Samoan Christian leaders distance themselves from calls to ban Islam

Transcript

Catholic Cathedral in Apia in Samoa Photo: RNZI/ Autagavaia Tipi Autagavaia

Christian leaders in Samoa have distanced themselves from calls to ban Islam, as muslim volunteers prepare to visit the country for dialogue.

Last month the secretary general of Samoa's National Council of Churches called for Islam to be banned, saying it was a threat, and the government needed to entrench Christianity in the constitution.

But after a backlash from Muslim groups, other Christian leaders are now speaking up.

Alex Perrottet reports.

Reverend Ma'auga Motu said the government needs to do more to recognise Christianity, and said Muslims, who make up 0.03 percent of the population, were a threat, and their religion should be banned.

Aarif Rasheed, a New Zealand-based volunteer worker and Muslim, says Samoa's government is more open-minded than that, as it just attended a G20 interfaith summit in Fiji.

He plans to help organise a forum with Samoan churches and hopes to bring them together on a common project.

People want to see real people coming together at the community level. Religion as a whole is facing a lot of criticism for being too controlling. And we need to respond by actually bringing real people together on real projects at a very very localised level where everyone can be involved.

Aarif Rasheed says the activity may include similar work he has done in the past such as ecological projects, or helping with nursing.

Another interfaith worker and Imam, Afroz Ali, who was born in Fiji, says there is ignorance about Islam, but this is a case about bigotry, not ignorance.

The very small number of people of influence who are pushing this kind of agenda actually do know better and they are simply exploiting the innocent minds and hearts of very good people in the Pacific islands and in this case, Samoa. This is more an agenda rather than something which is built on an legitimate and objective understanding of what religions and particularly Islam is all about.

The Catholic Archbishop of Samoa, Alapati Lui Mataeliga has distanced himself from the calls, and says his representative on the national council of churches didn't ask for his opinion on the matter.

I think it was just the council, those who run it, or the council, and the Catholic church is represented but I did not know about it. Our representative did not talk to me about it, I should know about it because it's not a small thing.

He says it's wrong to identify Islam and terrorism, and the best way forward for all religions is peaceful dialogue.

The Catholic Church is at the forefront of dialogue especially with non-Christian religions and I take that view too. I think we should open our hearts and our minds to Islam and not really to rush into condemning Islam just because of terrorists.

Archbishop Mataeliga says he'd be happy to work with the Muslim volunteers and help spread awareness of each other's religion.

He says there are many good people in all faiths and Samoans shouldn't give in to fear.