Murat Yılmaz
With the good deeds we saved, we set out for Latin America in order to add one voyage to the many other voyages made before us. We would be the lucky man in the eyes of a Latin American kid. Following 150 years after the attempt of Mr. Abdurrahman, who was from Baghdad, to reach here with a ship which sunk in a storm, we came here to carry the same message.
Geologists say Latin America was a part of Africa, which separated from Africa due to tectonic movements later. I don’t how true this is but I can say that the fate of the people in Africa and Latin America is the same. People of Africa and Latin America are like twins overshadowed by the dark cloud in the wake of aggressive Western colonization. This is the intersection of the fates of African slaves and locals who were taken away from their homes with chains on their hands and feet.
Latin America, which had been subjected to the brutal attacks of Western booty hunters almost simultaneously with Africa, was occupied in the 16th century with the massacre of the last Inca king. Portuguese and Spanish colonizers did not only exploit the treasures of the locals, they also ravaged the continent from Venezuela to Argentine until mid 19th century. They gave great damage to the traditions and living styles of the locals, seized even their agricultural products in farmlands and animals in barns. Later, the UK and United States took over the legacy of the Portuguese and Spanish colonizers in the last part of the 19th century. Over the wreckage of the temple of the latest Inca king and bodies of millions of Red Indians in Quito, capital city of Ecuador, today there rises the oldest Catholic church of the Latin America as a sign of the bloody occupation.
We are on the roads…We are in Lima where the sun sets the latest. There is the Pacific Ocean in front of us. Locals and Mestizos go out for work with the first lights of the day. And we check our Ramadan program with the president of the Islamic Center Hüseyin Avad, who can be seen among the first Muslim residents here and one of the “al-Turkos.” This calm Latin air makes us refreshed despite the tragic story of the continent. Is not this excitement which brought us here from thousands of kilometers away? We ask Avad about the adventure of Islam in the region. Islam reached Latin America first during the era of Andalusia. Then, Muslim slaves were brought to the region with the slave trade which began in late 19th century. The number of Muslim slaves in Brazil alone reached 5-6 million at the end of the 19th century. Third wave of Muslims coming to the region were al-Turkos who fled the chaos in the Middle East following World War I with the Ottoman identities in their pockets. When those who came to the region during the occupation process of Palestine and later on are added to this group, a significant Muslim population emerged in the region. However, Avad said a big number of Muslims in the region converted to other religions due to pressure and lack of interest. Turkos do not only live in Peru and Ecuador but they make up a significant part of the population in Colombia and Argentine.
Today, Islamic Center is recognized by the government of Peru. In addition to Lima, Arequipa and Tacna are places where Muslims mostly live. There are three masjids in Peru. News about local peoples’ conversion to Islam makes the Islamic Center very happy. Gulyanna Ramirez and Luis Fernando who converted to Islam four years ago are some of those beautiful sisters and brothers. They are now working for the Islamic Center. With other Muslims, Gulyanna and Luis try to convey Islam’s just message even to the people in jails. What they need most is to see Muslims’ support. Gulyanna said the support and interest of Islamic countries are of crucial importance for the 5,000 Muslims in the region which does not even have a Muslim cemetery.
It is a fact that Islam grows like a snowball in Latin America. Islamic understanding of justice and rights give power to the Latin Americans who were suppressed for years and now have a rebellious spirit. That’s why Fransisco Suquillo joins the mass evening prayers although he is not a Muslim. That’s why Ricardo helps delivery of the aid packages by wearing an IHH Humanitarian Relief Foundation vest as he tries to know Muslims better after the conversion of her elder sister to Islam three months ago. That’s why Muslims are in more solidarity during teraweeh prayers. Today, the number of mosques and masjids in Brazil has reached 110 while this figure was 80 four years ago. The Islamic Center in Chile has been active since 1926. The Colombia Islamic Culture Center is opening its third branch. It is reported that the number of Muslims in Venezuela is 700,000, one million in Argentine and more than 2 million in Brazil. “In Mexico, nobody can imagine the speed of the spread of Islam,” say the administrators of the Brazilian Islamic Center. Islam which sparked the interest of the people in the region particularly after Sept. 11 attacks in the United States in 2001 is a hope for the people there. Official figures show that 8,000 people quit Catholicism in Ecuador every day. What they need is only a wind as you will understand. Decent, excited, lovely and smiling Latin Americans want to get rid of the Western outfit which depressed them for centuries.
As IHH program in Peru continue with the delivery of food packages and fast-breaking [iftar] programs, we pay a visit to the family of Zeynep Teresa who continues her life as a Muslim in Turkey. Sister’s Zeynep’s conversion to Islam has become a source of mercy for some of her family members. Her sister Anna Maria followed her and converted to Islam, then her 72-year-old mother was enlightened with the light of Islam. As we recite Quran at the grave of sister Zeynep’s mother who died as a Muslim last year, tears of Anna Maria promise a beautiful future in Peru.
As we travel to Ecuador from Peru, we have the opportunity to meet with Andes Mountains, which follow us through our way. These mountains which spread through 7,000 kilometers from north to south became a shelter for Latin Americans who are stubborn but emotional. Quito which is the highest altitude (2,800 meters) capital of the world after La Paz (Bolivia), is one of the important places where the IHH carried Ramadan joy to. The Islamic Center in Ecuador, where a significant part of the population, around 14 million is comprised of Mestizos, was established thanks to the efforts of four Indonesian sisters and five Ecuadorian brothers in 1994. Muslim population which began to increase in the country in 1980s and has reached 3,000 today lives mostly in the provinces of Quito, Guayaquil and Cuenca. There are a total of three mosques in Ecuador where interest in Islam is very high. The voice of the Muslims in the country becomes louder with the conversion of new people to Islam every day.
IHH team’s visit to Ecuador on the occasion of Ramadan is seen as a surprise visit by Islamic Center President Yahya Juan Suquillo and Muslims. IHH’s activities in this region which is on the equator and known as the “center of the world” are sufficient to make Muslims very much happy. Suquillo who was a former general in the army of Ecuador and changed his name to Yahya after he converted to Islam told us that we are first Turks in the history coming to Ecuador with a mission.
IHH team began its relief activities in the region with orphans where it would stay for a limited time. Gifts such as clothes, watches, school bags and stationery sets, specially prepared by the people of Anatolia for the orphans they take care of thousands of kilometers away were presented to the children. Children who said they had never lived such a day before also became the joy of the iftar tables adorned by the Ecuadorian women like a bride. Ahead of this program, five orphans were included in our Sponsor Family System.
There is actually more to tell about Latin America such as Amazon region which is the home of crocodiles, giant boas and oil fields, magical fruit banana with which 70 different meals can be cooked, iftar invitation of Egyptian Ambassador Hişam Marzuk who is a fan of Turkey, Fabiana, the Peruvian friend of my sister Ayşe who sent candies and chocolate to Ayşe in return for Ayşe’s presents for her, Peruvian human rights activists who follow Mavi Marmara, Cotopaxi, a volcano, Ecuadorian musicians who send their greetings to Turkey from the center of the world. I have brought you the warm love and greetings of the people of Latin America.