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The first Hindu temple of UAE capital Abu Dhabi is in the news. The very special thing about the Swaminarayan Temple complex spread over about 27 acres is that the UAE government itself donated the land for it. It is believed that the construction of such a grand Hindu religious place will further strengthen the relations between UAE and India. However, it is also true that UAE is different from other Islamic countries. He even banned many organizations which were considered political groups in the Middle East so that the country could be saved from fanaticism.
Most of the population is outsiders
Citizens from many countries of the world keep coming to the Emirates in search of work. Especially in the cities of Dubai and Abu Dhabi, the population here is mostly of outsiders. Of the UAE’s approximately 9.1 million population, only 11 percent are citizens, the rest are foreigners. Muslims are the majority in this. Among the minorities, Christian population is highest, followed by Hindus, Sikhs, Buddhists and people of other religions.
Islam is the official religion
Islam is the official religion of the United Arab Emirates. To keep it safe, there were strict laws regarding blasphemy and converting from Islam to any other religion. No Muslim can convert there. However, the constitution here gives non-Muslims the freedom to practice their religion, which is different from other Islamic countries.
Do minorities really have equal rights?
Many reports also say that all these things like exemption or freedom are like elephant’s teeth. In fact, Hindus or any religious minority are prohibited from publicly performing rituals or celebrating festivals related to their religion. The US State Department also released a report in this regard in 2017, which claims that minorities in the UAE can practice religious customs only within their homes or buildings.
No land for religious activities
A glimpse of the bigotry of UAE can be seen from the fact that minorities there cannot get ownership rights of land, especially for religious purposes.
This is the reason that despite having powerful positions and population in the Emirates, minorities cannot build religious places of their own free will. They can do this only when the government donates the land or gives it on lease. The same case was seen with Swaminarayan temple also. The government itself had donated this land. Minorities or non-citizens can buy land with many conditions. They are allowed to buy property only at certain places.
Worked on moderate Islamic image
The emirate saw a change during the rise of Islamic State. Including this, most of the Arab countries started talking about moderate Islam. That is, fanaticism in religion should be only so much that it does not spoil the work. An article in the Washington Post says that all these frills were done so that relations with rich countries remain intact and diplomatic relations along with the economy remain good.
Separate department to stop religious fanaticism
The image of the country, which despite being Muslim, remained away from fundamentalism, became brighter when the government there created the Ministry of Tolerance and Coexistence.
This Abu Dhabi-based ministry emphasizes on living together. It also ensures that people of all religions can make full use of their religious freedom. It is a different matter that this ministry was also accused of turning a blind eye to Muslim extremism. Many researchers believe that moderate Islam is actually a way to maintain political relations.
Many rules and regulations for the common Muslim citizen also
Before accepting donations or distributing books or audios in mosques, permission has to be taken from the local administration. From time to time, the administration itself checks what the Imam is saying in the Friday Prayer. Even religious education cannot be given outside mosques.
Strictness shown against terrorist groups
There is no doubt that UAE has kept a tight control on terrorism within its country. In the year 2011, when incidents like coups and rebellions were taking place throughout the Middle East, this country started a campaign against Islamic extremism. One after another, he banned many groups which were suspected to be capable of causing riots or inciting people.
ban on muslim brotherhood
Through its anti-terrorism law, it banned the Muslim Brotherhood organization. Egypt’s oldest and largest Islamic organization has been accused of wanting to bring Islamic law to the entire world including Arabia. The organization was also accused of promoting terrorism. Along with banning this, UAE also eliminated every organization which was connected to it.
But there is another aspect to it also. Even though UAE has not allowed terrorist groups to flourish within itself, it is accused of funding terror in many Muslim countries including Pakistan and Afghanistan so that they keep other countries weak. Many times its name also came up in foreign funding to terrorist groups.
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