Mosque construction triggers standoff in Daegu

A yellow tent where residents hold protests against the construction of an Islamic mosque is installed next to the construction site in Daehyeon-dong, Buk District, Daegu, Wednesday. Korea Times photo by Kim Kang-min

By Lee Hyo-jin

• Published May 3, 2022 8:34 AM KST
• Updated May 3, 2022 8:34 AM KST

Freedom of religion, privacy clash as neither side backs down

By Lee Hyo-jin

DAEGU ― Daehyeon-dong, located in Buk District of Daegu, the nation's third-largest city, looks no different from any other residential area of Korea.

Neighbors who have known each other for decades are seen casually chatting in the alleys, while wallet-friendly restaurants and cafes cater students who study at nearby Kyungpook National University.

But things are not so peaceful in one narrow alley leading to a construction site of an Islamic mosque, which seems almost derelict with only a metal skeleton standing. A small yellow tent is installed next to the property, where neighborhood residents have been holding daily protests against the construction.

This uncomfortable cohabitation has continued for over a year since Muslim students at Kyungpook National University decided to construct a two-story mosque after demolishing a small house they had been using as a place of worship since 2014.

The construction of the new mosque was authorized by Buk District Office in September 2020 and ground was broken in December, but it immediately triggered friction with Koreans in the neighborhood.

The neighbors filed complaints to the district office about noise and dust coming from the construction site, as well as the sounds of worshipers and the smells of their foreign food from before construction began. In February 2021, the district authority issued an administrative order halting the construction.

The construction has been delayed indefinitely ever since, while the conflict has only deepened.

Currently, the Muslims gather for daily prayers five times a day at a small house being used as a temporary place of worship next to the construction site.

“As you see, this place is too small to accommodate all students. Only about 20 to 25 of us can come to pray. We really need a bigger space. After we construct the new mosque, this house will be used to accommodate female worshippers,” said Muaz Razaq, 25, a Ph.D student studying computer science at Kyungpook, while he showed this reporter around the dimly lit house, Wednesday.

Around 12:30 p.m., worshippers arrived one by one at the house for Dhuhr, the midday prayer. They knelt and prayed in silence for about 10 minutes, and then left in a hurry.

Razaq explained that the location is ideal for these Muslim students, most of whom study at Kyungpook.

“It's only five minutes' walking distance from the campus. Since we have to pray five times a day and also have to do our research work in the labs, the mosque should be close enough so that we can walk, pray, go back to our lives quickly.”

Complaints from neighbors

But the location is far from perfect for some of the neighbors.

Park Jeong-sook, 60, who lives right next door to the mosque construction site, said she won't be able to live there if the temple is built.

“This is not a matter of religion. I would have opposed it even if it were a church, cathedral, or a temple. No one in their right mind would welcome a multiuse facility, where random people come and go every day, to be built right next to their house just a few meters away. This is an infringement of privacy,” she said.

She went on to say that during the past seven years since she moved in, her family had to put up with loud noises whenever worshippers held large gatherings, especially during Ramadan, the holy month of fasting, prayer and worship.

“I didn't even know what Ramadan was before I moved here. It seems like every Muslim in the town gathers after sundown and eats together during that period. Due to the loud noise and exotic odors of their food, we couldn't sleep at all,” she said.

“But I didn't make a single complaint to the district office even when they held parties at nights. I didn't want to make things hard for the foreign students, who have come a long way from their home countries,” said Park, explaining that her relationship with her Muslim neighbors was not so bad until their sudden decision to build the mosque.

“We are not denying their religious freedom. And we are not saying they should leave the neighborhood. All we want is for them to find a more appropriate site where our concerns will not be an issue. We cannot understand why the 20-meter-high religious facility has to be located specifically here,” said Kim Jeong-ae, a woman in her 40s who heads the group of neighborhood residents opposing the mosque construction.

The mosque will be 20 meters high including a minaret, while the building itself will be eight meters tall, according to the blueprint of the building.

Park and Kim are also worried that the Muslims are trying to purchase houses surrounding the site, which they view as a move to “expand their territory.”

“Realtors contact the residents and ask whether they are willing to sell their home to the Muslims. It seems like they (Muslims) are trying to solve the matter by buying the homes owned by Korean residents…This doesn't make sense,” Kim said.

Muslims claim Islamophobia

On the other hand, the Muslims argue that the construction is a legitimate process that had been approved and that their religious freedom should be guaranteed.

“The spiritual needs of Muslim students should be considered. For instance, as I work here, there is a soccer ground for me where I can fulfill my physical needs, then there should be also a place where I can fulfill my religious needs,” Razaq said.

“And actually, we were surprised when the neighbors protested at first, because they would have been aware that this place has been used as a place of worship for several years by our seniors after they bought the house.”

According to Razaq, the previous house was purchased by students studying at the university in 2014 before his time. And as the Muslim students grew larger in number, they decided to build a proper mosque.

He also said the students have attempted to address the complaints raised by neighbors, by promising to install soundproof walls and tall chimneys in the new mosque, but the neighbors were not willing to negotiate.

The standoff has become so intense that both sides have installed multiple surveillance cameras around the alley to keep an eye on each other.

The Korean residents have installed surveillance cameras down the alley out of fear they might be attacked by Muslims angered by their protests, while the Muslims have installed cameras on the construction site following allegations that some Korean neighbors threw garbage there.

But some residents, including members of conservative Protestant groups, seem to have gone too far during the protests.

They displayed banners full of hate speech and Islamophobic comments, such as “Muslims who kill people brutally and behead them, get out of this area! Terrorists! Right now!” and “Islam is an evil religion that kills people.”

“Some of their expressions during the protests were quite surprising to us. It was not related to the construction of our mosque. They attacked our religion. They called us terrorists, saying that this place would soon become a hub of terrorists.” Razaq said.

“But the disappointing part was that they placed such banners outside schools. That embarrassed Muslims and some were psychologically disturbed.”

The case was taken to court after the Muslims filed a lawsuit against the district office to get the suspension order canceled. A district court ruled in their favor in December 2021, saying the administrative order was issued based on neighbors' complaints rather than legal grounds.

On April 22, the appeals court ruled in favor of the Muslims, rejecting the neighbors' appeal. They plan to take the case to the Supreme Court.

However, whoever wins the legal battle, the very uncomfortable situation is expected to continue.

“Of course, we would like to go back to those days when we used to live in peace with the foreign students. But now, we have no choice but to fight. We will do everything we can to protect our right to pursue happiness,” Kim said.

Razaq said, “We are still ready to sit and talk with the Korean residents. But if they just tell us to go away from here, it will not solve the issue.”