Islam in need of understanding, not prejudice

Being a Muslim in Thailand and many other places around the world isn’t easy.
Wars in the Middle East, terrorist attacks in various cities around the world and the ongoing insurgency in the Malay-speaking South have fanned the flames of anti-Muslim sentiment. There is a growing concern in Thailand that these feelings could turn into Islamophobia.
In many places around the world, including neighbouring Myanmar, Islamophobia has become the norm.
The international community has accused the government there of turning a blind eye, and in some cases pro?viding logistical support, for the atroci?ties committed against the Muslims in Burma.
In Thailand, there have been visible signs of this growing fear judging from various developments in various pockets of the country. Over the past couple of years, there have been campaigns in Chiang Mai, Chiang Rai, Nan, Mukdahan and other provinces in which local residents protested against plans to construct a community mosque.
Participants at a roundtable discussion at the Central Islamic Centre in Bangkok this past Friday pointed out that some of these anti-mosque campaigns stemmed from local political and business disputes among various vested interests in the area. The event was organised by the Patani Forum, a civil society organisation from the Muslim-majority South dedicated to raising awareness about the conflict in the region.
Islam and conflict within Muslim communities have also been exploited for political gain. There are Buddhist nationalists and monks who want to make Buddhism the national religion and enshrined in the constitution. What is disturbing is that these people cite the conflict in the Muslim-majority South – which is ethno-nationalist in nature – to justify their political agenda.
There have been efforts to debunk the popular myths about the negative aspects of Islam. But there needs to be a more concerted effort from all sectors of society, including the government, to come together and develop a counter-narrative to Buddhist extremists and Muslim terrorists.
It’s important that the authorities and civil society, including religious
leaders of all faiths, work together to address this issue before it becomes
irreversible or similar to what the world has witnessed in Myanmar.
While there are many factors contributing to the anti-Islamic sentiment, many believe the problem has stemmed from a lack of respect for differences.
As pointed out by one prominent Muslim scholar from Chiang Mai, when non-Muslims think of Islam, many negative aspects come to mind: the dietary restrictions, polygamy, violence, and so on.
But there was a general agreement that Muslims could do a better job in terms of communicating these issues and put them in proper perspective.
Essentially, it is about a counter-
narrative to these distorted views and to the extremists behind much of the violence around the world in which Muslims
are themselves the victims of these atrocities.
But coming up with adequate narratives to counter the extremists is easier said than done because of the ongoing dispute over the competing ideas among various Muslim groups. One academic pointed to the fact that in Thailand there are four satellite television channels on Islam.
But instead of formulating a common voice, these stations end up discrediting one another, as they compete for audience and supporters.
Islam, like any other religion, must be understood in the socio-political context of place and time. For example, it would unfair for Thai Buddhists to expect Thai Muslims to fully understand and explain the ongoing conflict and insurgency in the Malay-speaking South where the armed struggle is ethno-nationalist in nature.
Because the armed combatants are Muslims, it does not necessarily mean that the conflict is about Islam.
One Buddhist activist from Yala pointed out that the question of human dignity and Patani Malay cultural space have been largely ignored by the state agencies overseeing the conflict in this historically contested region.
People are not born with hatred in their hearts. It is something that is taught. And if it could be taught, then through a healing process it can also be unlearned.
The challenge, it seems, is for all sectors of society is to come together, regard?less of religion, look for a common ground and use universal values in the narrative to counter extremist views, regardless of whether these views are generated by Muslim terrorists or Buddhist extremists.