Islamic society under investigation

Students have contacted the SU to raise concerns about a post made on Warwick’s Islamic Society’s (ISOC) Facebook page, as well as to pose questions about a trip undertaken by the society to a controversial Islamic education conference in Edinburgh earlier in the year.

Of major concern was a video made by a suspected terrorist facilitator posted onto the ISOC’s Facebook page.

In it the term ‘kuffar’ is used by Dr Aafia Siddiqui in a manner deemed to be offensive to non-Muslims. Siddiqui was previously in Guantanamo Bay and is now serving an 86-year sentence in a US jail.

Students, who wish to remain anonymous, contacted the SU arguing that it was unacceptable for a Warwick society to allow such videos on its page. The video had been left for several weeks without being removed by ISOC’s members or the Facebook page’s admin team, and was only removed after the _Boar_ contacted the society following the complaint.

The Facebook page in question states: “The views, ideas or comments here do not depict that of the Warwick ISOC and should be not being considered official in any way. They are merely views and comments of Muslims at the University of Warwick.”

It is not clear whether the video was posted by a Warwick student, or even a member of the society.

Contacted by the _Boar_, the individual who posted the video stated that he was only a member of one university ISOC (which he did not name) but contributed to many. He declined to comment either on the video’s content, or his reasons for posting it.

However, the anonymous students who raised concerns told the Boar that the video was by “an actual Al Qaeda terrorist and this person is promoting Siddiqui’s thoroughly disgusting agenda at our university – meant to be a diverse, welcoming community.”

Siddiqui has never been tried of terrorism activity; nor proven to be either an Al Qaeda member or actively involved in terrorist activity.

ISOC offered no comment on the video.

The concerned students also voiced anxieties about members of the society attending the controversial Al Maghrib conference in Edinburgh’s Napier University last March. Shortly before the event, the conference’s key speakers were banned from several other universities including LSE, London Metropolitan, Hertfordshire and Sheffield Hallam on the grounds of their alleged homophobic and anti-Semitic views.

A Warwick student, also anonymous, made the case: “[ISOC] may be exercising their freedom of speech legitimately by going to see this racist festival of hate – but they were doing it as an official Warwick Society… Is this an acceptable trip for a Warwick Students’ Union society?”

Students Rights, a ‘non-partisan group dedicated to supporting equality, democracy and freedom from extremism on university campuses’ expressed concern over the conference: “This event is being advertised across the country and students are travelling from universities like Warwick to see hear individuals speak.

“Here at Student Rights we find this deeply worrying and would urge Edinburgh Napier University to reconsider their decision to allow the conference to go ahead.”

Warwick’s ISOC told the Boar: “The initial intention of having the trip was to provide an educational impetus alongside the wish of some students of the Islamic Society to visit Scotland during the Easter Break.

“At the time we did not believe any of the speakers to be controversial; otherwise we would have cancelled the event. Hence, the conference was merely an optional addition and not the main highlight of our trip.

“If we have offended or sparked undue suspicion in the public, we apologise because that was never the intention.”

The SU’s societies’ officer, Silkie Cragg confirmed to the _Boar_ that the SU had received a complaint about ISOC.

Yet she was unable to comment on the issue: “we are investigating it…[and] it would not be proper for me to comment whilst these investigations are on-going.

“I can however tell you that any complaints we receive are investigated as fully as we can and with sensitivity in order to establish the facts of the situation.”

Article correction 07/09/12: Dr Siddiqui is no longer in Guantanamo Bay as previously stated, but is now being held in a prison in the US.