And hold fast, all of you together, to the rope of Allah, and do not separate.” Quran, Surah Ale Imran, 103
The Muslim Council of Britain on 12 May affirmed the unity of Muslims, particularly in the UK. We are a community with plural traditions and viewpoints, but united in our faith in Allah and His last Messenger (peace and blessings of Allah be to him). This is a view held by the vast majority of British Muslims.
The Muslim Council of Britain, UK’s representative Muslim umbrella body with over 400 affiliated national, regional and local organisations, mosques, charities and schools, said in a statement on 12 May:
“Our affirmation comes after small but isolated incidents of hateful sectarian messages being imparted on the streets of Britain. We condemn the antics of AnjemChoudary and his (un)merry-band of publicity seekers who last Friday took to the streets of London to spew their hate-filled message and attack people they thought to be from the Shia tradition. We will speak out against anyone fostering division in our community, from whichever quarter it comes from. We urge the media to be vigilant and refrain from stoking up tensions where they do not exist.
“Sunnis and Shias remain united in the UK and have a long-established history of intra-faith co-operation. We are acutely aware that the complex situation in the Middle East and Muslim world has the possibility of threatening that tradition. We are also aware that those from without the community will seek to exploit these divisions for their own nefarious ends.
“We call on our scholars, leaders and institutions from all traditions to stand firm and be vigilant, speak out against sectarianism and ensure the forces of unity prevail. We should avoid hate and condescending speech and literature in our midst. Finally we should respect each other and the personalities, places and events that any group among us holds in esteem, abiding by the Islamic manner (adab) of disagreement that is neither inflammatory nor insulting.”