W. Java the ‘least tolerant province’

NATIONALTue, 12/20/2011 11:25 PM

W. Java the ‘least tolerant province’

The Jakarta Post, Jakarta

A survey by human rights watchdog Setara Institute has found that West Java was the least tolerant province in 2011, registering the largest number of religious violence cases.

Throughout 2011, West Java saw 57 incidents involving government-endorsed discriminatory policies, instances in which government officials condoned acts of violence against minority groups, the closure of places of worship and religiously motivated killings.

In the survey, South Sulawesi ranked second place with 45 incidents, followed by East Java and North Sumatra in the third and fourth position with 31 and 24 incidents, respectively.

Banten, which saw the Cikeusik Ahmadiyah lynching in April, and West Nusa Tenggara were both in fifth position with 12 cases each. Bali and West Kalimantan were found to be the most tolerant provinces.

“This high number of violence and discrimination indicates that the government has done little to mitigate religious acrimony. The numbers remain high compared to last year’s,” Setara Institute chairman Hendardi said Monday.

Hendardi attributed the violence to President Susilo Bambang Yu-dhoyono’s lack of leadership.

“The President is even powerless in the face of opposition from Bogor Mayor Diani Budiarto, who refuses to obey the Supreme Court’s ruling to reopen GKI Yasmin Church and let its members practice their faith freely,” he said.

The survey also found correlation between religious conflicts and the level of urban spread.

“We found that the more urban an area, the more likely religious conflicts will occur,” Setara Institute deputy chairman Bonar Tigor Naipospos said.

The Setara Institute recorded 244 incidents in which religion was cited as the cause.

The survey also found that government officials owned the biggest share of the blame in allowing religious conflict to happen. A total of 105 incidents were initiated by government officials.

Members of the National Police were responsible for 40 cases, the Indonesian Military (TNI) personnel for 22 cases, regents and mayors 18 violations, governors 10 violations and the Religious Affairs Ministry nine violations.

Setara also cited the Islam Defenders Front (FPI) and the Indonesian Ulema Council (MUI) as non-governmental organizations that registered the highest number of discrimination cases.

Setara researcher Ismail Hasani said religious conflicts peaked between February and March, when locals in Cikeusik attacked members of the Ahmadiyah sect.

“Following the incident, two churches were burned down in the same month, which heightened tension between the majority Muslim and minorities groups for the rest of the year,” he said.

Ismail added that the increasing religious conflict could indicate hypocrisy on the part of the government.

“We recorded that the President made at least 19 public statements encouraging religious harmony. However, change could hardly happen in the coming years because those around the President include people from several political parties who oppose religious freedom,” Ismail told The Jakarta Post.

According to the Setara Institute, the Ahmadiyah suffered the worst type of discrimination in 2011.

It recorded 22 policies, including 15 ordinances, issued by local governments that promoted animosity toward the sect. The policies include the Religious Affairs Ministry’s decision to prohibit Ahmadiyah members from performing the haj pilgrimage to Mecca. (msa)

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Bleak prospects for Ahmadis

ARCHIPELAGOMon, 12/19/2011 11:50 PM

Bleak prospects for Ahmadis

Panca Nugraha, The Jakarta Post, Mataram

Hopeful eyes: Children pose at an Ahmadiyah shelter in Mataram, Lombok. Members of the religious community have been largely shunned by society, and their future as part of Indonesia’s workforce and as citizens is looking bleak. The 33 families of the community have lived in the shelters since they were evicted from their homes six years ago. JP/Panca Nugraha

The Ahamdiyah community comprises about 140 people and 33 families who have been forced to take shelter in Wisma Transito in Mataram after they were evicted from their homes six years ago.

The outreach program provided by the NTB provincial administration, involving the NTB Agency for Political Affairs and National Unity and a number of clerics, has not been effective, the Ahmadis say, while the West Lombok regency administration has backtracked from its promise to compensate assets they were forced to leave behind in their village.

An early estimation revealed that their assets, comprising 21 houses and land, were valued at Rp 1.4 billion (US$155,000).

“The outreach program, they said, would last for six months from June until December was in fact carried out for only two months. It began early on in the month of Ramadhan and ended just after Idul Fitri,” Nasiruddin, one of the Ahmadis, said recently when interviewed at Wisma Transito.

He is a respected member of the Ahmadiyah community, often playing the role of advisor.

Nasiruddin accused the government of not being serious about resolving their problem.

The condition of the Ahmadiyah refugees in Wisma Transito, which is located around 2 kilometers from the NTB gubernatorial office, has not improved. The community still lives in makeshift quarters made of cloth and used banners.

Two infants were in the community in November, bringing the total number of babies born in the community since they were evicted to 18.

“I gave birth at Mataram General Hospital for free, thanks to the Delivery Assurance program, but we faced difficulties in applying for the Jamkesmas and Jamkesmasda health insurance because we don’t have identity cards,” said Maemunah, 25.

She was carrying her baby, Noval Syaif Irfan, who was born on Nov. 15, while eight pre-school-aged children were cheerfully playing around her.

Ahmadiyah is considered by mainstream Muslims as heretical. Ahmadiyah communities across the country have been persecuted by their fellow Muslims, and in some severe instances have had members seriously injured or killed.

In a number of provinces, local administrations have banned the sect citing security concerns.

Ahmadiyah members in West Lombok say they continue to be persecuted.

Amaq Marsudin, 52, who suffers from kidney failure and requires regular dialysis, was rejected by the NTB General Hospital because he did not have an identity card.

“He was admitted to the hospital for two weeks but did not receive dialysis because he is not covered by Jamkesmasda as he doesn’t have an identity card. Finally, we brought him back to Wisma Transito and he has resigned his fate to God,” Nasiruddin said.

According to Nasiruddin, during the e-ID card campaign program in Mataram in October, the Ahmadiyah refugees tried to apply for ID cards at the Mataram Population Agency.

However, they were turned down on the grounds that they were only temporary residents.

“The West Lombok regency administration also refused to issue us ID cards. Actually, we only requested residence identity permits. It doesn’t matter if we don’t live in West Lombok, but owning an ID card is important for access to healthcare and education programs, especially as an ID card proves citizenship status,” he said.

The Ahmadiyah refugees endure living at the shelter despite that most of the families are in dire financial straits. In general, the men seek a living as construction workers, ojek (motorcycle taxi) drivers, barbers and hawkers.

Sarim Ahmad, 45, for instance, owns a chicken noodle cart now. He had worked for a fritter seller earlier.

“I saved up my salary to make a cart to sell noodles, and the proceeds are not bad,” he said.

The NTB provincial administration had initially promised that the outreach program provide startup capital for the refugees.

However, for Sarin, it was all just talk and no action.

“They promised to provide startup capital, but have failed to do so as of now. Furthermore, we prefer to be independent because the assistance is a loan in nature and we have to pay installments,” he said.

West Lombok spokesman Ispan Junaedi said the administration would never compensate the assets of Ahmadiyah members in Ketapang because funds set aside for that purpose in 2010 and 2011 had not been realized “because the refugees raised the amount”.

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Ahmadiyah bans: Legal justification for intolerance?

OPINIONSat, 12/10/2011 9:27 AM

Ahmadiyah bans: Legal justification for intolerance?

Ati Nurbaiti, Canberra

As of September this year, at least 26 regencies and municipalities have passed bylaws restricting or banning the Ahmadiyah sect, 11 of them in West Java alone, according to a list from the National Commission on Violence Against Women.

Some were issued after the murderous assault on the sect in Pandeglang regency, Banten, in February 2011; including the Banten bylaw itself. The Commission has said women and children of the sect were the most vulnerable in the attacks, which according to the Setara Institute have included 342 cases of assault from 2007 to 2011. This also includes the resettlement of an entire Ahmadiyah community to an island off Lombok.

The local regulations justify other citizens and authorities into closing down Ahmadi mosques, forcing them out of their homes, or ordering them to denounce Islam if they insist on their beliefs. Unlike mainstream Muslims, the Ahmadiyah do not believe that Muhammad is the last prophet, saying they differentiate between prophets and messengers.

However, Muslims have said this is their excuse to hide their real beliefs; that the Ahmadiyah have frequently violated the joint ministerial decree on their sect by proselytizing; and that the attacks on them would stop — if only they would drop their teachings, or declare that they are no longer Muslims.

The bylaws and the joint ministerial decree, revived in 2008, refer to the 2005 non-binding fatwa of the Indonesian Council of Ulema (MUI) which states the Ahmadiyah is deviant; and also the 1965 Law on Blasphemy, which was upheld in 2005 by the Constitutional Court in its ruling against a group of human rights advocates who wanted it annulled. The plaintiffs had said the blasphemy law was no longer relevant for a democracy since it was issued under martial law in 1965.

The movement to annul the 1965 law and those advocating an end to prosecuting minorities, pursue entirely different reasoning from groups who are sealing the Ahmadiyah mosques, often accompanied by local police.

The first argues that the state of a democratic country should not decide which Islam is “right”. The second wonders out loud why the state is leaving Muslims to take matters into their own hands, because, they say, it is evident that Ahmadiyah should be banned, based on the 1965 law, the joint ministerial decree and the MUI fatwa.

A glimpse at news reports in the wake of the Feb. 6 attacks shows that a number of these reports asserted or implied that the real victims were not the Ahmadiyah, whose three members were mobbed and killed, with helpless police officers looking on — all on display to the world thanks to YouTube.

According to the sources in the reports, such as in CyberSabili and hidayatullah.com, the real victims were the Muslims, because the Ahmadis, who insulted Islam, and blatantly defied all civilized requests to stop proselytizing, gained all the sympathy. The “victimization” of Muslims is traced to the marginalization and suppression of Islamic expression by Soeharto, apart from reports of intelligence operations against Muslim activists.

That the Ahmadiyah were not the real victims in the February assault would not necessarily be the majority view; a poll involving 3,000 respondents found most rejecting violence in the name of religion. The July poll by the Setara Institute was conducted in 47 regencies and municipalities in 10 provinces.

But if most Indonesians agreed with these respondents, it doesn’t explain all those bylaws restricting the Ahmadiyah, emerging right under the nose of President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono. The passing of the bylaws had no difficulty, it seemed, even though the regional autonomy law states that religion should be regulated by the state. But similarly, Religious Affairs Minister Suryadharma Ali and Home Minister Gamawan Fauzi have voiced their opinions that the state should ban or dissolve the Ahmadiyah instead of only restricting their activities.

So are Indonesia’s Muslims becoming increasingly intolerant? Many say tolerance is not the issue, for the Ahmadiyah has insulted Islam.

Leading lawyer Adnan Buyung Nasution told a recent discussion in Canberra that he had a hard time convincing President Yudhoyono that the Ahmadiyah had constitutional rights as a minority — and thus the President may have been persuaded against an outright ban. The ministers overseeing the joint ministerial decree restricting the Ahmadiyah also have a constitutional reference; that religious freedom is limited in respect of followers of other faiths.

The International Crisis Group had recommended an independent body to work out a strategy for religious tolerance; such a body would have to deal with this legal confusion stemming from demands to “protect” the Muslim majority against “deviants”, through rulings such as a state ban on the Ahmadiyah.

Malaysia may seem tragic to many of us as its activists say ordinary citizens, including Muslims themselves, cannot speak out against increased state regulation of Islam, lest they would be considered un-Islamic.

But the incidences of Malaysians’ violence against minorities do not come anywhere close to our long list. Should we be proud of outdoing Malaysia?

The author is a staff writer at The Jakarta Post.

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URL: www.thejakartapost.com/news/2011/12/10/ahmadiyah...intolerance.html

Minority report

	Sun, Nov 20, 2011, Zilhaj 22, 1432 A.H
Opinion
Minority report

Sana Bucha
Sunday, November 20, 2011

Blood, meat and hides marked the first day of Eid-ul-Azha in Pakistan. While most Muslims celebrated their holy festival by sacrificing animals, some decided to achieve new levels of faith by targeting Hindus in Shikarpur. Three doctors were shot dead in broad daylight in Chak Town, allegedly, after a conflict arose between the Bhayo tribe and the Hindu community over a dancing girl.

Prior to the murders, the issue had already captured the attention of the local elders and a jirga was to be convened after Eid. Threats were issued to the Hindu community and reported to the local police but to no avail. Why is it that the government machinery only comes into motion after a tragedy has unfolded? The president and prime minister have both condemned the murders and ordered an inquiry. The police have since been prompt in arresting many from the Bhayo tribe. As anybody in Pakistan will tell you, arrests don’t necessarily mean justice. This is not the only case of Hindus being discriminated against in Pakistan – Sindh, long known for the wisdom of renowned Sufis and saints, is now home to a whole new brand of faith.

This ghastly incident takes me back to another instance in Lahore last year, when two shrines of the minority Ahmadi sect were attacked, leaving more than 90 people dead. Threats to Ahmadis were ignored then too, and calls for greater government protection in the future fell on deaf ears.

A few months ago, Faisalabad was witness to brazen warnings on Ahmadis; pamphlets labelling members of the Ahmadi community “wajib-ul-qatal” were distributed comprising names and identities of Ahmadi industrialists, doctors and businessmen. Most recently, Ahmadi residents in Lahore’s Satellite Town have been asked to leave or face dire consequences. This because they have established their place of worship which is deemed ‘unconstitutional’ by some.

It surprises me that we have forgotten those very people who helped draft the resolution that gave us Pakistan. Mohammad Zafarullah Khan was an Ahmadi but it was he who drafted the Pakistan Resolution and represented the Muslim League’s view when it came to deciding the future boundaries between India and Pakistan. He also served as Pakistan’s first minister for foreign affairs. Jinnah with his liberal views chose men to represent his country on merit, not religion, caste or creed. Pakistan’s first law minister was a Hindu who had more faith in Jinnah’s liberal views than the Congress’ secular ones; hence he decided to stay in Pakistan. Mandal was supposed to draft the first constitution of Pakistan; however he never got around to staying here long enough to see that to fruition. He resigned from the cabinet due to the consistent persecution of Hindus in Pakistan and moved back to India shortly after Jinnah’s death.

Encouraging persecution of minorities in Pakistan allows intolerance to flourish and has created precisely the kind of second-class citizenry in Pakistan – with uncertain rights and prejudiced values – that the country’s democratic principles were expected to avoid. For 64 years the whole point has been to come to some sort of conclusion as to whether this Islamic Republic of Pakistan can accommodate minorities without threatening their person, faith and livelihood. The idea has been to remove ambiguities and knock off a predominant holier-than-thou attitude towards Christians, Hindus, Ahmadis and Parsis. That clarity was in part, intended for the welfare of the existing minorities, so they could break free from their trap of uncertainty and insecurity. With a secular party at the helm, was this too much to ask for?

As religious historian Karen Armstrong stated recently: “like art, religion is difficult to do well and is often done badly.” The way to experiencing art is through an artist’s eyes. Similarly, religion is usually judged by how it is followed. The secular Pakistan Peoples Party distanced its views from those of Maulvi Nawaz Sharif’s – the alleged closet Taliban. However, it was “Maulvi Sahib” who made his way to Chak town and personally conveyed his condolences to the bereaved Hindu families. It was Sharif who pleaded to the Hindu community not to leave Pakistan, not our “secular” ruling party or its equally “secular” allies, the ANP or the MQM.

Pakistan’s minority dilemma is complex because secularism and conservatism don’t go their separate ways, but come together. Zulfikar Ali Bhutto was considered Pakistan’s most secular and liberal leader, however by adopting the Objectives Resolution in the 1973 constitution, he ended up empowering conservative forces.

Similarly, the man who promised Pakistan “enlightened moderation” also gave way to the Muttahida Majlis-e-Amal. General (r) Pervez Musharraf’s regime gave more power to the maulvis than any other government in Pakistan. Claiming to be Pakistan’s ray of hope, Imran Khan too has disappointed his secular voters (and some party workers). In an interview with Indian journalist Karan Thapar, Khan said he realised the need to ban militant organisations however, when asked to take names, he refused. Khan said he knew the threat that looms large since the Governor of Punjab, Salmaan Taseer, was murdered and hence would not endanger his own life by taking names. And his motto is? You guessed it! Change.

However, it seems the most conservative leader has turned out to be the most secular. From his proposed policy of looking inward for a solution to the war on terror, to envisioning an open trade and better relations with India, Nawaz Sharif has ended up doing what the PPP has long promised. But there are still question marks on some of his party’s leaders harbouring relations with banned outfits and participating in their rallies. His own brother and chief minister of Punjab had previously pleaded with the Taliban not to attack Punjab because of their anti-US policy. As if the other three provinces are in complete disagreement with the views of the TTP and therefore deserve to die.

Persecution of minorities in Pakistan is on a steady rise. It’s not only non-Muslims who are under threat; the minority Muslim sects are also bearing its brunt. In the last two years, almost every important day in the Shiite calendar has been witness to attacks. There have also been attacks on religious shrines of Data Darbar, Abdullah Shah Ghazi and Baba Farid. Scholars who disavowed this form of brutal violence as un-Islamic were either martyred like Maulana Sarfaraz Naeemi and Maulana Hasan Jaan, or they had to flee the country.

Come to think of it, one way or the other, we are all minorities – Punjabis in Balochistan, Mohajirs in Punjab, Pashtuns in Sindh, Baloch in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa – we are all victims of this prejudice. Will we realise, in time, what we don’t condemn today for others could very well be our fate tomorrow.

The writer works for Geo TV.

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City closes Ahmadi mosque, denies religious prejudice

CITYSat, 11/19/2011 11:40 AM

City closes Ahmadi mosque, denies religious prejudice

Andreas D. Arditya, The Jakarta Post, Jakarta

The Jakarta administration denies any religious predilection in sealing off an Ahmadiyah mosque in East Jakarta this week.

Jakarta Deputy Governor Prijanto said that mosque was shut down because it violated a building permit.

Prijanto did not consider that the Ahmadis had unsuccessfully proposed to the local administration to convert the building permit from a private residence to a public building.

The Ahmadis had held religious services there for 21 years.

“Our local official sealed the building off after sending warning letters,” Prijanto told reporters at City Hall on Friday.

On Thursday, officials from the East Jakarta Building Supervisory Agency (P2B) and the City Public Order closed down At-Taqwa mosque after claiming that the owners of the premises had misused the building permit issued for the premises.

Prijanto said that issues regarding the Islamic sect had been decided by the central government through a ministerial decree.

The head of the East Jakarta branch of the Ahmadiyah, Aryudi Muhammad Shadiq, said the management of the mosque was fully aware of the building violation.

Aryudi said that they had been proposing to the local administration to convert the building permit from that for a private residence to one for a public building, but to no avail.

He questioned the city administration’s decision to seal off the mosque after allowing it to remain open for the past 21 years.

Following the closing of the mosque, a local Islam Defenders Front (FPI) branch said that they would monitor the sect’s activity and report to the city administration should the sect continue performing their religious services there.

Separately on Friday, Jakarta Police chief Insp. Gen. Untung Suharsono Radjab held a meeting with a number of mass organizations, including those notorious for their violent behavior, in Central Jakarta.

Untung said that the meeting was to seek input from the organizations regarding security issues in the capital. The police chief warned that members of any organization who resorted to violence and violated the law would be penalized. “We will process them according to the law.”

Three years ago, the central government issued a joint ministerial decree banning members of the Ahmadiyah Indonesia Congregation (JAI) from propagating their religious beliefs, but allowed them to maintain their faith and perform their daily religious duties.

The decree was followed by a number of regional administrations issuing bans to prevent members of the Ahmadiyah sect from practicing their faith in public.

Jakarta Governor Fauzi Bowo also planned to issue a similar ban, but backtracked after realizing that such bylaws were illegal.

The Coordinating Political, Legal and Security Affairs Ministry said that the local administration could not issue ordinances that went against the Constitution, which guaranteed the freedom of faith and worship.

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City seals off Ahmadiyah mosque in East Jakarta

CITYFri, 11/18/2011 10:41 AM

City seals off Ahmadiyah mosque in East Jakarta

The Jakarta Post

East Jakarta officials sealed off a mosque belonging to a group of Ahmadiyah followers in Duren Sawit on Thursday, saying that the place of worship violated zoning regulations.

Officials from the East Jakarta Building Supervisory Agency (P2B), accompanied by public order officers, closed down At-Taqwa mosque after claiming that the owners of the premises had misused the building permit issued for the premises.

In the eviction notice, the P2B said that a building permit had been issued for a private residence, but owners had used the premises as a house of worship. The agency claimed that three warning letters had been issued before the eviction.

The head of the East Jakarta branch of the Ahmadiyah, Aryudi Muhammad Shadiq, said the management of the mosque was fully aware of the building violation.

“We have been trying to convert the building permit from that for a private residence to one for a public building, but to no avail,” he told The Jakarta Post on Thursday.

Aryudi said that bureaucratic red tape had hampered the congregation in obtaining a new building permit. “We spent six months on completing all the required documents. But we didn’t get it,” he said.

He suspected that officials of the B2P had intentionally thwarted their efforts to get a new permit.

“We feel like the city administration doesn’t support our efforts to get a new permit for the mosque,” he said.

Aryudi also questioned the city administration’s decision to seal off the mosque after allowing it to remain open for the past 21 years. “Why now and not years ago? We have never caused problems in the community,” Aryudi said.

Since the founding of the mosque in 1990, members of the Ahmadi congregation have performed their rituals in peace and locals had never lodged any complaints.

A local Ahmadi cleric living in Duren Sawit, Muhammad Diantono, said the Ahmadi community had been in the area since 1967. “They are all locals who have lived in the area for years. They have become part of the community,” he said.

Diantono said that Ahmadis in the area had voluntarily reduced the time they spent on rituals in the mosque even though the East Jakarta administration had made no move to restrict their freedom.

Lately, At-Taqwa had held daily prayers only. Previously, the management of the mosque held a weekly sermon and Koran recitation for its 300 members.

“Ahmadis in several areas may deal with tighter local regulations, but we have been fine here. Yet, we decided to reduce the time we spent at the mosque to prevent possible conflict,” he said.

An East Jakarta Islam Defenders Front (FPI) member, Subhan Amir, said that it was still possible that conflict in the area could result from Ahmadis conducting their rituals at the mosque.

“The mosque is a dangerous place for people living nearby because the Ahmadis can be a bad influence. And now locals have realized how dangerous their beliefs are,” he said.

Subhan said the FPI supported the B2P’s decision to shut down the mosque.

“We will keep an eye on the mosque and if we find that the Ahmadis are still conducting their rituals, we will file a report with the city administration,” said Subhan. (lfr)

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House told to scrap ‘intolerant’ bill

HEADLINESTue, 11/15/2011 12:23 PM

House told to scrap ‘intolerant’ bill

Ina Parlina, The Jakarta Post, Jakarta

The House of Representatives has completed a draft of the so-called religious tolerance bill, which observers claim would threaten the very essence of pluralism and tolerance.

The draft bill, which would regulate religious sermons and segregate graves within public cemeteries according to religion, is seen by some as a potentially giant fan that would spread the growing flame of religious intolerance that has sparked violent conflicts across the nation over the past three years.

The bill does not propose an alternative regulation to the current problematic house of worship licensing system that majority groups have used to make it difficult for members of minority religions to congregate for religious prayers in several regions.

Setara Institute for Peace and Democracy head Hendardi said that if passed, the House-initiated bill would likely legitimize restrictions against minorities for the sake of harmony.

He questioned Article 1 Point 4, which defines blasphemy as any act or interpretation of a religion beyond the scope of that religion’s basic teachings.

“Religious harmony is impossible unless religious freedom for every citizen is guaranteed. Therefore, the state must punish all groups that attack this freedom,” he said.

“We need a bill to eliminate religious discrimination, rather than this sort of tolerance bill.”

“Thus, Setara urges the House of Representatives to bin the draft and arrange a new one based on plurality, equality and religious freedom.”

Indonesia, the world’s largest Muslim majority nation, and also a home to many religions and multi-ethnic groups, has been celebrated worldwide as a champion of cultural and religious pluralism.

However, teachings of the Islamic minority sect Ahmadiyah have been deemed heretical and blasphemous by the Indonesian Ulema Council (MUI). Followers of the faith have been increasingly targeted in recent years by violent groups who have persuaded several local governments through intimidation and rallies to ban the sect “to maintain security in their regions”.

In February, three Ahmadis were murdered in a mob assault on their community compound in Cikeusik, Banten. The attackers were believed to be members of Islamic hard-line groups. Despite video evidence showing the perpetrators commit the crimes, only a handful were brought to court, where they were handed light sentences of several months each.

Setara recorded 50 separate attacks against Ahmadis in 2010.

The much criticized government licensing process for houses of worship is at the heart of an ongoing legal conflict that has stopped a Christian congregation from holding Sunday services in their own church in Bogor, West Java.

The Bogor administration has persisted on banning the GKI Taman Yasmin congregation’s members from conducting religious services in their church despite that the congregation has received permission to do so from the Supreme Court.

Bogor Mayor Diani Budiarto recently filed a lawsuit against the church, alleging that the petition of local consent used by the congregation to gain approval to build the church contained forged signatures.

The Indonesian Ombudsman has issued a statement saying that Diani’s new evidence is not relevant because GKI Yasmin produced the signed petition in 2002, whereas the allegedly false petition was dated 2006.

“The bill is likely to nurture tyranny of the majority. We must know that there is no single majority group in Indonesia. The tyranny of the majority in a certain group might trigger vengeance toward it in the area where it is a minority,” said Catholic priest Benny Susetyo, who is also the chairman of the Indonesian Bishops Conference (KWI) inter-faith dialogue division.

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Blasphemy not a crime: UN official

NATIONALFri, 11/11/2011 11:30 AM

Blasphemy not a crime: UN official

Bagus BT Saragih, The Jakarta Post, Jakarta

Amid various acts of discrimination and the persecution of followers of the Ahmadiyah sect, a UN official says blasphemy should not be categorized as a crime.

Frank William La Rue, the UN Special Rapporteur on the promotion and protection of the right to freedom of opinion and expression, said blasphemy may indeed come from someone who disrespects a religion but that this should not be seen as a criminal action.

“I understand that religion, as well as philosophy, is in the world of context of spirituality and concept and idea, and therefore they are open to discussion and debate, which should never be charged with blasphemy law,” Frank told The Jakarta Post on the sidelines of the Asia Civil Society Consultation on National Security and Right to Information Principles, at a hotel in Jakarta on Thursday.

“I believe in respect, but I don’t believe respect can be achieved through censorship,” he added. “Europe also has a blasphemy law and I think that is a mistake.”

Frank cited article 20 of the International Covenant of Civil and Political Rights, which stipulates that all states should prohibit the incitement to hatred hostility and violence and to any form of discrimination on the basis of race, religion or nationality against anyone.

In Indonesia, the covenant was ratified in 2006.

Several Islam groups have been repeatedly urging for the disbandment of the Ahmadiyah sect in Indonesia, saying it is a deviant sect that is blasphemous against Islam.

Members of the groups insist that the government has the authority to ban Ahmadiyah under the old 1965 Law on Blasphemy.

The sentiment was seen earlier this year in a fatal incident in which an Ahmadiyah sect in Cikeusik, Banten, were brutally attacked by a mob in February, leaving three of its members dead and many others injured. Video recordings of the incident were later distributed online, resulting in a public outcry, however, those responsible for the violence received comparitively light sentences.

In 2008, the leader of the Salamullah (God’s Kingdom of Eden) sect, Lia Aminudin, was also detained by police and charged with blasphemy.

In 2010, a number of NGOs concerned with human rights filed for a judicial review at the Constitutional Court, challenging the law against the 1945 Constitution. The petitioners said article 28 of the Constitution guarantees every citizens’ religious rights.

The court, however, denied the request and upheld the law.

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‘Heretical’ Ahmadiyya sect raises Muslim hackles

Sun. 02 Oct 2011

New Delhi

‘Heretical’ Ahmadiyya sect raises Muslim hackles

First Published: 23:31 IST(2/10/2011)
Last Updated: 23:36 IST(2/10/2011)Zia Haq, Hindustan Times
New Delhi, October 02, 2011

They proudly claim to be Muslims but are laughed off by mainstream Islam as “fakes”. The dispute goes beyond mere ridicule. From Pakistan to Indonesia, the Ahmadiyyas are often killed for believing in their own line of subordinate prophets after Mohammed. Now, as they try to assert themselves in India, the sect’s very birthplace, a conflict looks likely.

In Delhi’s Constitution Club last month, a Quran exhibition held by the Ahmadiyyas had to be called off because of shrill protests from Jama Masjid Imam Ahmed Bukhari and an All-India Muslim Personal Law Board member.

Yet the Ahmadiyyas — a minority within minority — believe if there is a place to thrive, it is India.

“This is one of the few countries where we have the same rights as others,” Syed Tanveer, the spokesperson for Ahamiddya Muslim Jamaat, told HT from Qadian, Punjab.

Backing them is the National Commission for Minorities, which is now examining if Bukhari and All-India Muslim Personal Law Board member Kamal Farooqui attempted to curb the Ahmadiyyas’ religious freedom.

Bukhari and his brother Yahya, among others, were briefly arrested on September 24 for disrupting the exhibition.

Politically, the Ahmadiyyas are seeking legitimacy from Congress MP Pratap Singh Bajwa, who represents in their religious nerve-centre — Qadian in Gurdaspur.

“Bajwa had judged us well and found us to be law-abiding. That’s why he supports us,” Tanveer said.

Minority watchdog chief Wajahat Habibullah said: “An attack on the religious freedom of Ahmaddiyas clearly falls under our jurisdiction.”

Despite the proposed intervention, the Ahmadiyyas are unlikely to find acceptability because of a worldwide fatwa (edict) against them.

“The commission has to serve notices to 150 million Muslims of India who will never allow Ahmadiyyas to call themselves Muslims,” Bukhari said. Habibullah is facing attacks for visiting the Quran exhibition.

The conflict could escalate in India, where the Ahmadiyyas want to spread themselves.

Muslims generally believe there can be no prophets after Mohammed. The Ahmadiyyas have their own TV station in the UK, where their “caliph” lives in exile.

Copyright © 2011 HT Media Limited. All Rights Reserved
URL: www.hindustantimes.com/Heretical-Ahmadiyya-sect...752846.aspx

Delhi: Quran exhibition called off after protests

Delhi

Delhi: Quran exhibition called off after protests

Last Updated: Saturday, September 24, 2011, 18:41

New Delhi: An exhibition on Quran and the message of Islam being held here was called off Saturday mid-way through its schedule after facing protests from other Muslim groups.

The three-day exhibition was organised in the constitution club by Ahmadiyya Muslim Jamaat, a group of representatives of Ahmadiyyas sect of Muslims. The exhibition was supposed to end Sunday, however, following strong protests from majority of Muslim groups, led by the Shahi Imam of Jama Masjid, Maulana Syed Ahmed Bukhari.

The exhibition was wrapped up after apprehensions of tension as Bukhari announced a protest. This also resulted in a brief detention of Bukhari, spurting up tension in the area of old Delhi.

“We had to wrap up our exhibition after a protests from the hardliners,” a member of the Ahmadiyya Muslim Jamaat told agency.

“We were spreading the message of love, to tell the world that Quran is for everyone. But the hardliners don’t want this,” he said.

Bukhari was briefly detained and taken to the Daryaganj police station of old Delhi. The Shahi Imam said that they were protesting against the exhibition as it was not spreading “correct messages” of Islam.

“They don’t consider Prophet Mohammad the last prophet, hence they are not Muslims,” Bukhari said.

“We had urged the government to stop the exhibition as what they are promoting is not authentic. We gave the government time till Friday to close the exhibition, but our requests were not heard, so we decided to protest,” Bukhari told IANS.

“However, when we were to start the protest, I was detained along with my supporters and taken to Daryaganj police station,” he said.

Bukhari said that he then refused to leave the police station premise till the exhibition was called off.

“Protestors were gathering, they (police) then said that the exhibition was being wound-up,” he said.

Bukhari was at the police station from 12 noon to around 4 p.m.

According to police, the situation in the area is now normal.

“Bukhari was detained for some time in the morning. The situation in the area is normal now,” Central Delhi DCP Vivek Kishore said.

© 1996-2011 Zee News Limited, All rights reserved
URL: http://zeenews.india.com/news/...protests_733318.html

Fearing row, Bukhari detained

Sat. 24 Sep 2011

New Delhi

Fearing row, Bukhari detained

First Published: 23:14 IST(24/9/2011)
Last Updated: 23:16 IST(24/9/2011)HT Correspondent, Hindustan Times
New Delhi, September 24, 2011

The Shahi Imam of the Jama Masjid and more than a hundred of his supporters were detained for four hours at the Daryaganj Police Station on Saturday morning, police said. Police said Maulana Syed Ahmed Bukhari and motorcade composed of 25 to 30 vehicles, which was en route the Constitution Club to protest against a three-day seminar organised by proponents of the Ahmadiya sect, was intercepted at Delhi Gate around 12 pm.

“The step was in line with ensuring that the law and order situation did not get out of hand after the Imam and his followers reached the venue.

They were detained under Section 65 of the Delhi Police (DP) Act and later released at 3:30 pm,” said a senior police officer.

According to the Imam, his visit was meant to ensure that the said exhibition, which also featured copies of the Holy Quran containing modifications introduced by the sect as early as 1901, be cancelled on religious grounds.

“I had formally requested the state government to cancel the said exhibition because it is against the prevailing and true tenets of Islam – failing which I would go to the Club to ensure that it was called-off,” Maulana Bukhari told Hindustan Times.

He added that the works on display at the exhibition were ‘more desecrating than the Danish cartoon lampooning Prophet Muhammad’.

Police released the Imam and his supporters from the Daryaganj Police Station at 3:30 pm but the former refused to leave the premises till the authorities concerned called-off the seminar and communicated it to them at 3:45 pm.

Copyright © 2011 HT Media Limited. All Rights Reserved
URL: www.hindustantimes.com/Fearing-row-Bukhari-detained/Article1-749803.aspx

Exhibition on teachings of Quran denounced

News » Cities » Delhi

NEW DELHI, September 24, 2011

Exhibition on teachings of Quran denounced

Madhur Tankha

HOLY READING: A visitor at the three-day Quran exhibition titled ‘Love for all, Hatred for none’ that began in New Delhi on Friday. Photo: V. V. Krishnan

Protest by Muslim Law Board member and Shahi Imam’s brother

A three-day exhibition on the teachings of the Quran by Ahmadiyya Muslim Jammat, Delhi, that opened at the Constitution Club here on Friday ran into trouble when All-India Muslim Personal Law Board member Kamaal Farooqui and Syed Yahya Bukhari, brother of the Shahi Imam of Jama Masjid, along with their supporters denounced the event for “wrongly interpreting the tenets of Islam and the holy Quran”.

Talking to the media outside the Constitution Club, Mr. Farooqui said since Ahmadiyyas have been branded as non-Muslims in Pakistan, Iran, Iraq and other Islamic countries they cannot mount an exhibition in which they have interpreted the teachings of the holy Quran.

“If we start interfering in other people’s religion as it is being done through this exhibition, then it would create a dangerous precedent in the country. This exhibition cannot be allowed at any cost. Today we are demonstrating peacefully, but if this exhibition continues then on Saturday there will be a bigger demonstration,” he warned.

After the demonstrators had left, Ahmadiyya Muslim Jamaat External Affairs Secretary Syed Tanvir Ahmed said: “Ahmadiyyas are Muslims because they follow what Hazrat Mohammad taught them, read namaz and keep roza. But as this exhibition seeks to promote peace and brotherhood we will discontinue our exhibition after 5 p.m. on Saturday.”

National Minority Commission Chairman Wajahat Habibullah said he had no problem if the Ahmadiyyas described themselves as Muslims. “The teachings of the holy Quran have been beautifully displayed.”

The exhibition is displaying the Quran in 53 Indian and foreign languages including Kashmiri, Tamil, Telugu, Marathi and Gurmukhi, Russian, Spanish, Korean and Vietnamese. Seeking to dispel misunderstanding surrounding Islam, the exhibition is highlighting the tenets of Islam. “We want people to know that Islam stands for peace,” said Ahsan Ghori, while presenting the exhibition before guests. The exhibition highlights that Islam has assigned a position of dignity and honour to women and is a peaceful religion.

URL: www.thehindu.com/news/cities/Delhi/article2481853.ece

Ahmadiyyas face protest at peace mission

Delhi

Ahmadiyyas face protest at peace mission

Shreya Roy Chowdhury, TNN | Sep 24, 2011, 06.49AM IST

NEW DELHI: The Islamic concept of jihad is often misunderstood in the current times of war and terrorism. And Ahmadiyyas have organized an exhibition to tell the world about what they claimed to be the real message of Quran — peace and brotherhood. Through their ‘Holy Quran Exhibition’ at Constitution Club, they said they wanted to change common perceptions.

This is perhaps one of the rare occasions when members of this sect, who face persecution in Pakistan, have come out to proclaim the inclusivity of their faith and answer queries on a wide range of issues. A 10-minute video on Islam’s emphasis on peace and rejection of war is a highlight of the exhibition. “This is an effort by the Ahmadiyyas to tell society that Quran is for everybody,” says Sayed Salahuddin, a volunteer.

But the exhibition has triggered strong protests from other Muslim sects at the venue. They were protesting against the Ahmadiyyas’ claim of being Muslims. The protests forced rescheduling of the exhibition, which will now end on Saturday instead of Sunday.

When the organizers set up the exhibition on Friday morning, they put up display boards addressing issues of jihad, women’s rights, science and globalization along with handsome volumes of over 70 translations of the Quran.

But after the protests the organizers scaled down the exhibition. The books are gone and so have the displays. “We were advised by police to remove the books as mischief-mongers from other sects might desecrate them. We agreed, because we believe in peace,” said Sayed Tanvir Ahmed, one of the organizers, who had come from Qadian, Punjab, where the Ahmadiyya sect was born.

But the man who led the protests, Kamal Faruqui, executive committee member of All-India Muslim Personal Law Board said, “We did not want to create a law and order problem. We wanted a token protest. Ahmadiyyas can’t call themselves Muslims. To be a Muslim, you have to believe in the oneness of God and finality of prophethood. Anyone who doesn’t believe in this is not a Muslim. They have been declared non-Muslims allover the world,” he said.

He heard about the exhibition on Thursday and rumours were confirmed by advertisements in the newspapers. “It’s not a new organization,” continued Faruqui, “They have every right under the Constitution to practice their religion and be treated as a minority. But by calling themselves Muslims, they are deceiving the people.”

The Ahmadiyyas are branded heretics in Pakistan and face opposition. “We are not popular among Muslims,” said Shiraz Ahmad, in charge of education for the Ahmadiyyas in India. “But we never retaliate. We spread the message of peace. We are declared non-Muslims by ulemas because they are afraid they’ll lose control if the masses follow us,” said Ahmad. But he also likes challenges. “We have been facing oppression for over 100 years. But where there is opposition, people also ask questions. They think, let’s go find out.”

Copyright © 2011 Bennett, Coleman & Co. Ltd. All rights reserved
URL: http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/delhi/Ahmadiyyas...10099709.cms

Khatam-e-Nabuwat Conference: Ahmadis accused of working against Pakistan

Pakistan Punjab

Khatam-e-Nabuwat Conference: Ahmadis accused of working against Pakistan

By Shamsul Islam
Published: September 10, 2011

Three-day meeting ‘celebrates’ declaration of Ahmadis as minorities. PHOTO: REUTERS/FILE

MULTAN: “Ahmadis are part of a Jewish conspiracy against Islam and Pakistan and are responsible for sectarianism and terrorism in the country,” claimed religious leaders at the conclusion of a three-day-long Khatme Nabuwwat conference in Chiniot.

Over 450 processions and gatherings were organised in Punjab to mark the Khatme Nabuwat declaration by the Supreme Court that declared Ahmadis as ‘non-Muslims’ in 1974.

“The option available for Ahmadis is to accept Islam and abandon conspiracies against Muslims and Pakistan,” speakers at the conference said.

The government should keep a check on Ahmadis purchasing property in Pakistan, they suggested, stressing on “the need to declare Ahmadis as terrorists.”

Heralding the “sacrifices of the right-wing parties to define Islam and declare Ahmadis as minorities,” speakers at the conference vowed to “protect the religious identity of Pakistan in the world.”

In a “message” to the Ahmadis, the speakers said they should either “accept Islam” or their legal status as minorities in Pakistan and “obey” the constitution of Pakistan.

On an ending note, the speakers vowed to “continue [their] struggle against Ahmadis across the world.”

Published in The Express Tribune, September 10th, 2011.

Copyrighted © 2011 The Express Tribune News Network
URL: http://tribune.com.pk/story/249286/khatam-e-nabuwat...pakistan/

Ahmadis criticise govt inaction over targeted killings

Pakistan Punjab

Ahmadis criticise govt inaction over targeted killings

By Shamsul Islam
Published: September 10, 2011

Ahmadis say their community is facing dire threat. PHOTO: EXPRESS/FILE

FAISALABAD: Ahmadis are completely at the mercy of assassins who are targeting and killing them with impunity and police and other law-enforcement agencies were doing nothing to thwart their actions, the secretary of the Faisalabad chapter of the Jama’at Ahmadiyya said in a letter sent to foreign missions and top government functionaries.

Syed M Mahmood, the secretary of the organisation’s general affairs, said that he had “sent a letter (containing) forewarnings regarding the plight of the Ahmadiyya community in Faisalabad”, but no action was taken on it.

The letter was dispatched to the Human Rights Watch, the Asian Human Rights Commission, US embassy in Islamabad, the British High Commission and the embassies of France, Germany, Belgium, Canada, Norway, Sweden and Denmark, Islamabad.

He said that several victims, including Laeeq Ahmed, who was a member of the local chapter of the Jama’at Ahmadiyya, were brutally murdered in public, but police was trying to look the other way.

Citing the example of Laeeq Ahmed’s murder, he said: “It is shocking to know that neither the empties in the car were taken into the possession by the police nor the car was examined.”

According to him, another Ahmadi, Naseem Ahmad Butt became the victim of a targeted killing, but his killers were “roaming free” and asking about the whereabouts of his brother.

He reminded that “both the killings (occurred) in the constituency of the controversial Punjab law minister, Rana Sanaullah, who sides with the extremist groups”.

Expressing his frustration, he said: “We cannot continue to see our dear ones murdered with impunity. I have no option but to send this report also to world organisations on human rights, to different embassies, to show them the disintegration and complete collapse of law and order in Punjab. We (fear) that this (city) might become a second Karachi.”

This letter was also sent to the governor of Punjab, the provincial home secretary, additional secretary (home), IG police, additional IG, RPO Faisalabad, CPO Faisalabad, SSP (Operations) Faisalabad and DCO Faisalabad,

In another letter sent to foreign missions in Islamabad and law-enforcement authorities, the Ahmadiyya community also protested over what they termed forced rustication of three female students from the National Textile University (NTU) in Faisalabad because of their faith.

It was pointed out, “NTU Faisalabad has become the hub of…extremist and militant groups”.

“There has been a planned subversion of all the decent norms of an educational institution. The target has been the Ahmadiyya Community and the weaker Ahmadi female students”.

“So much so, that all the female students had to leave the NTU Faisalabad. Their educational careers were abandoned midway. Moulvis were imported (to the campus) who harangued the students against the Ahmadiyya Community in such an abusive language which defies definition”.

The letter pointed out, “The parents of the students have been approaching the rector of the NTU Faisalabad, but he showed his inability to control the situation”.

“Even the magazine of the NTU, Faisalabad, exhorts that all Ahmadis should be killed.

“This is not a textile university, this is the killing factory of the Taliban.”

“This university, hotbed of extremism, should have no affiliation with any other educational institutions in the world. Otherwise, the name of other decent educational institution will be sullied.”

Published in The Express Tribune, September 10th, 2011.

Copyrighted © 2011 The Express Tribune News Network
URL: http://tribune.com.pk/story/249311/extremist-groups...killings/

Communal violence: Police clueless in attack on Ahmadi man

Pakistan Punjab

Communal violence: Police clueless in attack on Ahmadi man

By Rana Tanveer
Published: September 9, 2011

Ferozewala police have registered a FIR against three assailants.

LAHORE: The police said on Thursday it had no clue about the attackers who shot and injured an Ahmadi man in an attack which carried communal overtones on Wednesday.

Ferozewala police have, however, registered an FIR against three assailants for attacking Basheer Ahmed. No one has so far been arrested.

The complainant, on whose behalf the FIR was lodged, is the victim’s nephew, Zahid, who is not an Ahmadi. Local Ahmadis expressed reservations over the matter, saying that he ‘will favour the probable suspect’ in view of his beliefs.

Investigation officer, Assistant Sub Inspector Ishrat, talking to The Express Tribune also said that the complainant “is not cooperating with the investigation”.

A local Ahmadi questioned the complainant’s sincerity and said: “How can a Barelvi man take action against an accused of the same faith?”

He said that two witnesses identified in the FIR were also not Ahmadis.

The complainant, Zahid, told The Express Tribune that at this stage, he was trying to save his uncle’s life and he would take care of the assailants.

He said it was obvious his uncle was attacked for his beliefs, adding that he would take action against the attackers.

Talking about the FIR, he said he had clearly mentioned in the application that his uncle was an active member of the Jamat-e-Ahmadia and the local operatives of Khatam-e-Nabuwat organisation had attacked him with intent to kill.

He said that two years ago, an accused had confessed before the Shafiqabad police that a local office bearer of the Khatam-e-Nabuwat organisation, Qari Muhammad Ahmed Fareedi, had paid him to kill his uncle.

He said he had not mentioned this in the FIR. He added he wanted to offer “a reasonable cash prize to the person who will tell him about the real attackers”.

Published in The Express Tribune, September 9th, 2011.

Copyrighted © 2011 The Express Tribune News Network
URL: http://tribune.com.pk/story/248262/communal...ahmadi-man/

Ahmadi shot, injured on ‘Khatam-e-Nabuwat Day’

Pakistan Punjab

Ahmadi shot, injured on ‘Khatam-e-Nabuwat Day’

By Rana Tanveer
Published: September 8, 2011

Relatives allege he was targeted for his religious beliefs. NEFER SEHGAL/FILE

LAHORE: A man, who was later identified to be an Ahmadi, was critically injured after being shot three times in Ferozewala of Sheikhupura district on Wednesday just as religious parties observed the ‘Tahafuz Khatam-e-Nabuwat Day’.

Relatives of the victim, Chaudhry Basheer Ahmed, alleged that he was targeted because of his religious beliefs as a result of the intensification of a hate campaign against Ahmadis in the area.

Tahafuz Khatam-e-Nabuwat Day marks the anniversary of the day in 1974, when Pakistan’s parliament declared Ahmadis to be a non-Muslim minority.

Basheer Ahmed was shot once in his abdomen and twice in his neck with a 30-bore pistol at close range.

Naseer Ahmed, one of Basheer’s relatives who witnessed the attack, said that they were “sure the attacker was one of the local activists of Khatam-e-Nabuwat”, adding that the murder attempt was made near the local chapter of the Khatam-e-Nabuwat office. He said that the assailant was a bearded man between 18 to 20 years of age.

Two armed men had attacked and killed a 70-year-old man in his shop in the presence of his sons in the same area. According to the prosecution, he was killed for his beliefs.

Naseer Ahmed said Ahmadis in Ferozewala and elsewhere are under constant threat because of an ongoing hate campaign.

SHO Ferozewala police station Faisal Abbas Chadhar said that relatives of the victim had “neither given an application, nor did they want to take legal action”.

He said that the attackers and their motive were still unknown.

He said that further legal action would be taken once an application for an FIR was filed.

Spokesperson of the Jamat-e-Ahmadia, Pakistan, Saleemudin criticised the government for supporting such events, and said that the government should, instead, take steps to stop such hostile campaigns.

Published in The Express Tribune, September 8th, 2011.

Copyrighted © 2011 The Express Tribune News Network
URL: http://tribune.com.pk/story/247482/ahmedi-shot...day/

A most dangerous place

Opinion Editorial

A most dangerous place

By Editorial
Published: September 5, 2011

Ahmadis may be killed with impunity because their persecution by a significant segment of society is ignored by the state and the government of the day. PHOTO: REUTERS

The All-Pakistan Students Khatam-e-Nabuwwat Federation has killed another Ahmadi in Faisalabad, the city where the Barelvi school of thought has been allowing itself to become dangerously aggressive. Naseem Ahmad Butt was shot to death by four youths calling him wajibul qatl (worthy of being killed). The wajibul qatl verdict was given in a pamphlet distributed in the city earlier by the authoritative-sounding Aalmi Majlis Tahaffuz Khatam-e-Nabuwwat and the All-Pakistan Students Khatam-e-Nabuwwat Federation, Faisalabad. The police were informed but they did nothing, feeling safe behind their routine categorisation of the crime as ‘blind murder’.

The state of Pakistan must look carefully at this pattern of behaviour. Ahmadis may be killed with impunity because their persecution by a significant segment of society is ignored by the state and the government of the day. Then comes the turn of the Shias and other sects who are not considered outside the pale of faith but who are still, nonetheless, target by extremist fellow Muslims who consider their views heretical. Faisalabad has been dominated for a long time by the Ahle Hadith and Deobandi schools of thought but the the Barelvis are also gaining in influence, and they are not to be left behind in their persecution of the Ahmadi community. This is ironic since the Deobandis, for instance, don’t see eye-to-eye at all with the Barelvis on most faith-related matters and both hurl invective, and sometimes much more, at one another.

The Punjab government has to answer for the deaths that have happened under its rule and this includes not just Ahmadis, but also others, including several Christians, all killed by sectarian and jihadi outfits, primarily in Lahore last year. In the public eye, the view that the Punjab government may perhaps have a soft spot for jihadis is reinforced when its law minister meets and campaigns, prior to a by-election, with the leader of a banned sectarian outfit. This could be part of its strategy to gain a foothold in southern Punjab, since long a PPP stronghold, but such a tactic could be lethal for the province’s population of vulnerable people. In the process, Pakistan and its social contract are dying a slow death. The pamphlet mentioned above lists 50 Ahmadis who have to be killed in order to “achieve entry into Paradise”. It says the killers will be given a place under the flag of Prophet Muhammad (pbuh) in the chosen place of luxury in the hereafter. The youths of Faisalabad, blighted by loadshedding and religious hatred, will now betake themselves seriously to the transaction of achieving precisely this, while the state sits by and does nothing. Quite shockingly, the Faisalabad police chief says he has no information about the pamphlets which brazenly name the threatening organisation. The fact of the matter is that the Punjab police is but a reflection of society in general, and is filled with people who have nothing but hatred for those from minority communities, or even for those who stand up in support of them. In Karachi, there is the Sunni Tehreek which is far more aggressive.

In June this year, an Ahmadi place of worship was threatened with assault from a nearby mosque. The threat came from a cleric who knew that his outfit was weaponised and could kill just as easily and with as much impunity as the Lashkar-e-Jhangvi. The Barelvis were never taken to jihad by the Pakistani state but they have made up in virulence by embracing two laws that have brought infamy to Pakistan: the Second Amendment apostatising the Ahmadis; and the Blasphemy laws.

The state of Pakistan, after having declared the Ahmadi community as non-Muslims, has to protect them the way it is committed, under law and religion, to protecting minority communities. Its failure in Faisalabad to come to the help of the targeted Ahmadis is symptomatic of the terminal phase of its existence. Hatred and extremism are becoming the hallmarks of the sociology of the state.

Published in The Express Tribune, September 6th, 2011.

Copyrighted © 2011 The Express Tribune News Network
URL: http://tribune.com.pk/story/245319/a-most-dangerous-place/

Suspected hate crime: Ahmadi man shot dead in Faisalabad

Pakistan

Suspected hate crime: Ahmadi man shot dead in Faisalabad

By Shamsul Islam
Published: September 5, 2011

The minority has been under constant attack even though it keeps a low profile. DESIGN: SAMAD SIDDIQUI

FAISALABAD: In a suspected incident of hate crime against minorities, unidentified attackers killed an Ahmadi man in Faisalabad late Saturday night.

Naseem Ahmad Butt, 55, was shot dead by four men as he lay sleeping inside his house in Muzaffar Colony. According to his brother Khalid Pervez Butt, at about 1am on Saturday, the attackers entered by climbing over the walls.

“The boys were between 20 and 25 years old. Three of them kept a watch on the door as one kicked my brother. When he was awake, the killer said ‘you are Ahmadi and liable to be killed’,” Khalid told The Express Tribune.

The attacker then shot Naseem in the chest while another bullet ruptured his kidney, Khalid said. “My brother was lying in a pool of blood when we saw him. The sound of him crying woke us up.”

A car and a bicycle were used in the attack, Khalid said, and the assailants fled from the main gate of the house.

The family rushed an unconscious Naseem to the Divisional Headquarter Hospital, where he succumbed to his bullet wounds at 8.30am on Sunday.

Naseem, who worked at a power loom factory, leaves behind his widow, four daughters and a son.

Constant threat

According to Khalid, Naseem and other members of their family were under constant threat by a group of extremists who had repeatedly threatened to kill them for their faith.

(Read: Ahmadis in Karachi – Pulpit pounding, barricades, prayers but no peace)

“My first cousin Naseer Butt was also killed in a similar fashion last year. Police has made no effort to trace his killers and the case has been swept under the carpet by being declared ‘blind murder’,” Khalid said.

However, in hope of assistance, Khalid has registered a case with the Samanabad Police for the murder of Naseem. A FIR under Section 302 of the Pakistan Penal Code has been filed.

‘Hate crime’

An advocacy group based in Faisalabad has called Naseem’s murder hate crime and says it has contacted provincial and local police officials but in vain.

Over the past two years, as many as six Ahmadis have been killed in Faisalabad but no killer has been brought to book, said secretary of the secretary of the Faisalabad chapter of the Umoor-e-Aama Jama’at Ahmadiyya Mahmood Ahmad Shah.

“We have time and again contacted the Faisalabad police chief and other senior police officials throughout Punjab that a group of fanatics are threatening Ahmadis in the area.

A list of these names is being publicly circulated,” he said.

In June, Ahmad wrote an email to the province’s home secretary and police chief and Faisalabad’s regional police officer, following the distribution of pamphlets in the city that not only called Ahmadis wajibul qatl (liable to be killed) but also exhorted people to kill them to achieve martyrdom.

(Read: Targeting minorities – No friend to Ahmadis in Faisalabad)

The Punjab government’s record of protecting Ahmadis has been dismal.

In May last year, more than 88 people were killed in provincial capital Lahore when gunmen opened fire at two separate places of worship and, one year on, little progress has been made by investigators.

Published in The Express Tribune, September 5th, 2011.

Copyrighted © 2011 The Express Tribune News Network
URL: http://tribune.com.pk/story/245094/suspected...faisalabad/

Caving in to pressure: Ahmadi place of worship demolished

Pakistan

Caving in to pressure: Ahmadi place of worship demolished

By Owais Raza
Published: September 4, 2011

Destruction came in the wake of local demonstrations, minority community lodges peaceful protest. PHOTO: AFP/FILE

LODHRAN: The municipal administration has razed to the ground an under-construction Ahmadi place of worship in Jannat Wala, a village on the outskirts of Lodhran, after clerics staged protests.

Construction was suspended after labourers working at the site received death threats and some were forced to flee the village to save their lives. Muslim clerics pressurised the district government to take action when they came to know about the new place of worship. They organised processions against the government in surrounding villages and protested against what they deemed to be its ‘unwillingness to check the propagation of the Ahmadi religion.’

The government, however, denies that the destruction had anything to do with anti-Ahmadi sentiment in the community. The Tehsil Municipal Administration (TMA) razed the building on the orders of DCO Lodhran, Ghulam Fareed. More than 60% construction on the double storey building had been completed when it was torn down.

“The construction was not authorised nor was the building’s design approved by TMA which is why we have demolished it,” Fareed told The Express Tribune. “There is no other reason.”

It was declared as a store according to the DCO. Amir, a member of the Ahmadiya community, said they were not even given time to approach the courts. TMA officials said they had failed to follow the legal procedure which prompted the action.

Members of the Ahmadi community said they had protested peacefully before the DCO. This was confirmed by Maqbool Khalid, a journalist. Most of them refuse to come on record due to fear of death threats and live in fear of Ahle-Sunnat wal Jamaat members. They have been living in Adaa Zakheera, Kahroar Pakka, Dunyapur, Lodhran and Qutubpur. They have six places worship in the area.

Published in The Express Tribune, September 4th, 2011.

Copyrighted © 2011 The Express Tribune News Network
URL: http://tribune.com.pk/story/244500/caving-in...demolished/