CANADIAN PM IFTAR FAILS TO ASSURE MUSLIMS

Prime Minister Stephen Harper speaks as he breaks the Ramadan fast with an iftar dinner with members of the Muslim community and Multiculturalism Minister Jason Kenney, left, Senator Salma Ataullahjan, second from left, and Minister of State (Multiculturalism) Tim Uppal, fourth from left, at 24 Sussex in Ottawa on Monday, June 22, 2015. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Justin Tang

Ottawa, 9 Ramadan 1436/26 June 2015 (MINA) – Attending the first-ever Ramadan iftar with Canadian Prime Minister Stephen Harper, leaders of the Canadian Muslim community have expressed hope that the gesture would translate into a change in the government rhetoric about the religious community.

“This event certainly came as a surprise to many given the government’s record of action that has alienated, marginalized, many Canadian Muslim communities,” said Ihsaan Gardee, executive director of the National Council of Canadian Muslims, iPolitics reported on Wednesday, June 24. OnIslam reports as quoted by Mi’raj Islamic News Agency (MINA).

“Given that it is election season, we hope that this event is not merely a vote-soliciting tactic but a real sign of change of tone and attitude.”

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The iftar, held last Monday, is the first time Harper welcomed 40 members of the Muslim community into 24 Sussex Street to break their Ramadan fasts alongside members of his government.

The government’s relationship with Canadian Muslims has grown increasingly fraught over the past year over attempts to ban niqab or new security measures targeting the religious community.

The government policies received huge criticism for blaming Muslims for terrorism, with many critics seeing it as using anti-radicalization rhetoric to sow fear and prejudice against Muslims.

“While I hesitate to cry ‘politics’ on something that I see as a positive development, the limited nature and late timing of the gesture certainly lends itself to the perception that it was a pre-election campaign event – and not an earnest outreach to a community that desperately needs to see some more positive signals from the country’s political leadership,” said Shay Purdy, a consultant of Summa Strategies.

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Recalling a history of heated rhetoric, the leaders of two of the country’s biggest Muslim groups say the change raised their concerns on how officials talk about Muslims.

“There haven’t been a lot of friendly statements from the government regarding Muslims,” said Alia Hogben, executive director of the Canadian Council of Muslim Women, noting that the government has to take responsibility for the deterioration of relations between officials and Canadian Muslims.

“I don’t think it’s because of Muslims — it’s between the Prime Minister and his ministers.” (T/P007/NMT)

Mi’raj Islamic News Agency (MINA)