A student in a Californian middle school was shot dead, allegedly caused by his being openly-gay. Muslim communities in Europe are being targeted by Islamophobic groups. Before the 2008 Malaysian elections, ethnic Chinese and Indian minorities were being discriminated. Indonesian groups bearing a religion's name regularly shows off its power and brutality, at the expense of others.
We are really living in a dangerous world. Violence finds its false justification in beliefs, religion, or any differences between people. Everybody feels that they are the only "right" people in the world and on that basis finds it easy to deprive others of their rights.
The shooter probably thought of being gay as a disease or even a crime. That's why he easily pulled the trigger to his schoolmate, if they considered each other as "mates". He cannot accept that his friend also has his right to live according to what he believes in.
Muslim immigration to Europe is sometimes viewed as the "Islamization of Europe", just because those muslims are bringing along their culture. Though I admit that some cultural practices should be left behind, most parts of these cultures are not, in any way, threatening the principles of democracy and freedom held high in Europe. Unfortunately, some see this phenomenon as a "wrong" thing. They are going to ban Muslims for practicing their religion and their culture, so as to somehow "integrate" them into the western society.
In Indonesia, religion is abused as a basis for many violent actions. Brutal gangsters clad in long white robes, claiming to "defend Islam", are frequent offenders of the law. Churches, licensed and unlicensed, in many areas have been closed down by these vandals; while it is very difficult to obtain permits for religious facilities other than mosques, due to biases in the birocracy.
We are really living in a dangerous world. Violence finds its false justification in beliefs, religion, or any differences between people. Everybody feels that they are the only "right" people in the world and on that basis finds it easy to deprive others of their rights.
The shooter probably thought of being gay as a disease or even a crime. That's why he easily pulled the trigger to his schoolmate, if they considered each other as "mates". He cannot accept that his friend also has his right to live according to what he believes in.
Muslim immigration to Europe is sometimes viewed as the "Islamization of Europe", just because those muslims are bringing along their culture. Though I admit that some cultural practices should be left behind, most parts of these cultures are not, in any way, threatening the principles of democracy and freedom held high in Europe. Unfortunately, some see this phenomenon as a "wrong" thing. They are going to ban Muslims for practicing their religion and their culture, so as to somehow "integrate" them into the western society.
In Indonesia, religion is abused as a basis for many violent actions. Brutal gangsters clad in long white robes, claiming to "defend Islam", are frequent offenders of the law. Churches, licensed and unlicensed, in many areas have been closed down by these vandals; while it is very difficult to obtain permits for religious facilities other than mosques, due to biases in the birocracy.
All of these examples shows that we lack respect for other people. Many groups believe that they're above the law since they are, in their point of view, the only right group in the whole wide world and that God sent them to banish "evils". While no one can judge whether a group is "right" or "wrong", they cannot force other people to believe in what they believe. Such actions are inappropriate for people calling themselves "civilized", and even "religious".
Prejudice against other people must be eliminated because it fuels the fire of hate crime. Despite efforts by many organizations, prejudice still prevails in the society and still affects how one thinks about another. For example, it's not uncommon to hear the sentence "It must be a Chinese" when news about Indonesia's academic achievement is in the paper. In other cases, this prejudice is then used to justify violent, uncivilized actions.
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