Merchants of Fatwa

[NGONGE]

By Luqmaan Sheekh Abdirahman

August 26, 2010

 

The fusion of business and religion is a deadly mix. Business requires flexibility in interactions with partners and clients. It also instructs unyielding devotion to self-interest. Religion imparts wisdom and guidance with intransigence and selflessness. Flexibility doesn’t go hand-in-hand with intransigence; selfishness doesn’t pair with altruism. So, the new breed of Wadaads with proven acumen in business and investment must really be cunning and intelligent lot. They have managed to reconcile the seemingly conflicting principles without causing even a gentle bang. They have succeeded in remaining as self-centered as a Wall Street Stock Exchange broker and as charitable as Mother Theresa at one and the same time. That their theological reputation and hegemony is mounting as fast as the expansion of their business empires, is a measure of their unparalleled sagacity and sophistication. But, it seems intoxicated with their colossal achievements, the ‘Sheikh’s’ may be getting complacent, even too arrogant to notice the swelling skepticism among the “not-so-enlightened hordes”, who have so far been profuse in their reverence of the ‘men of God’ and their contributions of cash and glittering gold.

 

You start with Alshabab and the daily carnages they cause. You notice the theatrical Sheikh Sharif who dons suitable attire for each occasion- from battle-field Kaki to the checkered clerics’ scarf and cleric gowns to Armani suits. You look at the multi-storey multiplexes from the dusty East Leigh Township in Nairobi to deluxe Dubai Apartments. You look at who are at the fore-front in Friday prayers, lavish Hotel corridors and big social gatherings. And you start to relate A to B and see a disturbing pattern. But that is for another day and in any case it is quite wrong to issue categorical condemnations against religious leaders on the basis of what, at best, appears to be a circumstantial evidence of a growing correlation between business and religion.

 

The sheikhs will, of course, fight back and their first bullets will be that the writer is a westernized anti-Islam murtad. Or they could just issue a blanket Fatwa against anyone who propagates the same message on one of the upcoming Friday sermons. But it is not for fear of that, that I want not to go into generalizations. It is because it is true that there are many genuine religious leaders and workers who are doing a remarkable job in raising awareness, building Mosques and Madrasas and even giving useful counsel on social and family difficulties Somali’s are facing today. But it is also true that there are those who are using the religion mask to advance personal ambitions and business deals.

 

I want to focus on a disconcerting development of Wadaads expanding their control over the masses beyond their traditional areas that we know. Not that I don’t know they will dispute what I call ‘traditional areas’ and claim that politics is part of Islam, but that the politics that they do these days just looks a bit too worldly and not the same as “anyone who rules with a man-made constitution and not with the Allah’s book is an apostate” mantra. There is reason to want to welcome this new flexibility and moderation and I certainly like it. But the flip side is once Wadaads’ interpretation of issues that involve the politics in the contemporary world is sanctioned, it leads to further complications. Nuances and ambiguities will prop up and a single political decision by a politician will draw out a multiple and contradictory judgments from various Wadaads. That is exactly what is happening in the last couple of years - from the Djibouti peace process to reconcile the Transitional Federal Government (TFG) and the opposition to the ‘peace deal’ signed by the United Western Somali Liberation Front (UWSLF) and Ethiopia. Somehow, those of us who are not robust in religious teachings find it confusing when a Sheikh we meet at a mosque gives different religious rulings on two separate but similar issues.

 

For instance, when paramilitary units in the Somali Regional State of Ethiopia massacred more than six civilians at the outskirts of Caabudwaaq early July 2010 and also allegedly raped teenage Somali girls, I was shocked to hear what a UWSLF man, who was part of the delegation that was sent to South Africa to sell the Peace Deal with Ethiopia to the Diaspora, told me. He argued that the killing is a good development because the Regional Government is taking the unprecedented action of securing our borders (the borders of the ****** clan in his words, against intrusive Somali clans from Somalia). It was nauseating. Suddenly, all the talk of the sanctity of the blood of a Muslim, the duty to fight against infidels, the obligation to defend your sisters and religion is thrown out of the window for political expediency. When religious decrees are issued with such egotism by people who claim to be an authority in religion, it negates the inviolability of religious teachings doctrine.

 

We have seen the example of how hapless Sheikhs can get when they want to please too many constituents (some at Mosques, some at business centers, and some at diplomatic circles) in the past weeks, when a renowned sheikh traded accusations with Aljazeera journalist over what he said or did not say. From the verbosity yet baldness of the refutations of what the Sheikh argued was a misrepresentation of his position, it left no doubt to those with average thinking minds who was telling the truth. But it still would have required valor to confront the erring side in this case, given the arduousness of the task. Incidentally, the Shiekh’s verdict is still awaited, and given that the sought answer is really a ‘yes’ or ‘no’ verdict for an event, it is hard to understand why it has taken him so long to say it. Some cheeky and wicked friend told me that maybe the Shiekh will release his ruling as a single Fatwa in a commercial CD. That is too mischievous a thought but given the absence of the Sheikh’s verdict it may linger in the minds of some. He has in the past issued Fatwas left, right and center for all kinds of innocuous events and this one is long overdue.

 

But what is truly astounding is that many people are waiting for the Sheikh’s Fatwa to make up their mind about the rightness or wrongness of UWSLF’s peace deal with Ethiopia. To me, any forthcoming Fatwa (whether yes or no) doesn’t change much. By their own admission, those who signed the peace deal signed it on the basis of political considerations. The wider public’s acceptance or rejection of the deal will depend on individual political beliefs, assumptions and understandings. So, perhaps nothing is missing and the Sheikh should not overburden himself with yet another fatuous Fatwa that could only serve to alienate one or the other of his followers. Perhaps, it is time the new Wadaads realize that they are no more seen as infallible by the masses. Perhaps it is time they go easy with Fatwas and political commentaries issued with the full weight of the Mosques behind them. They are still entitled to air their views on all developments, politics included, but as opinions of mere mortals, not with the finality of the word of God.

 

On a related but slightly different note, with the benefit of hindsight and with a bit of malicious cynicism, one wonders if all the vilification against Sufi’s in the past two decades for merely asking for a rib of a goat in exchange for the services of Duca and Qardhaas and for their fondness of mild stimulant in the form of tea in a forbidding climatic environment, was just. With relentless half truths and financial might, the new breed of Wadaads dismantled the carnivorous Sufi sect at once. One wonders if it was to erect shopping plazas at the fields where the carcasses of goats and sheep devoured by Sufis was once scattered.

 

Luqmaan Sheekh Abdirahman

E-Mail:Luqmaansheekh@yahoo.com

 

Source

[Polanyi]

Good one. The comments attributed to the UWSLF official are disturbing though.

[Ismalura]

The last paragraph echoes my exact sentiments....wadaadii hore reeraha inteey kor tagaan unbaa neef loo qali jiray. These days people are far more ambitious and are using wadaadnimo to tread in very self-serving paths.

[NGONGE]

Thought this article was well written and with the right amount of mockery of a situation that exists today but without any outright accusations or finger pointing at particular wadaads (save the one with Al Jazeera).

[Geel_jire]

Excellent piece.

 

I had similar misgivings about the ethiopia peace deals .. and the ones supporting xabashi/AU mercanaries in xamar.

 

although his point about sufis is off the mark ..

[Jacaylbaro]

Bahashii way waalatay beryahan ,,,

[Kamaavi]

the 1989 fatwa issued by Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini ordering ... of all Muslims – those who have the ability or the means – to carry it out. ...

 

In August 2005 a fatwa allowed a Muslim male to marry as many as four women in one sitting. A national of the United Arab Emirates, about 45 years old, had married two girls.

 

The European Council for Fatwa and Research (ECFR) is a Dublin -based private ... the acceptance of secularism means abandonment of Shari'ah, a ...

 

Fatwa ... For example, social and economic justice is means of crime prevention, as they remove the causes and motives of many crimes. ...

 

 

 

Fatwa... allows 4x1 wedding.

 

 

 

 

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

 

August 27, 2010

 

Statement Condemning AlShabaab’s Suicide Attack on Muna Hotel and Assault against Somali Civilians African Rights Monitor‐ARM condemns in the strongest possible terms the suicide attacks on Muna Hotel in Mogadishu and brutal assault against Somali civilians by the Al‐Shabaab militant forces. The recent offensive declared by Al‐Shabaab has resulted in the deaths and the displacement of civilians. This coldblooded murder of the civilians violates all norms of conduct in a conflict. The attacks are especially heinous as they came in the Holy Month of Ramadan. It is apparent that Al‐Shabaab have no regard for the lives of the innocent Somalis as evidenced by their constant assault on the general public. We urge the international community, the Somali Diaspora, Somali Civil societies and the religious establishment to condemn the actions of Al‐Shabaa. We also urge the international community to deliver humanitarian aid to the suffering masses in the areas not controlled by Al‐Shabaab. Lastly, ARM appeals to the Transitional Federal Government and AMISOM not to engage in retaliatory actions that exacerbates the suffering of the Mogadishu residents. In particular, ARM warns against the indiscriminate shelling of neighborhoods. This will not only violate the basic human rights of the Mogadishu residents but will also break the international human rights laws. ARM offers condolences to the victims of the Muna hotel suicide attacks and to the suffering Somali public.

 

African Rights Monitor Contact Details

Tel: (+1) 202.642.4493

Fax: (+1) 202.315.3513

hyusuf@africanrightsmonitor.org

200 Yoakum Parkway #915, Alexandria, VA, 22304,

United States of America

[Kamaavi]

fatwa & arts:

 

most of human pray 0, 2, 3 and others 5.

 

Imam Malik did not permitt the combining of prayer during a journey except if the journey was cumbersome.

 

Malik and the majority of jurists do not permitt the combining of prayers within a settlement without an excuse (i.e. illness, fear of being killed etc.).

 

Malik permitted the combining of prayers within a settlement by a sick person when he was afraid that he would faint at the time of the other prayer, or when the person loses control of the excretions exits, but al-Shafi'ee prohibited this...

 

why is the situation in turkey different to that in egypt?

 

i'll find it for you as i know you don't like looking up stuff for yourself.

 

 

wallahu a'alam.