Yesterday I watched the wonderful show of Wael El-Abrashi on Dream 2 "The truth" where he hosted for successive two weeks a debate concerning the Bahais in Egypt in an exclusive interviews for the first time in the Arab World .
The two episodes were another hit to El-Abrashi who is used to open all these taboos on TV, Well it is not strange already he is a journalist in the successful Sout El-oma.
Anyway the debate was about the historical controversial rule for the Bahais in Egypt You can check it here.
Now the guests on each side were :
- Two Islam supporters anti-Bahais against and Two Bahais with their lawyer famous Labib Mowoad , on the Anti-Bahai side there were Shekih Abd Allah Samak , a professor in Al-Azahr specialised in the Religions and Sects and Lawyer Mahmoud Ismael , the Lawyer of the Radical Islamic groups "I believe that this man shouldn't have been invited , also I believe that Al-Abrashi should have included a Christian religious specialist because Not all Bahais were former Muslims
- On the Bahai side , there were a Dentist "who seems to be very religious Bahai " also his wife , a business woman , seems to share her husband devotion" and there was also a business "who seems to be very nervous Bahai"
Of course the debate is just another Egyptian Arabic debate with everyone screaming and shouting yet it is good to see and hear what the Bahais say about their religion ,their believes and so on.
There seems to be a misunderstanding in how some Muslims look to the Bahais saying that they are not Muslims , people Bahais don't claim that they are Muslims or Christians or Jews of even Hindus , from the beginning they say that they are Bahais , a separate Religion , I guess this misunderstanding is coming from the fact that Baha Allah the founder of the Religion and their claimed messenger was an Ex-Muslim , also saying that Believing in Allah and all his messengers from Mohamed,Jesus and Moses is confusing people, also you can feel that their book "The holiest" and their religious scripts are so influenced from the Quran !!{If it is copied from it than it was changed it !!}
Today I will speak about the Bahaism danger on the Egyptian National Security
In a fast history lesson , Bahais were there in Egypt in the 20 th century they had temples or what it is called in Arabic "Lodge" , already they don't use lodge so much as in Arabic and in Egypt in specific when you say "Lodge" , the first word that comes to the Egyptian mind is " The Free Masonry movement", they were opened during the Monarchy yet i never heard or read about them in the old Egyptian Newspapers , may be they were forming a secret society at that time just like the Masons in Egypt "Egypt had one hell of Mason temples in the 40s down town at Cairo and also at Alexandria". The activities and temples of Bahais were closed and prohibited by the orders of Gamal Abd El-Nasser in the year of 1960 , Bahais then were arrested for the charges of conducting an espionage activity for an Enemy country that is Israel , already the holy Landmarks for the Bahais are in Aka, Haifa "Former Palestine ,currently Israel" and in their Holy Book El-Aqads "The Holiest" it is obligatory for the Bahai to send the annual Zaqat to the "Home of Justice"in Aka, Haifa, this Home is the highest authority for the Bahais
Of course you sense the smell of a danger here on the national security yet you can ask :
So what if their holy Landmarks in Israel !? The holiest Islamic and Christian landmarks are also in Jerusalem under the Israeli rule!? also their land marks are built before the Zionist occupation to Palestine !? and is n't the Ottoman Empire that one who ordered the exile of Baha O' Allah to Aka, Palestine then !?
Of course the Bahais guests in Al-Abrashi's show said that it wasn't unfair and they weren't spying and
if they are ,then the Egyptian Intelligence wouldn't have left them alone
"Today in Sout El-Oma, an Exclusive interview with a Bahai Family", well may be now but in 1960 I discovered that the men in black were n't bluffing and also at that time , the evil acts of Salah Nasser didn't start yet targeting the innocent people , also I don't find any reason after reading in many sources about the history of Egyptian Intelligence at the 60s that makes the men there hunt down the Bahais for no reason , they were n't like the Muslim Brothers or the Egyptian Liberals.Bahais now say that this plot was made against them from the Syrians ,as Egypt and Syria were forming what I called the wonderful dream of "The United Arab Republic"
Sorry folks I don't think Nasser was the kind of a man you can fill his mind with words and he acts according to it this one ,Number two from History it turned out that Nasser was the one who had influenced on the Syrians not the opposites, the Dictatorship Spying on people country wasn't familiar in El-Sham Until the Nasser became Arab Citizen No.2,Number three Nasser regime wasn't that religion that cared for Islam and fought other religions , this stupid claim said by Old Abdir and fostered by Bahais , why you don't read the history and see the real oppression against the Muslim brothers in Egypt and the fight against Islam in the 60s , of course I don't say that MB are the Islam but the regime at that time was adopting the communist views against religion, plus as I searched in the Internet I found that Bahais didn't come to Syria, so how come did they warn Nasser and they didn't have them in the country to know their danger!?
I guess you can sense that I am with the people who considered them a danger on the National Security , well you are right in your sense, not because their holy landmarks in Israel , nope but because their views against Israel are not clear until now , I am not talking about the other Bahais in the world , I am talking about the Egyptian Bahais
In the Show yesterday and in last week , both Bahais didn't say anything about Israel except their defence that there holy Landmarks were there before the existence of Israel yet they didn't attack it , in fact one of them said
Why do I have to attack Israel !? It didn't harm me .
well sure it didn't harm especially if you look to their holy Landmarks you will find that the Israeli authorities are looking after it very well , that i wish it looks after the Islamic and Christian Landmarks in Jerusalem like this
People I never read a statement from the Bahais or their higher authority attacks or condemns the Hebrew state acts against the Palestinians , they never did so as far as i remember and this can put them under suspicion , I am sorry but Israel will always be the expected enemy that can strike any time "4 different wars in 4 decades in last century make it " , this Peace agreement changed our Status changed from the Hot war to the Cold War.
The Egyptians are the first to make a Peace agreement , yet they are the last to neutralise the relations
Mustafa El-Faky
All the human organisations from religious to human rights through the last century had attacked Israel's racist policies against the Palestinians and the Arabs except them .
Look to their holy places and Look to the Muslim and Christian holy Places , there is a discrimination in treatment !!
People the two Bahais that were hosted last night should have been asked :
If you get your passports and Ids and in it you are mentioned as Bahai , would you visit the Mount Carmel and holy Lands in Haifa!?
I bet they would immediately say
Guys there are the Aqsa Mosque and Endless Holy Churches in Jerusalem
Well in this case I would like to remind you that very few Muslims in the world pilgrim to the Aqsa Mosque under the Israeli rule , and most of them are not Pilgrims more than official and journalist visitors to the city
Also Speaking about Minorities rights and Citizenship I would like to mention the historical decision taken by the Pope Shounda of the Alexandria Orthodox Church, the decision was prohibiting the Christian Pilgrim to Jerusalem and any Christian Land mark in Palestine until it takes back its freedom and return to the Palestinian rule.
I don't suspect anyone's belonging to the Country but it comes to the National Security I believe there is some kind of priority here first and last.I respect the rights of Belief and the freedom of Belief yet I must protect the country
Not only the Bahai's relations with Israel that scares me but the using their case by the American administration as pressure game card over Egypt , including it to the Minorities problems in Egypt of the Copts and Shiia , and of course the American administration doesn't use it for the Sake of Baha O'Allah , it is using it for its own purpose ,the famous Minority game that is used to interfere in the country's policies.
I didn't finish yet there still many things in mind about the Bahai issue i want to share it with you,as it is good to think aloud
Hi Zeinobia!
ReplyDeleteI decided to answer your post here.
I have read Marco's response to your post on his blog and highly appreciate his careful response. I hope you will revisit the subject of the Baha'is and report on it with greater accuracy and understanding.
ReplyDeleteHi from 2021!
ReplyDeleteIt's not Baha'is' fault that Israel looks after their holy places although it doesn't the same with Muslims' holy places and Christians' places.
By the way, I'm Egyptian Muslim.
In your reply to "Marco Oliveira" in his blog, I can quote that.
"It is the first time I see a religion that favors loyalty to broad yet beautiful meanings over the loyalty of the country and that's why I can consider you as danger on National security , you don't participate in political life except may be your struggle to be accepted and also to use outside help from the U.S and other international forces to threat us by cutting off aid imposing economic sieges"
It's the same argument the far-right supporters in the western countries use against us. They're still linking between us and terrorism, so we're danger on their National security in their opinion.
The status of our minorities is worse than the status of Muslims in France. At least there is NO law bans Islam expressly although restrictions on wearing religious dresses is found but they're not banned there.
The twenty Jewish families -according to Cairo confessions FB Page-, Bahai's Shiites, Atheists, Quranis, Christians, Nubians, Siwi-Amazighs, Beja, etc. have to have their cultural and lingual rights and all their rights as every normal Egyptian.
I wish you changed since this article and this comment.
I hope you success in your career and your life.