Religion And The Refugees

It is something not happened in last two decades – closing of European borders. Some of countries have gone on to implement partial border suspension: Austria was the first one and Denmark and Germany followed the suit. Syrian refugee crisis has been transformed into a European crisis, and Europe is facing both moral and political pressure at the same time. It is predicted that given the migration of hundreds and thousands of Syrian refugees south ward into Europe may result in breaking of Schengen agreemnent. The European leaders now face a dilemma of either crumbling under political and social pressure coming from their countries or bow down to the moral pressure of taking hundreds and thousands of refugees. Time is now for Europe, either to open borders within or close borders without.

Angela Market has been greatly praised for her humanistic magnanimity as she announced to accept all Syrian refugees, ignoring clauses of ‘Dublin system’. Under the system the refugees are supposed to get status of asylum seekers from the country in which they first entered. However, Germany has temporarily suspended this clause. Perhaps, it was too optimistic to take 800,000 of refugees and 500,000 every year.

Notwithstanding the magnanimity of Angela Market, rests of the European states have not been to accepting of the refugees. Even the Germans had enough of it; on September 13^th it was promulgated officially that it can no longer cope up with the influx. By the same token, in this hour of great human tragedy, a Hungarian camera-woman was witnessed to have kicked few kids and tripped a desperate man with his son in his arms. One wonders why is there so much antipathy even at the time human sufferings of such a scale. Does not the earth belong to God, and we all have inherited it and in the end He is the possessor of the heavens and the earth.

Donald Trump is another person of his like, aspiring to be the Republican candidate for Presidency. He has gone wild against Mexican immigrants who are now citizens of America for decades. Trump said in a statement, that when Mexico does not send its best breed to America, in fact it sends people who have lots of problems and they bring those problems in here, such as problems related with drugs, crimes. Rape, and some of them, I assume are nice people. In fact, it would not be unjustified to conclude that such a Scrooge attitude towards immigrated communities and refugees is evident on both sides of the Atlantic.

The fact is every religious scripture emphasizes the message of mercy and empathy for fellow human beings at the time of tribulation. I as a Muslim have not problem in quoting a verse from Bible: in Mathew 25:31-46, it entails, “When the Son of Man comes in His glory … All the nations will be gathered before Him, and He will separate them one from another, as a shepherd divides his sheep from the goats. And He will set the sheep on His right hand, but the goats on the left.”

One who happens to be sheep at the time of reckoning - would be good news for him. God would ask those to his right to inherit the kingdom that He has prepared for them in return of their good work on the earth. God would, henceforth tell them that they gave Him food when He was hungry; water when He was thirsty; and accepted Him when He was stranger to them; covered Me with clothes when He had nothing to cover Himself up; they visited Me when He was sick and in prison. The righteous sheep would naturally be surprised after hearing Owner of the ‘Heavens and the Earth’. The righteous would in turn say: God! When did we give you food when You were hungry; water when You were thirsty; so on and so forth. God would reply, verily you gave me all those things, inasmuch as you gave all these to one of your fellow brethren on earth, you gave all this to me.

In comparison with the sheep, it would not be a good time to be a goat, as God would say to them: “Then He will also say to those on the left hand, ‘Depart from Me, you cursed, into the everlasting fire prepared for the devil and his angels: for I was hungry and you gave Me no food; I was thirsty and you gave Me no drink; I was a stranger and you did not take Me in, naked and you did not clothe Me, sick and in prison and you did not visit Me.’

Those who did not care of God’s commandments regarding feeding the poor and hungry, would innocently ask God: when did they not give Him food, when He was hungry, water when He was thirsty, so on and so forth. God would reply; inasmuch as you did not do this to your brethren on earth, you did not do this to me. Therefore, the fire of hell waits you in turn what you did on earth.

Islam has same message for those who neglect poor and the needy; in fact Islam has explained the rights of the fellow human beings in great detail. There are two kinds of rights in Islam: the rights of God known as Huqooq-ul-Allah and then there are rights of people known as ‘Huqooq-ul-ebad’. God has told Muslims that He can compromise if His rights are neglected, but you should be observing rights religiously granted to your fellow human beings, not just Muslims.

Allah (swt) would say on the day of Qayama’ (The Judgment Day): “O son of Adam, I was sick but you did not visit Me”. Upon this, the person would reply, O! Master of the heavens and the earth, how could we visit you, Allah (swt) would reply in turn, that didn't you know about someone of servant who was sick, but you did not visit him. Had you visited him, you would have found me through visiting him.

Any person of a conscience would be appalled at the reaction that some people have to the issue of immigration. However, it is also possible that he may become victim of a political game; which always creates a justification of a harsh attitude towards migrants. But religious persons would truly be dismayed at the moral turpitude of political leaders and people who go on to debase their fellow human beings at the time of such a tragedy. Both undocumented immigrants of America that Trump believes are turning it into a ‘dumping ground’, and refugees who are swamping Europe, have two things in common. It is undeniable that they want to better their lives; a life free of hunger, fear and repression, so they take enormous risks even to the extent of passing rough terrain.

There is saying, what goes around come around, so the society that treats its immigrant community badly in terms of accepting them grudgingly, and makes it difficult for them to integrate. The consequences are dire for both the majority and minority – making latter as the victim at the hands of majority and as consequence it does not integrate well into the host society. Americans have handled immigrants well and they have integrated well in to their society and that is why American immigrants have fewer problems with these communities. In contrast, Europeans are struggling with them, and have experienced home grown terrorism much more than America. It is a different debate altogether that America after all is country of immigrants, while European identity is stronger as it does not completely embrace immigrant communities. Europeans have always regarded nationalities as a matter of religion, blood and land to the extent that those who have been living in Europeans countries for decades are still considered culturally foreigners.

Psychologically, all humans wish to be respected and treated with dignity, even if they happen to be down and out socially, politically or economically. If migrants victim of all sorts of troubles of political persecution, economic hard ships, war and natural disasters find their host as amiable. It enhances their loyalty for the host country and their ill-treatment may do just opposite.

While the societies who make the path of integration easy for their immigrant communities end up finding those communities more loyal, happy and prosperous. Thus, if compared with their counterparts in Europe – foreign born and second generation Muslim communities have low support for terrorism and extremism. Moreover, American Muslims are wealthier and optimistic about their future than European Muslims, thought it has be mentioned that – each European country has a different program of integration of Muslims in its mainstream society.

Even the Mexican immigrants; including undocumented Latinos, who so enrage Trump these days, are way happy in their adopted homes than minority communities of Europe. By the same token, children of the immigrants in Europe are likely to be discriminated than their parents, in comparison with children of minority communities of America. Furthermore, cultural heritage of American immigrants is either helpful or not relevant to when they go on to find the job, or want admission in schools etc. According to the various studies, American immigrants give more in return by paying more taxes in return what they get as governmental allowances. As it is implied by some studies, that immigrants are not cause of low wages of the Native Americans but boost it.

The Europe experienced home grown terrorism much more than America. It is a different debate altogether that America after all is country of immigrants, while European identity is stronger as it does not completely embrace immigrant communities. Europeans have always regarded nationalities as a matter of religion, blood and land to the extent that those who have been living in Europeans countries for decades are still considered culturally foreigners.

Psychologically, all humans wish to be respected and treated with dignity, even if they happen to be down and out socially, politically or economically. If migrants victim of all sorts of troubles of political persecution, economic hard ships, war and natural disasters find their host as amiable. It enhances their loyalty for the host country and their ill-treatment may do just opposite.