Ethiopia

Badr Ethiopia-Ethiopian Muslims Organization
4701 Sangamore Road
Suite #125 South
Bethesda, MD
20816 USA

Dear Muslim Brother and Sisters:

We were very sad to hear about the recent event taking place in our country. We never expected both the Ethiopian Muslims Affairs and our government would orchestrate such kind of blatant action. We couldn’t think of such kind of Muslims organization representing all Ethiopian Muslims irrespective of the Islamic school of thought they follow or the way they practice Islam would dare to allow a small group of sect to preach them. The Muslims affairs by inviting a sect to preach their version of Islam has violated its constitution as the organization doesn’t represent any sect or school of thought. In the first place why Ethiopian Muslims need foreign preachers since we have our own ulema and scholars. Even we agree that there is a need to bring other scholars from other countries why it is only from Lebanon and why it is from a specific sect, which is condemned by the majority of Muslims ulema in the world.

Our government by collaborating in this bapitzation affair has crossed the line that separates religion and politics. The government as a main protector of the constitution wouldn’t have been involved in such kind of action. The government officials who had attended the meetings lectured by the Lebanese sect has acted in unrespectful manner to the Ethiopian Muslims or they lack the basic understanding of the principle of the separation of religion and state. In these meeting we have heard the government officials lecturing Muslims which Islam is right which Islam is wrong and try to tell the Ethiopian Muslims what kind of sect they have to follow. Let alone government officials the Ethiopian Muslims Affairs, as a Muslims organization, has no right to say so. In our opinion these government officials and other officials, who have direct or indirect involvement in religious affairs, need sensitivity training and the basic understanding of the separation of religion and state.

Muslims accommodate all schools of thought within the Islamic fold and have been debating and agree to disagree as they did for over the last fourteen hundred years. It is none of the business of a government to accept one sect or school of thought and reject the other and label them as an enemy. The current event shows us that our government is using one sect of Muslims against others as a stick to achieve it's own unholy end. This will go very far in the destruction of peaceful co existence of Ethiopian Muslims and will be a disastrous trend not only for all civil society in Ethiopia but for the government too. We humbly request our organization Badr Ethiopia to take every peaceful and diplomatic action to avert this disastrous action orchestrated by the Ethiopian Muslim Affairs and our government. We want to assure you we are always in your side to provide whatever support is needed.

We pray for peace and justice and we will prevail.

Concerned Ethiopian Muslims from
Winnipeg, Canada.