Muslim reformers condemn Saudi Wahhabism.

[igloo]

June 28, 2004, 9:02 a.m.

Speaking Out

Muslim reformers condemn Saudi Wahhabism.

By Steven Stalinsky

Liberal Egyptian intellectual Tarek Heggy, author of Culture, Civilization and Humanity, recently wrote about the need for Muslim moderates to work against Wahhabism: "What needs to be done at this stage is to champion the cause of enlightenment by supporting moderates and promoting the humanistic understanding of Islam.... Efforts in this direction must go hand in hand with a counteroffensive against the rigid, doctrinaire, even bloodthirsty, version of Islam that first appeared among isolated communities separated from the march of civilization by the impenetrable sand dunes of the Arabian Desert."

Heggy, who will embark on a speaking tour in Washington, D.C., in late June to discuss his new Egyptian think tank and newspaper, added: "The time has come for the Saudi government to part ways with Wahhabism and to realize that the alliance between the House of Saud and the Wahhabi dynasty is responsible for the spread of obscurantism, dogmatism, and fanaticism, poisoning minds with radical ideas opposed to humanity...."

In addition to Heggy, an increasing number of reform-minded Muslims have begun to speak out against the impact of Saudi Wahhabism in the Muslim world. They have accused Wahhabism of serving as al Qaeda's guiding philosophy, "poisoning minds" of young Muslims, and being the main purveyor of anti-American, anti-Semitic, and anti-Christian sentiment in the Arab and Muslim world.

Egyptian Wael Al-Abrashi, deputy editor of the Egyptian weekly Roz Al-Yousef, wrote a series of articles critical of Wahhabism last year following the Riyadh bombings. According to Al-Abrashi: "Saudi Arabia has become the biggest area for extremist ideology and [provided] the broadest scope for the development of its viruses."

Since his articles were first released, al Qaeda has attacked Saudi Arabia multiple times, something Al-Abrashi warned would happen: "...Although Saudi Arabia has adopted a strategy of exporting Wahhabism to the rest of the world ... Saudi Arabia created the monster, exported it abroad, and then lost control of it. Then, the monster turned on it..."

In an article in the Addis Tribune about the corruption of Somali Islam by Saudi Arabia, journalist Bashir Goth criticized the Saudis' spreading of Wahhabism to his country: "It is a pity to see that, at a time when Saudi Arabia, the home of Wahhabism, is reassessing the damage that Wahhabism and extremism had done to their country's name and to the reputation of Islam all over the world, that Wahhabism has to find a safe-haven in our country." He also discussed how the Saudi-trained religious police have taken over Muslim towns: "The most conspicuous foot soldiers of Wahhabism are the moral police known as Mutawiun, who roam in the streets like riot police and force people to perform rituals or adhere to Wahhabism's code of decency.... This is the Wahhabism that the Saudi-oriented clerics want to impose on Somaliland.... It is a closed [mindset] that turned Islam into a fragile creed that lives in constant fear of children's toys and games such as Barbie dolls and Pokemon..."

Ethiopian journalist Alem Zelalem has written extensively about Wahhabism "corrupting" the Islam of his native Ethiopia and described how Saudis have built hundreds of mosques in Ethiopia over the past eight years, popping up "like weeds." One way the Saudis have spread Wahhabism to Ethiopians, he explains, is "by taking advantage of the unfortunate economic conditions of the downtrodden Ethiopian masses, the Saudi Embassy in Addis Ababa is busy bribing people to convert to Islam. The usual amount that they pay...is some $600.00." Zelalem called the mosques and madrassas "brainwashing factories" for teaching jihad and anti-American, anti-Christian, and anti-Semitic ideology. He detailed how at least 5,000 Ethiopian boys have undergone "military training" for jihad in the Middle East.

Even in Saudi Arabia, the detrimental effects of Wahhabism are now discussed in public. Jamal Khashoggi, who currently advises Saudi Prince Turki in London, was fired last year following the Riyadh bombing when the paper he edited, Al-Watan, included articles critical of Wahhabism's spiritual father, Ibn Taymiyya. One article written by Khaled Al-Ghanami condemned the Saudi government's religious police and criticized the "spiritual father of Wahhabism," calling his philosophy "the real problem," and "a mistake" for Saudi Arabia.

As current events play out in Saudi Arabia, the royal family would do well to listen to the critique by reformist Muslims on how Wahhabism has negatively impacted their communities. As Wael Al-Abrashi explained, Saudi Arabia created the Wahhabi monster — and then lost control of it. They must now figure out how to battle against it.

— Steven Stalinsky is executive director of the Middle East Media Research Institute.

[igloo]

No comments on this? This is exactly what is needed, but 1000x more.

[bigpoppanils]

its about fucking time

[jtk4]

I also agree it is about time but after doing some research on memri (middle east media research insitute) i still think it is good. Hopefully true.

Although MEMRI's viewpoint is pro-Israel, it is not the case that it contains no criticism of Israel or is monolithically anti-Arab. Many of the articles distributed by MEMRI are in fact criticisms of the Arab world offered by Arab liberals, and some of those are critical of Israel. It can be argued that MEMRI, despite its faults, amplifies the voices of reformers and liberals in the Arab and Muslim worlds, extending a platform that they would not otherwise have because of societal taboos and government censorship. Critics of MEMRI face something of a contradiction in this respect, since it is these liberal and reformist views that they themselves tend to favor.

MEMRI's stance is that it is opposed to Islamic fundamentalism, not Islam itself, although the integrity of this position may be questioned because of links on MEMRI's website to certain evangelical Christian organizations who take a harder line on Islam. Though a number of its founders worked in Israeli intelligence, this may be explained by the fact that former Israeli intelligence officers are also the most likely Israelis to know Arabic. Yigal Carmon, MEMRI's founder, actually worked for both Labor and Likud governments. Moreover, the fact that one works for Israeli intelligence evinces little; four former heads of Shin Bet, the Israeli intelligence service, are in fact supporters of peace negotiations and proponents of the two-state solution. Both criticism and praise of MEMRI should be taken with a grain of salt, since analyses of MEMRI are almost always motivated by politics, not the quantity or quality of MEMRI's work. It should, however, be noted that MEMRI has gained currency with most writers in mainstream. For example, New York Times writer Thomas Friedman, a influential foreign affairs columnist, has used MEMRI translations a number of times in his columns.

[jtk4]

Read shit from this site and tell me if it is bi-partisan, it looks like they go after kerry and bush.

http://www.prwatch.org/spin/index.html

[normalnoises]

Now if only the Christians would condemn the KKK....

[igloo]

its about fucking time

We (civilized world) need more of this, and faster.....

[normalnoises]

.............................

[xpyrate]

fuck the KKK

Now if only the Christians would condemn the KKK....