TOWARDS GLOBAL PEACE
We often talk of peace in the context of war. But this is a very narrow and restricted notion of peace. Peace is deeply linked with the entirety of human life. Peace is a complete ideology in itself. Peace is the only religion for both—man and the universe. It is the master-key that opens the doors to every success. Peace creates a favourable atmosphere for success in every endeavour. Without peace, no positive action—small or big—is possible.
MUSLIM SEPARATISM IS UN-ISLAMIC
IN many countries where Muslims form a minority, Muslim groups are fighting for independence in areas where Muslims are in a majority. Muslim groups living in these areas consider the nonMuslim states they are fighting against to be illegal occupying forces. Much blood has been spilt in the course of these conflicts, but there has been no positive fall-out at all. These conflicts have only made the situation worse for all concerned groups, including, and especially for these Muslim groups themselves.
The justification given for these violent conflicts aiming at separation or independence is that non-Muslim majorities are allegedly destroying the Islamic identity or culture of these groups. Hence, they claim that, their demand for independence is legitimate in order to preserve their faith and Islamic identity.
This politics of separation undertaken by Muslims in different countries is however, totally un-Islamic. It has nothing to do with Islamic teachings.
This politics of separation undertaken by Muslims in different countries is however, totally un-Islamic. It has nothing to do with Islamic teachings. Politics of this kind is derived from a modern concept called ‘selfdetermination’. Modern political theory says ‘self-determination’ is the right of a nation or people to determine its own form of government without influence from outside. In other words, the right of the people of a given area to determine their own political status. It is this political concept that Muslims have sought to induct into Islam.
It is totally wrong to claim that a particular country or nation is trying to destroy Muslim culture, and use this to justify violent conflicts. Today everyone is free to adopt their own culture. After having travelled all over the world, it could be said that, in no country are efforts being made to destroy the Muslim identity. It is a baseless allegation. Sometimes, this struggle for independence and separation by Muslim minorities from a non-Muslim majority state is sought to be justified by claiming that these states are calculatedly working to reduce Muslims to a minority. Hence, it is argued, that it is legitimate to seek separation and independence from non-Muslim-majority states.
This argument too is completely wrong. Islam never enjoins upon Muslims to establish a separate state or to strive for political independence. According to Islam, the political system is a matter of social conditions. It is quite un-Islamic to launch a movement to establish a political system based on some self-styled model and to say that any particular country is planning to reduce areas of Muslimmajority into Muslim-minority territories. To launch violent struggles to separate from existing states is intolerable for every country, even for a Muslim country. So, what is happening in such places where people are being killed in large numbers in the wake of violent movements for separatism, is the price that Muslims are paying for their wrong policies. What these countries are doing is as defence and not as offence.
Conveying the message requires universality and tolerance, while separatism kills the universal spirit.
The Muslims’ duty in every part of the world is only one, that is, dawah work, inviting people to God’s path. Muslims must do peaceful dawah work, and leave all other things to God. Dawah, naturally, demands close interaction with people of other religions—and excellent and very natural opportunities for this exist in countries where Muslims live with people of other faiths. When Muslim ethnic groups in non-Muslim majority countries demand separation and independence they are themselves harming prospects for dawah.
The politics of separatism kills the universal spirit. This policy is a political innovation and has nothing to do with Islam. It is instructive to note that Sufis did not have this sort of ghetto mentality, and, instead, actively sought to interact and even live among non-Muslims. They presented Islam before non-Muslims positively. Those in favour of separatism have no justification from Islam; it is their own self-styled thinking. The political and cultural separatism that they advocate is a major barrier to conveying the message of God.
Separatism, both political and cultural, is wrong. Islam does not enjoin these kinds of separatist policies. This politics of separation is a sin, not a virtue. Due to this, Muslims are being deprived of God’s help. Their activities are proving to be counterproductive as they are against the Divine scheme of things.
How does one account for this marked tendency for Muslim separatism across the world? Sometimes it takes the form of wanting a separate, Muslim-only or Muslim-majority country. When this is not possible, it takes the form of Muslim ghettoism, with Muslims wanting to live in exclusive Muslim-only spaces, to have social interaction limited to themselves as far as possible, to send their children to Muslim-only schools, to make friends only with Muslims. What is the reason for this? The answer to this is in the modern age, Muslims have developed a flawed concept of identity, and wish to preserve this so-called identity. They have become extremely identity-conscious. This unnatural identity-consciousness is creating Muslim ghettos everywhere: ghetto country, ghetto colony, ghetto institutions, ghetto society, etc.
According to Islam, the political system is a matter of social conditions. It is quite un-Islamic to launch a movement to establish a political system based on some self-styled model.
The contemporary Muslim separatism is a new phenomenon. It has nothing to do with Islam. Muslims adopted a political policy during the 19th and 20th centuries that was un-Islamic and unrealistic and this naturally failed. This failure has led to a defeatist mentality among Muslims and has given rise to the phenomenon of Muslim ghettoism.
Unlike what some Muslims may believe, there is no sanction for this in Islam. You cannot find a single reference for this in the Quran or Hadith. You cannot find any example of this kind of politics in the biographies of the Prophet or in the accounts of the lives of the Prophet’s Companions. Some Muslims think that this sort of ghetto and separatist thinking, whether cultural or political, is justified in the name of the unity of the global Muslim community and Muslim brotherhood. But this is false. In fact, this kind of separatism has created more differences among Muslims themselves.