Child Sex Trial: Rochdale Council of Mosques response

The Rochdale Council of Mosques (RCM) has unreservedly condemned the "horrific crimes" committed by nine men convicted of sexually exploitating vulnerable young girls.

Imam Chishti MBE, spokesperson for the RCM, commented: “In relation to the 9 men who have been convicted of various charges surrounding the sexual exploitation of vulnerable young girls, the RCM unreservedly condemns these horrific crimes.

"The ripple effect of such crimes can sometimes be forgotten under such circumstances so as well as primarily remembering the victims, also the families, often young children of the perpetrators are left bereft of support especially when there is so much media attention.

"This is not a race, faith or creed issue, it is about crime and exploitation of young vulnerable girls and vulnerability goes across the colour divides.

"All our member Imams are at the forefront of addressing issues that are sometimes seen as taboo.

"The RCM will continue to work together with all agencies, the Police and the courts as part of the multi-agency approach to tackling this issue in our borough.

"We would like to assure the public that we have been working closely with the Consequent Management Group as well as with the Safeguarding Board and will continue to do so.

Chairman of the RCM, Tahir Mahmood stated: “We are proud Rochdalians and will not tolerate any behaviour that seeks to divide the cohesion in our borough. We must stand together as one community and not allow any outsiders, especially from the far right, to damage the good relations that we have enjoyed for many years.

"We must also not lose sight of the fact that there is a wider issue of child exploitation, international trafficking and internet grooming that is almost a plague internationally.

"The RCM will continue to support the GMP, RMBC and other partners to work together for the betterment of our communities to eradicate such evil from our borough.”

The Rochdale Council of Mosques is an umbrella organisation established in 2004 representing 14 mosques and madrassahs across the borough. It is a non-denominational, voluntary organisation whose primary aim is to provide a platform for all the mosques, Imams and the respective management committees whereby they can jointly discuss faith and community matters.