Report by MPs notes efforts from Muslim charities in face of negative bias

by LAUREN CODLING

WORK by Muslim charities helps hundreds of people, but the organisations are negatively portrayed and overlooked, the chair of an ethnic minority charity organisation has said.

Days before Christmas, the All-Party Parliamentary Group (APPG) on British Muslims released a report which highlighted the work of Muslim charities during 2017.

Its findings revealed that organisations such as the Grenfell Muslim Response Unit, a project set up in the aftermath of the Grenfell Tower fire last summer, provided approximately £140,000 of financial assistance and helped to serve more than 3,000

hot meals to those in need.

The charities were involved in fields such as homelessness, blood donation, prisoner

rehabilitation and social support.

Dr Hina J Shahid, the chair of the Muslim Doctors’ Association, told Eastern Eye that there were issues surrounding Muslim charities which meant they often were inaccurately

portrayed.

“Muslim charities get a lot of negative media attention as there can be a lot of suspicion

around the work they do,” Dr Shahid explained. “[For instance], there have been allegations of [Muslim charities] being linked to supporting or funding extremism or

terrorism, which is not true.”

She added there could be bias or a negative portrayal of what Muslim organisations do, but there was “so much good work” that the report highlighted.

The APPG report collected a range of statistics from Muslim organisations across the UK which have made notable contributions to society.

Chaired by Conservative MP Anna Soubry and Labour MP Wes Streeting, the group said British Muslim charities have not received “the kind of attention they deserve”.

“At this time of year, when Muslim charities are working alongside many other faithbased

charities to spread good cheer, peace on earth and goodwill to all, we hope our preliminary findings highlights and celebrates their work,” the report said.

It added that some media coverage had misrepresented the work of organisations

rooted in British communities.

“With most coverage on Islam and Muslims in our media, the bad behaviour of a few individuals sees the many tarnished with the same brush,” the parliamentary group said.

“But such perceptions of British Muslims, and of British Muslim charities in particular, are wide of the mark.”

The Muslim Doctors’ Association, which was established in 2004, was commended for its work in the last two years. According to figures, 500 people have received free health checks from the non-profit organisation, and 1,000 people have benefited from free medical advice.

Among its ongoing projects is a smartphone app to improve access to high quality antenatal care for pregnant refugee women.

Dr Shahid explained that the charity’s aim is to provide services to ethnic vulnerable marginalised communities to reduce health inequalities.

“Most of our work is in the UK, but we have done work abroad in humanitarian relief responses,” she said. “Our main focus is health promotion and education and providing

outreach clinics and services.”

Satinder Singh, a trustee of the Gurseva charity, an organisation based on Sikh principles,

said he hopes their group provides “something positive” for the ethnic minority community.

“We try and represent in a positive way, not just Sikhs, but also people who want to

help based on not discriminating against other people or specifically helping a certain community but trying to provide a service when it is needed,” he told Eastern Eye.

Founded in 1998, the project provides food and clothing to the homeless in London, as well as offering assistance in international disasters such as the Nepal earthquake

in 2015.

“We lend ourselves to help whenever there is a need,” Singh said.

Other findings in the report showed that various Muslim charities, including InTouch

Foundation and Al-Mizan Trust, have tackled homeless problems in the UK by helping

to provide warm provisions and food to those in need.

The National Zakat Foundation, which helps vulnerable women and children, distributed

between 25 and 35 per cent of the funds it collected among projects for women,

such as housing services.

In addition, the Islamic charity Human Appeal raised over £25,000 for the Manchester

Arena terror attacks last May and helped support 22 victims.

Dr Shahid, who is a third-generation British citizen, said she hoped the report highlighted the good work that ethnic minority charities were doing as “it is important to give back to what is our home”.

“Everyone should know what different communities do, not just Muslim communities

but all, and what contributions ethnic minorities make to British society,” she said.

“A lot of the narrative is dominated by negative stories and positive initiatives like this

give a more balanced picture of what exactly we are doing.”