Religious Diversity And Tolerance: Impossible To Build A Peaceful World Where Only Our Own Rights Matter
The Oasis Reporters
August 10, 2021
By Na’Allah Mohammed Zagga
Christian apathy to Muslim grievances is no less bad than Muslim indifference to Christian grievances.
I recall the Muslim outrage that greeted the demolition of a mosque by the Wike administration in Rivers State. Now Muslim voices are curiously silent on the demolition of a church in Maiduguri by the Zulum administration. This issue has implications for the future of our political union. Given the volatility of religion, issues of this nature should be handled with tact by the government.
Our apathy to the church demolition in Maiduguri raises many troubling questions.
Where is our sincerity?
Where is our sense of justice?
Do we define injustice only when Muslims are affected?
This attitude not only makes us look bad, we appear to be hypocritical as well.
We must sincerely accept the meaning of religious diversity and tolerance. We always condemn western nations for hating Muslims, but they are more tolerant of religious diversity than us. You can find more mosques in London, Washington, Sweden, Norway and France than in Saudi Arabia, Kuwait Indonesia and other Muslim majority countries. In fact, there are Muslim countries that officially do not allow the building of churches.
You think these Christian nations do not value their own faith? Western nations are emotionally attached to democratic values. That is why they protect the smallest minorities, including Muslims.
We can’t build a peaceful world where only our own rights matter.
I must however praise the example of Sokoto State and a few other predominantly Muslim states in the North that have for years demonstrated respect for our religious diversity. Despite its record of frequent tensions, you must give Plateau State the credit for respecting our religious diversity. No Plateau administration has to the best of my recollection ever demolished mosques.
