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| Caucasus/Russia/Central Asia |
| Tajik mosque clampdown could backfire |
| 2007-04-19 |
| A clampdown on unofficial mosques in the Tajik capital is aimed at weeding out extremist preachers, but critics warn that heavy-handed tactics risk alienating moderate Muslims. Like the rest of this predominantly Muslim country, Dushanbe has witnessed a boom in mosque construction in recent years. Mosques sprang up all over, the place, often built on charitable donations or growing out of local community centers. Islamic institutions such as mosques and madrassahs or religious schools formally come under an official "directorate" with close links to the state. The Tajik authorities keep a close eye on Muslim groups outside that structure, and have for example arrested many members of Hizb-ut-Tahrir, an outlawed group with extremist views. At the same time, Tajikistan is the only Central Asian state to have a legal and mainstream Islamic political party, the Islamic Rebirth Party (IRP). Two years ago, the city authorities in Dushanbe decided to take a closer look at the situation for fear that the unsanctioned prayer houses might be being used to preach radical messages. A specially created commission ran checks on the city's mosques both for their legal status and to see whether the buildings met planning and public health requirements. When that investigation concluded at the end of 2006, the prosecution service stepped in. Three months on, prosecutors have recommended that 13 mosques should be demolished, and that another 28 should be allowed to stay open as long as they formally register with the authorities. They also found that 29 of the "unofficial" mosques should be reclassified as legal. An official from the Dushanbe prosecutor's office told IWPR that it was a question of ensuring that everyone complied with the law. "We are all Muslims and we observe the precepts of Islam. But at the same time, we must obey the law. Any organization has to operate within the law," said the official, who did not want to be named. One imam in Dushanbe told IWPR that the reason many mosques remain outside the law is that the bureaucracy involved in winning registration is daunting. "Sometimes they don't register us, or they delay granting legal status to mosques," he explained. "So it's simpler for us to operate illegally." Said Ahmedov, a senior office-holder at a business institute in Dushanbe who formerly served as advisor to President Imomali Rahmon on religious affairs, believes that the authorities are right to clamp down on unregistered mosques because of concerns that some might have been used by extremist preachers. Ahmedov said there was a danger that more radical forms of Sunni Islam – the main faith in Tajikistan – were being imported by clerics who had spent time abroad. "If there are no controls, there's a risk that other strands [of Sunni Islam] will be propagated and gain influence. Some imams [prayer leaders] have studied abroad, a number of them in Saudi Arabia, where they fall under the sway of Wahhabism, which is alien to Tajikistan. That poses some risk," he said. "Religious figures must work alongside the state to monitor the situation and ensure that these teachings are not purveyed in the mosques and madrassahs." Ahmedov concluded that while the kind of people who veer towards extremist views tend to be "uninformed about Islam and poorly educated," the government should take care to ensure that supervision of religious affairs takes place within the law, "so that the rights of [other] believers are not abused." But critics of the mosque clampdown say it is part of a long-running and heavy-handed government campaign to contain and control the practice of Islam, and as such risks alienating devout Muslims and making them more receptive to extremist views. |
| Posted by:ryuge |
| #2 Ahmedov concluded that while the kind of people who veer towards extremist views tend to be "uninformed about Islam and poorly educated," While this might be true in poorer countries the opposite in fact is true of terrorist outside the middle east. Better educated middle class to rich. They typically understand Muhammad's call for murder and violence. Something the so called moderates refuse to follow and thus are actually heretics in the Islamic faith. In other words Ahmedov is full of shit. |
| Posted by: Icerigger 2007-04-19 10:40 |
| #1 Another example of Why Bush should Confront Saudis re funding of the Wahhabbis worldwide. These are the gus who want to run the world and for some reason most likely oil we allow the spread of their mosques worldwide????? Their ideology must be confronted NOW!!!!! |
| Posted by: Ebbolump Glomotle9608 2007-04-19 10:28 |