SYYED MANSOOR AGHA hails the importance of recent visit Russian President Dmitry Medvedev paid to the Grand Mosque of Moscow, and laments the mainstream media bid to play down the event.
In an attempt to reach out to 20 million strong Muslim population of the county, Russian President Dmitry Medvedev visited the Grand Mosque of Moscow and interacted with top religious leaders on July 15. He sought their help to calm aggrieved sentiments of the second largest religious group in the country.
Russia, a predominantly Orthodox Christian State, has vast territories inhabited by sizeable Muslim population. Southern Republics of Chechnya, Ingushetia and Dagestan are Muslim-dominated territories. As a whole, out of 162 different Russian ethnic groups, 57 identify themselves with Islam.
During Communist hegemony they were subjected to intolerable brutalities. Thousands of Muslims were killed, congregations in mosques and learning of the Qur’ān banned, and Madrasas and Mosques desecrated. Many of the Mosques were converted into clubs, community centres and museums, etc. However devout Muslims kept the flame of Islam alive and passed the true faith and practices to new generations secretly.
After the fall of U.S.S.R. all restrictions gradually came to an end and Muslims ushered in a new era. Certain independent Muslim States re-emerged on the world map. However, Kremlin preferred to refuse independence to southern Muslim States of Chechnya, Ingushetia and Dagestan. Freedom struggle of Chechens was crushed by brutal military might. Neighbouring States of Dagestan and Ingushetia were also subjected to harsh measures. Though, by and large, freedom struggle in Chechnya has been crushed, yet incidents of violence are still reported from volatile, poverty-ridden North Caucasus. In recent years a number of racist attacks on Muslims, in other parts of Russia have also been reported.
Oozing scars of the past and efforts of some elements to revive the struggle are cause of concern for Kremlin. To defuse this situation, Medvedev regime is seeking to co-opt religious leaders into a shared vision and expects their loyalty.
The President is reported to have told Muftis: “It (extremism) destabilises the situation and we are obliged to take all the necessary measures to neutralise it. In these conditions our crucial joint task is to spread the ideas of tolerance and acceptance of all faiths.”
In response Ravil Gaynutdin, the Head Mufti of Russia, told Medvedev: “We Muslims in Russia want dialogue with the Russian Orthodox Church and we thank you for helping the Muslim brotherhood by visiting Dagestan and Ingushetia.” Russia’s Supreme Mufti Talgat Tadzhutdin said: “There is only one nation – Russian.”
Medvedev also visited the Complex being constructed around the Mosque with private contributions. Thus the Russian President indirectly recognised and encouraged the establishment of a New Islamic Centre. Though the visit is being seen as a sincere effort to create conducive atmosphere for dialogue between Christians and Muslims, and an indication of change in Kremlin’s policy of harassment of Muslims, yet strangely, the mainstream media played down the event. This is in stark contrast to the hype given to French President Nicolas Sarkozy’s remark on Burqa, which vitiated the atmosphere of cordiality in the western world, being seen emerging after US President Barak Obama’s Cairo address.
The Grand Mosque was built in 1904, in Central Moscow and it is first time that a Russian president has visited a Mosque to meet the Muslim leaders
[The writer, a senior Urdu Journalist is Gen. Sec. Forum for Civil Rights, New Delhi. Email:[email protected]]