Hamas Islamization Policies Mold Gaza

I am not a fan of those Pan-Arab satellite channels that have perfected the art of groping for people’s pocketbooks and distracting them with superficial, profit-oriented programs in the mode of Arab Idol.

Still, the success of the Palestinian contestant in reaching the final round has raised the matter of Palestinians’ interaction with their native son [Mohammad Assaf] into an issue relevant to national identity, in all its innocence and purity. Palestinians dream of upholding the name “Palestine” forever; they feel pride when their homeland’s name is uttered on this, the most famous of pan-Arab television shows, watched by millions throughout the Arab world.

For this reason, the idea of attacking Assaf is simply out of the question; indeed, the streets of Gaza are empty whenever the program airs. The strange thing is that in some of the mosques [the imams’] sermons have focused on inciting people to bring down Assaf “as a religious necessity." As though the success of this up and coming young man would somehow delay the liberation of Palestine. Indeed, there are some reasonable men who have accurately read the movement of the street and hastened to save the faith by distancing it from this question. [They recognize that] the people have simply chosen to follow and support their “beloved” native son. This puts religion in the uncomfortable position of moving against the tide of public opinion and sentiment.

But the issue is not confined to such superficial matters alone. The question of this rising star is a cultural venture that stands in opposition to Hamas’ project of striving by all available means to “mold” Gaza — that is, to mold it in Hamas’ image. Moreover, it fights against everything that is different from itself, a pattern of behavior that it has routinely exhibited since it took control over the Gaza Strip. Moreover, that pattern has been confirmed by the intensification of Hamas’ recent campaign. Whether they are telling people how to express their feelings or whether they are defining the type of shirts that people may wear, they are effectively trying to force people in the Gaza Strip to conform to an external appearance dictated by Hamas.

http://www.al-monitor.com/pulse/culture/2013/06/hamas-islamize-gaza-campaign.html