06/06/2018
9417 times read
06/06/2018
9417 times read
‘Get rid of radicalism’ I concluded my article entitled ‘Forces of Darkness ….. Sheikh Nasser Sabah Al-Ahmad’ on May 30 by requesting His Highness to strive to make great social, political, moral and human changes as a back for his project, if he wants this huge civilization project to succeed. This can be done by dismantling the ‘concrete nests’ of the ‘backward forces’ in our society which have destroyed the national fabric, or were close to doing so. The project which you are trying to embark upon cannot succeed in a rigid environment that we are living in now. We need free, open-minded people with the streams of freedom, humanity, coexistence and openness running in their veins, the same as what we see prevailing in the world, with the need to get rid of the restrictions imposed by religious parties, otherwise no project can succeed. It is crystal clear that my article has hit a sensitive nerve of the fanatic religious groups, or rather the beneficiaries, materially and morally, who have realized their own ambitions before their parties by accumulating huge wealth which is evident in the way of huge projects they have acquired. If we look at the qualifications of all leaders in the state, we will find that the lion’s share of appointments in vital positions are those affiliated to these parties, not due to their efficiency — and among them who deserve respect — but because of the support of their group, the influence of their political forces, or any denomination or religious party they belonged to. On the other hand, we do not find the person was appointed just because the incumbent is liberal, secular, infidel, or atheist. We have not called any time for the removal of anyone or any group or anyone’s destruction or any group, ‘liar’ or ‘malicious’, but we have demanded and we will continue to demand the exclusion of those who pose a threat to society and aim to undermine its unity, whose ideas and statements run contrary to the government. Therefore, our claim is not against a peaceful category, but against an alien group which promotes terrorist schemes, which many countries have warned against, and whose activities have been banned by friendly and brotherly countries. How can a sane person believe that the march of civilization in any country can continue and succeed if there are those who do not believe in human rights? How can we be civilized and keep pace with the rest of the world if a fanatic group is preoccupied about the shape, dress, manner and behavior of women, a group which focuses on women from dawn to dusk and not the other disasters facing the society? How can a society progress when one of the legislators call it ‘disaster’ when a female presenter described a male colleague as ‘cute’ and say she must be held accountable, while they care less about cheating in exams, poor quality education, theft and looting? How can we build a nation where a woman represents half the society — mother, sister, aunt and daughter — are looked upon as just ‘pudendum’ spreading evil, immorality and lustfulness, and must therefore be neutralized and kept away from ‘male wolves’? How can we work on the progress of the nation and help it keep abreast with the developed countries while there are those who seek to open schools, universities and institutes whose first and last interest is backward thinking and spread of ideological differences in society and make these institutions flashpoints of war and peace? I have no doubt that there are tens of thousands of true believers among these religious parties, who love their faith and seek to spread love among people. I also have no doubt, and have countless examples, of people belonging to these parties who have found in faith a means to attain their personal objectives and achieve their goals in wealth and influence. I raise my voice and to the unsuspecting people against such creatures. This is my duty as a writer. It is therefore very absurd to accuse me of trying to fill my pockets and fatten my bank balance at the expense of refining the soul. As far as I know, nobody has taken advantage of his liberalism to accumulate wealth, and no one has taken advantage of his secularism to reach the National Assembly. The love of freedom was never a path to power and vice-versa with those who have turned a blind eye to the country’s moral problems, administrative corruption and falsification of academic certificates but have paid much more attention to trivial issues that tickle the instincts of ‘fools’. We repeat: Civilization and progress do not go with religious fanaticism. There is no room for religious parties which are thirsty for power. Note: I recommend all those who have doubts about what I have mentioned to listen to the talk of preacher and Qari (Quran reciter) Mishary Alafasi about the seriousness of Brotherhood and corruption of their associations and their hazardous role in movement. e-mail: [email protected] By Ahmad Al Sarraf