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All that aside I don't see the problem if the numbers have increased - are you suggesting that individuals should be ashamed of their religion and not wear clothing that identifies their religious beliefs!  Jews, Buddhists, Rastafarians, Sikhs and numerous other groups wear clothing that identifies their beliefs - do you think that hinders their desire to be British and part of the greater society?

 

Integration doesn't require everybody to be the same.

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No absolutely not! I was not suggesting that people should be affraid to celebrate or simply proudly demonstrate their religion or belief. If anyone interpreted my question that way then I am at fault for not reflecting my thoughts more appropriately. I was however expressing what has become a bone of contention among many who share their space and community. Sending 14 year old girls back to Pakistan for an arranged marriage, against the will of the child, against the law here yet it continues and we watch it happen. It is as if some wish to live in a time warp, to take the benefits we enjoy as a developed nation but to somehow exist independently and outside the laws and traditions of their abode. There has to be a balance, Just as the recently released British pensioner held in a saudi jail having been caught in posession of home made alcohol,he broke the law of the land and was punished. Those who come here should be subject to our laws, respect our traditions, understand our fears and not seek to establish a parallel form of governance or judicial system based on feudal and religious doctrine. I welcome cosmopolitan societies but I also wish to preserve some national identity and tradition where it was founded.