From: kytan@mantra.fia.dmg.ml.com (Kok-Yong Tan)
Subject: Re: Cold war against ISLAM (Part-1)
Organization: Organised?  Here?  Hahahahahahahaha.....
	<KYTAN.92Jul13082740@mantra.fia.dmg.ml.com>
	<1992Jul16.170547.1290@sco.COM>
Date: Mon, 20 Jul 1992 15:54:55 GMT

In article <1992Jul16.170547.1290@sco.COM> waseems@sco.COM (Waseem Siddiqi) writes:

>I see your point. But have you considered why there are people doing it?
>Every human being wants to live and have a good life, irrespective of their
>religion. Where did you get the idea that Islamic 'fundamentalists' are
>comitting suicide attacks and violence in droves? No doubt from the western
>media. The only suicide attacks that I can recall occurred in lebanon or
>Palestine. And I can understand why they carry them out. If you just stop
>for a moment and think how desperate their conditions are and how long
>the tyranny has been going on for, then people will adopt desperate measures.

How has a suicide attack helped anything?  The US forces in Lebanon were not
there to support one side or the other.  They were just there as peacekeeping
troops and were not there before, so they cannot be accused of having been in an
"occupational" role.

>No such suicide attacks have occured in other parts of the world where
>'fundamentalist' are active such as Algeria, Tunisia, Egypt, Jordan, Sudan
>Afghanistan and Pakistan.

Perhaps not all of the above countries have experienced suicide attacks but
I think you forget the Egyptian suicide attack on Sadat and the recent suicide
attack on the Algerian head of state.  The fact that a few of the Sadat
attackers lived to be tried does not make it any less a suicide attack.  In
both cases, the attackers were Muslim fanatics.  Christianity, if I remember
correctly, takes a dim view of suicide for whatever reason, unlike Islam.

>The reason why Islamic 'fundamentalist' are viewed as fanatics as you put
>it, is because that's how the Western media portrays them. Look at what's
>happening in the ex-USSR. While the Christian missionaries activities
>there have been portrayed in a favourable light with articles on
>how the Russians are discovering their roots, spirituality, culture etc wrt
>Christianty, similar activities in the Central Asian Republics are 
>viewed with alarm and described as dangerous, threatening etc . 
>Aren't the people of Central Asia human too ? Don't they have the same 
>feelings and needs as their ex-compatriots in Russia ?

I'm no supporter of religious kooks (pardon my language), be they Christians or
otherwise.  However, the Christian "missionaries" don't kill people (with the
possible exception of Jim Jones but then, his sect wasn't really "Christian.")
I'm NOT saying that the Muslims in the Central Asian Republics do so but I
don't think there is as much alarm about Muslim activities in the Central Asian
Republics as there is about Muslim activities in Africa.  The Muslims in the
ex-USSR are NOT perceived as fanatics.  

>Closer to home, let's compare religious activities in Phillipines and
>Malaysia. The increase in Islamic awareness among Muslims in Malaysia
>is viewed with alarm in the West as is by a lot of SCA posters.
>During the recent election campaign in the Phillipines, I began to realise
>that Filipinos are pretty religious. I could see it in the activities
>and statements made by the candidates to woo the common masses. I of course,
>don't have any problem with that. But this activities is not viewed as
>alarming at all by the same people raising a hoopla over corresponding 
>activities in Malaysia.

>What gives here?

You must remember that the next in line, in terms of fanatacism, are people like
the Moonies.  And they proclaim themselves to be Christians.  So, it's not
Muslims that the world media are against.  Just kooks.  Especially ones
dangerous to others' health.



--
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World Financial Center, North Tower, 	| Just I should be sought.
New York, NY 10281-1315.	  	|		- K. Y. Tan, 5 Feb 1992
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