The word ummah is an Arabic word translated as community and usually translated into English as nation Photo Topislamic.com
Johannesburg – The Muslim ummah (community) was once a dominant force. The Ottoman Empire was central in many aspects. Since its collapse before World War II, the ummah has faced many challenges.
From Palestine to Burma, and from Kashmir to France to China and many more countries, Muslims face many challenges. The perception of Muslims has changed drastically since the events of 9/11 where the fear for Muslims was propagated into the world. To reduce that fear and gain help for those who are oppressed, Muslims in the West began to maximise everything, except for, preaching about Islam says Mazhar Khan, a member of Hizb ut-Tahrir.
“Now somehow people in the West think that because there’s a pressure on the Muslims, we need to minimise our Islam in order to get into the good books. Now we maximise charity, we maximise social work and we maximise all these kinds of things which we think are safe areas but we’re not engaging with Islam. The West they like the Muslims but our job is not for the West or the world to like the Muslims. The job of a Muslim is for Islam to be liked and Islam to be implemented and because of that fear we are not offering Islamic solutions to the problems that the world has.”
The hardships that the Muslims face could be put down to the world not having respect for the Muslims. Khan illustrates that point using Pakistan as a subject.
“Just recently Imran Khan the Prime Minister of Pakistan, he was complaining that the United States uses Pakistan and when it has achieved its objective they are discarded. He actually said, ‘Whenever the US needed us, they established relations and Pakistan became a frontline state and they abandoned it and then slapped sanctions on us when its purpose was served’. Now that’s quite surprising because that happened at the time of the Soviet invasion of Afghanistan when Pakistan was used and then discarded then when the war on terror happened Pakistan was used and as soon as America left Afghanistan, they started to blame Pakistan for the defeat and have put pressure on Pakistan, so Imran Khan is now complaining.”
Khan referred to the story of Tahir Alam, former chairman of governors at Park View school in Birmingham, who was accused of being an extremist due to a fake letter stating Muslims were trying to instil Islamic views in schools. Although the Birmingham council recognised the letter was fake, his reputation suffered damage. Alam was fired from his job and although he hasn’t been charged with anything, he was banned from doing anything in the education sector. This all came down to people being afraid of Islam shared Khan.
“Because of Islamism, because of their fear of Islam. Many brilliant people lost their jobs and were forbidden from ever being a teacher.”
In Pakistan’s effort to help America, they inevitably destroyed themselves said Khan.
“Pakistan told us that if we don’t support America, they will bomb us and destroy us. Pakistan has been destroyed because they helped America. They lost 80 000 people. They lost a hundred billion dollars’ worth of revenue because of the war on terror by helping America. The question is would you have actually lost that if you didn’t get involved?”
Khan explained that America needed the logistical route from Karachi to get into Afghanistan and had Pakistan said no, it would have led to nothing happening.
“If Pakistan said look, we are not helping you, there’s nothing America could do. If they couldn’t defeat Afghanistan, you think they could have harmed Pakistan? How are they going to bomb Pakistan? How they’re going to do that?”
On matters regarding the Muslim ummah, Khan says Saudi Arabia has been silent yet appear to hastily comply with America’s requests.
“When these guys [America] were struggling, it is our rulers that came to their aid. Repeatedly they come to their aid to help them out. When America wants to increase oil production Saudi Arabia says labbaik. When America says reduce the oil production Saudi Arabia says labbaik (I submit) but the voices and the screams of Palestine, Kashmir, Yemen, and the Muslims across the world fall on deaf ears.”
Many Muslim women around the world have been persecuted and presently, in India, with the hijab ban. Khan reminds us of a Muslim ruler of the past who sent an army to rectify the wrong done, when the honour of a woman was abused.
“For the Muslim ummah, honour and dignity doesn’t have a price tag. If one woman is hurt, we will spend a million pounds if it means to go and correct that injustice…. It doesn’t matter. We don’t care. If honour and dignity come into question Islam doesn’t put a price on that. That’s why the Islamic government will send an entire army because one woman was abused and what’s happening today, now women are being orphaned in the Muslim world. Women are crying. Children are going to sleep hungry at night in Kashmir, in Palestine. Muslim women are being humiliated in India in front of our eyes and we can do nothing. How humiliating is this for our ummah, who’s got a great history of standing up for honour and dignity and justice and we can do nothing but just watch this?”
Khan believes there are many Muslims around the world who are proud of their religion but “we have been let down by our leaders and politicians of this world”.
“There are people of power and authority in the Muslim ummah,” he stressed, “Chiefs of big tribes in the Muslim world, in the Arab lands, big Muslim businessmen who have Iman in their hearts. Now they must bring about the change that the world needs and help those Muslims in need because they can do it.”
Mazhar Khan spoke to Inayet Wadee, listen to the full interview here:
