Perspective: Caliph Mirza Masroor Ahmad's message to beat the Islamic State

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Masroor Ahmad, who has a following of more than 150 million people, was speaking at London's Baitul Futuh Mosque, the largest in western Europe. 

Ahmadiyya caliph Mirza Masroor Ahmad (Photo: AFP) 

Times of Ahmad | News Watch | UK Desk
Source/Credit: Bangkok Post
By Zafar Bhatti | April 7, 2016

Perhaps Shakespeare's most famous tragedy is the story of Hamlet. Among the protagonist's many follies, the most outrageous is when, in a fit of rage, he kills Polonious, thinking that he has slain his enemy, King Claudius. The mistake triggers a chain reaction which eventually brings about the destruction of the entire Danish royal family.

A similar chain reaction may now be playing out between militant Islamists and their Western targets, with a similarly destructive outcome as the only result if the situation cannot be resolved.

Last month's abhorrent terrorist attacks in Belgium were a lance through the heart of humanity. We wept for the tragic loss of innocent human life, just as we did for the victims of the Paris atrocities in November, and for those of any other outrage perpetrated in the name of Islam.

Yet there is a tragedy that is even more destructive than the loss of life that has occurred, and that is the tragedy of the reaction that the world will show to this loss.

We have been through similar times before and the reaction is always the same. There are those blinded by hatred and revenge who lose all perspective and, just like Hamlet, strike out, targeting Islam and blaming innocent Muslims for these atrocities.

The ghost of Hamlet's father returned to rebuke him for his errors. What if we had a similar luxury? What if the ghosts of those whose lives were tragically cut short reached out to us? What would they say? I am sure they would never ask us to respond with anger, for hatred breeds hatred and revenge can never reform. Instead, we must take stock of the situation and examine our own follies and weaknesses and then respond in a measured manner to root out the causes of terrorism once and for all.

On the other hand, there is the case of Hamlet's mother, Gertrude, who cuts an even more tragic figure. She unwittingly shares her bed with her husband's killer, blind to her son's entreaties. Secretly, she must have some instinct that what her son says is true, but to preserve her own self-interest she willing shares herself with her enemy. The result is her own demise.

The West, in its attempts to tackle terrorism and extremism, commits precisely this folly. Not enough action is taken to root out and destroy terrorist groups. Bold words are spoken, but they are not implemented.

A sad irony is that just three days prior to the tragic events in Belgium, Mirza Masroor Ahmad, the caliph of the Ahmadiyya Muslim Community, delivered a point-by-point plan on how to root out terrorism and establish peace. Masroor Ahmad, who has a following of more than 150 million people, was speaking at London's Baitul Futuh Mosque, the largest in western Europe.

And yet, most readers will not have heard of him, nor his message. One is aghast at the level of media coverage that the Islamic State (IS) and its message of destruction receives compared to the Caliph of Islam and his message of peace. Directly quoting from the Koran and backing up his hypothesis with the analysis of western scholars, His Holiness presented the following points as a means of attaining peace in the world:

Islam teaches that God is "gracious and ever merciful". If He is described as such in the very opening chapter of the Koran, how can it be possible that the Koran would ever advocate hatred? 

The media coverage that extremists groups are receiving is the oxygen on which they are thriving. The media must understand their responsibilities and use their influence as a force for good. 

The funding of, and supply lines to, the IS must be cut off. It is well known that the IS continues to sell and export oil, and yet sufficient action has not been taken to stop this. His Holiness stated: "When it comes to acquiring oil, morality goes out of the window." 

The evidence does not support the claim that all possible efforts are being made to eradicate extremism and terrorism. 

It is also known that millions of dollars worth of arms have been sold to Middle Eastern countries which are fuelling the wars there. Last year, the US exported $46.6 billion (1.6 trillion baht) worth of arms to the Middle East. 

The west's policy of seeking regime change has resulted in the breakdown of social law and order in Libya and Syria, leading to the rise of IS and other terrorist groups. This policy must be re-examined for the sake of peace. 

World powers should try to use negotiation, mutual dialogue and peaceful means to resolve conflicts. This can only be done when warring factions are brought together on an equal footing. As such, no side should be frozen out of negotiations so that an amicable agreement may be reached. If the agreement is then broken, the adhering sides should join to fight the aggressor. 

Revenge should not be a motive for military action. Without justice, peace cannot be established. 

Hamlet only had an illusion of his father's ghost to advise him. In Masroor Ahmed, the world has someone in whose wisdom millions believe.

The greatest tragedy would be to ignore his words. In Hamlet, only the Danish royal family was lost. In our current tragedy, we risk losing our entire civilisation. Even Shakespeare did not envisage such folly that man, driven by greed and blinded by hatred, would end up destroying humanity itself. I leave you with the words of the Caliph of Islam and hope that by listening and acting we will avert further tragedy: "Remember, positive change is only possible if one is willing to set aside their personal interest for the greater good and is willing to act fairly at all times. Islam says that justice is the foundation upon which peace is built. And so we must pay heed to the urgent issues of our time.

"For many years I have warned that the world is moving rapidly towards another world war and now others are reaching the same conclusion. In fact, some prominent people are now saying that they believe a world war has already begun. Nonetheless, I believe that we still have the time to stop such a war in its tracks, but the solutions remains, as I have already said, to act with justice and leave aside all vested interests." 

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Zafar Bhatti is a speaker and writer on Islamic affairs.




http://www.bangkokpost.com/opinion/opinion/924097/masroor-ahmads-message-to-beat-the-islamic-state



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