Monday, December 28, 2009
The ugly tide of Sectarianism comes in again.
When I was a boy I can remember hearing radio and television reports of Sectarian violence in Glasgow between the supporters of Glasgow's two main football clubs, Celtic and Rangers. At the time I thought this was madness, I had little time for football or religion and I hoped that common sense would prevail and that the supporters would grow out of it.
Of course not everybody will grow out of the bigotry that fuels Sectarian violence . Only today I read that at least 25 people have been killed and dozens injured in a suicide bomb attack on a Shia Muslim march in the Pakistani city of Karachi, officials say. The bomber was walking in the middle of a procession with tens of thousands of people, said the interior minister. Pakistan's security forces had been on high alert as Shia Muslims marked the holy month of Muharram, or Ashura. Monday was the climax of the holy period, which commemorates the death of the Prophet Muhammad's grandson. Karachi has a long history of sectarian violence between Shias and Sunnis. On Sunday, eight people were killed when a suicide bomber attacked a Shia march in Pakistan-administered Kashmir. Pakistan also has a long history of violence between Sunni and Shia Muslims that is estimated to have killed several thousand people in the last three decades alone. Some radicals in the Sunni majority regard Shias - who make up about 20% of the population - as heretics.
This blog post is not about the differences between Shi'a and Sunni Muslims. What I am angry about is the mindless Sectarian violence in Pakistan . In the last two decades, as many as 4,000 people are estimated to have died in sectarian fighting in Pakistan, 300 in 2006. At least 25 people have been killed in this latest attack in Karachi, whilst they were marching for the Day of Ashura . This violence is dreadful and all because some people support the "other side". It really saddens me that some people cannot simply live and let live. It should make no difference if you are a supporter of one particular football team or one particular branch of a religion. You will not hear about Atheists attacking Agnostics because they will not make their minds up. I hope that in 2010 people put aside their religious differences and let others live in peace. I do fear that Sectarian violence will continue in Pakistan, a country that has a long way to go before it becomes a safe place for it's people to live.
When I was a boy I can remember hearing radio and television reports of Sectarian violence in Glasgow between the supporters of Glasgow's two main football clubs, Celtic and Rangers. At the time I thought this was madness, I had little time for football or religion and I hoped that common sense would prevail and that the supporters would grow out of it.
Of course not everybody will grow out of the bigotry that fuels Sectarian violence . Only today I read that at least 25 people have been killed and dozens injured in a suicide bomb attack on a Shia Muslim march in the Pakistani city of Karachi, officials say. The bomber was walking in the middle of a procession with tens of thousands of people, said the interior minister. Pakistan's security forces had been on high alert as Shia Muslims marked the holy month of Muharram, or Ashura. Monday was the climax of the holy period, which commemorates the death of the Prophet Muhammad's grandson. Karachi has a long history of sectarian violence between Shias and Sunnis. On Sunday, eight people were killed when a suicide bomber attacked a Shia march in Pakistan-administered Kashmir. Pakistan also has a long history of violence between Sunni and Shia Muslims that is estimated to have killed several thousand people in the last three decades alone. Some radicals in the Sunni majority regard Shias - who make up about 20% of the population - as heretics.
This blog post is not about the differences between Shi'a and Sunni Muslims. What I am angry about is the mindless Sectarian violence in Pakistan . In the last two decades, as many as 4,000 people are estimated to have died in sectarian fighting in Pakistan, 300 in 2006. At least 25 people have been killed in this latest attack in Karachi, whilst they were marching for the Day of Ashura . This violence is dreadful and all because some people support the "other side". It really saddens me that some people cannot simply live and let live. It should make no difference if you are a supporter of one particular football team or one particular branch of a religion. You will not hear about Atheists attacking Agnostics because they will not make their minds up. I hope that in 2010 people put aside their religious differences and let others live in peace. I do fear that Sectarian violence will continue in Pakistan, a country that has a long way to go before it becomes a safe place for it's people to live.
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