Mufti Tomasz Miskiewicz, head of the Muslim Religious Union (MRU) in Poland, visited Pakistan from April 4-10. The Mufti, who graduated from the Institute of Teaching Arabic Language for Foreigners and studied Theology at Islamic University of Madina in Saudi Arabia, met Pakistani officials and delivered lectures at the International Islamic University and Quaid-i-Azam University in Islamabad during his stay.
He was accompanied by his wife, who is the project manager of the MRU and accompanies him on his official visits.
She speaks fluent English and was charming and friendly, answering questions and giving information that was very helpful in getting to know the Muslim community in her country.
After being introduced by Dr. Andrezej Ananicz, the new ambassador of Poland, briefing media persons about the visit of Mufti Miskiewicz, said he had a fruitful visit and exchanged views with various scholars and heads of religious institutions. In reply to questions by media persons, he said suicide bombings were ‘haram’ because suicide was forbidden in Islam and killing innocent persons a crime.
He said he has offered to play the role of a mediator between religious extremists and authorities in Pakistan. He believes extremist violence in Pakistan is giving a bad name to Muslim minorities in Europe.
On questions about the Muslim community in Poland he said there were about 30,000 Muslims in the country, mostly Tatars and while they could be found all over Poland, they were concentrated in the east.
They are a Sunni majority and practise a liberal version of Islam in its true spirit of love, peace and tolerance, having an excellent relationship with people of all
religions living in the community.
Women do not wear a ‘nikab’ but the ‘hijab’ is worn by many. Children are given instruction in religion every Friday in school buildings hired for the purpose but the MRU was looking to build its own and have permanent places. The Tatars were well known as brave soldiers but after World War II they have turned to trade, mostly in leather curing and its products.
Information on the Tatars reveals that from the 13th to 17th centuries various groups of Tatars settled and/or found refuge within the Polish-Lithuanian commonwealth. This was promoted especially by the Grand Dukes of Lithuania, because of their deserved reputation as skilled warriors. Numerous royal privileges, as well as internal autonomy granted by the monarchs allowed the Tatars to preserve their religion, traditions and culture over the centuries. The May Constitution of 1791 gave the Tatars representation in the Polish Sejm.
Although by the 18th century, the Tatars adopted the local language, the Islamic religion and many Tatar traditions (e.g. the sacrifice of bulls in their mosques during the main religious festivals) were preserved. This led to formation of a distinctive Muslim culture, in which the elements of Muslim orthodoxy mixed with religious tolerance and a relatively liberal society. For instance, the women in Lipka Tatar society traditionally had the same rights and status as men and could attend non-segregated schools.
Tatars in Poland sometimes have a Muslim surname with a Polish ending: Ryzwanowicz, Jakubowicz. In modern-day Poland, their presence is also widely known, due in part to their noticeable role in the historical novels of Henryk Sienkiewicz, which are universally recognized in Poland. A number of Polish intellectual figures have also been Tatars, e.g. the prominent historian Jerzy Lojek.