TVA’s apology for false story too late to prevent protests
The TVA news network apologized Friday for a controversial and since debunked report on mosques banning women from a nearby construction site, but a national Muslim organization says the network needs to go further.
At the mosques Friday, worshippers filled the halls and leaders praised the government and other media for their quick work to bring out the truth, but many said the damage wrought by the news report had already been done, once again stirring anti-Muslim sentiment and bringing fear and a sense of exclusion to members of the Muslim community.
Outside the mosques, roughly a dozen protesters claimed they were there to denounce discrimination against women, saying they still believed the news report to be true. They were surrounded by dozens of police officers.
Standing a few metres away, Scott Weinstein of the Independent Jewish Voices Canada organization stood with a small group of counter-protesters, the two groups separated by barrier tape and a row of police officers, who also helped to escort Muslims headed to prayers.
“We as Jews know what happens when a religious group or ethnic group is targeted for hate,” he said.
In their statement, TVA offered an apology to those “affected” by the news story.
“The report was based on comments made on camera Tuesday by two entrepreneurs. However, the versions we received from these individuals has changed since yesterday,” the statement said. “TVA Nouvelles regrets this situation and wishes to apologize to the different individuals and viewers who were affected by this news story.”
The company said its management will continue to conduct an internal investigation to verify the steps of the journalistic process undertaken.
The news network issued the statement a day after the Commission de la construction du Québec found no sign whatsoever that anyone associated with two mosques in Côte-des-Neiges asked for women to be excluded from a work site outside their doors.
But the National Council of Canadian Muslims said TVA should issue an on-air apology to the mosque and to Quebec’s Muslim community.
“We condemn this false media story targeting the Ahl-Ill Bait mosque that has led to the vilification of the Quebec Muslim community and to serious threats against the safety of the mosque,” NCCM spokesperson Eve Torres said in a statement published Friday.
“We are deeply concerned by the surge of hateful messages directed towards both Quebec Muslims and the mosque congregation in the aftermath of this false story. This is especially troubling in light of the upcoming first anniversary of the horrific attack on the Islamic Cultural Centre of Quebec on Jan. 29.”
La Meute, the far-right, antiMuslim group, had planned a protest for Friday outside the mosque on de Courtrai Ave., but cancelled it after the CCQ report was made public. The group issued a statement Friday saying their “internal investigation unit” determined, after its own inquiry, that the news report had no validity and the mosques were not implicated.
Aktar Ahmed, director of the Baitul Makarram mosque, thanked La Meute for cancelling their planned protest during an address to worshippers. Mosque directors had not seen TVA’s apology yet. He said they were ready to accept it, but are still considering pursuing legal action.
“We want an unconditional apology (over this) fabricated news that brought tension into our society and tried to bring down our society, tried to bring people against the Muslim community,” he said.
“Female construction workers helped build this mosque. Why would we ban them from working nearby?”
Ahmed was accompanied at prayers by Quebec Immigration, Diversities and Inclusion Minister David Heurtel, Côte-des-Neiges— Notre-Dame-de-Grâce borough Mayor Sue Montgomery and Lionel Perez, leader of the Mouvement Montréal opposition party and a councillor in the borough.
“Everybody in the (mosque today), all of the men and women are all Quebecers,” Heurtel said. “We are all Quebecers … There was dialogue, it was done in a peaceful, respectful manner. And that’s what Quebec is, those are the values that make Quebec.”
Montgomery, a former Montreal Gazette reporter, noted that journalists have a strict responsibility to ensure they are reporting the truth.
“I hope that there has been a lesson learned though this horrible tragedy,” she said. “Luckily no one was injured, but I’m sure a lot of people’s feelings were hurt, and there was a lot of fear, and that’s unacceptable.”
Outside the mosque, one worshipper pointed out a TVA reporter and told him to leave.
“You’re not welcome here,” the man said. “Go home. You’re not a real journalist.”
Despite the retraction and the apology, many at the mosque said that the false story, and the speed with which it engendered antiMuslim sentiment, brought the sense that many hurtful prejudices lie just beneath the surface.
“I’ve been here 42 years — I’m more Quebecer than Algerian,” said Karim. “But now I wonder if it is time to leave. Except I have six children here. …When you are hunting a deer, you have to be very careful that you are right on target. Otherwise innocent bystanders can get hurt.”
Representatives of the mosques said they received hate messages and fire and death threats.
Down the road from the mosques, construction workers built wood scaffolding to conduct water line repairs, as a female worker helped direct traffic.