KHALIF’S POWERS

Southland Times, Issue 19757, 3 February 1923, Page 7

KHALIF’S POWERS

CURTAILED BY TURKEY. INDIAN MOSLEMS’ ATTITUDE. Islam, from its very inception, recognised the union of spiritual and temporal power in the Khalif, “the Commander of the Faithful.” The political idea of our Prophet was the establishment of a universal republic on theocratic principles, says Progress, a Moslem newspaper published in Calcutta. He anticipated such projects as i federation of the world and the League of Nations centuries before such things were dreamt of by statesmen. It can be truly said that modern political ideas were first formulated by our Prophet and the impartial historian will acclaim him as the greatest political philosopher the world has produced. Islam was a theocracy in which the Khalif or the Commander of the Faitful was the supreme spiritual and temporal authority. This union of political and ecclesiastical power infused a marvellous strength in Islam which extended its power, within one hundred years of inception over all countries stretching from the Arabian Sea to the Atlantic Ocean. No other nation, except the Romans, established such a mighty Empire, but the Moslems accomplished this feat, which it took the Romans seven centuries to perform, in less than a hundred years So long as the Khalifate remained inviolate and supreme, the Moslems were invincible, and in the forefront among civilised tions. Bagdad was not only the seat of the greatest empire like Imperial Rome, but, also, like Athens, the centre of learning and culture in the world. Those were the halcyon days of Islamic glory and power. The decline of the power and authority of the Khalifate is synchronical with the decay of the power and civilisation of Islam, and this fact proves beyond doubt that the destiny of the one is interwoven with that of the other, and that the extinction of the power of the Khalif must sound the death knell to all prospects of the rejuvenation of our sacred faith.

Such are the authentic facts of history. The Moslems, all over the world, still cherish a veneration for the Khalif, and this fact accounts for the sympathy and support accorded by the Islamic nations to Turkey in her conflicts with Christian Europe. The Indian Moslems, in particular, made great sacrifices for Turkey; and provoked, in the discharge of what they considered to be their duty to their sacred religion, the resentment of the all powerful Government to which they owe their political allegiance. The fact that the Sultan of Turkey was the Khalif of Islam made the European powers hesitate to take steps for the extermination of the Ottaman Empire. Such a powerful bulwark of Turkish independence will be annihilated if the Khalif is compelled to surrender all his political power as the Sultan of the Ottoman Empire. Nay, more than that, it will make the federation of all the Islamic States impossible, and thus prove detrimental to the interests of the other Islamic nations. Islam stands or falls with the Khalifate, which is the link which unites the true believers into a common brotherhood all the world over. The action taken by the Angora Government against the Khalifate is fraught with the gravest danger to the future of Islam, and the Moslems throughout the globe are awaiting the development of events with anxiety and suspense, which is almost unbearable. Even if the policy of the Angora Government brings the Bolsheviks to their support, this supposed political advantage will be more than counter-balanced by the strengthening of solidarity among the Allied Powers, and possible internecine strifes among Moslem nations. All jealousies and recriminations have been forgotten, and the “Entente,” which was on the point of being dissolved, has gained a fresh lease of life. Even the discredited politician—Mr Lloyd George—has regained some of his lost popularity. So it cannot be said that the An gora Government has scored any political advantage by the somersault. With all possible deference to the views of His Highness the Aga Khan and the Right Hon. Syed Amur Ali, we have no hesitation in asserting that the Indian Moslems view the action of the Angora Government with the strongest disapproval, mingled with heart-rending sofrow, continues the writer. It is said that the question of the Khalifate wall be decided by a congress of the Islamic nations to be held later on. Then why was not this matter postponed till the settlement of the Near East question at the conference at Lausanne? Even the apologists of the Angora Government must admit that the present is a most inopportune moment to make any attempt to tackle the Khalifate question. We have refrained from the use of epithets of recrimination, for we feel that can only make matters worse. A crisis, the magnitude of which cannot be exaggerated, has overtaken us, and it is only logic and forbearance that the cause of our sacred faith will be saved. Let every Moslem realise that the present emergency is without parallel in the history of Islam, and let Kim invoke the blessing of our Prophet to enable him to do his duty to our •tiered religion in this supreme moment. The Turkish General Sheriff Pasha, who resides n Paris, sent the following telegram to Mustaph Kemal Pasha, protesting against the overthrowing of the Khalifs as an error liable to have great consequences. He said: ‘To go as far as to overthrow the very "oundations of the Khalifate is an error more than grave in that it is liable to compromise the moral support which the just cause of Turkey has received from the whole Moslem world, to say nothing of the religious schism which it is likely to bring about. I hope your great prestige may be sufficient to prevent Mussulmans from in- ■ erpreting the recent decision of the Angora -kssembly as an act of treason against religion. Ido not believe Islam can allow the Khalif to be deprived of the temporal powers necessary to the defence and dignity of the IslamK faith.