Bushra Noah's nice, little earner

On 16 June 2008, an employment tribunal panel dismissed Bushra Noah's claim of religious discrimination against Sarah Desrosiers, the owner of a hair salon, saying:

"We were satisfied by the respondent's evidence that the claimant was not treated less favourably than the respondent would have treated a woman who, whether Muslim or not, for a reason other than religious belief wears a hair covering at all times when at work."

Despite this judgement, Sarah was ordered to pay £4,000 compensation to Noah for INDIRECT DISCRIMINATION and INJURY TO FEELINGS. The panel explained:

"There was no specific evidence before us as to what would have been the actual impact of the claimant working in her salon with her head covered at all times. So, despite Sarah telling them that she needed stylists to 'showcase alternative hairstyles' and someone who covered their HAIR would not necessarily maximise the 'funky, urban' image of her HAIR salon, the panel members weren't able to figure out that a HEADSCARF-WEARING MUSLIM might not have been an ideal candidate for the job."

This is how Sarah put it:

"I sell image, it’s very important, and I would expect a hair stylist to display her hair because I need people to be drawn in off the street. If someone came in wearing a baseball hat or a cowboy hat I’d tell them to take it off while they’re working. To me, it’s absolutely basic that people should be able to see the stylist’s hair."

Seems reasonable, don't you think? Speaking after the ruling, Sarah said:

"I never in a million years dreamt that somebody would be completely against the display of hair and be in this industry."

'Never in a million years?' What, when the nutcases are running the asylum? Sarah, my dear, where have you been all your life? Common sense has been a no-no ever since the PC Crowd took over.

During the hearing Noah, who, originally, went to court demanding £35,000 for her 'injured feelings,' told the tribunal that she was 'devastated' that she was not offered the job of assistant stylist.

Interesting that she would ever have thought that she might be suitable for the position, don't you think? Especially, as you would have been forgiven for believing that displays of ostentatious Western femininity, as typified by the results of your average trip to the hair salon, might have been anathema to the faithful.

I mean, when a 19 March 2008, BBC report tells you that, 'estimates suggest that up to 100 women were murdered in Basra alone last year, mainly for behaviour or dress deemed un-Islamic,' you'd have to think that something as 'un-Islamic' as a hair salon would be off-limits to your devout, headscarf-wearing Muslim, wouldn't you?

Not if you're living in England, apparently. And the headscarf-wearing Muslim in question can be guaranteed a nice, little earner. Where I come from it's called taking the p***.

I wonder who was on that 'employment tribunal panel?' I don't know about you but I find it comforting to be able to put a name and a face to a p***-taker. Like the one on the left, for instance.

Hands up all of those who would hire Bushra Noah to, as Sarah Desrosiers put it, 'sell image!' That's what I thought. Anyway, hers is a name and a face we now know. As for the hair, well, you wouldn't be too sure about that.

"Estimates suggest that up to 100 women were murdered in Basra alone last year, mainly for behaviour or dress deemed 'un-Islamic'."

An 8 February 2008, CNN report explained the situation in more detail:

"The images in the Basra police file are nauseating: Page after page of women killed in brutal fashion, some strangled to death, their faces disfigured; others beheaded. All bear signs of torture. The women are killed, police say, because they failed to wear a headscarf or because they ignored other 'rules' that secretive fundamentalist groups want to enforce...

As many as 133 women were killed in Basra last year, 79 for violation of 'Islamic teachings' and 47 for so-called honor killings... Basra's police chief, Gen. Abdul Jalil Khalaf, flips through the file, pointing to one unsolved case after another.

'There are many motives for these crimes and parties involved in killing women, by strangling, beheading, chopping off their hands, legs, heads. When I came to Basra a year ago,' he says, 'two women were killed in front of their kids. Their blood was flowing in front of their kids, they were crying. Another woman was killed in front of her 6-year-old son, another in front of her 11-year-old child, and yet another who was pregnant.'

The killers enforcing their own version of Islamic justice are rarely caught, while women live in fear.

Boldly splattered in red paint just outside the main downtown market, a chilling sign reads: 'We warn against not wearing a headscarf and wearing makeup. Those who do not abide by this will be punished. God is our witness, we have notified you.'

The attacks on the women of Basra have intensified SINCE BRITSIH TROOPS WITHDREW TO THEIR BASE at the airport back in September, police say. Iraqi security forces took over after British troops pulled back, BUT ARE HEAVILY INFILTRATED BY MILITIAS...

Amnesty International has raised concern about the increasing violence toward women in Iraq, saying abductions, rapes and 'honor killings' are on the rise...

After the fall of Saddam Hussein in 2003, Sawsan says, the situation was 'THE BEST.' But now, she says, it's 'THE WORST. We thought there would be freedom and democracy and women would have their rights. But all the things we were promised have not come true. THERE IS ONLY FEAR AND HORROR'."

Bush and Blair promised us lots of glossy b***ocks too, Sawsan.

Unfortunately for you and all the Iraqi dead, a majority in Yankee-land, and a sizeable minority over here, believed them.