REGINA — A decision on whether to continue a controversial call to prayer is now in the hands of the Regina Police Service (RPS).
On Friday, the Regina City Jamia Masjid invited community members to complete a brief survey to gather feedback on whether the publicly broadcast call to prayer should continue. The results of the survey were submitted on Sunday to the RPS.
“We are evaluating all the information that's available to us in reviewing the application, and so we want to make sure that we do our due diligence and ensure that we have some good decision-making on that,” said RPS Chief Lorilee Davies at a media scrum on Tuesday.
Regina City Jamia Masjid director M. Anisur Rahaman confirmed he has submitted an application for a new amplification permit under the City of Regina’s bylaw, which is granted by the RPS.
The mosque had originally been approved for a short-term amplification permit, which permitted the broadcast to occur for roughly three minutes on Fridays at noon.
After its first broadcast on June 19, online backlash caused the mosque to pause its call to prayer until public consultation was done.
Davies admitted the conversations about the mosque have divided Regina and created near levels of disrespect toward a religion.
“It's troubling that this has created divisions in our community, and it's fostered conversations that I would say are bordering on definitely disrespectful, but certainly bordering on hate crimes.”
While opinions are okay in Davies’ mind, they have to be respectful, she said.
“We need to ensure that we aren't crossing the line for any type of criminal code offences, and just to be respectful of one another.”
Consideration of review
Davies said they’ll rely on existing legislation when determining what factors can be considered as part of the permit review.
“We can rely on the legislation that's existing in place right now, and so there isn't any opportunity in that bylaw that says public opinion as a check mark there.”
However, when asked, Davies did not clarify whether the survey results would be limited to responses from Regina residents or include those from outside the city.
Some of the factors being considered include the broadcast radius, the noise level, how long the call to prayer lasts and how often it occurs.
Davies did not provide a timeline for when a decision would be made.
Questions have also arisen about the city's role in granting an amplification permit, but Mayor Chad Bachynski said the process should remain free from bias.
“The role of council at the end of the day and the city is to be nonpartisan.”
However, Bachynski left the door open for changes to the bylaw's process if needed.
