Quran recited in the castle of communism .. Stories and figures about the Cuban turnout to Islam

Sayed Ahmed Alkhedr

Years ago, the search for truth led him to convert to Islam, praying alone at home and believed to be the only Muslim in the Cuban capital, Havana.

But Solomon did not take much time until he performed Friday prayers with hundreds of Muslims in central Havana, and he realized that Islam was no longer strange in the castle of communism.

Historical sources indicate that Cuba introduced Muslims six centuries ago. The Spanish brought them slaves from the Andalusian Moors in 1593.

Subsequently, Cuba's sugar fortune attracted Muslim traders from the Middle East, favoring them in Havana and the suburbs of Santiago de Cuba, but they abandoned their faith over time.

Until the beginning of the third millennium, there were an estimated 500 Muslims in the capital, Havana, who did not dare to express their beliefs as the majority of the population converted to Christianity and the government adopted communist ideology that did not value religion.

But things changed unexpectedly in 2005. A devastating earthquake hit Pakistani Kashmir, leaving 87,000 dead and tens of thousands injured.

As a result of this disaster, Havana allocated 1,000 scholarships to Pakistani students to study medicine, and since then, the story of Cuban acquaintance with Islam began.

The path to Allah
According to numerous reports, Pakistani medical students had a strong influence in Cuban society, managed to enter homes and persuaded many to convert to Islam.

In an interview with Al Jazeera English, Hassan says he was born in Freuelan Reyes and was educated about the values ​​of the Cuban regime, did not receive religious education in his upbringing, and did not enter any church.

When the Pakistani students came to Cuba, his working conditions allowed him to be close to them, continued their prayers and read the Koran, and he soon loved them because they treated him well.

Seven months later, he discovered that true Islam was different from what Cubans were talking about. He spoke the two testimonies and engaged directly in the call to God.

"God enlightened me through their behavior (Pakistani students). I realized that Islam is peace," he said. "God gave me the opportunity to understand it."

While the number of Muslims in Havana did not exceed 500 at the turn of the third millennium, 2018 estimates indicate that there are approximately 7,000 Muslims, the majority of whom are native Cubans who decided to leave their faiths. According to the Muslim League of Cuba, this figure includes 1,200 women.

Nevertheless, the Muslim community is still very small in Cuba, accounting for approximately 0.07% of the 11 million population, 65% of whom are Christian, and about 13% of whom are religious, with roots in West Africa. There are minorities of Buddhists, Baha'is and Jews.

The late Cuban revolutionary leader Fidel Castro was an atheist and rejected any role of religion in public life, but in recent years the government has affirmed its respect for freedom of belief and religious practice.

While Havana is relatively open in several areas, the media are showing a keen interest in the growing numbers of Cuban Muslims, who have multiplied by 14 in less than 20 years.

Hijab in Havana
Last week, Reuters prepared a report on the appearance of Muslim women wearing headscarves in the streets of the capital, Havana, saying they were constantly increasing.

The report speaks of many difficulties, including the scarcity of halal food and the presence of one mosque in Havana, "but that did not discourage these Cubans from converting to Islam."

One of the main reasons for Cuban women to enter Islam is "spiritual self-inspiration and religious curiosity, some of them influenced by being wives of Muslim men."

According to journalist Mariam Kamijo, she converted to Islam seven years ago and notes the growing popularity of Cuban women, especially young women.

Currently, Camijo is engaged in social Islamic activities and teaches Arabic and the Koran at the only mosque in Havana, which officially opened in 2015.

The mosque was built in a courtyard of an Arab museum in the old Havana region, with the cooperation of the Cuban and Saudi governments, while the Turkish waqf is reportedly building a mosque in Cuba similar to Istanbul mosques.

Abu Dujana speaks
Like Mariam Kamijo, the poet and writer Ai Tamayo converted to Islam in 2010, after recording a prominent presence in the literary scene and his novels won and wrote a number of awards and appreciation.

The poet Ai Tamayo, who called himself Abu Dujana, currently heads the Cuban Association for the Definition of Islam, and recently spoke to the newspaper "Havana Times" on what he called the obstacles placed by the government to the spread of Islam in the country.

Under the headline "Talking to a Cuban Muslim," the paper highlighted the growing converts of Islam on the communist island, the challenges facing them and the public's perception of them.

"Praise be to God, we are in every region and on the island of Lagoventod. Some of our brothers and sisters traveled outside Cuba to study in Islamic countries, and others visited the holy sites in Saudi Arabia," he said. ".

But Abu Dujana is unhappy with the Havana government's dealings with the nascent Muslim community and believes it seeks to prevent the spread of Islam through the Muslim League, even though it bears the slogan of serving Muslims.

Though many Cuban Muslims rejoiced at the opening of the Abdullah Mosque in 2015, Abu Dujana believes that there is nothing in Cuba that could be called a mosque, because the mosque's first job is to "work for Islam and Muslims and be a home for God."

"The mosque is the place where Islam and its followers should not be attacked and harmed. The enemies of Islam should not build the mosque, nor should it be a place to glorify people and the policies and ideologies of the regime."

According to the newcomer to Islam, Havana practically applies "Inquisition" methods, but these methods appear to be merely bureaucratic and legal procedures, he said.

Concluding his interview with the Havana Times, Abu Dujana chose to remind the government that prominent Cuban intellectual Jose Marty says that "non-religious societies are in danger of disappearing, because nothing encourages them to the virtue of heavenly justice while human injustice offends them."

Stories and Attitudes
To overcome the absence of mosques, Jamal, Hassan, Shabana and others set aside rooms in their homes where Muslims pray together, while the government allows Muslims to perform Eid prayers in some public squares.

In addition to the story of Suleiman, who for a time thought to be the only Muslim in Havana, there are many stories about this society, which is facing many difficulties, but it only adds insistence and certainty that he is walking on the white argument.

In an interview with Ground Truth Project, Asker Oren reports that her employer told her that she was not entitled to continue teaching as long as she wore the hijab.

Later, they told her that she had to leave the job altogether, and when she asked why, the response was, "You're a Muslim and you cover your head. You can't work in Cuba."

But Orden, who converted to Islam two years ago, was able to regain her job after threatening to take the case to the courts.

Yusuf Ali Firoi said he was harassed while working at home. "When I refuse to eat pork, they ask me if I am sick. If I tell them that I am a Muslim, they face me: Are not Muslims violent and terrorists?" Yet Ali and Orden believe most Cubans welcome Muslims.

Jorge Miguel García seems to live more with his reality as a Muslim in a communist state. He is a co-owner of a café in Santiago and hosts Muslims and others, but does not serve alcohol to customers.

Garcia, a former forensic physician who called himself Khaled after converting to Islam, while his 20-year-old wife still owes to Protestant baptism.