TAJIKISTAN'S SALAFI MUSLIMS GROWING IN NUMBERS

C O N F I D E N T I A L SECTION 01 OF 02 DUSHANBE 001117

SIPDIS

SIPDIS

STATE FOR SCA/CEN, DRL

E.O. 12958: DECL: 7/31/2017
TAGS: PGOV PHUM KIRF TI
SUBJECT: TAJIKISTAN'S SALAFI MUSLIMS GROWING IN NUMBERS

CLASSIFIED BY: TJACOBSON, AMBASSADOR, STATE, STATE.
REASON: 1.4 (b),(d)




1. (C) SUMMARY: In Tajikistan, despite the government's fear
of religious extremism which has led it to close down mosques,
forbid girls from wearing hijabs in schools, and propose a new
law on religion that could curtail practice of all faiths, the
Salafi school of Islam is growing in size. In a series of
meetings with Salafis and local leaders in the Muslim community,
PolOffs learned the difference between Salafis and mainstream
Sunni Muslims in Tajikistan. END SUMMARY.


2. (SBU) PolOffs met with Muhammad Rahmatullo, a leader of the
Salafi Muslims July 26. According to Rahmatullo, Salafis are
Muslims who practice Islam as it was practiced during the
Prophet Mohammad's lifetime. The Salafis, also called
Sunnat-val-jamoat (meaning "followers of the Prophet's words and
actions"),are conservative Sunni Muslims. The relatively new
group began appearing in Tajikistan five to six years ago and
many of its original members are young men who have studied
abroad in Muslim countries.


3. (C) In Tajikistan, the Salafis do not have their own
separate mosques, are not registered with the Ministry of
Culture, do not have a central office, or consider themselves
part of an organized group. Thus far, Rahmatullo reports that
the Salafis have not encountered any problems with government
authorities. He estimates that Salafis total at least 5,000
members in Dushanbe alone. Although Rahmatullo did not have a
number for the entire country, he did say that the number of
converts is growing and Salafis include members of civil society
across all sectors including the government.


4. (C) Bahriddin Karimov, a local Imam who has participated in
the U.S. Community Connections exchange program agreed that the
Salafi community is quickly growing in Tajikistan and added that
Salafis are targeting young people. Karimov noticed an
increased number of Salafis who have begun praying at his mosque
and realized he has gained a reputation as being a Salafi
himself, although he adamantly declares he is not a Salafi.


5. (C) Rahmatullo travels throughout Tajikistan to preach the
prophet's teachings, usually as an invited guest at a wedding
ceremony, circumcision party or other religious gathering.
After the July 26 meeting, Rahmatullo handed PolOffs two copies
of Russian-language Korans and suggested PolOffs read them for
the next meeting.


6. (C) Unprompted, Rahmatullo asked PolOffs about the
Jehovah's Witnesses problems and knew that the group had
problems with the government. He also said that the Jehovah's
Witnesses have asked the Salafis not to reach out to Tajiks
newly converted to Jehovah's Witnesses because they are
vulnerable. Rahmatullo agreed to the request and claimed the
two religious groups have reached a mutual understanding
regarding their target audiences. He also pointed out that
compared to the Salafis, the Jehovah's Witnesses have managed to
convert a larger number of Tajiks.

SALAFI CUSTOMS: THE DIFFERENCE IS IN THE DETAILS


7. (C) According to Salafi teachings, men wear beards and
women hijabs. Rahmatullo says that Salafis support education
for women and women's contributions to the work force. They
also believe that women should attend mosque and point out that
Salafi women desire to attend mosque, but cannot due to
government restrictions on female attendance. Displaying his
conservative customs, Rahmatullo would not shake PolOff's hand
when she greeted him. During an initial meeting, Rahmatullo
also suggested that he would have found PolOff more attractive
as a woman had she been wearing a hijab.


8. (SBU) Although their customs are similar to other Sunnis,
Salafis also have different praying styles than other Muslims.
The difference is in the details. At the end of a prayer, Sunni
Muslims in Tajikistan usually softly say the word "omin" to
themselves (note: equivalent to the Christian "amen"),whereas
Salafis vocalize the word loudly. Salafi Muslims during prayer
raise their hands shoulder level. In addition, Tajik Sunnis
recite six prayers from the Koran during the five praying
periods throughout the day at mosque, but Salafis recite fewer
prayers at mosque.

APOLITICAL AND ANTI-SHIA


DUSHANBE 00001117 002 OF 002



9. (C) Rahmatullo stated that he is not an Islamic Renaissance
Party of Tajikistan member. The Islamic Renaissance Party is
the leading opposition political party based on religious
ideology and welcomes both Sunnis and Shias. He is critical of
the Party because, according to Salafi teachings, politics and
religion should not mix. Muhiddin Kabiri, Chairman of the
Islamic Renaissance Party, met with Rahmatullo in order to
better understand the group and also to solicit its member to
join the political party. Rahmatullo did not welcome the
invitation and refused to join the party. Along the same vein,
Salafis disapprove of government interference into religion and
view the pending draft law on religion as a sign of government
regulation on how Muslims should practice Islam.


10. (C) Bahriddin Karimov told PolOff that his mosque's
community members have told him they listened to tapes of
Rahmatullo's sermons which call for the killing of all Shias.
During Rahmatullo's conversations with PolOffs, he never
explicitly expressed disdain for Shias. However, he identified
the majority of Islamic Renaissance Party leadership, with the
exception of Muhiddin Kabiri, as Shias with ties to Iran.

BIO NOTES FOR MUHAMMAD RAHMATULLO


11. (C) Rahmatullo is 33 years old and was born in a Dushanbe
suburb. He is married with three young children. His wife does
not work. His father was ill, but according to Rahmatullo, is
recovering. He is conversant in English with a noticeable, but
not thick accent. He knows Arabic and Urdu. Rahmatullo studied
Sharia law in Pakistan from 1992-1999 at the International
Islamic University of Islamabad.


12. (C) Rahmatullo told PolOffs that he had not originally
intended to become a Salafi. Several years ago he had met local
Tajiks from the Takfiri group. Fearing that they would use
Islam for violence, Rahmatullo decided that he would use the
Salafi group and ideas in order to lead the Takfiris and other
Tajiks to be better Muslims.

COMMENT:


13. (C) Amidst a climate of mosque closures and government
crackdowns on proselytizing, it is interesting that the
government permits Salafis to operate and speak about religion
in public venues. It is possible that the government has not
yet denounced the Salafis or categorized them as religious
extremists is because the State Committee on National Security
believes the group is a good counterweight to the influence of
the Islamic Renaissance Party. It is less likely that the
security apparatus has failed to notice the growth of the Salafi
movement.


14. (C) Although most Tajiks are not very familiar with the
Salafi group, we have found Rahmatullo and other Salafi members
open and willing to meet with Embassy staff. At this point in
time, there is no evidence that the Salafis are an extremist
group.

END COMMENT.
JACOBSON