Re: Why India should be Secular

[Abhijeet Pradhan <perdi420@yahoo.com>]

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If you choose to equate fanatics with the religion that is your mistake.

By the same token, to make India secular we need to curb the influence
of
fanatic Hindu organizations (and fanatic Islamic organizations as well).

But by your twisted logic, India can only be secular by suppressing
Hinduism.

AP

--- Sam Garg <gargsam@hotmail.com> wrote:
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> Please help make the Manifesto better, or accept it, and propagate it!

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> Thanks to Mr Pradhan for proving my point conclusively.  Turkey could
only
>
> become secular by suppressing islam.  This suppression had to be so
> complete
> and thorough that even outward signs of islamic religion, such as the
fez
> and the islamic veil were outlawed.
>
> Kemal knew islam so well that he had to resort to extreme measures to
> erdicate islam from the country.  It was only then that Turkey could
> possibly become secular.
>
> Islam and secularism don't mix.     QED
>
> Sanjay Garg
>
>
> >From: Abhijeet Pradhan <perdi420@yahoo.com>
> >Reply-To: debate@indiapolicy.org
> >To: debate@indiapolicy.org
> >Subject: Re: Why India should be Secular
> >Date: Thu, 11 Jan 2001 11:59:30 -0800 (PST)
> >
> >---------------------------------------------------------------------

> >Please help make the Manifesto better, or accept it, and propagate
it!
> >---------------------------------------------------------------------

> >I am talking about turkey today.  Kemal did what he had to do to get
rid
> of
> >religious fanatics.  This was decades ago and not today.  The kurdish

> issue
> >is not religious, but separatist.  Ordinary kurds live regular lives
> there.
> >So do the Christians.  They hold key positions, there is no
> discrimination
> >and no fear in the minds of the minority.  And Constantinople became
> >Istanbul centuries ago, so do not bring it up now.  The issue was if
> there
> >is an secular nation with a majority muslim population today and the
> answer
> >is yes.
> >AP
> >
> >--- Sanjai Kukreti <skukreti@home.com> wrote:
> > >
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> > > Please help make the Manifesto better, or accept it, and propagate
it!
> > >
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> > > Abhijeet Pradhan <perdi420@yahoo.com> wrote:
> > > > Sam Garg wrote :
> > > >  ""Name one muslim majority/ muslim ruled
> > > >  country in the world which is truly secular."""
> > > >
> > > > TURKEY
> > >
> > > Haha! Please note the notoriously rigorous purge conducted against

> Islam
> > > by
> > > Kemal Ataturk!
> > >
> > > Ataturk had many religious activists executed or imprisoned. He
BANNED
> > > many
> > > religious practices, including the wearing of the Fez and the
turban,
> > > and
> > > only allowed Turkish men to wear western brimmed hats. Men were
> > > certainly
> > > not allowed to keep beards. The nationalist Ataturk of course
fought
> > > various
> > > border wars, to defeat various border threats.
> > >
> > > If you are in favor of a nationalist ideology that removes Islam
like
> > > that,
> > > then I'm afraid BJP/VHP/RSS would be too tame for you.
> > >
> > > And when we say secular, are we also talking about general
pluralism
> > > too?
> > > What would the Kurdish community leaders have to say about
pluralism
> in
> > > Turkey? Or Armenians?
> > >
> > > Please note that Constantinople was once a major religious center
for
> > > Orthodox Christianity, but is still nevertheless now turned into
> > > Istanbul,
> > > the seat of Turkish power.



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