In the latest edition of al-Qalam, the weekly online magazine of the Pakistani militant group Jaysh-e-Mohammed, columnist Naveed Masood Hashmi lashes out at Hillary Clinton for linking madrassas, or religious seminaries, to suicide bombings. In an article entitled “Hillary, Madaris and Hanging/Execution,” Hashmi asks: “… who is she [Hillary Clinton] to accuse Pakistani madrassas of sponsoring suicide attacks?” and wonders if the US ambassador to Pakistan, N. W. Peterson, will offer an apology to the Pakistani people for this immensely “provoking” statement made by their Secretary of State.
The author delves into a lengthy praise of madrassas, their popularity and social benefits, and goes on to emphasize that at no point during the long and glorious history of madrassas did they produce terrorists or encourage suicide strikes. Instead, he argues, it is the U.S. that is to blame for the ongoing suicide missions in Afghanistan and Pakistan:
“After 9/11 when U.S. forces invaded Afghanistan, they not only made the Muslims there victims of their viciousness, but also ensured that their slave, Pervez Musharraf, enact the same barbarity in Pakistan’s tribal areas […] So, it wasn’t madrassas that created suicide bombers, rather they were borne of American evil-doing and are thirsty for vengeance.”
Therefore, Hashmi advises, the solution is not to change Pakistan’s education sector with the help of American dollars or the propaganda being played out by Pakistani “liberals” or any schemes such “devilish minds” can concoct. Instead, the only fool-proof method of preventing suicide bombings is to alter US policy:
“If the Secretary of State stops accusing madrassas of propagating extremism and tells the Pentagon and White House to end their brutality against Muslims… then I can assure you, suicide bombing shall cease.”
5 Responses
What a last paragraph that is! Interesting how suicide bombings went on before any major politician started making public statements against madrassas.
The discussion about “madrassas” is oftentimes quite simplistic. The rebuttal is equally so. As for the bigoted comment, it reflects only on the author.
It is a particularly interesting question and one which is, I think, quite fundamental. The role of Madrassas’ in shaping young minds is undeniable. The concern is that in some Madrassas’, and I do believe that these are in the vast minority, the teachings are not consistent with the fundamentally peaceful nature of Islam. They teach hate!
It seems to me that those Madrassas’ which teach the true nature of Islam, tolerate the existence of their hateful peers. The vast majority of peaceful Madrassas are being tainted by this minority and I would hope that at some point in time, they will stand up and denounce and renounce those Madrassas which preach only hatred and violence.
This hateful minority, which falsely teach hate under the guise of Islam, hurt all of us, Muslim and non-Muslim alike.
Raymond
Explain to us how discussions about madrassas are “oftentimes quite simplistic”. Please. We can use a”nuanced account” to tell us how the core curricula are basically teaching kids to hate unbelievers and what do they get out of it in the end? Do these kids wind up with a real appreciation of science, art or even technical skills? I’ve known plenty of people who are brutalized with the walls of these institutions and they are not a “small minority”. They come out of these places emotionally damaged and it takes years to unlearn the lies they have been taught.
There is ample research on the diversity of types of Muslim religious education and their evolution across the world, which is easy to find for those without ideological blinders. Yes, there are the types of madrassas you describe. However, they are certainly not the only type. The simplistic, biased view you espouse is challenged even more when one considers the Hawza ‘Ilmiyyah institutions.