In the UK, more than 50 percent of British Pakistanis marry their first cousins – in Bradford that figure is 75 percent. Muslims Turning into Inbreds By Tazeen Ahmed My mum has always had a special place in her family because she was the first girl to live beyond childhood. Five of her sisters died as babies or toddlers. It was not until many years later that anyone worked out why so many children died and three boys were born deaf. Today there is no doubt among us that this tragedy occurred because my grandparents were first cousins. We know the children of first cousins are ten times more likely to be born with recessive genetic disorders which can include infant mortality, deafness and blindness. We know British Pakistanis constitute 1.5 per cent of the population, yet a third of all children born in this country with rare recessive genetic diseases come from this community. Pakistanis have been marrying cousins for generations. In South Asia the custom keeps family networks close and ensures assets remain in the family. In Britain, the aim can be to strengthen bonds with the subcontinent as cousins from abroad marry British partners. Some told us they face extreme pressure to marry in this way. One young woman, Zara, said when she was 16 she was emotionally blackmailed by her husband’s family in Pakistan who threatened suicide over loss of honour should she refuse to marry her cousin. She relented and lives in a deeply unhappy marriage. But others told me of the great benefits of first cousin marriage – love, support and understanding. To them, questioning it is an attack on the community or, worse, Islam. At a Pakistani centre in Sheffield, one man said: 'The community feels targeted, whether that be forced marriages or first-cousin marriages. The community is battening down its hatches, not wanting to engage.' As a British Pakistani, I am aware of the religious, cultural and racial sensitivities around this issue and understand why people would be on the defensive when questioned about it. At times I was torn between explaining the health risks while privately understanding the community’s sense of being demonized. It is not about religion or cultural identity. It is about avoidable suffering such at that experienced by Saeeda and Jalil Akhtar, whom I met in Bradford. They are first cousins and have six children, three with the genetic disease mucolipidosis type IV. This stops the body getting rid of waste properly and affects brain functions controlling vision and movement. Mohsin, their second eldest, is 17 and blind. He wanders aimless and helpless, often crying in frustration. His sisters Hina, 13, and Zainab, 11, have the same condition. They live in almost complete darkness. Saeeda is worn down from years of round-the-clock care. She spoon-feeds them, dresses them and fears for them. Neither she nor her husband can quite accept that their familial link is the cause of this pain. This is a major public health issue that has huge implications for other services. The cost to the NHS is many millions of pounds. On average, a children’s hospital will see 20 to 30 recessive gene disorders a decade, but one hospital in Bradford has seen 165, while British Pakistani children are three times more likely to have learning difficulties, with care costing about £75,000 a year per child. However during this investigation we found no efforts to introduce any national awareness-raising campaign. Why? We approached 16 MPs with a significant number of British Pakistani constituents for interview – every one declined. A lone voice was Ann Cryer, former Labour MP for Keighley, near Bradford, who said 'fear of being accused of racism or demonisation' prevented politicians speaking up. Environmental minister Phil Woolas who represents Oldham East and Saddleworth said "If you talk to any primary care worker they will tell you that levels of disability among the . . . Pakistani population are higher than the general population. And everybody knows it’s caused by first cousin marriage." "It's very difficult for people to say ‘you can’t do that’ because it’s a very sensitive, human thing." "Awareness does need to be raised but we are very aware of the sensitivities," he added. "If you go into a paediatric ward in Bradford or Keighley you will find more than half of the kids there are from the Asian (MUSLIM) community. Since Asians only represent 20 percent to 30 percent of the population, you can see that they are over represented. I have encountered cases of blindness and deafness. There was one poor girl who had to have an oxygen tank on her back and breathe from a hole in the front of her neck. The parents were warned they should not have any more children. But when the husband returned again from Pakistan, within months they had another child with exactly the same condition." Research for BBC2's Newsnight in November 2005 showed British Pakistanis accounted for 3.4 percent of all births but have 30 per cent of all British children with recessive disorders. http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/art...tain-causing-massive-surge-birth-defects.html
Muhammed married his cousin, and anything Muhammed did is OK. You can get away with that for a generation or two, but not 1400 years.
Icelandic and Cajun people did much of the same for generations. Poor hearing among them is one of the results of inbreeding.
Contrary to what the liberal flakes believe, mixing cultures - and especially where a different religion is a factor in the mix - doesn't work.
