SPEECH MADE BY LORD SHEIKH AT THE DIALOGUE SEMINAR FOLLOWING THE OPENING OF THE EXHIBITION “MUHAMMAD – A MERCY TO MANKIND” AT THE ISLAMIC CULTURAL CENTRE AND LONDON CENTRAL MOSQUE ON 16th JUNE 2011

I was brought up in Uganda where there were people of different racial and religious background. I learnt to speak several languages and developed an understanding as well as respect for all religions.

My father was very well known in our home town and as a boy and a youth I accompanied my father with members of my family on visits to Churches, Hindu Temples, Sikh Gurdwaras and other places of worship including the Bahai Temple.

I am a Conservative peer and I am active in the House of Lords. I speak on a variety of subjects and I do not confine myself to ethnic issues but I have quoted The Holy Koran and sayings of the Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him) to explain the true message of Islam.

I am also chairman of the Conservative Muslim Forum and I am involved in promoting inter-faith dialogue and harmony amongst various racial and religious groups.

I believe that there are more similarities than differences between people and we should highlight the similarities in order to establish closer links between communities.

I believe it is important to maintain a dialogue between various racial and religious groups and dispel misunderstandings. I also believe that lack of understanding leads to suspicions and divisions between people.

It therefore gives me great pleasure to speak at an event which seeks to break barriers and build bridges between our various communities. Events like this gathering play an important role in affirming and celebrating Britain’s status as a diverse and multi-cultural society.

Mutual understanding, respect, and inter-faith dialogue are essential if we are all to coexist peacefully. Islam teaches us to celebrate the difference and diversity which God has purposefully created in our world.

Sura 49 ayah 13 of the Holy Koran says:

‘O mankind! We have created you from a male and a female, and made you into nations and tribes, that you may know one another. Verily the most honourable among you in the sight of Allah is he who has piety and righteousness”

Despite the image portrayed in some of today’s media, Islam has a long and proud history of tolerance and respect for people of other faiths.

The Holy Koran is emphatically clear on this point, stating ‘let there be no compulsion in religion’, and this has been manifest in Muslim civilization throughout history.

About six weeks ago I visited Jerusalem and I would like to make two points that reinforces the acceptance of all religions in Islam.

In the 7th Century, the Muslims were victorious at the Battle of Yarmouk and conquered Jerusalem. The leaders of the city asked the Muslim generals that they will surrender the city to the leader of the Muslims and thus Khalifa Omar travelled to Jerusalem.

Khalifa Omar did not pray in the Church of Holy Sepulchre as he was concerned that if he prayed there the Muslims will convert the church into a mosque. He respected the Christian faith and prayed in the courtyard.

Khalifa Omar granted the people of Jerusalem a covenant of peace and protection and also said that the holy places of all religions need to be respected.

There is a mosque near the Church of Holy Sepulchre called Khalifa Omar’s Mosque and I have prayed at the mosque.

The relevant excerpts from the Jerusalem Declaration are actually displayed on the outside of the mosque.

I would also like to mention that when Salahuddin Ayyubi conquered Jerusalem in the 12th Century he permitted people of all religions to stay in the city and they were respected and had protection.

When the Muslims were persecuted at the start of our glorious religion the Muslims escaped to Abyssinia where they were given refuge by a Christian King who was King Negus.

We have come to the United Kingdom which is a Christian country and the British people for all their faults are generally tolerant and they have accepted us in this country. It is important that we regard this country as our home and live in peace and harmony with everyone.

I used to be a visiting lecturer at colleges and education is something that is very dear to my heart. I have always promoted the value of education as I believe that good education is the key to a better future.

To us Muslims education and knowledge is very important and we are proud of our contributions to the world of science, learning, literature, mathematics, medicine and commerce. Muslims have also excelled in numerous other fields such as art, architecture, astronomy, geography and irrigation.

Many crucial systems such as the Arabic numerals, and the concept of the zero were transmitted to medieval Europe from the Muslim world.

Muslim scientists developed sophisticated instruments such as the astrolabe, which has been described as the single most important calculating device before the invention of the digital computer.

In the Exhibition today we can see displays of various items which give a very brief description of achievements of the Muslims and their contributions to the world in various fields.

In Islam there have been great dynasties and empires which include the Ummayads, the Abassids in Iraq, the Fatimids in Egypt, the Ottoman Empire and the Mughals in India. All these empires and dynasties have contributed a great deal to the understanding and promotion of the subjects I have described.

Islam is one of the Abrahamic religions and we believe in the Prophets who are mentioned in the Bible including the following Prophets (peace be upon them) –Adam, Noah, Abraham, Moses, Jacob and Jesus. God’s guidance to mankind started with Prophet Adam (pbuh) and ended with Prophet Mohammed (pbuh).

According to Islam people of the book are Muslims, Jews and Christians. The books of Allah are Zabur (Psalms) of Dawud (David), Tawrat (Torah) of Musa (Moses), Injil (Gospel) of Isa(Jesus) and Koran revealed to Prophet Mohammed (pbuh). The Koran also mentions scrolls of Abraham. I may add that the Holy Koran has an entire chapter which is titled Maryam (Mary mother of Jesus).

There are a number of similarities between Sikhism and Islam and I would like to state that the foundation of the Golden Temple in Amritsar was laid by Mian Mir, a Muslim holy person.

One of the constant companions of Guru Nanak Sahib was Mardana who was a Muslim. He accompanied Guru Nanak Sahib on his journey to Mecca and Medina. In the Guru Granth Sahib there are writings of a Muslim, Sheikh Farid.

In regard to suicide bombings Islam forbids committal of suicide. Islam maintains a protection of life and does not sanction any violation against it, irrespective of people’s religion or race. In the Holy Koran it is written “who ever kills a human being then it is as though he has killed all mankind, and whoever saves a human life it is as though he had saved all mankind”.

This saying is very similar to what is written in The Talmud where it is written “If you save one life, it is as if you have saved the world”.

A book has been published which highlights cases where Muslims saved Jews from the atrocities of the Nazis during the Holocaust and in fact I am going to launch the book in the House of Lords.

Finally I would like to reiterate that there are more similarities between people than differences and we should all share the same hopes and take actions to maintain and promote peace and harmony between all the communities.

On 7 June 2011 the Home Secretary, the Rt. Hon. Theresa May MP, announced the result of the Government’s review of the Prevent strategy. Four documents were published, all of which can be downloaded free from the Home Office website. They are:

Prevent Strategy – 113 pages

Prevent Review: Summary of Responses to the Consultation – 24 pages

Report to the Home Secretary of Independent Oversight of Prevent Review and Strategy by Lord Carlile – 13 pages

Prevent Strategy: Equality Impact Assessment – 16 pages

This statement was written after reading all of the documents, and we urge all members and supporters to read the documents for themselves before reaching any conclusions regarding Prevent.

Our country faces terrorist threats of many kinds. Northern Ireland-related terrorism led to over 3,500 deaths between 1969 and 1998 and some deaths are still occurring. There are 17 people serving prison sentences for terrorism related offences who are known associates of right wing groups. There have also been other types of terrorist groups. However the greatest danger we face comes from Al Qa’ida, its affiliates and like-minded terrorist organisations inspired by violent Islamism. Of the 115 terrorist offenders currently in custody in England and Wales, 79 are associated with these groups. Accordingly most, but not all, of the Prevent review has focused on this most serious threat.

Although the implementation of the strategy is difficult, the goal of Prevent is very simple. It is to prevent people from becoming terrorists or supporting terrorism.

The Prevent Strategy document explains what has been learned about how individuals are radicalised into becoming terrorists. At the heart of the radicalisation process is Al Qaeda’s ideology, as summarised in paragraph 8.11 of the main document:

The ideology associated with Al Qa’ida and like-minded groups proposes that most governments in Muslim majority countries are ‘un-Islamic’ or ‘apostate’. It calls for their overthrow by jihad and for the imposition of new governments, (and ultimately a pan-Islamic Caliphate) based on a very specific interpretation of Islamic law. The ideology claims that these ‘apostate’ regimes have been supported and in some cases occupied by western states that are waging a war on Islam. It proposes that violent jihad and terrorism against these states are not only legitimate but a religious duty. It makes no distinction between civilian and military targets.

There is extensive research quoted in the strategy review which demonstrates that many of the people who become terrorists are first influenced by extremist groups. While respecting the right to free speech, the Government will challenge the ideology of extremist organisations, and will ensure that it does not inadvertently give them any funding. As a departure from previous practice, it does not regard it as sensible to try to use “non-violent extremists” to prevent people becoming terrorists. Extremists are defined for this purpose as people who do not subscribe to mainstream British values, which are set out explicitly in paragraph 6.60:

We are concerned that insufficient attention has been paid to whether these organisations comprehensively subscribe to what we would consider to be mainstream British values: democracy, rule of law, equality of opportunity, freedom of speech and the rights of all men and women to live free from persecution of any kind.

The documents make it clear that the overwhelming majority of British Muslims do not support terrorism. The review criticises the implementation of Prevent under the previous government, as many aspects of the implementation could be taken as stigmatising the Muslim community. The need to avoid this comes out strongly in the Equality Impact Assessment. As part of the strategy review, there was a public consultation including an on-line survey; the CMF Vice Chairman contributed to this public consultation and we assume other CMF members did also. The Equality Impact Assessment states:

When respondents were asked whether the proposed strategy would have a negative impact on religion/belief, the majority of respondents (59%) answered yes – the strategy would have a negative impact on religion/belief.

This category is the strongest area whereby online respondents envisaged a negative impact of the strategy.

When asked whether the proposed strategy would have a positive impact on religion/belief, the majority (57%) answered no – the strategy would not have a positive impact on religion/belief.

The main theme dominating the online comments in terms of perceived negative impact of the Prevent strategy on race/religion/ belief, was that the previous Prevent strategy was too Islam focused and only aimed at Muslims. Respondents felt strongly that the focus on Al Qa’ida-influenced terrorism had led to the stigmatising and stereotyping of Muslims, especially those of South Asian (e.g. Pakistani), Middle Eastern and African descent.

The previous implementation of Prevent conflated preventing people from becoming terrorists with general work on community cohesion. This led to confusion and increased the risk of the community cohesion programmes causing stigmatisation. Under the new approach, Prevent will be led entirely by the Home Office, while all community cohesion programmes will be led by the Department of Communities and Local Government, and will not be part of Prevent.

The CMF considers that the review will considerably improve the Prevent programme, will do what it can to assist the Government, and calls upon all British citizens to do the same.

Lord Sheikh (Chairman of Conservative Muslim Forum) was a VIP guest at the Gala Dinner marking the 25th Anniversary of the Al-Muntada Al-Islami Trust at the Royal Courts of Justice, Strand which was very well attended. Lord Sheikh spoke at the dinner and praised the charitable work undertaken by the Al-Muntada Trust in sub-Saharan Africa. He commended the Trust on their various valuable activities and initiatives including feeding programmes for some of the poorest people in the world, educational programmes to tackle illiteracy and the building of water wells and community outreach.

Lord Sheikh also talked about donations to charity and deserving causes which provides satisfaction to both the donor and recipient. Lord Sheikh congratulated the Trust for the fact that all of their work to help people is undertaken irrespective of colour, race or religion.

Lord Sheikh was presented with an award by children which is something he did appreciate as he is fond of children and always says that children are our future.

Pictured at Barry Mosque are Sergeant Bernard Sullivan, Imam of the Mosque Maulana Arif Hansrod, Superintendent Jay Dave, Rashid Jeebhai, Sufyan Ullah and Moawia Bin-Sufyan.

Muslims in the Vale of Glamorgan celebrated Eid al-Adha (Festival of Sacrifice) on Tuesday (November 16). This is one of the two main Islamic festivals (the other is Eid al-Fitr), and is the concluding act of a pilgrimage to Mecca. Eid al-Adha is observed whether or not one has been on the pilgrimage.

As part of the day’s celebrations Muslims attended the Mosque on Holton Road for morning prayers and were joined by the commander of the Vale police, Superintendent Jay Dave and Police Sergeant Bernard Sullivan from Barry police station.

Supt Dave said: “When he took on his new role Chief Constable Peter Vaughan set the standard that South Wales Police should be the best at understanding and responding to our communities’ needs.

“In order to do this we must reach out to all members of our society and understand and appreciate the richness of the cultures that surround us. We must recognise the important dates and festivals of all faiths in order to be able to provide a sensitive and comprehensive policing service across the South Wales community.

“I am grateful to the members of Barry Mosque for inviting us to join their Eid al-Adha celebrations. I am inviting any member of our community, especially from the minority groups here in the Vale of Glamorgan, to contact me directly if you want to work with us in strengthening links with your own faith group or organisation. Also please contact me if you have any concerns you want to address.”

Moawia Bin-Sufyan, member of the South Wales Police Authority and Chairman of the Conservative Muslim Forum Wales, who arranged the visit, said: “Eid al-Adha, the Feast of Sacrifice, is meant to commemorate Prophet Abraham’s willingness to sacrifice his son on God’s orders and takes place at the end of the Hajj (pilgrimage). The holiday is a time for family, friendship and goodwill, a time for forgiveness and making amends and coming together.

“With this in mind we invited Superintendent Jay to come and share this special event with us. I would like to thank him for his participation, as we were the first and only Mosque in the UK to have had their local commanding officer sit in on the prayers.”

The Conservative Muslim Forum held a meeting in the House of Lords which was attended by the Rt. Hon. Andrew Lansley CBE MP, Secretary of State for Health. Mr Lansley has previously attended and spoken at meetings organised by the Conservative Muslim Forum in the last two years.

The arrangements for the meeting on 24th May 2011 were made by Dr Farrukh Hussain, Chair of the Health Group of the Conservative Muslim Forum and Shaheen Mahmood, Executive Secretary.

The meeting proved to be very popular and the numbers admitted were limited. The attendees included members and supporters of the Conservative Muslim Forum, doctors, medical staff and members representing various communities.

There was an initial speech by Lord Sheikh who commented that the NHS does require reforming and as a businessman he felt that the question of bureaucracy, overmanning and utilisation of the funds in a proper manner needed to be addressed. There was also a short speech made by Dr Farrukh Hussain.

Andrew Lansley, in his speech, asserted that competition for services would not result in the privatisation of the NHS. He also said “We need to have a fair system for providers in a level playing field. We must make sure we develop the payment system and ensure it’s payment for outcomes not payment for activities, through Monitor, for the sustainability of what they do so we don’t lose key services.”

He went on to say “It isn’t about privatisation, because we support the NHS. It’s not about cherry-picking by the private sector. We use the payment system to prevent them walking in and taking responsibility for some patients and not others. It’s about quality, not competition that undermines quality…if the private sector doesn’t provide the best care, it doesn’t get the services.”

Following Andrew Lansley’s speech Lord Sheikh decided that there should be a cross-section of questions put to Andrew Lansley and questions were asked by GPs, hospital doctors and non-medical attendees in rotation. Andrew Lansley answered the questions fully and extremely competently.

Lord Ribeiro, who has had a distinguished career in the field of medicine and was previously the President of the Royal College of Surgeons, was also in attendance and he made a relevant point at the meeting.

The Conservative Muslim Forum has since received complimentary feedback from the attendees at the event.

Mr Mike Mogul, who is a member of the Executive Committee of the Conservative Muslim Forum, raised funds at a charity dinner held in the Houses of Parliament to purchase items for Dolphin Children’s Unit at Croydon University Hospital. Mike Mogul also made a personal donation to the fund.

In conjunction with the hospital, Mike Mogul acquired motorised toy vehicles, computers, TV screens, video players with children’s videos and medical equipment.

All of these were presented to the Dolphin Children’s Unit by Lord & Lady Sheikh, Gavin Barwell (MP for Croydon Central) and Mike Mogul. The Chief Executive of the Hospital, Mr Nick Hulme, was also present as well as Mr Jeff Knight, Consultant ENT Surgeon and the nursing staff of the Dolphin Unit. One of the young patients, Rene Robinson Thomas, was the first to play with the new equipment and said that he loved riding all the vehicles and he particularly loved the Mini.

The Dolphin Unit is a specialist children’s day surgery unit at Croydon University Hospital.

Lord Sheikh spoke at the Seminar organised by EcoMuslim on 13th May 2011 in the House of Lords and the subject of his speech was the environment. A transcript of his speech is below:

Your Excellencies, Ladies and Gentlemen.

This meeting has been organised by EcoMuslim and I am therefore going to speak on climate change and issues relating to the environment and also talk about the Islamic perspective on the subject of the environment.

I will also speak briefly about utilising funds generated by Islamic financial institutions for the betterment of the community.

Before I speak on the subject of environment I would like to say that about three weeks ago I visited Jerusalem and the West Bank.

There are two points that I would like to refer to which reinforce the acceptance of other religions in Islam.

In the 7th Century, the Muslims were victorious at the Battle of Yarmouk and conquered Jerusalem. The leaders of the city asked the Muslim generals that they will surrender the city to the leader of the Muslims and thus Khalifa Omar travelled to Jerusalem.

Khalifa Omar did not pray in the Church of Holy Sepulchre as he was concerned that if he prayed there the Muslims will convert the church into a mosque. He respected the Christian faith and prayed in the courtyard.

Khalifa Omar granted the people of Jerusalem a covenant of peace and protection and also said that the holy places of all religions need to be respected.

There is a mosque near the Church of Holy Sepulchre called Khalifa Omar’s Mosque and I have prayed at the mosque.

The relevant excerpts from the Jerusalem Declaration are actually displayed on the outside of the mosque.

I would also like to mention that when Salahuddin Ayyubi conquered Jerusalem in the 12th Century he permitted people of all religions to stay in the city and they were respected and had protection.

I am now going to talk about climate change and the environment.

I am passionate about the preservation of the environment and in fact when I was elevated to the House of Lords my maiden speech was on the environment.

I have also subsequently taken part in debates and discussions on climate change in the British Parliament.

Climate change is the greatest environmental challenge facing the world today.

The rising global temperatures will bring changes in weather patterns, rising sea levels and more instances of extreme weather.

The changes that are occurring are mainly due to human behaviour and the effects are estimated to have a larger impact on the climate as time goes on.

The problems that we face are global and thus we need to find global solutions to them that incorporate all of the countries in the world working together to try and combat climate change.

I am now going to talk about Islam and the environment. The Holy Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him) has said:

‘The earth is green and beautiful and Allah has appointed you his stewards over it.’

This emphasises the fact that in Islam, the conservation of the environment is based on the principle that all the individual components of the environment were created by God, and that all living things were created with different functions.

Furthermore in Islam humans are expected to protect the environment since no other creature is able to perform this task.

Humans are the only beings that Allah (swt) has entrusted with the responsibility of looking after the Earth.

I would also like to quote another saying from the Holy Prophet (peace be upon him) which is:

“When doomsday comes, if someone has a palm shoot in his hand he should plant it”

I would now like to state that the Holy Prophet (peace be upon him) instructed Muslims that even at times of war not to harm women and children.

Khalifa Abu Bakr also instructed them not to harm animals, destroy crops or cut down trees.

This highlights that the Holy Prophet and Khalifa Abu Bakr realised the value of nature and the importance of the preservation of the environment.

Climate change is possibly the biggest threat to life on the planet, and most of the effects are likely to be felt in Muslim majority countries.

For example there may be future water crises in the Middle East, flooding in Bangladesh, desertification of sub-Sahara Africa, submergence of the Maldives and much more. All of this will lead to more wars and produce environmental refugees.

In the United Kingdom, large steps have been taken to try and address the problem of climate change.

In November 2008 the Climate Change Bill was passed and thus became part of the law of the country as the Climate Change Act.

The Act states that the United Kingdom will attempt to achieve an 80% reduction in six different greenhouse gases by the year 2050 and also set a target of reducing carbon dioxide emissions by at least 26% by 2020 against a 1990 baseline.

In passing the Climate Change Act, the United Kingdom became the first country to set up a long-range carbon target into law.

I sincerely hope that many other countries follow the lead of the United Kingdom and make serious moves towards reducing global greenhouse gas emissions.

The Committee on Climate Change was created which is an independent expert body to advise the Government on the level of carbon budgets and on where cost-effective savings can be made.

Earlier this week the Committee for Climate Change published its Renewable Energy Review which was requested under the Coalition Agreement.

It highlights a range of promising renewable energy technologies which could in future become competitive, including electricity generation from wind and marine, air and ground source heat pumps and the use of bioenergy for heat generation.

Analysis in the report highlights the importance of other low-carbon technologies for power generation, such as nuclear and Carbon Capture and Storage, which have a potentially major role to play in the required power sector decarbonisation to 2030.

The UK is the second most attractive clean energy market in Europe according to research conducted by the accountants KPMG.

The KPMG report says that the UK could become a top investment destination and there would be rewards for the investors.

There is a considerable appetite now for investors to financially support ventures where there is production of energy by renewable means and there is a clear opportunity for the coalition Government to secure the UK’s position as a world leader in renewable and offshore technology.

By investing in ventures to produce energy by renewable means and carbon capture, the investors would do three things:

1. Help the environment

2. Create jobs

3. Produce income for the investors

Yesterday the Minister for Energy and Climate Change opened the Mabey Bridge wind turbine tower manufacturing facility in Chepstow which will be a tremendous boost for the UK renewable energy industry.

The Government has also submitted 12 applications from UK energy projects to the European Investment Bank for consideration of funding but there will also be opportunities for private investors

A company called Vestas announced on Wednesday that it will commit to building the biggest offshore wind turbines in the world in Kent. The wind farms will be installed in the North Sea and English Channel.

I am actively involved in promoting Islamic finance both in the UK and overseas. Islamic finance is all to do with ethical forms of investment, and also investing in businesses and industries that are good for society and the environment at large.

Islamic financial arrangements work for the benefit of society and there are opportunities to invest in the generation of energy by renewable means.

As Islamic finance is growing at a rapid pace and I feel that banks and financial institutions who have accumulated Islamic funds can play a vital role in helping the environment and financially support projects which produce renewable energy and help to reduce emissions of carbon.

The funds invested will of course produce appropriate returns which will be of benefit to the stakeholders.

Finally we need to look at what we as people can do.

Climate change unites us all and each and every one of us will suffer if we allow runaway increases in our emissions to further damage an already ailing atmosphere.

We all need to protect our forests and everything green. We can undertake home improvements and cut down on energy wastage as well as recycle as much as possible.

We must remember that few will have the greatness to bend history itself; but each of us can work to change a small portion of events, and in the end, the combination of all of those small acts will result in a big difference being made.

Thank you.

EcoMuslim hosted a seminar in Committee Room G of the House of Lords entitled “Exploring Business through Culture”. The speakers included Lord Sheikh, HE Dr. Carolyn Browne (British Ambassador to Azerbaijan), HE Mr Fakhruddin Gurbanov (Ambassador of Azerbaijan).

Lord Sheikh in his speech mentioned Islam and the environment and highlighted the importance of preserving the environment in Islam and also quoted the Holy Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him) and Khalifa Abu Bakr. He also spoke about what is being done in the United Kingdom to combat climate change and cited recent developments in the renewable energy sector.

Lord Sheikh then mentioned that funds generated by Islamic financial institutions need to be utilised for the betterment of the community and finished by outlining what we as individuals can do to help fight climate change.

Lord Sheikh in his initial remarks said that he has very recently returned from a visit to Jerusalem and referred to the acceptance in Islam of people of other religions. He talked about the Jerusalem Declaration issued by Khalifa Omar and the protection granted to people of all religions by Salahuddin Ayyubi when he conquered Jerusalem.

Please click here to view a transcript of his speech.

A meeting was organised by the Conservative Party Association in Burton-on-Trent and Lord Sheikh (Chairman) and Mohammed Amin (Vice Chairman) were asked to address the audience. The meeting was very well attended and there was a large gathering of Muslim men and women. Lord Sheikh spoke on his activities in the House of Lords, the AV Referendum, the Big Society, economy and education policies of the Conservative Party.

Mohammed Amin spoke on the need for Muslims to get more involved in politics, both at local and national level. He also spoke on why Muslims should join the Conservative Party and made the point that the Party represented all of the racial and religious groups and we are indeed very much an inclusive Party.

The other speakers were Andrew Griffiths MP for Burton-on-Trent and Cllr Khadim Thathall.

All of the Muslim candidates who are contesting the local elections were also in attendance. The number of Muslim candidates is in fact seven which is a record.

The Conservative Muslim Forum congratulates His Royal Highness Prince William of Wales and Miss Catherine Middleton on their forthcoming marriage.

As befits the second in line to the throne, their marriage will be a major state occasion, watched by approximately two billion people around the world. However at the heart of the pomp and ceremony will be two young people who have chosen to make their lives together, and two families that will be united by this marriage. We give them our good wishes and hope that their marriage will be long, happy and fruitful.

The Conservative Muslim Forum also deplores any attempts from any quarter to disrupt the wedding or to hold demonstrations against it. Individuals making such attempts speak for nobody but themselves, and we call upon the authorities to ensure that the wedding can proceed without interruption.