Jalsa Salana, a huge men only festival in the UK.

[Imdunfer]

This huge Muslim Festival, 50,000 attendees from 100 countries, happened over the weekend in Hampshire. If previous years are anything to go by you will be hard put to find a single woman in any of the photographs. That's because the men and the women meet separately. The women and men are segregated. The women are excluded from taking part with the men, they have a separate conference, they aren't even sat at the back of the men's one.

I honestly never thought I'd be living in a country where women were so excluded from a public gathering of 50,000 people.

I never thought I'd be living in a country where this event will go without criticism and probably actually be praised and celebrated. "MPs, bishops and other public figures are expected to attend." and not one of them, and probably no other prominent public figure either, will comment on this segregation.

It's 2026, how on earth is this country going backwards so far in the treatment of women that this is now perceived to be mainstream and acceptable?

www.theguardian.com/world/2026/jul/25/uk-largest-muslim-event-jalsa-salana-security-anti-muslim-hate-crime#:~:text=Now%20in%20its%2060th%20year,site%20in%20Hampshire%20this%20weekend.

😂😂😂

My primary school is 90% Muslim. Girls in Reception often wear hijabs. By KS2, most of the girls wear them. There are Girls and Boys Muslim High schools in the same area. The boys uniform is regular trousers, blazer, shirt and tie. The Girls uniform is black hijab and abaya. They wear a shorter, white hijab for PE.

Also bad.

Islam is not one thing and we really should beware of tarring all branches with the same brush. This is an extract from one of the closing speeches at the men's conference.
These Muslims are at as much risk from Jihadis as Westerners, they'd be considered apostates.

A person could not be regarded as a true Muslim until they loved and sympathised with others as they did with themselves. The Promised Messiah (as) had advised his followers to purify their hearts, show compassion to all humanity and wish no evil even for those who opposed them.

Instead of seeking revenge, believers should forgive. By showing mercy to those on earth, they became recipients of mercy from heaven.

Our primary school was 40% Muslim, 5% Jewish, 5% Sikh. No hijabs until Y7 (also Yorkshire)

I'm extremely surprised that young children were in hijabs.

Yet why do I never see anyone on MN posting vociferously about those? Only ever Islam?

Take a look at Iran et al and say that again.

Islams bad reputation is entirely based on the behaviour we have experienced. We are not going to pretend otherwise.

Because they weren't holding huge events at the weekend, I'd imagine.

That would be the Vatican Council which is held at the Vatican.

The rulings on the interpretation of the Equality Act which says that if your event is single sex, it has to be single sex based on biology. So single sex events/organisations either have to exclude trans individuals of the opposite biological sex or lose their single sex status entirely. Hence the wailing and moaning and gnashing of teeth from certain people within the Women's Institute, Girl Guides etc.

Under UK law the event is allowed to be segregated by sex and include male only spaces, but are at risk of being done for discrimination if they allowed trans men into those spaces. Since the organisers are probably absolutely fine with that I doubt it's going to be a huge issue.

Well we allow women only services and spaces even in circumstances where the presence of the opposite sex is emotionally distressing rather than dangerous.

As it stands it is proportionate and legal for the conference to go ahead and in line with British value of tolerance and inclusion.

It is not for the British state to legislate religious beliefs and systems so unless legislation is changed this is perfectly legal/ acceptable

We also already allow discrimination against men /trans athletes on the basis that are women are lesser athletes.

We can choose not to be Catholic.
However this Muslim event is being held under our noses, in our home country, and its attitudes are taking over councils.

Which does not rule Italy, which has a proportional representation parliamentary system.

But even then there are regular annual conferences in the UK solely for male priests and deacons. Not in as large a number, of course, but have been going on for hundreds of years. Never seen or hear about any protests outside them.

We also already allow discrimination against men /trans athletes on the basis that are women are lesser athletes

Lord almighty that's a desperate stretch!

No males are descriminated against in sport.

There is no connection between sex categories for sport and sex categories in having power over how the society you live in is managed.

Those priests and deacons don't go back into their communities and apply Sharia Law.

It may not 'rule' it, but if you really think the Catholic church doesn't hold very considerable political and social sway (or, that word you used earlier, influence) not only it Italy and the US but a lot of African countries you are being naive.

Not quite sure of the point you're trying to make. The Vatican is not part of Italy, it's a separate city state. Are you trying to say that this Muslim conference is attempting to usurp parliamentary democracy?

No, they apply Canon Law.

I'm referring to the religion being the actual Government. In the modern world I believe that's unique to Islam and possibly the tiny area of the Vatican City.

Which does not supersede the law of the land, which states that women and men are equal.

It holds much less influence than it used to in eg the UK.

This is a post about the role of Islam in the UK.

No one is saying that men aren't allowed to hold events.

We also already allow discrimination against men /trans athletes on the basis that are women are lesser athletes. Because if we don't discriminate against men in women's sport, women's sport becomes men's sport.

I'm afraid I wasn't alive hundreds of years ago.