Chicago Suburb Hosts Hizb ut-Tahrir Conference; Organization Aims to Re-Establish an International Islamic State (Caliphate), Supports Jihad

~~By InsightAnalytical-GRL

We’ve been following stories about Sharia law and finance for quite some time, and American Lassie has alerted us to another related development.

Here’s some basic information on the story with a thanks to the Investigative Project on Terrorism:

Pro-Terror Group to Meet in Chicago Suburb

IPT News
July 10, 2009

Hizb ut-Tahrir, an international movement seeking to re-establish an international Islamic state – or Caliphate – and to indoctrinate Muslims into supporting jihad, wants to step up its recruitment efforts in the United States. On July 19, the group, whose alumni include 9/ 11 mastermind Khalid Sheikh Mohammad and suicide bombers, will hold a conference entitled “The Fall of Capitalism and the Rise of Islam” in the Grand Ballroom of the Hilton Hotel in Oak Lawn, Ill, a Chicago suburb.

For decades, Hizb ut-Tahrir America (HTA) has operated covertly, holding these Khalifa (Caliphate) conferences in the United States under the name of front organizations. But that has begun to change. Last fall, the group issued a leaflet in its own name urging Muslims to boycott the U.S. elections. The group just released this video promoting the July 19 conference. According to the conference website, the program includes a question-and-answer session and two panels; one entitled “Capitalism is Doomed to Fail,” the other “The Suffering Under Capitalism.”

The conference initially was scheduled for the Aqsa School in Bridgeview, Ill. But the school withdrew, claiming Hizb ut-Tahrir officials “misrepresented themselves.” An official said the group approached the school in late April claiming it wanted to hold a bazaar-type event in July that would involve selling traditional food and clothing. School officials said that when they learned the real purpose, they cancelled and refunded the group’s deposit.

I located a video report on the conference at the WLS website (WLS is the local ABC affiliate in Chicago).  A spokesman for the Council on American-Islamic Relations claims Hzib ut-Tahrir’s teachings “are not based on authentic Islamic doctrine” and “the proper response” to their teachings  “is that their philosphy should be debunked.”  According to the report, approximately 700 attendees flowed through the event during the day. The cover of the event program was shown in the video.

The Investigative Project on Terrorism‘s story continues–note the numbers of members in Indonesia, Barack Obama’s childhood home:

While solid numbers are difficult to come by, there is little question that Hizb ut-Tahrir’s worldwide membership has grown substantially since the September 11 attacks, says Madeleine Gruen, a senior analyst with the NEFA Foundation. In 2003, estimates of HT membership ranged from 10,000 to 100,000 people worldwide. Today, by contrast, the group (currently active in more than 40 countries) has approximately 100,000 members in Indonesia alone and “many thousands” more around the world, Gruen told IPT News.

In the United States, Hizb ut-Tahrir’s following is estimated at no more than a few hundred. The decision to hold this month’s conference under its own name is a sign that the group is preparing to raise its profile. Once that is achieved, Gruen adds, its cadres are supposed to establish “an Islamic government and military” in order to take Hizb ut-Tahrir’s message to the world.

HT seeks to fuse an ideology combining orthodox Islam, Marxist-Leninist economics, anti-Semitism and opposition to Western democracy into a political program to bring back the Caliphate. Despite its public rhetoric about nonviolence, Hizb ut-Tahrir has “precisely the same ideology and objectives” as al Qaeda, Gruen told IPT News. And HT has a much larger membership base to recruit from, she added.

While it refrains from carrying out terrorist actions itself, Hizb ut-Tahrir glorifies jihadism and excoriates the terrorist organization Hamas as being too soft on Israel. In a leaflet posted on its website July 1, HT said that if the Caliphate were in existence, all of “Palestine” would be rid of “the usurpation of the Jewish occupiers” and brought “to the fold of the Islamic state.”

MORE

I tracked down the group’s website and found the very sophisticated page of the Media Office, which includes a radio channel. If you click on the headline for 26 Rajab 1430 titled Hizb ut-Tahrir’s Forthcoming Rajab Events: Latest Update you will arrive at a page that has video about all the events worldwide that were held on July 19.  Countries holding conferences included the Ukraine, Mauritius, Tanzania, and Bangladesh. The conference in Lebanon apparently had a theme called “Jihad in Islam.”

In Britain, there are “2 global conferences to take place in London and Birmingham on 26th July 2009 and 2nd August 2009. The conferences are entitled “The Struggle for Islam and the Call for Khilafah“. There is a video with information about these conferences and you can link directly to Hzib ut-Tharir’s British site from this page.

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American Lassie’s April 14, 2009 post entitled Sharia Finance: Rapidly Increasing Inroads Via American Banks…With the Help of Our Treasury Department details other aspects of the inroads being made here in the U.S. It is a must read!

Other relevant pieces that we have posted here at IA include:

The Scanner–Politics March 18, 2009: (Taitz-Supreme Court; Sharia Law in Minnesota re: Home Mortgages; Stimulus Money Wanders from the States; Privatizing Vets’ Healthcare)

The SCANNER-Politics 11/7/08: Newsweek Editors on Charlie Rose in the SCARIEST Description of Obama So Far…(Video/Partially Transcripted); Sharia Hits the Treasury Department/HARVARD Alert!; Hill the Shill (UPDATE 1X)

While Hillary and Sarah Get Trashed in the U.S., Muslim Women in Britain Get Sharia Law

Obama-Odinga:50-50 Split Demands Sound SOOOO FAMILIAR…(UPDATE 1X–Author of “The Obama Nation” Detained in Kenya; UPDATE 2X–Corsi Released, Odinga Official Website

We’ll keep watching for any further developments on this front…

Women in Power: The Example of Prime Ministers in Bangladesh, “A No-Casserole Zone”

~~By InsightAnalytical-GRL

As Inauguration Day draws closer, many of us are still feeling very angry and insulted. Even though most of us were not naive about politics before the 2008 primary season began, we still were in for a shock on  two fronts. First, the utter corruption of the Democratic Party, once our “safe haven,” became painfully clear. Second, and related to this, was how the party saw their hand-picked candidate introduce misogyny, as well as race, into the campaign and didn’t make any moves to stop it. Not that the leadership even wanted to…

So, many of us feel that Hillary Clinton, even if she weren’t the first choice of some, still was badly treated and was “robbed” of the nomination.  Later, Clinton decided to stay and play with the boys, which was very disappointing. On the Republican side, Sarah Palin was trashed just to be trashed and suddenly the only person on either ticket with long executive experience wasn’t “qualified” ; and she was undermined by factions in her party as well.

So here we are in the United States, with so many of us not feeling fine about the status of women these days.   Many of us who have been in this fight since the 60’s see things slipping away, while many women and girls, along with the media and many men, either don’t get it or if they do, are just willing to accept a disdainful, hollow man as President rather than a more experienced, tough, fighting woman.

(As an aside…seeing the Roland Burris debacle unfolding, you can almost understand why Hillary Clinton wanted out of the Senate. I wish she hadn’t decided to stay in the game as Secretary of State, but it’s clear that Harry Reid et al will stop at nothing when it comes to getting “their” people in…and Clinton is not “theirs.”)

Which brings us to another thing to ponder.  We’ve seen NOW and NARAL cave, and we’ve witnessed Nancy Pelosi in action.  We  may speculate that once women reach a certain level, they’re in a power game and they forget where they come from and play the game alongside the men in the same way.  And this includes undermining other women.  It may be that they’re jealous of the power they’ve gained, fearful of losing it to a rival,  or may it’s just what’s in their own characters.  Whatever is going on, it’s clear that just because a woman gains power, there’s no guarantee that they will be any different from men in power. The media may try to undercut women in power with hints that they are “emotional” or “weak” but anybody watching can see these women are playing the power game no-holds barred.

As an example, let’s take a look at recent events in Bangladesh. Bangladesh, one of the world’s poorest countries and one of the most politically corrupt, had an election on December 29, 2008.  For the last two years the country has been controlled by a caretaker government backed by the military which was installed  to try to bring stability to the country and stop political violence.

According to the BBC’s Q & A published before the election (Q & A: Bangladesh Election,December 17, 2008):

The two main parties competing for power are the Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP) of former Prime Minister Khaleda Zia and the Awami League of Sheikh Hasina – also a former prime minister…Between them the two women – bitter personal enemies – have alternated from government to opposition for most of the last two decades….both Sheikh Hasina and Khaleda Zia have been detained during the last two years on corruption charges along with dozens of other top political and business leaders. Many fear that the character clash between the women – reflected among their respective sets of supporters – means that their mutual rivalry will overshadow the pressing problems the country faces.

Prime Ministers Zia (L) and Hasina (R)

Sheikh Hasina Wazed won a landslide victory on December 29th, marking her second election as Prime Minister. According to Reuters, “Security remained tight across Bangladesh and police were on alert for attacks by Islamist militants as the army-backed interim authorities prepared to hand over to civilian rule….Strikes, street violence and attacks by militants trying to turn Muslim-majority Bangladesh into an Islamic state based on sharia, Islamic law, have hampered past Bangladeshi governments.”

Today, January 7th, Hasini has been sworn in as Prime Minister (Hasina emerges with a change)

Her charter for change, which includes building of a “digital Bangladesh”, drew public attention, particularly of the young generation, which was finally reflected in the battle of ballots, observed political analysts. Her promise of change also reflected in the formation of the cabinet as she appointed young and fresh people.

The restraint in her speech attacks on her political rivals won her popularity in the run up to the election. Her call upon all political parties to shun politics of confrontation, and to develop a healthy political culture for building a prosperous country, also earned her public kudos.

We’ll see.  Hasini’s rival, Khaleda Zia ,who was the first woman prime minister elected in Bangladesh, initially vowed to work with Hasini even though she stood by her charges of voting fraud, but has already revived the bitter rivalry.

From The Daily Star (Bangladesh), January 7, 2009:

AL’s journey for ‘change’ started thru’ killing Says Khaleda

BNP Chairperson Khaleda Zia yesterday came down heavily on new Awami League (AL)-led government, saying that it has started its journey towards “change” through killing, snatching and criminal activities across the country.

(SNIP)

“You’re observing what is happening across the country. Does it mean change? Do people want it?” Khaleda made the remarks after visiting the bereaved family members of Nazrul Islam, a leader of Jatiyatabadi Swechchhasebak Dal, who was killed in the city’s Bijoynagar area on Monday.

(SNIP)

Khaleda, who didn’t attend the oath taking ceremony of Sheikh Hasina and her cabinet, demanded immediate arrest of the culprits involved in the killing.

Both these women have been jailed and both have been either threatened with exile or actually exiled. In Zia’s case, corrupt relatives have fled the country (elder son, Tarique Rahman, still awaiting trial). Observers believe that there will never be political peace in Bangladesh as long as these two women are on the scene.

All this reminds me of Benazir Bhutto’s history in Pakistan, which probably shouldn’t be a surpise as Bangladesh was once part of Pakistan. Like  Bhutto,  Hansini comes from a political family; she is the daughter of Bangladesh’s first prime minister.  Zia is the widow of the assassinated Maj. Gen. Zia ur-Rahman (assassinated in a failed coup attempt in 1981); she has also been elected to the office of prime minister twice.  As with Bhutto, corruption is the name of the game when it comes to these political rivals.

So, while lots of people mourn the demise of Hillary Clinton’s bid for the Presidency, the reality is that while being a woman in power does make a statement, it’s not always the statement we dream of.  In the meantime, let’s see how Pelosi, Clinton, and other women in the Obama Universe operate. We already know what Pelosi is capable of.

And let’s see long Sheikh Hasini lasts…THIS time around…

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Related Post: After “Aunt Benazir’s” Assassination, Fatima Bhutto Still Fighting to Reveal the Truth [Posted December 27, 2008]

Bangladesh’s Political History from InfoPlease