Reis Kavazović: Faith is an ideal to strive for, but faith without law is not enough

(Patria) - The Grand Mufti of the Islamic Community in Bosnia and Herzegovina, Husein ef. Kavazović, is increasingly visiting Washington and meeting with key American officials regarding US policy towards the Balkans. In an interview with Voice of America, he explained the goals of these visits and commented on, as Voice of America writes, „the religious hypocrisy of Bosnian politicians and citizens, which has contributed to the creation of ethnic fiefdoms instead of a state of law.“

Kavazović visited Washington last week for the second time in the last three months. US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo invited the religious leader to the Conference on Advancing Religious Freedom in the World. The conference was attended by numerous American officials, including US Vice President Mike Pence.

„I think we generally have good relations, primarily with the US Embassy in Sarajevo, but also here with a certain number of people from the State Department, of course from the White House, and with a certain number of Congressmen,“ Kavazović said for Voice of America, as reported by the Patria agency.

One of those "key persons" is Senator Roger Wicker. The Republican from Mississippi is the Chairman of the Helsinki Committee in Congress, which is responsible for determining US policy regarding the OSCE. The goal of this diplomatic mission is „advancing stability and reconciliation by providing support to Bosnia and Herzegovina on its path towards regional political, economic, and social integration.”

Wicker, according to an analysis of his voting record in Congress, is one of the senators most loyal to President Trump. He visited Sarajevo in early July and, in last week's interview with Voice of America, criticized Bosnian politicians.

He stated that Bosnia and Herzegovina's potential will not be realized „unless the inhabitants of that small country decide they want better leaders.“

Wicker added that he does not believe current leaders want reforms that would improve citizens' lives, because they already have „their own power, their own electorate, and something else might not be in their political interest.“

Bosnia and Herzegovina is the most corrupt country in the Balkans according to an analysis by Transparency International, and reports from Freedom House confirm that over the last 10 years, Bosnia and Herzegovina has become increasingly corrupt.

At the same time, polls by organizations such as Gallup International confirm that the majority of Bosnian citizens consider themselves believers, and only 27,853 inhabitants, which is less than one percent according to the 2013 census, declared themselves atheists.

Kavazović notes that religious revelations themselves warn of hypocrisy when it comes to faith and that „we often misunderstand people's religiosity.“ He adds that faith is an ideal to strive for, but that faith without law is not enough to build a just society. „The state must exist, courts and prosecutor's offices must exist, the police, the security apparatus must exist.“

Kavazović agrees with Wicker that political leaders generally do not want reforms that would create a state of law. Instead of the rule of law, „we have a feudal state with despots ruling over peoples. There is no citizen at all.“ He added that the Islamic Community advocates for a civic state without "corrals," in which all people will have an equal body of rights that they enjoy. „It is not possible to have a strong society if the individual is deprived,” Kavazović emphasized.

He warned citizens of all faiths about the growing populism in this election year.

„Populism is just a step away from radicalism, and we know well where radicalism can lead and where it led the entire Balkans in the 1990s.“ He called on all persons who have the right to vote to go to the polls and, instead of populists, choose people „who are ready to bring about changes, for the better, of course.“