Is there support in Canada's Muslim community for moderation? | Unpublished
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Unpublished Opinions

Bob Barrigar's picture
Victoria, British Columbia
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retired patent attorney

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Is there support in Canada's Muslim community for moderation?

March 24, 2015

Those of us who distinguish between Islam (the religion) and terrorist jihadism (manifesting the excesses of some Muslims) frequently call upon “ordinary Muslims” or “moderate Muslims” and their organizations and Imams, to be proactive and prominent in promoting a viable peaceful alternative brand of Islam.
 
Suppose we examine that suggestion with reference to the Muslim Association of Canada, the principal Muslim organization in this country.  Let’s begin with a Statement viewable on its home page.  This Statement is right up to date –  28 January, 2015. 

Here it is:

The Muslim Association of Canada (MAC) is a religious, educational, social, charitable and non-profit organization that operates only in Canada.  Our organization has worked to strengthen the communities we live and work in since 1997.

A primary tenet of MAC is community involvement and service not only with the Muslim community, but with every community, regardless of faith or background.

MAC is a wholly Canadian organization.  We are opposed to violence of all kinds.  We are opposed to terrorist activity of any kind, especially any threats against the safety and security of fellow Canadians.

MAC is serving Canada community through our many programs, events and services delivered through our Islamic Schools, Mosques and Community Centers. MAC is a national, grassroots organization currently operating in 11 Canadian cities, with a vision to establish an Islamic presence in Canada that is balanced, constructive and integrated, though distinct, within the social fabric and culture of Canada.​​​​​​​​

So far, so good?  Let’s dig a little deeper.  For more than a decade, MAC was an important contributor to the International Relief Fund for the Afflicted and Needy Canada (IRFAN-Canada) whose principal function was to serve as the Hamas fund collector in this country.  Note the deceptive name of the organization.  It is common knowledge that Hamas seeks not only the elimination of the state of Israel and all Jews wherever they may be found, but also the destruction of Western civilization. 

The Canada Revenue Agency revoked IRFAN-Canada’s charity status in April 2011 after  having concluded that it financed the terrorist organization Hamas.  I don’t know whether MAC continues to fund Hamas, and if it still does so, what channel is currently being used by MAC to fund Hamas.  Given the close association of MAC with the Muslim Brotherhood (see below), it would be somewhat surprising to find that MAC had discontinued such funding.
 
MAC is an active organization with many prongs.  Here’s one published summary, taken from a Quebec perspective [I have excised the paragraphs that refer to the funding of Hamas]:
 
1.      MAC controls several schools in Quebec (and across Canada) -  At least one is funded by the Quebec government.
 
2.     MAC controls several daycare centres in Quebec - At least one receives funding from the Quebec government.
 
3.     MAC organizes summer camps at which Islamic preachers, already internationally known for their ultra-radical discourses, have been invited to preach in front of ‘young’ participants.
 
4.     MAC regularly hosts, supports and invites known ultra-radical preachers – at least on two occasions, these speakers were the subject of a motion condemning their presence on Canadian soil by the Quebec National Assembly.
 
5.     MAC controls the leading halal certification agency in Quebec.  Certification is paid for.  This is a principal source of MAC funding.
 
6.    MAC also received important sums of money, through its schools, from countries such as Saudi Arabia and one or more organizations having direct links with Al-Qaeda.
 
7.     Days after MAC’s former president, Wael Haddara, resigned, he became a key advisor to Muslim Brotherhood Egyptian President Mohamed Morsi. 
(See http://pointdebasculecanada.ca/former-mac-president-wael-haddara-was-sen...) This manifests Haddara’s intimacy with the International Muslim Brotherhood network and agenda – more below.
 
The foregoing seven items and some others of interest are reported at: http://solsticewitch13.blogspot.ca/2014/03/special-report-on-muslim-asso...
 
One of the more fascinating sources of revenue for MAC is halal certification.  “Halal” ostensibly means "pure and hygienic", and, like “kosher” for Jews, serves as an identifier of food fit for Muslims.  By way of example,  "Association des viandes halal”, controlled by Abou-Baker-Assedique mosque in Montreal, is a Montreal halal-certification organization.  The mosque is part of a Muslim “cultural centre” that in addition to cultural activities, also provides the halal certification – i.e., one enterprise is involved in two separate activities: (1) management of recreation and culture; and (2) meat inspection and certification.  The certification agency is controlled by the Muslim Association of Canada (MAC), which owns the building in which the certification agency and the cultural centre are based.  The administrators of the certification agency are former MAC directors and/or have publicly endorsed MAC’s positions in the past.
 
What happens to the halal certification fees collected by this and other certification organizations?
 
The money goes to terrorist organizations: https://www.mrctv.org/videos/halal-slaughter-hamas-monetary-gain?vdt=vid...|block_2. 
See also http://pointdebasculecanada.ca/muslim-association-of-canada-a-contributo... and http://islam4infidels.com/proof-halal-funds-terrorism/; [Note: alternative to preceding URL: Go to http://islam4infidels.com; select HALAL from the top menu, then select PROOF HALAL FUNDS TERRORISM]; content repeated at the outset of 2015 at http://concernedcanadiancitizens.com/2014-wrap-up/ [as this is a long report, once you are there, FIND “Muslim Association of Canada” in order to be led to this content]
 
MAC's halal certification program is part of a global Muslim Brotherhood strategy.  In 2010 in Islamabad, a leader of the Islamist organization, the Grand Mufti of Bosnia Herzegovina, Mustafa Ceric, urged Muslims "to conquer the world through Halal movement".  It appears that most infidels are content to accept halal certification as a legitimate operation: https://archive.is/lXg3H.
 
For various reasons, major food companies obtain halal certification.  Among them are Cadbury’s, Kraft Foods, McCain Foods, Panebo, Campbell’s, by way of example.  Similarly, major restaurant chains become halal-certified, among them Swiss Chalet, Roosters, McDonalds, Quiznos.  See, e.g. https://www.facebook.com/BoycottHalalCanadaQuebec.
 
Canadian companies are not the only ones being ripped off by those who demand halal certification.  For example, Danish food producers such as Danish Crown, Rose Poultry and Arla are annually forced to pay substantial sums into the organization Muslim World League, which advocates oppression of women, the death penalty for homosexuals and the elimination of democracy. The Danish companies succumb to this because Saudi Arabia requires that Danish companies that want to export halal products to the wealthy Saudi monarchy have to pay substantial funds to the Danish branch of the Muslim World League in order to be halal-certified.  See e.g. https://moneyjihad.wordpress.com/2013/08/22/pay-to-play-saudi-arabia-sha....
 
Of course, Halal certification is not the only MAC objective.  MAC also seeks the  progressive implementation of sharia in Canada.  In this regard, MAC declares that its ideological origin goes back to the founding of the Muslim Brotherhood (1928) and that it strives to implement Islam as understood by its founder Hassan al-Banna (1906-1949).  In his 50-point manifesto, Hassan al-Banna urges his supporters to abolish political parties and replace them by a single-party system. He favours the modification of laws so that they conform to sharia, and calls for the formation and multiplication of associations dedicated to promoting the spirit of jihad amongst the youth

In his essay On Jihad, al-Banna explains that "it's an obligation for us (Muslims) to fight against them (the infidels) after inviting them (to join Islam), even if they do not fight against us". In another text (To what Do We Invite Humanity?), Hassan al-Banna refers to Adolf Hitler as a role model for Muslims looking for "success and fortune".  See http://www.rightsidenews.com/2014032534040/editorial/world-opinion-and-e... [FIND “Hitler” in the text.]
 
Some of MAC’s executives have multiple interests. Chiheb Battikh was not only the head of the educational department for MAC, a member of MAC’s Board of Directors, and an administrator for several MAC schools; he was also part of the Executive Committee (EC) of the MAC as well. (The EC is distinct from the Board of Directors.)  He also ran other organizations, one of which was a Mosque in Mississauga Ontario (1997-2004).   In 2005, this mosque transferred $877,393 to MAC.
 
Mr Battikh became director of Canadian Institute of Islamic Civilization (CIIC), a MAC substructure in Montreal. The CIIC is a think tank in which Islamist leaders with expertise in various fields develop tactics in order to adapt to the Canadian reality the strategies of Islamization decided by the Muslim Brotherhood leadership in Doha (Qatar) or elsewhere.
 
When Chiheb Battikh was arrested in December 2012, he was still the  head of MAC’s Education department.  On 21 March 2014, the CBC announced that Mr Battikh had pleaded guilty to attempting to kidnap the 3-year-old grandson of a Quebec billionaire for a $500,000 ransom.  In relation to the foregoing and other activities of Mr Battikh, see http://www.rightsidenews.com/2014032534040/editorial/world-opinion-and-e...
       
So, can we count on the Muslim Association of Canada (MAC) to profess, practise and support a “moderate” version of Islam, and to refrain from supporting organizations practising the more extreme excesses of Islam?  Does the organization live up to the Statement of Purpose reproduced in the first frame of this message?
 
No, I don’t think so either.