Islamic world not speaking up against persecution of Muslims, Islamophobia, says Naik

Dr Zakir Naik speaks on ‘Islamophobia’ at Stadium Sultan Muhammad IV in Kota Bharu, Kelantan, on Friday night. (Facebook pic.)

PETALING JAYA: Controversial preacher Dr Zakir Naik last night said Muslim countries are not speaking up against the persecution of Muslims and Islamophobia worldwide.

Naik gave China’s prosecution of ethnic Muslim Uighurs as an example.

He said it was non-Muslim countries that had initially raised concerns over the treatment of Uighurs while several Muslim countries joined in to support China’s re-education of the community.

“Do you know today who are the Muslims that are persecuted the most? It is the Uighur Muslims,” he said in a speech titled “Islamophobia” during his Kelantan tour at Stadium Sultan Muhammad IV in Kota Bharu.

Kelantan Menteri Besar Ahmad Yakob and Umno’s Annuar Musa were also present at the packed stadium.

Earlier, Naik’s son Fariq gave an hour-long speech on the goodness of the Quran in everyday life.

Naik said Palestinians and Rohingyas were still able to fast and pray but in China, the Uighurs were systematically persecuted.

“China is trying its level best to see that the Muslims are exterminated,” he claimed.

He said there was a second batch of letters sent by 37 countries supporting China’s move in re-educating the Uighur community, including 15 were from Muslim countries.

Without naming the countries, Naik, who is a permanent resident in Malaysia, said they should not exchange power and wealth for after-life paradise.

He said Muslims were being persecuted as the Islamic world was not united and close to their religion, Quran and Sunnah.

“Muslims are the richest in the world but we are looked down because we are away from the Quran,” he said.

Naik also explained his version of Islamophobia and the reasons behind it. “Islamophobia means extreme irrational fear and aversion towards Islam,” he said. “But Islam is peace.”

He said countries like the US feared peace as they may not be able to sell weapons to make money.

According to him, former US presidential candidate Hillary Clinton had previously said that US$8 billion was used to create the Taliban to carry out proxy wars against Russia.

He said the US and Britain had attacked Iraq by creating fear that the country was producing weapons of mass destruction (WMD), a claim proven otherwise.

Naik said Islamophobia was also created by the current Indian government led by Prime Minister Narendra Modi in relation to the Kashmir territorial dispute and to remain in power.

Islamophobia had worsened as Muslim countries were not united, making it easier for leaders like US President Donald Trump and Modi to win office.

He attributed other causes of Islamophobia to the Sept 11 attack on the World Trade Center in New York and an increase in Muslim population worldwide with documentaries claiming that in 20 years’ time, 50% of the European population will comprise Muslims.

Naik said so-called moderate Muslims were also creating Islamophobia. “They claim to be secular Muslims and are funded by governments or anti-Islam groups,” he claimed.

Naik, 54, said he was happy as there was no Islamophobia in Kelantan. He urged Muslims to get guidance from the Quran and to keep away from moderate Muslims who selectively followed Islam.

Naik, who is wanted in India, has insisted that he has not broken any Indian law and is being targeted by the “enemies of Islam”.

He is facing charges of money laundering and hate speech in India, where authorities last year said he had been “promoting enmity and hatred between different religious groups in India through public speeches and lectures”.

The preacher has been living in Malaysia since India started investigating him and has kept a low profile over the past year amid criticism that he is a threat to peace in Malaysia. - FMT