In the last five decades Radiance Viewsweekly has covered extensively Muslims around the world. Ranging from the Black Muslims’ uprising in Brazil to Muslim liberation struggle in Chad, or questioning the decrease of Muslims in the erstwhile Soviet Union to posing sharp questions to Saddam Hussein’s decision of attacking the tiny Kuwait in the Gulf War, or advising India to build trade bridges for trust building with the neighbouring Pakistan, the magazine has kept its pace with the time.
In an article “Indonesia: The Seeds of Conflict” by Muhammad Natsir, former Prime Minister of Indonesia, Radiance (2 September 1973) tried to explain the seeds of religious conflict between the Muslims and Christians in Indonesia in 1980s. Mr Natsir argued that Muslims and Christians in Indonesia were equally rich or poor at the time of independence. But when hundreds of millions of dollars flowed into Indonesia from Europe and the United States, the situation suddenly changed. “Skyscraper buildings mushroomed in the big cities and small towns, constituting Christian hospitals, Christian universities, Christian printing offices, Christian centres, Advent Youth Centres, and so forth. The Islamic Da’wah and social organisations are not in a position to match them,” which led to the differences between the two communities.
He also added that Indonesia, since independence, has become the target of Christianisation from all directions of the world; from Geneva where there is the World Council of Churches, from Italy, from other missionary and evangelical societies outside these two centres, especially from the United States of America; e.g Baptists, Adventists, Jehova Witness, Students Crusade for Christ, and many others.
Radiance has also been vocal in questioning the sharp decrease of Muslim population in the erstwhile Soviet Union after the World War II. Dr Baymirza Hayit, in an article, “Muslims in the Soviet Union” (Radiance, 27 March 1983) argued that in 1917 (before the revolution) there were 40 million Muslims in Soviet Russia. On 10 December 1955, former Soviet Premier Khrushchev said that there are now 15 million Muslims in the Soviet Union. “If Khrushchev’s figure is correct, we are moved to ask the grave question: Where are the other 25 million Muslims? (leaving aside the natural increase in population during last 38 years at the rate of 1.5% per annum which comes to 23 million) and giving due allowance to natural mortalities? Have they been physically exterminated or compulsorily registered as atheists?” asked Dr Hayit.
Radiance has also been critical to the Gulf War where Iraq attacked Kuwait. Ausaf Saied Vasfi, in an article, “Listen Mr Saddam, Listen,” (19-25 August 1990) argued that Iraq unprovokedly invaded the helpless tiny Kuwait in the first week of August, and the ambitious President of Iraq, Mr Saddam Hussein, made a laughing stock of Islam by doing so. Mr Vasfi argued that Saddam tarred the face of Arab unity, and stabbed Islamic solidarity in the back. “Besides weakening the case of Muslim minorities elsewhere, he has lowered the image of Iraq, and in the process, earned international odium. He is perhaps, the most hated person on the surface of the Arab soil today,” the author argued, adding that Saddam Hussein’s plea for assault was that Kuwait had exceeded the oil production quota, set by the Organisation of Petroleum Exporting Countries.
Radiance also focused the issues of concerns in Brazil. Dennis Walker, an Australian Muslim writer, says that race and class are largely synonymous throughout Brazilian history down to this day. Mr Walker in an article “Black Muslims Uprising in Brazil” (Radiance, 2 August 1970) wrote that one is more likely to be killed off by a disease, starvation or overwork, and less likely to have a chance for the education which brings power in Brazil. “Today a notable upsurge in black nationalism is occurring in Brazil. In spite of conditions of disease, grinding poverty and ignorance imposed by a social system of class and racial exploitation on the black masses, nationalist leaders are striving to rouse the consciousness of their people to arrest the process of ‘amalgamation’.”
Walker, in another article “Muslim Liberation Struggle in Chad” (Radiance, 12 September 1971) focused the Chad National Liberation Front, which originated as a regional uprising of Muslims in the Northern and Central Regions of the country against 5% unrepresentative Sara Christians minority of the South, and tended to move away from identification as a regionalist or exclusive Muslim movement.
Radiance has from time to time laid focus on the Muslims living in remote places like Latin America, Chad or Mali and on how the message of Islam spread over there.
Islam rose from the desert camps of Arabia and swept over the then three known continents of the world with a rapidity that astonished both its critics and admirers. Radiance, in an editorial on 27 October 1968, expressed its opinion that Islam may have no past and no present in Latin America, but it is certain to have a future, of course depending upon the efforts made by the Muslims themselves. “Latin America is emerging as one of the great forces of the world, just when the post war power blocs are breaking up. Today it is ripe for receiving the divine message of the Qur’ān and like Africa, is a great reservoir for making converts to Islam.”
One will not forget the 9/11 attack on the World Trade Centre which has brought bad name to the Muslims and Islam around the world where the media left no stone unturned in contributing to the same. However, Abdul Wasey in an article, “Why 9/11 Intensified People’s Craze for Islam” (Radiance, 30 November-6 December 2003) argued that Islam is the fastest growing religion and spreading widely since the unwanted incident and non-Muslims are coming under its fold. “Nearly two and a half years have passed when the World Trade Centre was attacked. Since then the western governments and Zionist activists are out to paint Islam as the religion which preaches terrorism. Almost all the Muslim religious leaders and activists across the world have been forced to stand on their toes. But it has proved to be a blessing in disguise. More and more people are learning about and turning towards Islam,” the author said.
Radiance also gives space to the Indo-Pak relations to make a better neighbourhood. “India and Pakistan, rather than sticking in six-decade-old issues, urgently need to have some fresh approach to bilateral relations aimed at ameliorating the living conditions of the respective masses and lessen their miseries,” suggested Syed Mansoor Agha in an article “Indo-Pak Trust Deficit” (Radiance, 6 Feb 2011).