Persecution of Ahmadis
Encyclopedia
The Persecution of Ahmadis is the religious persecution of Ahmadi Muslims as a consequence of professing their faith. They have been subject to various forms of persecution and discrimination since the movement's inception in 1889. The Ahmadiyya faith emerged from the Sunni tradition of Islam
and its adherents believe in all the five pillars
and articles of faith required of Muslims.
The Ahmadis are active translators of the Qur'an
and proselytizers for the faith; converts to Islam in many parts of the world first discover Islam through the Ahmadis. However, in many Islamic countries the Ahmadis have been defined as heretics and non-Muslim and subjected to persecution and often systematic oppression.
, which is the only state to have officially declared the Ahmadis to be non-Muslims. Here they are prohibited by law from self-identifying as Muslims, and their freedom of religion has been curtailed by a series of ordinances, acts and constitutional amendments. In applying for a passport, Pakistanis are required to declare that Mirza Ghulam Ahmad is an impostor prophet and that his followers are non-Muslims.
As a result, persecution and hate-related incidents are constantly reported from different parts of the country, and Ahmadis have been the target of many attacks led by various religious groups. Madrasah
s of all sects of Islam in Pakistan prescribe reading materials for their students specifically targeted at refuting Ahmadiyya beliefs.
As a result of the cultural implications of the laws and constitutional amendments regarding Ahmadis in Pakistan, persecution and hate-related incidents are constantly reported from different parts of the country. Ahmadis have been the target of many attacks led by various religious groups. All religious seminaries and madrasah
s in Pakistan, belonging to different sects of Islam, have prescribed essential reading materials specifically targeted at refuting Ahmadiyya beliefs.
In a recent survey in Pakistan, pupils in private schools of Pakistan expressed their opinions on religious tolerance in the country. The figures assembled in the study reflect that even in the educated classes of Pakistan, Ahmadis are considered to be the least deserving minority in terms of equal opportunities and civil rights. In the same study, the teachers in these elite schools showed an even lower amount of tolerance towards Ahmadis than their pupils.
Another example is Abdus Salam
, the only Muslim recipient of the Nobel Prize in Physics. Because of his allegiance to the Ahmadiyya
sect, he has been ignored and excommunicated. There are no monuments or universities named after him. The word "Muslim" has been erased from his grave stone.
erupted in Pakistan, killing scores of Ahmadi Muslims and destroying their properties. There were severe agitations against the Ahmadis in which street protests were held, political rallies were carried out, and inflammatory articles were published. These agitations led to 2,000 Ahmadi deaths. Consequently, martial law was established and the Pakistan's Federal Cabinet was dismissed by Governor-General
Ghulam Muhammad.
, was started against the Ahmadiyya Muslim Community
in Pakistan on the pretext of a clash which took place between Ahmadis and non-Ahmadis at the railway station of Rabwah. This campaign resulted in several Ahmadi casualties and destruction of Ahmadiyya property, including the descretation of mosques and graves.
As a result of pressure from this agitation, legislation and constitutional changes were enacted to criminalise the religious practises of Ahmadis by preventing them from claiming to be Muslim
or from "behaving" as Muslims. Pakistan's parliament adopted a law declaring Ahmadis to be non-Muslims; the country's constitution was amended to define a Muslim “as a person who believes in the finality of the Prophet Muhammad”.
s. Ahmadis in Pakistan are also barred by law from worshipping in non-Ahmadi mosques or public prayer rooms, performing the Muslim call to prayer, using the traditional Islamic greeting in public, publicly quoting from the Qur'an
, preaching in public, seeking converts, or producing, publishing, and disseminating their religious materials. These acts are punishable by imprisonment of up to three years. Ordinance XX and the 1974 amendment to the constitution effectively gave the state the exclusive right to determine the meaning of the term "Muslim" within Pakistan.
Many Ahmadis were arrested within days of the promulgation of this ordinance, and it gave way for widespread sanctioned as well as non-sanctioned persecution.
of two members of the Ahmadiyya Muslim Community
in the town of Shab Qadar, in the North-West Frontier Province
, Pakistan
in April 1995. Dr. Rashid Ahmad and his son-in law, Riaz Ahmad Khan, were attacked as they were about to attend a court hearing in Shab Qadar. As they entered the court premises, a violent mob incited by local clerics attacked the men with sticks and stones. Riaz Khan was stoned to death
and his dead body stripped and dragged through the town on a rope. Dr. Rashid Ahmad was taken to a hospital in Peshawar
with serious injuries. A third Ahmadi, advocate Bashir Ahmad, escaped unhurt. This murder took place in front of the police. Riaz Khan even asked a police officer for help, but instead of helping, the officer pushed him away. According to Amnesty International, the police "stood and watched", and "later pleaded that it could not have intervened in a situation like that". No one was detained or criminally charged for the killing.
The victims — senior members of Ahmadiyya Community from Peshawar — had come from the provincial capital in order to file a bail application on behalf of another Ahmadi Muslim, Daulat Khan. Daulat Khan had been harassed following his conversion to the sect; local Muslim clergy had reportedly called for his death. Daulat Khan had been arrested and imprisoned on 5 April 1995 under sections 107 (abetment) and 151 (disturbing the peace
by joining in unlawful assembly
) of the Penal Code. After the lynching of Rashid Ahmad and Riaz Ahmad Khan, Daulat Khan remained in custody and was further charged with posing as a Muslim and preaching Ahmadiyyat (section 298 C of the Penal Code) and insulting the religious sentiments of Muslims (section 295 A).
Urdu
novelist Mustansar Hussain Tarar
made a reference to this event in his novel Raakh ("Ashes").
in District Mandi Bahauddin
, shooting dead eight people and wounding 14.
a day earlier on September 7.
Around 10 pm on 1 April 2010, three Ahmadis were returning home in their vehicle from their jewellery and cloth shops situated in Rail Bazaar in Faisalabad. As their car approached the Canal Road near Faisal Hospital, four or five unidentified militants in a white car ambushed them. The three Ahmadis were seriously injured when the men opened fire at them. The attackers managed to flee from the scene. The three men died before they reached the hospital.
May Lahore attacks
On May 28, 2010, two mosques in Lahore
belonging to the Ahmadiyya Muslim Community were attacked by the Tehrik-i-Taliban Pakistan Punjab Wing
. The attacks were carried out nearly simultaneously at Mosque Darul Al Zikr, Garhi Shahu and Mosque Bait Al Noor Lahore Model Town
, 15 km apart. More than 90 people were killed and 108 were injured in the incident. One attacker was killed; another was captured by worshipers.
On May 31, 2010, an Ahmadi was stabbed to death and his son seriously injured when an activist climbed the wall of their house with a dagger and attacked them. The son later died in hospital from serious wounds. The attacker escaped. Residents say that the assailant threatened to not leave any Ahmadi alive after having found motivation to kill them through a sermon given by a local fanatical sunni cleric.
newspaper Daily Jang
published a special edition against Ahmadis.
Throughout the year, Ahmadi students and teachers in the Pakistan's Punjab
province have been systematically persecuted by schools and universities. The harrassment has included social boycott, expulsions, threats and violence by students, teachers and principals of the Muslim majority sect.
's claim of mahdi-Mahood, two prominent Afghans accused of adhering to him were stoned to death
in Afghanistan
in 1901. Another Afghan Ahmadi named Nimatullah was found guilty of apostasy
in 1903. In the 1920s, King
Amanullah
had Ahmadiyya executed or forcibly converted, and in 1924 affiliation with Ahmadiyya became a capital offense.
s (infidels). Some adherents of Ahmadiyya have been subject to “house arrest” and several have been killed. In late 2003 several large, violent marches, led by Moulana Moahmud Hossain Mumtazi, were directed to occupy an Ahmadi mosque. In 2004, all Ahmadiyya publications were banned.
on 8 December 1970 in the case of Shihabuddin Imbichi Koya Thangal vs K.P. Ahammed Koya, citation A.I.R. 1971 Ker 206. In this landmark ruling, the court determined that Ahmadis are Muslims and that they cannot be declared apostates by other Muslim sects because they hold true to the two fundamental beliefs of Islam: that there is no god but Allah
and that Muhammad
was a servant and messenger of god.
While Ahmadis are considered Muslims by law and there are no legal restrictions on their religious activities, they are not permitted by fellow Muslims of other sects to sit on the All India Muslim Personal Law Board
, a body of religious leaders that the Indian government recognises as representative of Indian Muslims
.
In 2008, many Muslims in Indonesia
protested against the Ahmadiyya movement. With violence and large demonstrations, these religious conservatives put pressure on the government to monitor, and harass the Ahmadiyya Muslim Community in Indonesia. Public opinion in Indonesia is split in three ways on how Ahmadiyya should be treated: (a) some hold it should be banned outright on the basis that it is a heretical and deviant sect that is not listed as an officially recognised religion in Indonesia; (b) others hold that it should not be banned because of the freedom of religion article in the Constitution, but also should not be allowed to proselytise under the banner of "Islam" on the basis that this is misleading; (c) still others hold that it should be free to do and say as it pleases based on the Constitutional right to freedom of religion. In June 2008, a law was passed to curtail “proselytizing” by Ahmadiyya members. An Ahmadiyya mosque was burned. Human rights groups objected to the restrictions on religious freedom. A government decree adopted in 2008 under pressure from Islamic conservatives bans the sect from spreading its faith.
2010
In July 2010, a mob of 200 Indonesians surrounded an Ahmadi mosque in Manislor village in Kuningan district, West Java
. The mob pelted the mosque with stones before being dispersed by the police.
2011
On February 6, 2011 three (originally reported as six, and later amended) Ahmadiyya members were killed at Pandeglang, Banten
province, in a clash between locals. While the government did instruct police to hunt the killers, it also called on Ahmadiyya to abide by the 2008 decree and stop spreading their belief.
In July 2011 the prosecuting sought sentences of between five to seven months for the defendants, an act which caused outcry by rights activists. The verdict given was between three and six months, slightly lighter than sought. This has trigger criticism from human right defenders and the international community including the US and the EU. In addition, a Cikeusik Ahmadi leader, Deden Darmawan Sudjana, was also sentenced to six months in prison for physical abuse and acts against the state, refusing an order from a police officer who told him to leave the house. A US State Department spokeswoman said they were "disappointed" with he verdict, while an activist of the New York based Human Rights Watch, called it "the Talibanization of Indonesia".
. A large notice has been place outside the mosque which states Qadiani Bukan Agama Islam which translates to Qadiani [Ahmadiyyat] is not an Islamic Religion.
to prevent Ahmadis acquiring a mosque.
In 2010, in the wake of the May 2010 attacks
on two Ahmadi mosques in Lahore, Pakistan, members of the Ahmadiyya Muslim Community living in the UK were threatened and intimidated. Certain Muslim groups in South London
distributed leaflets asking readers to kill Ahmadis and boycott their businesses, and Ahmadi mosques in Crawley and Newham were vandalised. In October 2010 Ofcom
criticised the UK-based Ummah Channel
for broadcasting three interactive television programmes before and after the Lahore massacre of Ahmadi Muslims in May 2010, in which religious leaders and callers alike said that Ahmadis should be killed. These programmes were repeated several times. Ofcom stated that the programme's abusive treatment of the religious views and beliefs of members of the Ahmadiyya community breached UK broadcasting regulations.
Nasser Butt, a Liberal Democrats
parliamentary candidate for the 2010 general election was targeted by campaign, asking Muslims not to vote for him in order to prevent him being elected because of his faith. In the upcoming election hustings in the Tooting Islamic centre, a Conservative
candidate Mark Clarke was mistaken to be Butt and so had to be locked in a room for his safety.
over the last century.
movement (Aalmi Majlis Tahaffuz Khatm-e-Nubuwwat, Pasban Khatme Nabuwwat
, and Tehreek-e-Khatme Nabuwwat
), Jamaat-e-Islami
Islam
Islam . The most common are and . : Arabic pronunciation varies regionally. The first vowel ranges from ~~. The second vowel ranges from ~~~...
and its adherents believe in all the five pillars
Five Pillars of Islam
The Pillars of Islam are basic concepts and duties for accepting the religion for the Muslims.The Shi'i and Sunni both agree on the essential details for the performance of these acts, but the Shi'a do not refer to them by the same name .-Pillars of Shia:According to Shia Islam, the...
and articles of faith required of Muslims.
The Ahmadis are active translators of the Qur'an
Qur'an
The Quran , also transliterated Qur'an, Koran, Alcoran, Qur’ān, Coran, Kuran, and al-Qur’ān, is the central religious text of Islam, which Muslims consider the verbatim word of God . It is regarded widely as the finest piece of literature in the Arabic language...
and proselytizers for the faith; converts to Islam in many parts of the world first discover Islam through the Ahmadis. However, in many Islamic countries the Ahmadis have been defined as heretics and non-Muslim and subjected to persecution and often systematic oppression.
Pakistan
With 4 million Ahmadis in Pakistan, persecution of Ahmadis has been particularly severe and systematic in PakistanPakistan
Pakistan , officially the Islamic Republic of Pakistan is a sovereign state in South Asia. It has a coastline along the Arabian Sea and the Gulf of Oman in the south and is bordered by Afghanistan and Iran in the west, India in the east and China in the far northeast. In the north, Tajikistan...
, which is the only state to have officially declared the Ahmadis to be non-Muslims. Here they are prohibited by law from self-identifying as Muslims, and their freedom of religion has been curtailed by a series of ordinances, acts and constitutional amendments. In applying for a passport, Pakistanis are required to declare that Mirza Ghulam Ahmad is an impostor prophet and that his followers are non-Muslims.
As a result, persecution and hate-related incidents are constantly reported from different parts of the country, and Ahmadis have been the target of many attacks led by various religious groups. Madrasah
Madrasah
Madrasah is the Arabic word for any type of educational institution, whether secular or religious...
s of all sects of Islam in Pakistan prescribe reading materials for their students specifically targeted at refuting Ahmadiyya beliefs.
As a result of the cultural implications of the laws and constitutional amendments regarding Ahmadis in Pakistan, persecution and hate-related incidents are constantly reported from different parts of the country. Ahmadis have been the target of many attacks led by various religious groups. All religious seminaries and madrasah
Madrasah
Madrasah is the Arabic word for any type of educational institution, whether secular or religious...
s in Pakistan, belonging to different sects of Islam, have prescribed essential reading materials specifically targeted at refuting Ahmadiyya beliefs.
In a recent survey in Pakistan, pupils in private schools of Pakistan expressed their opinions on religious tolerance in the country. The figures assembled in the study reflect that even in the educated classes of Pakistan, Ahmadis are considered to be the least deserving minority in terms of equal opportunities and civil rights. In the same study, the teachers in these elite schools showed an even lower amount of tolerance towards Ahmadis than their pupils.
Another example is Abdus Salam
Abdus Salam
Mohammad Abdus Salam, NI, SPk Mohammad Abdus Salam, NI, SPk Mohammad Abdus Salam, NI, SPk (Urdu: محمد عبد السلام, pronounced , (January 29, 1926– November 21, 1996) was a Pakistani theoretical physicist and Nobel laureate in Physics for his work on the electroweak unification of the...
, the only Muslim recipient of the Nobel Prize in Physics. Because of his allegiance to the Ahmadiyya
Ahmadiyya
Ahmadiyya is an Islamic religious revivalist movement founded in India near the end of the 19th century, originating with the life and teachings of Mirza Ghulam Ahmad , who claimed to have fulfilled the prophecies about the world reformer of the end times, who was to herald the Eschaton as...
sect, he has been ignored and excommunicated. There are no monuments or universities named after him. The word "Muslim" has been erased from his grave stone.
1953
In 1953 at the instigation of religious parties, anti-Ahmadiyya riotsLahore riots of 1953
The Lahore riots of 1953 were a series of violent agitations against the Ahmadiyya movement in the city of Lahore, Pakistan, which were quelled by the Pakistan Army. Demonstrations began around February, and soon escalated into citywide incidents of murder, looting and arson against the Ahmadi...
erupted in Pakistan, killing scores of Ahmadi Muslims and destroying their properties. There were severe agitations against the Ahmadis in which street protests were held, political rallies were carried out, and inflammatory articles were published. These agitations led to 2,000 Ahmadi deaths. Consequently, martial law was established and the Pakistan's Federal Cabinet was dismissed by Governor-General
Governor-General of Pakistan
The Governor-General of Pakistan was the representative in Pakistan of the Crown from the country's independence in 1947. When Pakistan was proclaimed a republic in 1956 the connection with the British monarchy ended, and the office of Governor-General was abolished.-History:Pakistan gained...
Ghulam Muhammad.
1974 riots and constitutional amendment
In 1974 a violent campaign, mainly led by the Jamaat-e-IslamiJamaat-e-Islami
This article is about Jamaat-e-Islami Pakistan. For other organizations of similar name see Jamaat-e-Islami The Jamaat-e-Islami , is a Pro-Muslim political party in Pakistan...
, was started against the Ahmadiyya Muslim Community
Ahmadiyya Muslim Community
The Ahmadiyya Muslim Community is the larger of two communities that arose from the Ahmadiyya movement founded in 1889 in India by Mirza Ghulam Ahmad of Qadian . The original movement split into two factions soon after the death of the founder...
in Pakistan on the pretext of a clash which took place between Ahmadis and non-Ahmadis at the railway station of Rabwah. This campaign resulted in several Ahmadi casualties and destruction of Ahmadiyya property, including the descretation of mosques and graves.
As a result of pressure from this agitation, legislation and constitutional changes were enacted to criminalise the religious practises of Ahmadis by preventing them from claiming to be Muslim
Muslim
A Muslim, also spelled Moslem, is an adherent of Islam, a monotheistic, Abrahamic religion based on the Quran, which Muslims consider the verbatim word of God as revealed to prophet Muhammad. "Muslim" is the Arabic term for "submitter" .Muslims believe that God is one and incomparable...
or from "behaving" as Muslims. Pakistan's parliament adopted a law declaring Ahmadis to be non-Muslims; the country's constitution was amended to define a Muslim “as a person who believes in the finality of the Prophet Muhammad”.
Ordinance XX
On 26 April 1984, General Muhammad Zia-ul-Haq, the President of Pakistan, issued the anti-Ahmadiyya Ordinance XX, which effectively prohibited Ahmadis from preaching or professing their beliefs. The ordinance, which was supposed to prevent "anti-Islamic activities," forbids Ahmadis to call themselves Muslim or to "pose as Muslims." This means that they are not allowed to profess the Islamic creed publicly or call their places of worship mosqueMosque
A mosque is a place of worship for followers of Islam. The word is likely to have entered the English language through French , from Portuguese , from Spanish , and from Berber , ultimately originating in — . The Arabic word masjid literally means a place of prostration...
s. Ahmadis in Pakistan are also barred by law from worshipping in non-Ahmadi mosques or public prayer rooms, performing the Muslim call to prayer, using the traditional Islamic greeting in public, publicly quoting from the Qur'an
Qur'an
The Quran , also transliterated Qur'an, Koran, Alcoran, Qur’ān, Coran, Kuran, and al-Qur’ān, is the central religious text of Islam, which Muslims consider the verbatim word of God . It is regarded widely as the finest piece of literature in the Arabic language...
, preaching in public, seeking converts, or producing, publishing, and disseminating their religious materials. These acts are punishable by imprisonment of up to three years. Ordinance XX and the 1974 amendment to the constitution effectively gave the state the exclusive right to determine the meaning of the term "Muslim" within Pakistan.
Many Ahmadis were arrested within days of the promulgation of this ordinance, and it gave way for widespread sanctioned as well as non-sanctioned persecution.
Shab Qadar incident
The Shab Qadar incident was a public stoningStoning
Stoning, or lapidation, is a form of capital punishment whereby a group throws stones at a person until the person dies. No individual among the group can be identified as the one who kills the subject, yet everyone involved plainly bears some degree of moral culpability. This is in contrast to the...
of two members of the Ahmadiyya Muslim Community
Ahmadiyya Muslim Community
The Ahmadiyya Muslim Community is the larger of two communities that arose from the Ahmadiyya movement founded in 1889 in India by Mirza Ghulam Ahmad of Qadian . The original movement split into two factions soon after the death of the founder...
in the town of Shab Qadar, in the North-West Frontier Province
North-West Frontier Province
Khyber Pakhtunkhwa , formerly known as the North-West Frontier Province and various other names, is one of the four provinces of Pakistan, located in the north-west of the country...
, Pakistan
Pakistan
Pakistan , officially the Islamic Republic of Pakistan is a sovereign state in South Asia. It has a coastline along the Arabian Sea and the Gulf of Oman in the south and is bordered by Afghanistan and Iran in the west, India in the east and China in the far northeast. In the north, Tajikistan...
in April 1995. Dr. Rashid Ahmad and his son-in law, Riaz Ahmad Khan, were attacked as they were about to attend a court hearing in Shab Qadar. As they entered the court premises, a violent mob incited by local clerics attacked the men with sticks and stones. Riaz Khan was stoned to death
Stoning
Stoning, or lapidation, is a form of capital punishment whereby a group throws stones at a person until the person dies. No individual among the group can be identified as the one who kills the subject, yet everyone involved plainly bears some degree of moral culpability. This is in contrast to the...
and his dead body stripped and dragged through the town on a rope. Dr. Rashid Ahmad was taken to a hospital in Peshawar
Peshawar
Peshawar is the capital of Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa and the administrative center and central economic hub for the Federally Administered Tribal Areas of Pakistan....
with serious injuries. A third Ahmadi, advocate Bashir Ahmad, escaped unhurt. This murder took place in front of the police. Riaz Khan even asked a police officer for help, but instead of helping, the officer pushed him away. According to Amnesty International, the police "stood and watched", and "later pleaded that it could not have intervened in a situation like that". No one was detained or criminally charged for the killing.
The victims — senior members of Ahmadiyya Community from Peshawar — had come from the provincial capital in order to file a bail application on behalf of another Ahmadi Muslim, Daulat Khan. Daulat Khan had been harassed following his conversion to the sect; local Muslim clergy had reportedly called for his death. Daulat Khan had been arrested and imprisoned on 5 April 1995 under sections 107 (abetment) and 151 (disturbing the peace
Disturbing the Peace
Disturbing the Peace is the second studio album by Alcatrazz, and is the only one featuring Steve Vai on guitar. One of the singles, God Blessed Video, can be found on the fictional radio station, V-Rock, on Grand Theft Auto: Vice City. Weeks on Chart: 7, Peak: #133...
by joining in unlawful assembly
Unlawful assembly
Unlawful assembly is a legal term to describe a group of people with the mutual intent of deliberate disturbance of the peace. If the group are about to start the act of disturbance, it is termed a rout; if the disturbance is commenced, it is then termed a riot.- Section 144 :Section 144 is a...
) of the Penal Code. After the lynching of Rashid Ahmad and Riaz Ahmad Khan, Daulat Khan remained in custody and was further charged with posing as a Muslim and preaching Ahmadiyyat (section 298 C of the Penal Code) and insulting the religious sentiments of Muslims (section 295 A).
Urdu
Urdu
Urdu is a register of the Hindustani language that is identified with Muslims in South Asia. It belongs to the Indo-European family. Urdu is the national language and lingua franca of Pakistan. It is also widely spoken in some regions of India, where it is one of the 22 scheduled languages and an...
novelist Mustansar Hussain Tarar
Mustansar Hussain Tarar
Mustansar Hussain Tarar is a Pakistani author, actor, former radio show host, compere and enthusiast. Having made a name for himself by taking the mantle in Pakistan's mountaineering community, Mustansar Hussain is widely recognized as one of the most famous and well known personalities in both...
made a reference to this event in his novel Raakh ("Ashes").
2000
On 30 October 2000, gunmen opened fire at an Ahmadiyya prayer meeting in the Pakistani province of Punjab, killing at least five worshippers and wounding another seven.2005
On 7 October 2005, masked gunmen with Kalashnikov rifles stormed a mosque belonging to the Ahmadiyya Muslim Community in a village called MongMong
-People:*a proposed alternate name for the Hmong people, based on a large subgroup, the Mong Leng**Mong or Hmong language*William Mong , chairman of the Shun Hing Group, a product distributor in Hong Kong*William V...
in District Mandi Bahauddin
Mandi Bahauddin
Mandi Bahauddin is the capital of Mandi Bahauddin District in the Punjab province of Pakistan. The town is some 220 metres above the sea level and is situated in upper Punjab, between the rivers Jhelum and Chenab . Mandi Bahauddin city is situated some 50 km from the M2 - Motorway of...
, shooting dead eight people and wounding 14.
2008
Two prominent members of the Ahmadiyya Muslim Community were murdered on September 8 and September 9, 2008 after a program provoking people to kill Ahmadis was aired on a prominent Pakistani television channel Geo TVGeo TV
Geo TV or Geo Television is a Pakistani television network, founded by Mr. Mir Shakil ur Rehman in May 2002 and owned by Independent Media Corporation. The channel began test transmission on 14 August 2002, with regular transmission beginning 1 October 2002...
a day earlier on September 7.
2009
During the year 2009, eleven Ahmadis were killed, while numerous others became victims of attempted killings, according to a report titled "Persecution of Ahmadis in Pakistan during the year 2009" published by Nazarat Umoor-e-Aama Sadr Anjuman Ahmadia Pakistan. The report claimed that the actions of “Ahmadi opponents” had been encouraged largely by the prejudiced attitude of the authorities, and alleged that the federal government had been in denial of the human rights and religious freedom of the Ahmadis, especially the governments of Punjab and Azad Jammu and Kashmir.2010
AprilAround 10 pm on 1 April 2010, three Ahmadis were returning home in their vehicle from their jewellery and cloth shops situated in Rail Bazaar in Faisalabad. As their car approached the Canal Road near Faisal Hospital, four or five unidentified militants in a white car ambushed them. The three Ahmadis were seriously injured when the men opened fire at them. The attackers managed to flee from the scene. The three men died before they reached the hospital.
May Lahore attacks
On May 28, 2010, two mosques in Lahore
Lahore
Lahore is the capital of the Pakistani province of Punjab and the second largest city in the country. With a rich and fabulous history dating back to over a thousand years ago, Lahore is no doubt Pakistan's cultural capital. One of the most densely populated cities in the world, Lahore remains a...
belonging to the Ahmadiyya Muslim Community were attacked by the Tehrik-i-Taliban Pakistan Punjab Wing
Tehrik-i-Taliban Pakistan
Tehrik-i-Taliban Pakistan , alternatively referred to as the Pakistani Taliban, is an umbrella organization of various Islamist militant groups based in the Federally Administered Tribal Areas along the Afghan border in Pakistan. Most, but not all, Pakistani Taliban groups coalesce under the TTP...
. The attacks were carried out nearly simultaneously at Mosque Darul Al Zikr, Garhi Shahu and Mosque Bait Al Noor Lahore Model Town
Lahore Model Town
Model Town Lahore is one of residential suburbs of Lahore, Punjab, Pakistan. It is located next to Faisal Town, Gulberg, Garden Town and Township suburbs of Lahore.- History :...
, 15 km apart. More than 90 people were killed and 108 were injured in the incident. One attacker was killed; another was captured by worshipers.
On May 31, 2010, an Ahmadi was stabbed to death and his son seriously injured when an activist climbed the wall of their house with a dagger and attacked them. The son later died in hospital from serious wounds. The attacker escaped. Residents say that the assailant threatened to not leave any Ahmadi alive after having found motivation to kill them through a sermon given by a local fanatical sunni cleric.
2011
On 7 September 2011, the mainstream urduUrdu
Urdu is a register of the Hindustani language that is identified with Muslims in South Asia. It belongs to the Indo-European family. Urdu is the national language and lingua franca of Pakistan. It is also widely spoken in some regions of India, where it is one of the 22 scheduled languages and an...
newspaper Daily Jang
Daily Jang
The Daily Jang is an Urdu newspaper based in Pakistan. It is the oldest newspaper of Pakistan in continuous publication since its foundation in 1939. Its current Group Chief Executive & Editor-in-Chief is Mir Shakil-ur-Rahman....
published a special edition against Ahmadis.
Throughout the year, Ahmadi students and teachers in the Pakistan's Punjab
Punjab (Pakistan)
Punjab is the most populous province of Pakistan, with approximately 45% of the country's total population. Forming most of the Punjab region, the province is bordered by Kashmir to the north-east, the Indian states of Punjab and Rajasthan to the east, the Pakistani province of Sindh to the...
province have been systematically persecuted by schools and universities. The harrassment has included social boycott, expulsions, threats and violence by students, teachers and principals of the Muslim majority sect.
Afghanistan
Only twelve years after Mirza Ghulam AhmadMirza Ghulam Ahmad
Mīrzā Ghulām Aḥmad was a religious figure from India and the founder of the Ahmadiyya Community. He claimed to be the Mujaddid of the 14th Islamic century, the promised Messiah , and the Mahdi awaited by the Muslims in the end days...
's claim of mahdi-Mahood, two prominent Afghans accused of adhering to him were stoned to death
Stoning
Stoning, or lapidation, is a form of capital punishment whereby a group throws stones at a person until the person dies. No individual among the group can be identified as the one who kills the subject, yet everyone involved plainly bears some degree of moral culpability. This is in contrast to the...
in Afghanistan
Afghanistan
Afghanistan , officially the Islamic Republic of Afghanistan, is a landlocked country located in the centre of Asia, forming South Asia, Central Asia and the Middle East. With a population of about 29 million, it has an area of , making it the 42nd most populous and 41st largest nation in the world...
in 1901. Another Afghan Ahmadi named Nimatullah was found guilty of apostasy
Apostasy
Apostasy , 'a defection or revolt', from ἀπό, apo, 'away, apart', στάσις, stasis, 'stand, 'standing') is the formal disaffiliation from or abandonment or renunciation of a religion by a person. One who commits apostasy is known as an apostate. These terms have a pejorative implication in everyday...
in 1903. In the 1920s, King
King
- Centers of population :* King, Ontario, CanadaIn USA:* King, Indiana* King, North Carolina* King, Lincoln County, Wisconsin* King, Waupaca County, Wisconsin* King County, Washington- Moving-image works :Television:...
Amanullah
Amanullah
Amanullah or Amanallah is a male Muslim given name meaning the trust or protection of God. It may refer to:*Amānullāh Khān , ruler of Afghanistan from 1919 to 1929*Amanullah Khan , several other people called Amanullah Khan...
had Ahmadiyya executed or forcibly converted, and in 1924 affiliation with Ahmadiyya became a capital offense.
Bangladesh
In Bangladesh, Ahmadis have been targeted by various protests and acts of violence, and fundamentalist Islamic groups have demanded that Ahmadis be officially declared kafirKafir
Kafir is an Arabic term used in a Islamic doctrinal sense, usually translated as "unbeliever" or "disbeliever"...
s (infidels). Some adherents of Ahmadiyya have been subject to “house arrest” and several have been killed. In late 2003 several large, violent marches, led by Moulana Moahmud Hossain Mumtazi, were directed to occupy an Ahmadi mosque. In 2004, all Ahmadiyya publications were banned.
Egypt
There has been a recent rise of persecution of Ahmadis in Egypt. In March 2010, nine Ahmadis were detained for allegedly insulting Islam.India
In India, Ahmadis are held to be Muslims by law. This is supported by a verdict from the Kerala High CourtKerala High Court
High Court of Kerala is the highest court in the Indian state of Kerala and in the Union Territory of Lakshadweep. The High Court of Kerala is headquartered at Kochi...
on 8 December 1970 in the case of Shihabuddin Imbichi Koya Thangal vs K.P. Ahammed Koya, citation A.I.R. 1971 Ker 206. In this landmark ruling, the court determined that Ahmadis are Muslims and that they cannot be declared apostates by other Muslim sects because they hold true to the two fundamental beliefs of Islam: that there is no god but Allah
Allah
Allah is a word for God used in the context of Islam. In Arabic, the word means simply "God". It is used primarily by Muslims and Bahá'ís, and often, albeit not exclusively, used by Arabic-speaking Eastern Catholic Christians, Maltese Roman Catholics, Eastern Orthodox Christians, Mizrahi Jews and...
and that Muhammad
Muhammad
Muhammad |ligature]] at U+FDF4 ;Arabic pronunciation varies regionally; the first vowel ranges from ~~; the second and the last vowel: ~~~. There are dialects which have no stress. In Egypt, it is pronounced not in religious contexts...
was a servant and messenger of god.
While Ahmadis are considered Muslims by law and there are no legal restrictions on their religious activities, they are not permitted by fellow Muslims of other sects to sit on the All India Muslim Personal Law Board
All India Muslim Personal Law Board
The All India Muslim Personal Law Board is an organization constituted in 1973 to adopt suitable strategies for the protection and continued applicability of Muslim Personal Law in India, most importantly, the The Muslim Personal Law Application Act of 1937, providing for the application of the...
, a body of religious leaders that the Indian government recognises as representative of Indian Muslims
Islam in India
Islam is the second-most practiced religion in the Republic of India after Hinduism, with more than 13.4% of the country's population ....
.
Indonesia
2008In 2008, many Muslims in Indonesia
Indonesia
Indonesia , officially the Republic of Indonesia , is a country in Southeast Asia and Oceania. Indonesia is an archipelago comprising approximately 13,000 islands. It has 33 provinces with over 238 million people, and is the world's fourth most populous country. Indonesia is a republic, with an...
protested against the Ahmadiyya movement. With violence and large demonstrations, these religious conservatives put pressure on the government to monitor, and harass the Ahmadiyya Muslim Community in Indonesia. Public opinion in Indonesia is split in three ways on how Ahmadiyya should be treated: (a) some hold it should be banned outright on the basis that it is a heretical and deviant sect that is not listed as an officially recognised religion in Indonesia; (b) others hold that it should not be banned because of the freedom of religion article in the Constitution, but also should not be allowed to proselytise under the banner of "Islam" on the basis that this is misleading; (c) still others hold that it should be free to do and say as it pleases based on the Constitutional right to freedom of religion. In June 2008, a law was passed to curtail “proselytizing” by Ahmadiyya members. An Ahmadiyya mosque was burned. Human rights groups objected to the restrictions on religious freedom. A government decree adopted in 2008 under pressure from Islamic conservatives bans the sect from spreading its faith.
2010
In July 2010, a mob of 200 Indonesians surrounded an Ahmadi mosque in Manislor village in Kuningan district, West Java
West Java
West Java , with a population of over 43 million, is the most populous and most densely populated province of Indonesia. Located on the island of Java, it is slightly smaller in area than densely populated Taiwan, but with nearly double the population...
. The mob pelted the mosque with stones before being dispersed by the police.
2011
On February 6, 2011 three (originally reported as six, and later amended) Ahmadiyya members were killed at Pandeglang, Banten
Banten
Banten is a province of Indonesia in Java. Formerly part of the Province of West Java, it was made a separate province in 2000.The administrative center is Serang. Preliminary results from the 2010 census counted some 10.6 million people.-Geography:...
province, in a clash between locals. While the government did instruct police to hunt the killers, it also called on Ahmadiyya to abide by the 2008 decree and stop spreading their belief.
In July 2011 the prosecuting sought sentences of between five to seven months for the defendants, an act which caused outcry by rights activists. The verdict given was between three and six months, slightly lighter than sought. This has trigger criticism from human right defenders and the international community including the US and the EU. In addition, a Cikeusik Ahmadi leader, Deden Darmawan Sudjana, was also sentenced to six months in prison for physical abuse and acts against the state, refusing an order from a police officer who told him to leave the house. A US State Department spokeswoman said they were "disappointed" with he verdict, while an activist of the New York based Human Rights Watch, called it "the Talibanization of Indonesia".
Malaysia
In April 2009, the Selangor Islamic Religious Council of Malaysia issued a letter which forbade members of the Ahmadiyya Muslim Community to offer Friday prayers at their central mosque with immediate effect. Moreover, its failure by the Ahmadis to comply with the terms of the order will result in imprisonment of up to one year and/or a fine up to 3000 Malaysian ringgitRinggit
Ringgit mostly refers to the Malaysian ringgit, which is the local currency in Malaysia, but it can also refer to the Brunei dollar or Singapore dollar in the Malay language. The word ringgit was originally used to refer to the serrated edges of Spanish silver dollars widely circulated in the area...
. A large notice has been place outside the mosque which states Qadiani Bukan Agama Islam which translates to Qadiani [Ahmadiyyat] is not an Islamic Religion.
United Kingdom
In 2009 a demonstration consisting of mainly Muslims was held in WalsallWalsall
Walsall is a large industrial town in the West Midlands of England. It is located northwest of Birmingham and east of Wolverhampton. Historically a part of Staffordshire, Walsall is a component area of the West Midlands conurbation and part of the Black Country.Walsall is the administrative...
to prevent Ahmadis acquiring a mosque.
In 2010, in the wake of the May 2010 attacks
May 2010 attacks on Ahmadi mosques in Lahore
The May 2010 Lahore attacks occurred on 28 May 2010 in Lahore, Punjab, Pakistan, during Friday prayers. 86 people were killed and more than 120 were injured in nearly simultaneous attacks against two mosques of the minority Ahmadiyya Muslim Community. After the initial attack, a hostage situation...
on two Ahmadi mosques in Lahore, Pakistan, members of the Ahmadiyya Muslim Community living in the UK were threatened and intimidated. Certain Muslim groups in South London
South London
South London is the southern part of London, England, United Kingdom.According to the 2011 official Boundary Commission for England definition, South London includes the London boroughs of Bexley, Bromley, Croydon, Greenwich, Kingston, Lambeth, Lewisham, Merton, Southwark, Sutton and...
distributed leaflets asking readers to kill Ahmadis and boycott their businesses, and Ahmadi mosques in Crawley and Newham were vandalised. In October 2010 Ofcom
Ofcom
Ofcom is the government-approved regulatory authority for the broadcasting and telecommunications industries in the United Kingdom. Ofcom was initially established by the Office of Communications Act 2002. It received its full authority from the Communications Act 2003...
criticised the UK-based Ummah Channel
Ummah Channel
-Mission Statement:According to the mission statement on its web page the channel has the following aims:*Spirituality, Humanity, Morality*To enrich viewers’ lives through free to view programmes which are educational, entertaining and which contribute towards individual spiritual...
for broadcasting three interactive television programmes before and after the Lahore massacre of Ahmadi Muslims in May 2010, in which religious leaders and callers alike said that Ahmadis should be killed. These programmes were repeated several times. Ofcom stated that the programme's abusive treatment of the religious views and beliefs of members of the Ahmadiyya community breached UK broadcasting regulations.
Nasser Butt, a Liberal Democrats
Liberal Democrats
The Liberal Democrats are a social liberal political party in the United Kingdom which supports constitutional and electoral reform, progressive taxation, wealth taxation, human rights laws, cultural liberalism, banking reform and civil liberties .The party was formed in 1988 by a merger of the...
parliamentary candidate for the 2010 general election was targeted by campaign, asking Muslims not to vote for him in order to prevent him being elected because of his faith. In the upcoming election hustings in the Tooting Islamic centre, a Conservative
Conservative Party (UK)
The Conservative Party, formally the Conservative and Unionist Party, is a centre-right political party in the United Kingdom that adheres to the philosophies of conservatism and British unionism. It is the largest political party in the UK, and is currently the largest single party in the House...
candidate Mark Clarke was mistaken to be Butt and so had to be locked in a room for his safety.
In the media
Muslim Television Ahmadiyya International (MTA) has produced four documentaries regarding the persecution of Ahmadiyya Muslim CommunityAhmadiyya Muslim Community
The Ahmadiyya Muslim Community is the larger of two communities that arose from the Ahmadiyya movement founded in 1889 in India by Mirza Ghulam Ahmad of Qadian . The original movement split into two factions soon after the death of the founder...
over the last century.
- The Early Years
- 1953
- 1974
- 1984–Present (2008)
Anti-Ahmadiyya Parties
Political groups associated with the persecution of the Ahmadis include the Khatme NabuwwatKhatme Nabuwwat
Khatim an-Nabuwwah , or Seal of Prophethood, is an Islamic belief unique to Prophet Muhammad. However, there is a difference of interpretation within Muslims; orthodox Muslims hold a consensus that this implies that prophethood came to an end after Muhammad, whereas other groups such as Ahmadiyya...
movement (Aalmi Majlis Tahaffuz Khatm-e-Nubuwwat, Pasban Khatme Nabuwwat
Pasban Khatme Nabuwwat
Pasban Khatm-e Nabuwwat "Guardians of the Seal of Prophethood" is the name of a Pakistani organisation that has made it their business to combat, often violently, the Ahmadiyya Muslim Community....
, and Tehreek-e-Khatme Nabuwwat
Tehreek-e-Khatme Nabuwwat
The Tehrik-e-Khatme Nabuwwat or Tehrik-e-Tahafuz-e-Khatm-e-Nabuwat was a religious movement in Pakistan aiming to protect the finality of prophethood and to refute the repudiators of the belief in the finality of prophethood of the Islamic prophet Muhammad.-History of Movement:The roots of...
), Jamaat-e-Islami
Jamaat-e-Islami
This article is about Jamaat-e-Islami Pakistan. For other organizations of similar name see Jamaat-e-Islami The Jamaat-e-Islami , is a Pro-Muslim political party in Pakistan...