FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
“The Hijacking of British Islam” report by The Policy Exchange report
Al Manaar rejects the statements made in the books referred to in the report.  Al Manaar has written to the Policy Exchange questioning the authenticity of the receipt produced linking the books in question to the Centre. Al Manaar is also seeking funding to appoint an independent scholar to review material on its premises.

London   12 Noon  30 October 2007
Al Manaar rejects the statements made in the books referred to in the report.  The Policy Exchange has not approached us ahead of the report to seek our views in this respect.

Al Manaar is to write to the Policy Exchange questioning the authenticity of the receipt produced linking the books in question to the Centre. The receipt a copy of which was obtained from the BBC yesterday is not an official Muslim Cultural Heritage Centre receipt.  It is clear that the format, font and logo are different.  Indeed, the receipt the researchers have produced uses the American spelling “Center” and misspells the address (“raod”).  In addition, the person who has signed the receipt, a “Shaykh Ellahi” is not known to Al Manaar, is not employed by the Centre nor is such a person known to us a consultant or self-employed contractor of the Centre.   Al Manaar will ask the Policy Exchange to produce detailed evidence from its researchers of the way in which receipts were obtained.

Al Manaar is also seeking funding to appoint an independent scholar to review material on its premises.

We extend our invitation to the Policy Exchange to follow the workings of the Centre, its work on community cohesion, and its work with the Government Office for London, particularly our newly formed Forum on Islamaphobia. 

Background

In 1992, the Muslim community and the Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea together launched an initiative to establish a focal point for a range of social, cultural, training, educational and cultural services for the people of North Kensington. This was a flagship project of the “City Challenge” regeneration programme (1992-1997). The Muslim Cultural Heritage Centre (MCHC) Trust was formed in 1996 to oversee the construction and running of the project. The Centre was officially inaugurated by His Royal Highness, Prince Charles in 2001 and is proving itself to be a unique model for meeting local community needs. The Trust endeavours to play a leading role in making North Kensington a better place to live and work for all.

·       The Centre delivers a host of services addressing educational, training, social and cultural needs of the community.

·       The revenue comes from: In-house income-generation activities; community donations, the Royal Borough; UK grant making organizations; and donors from the UK and abroad.

·        To meet growing demand the Trust plans, subject to funding, to expand existing services in the areas of elderly well-being, youth activities, adult education, community cohesion and safety. The Trust also wants to introduce new services such as a family counselling service (to tackle poor parenting, inter-generational issues and family breakdown) and an employment service (to tackle local high unemployment).

·       To strengthen its financial position, the Trust plans to establish a Waqf (endowment) to secure a steady stream of covenanted income for the sole purpose of funding current and future services. Failure in this regard will force the Trust to cut back or close some of its services.

·       The Trust plays a key role in supporting and integrating the local communities contributing towards social welfare and community safety.

·       The Trust's current and future activities contribute to the Borough’s three stated aspirations of giving people opportunity by responding to residents, providing really good services and renewing the legacy.

Contact Information
Dr Abdulkarim Khalil

Director

Al Manaar the Muslim Cultural Heritage Centre

244 Acklam Road, London W10 5YG

(T) 020 8964 1496   (F) 0208 968 2928