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60 Minutes 3-21-2015 |
Video5 min. |
Interviewer: So do you feel, that you are British?
Ramesa: I identify myself as a Muslim. I... If I was born in a, in a stable, you know, I'm not gonna be a horse.
If I was born in Nazi Germany, I'm not gonna be a Nazi. I mean, this is just an island, I was born in.
Narrator: Ramesa and Choudhury both live in East London, which is home to one of the largest Muslim populations in the UK. In one part of town Ramesa and his associates have set up so-called Sharia Patrols to go out and discourage behavior, that they deem un-Islamic. On this night they stopped to talk to a couple of non-Muslim men, who were in a park drinking beer, which is forbidden under Islam.
Ramesa: So I'm just reminding, reminding the community about staying safe. And in this area there's a lot of
gambling, that goes on, a lot of alcohol drinking and it leads to a lot of problems. So we advise you and we advise
anyone, you see, to stay away from these things.
Patroller: Get the prostitutes off our streets!
Narrator: But the patrols are not always so friendly. Online clips give a very different picture. A woman in a short skirt is abused.
Patroller: ...vigilante. I cannot "curse myself". I'm Muslim Arab.
Woman: I'm so appalled!
Ramesa: We don't care, if you're appalled, at all.
Woman: Well, that's right. It's Great Britain!
Ramesa: It's... we don't care, it's not so great Britain.
Patroller: You need to get outta here!
Narrator: A man, the patrol thinks, is gay, is insulted.
Patroller: Get outta here quicker then! You're dirty, mate. You're gay. Get out of here, mate!
Interviewer: At night it turns into a very ugly place the minute, they...
Narrator: Walking through London with Ramesa you experience an alternate reality. There is no compromise
and all conversations are one-sided.
Ramesa: Ultimately I want to see every single woman in this country covered from head to toe. I want to see
the "hand of the fifth cuts". I want to see adult ... stoned to death. I want to see Sharia law in Europe. And I
wanna see it in America, as well. I believe, our patrols are a means to an end.
Interviewer: The only thing, I would say, is that in America and the United Kingdom we have a system, democracy,
that...
Ramesa: A backwards one!
Interviewer: But it's a system, that allows the people to choose, what they want and allows people freedom.
Ramesa: So why can't I choose Sharia? When in Rome they overthrew Ceasar, it ... Sharia.
Interviewer: Actually, in your home you can do, whatever you want.
Ramesa: But what about in the public? Why can't I tell you to cover up? Am I free to say that?
Interviewer: Because it would be outrageous!
Ramesa: So where's my freedom? Where's my freedom?
Interviewer: You can say it to me, but you...
Ramesa: So cover up! Wear the hijab!
Interviewer: That's absurd!
Narrator: The thought of Choudhury's supporters taking the law into their own hands is deeply frightening to most British people. This is a group, that believes, the West is at war with Islam and that the invasions of Iraq and Afghanistan justify any kind of violence in response. The most shocking example of that logic was the gruesome and very public murder of British soldier Lee Wigby on a London street last year.
Black protester: We have killed this man today is because Muslims are dying daily by British soldiers and this man...
Narrator: On that day the man wielding the knife was a known associate of Choudhury. Choudhury has refused to condemn Wigby's murder, nor will he criticize ISIS for the beheading of American journalist James Foley and other Western hostages.
Choudhury: You know, I don't know the details about James Foley, but let me...
Interviewer: I know the details! Let me educate you, because he was a friend of mine!
Choudhury: I don't ... Sorry, I don't believe you.
Interviewer: You don't believe me, that James Foley was a journalist?
Choudhury: I don't believe any Western journalist, quite frankly. I don't believe your lies, until proven
otherwise. But let me tell you something! The perspective of the Muslims of journalists, whether that be James
Foley and others, is another propaganda for the Western regime.
Interviewer: Have you formed an opinion for yourself?
Choudhury: I've formed my opinion on the basis of what the Muslims say, not on the basis of what you say.
Interviewer: I'm sensing a double standard here, because essentially you're very quick to condemn acts of
violence by the West, but you refuse to condemn any act of violence by your fellow Muslims.
Choudhury: No, I believe, that there is a reason of oppress the oppressed...