One of the justifications for going to war in Afghanistan was the treatment of women in that country, symbolised particularly by the enforced wearing of the burqa or veil. According to Afghan Injustice

Afghanistan is the only country in the world in which the Burka is worn nationwide (in some Afghan areas of Pakistan, women still wear the Burka).

Yet today Muslim women are up in arms because a leading politician claims he feels uncomfortable in the presence of veiled women.

A teacher has been suspended for refusing to remove her veil. She was asked to remove it in class because pupils could not always understand what she was saying because they couldn’t see her mouth moving. She is effectively saying that cultural fashion- and not even a popular one - is more more important than the education of the children in her care (most of whom have English as a second language). While I’m not against a multi-cultural society, surely the ability to perform one’s duties effectively is more important than adhering to a fashion statement, especially if it impedes the performance of those duties.

It was reported in the papers today that Muslims are angry because the London Olympics 2012 is being held during the holy month of Ramadan and that about a quarter of the athletes competing will be fasting (in observance of the religious festival) and therefore are at a disadvantage. Traditionally the Olympics are held during July and August of every fourth year. Because the Islamic calendar is based on the lunar cycle, which is 11 days shorter than the Gregorian calendar, Ramadan changes ever year. Massoud Shadjareh, chairman of the London based Islamic Human Right Commission said

They would not have organised this at Christmas. It is equally stupid to organise it at Ramadan

Christmas is fixed on the Gregorian calendar which is the one which most nations abide by - in fact the Islamic calendar is religious and is only recognised by Muslims.

Muslims in this country have more representation than an other section of our society and are always demanding more. Not only do we have the Islamic Human Rights Commission, we also have the Muslim Council of Great Britain, the Association of Muslim Police Officer etc. To balance this shouldn’t we also have the Christian Human Rights Commission, the Christian Council of Great Britain, the Association of Christian Police Officers etc. or shouldn’t we just treat everyone as human! After all if they want to wear veils or not perform sports at certain times of the year, shouldn’t they go and live in a country where the majority of people want the same thing, but perhaps if she did then she may not be allowed to do that job.