South African Muslims scoff at USA dinner

Original Post Date: 2003-11-24  Posted By: Jan

From the News Archives of: WWW.AfricanCrisis.Org
Date & Time Posted: 11/24/2003 7:12:27 AM
South African Muslims scoff at USA dinner

American efforts to build bridges with the South African Muslim community by inviting representatives to dinner on Monday night have been met with outrage.

The “Iftaar Dinner”, as it is being called by the American government, was introduced at US missions worldwide last year. It is part of a new White House initiative to get Muslims to understand that the US is not anti-Islam. Iftaar is at sunset, when Muslims break their daily fast during the holy month of Ramadan, which is expected to end with the sighting of the new moon on Tuesday.

But Muslims around South Africa are mortified at the suggestion of breaking bread with Americans, whose policies they find offensive, with some in Durban remarking they would rather drink poison.

Muslim Youth Movement national president Naeem Jeenah has called on all Muslims not to accept the Americans’ invitation.

‘We don’t see how Muslims can break the fast with the same people who oppressed them’
“This is simple a public relations job and photo opportunities for Americans. We don’t see how Muslims can break the fast with the same people who oppressed them for years.

“In the light of the Americans’ aggression in Iraq, as well as their financing of the apartheid wall in Palestine, we don’t think we can sit and eat with them,” Jeenah said.

Arabic Study Circle chairman Abdul Aziz said there was no chance that Muslims would sit around a table with Americans.

“We are not going to accept the invitation. Muslims worldwide have declared war against the Americans. They have caused us so much pain, so how can we eat from the same plate with our enemies?” Aziz said.

Islamic Relief Fund director Soraya Hassim said the invitation was a joke.

‘I think no Muslim should attend this supper’
“After the killings of so many children and sufferings of people in Iraq and Afghanistan, how can Muslims accept the invitation?”

“I think no Muslim should attend this supper,” Hassim said.

University of Durban Westville academic Suleman Dangor said he had turned down his invitation.

“This is an expression of the fact that we Muslims find the US policy in Iraq and Palestine distasteful. This must be seen as a symbol of protest against the United States occupying Muslim countries and arming Israel, which is killing Muslims in Palestine,” he said.

Dangor said that he would find it difficult to attend the dinner and pretend that no killing was going on in Palestine, Iraq or Afghanistan.

Rafeek Hassan, of the Islamic Propagation Centre International, said he had also refused an invitation.

“The US needs to be told that their policies in Muslim countries, especially in Palestine, are unacceptable. I cannot see myself having dinner at their invitation when people are being killed,” said Hassan.

Durban’s internationally acclaimed Muslim caterer, Manjaras, was contacted to prepare Monday’s meals. But Haroon Mahomed Manjara said on Sunday his father Solly had declined to prepare the meal.

“The Americans approached us in a very roundabout way. A woman telephoned but did not tell us that she was ordering the food for the US government. The next thing we heard an announcement on the Muslim radio station that we were supplying the food.”

“The community is not going to be impressed with us. Now we’re not doing the cooking, no matter what.”

Judy Moon, spokesperson for the US embassy in Pretoria, said she did not know what all the fuss was about. She said the consul-general’s dinner in Durban would go ahead.

Moon said the US ambassador in Pretoria and US consuls-general in Johannesburg and Cape Town – the latter a Muslim – had been holding similar dinners throughout Ramadan.

This article was originally published on page 4 of The Pretoria News on November 24, 2003

Source: IOL
URL: http://www.iol.co.za/index.php?click_id=6&art…br>

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