefore also require a commitment to directly confront the Islamist canards which create ‘barriers to entry’. This might include highlighting the role of the British armed forces in delivering humanitarian aid following the 2005 earthquake which devastated Kashmir, claiming almost 75,000 lives. Seventy six members of 59 Independent Commando Squadron Royal Engineers and ten members of 42 Commando Royal Marines – all specialists in mountain and cold weather operations – were deployed to help. 365 Their tasks included: ? Building 30 large school shelters, including one to replace a girls’ school destroyed by the quake in the village of Mukhdoom Kot at 6000 feet; ? Building 17 health centres, including one for the World Health Organisation; ? Putting out a house fire; ? Rescuing an 11-vehicle aid convoy trapped in deep snow; ? Distributing food and clothing to remote areas. 366 More recently, the MoD could point to the role of the British armed forces following the catastrophic floods in Pakistan last year. The RAF was heavily involved in the relief efforts, transporting tents, food and medical supplies to Islamabad. 367 Of course, there are countless examples the MoD could offer; but what matters is a willingness squarely to confront the charges levelled against them by Islamist opponents. This was how Muslim support for the British war effort in 1914 was sustained, despite the Ottoman Empire inciting Indian Muslims to revolt. Today, how could Islamists argue that Britain is somehow weighted against their faith when in the first Gulf War, it was British troops who safeguarded traditional Muslim regimes, such as Saudi Arabia? Similarly, it was British soldiers who acted in defence of Muslims in Bosnia and Kosovo during the Balkan conflicts of the 1990s. Articulating this case over and over again to Muslim audiences should go some way towards dispelling fears that the military is an institution at odds with them. Fears about racism have also been fanned by the rise of the BNP and their attempts to employ military imagery in their favour – providing them with a spurious veneer of patriotism. Their 2009 European Parliamentary campaign was based on a ‘Battle of Britain’ theme. 368 The BNP even adopted a Spitfire – ironically, a Polish one – as their logo for the initiative. 369 Associating the armed forces with the far right in this way almost certainly fuels the perception that military culture is hostile to minorities. However, as already highlighted in the introduction to this pamphlet (see pp.7-8), the Services have vigorously challenged and resisted BNP attempts to appropriate military heritage for their purposes. This is a welcome step as more than a quarter of those interviewed (28 percent) argued that challenging racism should be a top priority for the MoD. 370 Yet there is no comparable fight-back against Islamists – who too often tarnish the reputation of the armed forces for their own political aims. This must be urgently addressed. After all, it was that willingness to confront the Ottoman government’s propaganda in the Great War that retained Muslim support. What did they fight for? Yes, the cultural and religious rights of soldiers
Page 1 and 2:
Ties that Bind How the story of Bri
Page 3 and 4:
2 | policyexchange.org.uk About the
Page 5 and 6:
4 | policyexchange.org.uk Appendix
Page 7 and 8:
6 | policyexchange.org.uk Executive
Page 9 and 10:
Ties that Bind 3 See: http://www.cp
Page 11 and 12:
Ties that Bind 17 Stolen Valour: Ho
Page 13 and 14:
Ties that Bind 12 | policyexchange.
Page 15 and 16:
Ties that Bind 27 Omissi, The Sepoy
Page 17 and 18:
Ties that Bind 16 | policyexchange.
Page 19 and 20:
Ties that Bind 41 Ibid. p.28 42 Ibi
Page 21 and 22:
Ties that Bind 47 Geoffrey Bennet,
Page 23 and 24:
Ties that Bind 58 Ibid. Also see, M
Page 25 and 26:
Ties that Bind 64 Punjabi Musalman
Page 27 and 28:
Ties that Bind 74 Omissi, Sepoy and
Page 29 and 30: Ties that Bind 84 The Comrade, 7 No
Page 31 and 32: Ties that Bind 90 Ibid, p.5 91 Ibid
Page 33 and 34: Ties that Bind 107 Ibid. 108 Supple
Page 35 and 36: Ties that Bind 128 Ibid. 129 Ibid.
Page 37 and 38: Ties that Bind 146 Ibid., p.90 147
Page 39 and 40: Ties that Bind 159 Punjabi Mahomeda
Page 43 and 44: Ties that Bind 181 CAB/24/54, Natio
Page 45 and 46: Ties that Bind 187 India’s contri
Page 47 and 48: Ties that Bind 191 Judith Brown, Mo
Page 51 and 52: Ties that Bind 211 Ibid, p.55 212 I
Page 53 and 54: Ties that Bind 224 Omissi, Sepoy an
Page 55 and 56: Ties that Bind 238 Ibid, pp.70-72 2
Page 59 and 60: Ties that Bind 265 CAB/66/58/25, Na
Page 61 and 62: 270 The Gallup Coexist Index 2009:
Page 63 and 64: Ties that Bind 278 Note that Al-Muh
Page 65 and 66: Ties that Bind 286 http://www.times
Page 67 and 68: Ties that Bind 299 Hans Wehr, A Dic
Page 69 and 70: Ties that Bind 308 http://www.dohad
Page 71 and 72: Ties that Bind 315 http://web.archi
Page 75 and 76: Ties that Bind 329 http://www.indep
Page 77 and 78: Ties that Bind 340 Keynote Address
Page 79: Ties that Bind 350 http://www.publi
Page 85 and 86: Ties that Bind 390 Ibid, p. 49. 391
Page 87 and 88: Ties that Bind 406 Policy Exchange
Page 89 and 90: Ties that Bind 419 http://www.musli
Page 95 and 96: 439 London Gazette, 3 July 1945, ht
Page 97 and 98: 96 | policyexchange.org.uk Bibliogr
Page 99 and 100: Ties that Bind 98 | policyexchange.
show all

ties that bind - sep 11

You also want an ePaper? Increase the reach of your titles

Delete template?

Save as template?