Maldivian President Ibrahim Mohamed Solih said on Monday in an Independence Day address that people should unite against radical groups whose views and actions contradict the "belief of Islam."
The Maldives is marking its 56th Anniversary of Independence on Monday.
"The President highlighted that despite the actions of some radical groups promoting extremist views amongst us, these radical views contradict the belief of Islam. He called upon the people to unite and stand up against these groups," Solih's office quoted him as saying.
The president stressed, however, that Islamophobia would not be tolerated either. He said that Maldivian independence came as a result of citizens' faith in Islam and their "bonds of unity."
"President Solih further said that spreading Islamophobic hate speech is a treacherous act that divides the people and that neither of these acts would be tolerated. He added that these two issues cannot be resolved by only pursuing legal action but rather by following the true teachings of Islam," the statement read.
The Maldivian government is determined to incorporate Islamic values into education "to best assist parents in nurturing their children to adopt the true Islamic teachings of compassion from an early age," Solih said.
Under the Maldivian constitution, Sunni Islam is the state religion and only Sunni Muslims can be citizens. Over the past several years, the country's counter terrorist agency increased its efforts to counter Islamic radicalization among citizens, alarmed by the growing number of Maldivians pledging allegiance to the Islamic State (terrorist group, banned in Russia. (ANI/Sputnik)
( With inputs from ANI )
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