Posted by Ahmed Mirza on October 2, 2001, 2:17 pm >>Nasir: WELL, BECAUSE SAUDI ARABIA HAS BEEN EXPORTING ITS VISION OF >>Bradley: AND HOW DOES THAT VIEW OF ISLAM PROMOTE VIOLENCE? >>Nasir: WELL, IT MAKES IT MORE LIKELY THAT, GIVEN THE CRISES THAT ARE >>Bradley: BUT IS THERE A BIG LEAP FROM THAT TO AN ACT OF TERROR? >>Nasir: THERE IS A LEAP, BUT THE ISSUE IS THAT THAT HELPS LEGITIMATE >>Bradley: ONE OF THE WAYS THE SAUDIS HAVE BEEN PROMOTING THAT CLIMATE >>Esack: THE NOTION WAS THAT DEATH IN THE PATH OF GOD WAS THE HIGHEST >>Bradley: WHAT IS THE BASIC PHILOSOPHY THAT WAS TAUGHT IN SEMINARIES >>Esack: I THINK THAT THERE IS SENSE OF A VERY LITERAL UNDERSTANDING OF >>Bradley: DO YOU THINK THAT TEACHINGS LIKE THAT HAVE CONTRIBUTED IN >>Esack: YES. I CERTAINLY... I HAVE NO DOUBT ABOUT IT. >>Bradley: WE WANTED TO TALK TO THE SAUDI GOVERNMENT, BUT ITS EMBASSY >>Yusuf: IF WE'RE GOING TO GO INTO THE MUSLIM WORLD FOR MORE COLLATERAL >>Esack: SO THE WAY IN WHICH THE UNITED STATES AND ITS ALLIES IN THE >>Bradley: YOU SAID EARLIER THAT YOU POINT THE FINGER AT U.S. POLICY, I >>Siraj: ED, IF YOU'RE ASKING THE QUESTION, HAVE WE AS MUSLIMS DONE >>Bradley: CORRECT ME IF I'M WRONG, BUT ISN'T IT THE RESPONSIBILITY... >>Yusuf: YES, ABSOLUTELY. IT'S AN OBLIGATION FOR MUSLIMS TO ROOT THEM
>>Bradley: OSAMA BIN LADEN GREW UP A WAHABI IN SAUDI ARABIA, AND HAS
TURNED THAT EXTREME VISION OF ISLAM INTO A TERRORISM NETWORK THAT HAS
BACKED THE TALIBAN GOVERNMENT IN AFGHANISTAN, AND HAS ADHERENTS IN
VIOLENT FUNDAMENTALIST MOVEMENTS IN MORE THAN 20 COUNTRIES. AT THE CORE
OF WAHABISM IS SAUDI ARABIA, WHICH SPENDS HUNDREDS OF MILLIONS OF
DOLLARS PROMOTING THIS IDEOLOGY, WHICH FORBIDS ANY FORM OF MUSIC,
DANCE, OR MOVIES. THOSE WHO DRINK ALCOHOL CAN BE FLOGGED, AND ANYONE
WHO COMMITS ADULTERY CAN FACE EXECUTION. WHEN YOU SAY THAT SAUDI ARABIA
IS THE IDEOLOGICAL CENTER OF GRAVITY FOR MUSLIM EXTREMISTS, MUSLIM
FANATICS...
ISLAM, HAS BEEN INVESTING IN RELIGIOUS INSTITUTIONS, EDUCATION SYSTEMS,
MOVEMENTS THAT PROMOTE ITS VISION OF ISLAM, AND HAS CONTRIBUTED
ENORMOUSLY TO IDEOLOGIZATION AND FANATICIZATION OF ISLAM ALL THE WAY
FROM MALAYSIA TO MOROCCO.
RAMPANT IN THE MUSLIM WORLD, IT'S MUCH EASIER THAT A MILITANT, FANATICAL
INTERPRETATION OF ISLAM BECOMES THE BASIS FOR LAUNCHING MOVEMENTS THAT
ARE INCREASINGLY TURNING VIOLENT.
AN ACT OF TERROR, THAT HELPS RECRUITMENT FOR AN ACT OF TERROR. WHAT
SAUDI ARABIA IS DOING IS NOT PROMOTING TERRORISM, IT IS PROMOTING THAT
CLIMATE.
IS TO FINANCE RELIGIOUS SCHOOLS, MANY OF THEM ON THE PAKISTAN-
AFGHANISTAN BORDER, WHERE YOUNG MUSLIMS FROM AROUND THE WORLD GO TO BE
INDOCTRINATED IN THE STRICT TENETS OF WAHABISM. IMAN FARID ESACK WAS
ONE OF THEM. HE SPENT EIGHT YEARS IN A SEMINARY, WHERE HE WAS GIVEN
LESSONS NOT ONLY IN ISLAM, BUT ALSO IN URBAN WARFARE AND THE ULTIMATE
SACRIFICE.
OF OUR ASPIRATIONS.
LIKE THE ONE YOU ATTENDED?
THE FAITH AND A PROFOUND SENSE THAT IF WE ADHERE TO THE LITERAL
UNDERSTANDING OF THE FAITH, THEN WE WILL BE SAVED. BUT THEN THERE'S AO A
SENSE THAT WE ARE THE ONLY ONES IN THE WORLD THAT REALLY MATTER, AND
THAT OTHER PEOPLE IN THE REST OF THE WORLD, PARTICULARLY PEOPLE WHO DO
NOT SHARE OUR FAITH, THEY DO NOT MATTER.
ANY WAY TO THE PROLIFERATION OF EXTREMISM AND EVEN TERRORISM IN THE
REGION AND FROM THE REGION?
IN WASHINGTON DID NOT RESPOND TO OUR REQUEST. LAST WEEK, THE SAUDIS
BROKE OFF DIPLOMATIC RELATIONS WITH THE TALIBAN. AND NOW THE UNITED
STATES, IN THE WORDS OF PRESIDENT BUSH, IS IN HOT PURSUIT OF OSAMA BIN
LADEN AND THE TALIBAN FORCES HARBORING HIM IN AFGHANISTAN, A PROSPECT
THAT FRIGHTENS MUSLIM LEADERS IN AMERICA.
DAMAGE, MORE BOMBING, MORE DEATH, MORE DESTRUCTION, THE CREATION OF MORE
EXTREME CONDITIONS, WE'RE NOT GOING TO WIN A WAR ON TERRORISM. WE'RE
GOING TO IN FACT EXACERBATE THE SYMPTOMS.
WORLD TODAY GO ABOUT AND DEALING WITH THIS CRISIS, THAT WILL REALLY
DETERMINE FOR A VERY, VERY LONG TIME THE NATURE OF WHETHER
FUNDAMENTALISM WILL GROW AND WHETHER IT REARS ITS MANY, MANY UGLY HEADS.
THINK, AS AN ACCESSORY TO THE CRIME, IS THAT RIGHT? LET ME POINT THE
FINGER AT YOU FOR A MINUTE. WHAT HAVE YOU PERSONALLY DONE TO DENOUNCE
MUSLIM FUNDAMENTALIST BELIEFS THAT INFORM THESE TERRORISTS?
ENOUGH, NO, I DON'T THINK WE HAVE. WE SHOULD DO MORE. AND I THINK ONE OF
THE LESSONS OF THIS TRAGEDY IS TO DO SOMETHING. THE QUESTION IS, WHAT DO
WE AS A MUSLIM WORLD-- 1.2 BILLION MUSLIMS-- WHAT DO WE DO NOW TO MAKE
IT A BETTER WORLD?
DOES NOT ISLAM, DOES NOT ALLAH REQUIRE THAT MUSLIMS POLICE THEIR OWN
RELIGION AND RID THEELVES OF EXTREMISTS?
OUT. AND I THINK IT IS A JIHAD NOW FOR THE MUSLIMS IN THE MUSLIM COUNTRY
TO RID THEMSELVES OF THIS ELEMENT.
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