Thumbs down to religious extremism

Thumbs down to religious extremism
By W.A
Ethiopia is a land where different religions live side by side in harmony for
centuries. Christianity, Islam and traditional cult have made great contributions to
the development of diverse cultures and traditions. The long standing traditions
have opened avenues to forge shared attitudes and experiences of the peoples.
The culture of religious tolerance is deeply rooted in the Ethiopian socio- cultural
fabric. It has been an engine to healthy development of social harmony and
mutual respect among adherents of different religions. The development of
mutual respect, accommodation and tolerance, among the believers of the Cross
and the Crescent has been the solid foundation for the peaceful coexistence of
the followers of the various faiths.
And the constitution stipulates that every one has the right to freedom of thought,
conscience and religion. This right shall include the freedom to hold or to adopt a
religion or belief of his choice and the freedom either individually or in community
with others and in public or private to manifest one’s religion or belief in worship,
Observance, practice and teaching.
Religious public holidays are warmly celebrated at national level. On the
occasion the adherents of one religion show best wishes for the others.
Neighbors spend the day together in a festive mood. They mix much with the
neighbors. Ethiopians firmly stand together during good or bad times irrespective
of their religious or other social backgrounds.
Anyone who goes to Mercato in Addis seizes the opportunity to visit the Grand
Anwar Mosque majestically standing adjacent to Saint Raguel Church. The
adherents of various religions go to these places of worship to say their daily
prayers. Especially on Fridays a great number of Moslems converge around the
Grand Anwar Mosque and else where to say their prayers. Similarly every
Sundays a great number of Christians gather around the Raguel church and else
where to say their prayers. And a cordial atmosphere reigns supreme in the
neighborhood. After all the law states that every one has the right to practice
ones own religion. One can find similar religious establishments in different parts
of the country.
It symbolizes the deep rooted culture of religious tolerance in the country. It is
the salient feature of Ethiopia.
Recently the second Ethiopian youth conference was held at the millennium hall
in Addis. Around 7 thousand youth representatives drawn from every parts of the
country attended the conference .The conference was addressed by Prime
Minister Meles. Participants posed various questions to the Prime Minister.
One of the questions raised was about the trend of religious extremism in the
country. Meles cited the positive views verbalized by the president of Germany
who once paid a working visit to the town of Harar. The premier said the
President was struck by the strong bond between Moslems and Christians. He
was highly impressed by the peaceful and side by side coexistence of Christians
and Moslems in Harar and in different parts of the country.
The President comfortably said Ethiopia has a strong culture of religious
tolerance. And he further remarked” why don’t you share your experience with
the rest of the world?” Foreign dignitaries and tourists often admire the culture of
religious tolerance in the country. The long standing culture of religious tolerance
is the flagship of Ethiopia. As it is an asset to the nation Ethiopians further
nurture the culture of religious tolerance.
These are the objective realities on the ground. But there are certain extremist
groups who disregard the reality of religious equality in the socio- political climate
of the country. Extremist groups from both sides make a futile attempt to incite
religious conflict between Christians and Moslems. They attempt to ignite
tempers of the adherents of various religions. Addressing the youth conference,
the Prime Minister said the extremist groups from the Ethiopian Orthodox church
misinterpret the correlation of Christianity with the historical emergence of
Ethiopia.
These extremist groups attempt to capitalize on the historical precedents. The
group totally disregards citizen’s rights to religion. In this group there are certain
priests that entertain prejudiced and biased attitudes towards Islam. And there
are also certain priests and clergy men who ardently support the ill motives of
theses groups. These extremist groups reflect obsolete ideas. And there are
also certain local and foreign political forces that bang drums of religious unrest
in the country.
Similarly the Premier said there are also certain groups from the Muslim side that
undertake subversive actions. These extremist groups even attempt to dismantle
the indigenous beliefs of the Moslems by force. These extremist groups go to
places of worship of the others and chant religious slogans. They attempt to
incite religious conflict in the neighborhood. And there are also certain Sheiks
who ardently support the ill motives of theses groups.
There are also certain local and foreign political forces that trumpet the cause of
these extremist groups. Meles said in both sides the extremist groups dream to
realize their hidden agenda under the cloak of religion. Both groups attempt to
fog their real motives. These extremist groups try to plant seeds of conflict to
make their own political gains .These groups employ emotive words to win the
hearts of the adherents of various religions. The groups make scathing
comments on the religious beliefs of the others. Both groups absolutely deviate
from the real teachings of the Holy Bible and the Holy Koran. They bent on
creating religious conflict among the adherents of various religions. And there
were hiccups in certain pockets of the country.
Article 816 of the Criminal Code of the FDRE states “who ever in public place or
in a place open to the public or that can be viewed by the public by gestures or
words of scoffs at a religion or expresses himself in a manner which is
blasphemous, scandalous or grossly offensive to the feelings or convictions of
others or towards the Divine Being or the religious symbols rites or religious
personages is punishable with fine or arrest…”
The extremist groups spit up blasphemous utterances or attitudes towards the
followers of other faiths. These groups showed propensity to stir religious
conflict. And the person or the group who incited the commission of the crime
shall be liable to legal measures. The Ethiopian government and the peoples
thunder against religious extremism.
The Ethiopian government shows zero tolerance to religious extremism. The
constitution states that religion and state are separated. But this does not mean
that the government remains cool and distant when crime is committed in the
pretext of religion. The extremist groups bent on dividing the peoples on religious
lines. However there is no basic conflict of interest among the adherents of
various religions. They categorically rejected the ill motives of the extremist
groups. And they would never shelter the evil doers.
The government firmly believes the strengthening of the culture of religious
tolerance is instrumental in ensuring peace, democracy and good governance in
the country. And the government has the constitutional responsibility to ensure
peace, tranquility and order. And any one who contravenes the laws, regulations
or makes offences against public peace or order is brought to justice. And the
government is identifying the culprits. Unless corrective actions are taken to
control the situation, it could be a stumbling block to the development efforts of
the nation.
The Ethiopian government and the peoples hunt down and bring the culprits to
justice. They resolutely defend the basic tenets of religious equality enshrined in
the constitution. And religious leaders have to castigate the extremist groups who
attempt to ignite flames of hatred and disharmony among the adherents of
various religions. All priests and Sheiks are expected to preach their adherents
about the significance of religious tolerance and the prevalence of peace and
order in the country.
In a nut shell, any extremist activity, attitude or behavior would certainly
jeopardize the peaceful co-existence of the adherents of various religions. And
the attitude of the extremist groups is diabolical. These groups paint a grim
picture of the nation. However, the country is on the right track of peace,
development, democratization and good governance. Nation barometer indicates
a healthy socio-cultural and political development in the country. Thus, there is
no political space to exploit and plant the seeds of religious conflict and
disharmony in the country. These groups that bully faithful into religious conflict
will be brought to justice. And the government and peoples firmly stand together
to abort trends of religious extremism in the country. The peoples are committed
to further forge the culture of religious tolerance. The Ethiopian government
reiterates that it pursues zero tolerance stances on religious extremism. And the
trend of religious extremism is given the thumbs down.
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