ISLAM AND THE MYTHS OF UNITY AND PEACE
By Lee Jay Walker
The Seoul Times
Monday, July 6, 2009
Asia-Pacific
Letters from Tokyo
A Kurdish refugee holds her baby. The Kurds are an Ethnic-Iranian
ethnolinguistic group mostly inhabiting a region known as Kurdistan
including adjacent parts of Iran, Iraq, Syria, Turkey.
The so-called Islamic world is in crisis because many see enemies all
over the place, be it democracy, Westernization, liberalism, socialism,
and so forth. While alternative faiths are frowned upon, therefore,
Christian and Buddhist missionaries must be aware for merely talking
about your faith can mean either prison or death. Yet the real threat
to Muslims and minority Muslim groups within various different nations
is their fellow co-religionists, so why are outsiders hated so much
when the real threat is Islam itself?
After all, since 1970 approximately 5 million Muslims have been
killed by fellow Muslims, however, one mention of Israel, and we hear
about the Muslim unity card. However, the real "Muslim unity card"
is a non-starter and this applies to the very foundations of Islam
itself because the majority of early Muslim caliphs were killed by
Muslims. Therefore, the current situation is similar to the past
because it is based on internal tensions and mutual hatreds which
run deep.
The Kurds are a prime example because the majority of Kurdish people
follow the Islamic faith, most are Sunni. Despite this, the Kurds,
irrespective if Sunni or Shia, face persecution in modern day Iran,
Iraq, Syria, and Turkey. The Kurds, ironically, have much greater
freedoms in mainly Christian Armenia where a minority reside or
throughout the European Union where many have fled because of
persecution in the Middle East.
Therefore, the Kurds, the biggest stateless people in the world are
marginalized and persecuted by fellow Muslims throughout the Middle
East where they reside. Yet Muslims in the Middle East often speak-out
for the Palestinian cause, however, the very same people often remain
silent about the Kurdish cause. Therefore, it is clear that double
standards are at play and Israel is a very easy scapegoat.
After all, look at recent history and the reality of the modern
world. For since 1970 at least 5 million Muslims have been killed
by their co-religionists on the grounds of Sunni-Shia divisions,
ethnic tensions, political tensions, and other issues.
This applies to the Iran-Iraq war; the persecution of African Muslims
in Darfur by the Arab Muslim dominated government in Khartoum;
Kurdish persecution in Iran, Iraq, and Turkey (deaths have been a lot
lower in Syria but persecution does take place); Pakistan-Bangladesh
war; Algeria, Somalia, Syria (1982); Tajikistan; Yemen; and other
nations. Also, roughly 150,000 Shia Muslims have been killed in
Afghanistan, Iraq, and Pakistan, by Sunni Islamic fanatics.
Despite this reality we have world leaders like President Obama of
America appealing to the so-called Muslim world for a fresh start. Yet
surely an internal fresh start is needed first, however, it seems
most unlikely because the spiral of hatred runs very deep.
Therefore, do Shia Muslims in America, France, Japan, South Korea,
the United Kingdom, and other mainly non-Muslim nations reside in
fear? Of course the answer is no. Yet Shia Muslims have been targeted
in Afghanistan, Iraq, Pakistan, and other nations, by Sunni Islamic
zealots. Meanwhile in Saudi Arabia it is clear that Shia Muslims
are second-class citizens because the Sunni elite do not believe in
religious equality.
Then if we look at two different Muslim branches, the Ahmadiyya’s
and Bahai’s, it becomes apparent that internal Islamic hatred and
persecution is strong. After all, the Bahai community in Iran and
the Ahmadiyya community in Pakistan, suffer enormous persecution.
Therefore, many Bahai’s and Ahmadiyya’s have fled both Iran and
Pakistan respectively, but if either branches fled to Afghanistan
or Saudi Arabia, or other conservative Muslim nations, then they
would suffer persecution once more. Given this, many Bahai’s and
Ahmadiyya’s have fled to mainly non-Muslim nations because they have
much greater freedom.
Then if we focus on al-Qaeda (al-Qaida) and Osama Bin Laden and
fellow Sunni Islamic zealots, then we see a similar pattern. For
when al-Qaeda emerged in Afghanistan they took their deadly sectarian
ways with them and Shia Muslims were murdered in cold blood by forces
loyal to al-Qaeda. The same happened when al-Qaeda entered the Iraqi
civil war because once more they slaughtered Shia Muslims at will
and moderate Sunni Muslim leaders were also killed by Sunni Muslim
fanatics who had been brainwashed.
Given this, it is clear that Muslim unity is not only a sham but
it is based on lies and sadly many elements within the mass media
are ignoring this reality. Yet if Israel kills Palestinians in
self-defence or during a military operation, then the usual mantra
of Muslim brotherhood and Muslim persecution is raised.
However, the real reality is very different because the vast majority
of Muslims who are killed throughout the world are killed by their
co-religionists.
Therefore, the biggest persecutor of Muslims in the modern world
is being done by their own co-religionists. At the same time, the
deniers of democracy, religious freedom, female emancipation, and other
important issues, are Muslim elites in many Muslim majority nations.
Also, it is abundantly clear that America and other nations are not
anti-Muslim. After all, you have had three wars in Europe involving
Muslims and Orthodox Christians in recent times. This applies to
Cyprus, Bosnia, and Kosovo (Serbia), and every time America supported
Islam against Orthodox Christianity. Just like America supported
Indonesia despite countless massacres of Timorese people in the 1970s,
1980s, and early 1990s.
However, when the Arab dominated regime in Khartoum, Sudan, was killing
millions of mainly African Christians and Animists in southern Sudan
did mainly Muslim nations enter Sudan to stop the bloodshed. Of course
they did not and many African slaves in Sudan were sold internally
but the outcry was very silent in the so-called Muslim world.
Despite everything, the President of America, Obama, is offering an
"olive branch" but surely it should be the other way around. For in
America people have the right to follow any religion they want or to
have no religion. Yet in the land of Mecca and Medina (Saudi Arabia)
you are not allowed to have one single Christian church, Buddhist
temple, Hindu temple, or any other non-Muslim place of worship.
Therefore, what is the real agenda? Is it that Saudi Arabia can do
whatever it likes because of their massive amounts of oil reserves? For
this nation is spreading radical Sunni Islam to Afghanistan, Chechnya
(Russian Federation), Iraq, Pakistan, Somalia, and many other nations,
without any fear. Or is it that political correctness means we have
to be pro-Islamic to show how nice we are, therefore, minority Muslim
branches, Christians and other non-Muslims are allowed to be "lambs
to the slaughter of Islam?" Or is it a mixture of both or collective
amnesia?
Maybe I will always be in lament because Israel is the easy
scapegoat and of course many Muslims appear to believe that they are
victims. However, the real truth couldn’t be further away because
the biggest threat to minority Muslim groups and to the freedom of
Muslims, is being done in the name of Islam by either radical zealots
or despotic rulers who invoke Sharia Islamic law in order to preserve
their respective power bases.
The mass media should take a long look at itself and start to question
the so-called House of Islam, Arab unity, Muslim brotherhood, and so
forth. For Arab unity ignores both Arab disunity and the many non-Arab
groups who reside in Arab dominated nations. While the House of Islam
was divided within a short time of the death of Mohammed and Muslim
brotherhood is based on unreality.