Local analysts are adamant that most South African Muslims are unlikely to be receptive to a fundamentalist or extreme brand of Islam.
They say that while many Muslims are opposed to the United States-led war on ”terror” and feel Islam is threatened by the West, very few are likely to engage in acts of violence, especially against South African targets.
The analysts emphasise that local Muslims are well integrated into South African society and have many vested interests locally.
Iqbal Jhazbhay, Middle Eastern specialist at Unisa, said the militants of the Cape-based organisation People against Gangsterism and Drugs (Pagad) had been neutralised in the Muslim community. Pagad members were viewed as responsible for a wave of bomb attacks in Cape Town in the mid-1990s.
Cassiem Khan, South African coordinator of Islamic Relief, an international non-governmental relief agency, conceded that young South Africans were more susceptible to being drawn to militant movements. ”Young people are frustrated with the world order. Psychology 101 teaches that frustration breeds aggression.”
Islamophobia could drive them into the arms of radical movements, Khan added. ”To expect all Muslims to act as balanced people and give appropriate responses [when treated unfairly] is expecting too much. No group can do that.”
At the same time, diplomatic and intelligence sources revealed this week that South Africa was coming under increasing pressure to take action against alleged Islamic extremists who were moving to the country because of crackdowns in other parts of the world.
There was particular concern in foreign intelligence circles about the country’s lax immigration laws and border controls, and the role of Islamic schools in South Africa where foreign Muslims are studying.
Washington’s ”war on terror” had resulted in many Islamic countries — notably Pakistan and Sudan — clamping down on fundamentalist Islamic schools, said the sources. These schools, especially in Pakistan, were seen as a training ground for many of the hardline Islamists involved in strikes against the US and other countries.
As the local Muslim community was internationally regarded as tolerant and open-minded, many radical clerics were perceived as fleeing from countries where they were facing a clampdown and heading to South Africa.
Local observers said that one way in which pressure on South Africa was being felt was in the intense scrutiny of the finances of Muslim relief agencies since September 11 2001.
”Unfortunately it became a grey area after 9/11; the Bush administration has been clamping down on Muslim charities giving aid,” said Naeem Jeenah, president of the Muslim Youth Movement of South Africa.
The problem was that South Africa had a Muslim community that was ”globally involved”, said Jhazbhay.
Individuals and relief agencies from South Africa often sent goods or money to Islamic countries like Bosnia and Sudan.
Khan added that there was a growing problem with the stereotyping of Muslims with beards or in traditional dress as potential terrorists. Increasingly, the problem was with ”being Muslim. Looking like an Arab makes you suspicious.”
At the same time, however, the South African government is seen as being particularly keen to foster good relations with the local Islamic community. This was the result of its experiences with Pagad.
Jhazbhay pointed out that the African National Congress made engagement with religious movements, including Islam, a priority at its annual conference in Stellenbosch in 2002.
In addition, the South African government has been one of the most vocal critics of the US-led invasion of Iraq and Israeli policy in the Middle East — while consistently condemning acts of terrorism.
The country has also attempted to act as a broker in the Middle East conflict, inviting moderate Israelis and Palestinians to talks.
Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs Aziz Pahad led a South African delegation to Iraq before the US invasion began, in a last-ditch effort to persuade Saddam Hussain to cooperate more fully with United Nations weapons inspectors.