When Muslims commit violence

SO EFFECTIVELY has the campaign been waged to equate Muslims with terrorists that our first response whenever reading news about horrific acts of violence being committed by fellow Muslims is deep embarrassment, even shame. We squirm when we read reports about the great number of Muslims in Iraq being killed by Muslims of different groups and about those referred to as Taliban fighters in Afghanistan beheading hostages.

We take silent affront when some loudmouth ignoramus throw about the words "Islamist terrorism" but we are bowing our heads down over such incidents because we are so out of our depth. We cannot bring ourselves to say that "Islam is the religion of peace" and unjustified violence is simply wrong - because we do not know what had justified the violence or whether there had indeed been justifications.

But we should speak up. We are increasingly being educated about justifications and how the allied forces' engagement in those areas is growing less justified by day. Never mind the statements of some US and British officials that the war in Iraq has been lost or that the engagement in Iraq was never about terrorism - those wars should not have started in the first place and created all this chain of violence.

We are, for instance, learning there is truth in the opinions that military might alone cannot lead the allied forces to "victory over terrorism". Scholars have recommended that Nato launch a different approach in Afghanistan even if that means opening dialogs with the Taliban leaders. The International Herald Tribune and The New York Times earlier this month ran an interesting report written by CJ Shivers about how the Dutch troops deployed in Uruzgan Province of Afghanistan chose to shun combat and, instead, launched a "counterinsurgency tactic" emphasising on efforts to improve Afghan living conditions and self-governance. "Bloodshed is out. Reconstruction, mentoring and diplomacy are in," Shivers said.

US military officials have expressed unease about the Dutch method, warning that if the Taliban are not kept under military pressure in Uruzgan, they will use the province as a haven and project their insurgency into neighbouring provinces. The Dutch countered that construction projects and consistent political and social support will lure the population from the Taliban, allowing the central and provincial governments to expand their authority over the long term.

The central idea of the approach is that if foreign military forces show restraint and respect, and help the local government to govern, then these areas will expand, slowly but persistently, like an oil stain across a shirt.

By no means is this theory new, but when we read that we think, "so, there is an alternative" to waging an all-out war which has not brought about anything but suffering and loss of lives and properties. We also think, "Why do such reports come only so far and few in between? Why are there more stories about these extremists or those militants screaming for our attention in the news? Why are the victims of those who started the wars turning into blurry statistics and yet the violence continues shamelessly?"

This has taught us to be really discerning and take actions to verify when news about such violence comes our way, lest we harm people in ignorance, and afterwards we become regretful of what we have done. We do not condone violence but Muslims' stance over it should be as has been taught in the Quran. "Fight in the cause of God those who fight you, but do not transgress limits; for God loveth not transgressors. Let there be no hostility except to those who practise oppression."