The History of the Rohingya Crisis - Shaykh Ahsan Hanif

Khutbah al-Jumuah: The History of the Rohingya Crisis

إِنَّ الْحَمْدَ لِلَّهِ تَعَالَى نَحْمَدُهُ وَنَسْتَعِينُهُ وَنَسْتَغْفِرُهُ وَنَعُوذُ بِاللَّهِ مِنْ شُرُورِ أَنْفُسِنَا وَمِنْ سَيِّئَاتِ أَعْمَالِنَا مَنْ يَهْدِهِ اللَّهُ فَلَا مُضِلَّ لَهُ وَمَنْ يُضْلِلْ فَلَا هَادِيَ لَهُ وَأَشْهَدُ أَنْ لَا إِلَهَ إِلَّا اللَّهُ وَحْدَهُ لَا شَرِيكَ لَهُ وَأَشْهَدُ أَنَّ مُحَمَّدًا عَبْدُهُ وَرَسُولُهُ صَلَّى اللَّهُ عَلَيْهِ وَعَلَى آلِهِ وَصَحْبِهِ وَسَلَّمَ تَسْلِيمًا كَثِيرًا

أَمَّا بَعْدُ، فَإِنَّ أَصْدَقَ الْحَدِيثِ كِتَابُ اللَّهِ تَعَالَى، وَخَيْرَ الْهُدَى هُدَى مُحَمَّدٍ صَلَّى اللَّهُ عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ، وَشَرَّ الْأُمُورِ مُحْدَثَاتُهَا، وَكُلَّ مُحْدَثَةٍ بِدْعَةٌ، وَكُلَّ بِدْعَةٍ ضَلَالَةٌ، وَكُلَّ ضَلَالَةٍ فِي النَّارِ.

Over the past few weeks, most members of our community have been in Mecca and in Arafah and in Mina performing the Hajj, and whilst the rest of us have been busy with our families in the Eid al-Adha celebrations, there is a situation that is unfolding and developing on a daily basis — something that we're aware of, that we've seen in the news, that we've heard and we've come across — and that is the Rohingya crisis that is taking place in what was formerly known as Burma and today is called Myanmar.

This is an issue that we've been seeing developing on our news channels, articles online, newspapers and so on and so forth, and many of us — rightly so — we feel helpless to a certain extent in terms of what we should do, living so far away, so many thousands of miles away, but seeing the oppression that is taking place.

And this is something which links to the Hajj, because one of the lessons of the Hajj that we learn from the farewell advice and the farewell sermon of our Prophet — صَلَّى اللَّهُ عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ — is that oppression, in all of its forms, irrespective of who the perpetrator is and irrespective of who the victims are, oppression in all of its forms is something which this religion has made haram.

Indeed, Allah mentioned in the hadith al-qudsi, as our Prophet said — صَلَّى اللَّهُ عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ — that Allah said:

"O My slaves, indeed I have made oppression haram upon Myself, and I have made it haram amongst you, so do not oppress one another."
(Sahih Muslim, Book 45, Hadith 2577)

Our Prophet — صَلَّى اللَّهُ عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ — when he was speaking to over a hundred thousand Muslim companions in that farewell Hajj — the single largest, greatest gathering of Muslims during the life of the Prophet — as he was giving his farewell sermon and advice, one of the things that he spoke about was oppression and how oppression should be lifted. He said — صَلَّى اللَّهُ عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ:

"Indeed your blood, your wealth, and your honor are sacred amongst you, just as this day is sacred, and this month is sacred, and this land is sacred."
(Sahih al-Bukhari, Hadith 1739; Sahih Muslim, Book 29, Hadith 1679)

Oppression in all of its forms is something which Islam does not accept. So when it comes to this unfolding situation of our Rohingya brothers and sisters — how do we respond and what should we do? I have a few pieces of advice that I would like to share with you in this khutbah al-Jumuah.

1. Educate Ourselves and Raise Awareness

The first, and perhaps one of the most important things that we should do, is educate ourselves and raise awareness amongst ourselves as to what is exactly going on there. What is this crisis about? It is not something which is new. It is not something which only started a few weeks or a few months ago. It is something which has been running for decades. What is the history of those people that live there? What are their claims? What is the oppression that they are suffering currently? These things we need to educate ourselves about.

Yes, it is true that we also need to raise awareness politically — locally, nationally, internationally — but before we can do that, we ourselves need to be educated and reminded. We need to learn ourselves. It is a principle of our religion that we have feelings and empathy towards the situation of others — other Muslims — no matter how far they are, no matter where they may be in the world. We have empathy towards their situation, to learn about their situation, to learn about their details, and to learn about the difficulties that they are suffering. It is part of our religion.

Our Prophet told us in the famous hadith:

"The example of the Muslims in their mutual love, their mutual affection, and their mutual care is like the example of a single body. If a single part of that body — a single limb — feels pain, then the rest of that body stays awake with fatigue and with fever."
(Sahih al-Bukhari, Hadith 6011; Sahih Muslim, Book 45, Hadith 2586)

It is something which affects us all, and it is something which we also need to question ourselves about — when the situation of those brothers and sisters, the Rohingya brothers and sisters of Myanmar and Burma, when their situation and their exact dynamics are something which we're not very familiar with, whereas at the same time we have so much exposure to other conflicts that Muslims are also suffering across the world. We are generally more educated and more aware of the situation of our brothers and sisters in, for example, Palestine, and in Syria, and in Somalia, and Kashmir and other places, than we are of the situation of those brothers and sisters of the Rohingya community. And that doesn't mean that we should downplay those other conflicts or say they are less important, but it also means that we should raise our levels of awareness and our levels of education concerning this current crisis.

Also, if you look at the Quran, one of the things that you will find is that the Prophets of Allah — they would be interested in learning about the situation of the people that they would encounter, especially when they thought that there was some type of oppression going on. It is part of our religion. In the stories of Musa — not on one occasion but on a number of occasions — when he comes across incidents that take place in his life in which he feels that there is some level of wrong, injustice, oppression taking place, he is someone who puts himself forward to learn and to educate himself about what is going on.

When he flees from Egypt, afraid for his life, as Allah mentions in the Quran, and he comes to the place of Madyan — a place where he would later get married and settle down — Allah describes this. He says: when he came to the place of Madyan, the people were watering their flocks of sheep — the men had their flocks and they were watering at the watering hole — and Musa — عَلَيْهِ السَّلَامُ — saw two women standing by the side. He saw that the situation wasn't right; something doesn't seem right. So instead of ignoring what's going on, minding his own business — because he is a refugee, someone who is fleeing from another land, afraid for his life — he goes to those two women and he says:

"What is your situation?" — because it doesn't make sense. And when they tell him that they are two women against a group of men and they don't want to jostle with them at the watering hole, and they have an elderly father, he went himself and he took their flocks of sheep and he watered them for them.

In the story of al-Khidr — عَلَيْهِ السَّلَامُ — the stories that we read on Friday in Surah al-Kahf, when those two Prophets of Allah together go and they travel from one place to another, every time Musa — عَلَيْهِ السَّلَامُ — sees something — even though he has agreed not to question al-Khidr, not to speak, it is one of the conditions he accepted for being able to accompany him — but when he sees something that doesn't seem right, when he sees something that seems wrong, he cannot help but speak. So when they are both upon the ship and al-Khidr — عَلَيْهِ السَّلَامُ — begins to scuttle the ship and pull up the planks, Musa — even though he had made an agreement — cannot stay quiet and he says:

"Did you scuttle the ship so that its people may drown?" He cannot stay quiet. It is part of our religion to learn about the situation of people — no matter how far they may be — because of the links of iman that we have with them, the bonds of brotherhood that exist amongst us. It is part of our religion.

Our Prophet told us:

"The Muslims are equal in terms of their blood."
(Sunan Abu Dawud, Book 40, Hadith 4530; Sunan Ibn Majah, Book 21, Hadith 2683)

All of them are equal. All of them. No one has more right to your attention and your awareness than someone else. Every one of them has a right upon you. So we need to educate ourselves.

The History of Islam in Burma

The Rohingya community of Burma — they have lived there for centuries. There was a dynasty, a Muslim dynasty, a Muslim kingdom in that region called the Arakan dynasty. This is something which you can Google, you can find on Wikipedia — it is not difficult to find out. The Arakan dynasty existed from the years 1430 to 1785. But Islam began in that region many centuries before — in the 9th century CE, Islam began to spread in that region, in the Abbasid times, under the khilafah of Harun al-Rashid, rahimahullah, and other khulafa of the Abbasids — the same time when Islam began to spread in other parts of the world through trade routes, through businessmen and traders. Muslims who would go from Arabia and the Muslim lands, they would go to the Indian subcontinent and they would go to the Far East, where today we have Muslim communities in Malaysia, in the Philippines, in Indonesia. They would go on what we call the Silk trade route — they would travel, they would do commerce, they would do business. And as those Muslims who went to those lands of Malaysia and Indonesia, because of their akhlaq and because of their character, because of their honesty and integrity in their business dealings, Islam settled in that area and it flourished — until today those regions and those countries are Muslim countries.

Likewise, in what was formerly known as Burma, those Muslims used to go and travel — Arabs, Persian Muslims, people who had accepted Islam in the Muslim areas in the Abbasid times — they would travel there and they would settle there. So Islam began to spread in that region and it continued to spread for hundreds of years until, in the year 1430, a Muslim dynasty and kingdom was established. It is known as the Arakan dynasty. It is around the same period of history — for those of you who know your history of the Indian subcontinent — as the era of the Mughal Empire and the Bengal Sultanate. Around the same time, 1430, they established that dawlah, that kingdom, in what was called — and what is now called — Burma. Its first ruler was a man by the name of Sulaiman Shah. There are historical artifacts that show that a masjid was built around that era. There are currencies — coins that you can still find from that era — upon which it says the kalimah:

And other coins and currency that carry the names of the Khulafa — Abu Bakr, Umar, Uthman, Ali — رَضِيَ اللَّهُ عَنْهُمْ أَجْمَعِينَ. It was a Muslim kingdom, and it stayed there and it flourished for over 300 years, until the year 1785.

But in the year 1785, that kingdom was overtaken — it was conquered by the Burmese kingdom. The Burmese kingdom in 1785 only lasted for a hundred years until the British would later go on and conquer those lands. But the point of this is to show how old Islam is in that region, and how those people who today are known as the Rohingya community are not people who just came there a year ago, or 100 years ago, or 200 years ago. They have 1,200 years of history in that region — 1,200 years of Islam.

After World War II, the British still had Burma, and then they gave it independence in 1948. And shortly after that, the government of Burma — what was known as Burma in those times — it began to oppress our brothers and sisters of the Rohingya community. So today, those people in that area — what is now Myanmar — they don't have the right to higher education; they cannot go to college or university. They don't have the right to free movement. They don't even have citizenship. They are denied the rights of citizenship, let alone free movement — they cannot travel, they don't have passports, they don't have citizenship.

And for those of us that live here in this country, and for those of us that travel for Hajj, and those of us that travel generally — we know how important it is in this day and age to have citizenship, how easy it makes your life. Those people are denied the rights of citizenship. They are denied many other rights as well. They are often forced into hard labor where they have to go and work on government projects and other projects with little to no reward, little to no pay, little to no food and drink in return. They are suffering oppression, and they've been suffering this oppression for many, many years — decades.

Those people go through a daily basis, a daily grind, facing those difficulties and that oppression. This is something that we need to know about and something that we need to research. I don't have the time in this short khutbah to go through the full history of the Arakan dynasty or the history of the Rohingya community, but it is something that we should do — something that we should take the onus upon ourselves to learn about. Just as we have exposure to the other things going on across the world, we should have exposure to this crisis as well.

The United Nations calls them one of the most friendless people in the world — one of the most friendless people, meaning no one is standing up for them, no one is speaking for their rights, no one is championing their cause, because there are people who are unaware of that situation. We as Muslims, at the very least, should be aware of what is going on.

2. Have Faith That Allah Holds Oppressors to Account

The second thing that we should do is understand — and it is part of our religion also to know — that Allah always brings balance, that Allah always holds to account the oppressors, and that Allah always gives victory to the oppressed. It is one of the sunan of Allah — one of the universal laws that Allah has built within His universe — that the oppressors are always held to account. If not in this life, then on the Day of Judgment. And those people who are oppressed — Allah always helps them and brings relief to their situation and to their causes.

Our Prophet — صَلَّى اللَّهُ عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ — in the early days of Mecca, when the Muslims were weak and their resources were limited and their numbers were few, he would go and seek out the situation of his companions. He would see the companions being tortured and oppressed. He saw the likes of Sumayyah and Yasir being martyred before his eyes. He knew what was taking place with other companions like Bilal and the torture that he suffered. Other companions who were poor and weak would come to the Prophet — صَلَّى اللَّهُ عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ — and say: "Will you not make du'a for us, O Messenger of Allah? Will you not seek Allah's aid and help for us?"

The Prophet was aware, but he also knew from Allah that Allah holds the oppressors to account. Allah says in the Quran:

"Do not think that Allah is heedless or forgetful concerning that which the oppressors do, but rather Allah only delays them till that day" — meaning the Day of Judgment — "in which their eyes will be wide open; they will see the terrors and the horrors of the Day of Judgment and the punishment that awaits them on that Day of Yawm al-Qiyamah." But Allah is not unaware and Allah is not heedless.

Our role is to do what is within our capability — what is halal, what is legal, what is permissible for us. That is our role in this crisis. To have that iman that Allah will right that situation, that Allah will make things easy — it is part of our religion.

The Prophet — صَلَّى اللَّهُ عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ — would always stand up for the rights of the oppressed. He would speak out against it — at the very least he would speak out about the oppression that they were facing. And the Prophet would pay extra care and attention to the weak amongst his community — the poor, the freed slaves, the women, the children, the elderly, the sick, the disabled. These were people that the Prophet — صَلَّى اللَّهُ عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ — would give special attention to.

In what is recorded by al-Imam al-Bukhari, one day Abu Bakr — رَضِيَ اللَّهُ عَنْهُ — was sitting along with Bilal, Suhaib, and Salman al-Farisi — رَضِيَ اللَّهُ عَنْهُمْ أَجْمَعِينَ. These are the poor companions from amongst the Muslim community. Abu Bakr has his own status in our religion, but they saw — as they were sitting — Abu Sufyan, who at that time was the leader of Quraysh and still a non-Muslim, pass by. So the three poor companions said: "The time has not yet come for us to take off the head of the enemy of Allah — we haven't been able to deal with this man who has persecuted us so much."

Abu Bakr — رَضِيَ اللَّهُ عَنْهُ — became angry and upset and said to them: "How dare you say this about the leader of Quraysh?" So Abu Bakr got up and went to the Prophet — صَلَّى اللَّهُ عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ — and relayed this incident to him. And the Prophet said to him:

"O Abu Bakr, perhaps you have upset them. And if you have upset them, then indeed you have upset your Lord."
(Sahih Muslim, Book 45, Hadith 2504)

Such are the rights of the poor — that Allah becomes upset because of their hurt, and Allah defends them and He answers the du'as that they make. They have a role within our community and they have a position in the sight of Allah.

When people would come to the Prophet — صَلَّى اللَّهُ عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ — delegations, groups of people — the Prophet would say to them:

"Bring forth the weak amongst you, the oppressed amongst you — for indeed you are given help and aid by Allah, and you are given provision (rizq) from Allah, because of those poor people."
(Sahih al-Bukhari, Hadith 2896)

It is because of their du'as, it is because of their poverty, it is because of their need, that Allah answers your supplications — that Allah brings rain from the heavens, that Allah brings you provision. So the Prophet — صَلَّى اللَّهُ عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ — not only would he be aware, but he would also look after the situation of those people.

3. Make Du'a for Them

The third thing that we can do is to make du'a for them — sincere du'a. Not a du'a that you are only reminded of during the khutbah, or when you see something on the news, but a du'a that should be made constantly and regularly. It is a du'a that you should be making every day and every evening — that Allah helps not only them, but all of the people who are being oppressed. It is a part of our religion to make du'a.

When the Prophet — صَلَّى اللَّهُ عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ — again in those early Meccan days, saw the situation and plight of the Muslims and didn't have the resources to help them — no army at his disposal, no wealth and money — all he could do was speak to them, offer them comfort, and make du'a for them. When he saw the family of Yasir being tortured and oppressed before they were martyred, he passed by them and said to them:

"Be patient, O family of Yasir, for indeed your appointed place is Jannah — your promise from Allah is Paradise."
(Al-Hakim, Al-Mustadrak, Hadith 5652; reported also in Musnad Ahmad)

And that is something which we should do as well — to make du'a for those people and those communities. It is an obligation upon us to ask that Allah helps them and aids them and assists them, that Allah protects their wealth and their families and their honor and their blood, that Allah protects their possessions and their homes. It is something which is part of our religion.

4. Help Financially

Number four — to help people financially. Those people are in dire need and they need our financial assistance. They need us to come forward and step up and help them. The Prophet — صَلَّى اللَّهُ عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ — would make du'a and he would say:

"O Allah, I beseech You for the rights of the two weak ones amongst my community — the women and the orphans."
(Sunan Ibn Majah, Book 9, Hadith 3678)

And the Prophet said — صَلَّى اللَّهُ عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ:

"The one who strives to help the widow is like the one who makes jihad in the path of Allah, or the one who spends all night in prayer and all day fasting."
(Sahih al-Bukhari, Hadith 5353; Sahih Muslim, Book 45, Hadith 2982)

And the Prophet told us — صَلَّى اللَّهُ عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ — in yet another hadith:

"Whosoever is in the help of their fellow brother or sister, then Allah will be in their aid."
(Sahih al-Bukhari, Hadith 2442; Sahih Muslim, Book 45, Hadith 2580)

By you helping them — giving what you can, spending what you can, donating what you can — it is one of the rights that they have upon you, but it is also one of the means of bringing Allah's blessings upon yourself and your family.

We have an appeal going today — an announcement was made before the Jumu'ah khutbah began — and after the Jumu'ah khutbah we have an appeal, as today's collection will go towards those brothers and sisters, the Rohingya community. Give what you can and spend what you can — food parcels, shelter, whatever it is that you are able to provide. There are hundreds of thousands of them now who have left and gone to Bangladesh as refugees, who have nothing, who are living in the most basic of conditions, with no clean sanitation, no access to clean water, very little means and resources at their disposal. To help them, to spend — it is something which I would strongly implore you to do, especially today as we have a collection going.

A Balanced Approach

Finally, my dear brothers and sisters in Islam — it is important that when we come across these situations across the world, wherever they may be, we have a balanced approach towards them. We know what our religion says. We know the teachings of the Quran and the Sunnah of our Prophet, and we know how to deal with these events. It is important — not only for us but also for our communities.

We ask Allah that He relieves the oppression and the difficulty of our brothers and sisters in that part of the world, and that Allah helps all of the oppressed people, and that Allah protects their wealth and their honor and their blood and their families and their properties and their possessions.

بَارَكَ اللَّهُ لِي وَلَكُمْ فِي الْقُرْآنِ وَالسُّنَّةِ، وَنَفَعَنِي وَإِيَّاكُمْ بِمَا فِيهِمَا مِنَ الْآيَاتِ وَالْحِكْمَةِ، أَقُولُ قَوْلِي هَذَا وَأَسْتَغْفِرُ اللَّهَ لِي وَلَكُمْ وَلِجَمِيعِ الْمُسْلِمِينَ مِنْ كُلِّ ذَنْبٍ، فَاسْتَغْفِرُوهُ إِنَّهُ هُوَ الْغَفُورُ الرَّحِيمُ

Second Khutbah

بِسْمِ اللَّهِ، وَالْحَمْدُ لِلَّهِ، وَالصَّلَاةُ وَالسَّلَامُ عَلَى رَسُولِ اللَّهِ، وَعَلَى آلِهِ وَصَحْبِهِ وَمَنْ وَالَاهُ، وَسَلَّمَ تَسْلِيمًا كَثِيرًا. أَمَّا بَعْدُ:

Educating Our Children

I want to end on a final point — going back to the initial benefit and advice that I mentioned: raising awareness. I think it is also important — extremely important — for us as a community to educate our children and to raise awareness of what is going on across the world with our children as well.

Often, when we see these images on TV or when these stories come to our attention, we try to shelter our children away from what's going on. And there is a balance to be had in that issue — we don't let them see the gore and the blood and those distressing images — but at the same time it is important for us to also educate our children, the future of our Ummah, that they too — as it is a part of our religion — should learn and become aware of the situation of people across the world. That they should learn to have that empathy, that care, and that affection towards those people who are suffering across the world. To educate them, to involve them in donating, to encourage them to raise money and to raise their awareness — it is something which is also important for us as Muslims in this community and within the UK as well.

We ask Allah that He makes this affair easy for us, and that Allah showers His blessings and His forgiveness upon us, that Allah keeps us safe from harm, and that Allah grants us safety within our communities, and that Allah protects us and our families and our children from evil and from the traps and harms of Shaitan. We ask that He helps all of our brothers and sisters across the world who are suffering, and that Allah makes their affairs easy for them, and that Allah brings to them His divine care, protection, and aid.

Surah al-Ghashiyah