Everybody can notice the change which is taking place in Egyptian society and how its moderate nature is being threatened by a tendency towards extremism. It all started in the 80s with the large numbers of Egyptians, who were forced by the increasing unemployment rate and the meager wages, to search for jobs in the lands of oil. Well, they surely worked hard, came back with the money and other things. They were affected by the Wahhabi thought, which has managed through them to revisit Egypt long after it had been overcome by the great Muhammad Ali.
Unfortunately this was great news for the Muslim Brotherhood in Egypt, who made use of all possible means 
to increase their political ground in the Egyptian street. Having no political agenda whatsoever, the Brotherhood's only hope lay in having a tangible influence in Egyptian society through feeding its religious nature and winning its affection. They played on the motto "Islam is the Solution" implying that they are the only movement that follows religious teachings, and also implying that religion (in their case Islam only) can solve all problems.
The third factor came from the business sector, which used these growing emot
ions in the Egyptian society and translated them into money, thus re-exporting the product but in a more intensive manner through the media. This sector made use of the popularity of some religious talkers and produced for them TV programs, cassette tapes, CDs, DVDs, websites… etc. Sometimes they made their own stars while watching their popularity increase and their sales too. The star doesn't have to be an expert or have any true wisdom, he simply has to have the qualifications which are needed in any star: that is an acceptable appearance and charisma.
One of those shooting stars is Sheikh Khaled El Gindy. He was made popular through a weekly segment in the daily program Al Qahira Al Youm, where every Monday he will answer viewers' religious questions in what is called Rokn Elfatwa (zy rokn elsheesha kedda at coffee shops). I've talked about El Gindy before when he came second on my list of 5 Most Hated People. I therefore
won't repeat my opinion of him. But what's new is his most recent fatwa, in which he displayed his usual genius and declared that slave trade is halal and can take place nowadays if the President (walyi el2amr) approves it. Away wallahi kedda!
Shofto elgamal welraw3a? El Gindy comes to say so in the year 2007, after the abolition of slavery and the human rights law and the international agreements concerning POWs, all of this doesn't concern him at all. Elmohem it is Halal and there's nothing wrong in it. All we need now is the approval of the president. Begad 7aga tsharaf ya3ni. Wallahi if I were the president I can use this to raise my popularity and become a Pharaoh, or pass over the presidency to my son even. I would simply say to my citizens, "I will not use my divine right to sell you as slaves."
My friend Egy Anatomist has an excellent post about this issue on his blog. He really said it all, so I need not dwell more upon it here. I just want to say that if this ever happened I would like El Gindy's children to be the first on the market. If this is Islam what is Jahiliyya? I bet that if those people were alive today they wouldn't have said anything like that. Such crazy people like el Gindy are coming up with a different version of Islam, an Islam against Islam. They are deforming our religion and giving it the worst face ever.
to increase their political ground in the Egyptian street. Having no political agenda whatsoever, the Brotherhood's only hope lay in having a tangible influence in Egyptian society through feeding its religious nature and winning its affection. They played on the motto "Islam is the Solution" implying that they are the only movement that follows religious teachings, and also implying that religion (in their case Islam only) can solve all problems.The third factor came from the business sector, which used these growing emot
ions in the Egyptian society and translated them into money, thus re-exporting the product but in a more intensive manner through the media. This sector made use of the popularity of some religious talkers and produced for them TV programs, cassette tapes, CDs, DVDs, websites… etc. Sometimes they made their own stars while watching their popularity increase and their sales too. The star doesn't have to be an expert or have any true wisdom, he simply has to have the qualifications which are needed in any star: that is an acceptable appearance and charisma.One of those shooting stars is Sheikh Khaled El Gindy. He was made popular through a weekly segment in the daily program Al Qahira Al Youm, where every Monday he will answer viewers' religious questions in what is called Rokn Elfatwa (zy rokn elsheesha kedda at coffee shops). I've talked about El Gindy before when he came second on my list of 5 Most Hated People. I therefore
won't repeat my opinion of him. But what's new is his most recent fatwa, in which he displayed his usual genius and declared that slave trade is halal and can take place nowadays if the President (walyi el2amr) approves it. Away wallahi kedda!Shofto elgamal welraw3a? El Gindy comes to say so in the year 2007, after the abolition of slavery and the human rights law and the international agreements concerning POWs, all of this doesn't concern him at all. Elmohem it is Halal and there's nothing wrong in it. All we need now is the approval of the president. Begad 7aga tsharaf ya3ni. Wallahi if I were the president I can use this to raise my popularity and become a Pharaoh, or pass over the presidency to my son even. I would simply say to my citizens, "I will not use my divine right to sell you as slaves."
My friend Egy Anatomist has an excellent post about this issue on his blog. He really said it all, so I need not dwell more upon it here. I just want to say that if this ever happened I would like El Gindy's children to be the first on the market. If this is Islam what is Jahiliyya? I bet that if those people were alive today they wouldn't have said anything like that. Such crazy people like el Gindy are coming up with a different version of Islam, an Islam against Islam. They are deforming our religion and giving it the worst face ever.
8 comments:
Brilliant post! I just completed my undergraduate dissertation on this topic- rise of Islamism in 20th century Egypt- I came to similar conclusions and also attributed it to the economic situation afflicting Egypt, the absence of a real democracy which would encourage other less extreme forms of opposition and also the general rise of extremism worldwide. This is a trend that has arisen in reaction to western hegemony. First it was communism and now it is extreme islamism
Arima:
I am really interested in your dissertation topic. Actually, this is one of my major concerns. The way our society is heading I believe would lead to scary consequences, unless something is done about it.
And I agree with you that there are a number of factors, which I didn't have enough space to mention, that worked towards this effect. Yet, I believe that the media is playing the most dangerous role in the quick spread of this tendency towards extremism.
I'd be interested to hear more on your link between the media and Islamism. I see the media as being more reflective of the rising trend (that is if we're talking about state run media) but if we're talking about satellite and internet then I guess there is a massive affect.
Even preachers such as Amr Khaled (who I like) plays a role in Islamizing the young educated elites- a sector of society previously untouched by Islamists.
It's sad how people interpret Islam for their own needs...I never liked this man Gindy or these other guys who just come up and say what they like to attract audience...I don't approve of Muslim brotherhood either nor their slogan 'islam howal hal' simply because we don't know what version of Islam they are going to use!
I've heard they want women to stay at home, not have jobs, just look after the kids. No one has the right to control our lives- only God, and even He gives us free will.
Thank you for the post.
Arima:
I would definitely discuss this relation between the media and Islamism in future posts. Thanks for showing interest.
I had earlier written a post about Amr Khaled: http://omluji.blogspot.com/2007/02/shortcut-to-paradise.html
BTW I liked your post about Iranian Hijab tremendously.
Unique Muslimah:
Thanks for adding your thoughts. I believe anything that goes extreme does more bad than good, no matter what cloth it is dressed in.
Unfortunately not all people are like you. Most of them would just go with the flow without questioning or analyzing. This is pretty sad, but it is a reality we see everywhere around us.
Glad you liked the post and hope to read more of your comments.
thanks Om Luji! I loved your post on Amr Khaled- very succinct. It's made me give his type of dawa a much closer look. Thanks :)
Arima:
So glad you found it useful. You really gave me hope that what I write may cause people to consider things differently. Many thanks for that :)
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