02 November 2016

Educating women key to preventing spread of radicalization, Ahmadiyya Caliph says

The spiritual leader of up to 20 million Ahmadi Muslims is emphasizing the importance of educating women to prevent the radicalization of youth.

“The literacy rate of our women is more than men,” said the Caliph, Hazrat Mirza Masroor Ahmad, who was in Saskatoon on Tuesday as part of a Canada-wide tour. “And we say if the woman is not well educated, she cannot train her children well. If the children are not trained properly, they cannot be good citizens. They cannot be law-abiding citizens. They cannot be useful for the country.”

If mothers are well-educated — religiously and with secular education — and well aware of the “negative aspects” of radicalization, “they can save their children,” he said.

When asked about the role mosques play in preventing radicalization, the Caliph said people are not being radicalized in Ahmadi mosques.

He called for governments to listen to the sermons in the mosques and see the activities of the clerics. The Caliph invited members of the media and police as well to listen to his sermons.

“The government has to be vigilant,” he said. [Ottawa Citizen] Read more