Proud to be British

7:47pm Monday 9th July 2007

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Muslims in Oxford want to build bridges between people, not walls to separate them.

That was the message on the second anniversary of the 7/7 bombings in London and in the wake of the terror attacks last week in London and Glasgow, from a conference in St Antony's College, Oxford, on Saturday.

Chairman Imam Monawr Hussain, Muslim tutor at Eton, said: "Terrorism and extremism have nothing to offer but bloodshed, hatred and division.

"We want to build bridges between Muslims, and between Muslims and other faiths, so we can all live together. We are all British and we should take pride in that fact."

The conference, called Social Cohesion - The Oxford Paradigm, was organised by the Asian Cultural Centre and Banbury Road-based Europaeum organisation.

Europaeum spokesman Chad Frischmann said the timing of the event was purely coincidental.

He said: "It was due to take place earlier this year but had to be cancelled.

"July 7 was the only alternative date we could find. It may be appropriate but it was certainly not planned."

The conference brought together Muslims, Jews, Christians and other faiths to discuss topics including extremism, the role of faith in this country, art as a vehicle for cultural exchange and the problem of engaging youth.

Saddique Abbasi, a Muslim youth worker in the Cowley Road area of Oxford, said: "The watchword of Islam is peace and this is a challenge not just for the Muslim community but for all those who live in this great country.

"In the Muslim community there is still a denial that they are English or British. People born and brought up in Oxford still look on a village in Pakistan as their home and that is something which must change.

"We must work with the young people, their parents, the police and the schools to look at the bigger picture."

He said youth workers and community leaders should be looking to target the leaders of young packs - once they become interested in things like sport and training then the others will follow.

Imam Hussain said: "We are looking at building a community of communities, breaking down barriers and getting people of different faiths talking to each other, working with each other and dining with each other."

He said the conference in Oxford was the first of a series of events which will aim to unite communities and get people together to realise a sense of Britishness.

The UK's first national terrorism conference will be held on September 25 and 26, at the Oxford Belfry Hotel, Milton Common, near Thame. Journalist Michael Buerk will chair the conference and speakers will include 7/7 bombing survivor Rachel North and the BBC's security correspondent Frank Gardner.