Jihad TV in Canada, Part 2

Last week I wrote about Canada’s multifaith multiculti TV channel, VisionTV, and its jihad-preaching Islamist, Dr. Ahmad.

Dr. Ahmad was in serious violation of the TV station’s rules, not to mention Canada’s hate-speech codes. It looked like the station was going to punish Dr. Jihad by banishing him from the air.

But instead… from today’s National Post:

VisionTV gives Islamic radical more air time
Jewish groups Outraged; Vision Backpedals On ‘Regret’ To Air Preacher

A day after saying it regretted broadcasting a lecture by a Pakistani preacher who says Muslim scripture advocates violent holy war and the “extermination” of Jews, VisionTV put him back on the air again this weekend.

A leading Jewish organization said yesterday it would launch a formal complaint with Canadian broadcast regulators after Vision aired another hour-long talk by fundamentalist Israr Ahmad on Saturday.

The preacher’s reappearance on Canadian television came as a surprise to some, since VisionTV had issued a statement on Friday expressing regret for broadcasting Mr. Ahmad’s lecture on violent jihad on July 14.

But despite the statement, Vision aired another lecture Saturday afternoon by Mr. Ahmad, who compares Jews to “parasites,” describes the Holocaust as “divine punishment” and calls Jews “condemned.”

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“It is most troubling that VisionTV made a calculated decision to re-broadcast a segment featuring a radical Imam, whose words have the potential to incite hatred and violence,” Frank Dimant of B’nai Brith Canada said yesterday.

[…]

Vision, which is available in 7.8 million Canadian households, has a strict code of ethics that forbids the broadcast of programs that could incite violence, overseas conflicts or strife between religions. Vision could not be reached for comment yesterday.

Last week, a Vision executive, Mark Prasuhn, described “Dr. Ahmad” as a religious scholar — he is a medical doctor — and in a recent interview the preacher acknowledged that he was not welcome in Canada. “I had no official information about a ban [from entering Canada] but I understood that I was not in the good books of the U.S. and the West, especially after 9 /11, due to my concept of radical Islam; which demands a Muslim to struggle against the prevailing corrupt and exploitative system in the world,” he said.

Mr. Ahmad heads a self-described “revolutionary” organization called Tanzeem-e Islami, which wants to turn Pakistan into a fundamentalist Islamic state and a launch pad for the global domination of Islam.

[…]

Mr. Ahmad’s followers in Canada include terror suspect Qayyum Abdul Jamal, arrested last summer for his alleged role in a plot to detonate truck bombs in downtown Toronto.

A reminder — this is VisionTV’s mission statement:

We are Canada’s multi-faith and multicultural broadcaster. VisionTV presents inspirational, insightful and original programming that celebrates diversity and promotes understanding among people of different faiths and cultures. VisionTV is part of a group of channels that also includes One: the Body, Mind & Spirit channel, a digital service offering programs on natural health, personal growth and living a planet-friendly lifestyle.

Say what?


Hat tip: RES.