“An unreasonable fear, distrust, or hatred of strangers, foreigners, or anything perceived as foreign or different.”
There are many indicators which can be used to gauge the level of civilization of a society. Among these is the tolerance extended by people towards others who are different from them; different in terms of race, culture, language, faith, beliefs, geographical origin and a whole host of other variables. A respect for differences in others and recognition of rights and liberties of others and embracing divergent thinking are recognized hallmarks of civilized societies.
At a time when the Maldives has announced its embarkation on a journey which aspires for a liberal democracy in the country to be established, the Constitution has been revised drastically to facilitate this transition from an ultra conservative autocracy into a liberal democracy.
Article 36 (c) of the Constitution says “Education shall strive to inculcate obedience to Islam, instil love for Islam, foster respect for human rights, and promote UNDERSTANDING, TOLERANCE and friendship among ALL people.” (emphasis added).
The government, Head of State and all public institutions and officials are ordered by the Constitution to obey what is written in it. This means that all public officials and public institutions are under obligation to foster respect for human rights and promote understanding and tolerance among all people.
When Anni announced his intention of going for a mid-term election, Qayyoom, Azima, Nasheed and all people DRP have been going on and on about Anni’s announcement being against the spirit of the Constitution. It isn’t. But it is amazing that Qayyoom, who is the Head of State and is expected to uphold the Constitution, spirit and all, and the Attorney General who is under obligation to do the same, and all their cronies are blatantly violating the Constitution and international norms by actively promoting disunity within the nation, is looking at dividing the country along political lines and is justifying the creation and propagation of hatred in the name of national interest.
The Head of State is charged by the Constitution of maintaining national unity. Yet he is using state media to create and fuel xenophobia by his preaching of hatred towards all faiths and beliefs other than his version of Islam and hatred towards all foreigners and foreign countries. Is this what we expect from would be leaders of this country who have to take us into the 21st century, where our very survival depends on good relations with other countries and people of other faiths?
I am a Muslim and a Maldivian. I try hard to practise my faith and do what is best for my nation. But I believe that foreigners living on our soil have a right to be treated with dignity and not be subjected to xenophobic hatred. We have invited them to our country and they are playing a crucial role in our national development.
What Qayyoom and his narrow minded followers are doing is not discrediting Anni, for very few Maldivians actually believe that Anni’s agenda is to build a cathedral in Male’. I would not support him if that was what he stood for. It is not just Anni who is the target anymore. What they are doing is far worse. They are inculcating in people’s minds that any one practising a different faith, or all other nations and their people, are to be viewed with suspicion and fear. Xenophobia on a grand scale. How much more insular can one be? After creating this xenophobic mindset, Qayyoom now claims that ALL other politicians and parties other than him and the DRP will promote Christianity in this country. Initially it was just Anni. But the moment the Alliance came together, ALL others in it are included as well. This includes all those Islamic scholars in Adalat Party as well! In effect, he is claiming that he is the only one who can uphold the Islamic faith of the Maldivian people. How sick can one be? The next thing we know, he will be claiming that he is a latter day prophet come to save us all from Jahannam!
Don’t these irresponsible, power hungry, unethical and immoral people realize that they are broadcasting this on state media, and that impressionable children are watching their display of hatred? Don’t they know that they are making indelible marks on fertile and young minds, shaping young minds to fear and hate people of other faiths and nationalities? Oh my God! How far will these people go to cling on to power?
Maldivians have chosen Islam as their religion. But this does not mean that we have to actively promote hatred towards people of different faiths. I believe Maldivians will hold steadfast to their Islamic faith, come what may. We have proved this over the last three decades, even with the engineered erosion of ethics and morals in this society.
Islam does not preach intolerance. In fact, it is quite the opposite. Islam preaches us to be respectful towards others in their choice of faith and to maintain cordial and easy relationships with them. Why else does Islamic Shariah permit Muslim men to marry women from amongst the Ahl-Kithaabees (Jews and Christians)? Qayyoom has publicly declared that he has never used religion as a political weapon. One wonders what degree of self delusion will declare this present DRP propaganda as a defence of Islam?
Maldivians have always welcomed foreigners to our shores, and treated them with hospitality. Foreigners who bore no ill will towards us have always been received well. We have never felt that a Christian or a Jew or a Buddhist or a Hindu who comes and lives amongst us pose any threat to our own faith, because our faith is strong. Today, so many households have people of other faiths living among them. We go out on the street, go into a school, go into a hospital, go into a tea boutique or a café and we meet people from other countries and other faiths. We interact with them daily. None of them challenge our faith. We go to countries which are secular, and which have majority populations who are not Muslims. They do not run after us because we are Muslims or foreigners.
It will be a sad day if Maldivians elect their President on xenophobic grounds. It will be bleak for the future of our country if we elect a leader who is intolerant to views other than his own. That will be the day when we will truly hold the funeral of liberal democracy in this country, before it has even been born.
Damn you, DRP! Don’t try to isolate this country from the rest of the world by imposing your bigotry and insular ideology on our people. Have the guts to face this election on a platform which addresses the real issues facing our country.
My fellow Maldivians! If we do not get rid of this regime now, it will destroy the next three generations, and all right thinking people will be forced to flee this country. Act now. Let go of your apathy and indifference. Embrace the moment and let us all do it together.
Change we can, and Change we shall, Insha Allah.
Your standing is right. This is not something unreasonable..rather i feel this is done purposely... The feeling of protection towards the nation will be there. And i guess people are using this to attract the sympathy towards them, b y showing other as foreigners and agents of them. Maybe this is part of power hungry as you put it. But I wonder where the nations future is if the people who claim to take us to new height are so "experienced". Guess many still thinks not.
ReplyDeleteIbra, one of you best so far.
ReplyDeleteIt is so sad how low Gayoom and DRP would go to cling on to power.
I was so affected by what Powell said in his Obama endorsement interview.
Please take time to watch this, especially from 4.25 minute onwards:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=88TFjriMJds
It is wither flight or fight.
ReplyDeleteI believe that Maldivians will always have a feeling of xenophobia unless properly educated.
maumoon is dragging the country down with him. he knows he has little chance now. so he is playing his last cards. and i am afraid his cards might very well work on the people, especially the innocent ignorant elderly population.
ReplyDeletechange is a scary thing. and with all this propaganda about the opposition allowing other religions is sure gonna scare them bad.
in truth, the people need to be educated about tolerance of other faiths and beliefs. as you said, most of the households especially in maale have housemaids, kitchen hands, workers from neighbouring countries who has other religious beliefs. imagine how they must be feeling now. how scared they might be. they are humans after all. i can only imagine how i will feel if muslim faith was not tolerated here in australia. we expect others to tolerate muslim faith (the burugaa, beard, traditional men’s garb) but we are teaching our children not show the same tolerance towards other people’s beliefs!!!
i just hope people see through all this lies and manipulations and vote for change. and in the process strengthen our own faith. aameen.
hei ibra..
ReplyDeleteOut of your many articles, this one is too good, I should say.
The aspects u have highlighted is enormous and needy. No matter what the DRP geese say to challenge you would be effortless when it is being compared against your academic and political standing.
Change we can, Change we shall..
Yeah.. yeah.. Yeah.. All animals are equal, but some animals are more equal than others. Hypocrisy of Maumoon's government that proclaim the absolute equality of their citizens but give power and privileges to a small elite "Some Animals".
ReplyDeleteMohamed Hammad Hassan.
ReplyDeleteMaybe what Maumoon Abdul Gayyoom is doing right now, is following advice from HIS own not - so- foreign campaign advisers?( Yes even someone from Mars, is NOT foreign if he is 1. A sheik from Egypt. 2. He works for Maumoon)
Maumoon has been the leader of this country for 30 years. He used the free time he had during the busy reign to study us. To understand how to subjugate us more. He purposefully kept most Maldivians in the dark. So much so, that when he makes a promise to repaint the moon with Blue, with Iraadha Kurevviyaa at the end, most ppl in this country will blindly clap to that. He can always claim that, iraadha nukurevvun, was not HIS fault, afterwards.
He knows us soo well, that he purposefully goes on promoting xenophobia, and many other such phobias on national Media! Cos he knows US Maldivians are a phobic bunch. ( I pray that someday Maldivian ppl will come out of the sleep they are in, and hope, something of this country remains, when they do so)
I sometimes wonder, is he claiming that HE is the only barrier between our Muslim Faith, and Christianity. For god sake, what kind of a twisted thinking is THAT?? It is AS if, the moment he IS dead, Maldivians will, run around naked, high on heroin, marijuana etc etc, flock to a church infront of Islamee Markaz. Sick, I tell you. And the funniest thing is, it seems as if only someone he choose( Yes, YAMIN of course)to be his successor can defend our faith, as if his greatness somehow can be inherited. (If the great leader of North Korea reads this stuff on Maldivian Media, id say he'l probably have a huge happy grin on his face)
All Hail, the defender of faith, the father of every evil( good in his eyes) -ism( eg: nepotism), the father of Environment ( yupppss doesnt matter most of us drink with the same water we shit in)
The Usthaaz from Axhar, who stands in his shinning armor, to prevent the EVIL( Ibra, Anni, Buruma, Hassan)taking over our country. All hail Maumoon. Our only chance at Heaven!!
Bullshit!!
There are a couple of visitors to this blog who are posting comments advocating freedom of religion and questioning and blaming me for the Constitution not providing for that freedom. As I have said before, I will not post those comments, nor will I engage in debate on that topic. The Constitution is what it is, and until a change in the Constitution comes about, we have to follow what we have. I have no particular position on this issue at this pont in time.
ReplyDeleteWhat I have written in this Post is NOT about freedom of religion for Maldivians. Please do not confuse what I have written for that. I am just saying that Maldivians and Muslims do not necessarily have to hate foreigners and people of other faiths. Our Constitution advocates tolerance towards people who are different and it is sickenening to see the Head of State and members of the Cabinet joining hands to promote hatred and xenophobia.
A different issue altogether.
Ibra, be honest and tell us clearly if Maumoon or a cabinet minister or a government official promoting the idea of hating foreigners.
ReplyDeleteIdoubt after reading this article that you are promoting hatred among Maldivians. If you are a responsible polititian you wouldnt do that.
Your article clearly shows how out of control you are instead of being an example for every Maldivian.
Anonymous (on my sincerity):
ReplyDeleteWhat I have written is there to be seen and read.
What Qayyoom and his followers are saying is very clear on tv, radio and newspapers like Haveeru and Hamaroalhi.
You (and others who read/watch/listen to these arguments can be the judges)
Instead of just making a statement on my sincerity (or lack of it), justify your belief. I believe I have justified my views amply.
Why can we not have a debate about freedom of religion...whats so wrong about that debate, after all it is a fundamental value of Human Rights, that is enshrined in the UNIVERSAL DECLARATION OF HUMAN RIGHTS by UN to which MALDIVES is a party to and member of that body.
ReplyDeleteAlso all the great liberal democracies (countries like Britain, US, Australia and Canada to name a few) around the world that you look at, affords this right to its citizens and considers it dear to the value of democracy and human rights !
Also, to look at it from a perspective of freedom of speech (a right enshrined in UN Declaration as well) issue, why can we not talk about it in an intellectual and objective manner, I mean after all it is ones right to express their thoughts and opinions !
In your response you refer to the constitution and said following "The Constitution is what it is, and until a change in the Constitution comes about, we have to follow what we have." I have to disagree with this notion, I mean after all we have seen constitutions around the world with worse things than (lack of freedom of religion) such as constitutionally imposed Apartheid in South Africa, but just the fact of it being in a constitution did not make it morally right !!
The second part of the same quote was confusing for me : "I have no particular position on this issue at this pont in time."
I totally understand if you were to say you have no comments on the issue of freedom of religion to Maldivians citizens, given that it is a huge taboo and also probably land you in hot water with the government and might even send you to jail for expressing a view contrary to constitution in a place like Maldives !
But to explicitly say you have no position on this important and fundamental issue as it relates to human rights is somewhat weird coming from a person who supports values of human rights (so would it not have been more wise to say you would not be commenting on this issue (freedom of religion) at this point in time or a statement of a similar nature).
Now as for the whole issue of Freedom of religion, I have not understood for the love of my life why should this be such a divisive issue especially given that we know that almost all Maldivians are Muslims.... The only thing I can say is : are we such weak in our faith and our beliefs that even the mere mention of freedom of religion is threatening our own beliefs and foundations...if so lets try to fix that, and make belief in Islam stronger and impenetrable, as opposed to being afraid of everything foreign to us.
Look at places like Turkey, they have freedom of religion enshrined in their constitution but their citizens have not suddenly abandoned their Muslim faith and adopted other religions, just because they have that right. I think it has become very important for Maldivians look at themselves and ask them why is so threatening to even talk about something like freedom of religion, is the faith within you that weak, that the moment you talk about it you loose sleep over it and perhaps embrace another religion !!!
I believe that given that Ibra is in an understandably tight corner as it relates to this issue my posting will probably not end up being posted..Oh well its the thought that counts !
We dont have to justify our beliefs to you Ibra. We pay you to make sure belief systems and ect.a re in order. That is what i believe. And to be honest Ibra i dont see that you are doing that anymore the way i believe YOU are CAPABLE of and CAN. Thats why I said you are out of control or emotional....WHY????- be
ReplyDeleteAnonymous (out of control):
ReplyDeleteI believe that I am doing what the public pays me to do as best as I can. The public pays me to defend their rights in Parliament and that is what I do, day in, day out. If there is anything that I should have done and did not do, please point it out to me, and I will attend to it immediately.
Just because the public pays me to defend their rights doesn't give anyone the right to simply accuse me of insecerity whenever they feel like it. Such a statement must be justified because there are many more members of the "public" who actually believe that I am doing the right thing by them. Therefore the slight you make is on them as much as me.
The country can only go forward when discerning people speak their minds based on fact and reason and let go of this notion that the "public" has a right to accuse "public officials" of anything that comes to their mind, without reason or justification. You see, I am a member of the "public" before I am an MP. Therefore I pay me too!
I am not out of control. What I wrote on this Post is something that I believe in rather passionately. Maybe I wrote with passion and conviction rather than in anger.
Anonymous (on debate for FoR):
ReplyDeleteI believe you may have misunderstood what I said. As an academic, I would never discourage scholarly debate on any topic. As I understand it, the Quran quite specifically says that we should think about EVERYTHING, the only exception being the physical manifestation of Allah (zaath of Allah) which we can't even begin to imagine.
Even the very existence of God is to be thought about. In so many places in the Quran appeals are made to rational thought, examination of evidence in conjunction with the Arguments for the existence of God and monotheism. So as a believing Muslim, I would argue that every aspect of our existence should always be thought about, questioned, reasoned, argued and conclusions drawn on the basis of reasoned argument.
What I said in my comment was that I do not want to engage in debate on the Freedom of religion issue on THIS forum, my personal blog. If and when I want to open that topic for discussion, I will write a Post on it.
Human beings almost always have a position on most issues. However, please do respect my choice of whom I want to debate with on specific issues. There is a time and place for everything. Please remember, in the early days of Islam, wars were fought so that people could become free from those who oppressed them. In a sense, our society is still in a similar state of oppression. The Constitution gives a number of rights. But we see these rights being violated constantly and consistently. This is what we have to address right now, and I am trying to keep my focus on those things. In order to enjoy any right or freedom, one has to get rid of oppression first.
And No, I did not publish your comment because of the last paragraph. I did it because your comment was not arguing for or against the FoR, but making a case for DEBATE ABOUT FoR. A subtle, but significant difference.
Let me also assure you, if I truly believed that it was time to express my thoughts on a specific issue, jail will not stop me from doing so. For the moment, let me keep my thoughts on the cases for and against FoR for Maldivians, to myself.
Ibra,
ReplyDeleteI was merely talking about the contents of this article of yours.
Let me point out to you what you should not have done if you are a responsible politician.
*How sick can one be? The next thing we know, he will be claiming that he is a latter day prophet come to save us all from Jahannam!* You shouldnt have written that.
Tell me Ibra, do you really think that this is the way a responsible MP should express himself ?Of course you have the right to chose your vocabulary and express yourself the way you want. Does that mean you should abuse it? And also like you said, there are people out there... reading.... blogs too!
You might say that even other politicians do the same...But do you have to follow them?. But when /
*now* you mold your language in accordance to their language, you are being controlled by them. Therefore I have all the reasons on earth to call you out of control.
You sound unhappy when I said that WE pay you. Of course, you, share a portion of your own salary too. But your actions and thoughts will only be reflected by us/WE. Yes, the right is all ours to accuse you the same way YOU have the right to accuse others. You want someone from Mars to come to accuse you!
Ibra, can you attend to that? Can you change that portion of your article?
You are out of control according to this article Ibra *ZENOPHOBIA*- Be
Ibra,
ReplyDeleteI was merely talking about the contents of this article of yours. Phrase
Let me point out to you what you should not have done if you are a responsible politician.
*How sick can one be? The next thing we know, he will be claiming that he is a latter day prophet come to save us all from Jahannam!*
Tell me Ibra, do you really think that this is the way a responsible MP should express himself ?Of course you have the right to chose your vocabulary and express yourself the way you want. Does that mean you should abuse it? And also like you said, there are people out there... reading.... blogs too!
You might say that even other politicians do the same...But do you have to follow them?. But when /
*now* you mold your language in accordance to their language, you are being controlled by them. Therefore I have all the reasons on earth to call you out of control.
You sound unhappy when I said that WE pay you. Of course, you, share a portion of your own salary too. But your actions and thoughts will only be reflected by us/WE. Yes, the right is all ours to accuse you the same way YOU have the right to accuse others. You want someone from Mars to come to accuse you!
Ibra, can you attend to that? Can you change that portion of your article?
You are out of control according to this article Ibra *ZENOPHOBIA*
shakewellbeforeuse
shakewellbeforeuse:
ReplyDeleteIt is only now you have poionted out what offended you or what you did not agree with.
The statement "The next thing we know.......latter day prophet....jahannam" was not written in isolation. Please read the argument I have made regarding Qayyoom's PUBLIC statements, leading to the offending statement. If Qayyoom claims (which he incidentally has claimed) that HE is the ONLY one who can uphold Islam in this country, it is tantamount to making the subsequent claim, becasue he is assuming HE is the only one who understands Allah's message, and therefore all should listen to him and not to any other person. This is a claim which can rightly be made only by Messengers from Allah.
The sentence in question was written in colloquial language and as a summing up statememnt for the entire argument.So, I am sorry, No, I can't remove it. If you have issue with it, make a case against that statement, and I will gladly publish it. I am sure you will agree that no one can call on others to stop expressing their thoughts. If you can justify what I said was wrong, I will apologise for what I said.
On your next point, I have no anger towards any member of the public who reminds me that I am on the public payroll. We all need to be reminded. But I would like to point out that the public pays me for a specific task, that I do not have to compromise my personal thoughts to my employer, and that you are ONLY ONE of 35,000 Male' people who collectively decided to give me a job. Your voice is important (specially if you are a Male' constituent), but so are the voices and aspirations of all other Male' constituents. If you know of any instance where I have abused the public office that I hold, or where I have abrogated the responsibilities of that office, please raise that issue, and I will be accountable for it. Contrary to what you think, I was elected based on proposals I put to the public about what I would do on their behalf in Parliament.People voted for me based on that. I have fulfilled EVERY ONE of the promises I made. My personal preference of a person I support or criticise was not part of the package. If people do not like what I say now, or how I act in Parliament, they will have the opportunity of not re-electing me to Parliament IF I decide to stand for election again.
On your final point. Yes, I have been extremely critical of Qayyoom and his government. I have made numerous comments regarding Qayyoom and his government, both in Parliament and in many other fora. But I CHALLENGE you to quote any instance where I have criticised Qayyoom (or any other person) WITHOUT providing the reason and justification for such criticism. All I am asking of you, and others who wish to criticise me, is simply to do the same. Justify your criticism. Instead of just saying Ibra is a moron, tell me (and others) WHY you are saying Ibra is a moron.
Throughout my civil service and political career, I have NEVER criticised a PERSON. I have always criticised what a person HAS DONE or NOT DONE. I have criticised SYSTEMS, and the ROLES specific peoplem have played within that SYSTEM, and in propagating the SYSTEM.
I hope this will suffice for a response to your query.