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Thread: China's 20 million Muslims

  1. #1
    Twirling dragon Maciamo's Avatar
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    Post China's 20 million Muslims

    BBC News : Chinese Muslims forge isolated path


    Quote Originally Posted by BBC
    Ningxia province is the heartland of Islam in China - and the base of Hong Yang, a Muslim leader who commands a million Chinese followers.

    Islam with Chinese characteristics, in Ningxia province
    Religious freedom is laid down in the Chinese constitution, but Hong Yang admits there are limits.

    "It depends on how you interpret the word freedom. Our religious freedom cannot compare with other countries. We're only free to practice within the boundaries set by Chinese law and policy," he said.

    "But we don't want to overstep those limits, as that might create conflict and instability for the whole society."

    Spreading the faith is a duty for Muslims, but for the 20 million Muslims in China, it is only allowed within the confines of a mosque.

    China's atheist leadership distrust all whose loyalties might be split, especially those for whom religion is a higher calling.

    Its strategy is to bind religious leaders into the communist hierarchy.

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    As the Rush Comes Duo's Avatar
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    Interesting you should post this. A couple of days ago I was discussin China and they apparently had officially recognized as the 3 great threats to China being separtism, extremism and, radicalism..... I think that's about right. I don't know what to say about the Chinese way of handling Islam, but it seems as a resctriction of religion, but one thinks about the other asian countries, thailand, and indonesia, and the problems that they are having with islam, well... fundemantalists I mean. So is China handling this phenomenon the right way ? Can't say, but I never imagined there could be so many muslims in china, althought 20 million is nothing really for a country with that great of population.

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    Regular Member bossel's Avatar
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    Quote Originally Posted by Duo
    I think that's about right. I don't know what to say about the Chinese way of handling Islam, but it seems as a resctriction of religion, but one thinks about the other asian countries, thailand, and indonesia, and the problems that they are having with islam, well... fundemantalists I mean. So is China handling this phenomenon the right way ?
    The Chinese handle all religions pretty much the same I think. As long as they acknowledge the suzerainty of the CPC they are allowed. If they think/act too independently or listen to non-Chinese leaders they ask for trouble. The PRC did this long before Islamic fundamentalism became as strong as it is now, but of course they like to put their oppression of eg. the Uighurs in the greater picture of "war against terror": "Look at the problems the rest of the world has. We are acting responsibly."

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    Regular Member shiningblue's Avatar
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    Quote Originally Posted by bossel
    The Chinese handle all religions pretty much the same I think. As long as they acknowledge the suzerainty of the CPC they are allowed. If they think/act too independently or listen to non-Chinese leaders they ask for trouble. The PRC did this long before Islamic fundamentalism became as strong as it is now, but of course they like to put their oppression of eg. the Uighurs in the greater picture of "war against terror": "Look at the problems the rest of the world has. We are acting responsibly."
    I agree. 20 million muslims out of 1.2 billion people are not too much to worry about. As well, I haven't heard much about violent activity from the Chinese muslims at all, anyways. As long as they adhere to the rules, there wont be any crack down. (Think Falun Gong before they became activists) China has more important things on their hands than a small group of Muslims that arn't that active in the country.
    - we must be the change we wish to see in the world - gandhi

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    Regular Member seasurfer's Avatar
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    I think the CCP handle it pretty well. I can't imagine if China 1.3 billion people turn into Muslim, 1.3billion... 4 times the population of US...the world will be less fun...anyway the muslim countries has not right to critisize China for restricting Islam, because no Muslim country in the world allows their muslim citizens to convert or practise religion freely....sorry, I am not anti-Islam, but I don't really like the idea that they restrict people to practise their belief.

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    Regular Member bossel's Avatar
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    Quote Originally Posted by shiningblue
    As well, I haven't heard much about violent activity from the Chinese muslims at all, anyways. As long as they adhere to the rules, there wont be any crack down. (Think Falun Gong before they became activists) China has more important things on their hands than a small group of Muslims that arn't that active in the country.
    Actually, there has been some "terrorist" activity from the Muslim community, if I remember correctly. But that was not religiously motivated, it came from the independence movement. Just like the Chechens, the Chinese Muslims were not very fundamentalist. But due to continued oppression, fundamentalism seems to be growing (not unlike in Chechnya, where the situation of course is much worse).

    The FG thing is a nice example of the difference between a perceived threat versus a real threat. Here in the West they would have been looked upon as some other kind of New Age movement, at worst they would have been ridiculed.

    The most important thing for the CPC is obviously control. Lack of control seems to be their worst nightmare, hence their crackdown on any "organization" that denies or defies this control.

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    Regular Member stupidumboy's Avatar
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    Islam has a very long history in China. It was introduced into China around 100 years after it's founded. The first place that Islam reached was not the northwestern China (Xinjiang), but the southern coast.

    The first mosque was build at GZ (very closed to Hong Kong), and nowadays there're a huge number of muslim in China, located in every provinces and most of them are ethnic Han Chinese.

    In fact Islam is so deeply rooted in China that many famous mosque are built in traditional Chinese style, and the Muslim has played very important role in Chinese history. for example, the designer of the Beijing , is a local Muslim.

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    Regular Member seasurfer's Avatar
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    Quote Originally Posted by stupidumboy
    In fact Islam is so deeply rooted in China that many famous mosque are built in traditional Chinese style, and the Muslim has played very important role in Chinese history. for example, the designer of the Beijing , is a local Muslim.
    Zheng He, the man who made his trip to Africa in the 15th century was also a Muslim. But many chinese people won't want to go into this religion, as it requires them to change their surname and tradition and they can't eat pork after converting.

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    Quote Originally Posted by seasurfer
    I think the CCP handle it pretty well. I can't imagine if China 1.3 billion people turn into Muslim, 1.3billion... 4 times the population of US...the world will be less fun...anyway the muslim countries has not right to critisize China for restricting Islam, because no Muslim country in the world allows their muslim citizens to convert or practise religion freely....sorry, I am not anti-Islam, but I don't really like the idea that they restrict people to practise their belief.
    Actually it's against Islam to deny practice of ones religion and it's also against Islam to force our religion onto others it says it clearly in the holy Quran. And those nations that don't allow religious freedom are going against the basic teachings of Islam. There are over a billion muslims in the world and it is the fastest growing religion in the world and the U.S.
    "The key to inmortality is living a life worth remembering"

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    christians and muslims are still considered as too aggressive in expanding their religious influence to others..we live in a modern world, it's important to protect people especially children from the religion.. or what else what happen? another ID vs Evolution conflict in china?

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    Regular Member kamaru's Avatar
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    Why is it always that we find Islam and Terrorism in the same sentence every time this topic is issued?Why can't people understand that terrorism doesn't have a religion!Islam certainly doesn't carry hatred and retardation to the world , it's just different and some people refuse what's different ..that the major mistake today and it should be corrected by getting a closer look to Islam instead of backing it off.The holy Koran is resourceful in this situation and it shows God's call for love and forgiveness in the opposite of what terrorism shows in the name of Islam .

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    The Hairy Wookie Mycernius's Avatar
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    That is a very good point, Kamaru san. The two have been linked together by the media and politicians such as Bush and Blair and I agree that it has done damage to the rest of the Muslims in the world who are now seen by the west as a bunch of bloodthirsty maniacs wishing to destroy the decent Christian way of life. They seem to ignore the fact that the invasion of Iraq by decent Christians has destroyed the happy Muslim way of life for the people in Iraq and beyond. The modern crusaders. Next it'll be the inquistion.
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    tsuyaku o tsukete kudasai nurizeko's Avatar
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    Now that I come to think of it, it seems the two most invasive religions in the world are now making each other more fundamentalist, possibly some unpsoken, subconcious alliance to turn the world into bigots like their more fundamentalist minorities?.

    I have to say honestly, I'm not big on religions who's most strictest law is to bother me until i convert or kill me for heresy.

  15. #15
    The Hairy Wookie Mycernius's Avatar
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    Quote Originally Posted by nurizeko View Post
    I have to say honestly, I'm not big on religions who's most strictest law is to bother me until i convert or kill me for heresy.
    He's a witch, Burn him! (with apologies to Monty Python)

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    Hullu RockLee's Avatar
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    Naaaaah, We should check if he floats with a couple of stones stuck on his feet *j/k* Well to be honest, I think religion is a disgrace to the human kind. I'd like to go back in time and waste the first idiot who invented this bullcrap in the first place
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    tsuyaku o tsukete kudasai nurizeko's Avatar
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    Nah, Religion was a useful and required aspect of humanity to help drag us from cave-apes.

    The only problem was someone invented invasive very intolerant monothism or whatever its called, Religion changed from a mostly animistic state that didnt really make such hefty demands on you and made claim on the human race, to a strong singular god type that required you to follow many religious guides and laws, and to actively convert or kill the unbeliever.

    Religion only took on the negetive effect on humanity in previous few hundred years, a blip in the grand scale of human history.

    Luckily Science and reason and non religious philosophy and culture has flourished in this time scale aswell, perhaps the hardlining of religion is a direct result of the rise of the enlightenment, or perhaps the hardlining of religion caused the enlightenment and helps it flourish, who knows, either way I reckon Science and a progressive free open human civilization will eventually arise, once the various needs and motives that make human beings choose intolerant and argumentative religion fades.


    On a more ontopic note, I actually like how the blend of Chinese and Islamic architecture looks, very pretty.

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