Maryam Yasmin Hussain, Bitterlemons International, April 10:
A very common example of western misinterpretation of Islamic terms is that of the word “fundamentalism”. Among the critics of Islam it is often used to describe faith-justified terrorism, the brutal treatment of women and abrasive behavior. But in an Islamic context, “fundamentalism” very simply means adherence to and faith in the five basic tenets of Islam, i.e. the beliefs that there is only one God and that Muhammad is his prophet, and the performance of prayers, fasting and the hajj or pilgrimage. The fundamentals of Islam are clearly devoid of any kind of violence yet the inaccurate use of the word has caused a certain amount of Islamophobia to spread among non-Muslims.
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