Bangladesh Cracks Down on Militant Extremists:  Lessons for the West

By Hasan Zillur Rahim

Moderate Muslims around the world, along with their supporters and
well-wishers, should be inspired by the recent happenings in Bangladesh.
Leaders of two banned militant Islamic organizations, responsible for
unleashing death and destruction on an unsuspecting population, were finally
cornered in their hideouts earlier this month by law enforcement officials
known as Rapid Action Battalion (RAB) and taken into custody.

As Abdur Rahman and Siddiqul Islam, respective chiefs of Jama’atul
Mujahideen Bangladesh (JMB) and Jagrata Muslim Janata Bangladesh (JMJB),
await their fate, Bangladeshis are rejoicing. But there is also anger at the
havoc these terrorists have wrought and the bad name they have given to a
peaceful and progressive society.

On August 17 of last year, for instance, the two organizations were
responsible for the synchronized explosion of over 400 crude bombs
throughout Bangladesh, killing two and injuring more than 120. More
bombings, grenade assassinations and suicide bombings (an unfortunate first
for Bangladesh) followed in December, leading to more deaths and injuries
and creating a sense of terror throughout the Wisconsin-sized country.

What motivated the terrorists? In the words of their leaders: “To establish
Islamic law. It’s a pity that in Bangladesh, where about 90 percent are
Muslims, Allah’s rules are not implemented.”

But Bangladeshis realized that their version of Islamic law was nothing but
a hodgepodge of misogyny, violence, thirst for power and distorted
interpretations of the Quran and the teachings of the Prophet Muhammad
(saw). They rejected their call for a Taliban-style medieval theocracy and
wished fervently for the government of Prime Minister Khaleda Zia to bring
the radicals to justice. The arrests couldn’t have come sooner.

The young and vulnerable Bangladeshis who were lured into joining JMB and
JMJB and engaged in bombings and other acts of random violence have
destroyed not only their own lives but also the lives of their dependents.
These victims are now speaking out. And they are not mincing words.

Hurrennesa Baby, 16, is the daughter of Nasir Uddin, a JMB member who
blasted bombs and killed people last year and now sits in a jail. “Like many
others, our family has been ruined as my father was the lone earning
member,” she said. “My family is virtually starving. Our friends and
relatives have deserted us. They (the militant kingpins) should be hanged in
public.”

Omar Ali, 65, is the father of detained JMB member Anisur Rahman. “I would
like to see the two militant extremists executed as they ruined my family by
misguiding my son into exploding bombs on August 17.”

Similar sentiments are being echoed throughout the country.

The events in Bangladesh are a reminder that moderate Muslim nations are
working hard to root out extremists who wear the cloak of religiosity but
whose goal is to spread anarchy and mayhem in the name of Islam. This
message is sometimes lost on some in the West who tend to paint Muslims and
Islamic nations in broad brush strokes and pin the “terrorist” label on all
because of the actions of a few. A poll released this month by Washington
Post and ABC News found that 46 percent of Americans have a negative view of
Islam “fueled in part by political statements and media reports that focus
almost solely on the actions of Muslim extremists.” The latest Dubai fiasco
only underscores this issue. Congress voted 62 to 2 to kill a deal that
would have given Dubai Ports World the rights to operate six U.S. ports.
United Arab Emirates (UAE) - Dubai is one of its seven emirates - has proven
to be one of the staunchest allies of America in its war against terror and
fundamentalism. Dubai services more U.S. military ship than any other
foreign country. Yet the idea of linking Dubai to U.S. ports caused a huge
uproar throughout America. The sentiment behind the uproar can be summarized
as follows: “Arabs are coming. The sky is falling. We are about to be
terrorized!” How can America ever hope to win friends in the Middle East,
far less “spread democracy”, if it stereotypes all Arabs as suspects?

As an American Muslim of Bangladeshi origin, I draw an important lesson from
the recent events in the country of my birth: the importance of Ijtihad in
the practice of Islam. Ijtihad means informed independent thinking about
theological issues, particularly in the context of the times. Many Muslims
are sometimes content to practice Islam based on derivative knowledge,
blindly following this sheik or that imam. It is important that we think
about Islamic issues ourselves first and then seek opinions and guidance
from religious leaders. That way, at the very least, we can engage in
enlightened debates with them, thereby practicing a religion more resonant
with our reasoning and intuition. Imam Reda Shata of the Bay Ridge mosque in
New York explained it this way to his congregants: “Islam is a religion
based on intellect. Islam says to you: ‘Think. Don’t close your eyes and
just follow your emotions. Don’t follow the sheik. Perhaps you have a better
mind than his.’ ”

Bangladeshi authorities are now interrogating the two terrorist leaders to
find out who financed their organizations, where their members received
training and how arms and ammunitions were smuggled into the country.
Although the country has its share of problems - bribery, nepotism, red
tape, financial shenanigans by the wealthy and the privileged, to name a few
- Bangladeshis (population: 145 million) are solidly behind this effort,
even though there is quibbling about whether or not the government could
have taken such decisive actions months ago. But it is better late than
never. Law enforcement officials are confident that Bangladesh will soon be
free from the scourge of terrorism waged in the name of Islam.