An MP has hit out at Imams, who come to Britain from overseas, saying they have little knowledge of the rights of women and children

Asian Image reporter:

Anne Cryer the Keighley and Ilkley MP is calling for foreign imams to be educated on child-protection issues and the way women are treated in the UK before they come to Britain.

But a leading member of a Council of Mosques said she should learn more about Islam.

Mrs Cryer, said: "Imams should have a knowledge of child protection, of how we regard the rights of women.

"Imams and others should encourage integration as opposed to segregation."

She said some Imams in her own constituency had acted in a way that would not be expected in the UK. She said: "Over many years I have not been given any help by many of the Imams who have been brought in, many of whom don't speak a word of English and have little knowledge of what life in Britain is all about, particularly for their young members.

"I have problems with girls coming to me about parents forcing them into a marriage and when they have gone to see an Imam to get help they have taken the side of the parents.

"We have got to get away from this sort of attitude. We have to help our communities to integrate, to live in cohesion with the rest of our communities.

"I think that some of these Imams coming in, particularly from Mirpur, where there is very little education, are part of the problem rather than the solution."

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