RELIGION IN SENEGAL-AL FALAH, THE WAHABBI

C O N F I D E N T I A L SECTION 01 OF 03 DAKAR 001378 SENSITIVE SIPDIS STATE FOR AF/W, AF/RSA, DRL/AE AND INR/AA PARIS FOR AFRICA WATCHER E.O. 12958: DECL: 12/01/2018 TAGS: KDEM KIRF KISL PGOV PINR PINS SOCI SG SUBJECT: RELIGION IN SENEGAL-AL FALAH, THE WAHABBI REF: DAKAR 1286 Classified By: Classified By: DCM JAY T. SMITH FOR REASONS 1.4 (B) AND (D) ¶1. (C) SUMMARY: This is the second in a series of cables analyzing religion in Senegal. This cable concerns the Al Falah group who, along with Cemaat Ibadu-Rahman (reftel),is considered to be one of the country,s more conservative organizations. They are identified by many as being Wahabbi with roots extending to Saudi Arabia. End Summary ¶2. (C) Founded in 1930 by El Hadj Mahmoud Umar Ba, a scholar who studied in Senegal and Saudi Arabia, today's Al Falha is lead by Ahmad Mahmoud Sow. He goes by the title of "President" and he is elected by a nine man group chosen from within a National Council made of grassroots leaders of the organization. The group's president serves for four years and has to present a report every year to a Directorate who can remove him if they deem his work as being unsatisfactory. Sow's predecessor passed away last year after fighting a long illness. Sow is described as being much more dynamic, intelligent and politically astute than his predecessor. ¶3. (C) During our meeting, which took place at Al Falah's spartan headquarter in the Kolobane district of Dakar in a large mosque-cum-school complex, Sow was reserved, dressed in a grey boubou a white skull cap and sporting a thin beard as proscribed in the Koran. The conversation between POLOFF and Sow can be best described as a dance of metaphors as Sow, for whom it was a first meeting with someone from the U.S. Embassy, tried to understand why the Embassy wanted to talk to him. Previous PolCouns had visited with his predecessor and the meeting was presented to Sow as the continuation of an already established relationship. Sow remained wary until the very end, preferring to answer questions with questions and speaking by implication rather than directly answering anything. However, at the conclusion of the meeting Sow said he hoped we would return to continue our discussion and his deputy asked whether or not the Embassy had books that we could contribute to their schools. ¶4. (C) Al Falah is a Sufi movement which places great emphasis on "droiture," the respect for the holy prescriptions which they consider to be the source of harmony and peace. They spread their religious beliefs through education. In reply to a question about government support Sow said that the government gives them virtually nothing, but "at least they leave us alone." Sow said that Al Falah rejects material wealth and that spiritual wealth is true wealth: "even if others (the West) try to makes us believe the contrary, Muslims should be happy with what they achieve. In the end, economic difficulties are only a source of instability if people truly believe that is the case. If they believe that in the short spans that we have to live, materialism is a more important pursuit than spiritual wealth then economic problems will always burden them." In many ways Sow's approach to the country,s economic problems as stated above is the norm in Senegal as it is founded upon a certain sense of fatalism that pervades Islam, a fatalism that many people share in Senegal. For example, during a discussion POLOFF had with fishermen about declining fish stocks they all responded, "What God gives, God takes." This fatalism, in the sense that God is in control of events, is also one of the reasons that Senegal has remained relatively stable as people, with strong reinforcement from religious and political leaders, accept the ups and downs of life as the pre-ordained Will of God. Does Bin Laden Exist? -------------- ¶5. (C) In reply to a question concerning the influence of Osama Bin Laden over Islam, sow responded by asking POLOFF if he thought Bin Laden existed. In reply POLOFF responded that Bin Laden's influence is pervasive, to which Sow said that Bin Laden is not a reference for Muslims; "Islam is a religion of peace, the Prophet taught us that we must have a humane attitude even with the smallest animal thus we cannot follow Bin Laden. Islam is a religion of equilibrium, we do not accept too much or too little. In fact Muslims are divided over things that are not significant in terms of dogma or the pillars of their religion. It is this division that is the source of their weakness. We need to go back to the source of our religion. Many Muslims do not care about Bin Laden and don't trouble to bother themselves with him." They are different DAKAR 00001378 002 OF 003 -------------- ¶6. (C) In a discussion with Professor Mamadou Ndiaye, of the Arabic Studies Department at Cheikh Anta Diop University, he said that in the past Al Falah used to get a lot of money from Kuwait and Saudi Arabia, but that after 9/11 much of it dried up. He was unequivocal in characterizing Al Falah as being Wahabbi: "You should see their mosque in Kolobane, it's like Saudi Arabia over there." This in reference to the fact that all the women are covered and the men dress in more traditional garbs. Ndiaye, who is also the Director of Studies at the Islamic Institute of Dakar, posits that Wahhabism is on the rise in Senegal as lots of students are now studying aboard especially in Saudi Arabia. According to him, "They pray in the Arab style. We here put our arms down by our sides, but they cross their arms across their chests. They also have the clothes and beards favored by the Arabs. They are indoctrinated to dislike the brotherhoods (i.e. the Mourides and Tijanes that dominate Senegalese Islam) and told not join one when they return. Their influence is low key but they have money and they know that theirs is a long-term struggle. For example, in the past we rarely used to same amen during prayer time and if we did, we did it quietly. Nowadays you hear amen all the time and it is loud, this is an importation from the Arab world." A New Dogma -------------- ¶7. (C) Professor Abdou Aziz Kebe, an Islamologist and professor at the Arabic Department at Dakar's Cheikh Anta Diop University, argues that in the past the main battle was between East and West and that with the fall of communism the new battle is between the West and Islam: "There has certainly been an increase in the Islam from the Gulf. In the past this was not as prevalent but now there are many groups from this region active in Senegal. Also, in the past the political and social landscape was dominated by the political philosophies of East versus West. Nowadays it is more about the West versus Islam. In my generation we fought for democratic and political plurality. Now Islam is the new battleground. I have seen an increase in Islamic dogmatism similar to the communist dogmatism of the past." Professor Kebe feels that the Salafists, Wahhabi and Reformists have a small toehold in Senegal and that there is a fight between Sufi Islam, as practiced by most Senegalese, and a Sunni Wahabbi interpretation of the Koran. According to him, "Sufism is built on Divine Revelation, whereas Sharia is based on The Rules of Law. These two views are in stark contrast to one another. Sufism is an individual experience where you are supposed to realize your own understanding. The Prophet spoke of the Jihad against one's own soul to cleanse it from sin. In this view the Imam is like a spiritual coach. But a coach cannot have thousands of students like some of the marabouts do in Senegal. In effect, the brotherhoods have become a societal group and this is why the radicals are seen to be right when they criticize them for their lack of spirituality." ¶9. (C) However, despite seeing where the cracks may occur in Senegal's Muslim landscape Professor Kebe believes that groups like Al-Falah will only appeal to a very select few: "I am not too worried about the radical groups. So, while I have seen an increase in the number of mosques being funded and built especially by Salafist groups, Senegalese Islam is open and more importantly it meets the needs of the people. The Senegalese prefer to live their religion and have their freedom. That is why Al-Falah, just like Ibadu-Rahman, changed their tone when they realized they were scaring people away. But, their influence may continue to rise if the brotherhoods do not revert to a more spiritual path. This is especially true for younger people who have many more streams of information at their disposal and who are now much less dependent on their marabouts to tell them what to think." Comment -------------- ¶10. (C) Sow was very wary during the meeting and seems to have a mistrust of and opposition to Western values especially those that center on the pursuit of material wealth. He refused to make any comments that were critical of the brotherhoods but in the same vein as Ibadu Rahman it was fairly clear that they think that the brotherhoods are far too materialistic and mercantile (in particular the dominant Mourides brotherhood which places a great deal of emphasis on work and commerce). For Al Falah, enlightenment through proper education is the key and Sow seemed averse to DAKAR 00001378 003 OF 003 the brotherhoods' tradition of having marabouts act as the intermediary between acolyte and God. Despite what looks like an extensive and well-organized education and charity program, Al Falah does not really appeal to many Senegalese who, above all, value their freedom. Much to his chagrin, Sow noted that Senegal is an "open" and "secular" country and that people have the freedom "to do as they wish." As this was a first meeting, it is difficult to say for certain that this group has no violent tendencies or if they are open or vulnerable to radicalization because unlike other conservative groups they do profess an Islam that is close to what is practiced in Saudi Arabia. However, religious violence and jihadism are virtually non-existent in Senegal and despite their austere and strict worldview it is fairly unlikely that this group will resort to violence to "fix Senegal's Islam." So while, Sow and his deputy seemed more reticent than the leadership of Ibadu Rahman, this may just be because the U.S. Embassy is an unknown entity and thus they may open up in future engagements. End Comment BERNICAT