Once a fellow writer wrote to me: "You, Irshad Manji, Ayaan Hirsi Ali, Salman Rushdie and others criticize Islam in order to obtain attention from the West." Another writer wrote claiming that you need only write critically about Islam to be a successful author.
This is a very popular assumption among Muslim scholars, and even within non-Muslim scholarly circles.
The assumption found a little more weight recently when famous author Salman Rushdie was given Britain's award of knighthood. Immediately, the parliament of Pakistan passed a resolution stating that honouring Salman Rushdie offended Muslim sentiments.
Many still think that Salman Rushdie has been rewarded because of his anti-Islamic views. This is another difficult situation for Salman Rushdie, the Britons and westerners in general.
The Muslim world got an issue to respond to immediately. Pakistan's parliament put all crucial matters to the side, including the question of its own legality, and came up with the condemnation of Salman Rushdie.
The question arises: Should Salman Rushdie, who was an accomplished and well-recognized writer even before the controversy of The Satanic Verses, not be awarded a knighthood in fear of Muslim backlash?
Three more questions arise at this point: Did Salman Rushdie really write The Satanic Verses to get world attention? Are other writers such as Taslima Nasreen, Irshad Manji and Ayaan Hirsi Ali well known around the world because they write about Islam? And why are their views deemed an insult to Islam?
If we stop recognizing the contribution of great writers and artists just because of controversy, then the backlash fear would grow and grow. Salman Rushdie likely didn't write The Satanic Verses in order to get world attention. He was very well known before, thanks to his works such as Midnight's Children. Rushdie simply narrated some facts of Islamic history, mixed with fictional fantasy in his controversial novel. It was a creative and bold expression. But the uproar was not, and still is not, understandable.
Most in the Muslim world haven't read this book. But the hue and cry against the author is everywhere.
Like Mr. Rushdie, those other controversial authors I mentioned have not been recognized just because they write about Islam. They are good writers, they have a long history of struggle and have been activists for many years.
There are hundreds and hundreds of other progressive writers on Islam, but they don't get the same attention because they don't have the same talent. Being a successful writer is a great art.
So why are their views deemed insulting to Islam? Because any questioning has almost been ruled out in Islam. Nobody dares to question sensitive aspects of Islamic history within Islamic scholarly circles. When intellectuals such as Rushdie, Manji, Ayaan or Taslima stand to ask questions, the Islamic establishment gets upset and abandons logic. They issue fatwas, resolutions and condemnations. Because they simply don't have any answer. They have never been taught reason. They know only absolutism.
The remedy for this absolutism is thousands of Salman Rushdies, Irshad Manjis and Ayaan Hirsi Alis across the Muslim world, shaking this totalitarianism.
We will see real change in the Islamic world when progressive writers are recognized by the Muslim Kings, rather than being recognized only by the British Queen.
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[Tahir Aslam Gora, a Pakistani writer in exile, lives in Burlington, Ont. He is the author of several books and is now working on Why Islam Needs to Evolve. Tahir Aslam Gora's previous article in MM can be reached at: https://gold.mukto-mona.com/Articles/tahir_aslam/islam_evolve.htm ]
