The Reader: All faiths are united in condemning the New Zealand attacks

AS A member of an inter-faith religious group I was sickened to hear about the shooting at two mosques in Christchurch, New Zealand.

From experience I know that my fellow Londoners will put aside labels of faith, race and social identity to come together to show solidarity with the victims of this horrific event. We organised a vigil outside New Zealand House on Friday to do exactly that.

We know incidents such as this can have an impact on attitudes worldwide and our worst fear is that such a horrific attack would drive an increase in hatred against Muslims here in the UK.

That is why we stood with the support of those from all faiths and backgrounds at the vigil on Friday — to show our defiance in the face of anyone who might try cause division in our society, a society which has a proud heritage of welcoming and including everyone.​
Aya Bdaiwi​
Faiths Forum for London

THESE attacks, once again, are an attempt to radicalise religion and divide us. The far-Right terrorist who murdered 50 Muslims publicly announced his hate for Muslims and immigrants.

Populists are attempting to divide people between “us” and “them” — it is a culture war. We must stop this ideology now before it grows out of control. In our current climate, it is essential that we unite to overcome this extremist ideology that is spreading.
Ataul Fatir

EDITOR'S REPLY

Dear Aya and Ataul

All sensible people will endorse the points you make and be pleased to see your positive response to this latest horrible tragedy.

As you indicate, the best way to counter the warped individuals who wish to foster division is to do the opposite of what they would wish by showing friendship, not hostility, towards our fellow human beings.

This doesn’t mean that debate between those of different faiths, or none, should be curtailed over issues such as equal rights for women, attitudes to different sexualities, and the way in which people should be able to live in a liberal society such as ours.

But we should always remember that we share far more than divides us and that tolerance of others, even if we strongly disagree with their views or conduct, is the basis of a civilised society.

The sight of toddlers being killed in New Zealand is only the latest illustration of the appalling consequences of doing otherwise. Redoubling our efforts to counter the toxic ideologies that produce such horrors must now be a priority.

Martin Bentham, Home Affairs editor

Move coach hubs to edge of town

It is good news that the proposal to move Victoria coach station to Royal Oak has been withdrawn [News, March 14].

Merely re-siting the station from Victoria to another inner London location is to ignore the broader implications of the problem. It does nothing to address the question of long-distance coaches having to cross central London to get to their terminus.

TfL is already searching for ways to tackle the serious traffic congestion and the appallingly high air pollution in London. Your current Clean Air Project ties in with this.

It would help to have a number of coach terminals around the periphery of London, with good local transport connections — where passengers are deposited to continue by local transport to their destination.

The decision to close Victoria coach station presents the ideal opportunity for some constructive long-term planning. It would be remiss to let the opportunity pass.
J Grimshaw