Obama dan Masjid di Ground Zero

Kontroversi pembinaan masjid dan pusat Islam di sebelah tapak World Trade Center atau Ground Zero menunjukkan Barat sengaja tidak mahu memahami Islam. Barat melihat Islam itu adalah al-Qaeda, Taliban dan Parti Baath di Iraq sebelum kejatuhan Saddam Hussein. Maka apabila ada rancangan membina masjid di sebelah World Trade Center yang menjadi abu diserang oleh puak radikal pada 11 September 2001, ini dianggap sebagai monumen "kejayaan" Islam membunuh lebih 3,000 mangsa yang berada di bawah runtuhan itu.

Amerika Syarikat (AS) menjaja keterbukaan mereka kepada kebebasan beragama, tidak kira Islam, Kristian dan sebagainya. Semua penganut mendapat hak yang sama dan ini termaktub dalam perlembagaan negara itu. Tetapi keterbukaan itu ditutup dengan prejudis dan salah tanggapan terhadap Islam apabila sebuah masjid mahu didirikan bersebelahan Ground Zero. Ini menunjukkan Barat yakni AS tidak memahami Islam dan wujudnya pihak mengaut keuntungan politik seolah-olah bersimpati dengan keluarga mangsa tragedi 11 September 2001. Kontroversi yang berlaku ini bukan disebabkan reaksi marah menjelang ulang tahun kesembilan leburnya World Trade Center. Sebaliknya ini indikator kepada prejudis Barat terhadap Islam.

Ramadan dinner speech: 'Muslims have the right to practice their religion as anyone else'

WASHINGTON — President Barack Obama on Friday endorsed plans for a Muslim mosque two blocks from ground zero in New York City, declaring that "Muslims have the right to practice their religion as anyone else in this country."

Obama hosted the Berbuka puasa at White House.

Speaking at a White House dinner celebrating the Islamic holy month of Ramadan, Obama said all Americans have the right to worship as they choose.

"That includes the right to build a place of worship and a community center on private property in lower Manhattan, in accordance with local laws and ordinances, Obama said. "This is America, and our commitment to religious freedom must be unshakeable."

Obama emphasized the point as New York City is immersed in a deeply sensitive debate about whether a mosque should be built near the site of the World Trade Center's twin towers.

His remarks drew agreement and vilification.

It was the president's first public remarks about the mosque controversy. The White House previously called the matter solely a local one.

The dinner was attended by over 100 guests, including two Muslim-American congressmen and ambassadors and officials from numerous Muslim nations, including Saudi Arabia and Indonesia

An anti-mosque advertisement juxtaposes a plane about to crash into a flaming World Trade Center with a viwe of a proposed mosque near ground zero. The ads will begin appearing on New York City buses as soon as next week after the Metropolitan Transportation Authority (MTA) relented and approved them on Monday.

Obama acknowledged the fiery emotions the planned mosque and cultural center have stoked.

"Ground Zero is, indeed, hallowed ground," the president said.

"But let me be clear: as a citizen, and as president, I believe that Muslims have the right to practice their religion as anyone else in this country. That includes the right to build a place of worship and a community center on private property in lower Manhattan, in accordance with local laws and ordinances.

Obama said Islam is not the enemy, al-Qaida is. "We must never forget those who we lost so tragically on 9/11, and we must always honor those who led our response to that attack — from the firefighters who charged up smoke-filled staircases, to our troops who are serving in Afghanistan today," he said.

"Our enemies respect no religious freedom. Al Qaida's cause is not Islam — it is a gross distortion of Islam. These are not religious leaders — they're terrorists who murder innocent men, women and children. In fact, al Qaida has killed more Muslims than people of any other religion — and that list of victims includes innocent Muslims who were killed on 9/11."

Obama said that Ramadan is a reminder that Islam has always been part of America.

"The first Muslim ambassador to the United States, from Tunisia, was hosted by President Jefferson, who arranged a sunset dinner for his guest because it was Ramadan — making it the first known iftar at the White House, more than 200 years ago."

The New York mosque would be part of a 13-story, $100 million Islamic center that would feature a 500-seat auditorium, a swimming pool and a gym. It's a project of the Cordoba Initiative, an advocacy group that promotes improved relations between Islam and the West.

Obama's stance runs counter to the opinions of the majority of Americans, according to polls. A CNN/Opinion Research poll released this week found that nearly 70 percent of Americans opposed the mosque plan while just 29 percent approved.

New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg has defended the project and praised Obama's remarks Friday night.

"Two hundred and twenty years ago this week, the Father of Our Country penned his famous letter to the Jewish Community of Newport Rhode Island or, as he called them, 'the Children of the Stock of Abraham.' President Obama's words tonight evoked President Washington's own August reminder that 'all possess alike liberty,'" Bloomberg said.

Posted by Lawasian on Sabtu, Ogos 14, 2010. Filed under Agama . You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0. You can leave a response or trackback to this entry