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2016 international conference on Sunni Islam in Grozny

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Chechnya Conference
International Conference Who are the Ahl al-Sunna?
Date25 August 2016 (2016-08-25)–
27 August 2016 (2016-08-27)
LocationGrozny, Chechnya, Russia
Also known asGrozny Conference
Chechnya Conference
The World Islamic Сonference 'Who are Ahl al-Sunnah wa al-Jama'ah?'
Organized byShaykh Ahmad Kadyrov
Regional Charitable Fund
Foundation for Chechen Islamic Culture and Education
Tabah Foundation
Muslim Council of Elders[1][2]
ParticipantsOver 200 Muslim scholars-theologians and religious leaders from various Islamic schools of thought from Egypt, Syria, Lebanon, Jordan, Yemen, Morocco, Kuwait, Sudan, Qatar, India, Indonesia, Malaysia, Britain, Russia, South Africa, Uzbekistan, and Azerbaijan[2][3][4][5]
Previous eventSufism: Personal Security and State Stability[6]
WebsiteOfficial website

The 2016 conference on Sunni Islam in Grozny was convened to define the term "Ahl al-Sunnah wa al-Jama'ah",[7] i.e. who are "the people of Sunnah and majority Muslim community",[8][Note 1] and oppose Takfiri groups.[10] The conference was held in the Chechen Republic capital of Grozny[11] from 25 to 27 August 2016, sponsored by the president of Chechnya, Ramzan Kadyrov, and attended by approximately 200 Muslim scholars from 30 countries, especially from Russia, Egypt, Syria, Libya, Kuwait, Sudan, Jordan, etc. at the invitation of Yemeni scholar, Ali al-Jifri.[7][12]

The conference was dedicated to the 65th anniversary of the birth of Kadyrov's father, Akhmad Kadyrov, the first President of Chechnya.[13][14]

The conference was notable for defining Sunni Islam in the final communiqué of the conference as including Ash'aris and Maturidis in theology (Aqidah), Hanafis, Shafi'is, Malikis and Hanbalis in jurisprudence (Fiqh), and people of spirituality (Sufis) - but not the Wahhabi or Salafi movements.[7][8] It condemned Salafism and Wahhabism as "misguided" sects, along with off-shoot extremist groups such as ISIS, Hizb ut-Tahrir, the Muslim Brotherhood and others.[3][15]

The conference definition stated:

“Ahl al-Sunnah wa al-Jama'ah are the Ash'aris and Maturidis (adherents of the theological systems of Imam Abu Mansur al-Maturidi and Imam Abu al-Hasan al-Ash'ari). In matters of belief, they are followers of any of the four schools of thought (Hanafi, Maliki, Shafi’i or Hanbali) and are also the followers of the Sufism of Imam Junaid al-Baghdadi in doctrines, manners and [spiritual] purification."[16]

Sunni Islam also includes the "Ahl al-Hadith" who adopt the principle of tafwid (Consignment). The definition further explained the true Athari position:

"The scholars who belonged to the Ahl al-Hadith adopted either the position of tafwīd on the issue of God’s attributes or the position of ta’wīl (interpretation), with tafwīd more commonly adopted. Both positions are validated by the Ash`ari and Maturidi schools. The anthropomorphists (mushabbiha) and the corporealists (mujassima) are those who interpreted the Quran’s ambiguous verses (mutashābih) in a literal sense and imputed a physical form to God. The Ahl al-Hadith did not legitimate anthropomorphism and corporealism as valid doctrinal positions. Cases where individual hadith scholars held these positions are rare exceptions and unrepresentative of the Ahl al-Hadith school as a whole."[17]

Participants

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Over 200 Muslim scholars-theologians and religious leaders from various Islamic schools of thought from 30 countries all over the world, including Egypt, Syria, Lebanon, Jordan, Yemen, Morocco, Libya, Kuwait, Sudan, Qatar, Iraq, India, Indonesia, Britain, Russia, South Africa, Uzbekistan, and Azerbaijan.[2][18][3][15][4][5][19]

Notable scholars and preachers in attendance included:[20][5][12]

Recommendations of the Conference

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The conference participants reflected their support for what in Russia is considered “traditional” Islam.[24] Some suggestions came out of the conference, including recommendations to:[18]

  • The establishment of a TV channel in Russia to counter Al-Jazeera, and "convey to people a truthful message of Islam and fight against extremism and terrorism."
  • The establishment of "a scientific centre in Chechnya to monitor and study contemporary groups... and refute and scientifically criticise extremist thought." The proposed name for the centre is Tabsir (clairvoyance).
  • The "return to the schools of great knowledge", such as: (Al-Azhar in Egypt, al-Qarawiyyin in Morocco, and al-Zaytuna in Tunisia, and the Hadramout in Yemen), excluding Saudi religious institutions, particularly the Islamic University of Madinah.
  • Scholarships would be provided for those who are interested in studying sharia to counter Saudi funding in this field.

Criticism

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The conference evoked a torrent of condemnation and criticism mostly from the Saudi Arabian establishment closely linked to the Saudi Kingdom such as the Saudi Council of Senior Scholars—as well as from the scholars of the Salafi, Wahhabi, and Ikhwani movements—for what they perceived as Russian meddling in regional politics via religion.[25][1][26] Twenty-one religious institutions across the world signed a petition of support to Salafis, expressing solidarity with them, emphasizing that the conference participants only represent themselves.[27]

The International Association of Muslim Scholars, an organization led by Muslim Brotherhood-linked Islamist Yusuf al-Qaradawi, reportedly criticized the conference as "a shameful attempt to sow dissent within the Muslim community."[13] The conference has also been widely criticised for toeing a Russian government line. Prominent Russian religious leaders avoided the conference in protest.[24] The chairman of the Spiritual Administration of Muslims of Moscow, Ildar Alyautdinov, expressed his disillusionment with the resolution of the conference.[28]

See also

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References

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Notes

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  1. ^ Sunni Muslims constituted about 85–90% of the world's Muslim population.[9]

Citations

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  1. ^ a b "Who Is Sunni?: Chechnya Islamic Conference Opens Window on Intra-Faith Rivalry". The Arab Gulf States Institute. 16 September 2016.
  2. ^ a b c "The Concluding Statement of the Chechnya Conference" (PDF). chechnyaconference.org.
  3. ^ a b c d "Chechnya Hosts International Islamic Conference". Jamestown. Jamestown Foundation.
  4. ^ a b "Grozny conference challenges the Saudis". Institute of Contemporary Islamic Thought.
  5. ^ a b c "Muktamar Ahlussunnah Wal-Jama'ah (Aswaja) Di Chechnya". Kanglatif.com.
  6. ^ "Islamic State Part Of Western Plot Against Islam, Says Chechen Leader". Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty. 6 February 2015.
  7. ^ a b c Kadhim, Abbas (2 November 2016). "The SUNNI CONFERENCE IN GROZNY: A MUSLIM INTRA-SECTARIAN STRUGGLE FOR LEGITIMACY". HuffPost. Retrieved 16 November 2017.
  8. ^ a b Cervellera, Bernardo (9 June 2016). "Conference in Grozny: Wahhabism exclusion from the Sunni community provokes Riyadh's wrath". AsiaNews.it. Retrieved 16 November 2017.
  9. ^ "Mapping the Global Muslim Population". 7 October 2009. Retrieved 10 December 2014.
  10. ^ Dehlvi, Ghulam Rasool (9 September 2016). "Islamic conference in Chechnya: Why Sunnis are disassociating themselves from Salafists". First Post. Retrieved 16 November 2017.
  11. ^ "مؤتمر الشيشان 2016". tabahfoundation.org. Archived from the original on 13 September 2017. Retrieved 16 November 2017.
  12. ^ a b "The Grozny Conference in Chechnya – Is the Salafi Movement a Rotten Fruit of Sunni Islam?". International Institute for Counter-Terrorism. Archived from the original on 7 March 2019. Retrieved 6 March 2019.
  13. ^ a b Fuller, Liz (26 September 2016). "Analysis: Grozny Fatwa On 'True Believers' Triggers Major Controversy". Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty.
  14. ^ "At Ramzan's: what is the reason for the Chechnya head gathering Islamic establishment of Russia in Grozny?". RealnoeVremya.com.
  15. ^ a b "The Conference of Ulama in Grozny: the Reaction of the Islamic World". islam.in.ua.
  16. ^ Ghaffari, Talib (11 September 2016). "Over 100 Sunni scholars declare Wahhabis to be outside mainstream Sunni Islam – Chechnya". Retrieved 16 November 2017.
  17. ^ "International Conference | Who are the Ahl al-Sunna?" (PDF).
  18. ^ a b "Conference in Grozny: Wahhabism exclusion from the Sunni community provokes Riyadh's wrath". AsiaNews.
  19. ^ "کنفرانس چچن خشم وهابیت را برانگیخت + تصاویر". AhlulBayt News Agency (ABNA). 7 September 2016.
  20. ^ "Over 100 Sunni scholars declare Wahhabis to be outside mainstream Sunni Islam – Chechnya". maktabah.org. 11 September 2016.
  21. ^ "40 عالما أزهريا يلحقون بالطيب للمشاركة في مؤتمر "أهل السنة" في الشيشان". Alghad TV. 25 August 2016.
  22. ^ a b "Islamic conference in Chechnya: Why Sunnis are disassociating themselves from Salafists". 9 September 2016.
  23. ^ "CMO head joins international conference in Chechnya [ PHOTO]". AzerNews.az. 29 August 2016.
  24. ^ a b Vatchagaev, Mairbek (22 September 2016). "Chechnya Hosts International Islamic Conference". Jamestown. Archived from the original on 14 May 2019.
  25. ^ "Saudi Arabia's Struggle for Sunni Leadership". The Cairo Review of Global Affairs. 11 September 2016.
  26. ^ "Who Is Sunni?: Chechnya Islamic Conference Opens Window on Intra-Faith Rivalry". The Arab Gulf States Institute. 16 September 2016.
  27. ^ Yakubovich, Mikhail (31 August 2016). "THE CONFERENCE OF ULAMA IN GROZNY: THE REACTION OF THE ISLAMIC WORLD". Archived from the original on 8 March 2018.
  28. ^ Vatchagaev, Mairbek (22 September 2016). "Chechnya Hosts International Islamic Conference". Jamestown. Archived from the original on 14 May 2019.
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