FARAH PANDITH'S MEETINGS WITH AZERBAIJANI ISLAMIC

C O N F I D E N T I A L SECTION 01 OF 03 BAKU 000581

SIPDIS

SIPDIS

FOR EUR/CARC

E.O. 12958: DECL: 05/16/2017
TAGS: PGOV PREL PHUM KISL AJ
SUBJECT: FARAH PANDITH'S MEETINGS WITH AZERBAIJANI ISLAMIC
OFFICIALS


Classified By: Ambassador Anne E. Derse for reasons 1.4 (b, d)


1. (C) Summary: Azerbaijani religious officials emphasized
Azerbaijan's history of religious tolerance and
interconfessional cooperation in April 25 meetings with EUR
Senior Advisor Farah Pandith. Dr. Haji Sabir Hassanli, the
rector of Baku Islamic University, said the university has
approximately 1,000 students who are being prepared for
careers as imams, interpreters, and teachers. Hassanli
described the Caucasus Muslim Board's (CMB) close
relationship with the university, while denying that that the
CMB funded the university. Hidayat Orujov, head of the State
Committee on Religious Affairs, and Sheikh Allahshukur
Pashazade, leader of the CMB, focused on Azerbaijan's unique
history of tolerance and the GOAJ's efforts to protect
religious freedom from external, non-traditional forms of
religious activity. All officials raised the threat of
Wahabbism as a foreign influence that runs counter to
Azerbaijan's history of tolerance. End Summary.

Rector Gives Background on Islamic University
--------------


2. (C) Visiting EUR Senior Advisor Farah Pandith met with
Dr. Haji Sabir Hassanli, rector of the Baku Islamic
University and Vice Chairman of the Caucasus Muslim Board
(CMB),on April 25 to get acquainted with the university.
Hassanli said the university was established in 1989,
starting with 15 students. The university now has
approximately 1,000 students, and four branches in addition
to the main campus in Baku. The other campuses are located
in Zaqatala, Sumgayit, Lenkoran, and Mingachevir. The
university has 100 students studying abroad; many study at
Cairo's Al-Azhar University, while other students study in
Turkey, Syria, Libya, and Malaysia, according to Hassanli.
(Note: Hassanli said that students began going to Al-Azhar in
1995; 35 students originally went in 1995 and 81 students
went in 2003. Students going to Malaysia study at Malaysia's
Islamic University, where some study economics and
information technology alongside sharia coursework.) He
clarified that the university intentionally does not send
students to Iran and Pakistan.


3. (C) The Islamic University's curriculum focuses on
sharia, alongside public and social sciences, such as the
philosophy of religion and history, according to Hassanli.
The university includes two primary faculties: Sharia and
Islamic studies. Hassanli noted that most of the teachers
are alumni, although the University also pulls in experts
from other universities. Students are given the opportunity
to study English, FARSI, and Arabic.


4. (C) Hassanli said that students take an admission exam --
modeled on a secular university's entrance exam -- before
coming to the Islamic university. The CMB administers the
test. Hassanli remarked that the majority of students become
imams, while others choose to become interpreters, teachers,
or join "public societies." Those students who wish to
become an imam must pass a special test, which is also
administered by the CMB. Hassanli observed that while female
students attend the university and they are eligible to
become teachers at some institutions after graduating, they
are not currently permitted to become imams. Hassanli said
that while the Minister of Education agrees that the history
of religion is an appropriate high school subject, there are
not enough qualified teachers for this endeavor.


5. (C) Hassanli was evasive in answering Pandith's question
about the university's funding. Hassanli said the Islamic
University is not a state or a private institution; he said
the property is waqf. (Note: Waqf is an Islamic term
referring to land that is designated for Islamic religious or
charitable purposes.) Hassanli said the university is funded
through students' tuition and that the CMB does not fund the
University. The CMB established the university, however, and
retains significant control over its activities, according to
Hassanli. (Note: We are doubtful that students' tuition
alone cover the university's operating costs. We believe the
CMB and possibly other revenue sources provide some indirect
funding to the university.)


6. (C) Hassanli emphasized the uniqueness of Azerbaijan's
history of religious tolerance and lack of religious
conflict. Commenting on relations among various religious
confessions, Hassanli said the "state controls the issue of
their relations." Hassanli noted that he closely cooperate
with the relevant state structures to control the situation
and prevent no harm to the "idea of national unity" and
maintaining good relations with religious communities.

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7. (C) Hassanli affirmed the importance of close
US-Azerbaijani ties. He said he works to convince students,
many of whom will become imams, that the U.S. is a friendly
country. Azerbaijanis have a very positive view of the U.S.
because it is a symbol of democracy. Relations with the US
are particularly important because "we all know what Russia
is about," and Azerbaijanis want to know if the U.S. will
support Azerbaijan, especially if Russia seeks to reoccupy
Azerbaijan.


8. (C) Hassanli broadly responded to Pandith's question
about the key concerns of Azerbaijani youth. Hassanli said
Azerbaijani youth are concerned with a variety of issues,
including "violation of the tolerance idea," the activism of
missionaries, employment concerns, the GWOT, Iran's nuclear
program, narcotics, and diseases. Hassanli then observed
that the key issue for youth is the resolution of the
Nagorno-Karabakh (NK) conflict. Hassanli said Azerbaijan
would like to see the U.S., which is "the only superpower,"
make a decisive step in the Minsk Group process to push for a
resolution.

State Committee on Religious Affairs
--------------


9. (C) Hidayat Orujov -- head of the State Committee on
Religious Affairs -- welcomed Pandith, noting that the
traditional value of tolerance was the "wealth and resource"
of the Azerbaijani people. At the heart of Azerbaijan's
"uniqueness" and "model of tolerance" is the coexistence and
cooperation of different religious confessions. The GOAJ's
policy goal toward religion is to protect this value and
provide religious freedom for all groups. Orujov affirmed
that Azerbaijan is a secular state working to ensure freedom
of religion. Orujov noted that 95 percent of Azerbaijan's
population is Muslim, of which 60 percent is Shia and 40
percent is Sunni.


10. (C) Explaining the role of the State Committee, Orujov
said the body registers religious communities. Orujov
commented that approximately 400 religious communities have
been registered, of which 31 are non-Muslim communities.
Orujov noted there are approximately 1,000 religious
communities which operate freely without registration.
Orujov claimed that the GOAJ treats each religious group
equally.


11. (C) Orujov highlighted two key religious dynamics that
the GOAJ has faced since independence in 1991. First,
Azerbaijan experienced a "sudden awakening of religious
freedom," after 70 years of forced atheism. Second, foreign
Islamic countries sought to spread their religious views.
Orujov commented that some non-Islamic, non-traditional
religious groups also have sought to abuse Azerbaijan's
policy of religious freedom. Orujov said "radical groups"
seek to "introduce tensions" and promote conflict to weaken
tolerance within Azerbaijan, although radicals compose only
approximately one percent of Azerbaijan's population.


12. (C) In response to Pandith's question about what
mechanisms Islamic and non-Islamic radicals use to spread
their ideas, Orujov said some pay stipends, use hypnosis, or
other psychological methods. Radical groups -- especially
Wahabbis -- spread dangerous literature that focuses on
"creating conflicts." Orujov said the GOAJ relies on
education as a means to counter these tactics.


13. (C) In closing, Orujov provided several recommendations
to Pandith. He asked that the U.S. support the GOAJ efforts
to protect its secular system and its religious freedom.
Orujov claimed that the Department's annual reports often
misrepresent developments in Azerbaijan, arguing that
religious groups are not harassed in Azerbaijan. Orujov also
said he would like to see the U.S. acknowledge the
desecration of religious monuments in Nagorno-Karabakh and
the occupied territories.

Caucasus Muslim Board Chair
--------------


14. (C) Sheikh Allahshukur Pashazade -- the longtime head of
the Caucasus Muslim Board -- emphasized that Azerbaijan is a
unique country because of its history of tolerance and
amicable relations among various religious groups. Pashazade
noted that he has been to several conferences in the past few
months that focus on the value of tolerance. Pashazade said
former President Heydar Aliyev understood the importance of
avoiding inter-confessional clashes and advanced a policy of

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tolerance. Pashazade affirmed that Azerbaijan has managed to
avoid conflict and establish a multi-ethnic and
multi-religious society. Pashazade noted that since
independence in 1991, religion has played a "significant
role" in "preserving" Azerbaijan's statehood.


15. (C) Pashazade cited several examples of Azerbaijan's
interconfessional cooperation. Sunni and Shia Muslims pray
in the same mosques, according to Pashazade, and he
personally has gone to churches and synagogues. We cooperate
"as part of one family," Pashazade remarked. He said that
these examples of interconfessional cooperation demonstrate
that Azerbaijanis live out the values of democracy in their
lifestyle.


16. (C) Pashazade said that the recent change to the
Nagorno-Karabakh language in the Armenia section of the Human
Rights Report might "show a shift" in U.S. policy toward
Azerbaijan and this change is disappointing. (Note: The
report subsequently was returned to its original form.)
Pashazade also observed that he disagrees with U.S. policy in
Iraq because there are growing divisions between Sunnis and
Shia.


17. (C) Pashazade said he is not worried about Wahabbism,
although it is a "significant problem." The difficulty
emanates from Dagestan, according to Pashazade. Wahabbism is
not a large problem in Azerbaijan because Azerbaijan's
domestic environment is distinct from Dagestan. Pashazade
emphasized that Azerbaijan's majority Shia population serves
as a natural barrier to the spread of Wahabbism, which is a
Sunni religious offshoot. Pashazade said that approximately
65 percent of Azerbaijan's population are Shia.


18. (C) In response to Pandith's question about how
Azerbaijani youth perceive their future, Pashazade said that
Azerbaijan has managed to "protect our religion," despite the
long years of forced Soviet atheism. Whereas there were only
18 mosques in Azerbaijan during the Soviet period, there are
now over 1,200 mosques, according to Pashazade. We also have
a lot of churches and synagogues, which "shows that a lot of
changes are happening."

Bio Notes
--------------


19. (C) Hassanli has been the rector of the Baku Islamic
University since 1992. He graduated from the School of
Oriental Studies at Baku State University, where he was
engaged in Arabic studies. Hassanli has been to the U.S. two
times -- in 1985 and 2005. According to a October 2006
academic report by Svante Cornell, Hassanli is a rival to
Pashazade, who chairs the CMB.

Comment
--------------


20. (C) GOAJ religious officials routinely focus on
Azerbaijan's uniqueness as model of religious tolerance and
interconfessional cooperation. While Azerbaijan does have a
long history of religious tolerance, the GOAJ also has a
statist and Soviet-style understanding of religion that views
religion as a phenomenon to be carefully controlled and
administered. One consequence of this approach is that it is
difficult for average, non-radical Azerbaijanis to learn more
about Islamic theology. A range of contacts have highlighted
this void to us, particularly as many average Azerbaijanis do
not respect the state-appointed imams because they are
perceived as poorly educated. This educational vaccum pushes
some devout Azerbaijani Muslims to pursue unofficial and
illegal educational outlets, some of which are radical in
nature.


21. (U) Pandith did not have the opportunity to review this
message.
DERSE