The New York Times this morning reported that three car bombs were detonated in front of police stations in Basra, Iraq killing 68 people including 23 children. One could be forgiven for concluding that Islam has a problem with violence, were it not for the reassuring words of Saudi Crown Prince Abdullah who yesterday, according to the Arab News Daily, pronounced Islam, “a religion of peace and moderation.”
In his inaugural address to an international conference on Islam and terrorism held in Riyadh, Abdullah said, “Islam condemns all forms of terrorism and we must strive to correct wrong perceptions about our religion.” If the Basra attacks didn’t leave Abdullah second-guessing his use of the words “peace” and “moderation” in a sentence with the word “Islam”, an attack in Riyadh today may have done the trick. According to the Times, the headquarters of Saudi Arabia’s police force in Riyadh was shredded by two car bombs this morning, killing an estimated 10 people.
If Abdullah is sincere about wanting to correct perceptions about Islam, he might start with the hearts and minds of Muslims around the world. If he truly believed that Islam is a religion of peace, he would seek to end the continual exhortations to hatred and violence, which pass for Friday sermons in so many mosques. If he truly believes that Islam is a religion of moderation, he would seek an end to the imposition on Saudi citizens of Wahibism, the most extreme and intolerant form of Islam.
The Middle East Media Research Institute (MEMRI) translates and publishes Friday sermons from around the Islamic world. In one example, Sheikh Ibrahim Mudeiris, an employee of the Palestinian Authority, gave a sermon in Gaza on March 12, 2004 that overwhelms with hatred. He said, “The Jews … disseminate their venom in the Arab countries, because they cannot live in the Middle East like a cancer, spreading in this land, unless they spark the fire of civil strife and war among the Arabs and the Muslims.” He continued, “… we must learn the lesson of the Prophet with regard to the Jews of Al-Madina, whom he expelled. His strategic choice was: 'Fight them, Allah will torture them [at your hands]' and also, 'Make ready against them [all] the force and horsemen that you can.'" Can Abdullah influence a Friday sermon given by a Palestinian in Gaza? He can if MEMRI is correct in it's documentation of the $4 billion dollars given by the Saudi royal family to Palestinians between 1998 and 2003.
MEMRI has excerpted portions of what was once a Web page published by the Saudi Embassy in London. On the subject of religious freedom, the page said, “Anyone in Saudi Arabia is entitled to his own beliefs and practices. But Saudi Arabia cannot allow the public practice of any religion which contradicts Islam.” The United States Department of State clarifies the Saudi position toward the private practice of religions other than Islam in an International Religious Freedom Report: “The [Saudi] Government has stated publicly that its policy is to protect the right of non-Muslims to worship privately; however, it does not provide explicit guidelines for determining what constitutes private worship, which makes distinctions between public and private worship unclear.” This may sound moderate, but the State Department continues, “In early 2002 in the eastern city of Abqaiq, 2 Filipino Christian residents were arrested and imprisoned in Dammam for conducting a Roman Catholic prayer group in their home. In April 2002, the 2 Filipinos were sentenced to 150 lashes and deportation following a 30-day jail sentence, allegedly for their religious beliefs." Saudi Arabia is even more extreme in dealing with Muslim apostates. Amnesty International documents the execution of a Saudi Shi'a for smuggling a Bible into the country.
Peace and moderation for Muslims around the world will begin at exactly the moment that their governments embrace reforms leading to democracy and pluralism. Don't hold your breath waiting. To the extent that Abdullah and the Saudi royal family are unwilling to cede power, they will refuse to moderate Islam. The dead and wounded in Basra and Riyahd today demonstrate that an extreme Islam is not a peaceful Islam.
Posted by publius at April 21, 2004 10:32 PM