Home
/
Isiam
/
Muslim Minorities
/
Muslim Minority in Liberia
Muslim Minority in Liberia
Nov 9, 2024 10:59 PM

  Liberia was formed through the efforts of emancipation associations and societies, especially the American Colonization Society (ACS). This society was established in the United States in the early nineteenth century when the idea of finding a homeland for the freed slaves in their country of origin, i.e. in Africa, evolved. Their aim was to find them a homeland to relocate Africans who had been brought to America as slaves to work in American farms. The US administration dispatched expeditions to Africa for the purpose of searching for a suitable homeland to resettle these former African-American slaves. They chose Liberia, which was then known as the South Coast. The first batch of settlers, former African-American slaves or free blacks, arrived for settlement in Liberia in 1820.

  It all started with the establishment of the capital city of Monrovia in 1237 AH - 1821 AD on the Atlantic Coast, and then the American colonizers sought to stake out the largest possible holdings in the area for themselves, at the expense of the Islamic state, which was established on the Fouta Djallon highlands of modern Guinea and extended to present-day Liberia.

  This Muslim state was a strong state and the Fulani tribes contributed to its founding to include West African countries, particularly Guinea, Guinea Bissau, Sierra Leone, Liberia, and Cote d’Ivoire. Until now, authority lies in the hands of the black Americans who migrated to this region, even though they make up merely 5% of the total population of Liberia. The Muslim minority in Liberia are deprived of that right, although Muslims make up almost one third of the population, and some sources state that their number exceeds half.

  Liberia witnessed two civil wars in the years 1989 – 1996 AD, and 1999 – 2003 AD. Hundreds of thousands of refugees left Liberia as a consequence. Liberia is the oldest independent state; it gained independence in 1263 AH – 1864 AD.

  Population of Liberia:

  The population of Liberia exceeds 3,500,000 people, according to the estimate of July 2006; about 25% of the population are Muslims, 65% belong to local religions, and 10% are Christians.

  Ethnic groups:

  Indigenous African groups make up about 95% of the Liberian population and include 35 tribes; the major tribes are the Kpelle (also known as the Guerze): 20%, Bassa: 14%, Geo (also spelled as Gio or Gyo): 9%, Grebo: 8%, Kru: 8%, Mano: 7%, Mandingo or Mandinka: 4%, and African-Americans (former slaves) make up about 5% of the population.

  Muslims’ problems at the present time:

  At the top of these problems come poverty and ignorance that spread among Muslim tribes. Muslims have only one private school, which was founded by the Muslim World League (MWL). In this three-floor school, students learn the Quran and Arabic language. Most of the other schools are run by Christian missionaries, most of which refuse to enroll Muslim students and require pupils to embrace Christianity in order to receive free education. Moreover, Muslims do not have any hospitals of their own.

  Another problem that faces Muslims in Liberia is the small number of mosques in Monrovia. In the Liberian capital Monrovia, Muslims have only five Mosques, whereas there are 43 churches.

  Another obstacle that Muslims face in Liberia is the American and Israeli penetration into the country as they fight Islam and Muslims. The US–based Firestone Rubber and Tire Company monopolizes the rubber crop, which is one of Liberia's main exports. The Liberian economy is largely controlled by the US and Israel, whose experts spread in Liberia and support the ruling regime in stemming the tide of Islamic influence in Liberia.

  However, the conditions of Muslims have started to improve in recent years, thanks to support from neighboring countries with Muslim majorities such as Guinea and Sierra Leone. Powerful Muslim leaders have also lent a hand to try and boost resources for Liberia’s Islamic community, including Mr. Mohammed Kromah, former chairman of the Union of Liberian Associations in the Americas (ULAA). Liberia’s Muslims have founded two Islamic organizations in Monrovia: the Liberian Studies Association, whose mission is to spread the call to Islam among non-Muslims; and the Islamic Organization for Education, which has established two centers for educating Imams in the capital, teaching the Noble Quran and Arabic to new converts, and providing them with new sources of income wherever possible.

  However, the attention that the Islamic societies and organizations pay to Liberian Muslims is still weak and not commensurate with the expectations of those who are striving to spread Islam in West Africa.

Comments
Welcome to mreligion comments! Please keep conversations courteous and on-topic. To fosterproductive and respectful conversations, you may see comments from our Community Managers.
Sign up to post
Sort by
Show More Comments
Muslim Minorities
Rohingya stranded at sea, Bangladesh says not its responsibility
  by Faisal Mahmud   Rights groups urge Dhaka to allow some 500 Rohingya stuck in the Bay of Bengal to come ashore.   The Bangladesh government has refused to allow some 500 Rohingya refugees stranded on board two fishing trawlers in the Bay of Bengal to come ashore, drawing criticism from rights...
Rohingya: 'Better to kill us in India than deport us to Myanmar'
  Jafar Alam sits by a small grocery shop in the Rohingya refugee camp in New Delhi's Kalindi Kunj area.   A police officer who visited the camp had asked Alam to fill a six-page "personal data" form. Alam refused.   "Today, if you will not cooperate with us, we will not cooperate...
France’s desperate endeavors to design a ‘French Islam’
  In Sept. 2018, “Institut Montaigne”, a French think tank close to French President Emmanuel Macron’s government, published a report that calls for a stronger regulation of Muslim religious practices by the state in order to better counter “Islamism”.   Entitled “Islamism Factory”, the report triggered a turmoil among French Muslim communities...
Frustrated Rohingya refugees in Bangladesh desperate to move to 3rd countries
  Amid stalled efforts to repatriate Rohingya refugees in Bangladesh to Myanmar, many people from the persecuted ethnic minority are seeking a way out and playing into the hands of human smugglers.   Hundreds of Rohingya refugees take perilous journeys on boats through the Bay of Bengal to reach Malaysia, Thailand and...
UN: Potential ‘crimes against humanity’ in China’s Xinjiang
  Long-delayed report from UN human rights office says abuses against mostly Muslim Uighurs stem from ‘anti-terrorism law systems’.   China’s detention of Uighurs and other mostly Muslim ethnic minorities in the northwestern region of Xinjiang may amount to “crimes against humanity”, the United Nations human rights office said in a long-delayed...
Muslims in Chile
  By: Ahmad Mahmood As-Sayyid   Chile is situated along the western seaboard of South America, bordering the South Pacific Ocean. It shares borders with Peru to the north, Bolivia to the northeast, and Argentina to the east. The total population of Chile is 16 million. Catholics make up 80.7% of the...
Why do Muslims oppose citizenship engineering in India?
  by Mohammad Pervez Bilgrami   India’s Hindu nationalist government recently passed the Citizenship Amendment Act (CAA) to amend the Citizenship Act of 1955, paving the way for granting Indian citizenship to religious minorities from Pakistan, Afghanistan, and Bangladesh. Those listed as eligible to become Indians in the new law are Hindus,...
Monsoons threaten thousands of Rohingya refugees
  The Rohingya people have still been fleeing to Bangladesh from restive Rakhine state of Myanmar and they reside in the areas that are at high risk of landslides and flooding, the UN refugee agency said on Friday.   About 8,000 Rohingya refugees have fled to Bangladesh so far this year, UNHCR...
Buddhists 'lured' to settle on Rohingya land
  Myanmar authorities have lured dozens of mainly Buddhist but with some Christians, Bangladeshi tribal families to cross the border and resettle on land abandoned by fleeing Muslim-majority Rohingya, officials said Monday.   About 50 families from remote hill and forest areas on the Bangladesh side, attracted by offers of free land...
US hits China over reports of Uighur 'family planning'
  US State Secretary Mike Pompeo denounced China Monday following the reports that Beijing forces birth control on Uighurs to suppress their population.   "The world received disturbing reports today that the Chinese Communist Party [CCP] is using forced sterilization, forced abortion, and coercive family planning against Uyghurs and other minorities in...
Related Classification
Copyright 2023-2024 - www.mreligion.com All Rights Reserved