Wave of mosque closures, demolitions targets Angola’s Muslim minority

[aymaan noor]

Wave of mosque closures, demolitions targets Angola’s Muslim minority



Nov. 25, 2013

CAIRO and LISBON: Over 60 mosques have been closed or demolished in predominantly Christian Angola over the last two months, in a government initiative ostensibly targeting mosques built without authorization. International media reports since Sunday claim Angola has “banned” Islam, and the country’s Muslim minority feels it is being targeted.

The Muslim community in Angola has yet to receive official recognition from the government, as many are believed to be illegal immigrants and consequently do not contribute to the 100,000 members required by the government to constitute a practicing religion.

Official documents dated Sept. 26 – of which The Cairo Post has obtained copies – ordered the demolition of a mosque in Viana’s Zango-I neighborhood, in Luanda province. Signed by Viana’s municipal administration, the document notifies the head of the mosque that they had 72 hours to carry out the “voluntary demolition” of the mosque and remove any leftover debris from the site. According to the demolition order, the mosque was “built without express authorization from the local government of Viana.”

Voice of America reporter Coque Mukuta has been in direct contact with Muslim communities across Angola, and confirmed to The Cairo Post that over 60 mosques have been closed or demolished. While The Cairo Post has been unable to obtain numbers on how many mosques were demolished versus closed, Mukuta said mosques in several locations were affected, including Luanda and Moxico. A few mosques in Benguela and Luanda are still operational.

According to the Association of Religion Data Archives, Muslims make up 1.09 percent of Angola’s approximately 13 million population. The Muslims residing in Angola are mostly migrants from West Africa. However, Muslim sources quoted in the 2012 U.S. government’s International Religious Freedom Report suggest there may be as many as 500,000 in Angola. The number is difficult to confirm as many of the country’s Muslims are said to have unclear immigration status, according to the report.

While the Angolan government is citing legal technicalities for the closures and demolitions, the Angolan Constitution guarantees freedom of conscience, worship and religion as inviolable rights. It declares that the secular state of Angola “shall protect [...] places and objects of worship” (article 10).

However, religious groups are required to apply for legal status with the Ministries of Justice and Culture to secure, among other benefits, the right to build schools and places of worship. One requirement to qualify for legal status is a minimum membership of 100,000 adult adherents. The Central Mosque of Luanda, which represents Angola’s Muslim community, has reportedly come close to meeting the membership requirement, but has not yet obtained legal status. The 2008 International Religious Freedom Report explained that the “Muslim community in particular is affected by this numerical limitation, as many of its adherents are believed to be illegal immigrants and therefore do not count towards the legal minimum.”

Obtaining the minimum membership requirement is one obstacle impeding Angola’s Muslim community from enjoying freedom of religion and worship, according to a 2012 report by UN Special Rapporteur on Freedom of Religion or Belief Heiner Bielefeldt.

“Our country has a constitution that guarantees freedom of worship and of religion,” David Já, head of the Islamic Community of Angola (COIA), told Angolan newspaper OPAIS. “If this is in our legal system, I see no reason for illegally closing the mosques.”

The local Muslim community believes it is intentionally being targeted by the wave of closures and “voluntary” demolitions, community members told Mukuta. While the government cites legal technicalities, the Muslim community believes the real reason their houses of worship are being targeted is because Angolan society – and the government – believes they are “terrorists,” they said.

“The terrorist argument is raised by the Muslims [themselves]. But it is a known fact that the Angolan government is afraid of radicalism,” Mukuta told The Cairo Post. “People here tell me that I am defending them in vain, as they are suicidal.”

[لافانيا]

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[محمدالجهينى]

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