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SINGAPORE – Singapore is fortunate that its religious teachers guide Muslims here to understand the true principles of Islam, to bring love and compassion, in the way they practice the religion, said Muslim Affairs Minister Masagos Zulkifli.
These principles apply to all facets of life, including reaction to what is happening around you in Singapore and outside of Singapore, he added on Sunday (November 1).
Masagos was commenting on the recent attacks in France during an event to mark Prophet Muhammad’s birth month, which was held at the Yusof Ishak Mosque in Woodlands on Sunday morning.
Two attacks in France last month rocked the country, prompting France to raise its security alert to its highest level last Thursday (October 29).
On October 16, a French high school teacher, Samuel Paty, was beheaded in a northern suburb of Paris by an 18-year-old man of Chechen origin who wanted to punish the teacher for showing his students cartoons of the prophet Muhammad in a class. of civic education in freedom of expression.
On Thursday (October 29), a Tunisian man shouting “Allahu Akbar” (God is the greatest) beheaded a woman and killed two others in a church in Nice before being shot and arrested by the police.
Noting the incident in Paris, Mr. Masagos: “We have reacted in a very moderate way … guided by our Mufti to teach us that as much as these things happen around us, (we must) be measured in our response, be patient, be loving, have lots of compassion, and understand that religion must come with all these values, and not react violently, even when people instigate it. “
He added that in Singapore, Muslims can react rationally and give other communities confidence in mutual respect.
Masagos said that Muslims in Singapore can be an exemplary minority Muslim community that is respected by others if they show resilience and patience.
The Singapore authorities have denounced the attacks in France.
A spokesman for the Foreign Ministry said of the attacks in Nice: “There can be no justification for such attacks against innocent civilians.
“Singapore has a zero tolerance policy against all forms of violence and extremism.”
Singapore’s top authority on Islam, Mufti Nazirudin Mohd Nasir, also condemned the recent killings in the French cities of Paris and Nice on Friday.
“Once again, radical and extremist elements have committed heinous crimes against innocent people and in the holiest places,” he said in a letter to the leaders of the Christian community in Singapore.
“Such attacks are not only an affront to the sacred character of the human soul, but also an attack on Islam, since they took place in the month when Muslims commemorate the birth of the Prophet Muhammad by honoring him with good deeds and behavior.
“These terrorists may have tried to exploit our love for the Prophet to gain sympathy, but their actions are a clear desecration of his teachings and have no place at all in Islam or any religion.”
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