Friday 28 January 2011
Tuesday 4 January 2011
Record Number of Britons Embrace Islam
“This report is the best intellectual 'guestimate' using census numbers, local authority data and polling from mosques,” Fiyaz Mughal, director of the inter-faith think-tank Faith Matters, told the Independent on Tuesday, January 4.
“Either way few people doubt that the number adopting Islam in the UK has risen dramatically in the past 10 years.”
The finding of the study, performed by Faith Matters, put the number of converts at 100,000, suggesting that about 5000 Britons convert to Islam annually.
Previous estimates have always been inaccurate, failing to differentiate between Muslim born or converts, estimating converts’ number at between 14,000 and 25,000.
New techniques were introduced by the think-tank to get the most accurate results.
Using data from Scottish 2001 census, the only survey defining whether religion was at birth or by conversion, researchers set the proportions of Muslim converts and extrapolated the figures for Britain.
They estimated about 60,699 converts living in Britain in 2001.
Moreover, researchers polled Mosques in London to calculate number of converts in a year, putting the figure at 1400 conversions in London last year.
Extrapolating the number nationwide, approximately 5,200 people were found to be adopting Islam every year, close to French and German numbers; about 4,000 conversions a year.
The accuracy of such number, however, was questioned by some British Muslims.
“My guess would be the real figure is somewhere in between previous estimates, which were too low, and this latest one,” said Batool al-Toma, an Irish born convert to Islam of 25 years who works at the Islamic Foundation.
Britain is home to a sizable Muslim minority of nearly 2.6 million.
Why
Despite the negative portrayal of Islam, large number of Britons choosing to be Muslims was raising questions.
“I think there is definitely a relationship between conversions being on the increase and the prominence of Islam in the public domain,” Mughal told the Independent.
“People are interested in finding out what Islam is all about and when they do that they go in different directions.
“Most shrug their shoulders and return to their lives but some will inevitably end up liking what they discover and will convert.”
Toma, who runs the New Muslims Project, one of the earliest groups set up specifically to help converts, sees a special reason behind every convert’s decision.
“I definitely think there has been a noticeable increase in the number of converts in recent years,” Toma said.
“The media often tries to pinpoint specifics but the reasons are as varied as the converts themselves.”
Interactive programs, planned by Muslims to reach out to the society and defy misconception about their religion, were also attracting a large number of converts.
“Islam is a missionary religion and many Muslim organizations and particularly university students' Islamic societies have active outreach programs designed to remove popular misconceptions about the faith,” Inayat Bunglawala, founder of Muslims4UK, said.
For Mughal, the growing number defied the partial media coverage, which equates Muslim converts and terrorists.
“Converts who become extremists or terrorists are, of course, a legitimate story,” said Mughal.
“But my worry is that the saturation of such stories risks equating all Muslim converts with being some sort of problem when the vast majority are not”.
British Muslims have been in the eye of storm since the 7/7 attacks.
A Financial Times opinion poll showed that Britain is the most suspicious nation about Muslims.
A poll of the Evening Standard found that a sizable section of London residents harbor negative opinions about Muslims.
Though pushing many Britons to seek more information about Islam, the attitude was having its negative effect on Muslims.
“Among certain sections of society, there is a deep mistrust of converts,” said Catherine Heseltine, a 31-year-old convert to Islam, the first female convert to be elected the head of a British Muslim organization; the Muslim Public Affairs Committee.
“There's a feeling that the one thing worse than a Muslim is a convert because they're perceived as going over the other side.
“Overall, though, I think conversions arouse more curiosity than hostility.” (onislam)
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