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"Der Standard": Rama's idea for the Bektashi State is a dangerous precedent

Politiko 2024-09-25 09:38:41

"Der Standard": Rama's idea for the Bektashi State is a dangerous

From Der Standard

The latest project of the Albanian Prime Minister Edi Rama is causing astonishment: He seeks to create a special Muslim "mini-state" for the Sufi Shiite order of the Bektashi in the capital Tirana. On Monday, the Islamic religious community in Albania reacted to the plan and spoke out against the idea. They said they were not consulted and the matter should be negotiated with the Interfaith Council, a body responsible for this. It is a dangerous precedent.

Even the representatives of the Bektashi order in Turkey spoke out against a separate Bektashi state in Albania. Zeynel Abidin Koç, head of the Alevi Bektashi community in Turkey, said that a religious "state" and the idea of Bektashism are incompatible. He also did not understand what such a state would be good for and spoke in favor of secularism. Rama had previously announced, together with the head of the Albanian order, Edmond Brahimaj, that he wanted to give the members of the order their enclave in a district east of Tirana, where the Bektashis already have their headquarters.

Brahimaj will become the head of the small state, which will cover 27 hectares. The "state" must have its own administration, passports and borders and will be called the "Sovereign State of the Bektashi Order". Alcohol should be allowed within state territory, women should be allowed to wear whatever they want and there should be no rules regarding lifestyle.

Women and men equal

Bektashis are the fourth religious community in Albania, next to Muslims, Catholics and Orthodox. Unlike Sunni Muslims, Bektashites do not care if and how often they pray toward Mecca. Women and men are treated equally in rituals. This is why the dervish order was worthless. As a Bektashi, you are allowed to drink alcoholic beverages, even in some monasteries it is done. Duties and formalities are not central to Sufis. For dervishes, it's about union with God, not Sharia.

The Bektashi order contains elements from Buddhism and Christianity, as well as Kabbalah. However, the central point is that in the Shiite tradition, Imam Ali, the cousin of the Prophet Muhammad, who also married Muhammad's daughter, Fatima, is revered. The Bektashis, who became an order in the Middle East in the 16th century, were constantly in conflict with the Sunni Ottomans. Since at that time many "heretics" were expelled from Anatolia to the province, there was a Shiite presence in the Balkans.

In the world center of the Bektash religious community in Tirana, oil paintings can be seen, where Haxhi Bektash Veli commands lions and flying stones. A photo of the "holy family" hangs next to them. In addition to Fatima, Abaz Ali, Hussain and Hasan, the sons of Imam Ali, the prophet himself can be seen, including his face. This is unusual in the Islamic tradition. For some strict Muslims, the Bektashis are therefore heretics. Before communism, 15 percent of the Albanian population were Bektashi; today it is estimated that the figure is five percent. But they are still politically important.

Without homeland there is no faith

Under Ali Pasha of Tepelena (1741-1822), who ruled fairly independently of the High Gate, the dervishes also acted as political agents. Tepelena wanted to make Bektashism the main religion of Albanians. He wanted to separate the Albanians from the Turks, form an alliance against the Ottoman domination and create their own state. Religion was secondary. The motto was: without homeland there can be no faith. Bektashism was used as a national glue.

According to the New York Times, a team of legal experts, including international lawyers, has drafted a bill that will now determine the sovereign status of the new state. This still needs to be approved by parliament, which is dominated by Rama's ruling Socialist Party. Baba Mondi, the highest Bektash cleric in Albania, calls the citizenship plan a "miracle" and hopes that the state will be recognized by other states, as in the West. Citizenship would be granted only to the highest religious members and those involved in state administration, he announced.