Cook Islands Rejects Push to Enshrine Christianity in Constitution
The discovery of the presence of a mosque in Rarotonga, which had been quietly operating for seven years, has set off a major debate about the status of the Cook Islands as a 'Christian nation.'
It culminated this week in a parliamentary committee refusing to formally embed the country's religious affiliation by amending the constitution.
The Masjid Fatimah Rarotonga quietly opened its doors to the local Islamic community in 2018. Situated within a family home in Titikaveka, on the southeast side of Rarotonga, it operated without incident until publicity about its existence last year led to heated debate and calls for the country's constitution to be amended to bar non-Christian religions.
The Religious Organisation Restrictions Act, passed in 1975, limits the introduction of new religions to only the four authorised in the Act: The Cook Islands Christian Church, the Roman Catholic Church, the Seventh Day Adventist Church, and the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.
The constitution currently allows anyone to practice their religious faith, but if they want to establish a church, they must apply to the Religious Authority Council. There are three pending applications before the Council.
Last year Mohammed Azam, leader of the Muslim community in Rarotonga, told the Cook Islands News that the facility accommodated hundreds of Muslims on the island, including Indonesians, Filipinos, Indians, and some Cook Islanders, as well as visiting Muslim tourists.
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'We do prayers five times a day every day, and there's nothing else we do besides that,' he said.
Churches Have Significant Influence
But the country's other churches reacted strongly against the news, and began pushing for the country to be declared a Christian nation and for other religions to be outlawed.
The influence of the church in the Cook Islands is such that Parliament responded by establishing a Religious Organisations Special Select Committee, which heard submissions on Rarotonga and visited the outer islands.
Opposition was headed by the Cook Islands Christian Church, which proposed a constitutional amendment to enshrine 'the protection and promotion of the Christian faith as the basis for the laws and governance of the country.'
Churches in the Pacific nation are traditionally very conservative and decided to use the consultation process to also propose reversing a 2023 law that legalised same-sex relations.
Cook Islands Christian Movement interim secretary William Framheim said this was a 'Western concept' that may be acceptable elsewhere, but not in the Cooks.
In a letter to the editor, Rarotonga Muslim community spokesperson Tatiana Kautai questioned the 'love and compassion' of the Movement, alluding to comments from its interim vice president, Pastor Clerk Turua, who said its purpose was 'to unite believers and serve the community with love and compassion.'
From the outset, the government appeared reluctant to restrict freedom of worship, noting that to do so would breach several international treaties to which the Cook Islands was a signatory, while opposition MPs supported further restrictions.
Rejected as Discriminatory
This week, the committee rejected the proposal, saying it would be discriminatory and a violation of fundamental human rights and would breach the country's constitution. And—in a move certain to foment more opposition from the established churches—recommended Parliament repeal the Religious Organisations Restrictions Act.
In its report, the committee agreed with the Cook Islands Law Society that laws must be applied fairly, equally, and without discrimination to all people regardless of their religious beliefs.
'The committee is compelled to adopt measures that uphold inclusivity, equality, and fundamental freedoms, ensuring alignment with both domestic and international standards,' the report said.
The report also pointed out that the Religious Advisory Council (RAC) had been 'mistakenly' accepted as having an advisory role to the government on matters such as the regulation of churches and even immigration and seabed mining.
'However, the problem is that RAC is not a legally incorporated body and therefore has no formal or legal status,' the report said.
The committee said it believed that the preamble of the Constitution sufficiently captured the significance of Christian principles in the Cook Islands.
It reads: 'In the Holy Name of God, The Almighty, The Everloving, And The Everlasting. We, the people of the Cook Islands, recognising the heritage of Christian principles, Cook Islands Custom, and the rule of law, remember to keep holy the Sabbath Day, being that day of the week which, according to a person's belief and conscience, is the Sabbath of the Lord.'
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Hamilton Spectator
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Yahoo
33 minutes ago
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Trump's travel ban fuels despair and disgust with politics among Arab Americans in Michigan
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San Francisco Chronicle
42 minutes ago
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Trump's travel ban fuels despair and disgust with politics among Arab Americans in Michigan
DEARBORN, Mich. (AP) — The ban on travel from certain countries that took effect Monday — reminiscent of President Donald Trump's first-term restrictions that became known to many as the ' Muslim ban ' — is once again souring relationships among Arab American voters in the key battleground state of Michigan, a group that Trump sought to make inroads with during the 2024 election. It came as a particular shock to many Yemeni Americans in the Dearborn area, who were surprised to find their country on Trump's new list banning travel to the U.S. by citizens of 12 different countries, mostly in Africa and the Middle East. 'This is the reward to the community that defied everybody else?" asked Wali Altahif, a local activist who advocates for Yemeni and other immigrant communities. "That said, 'No, we're going to support you, we going to vote for you'?' 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Others are reluctant to leave the country for fear of being held up by border agents when returning home, something Arab and Muslim Americans already report dealing with at airports. Amir Makled, a Dearborn-based civil rights attorney, said the restrictions have been 'similarly chilling' for Muslim travelers compared to the 2017 policy. He's received several calls from people worried about being detained when traveling back to the U.S., even if they are citizens or lawful residents. One person of Yemeni descent ultimately canceled travel for the Hajj pilgrimage to Mecca, a pillar of Islamic faith, Makled said. 'People overall are opting not to travel, even when they have a legal right to do so,' he said. Both major political parties will have to appeal to the Arab and Muslim communities in the Detroit area in key upcoming races in 2026. With open races for the governor's office and a U.S. Senate seat, a few thousand votes could tip the balance of power in Lansing and in Congress. 'Where these voters land is going to, I think, make a difference in terms of who ends up in those seats,' said Peter Trumbore, chair of the department of political science at Oakland University. The war in Gaza drove Yemeni Americans away from the Democratic Party, Altahif said, and Trump has not made good on his promise to quickly bring an end to the Israel-Hamas war which has resulted in the deaths of more than 55,000 Palestinians. Altahif noted state Democrats who have vocally opposed the travel ban, but said he has not seen Republicans do the same. Osama Siblani, publisher of the Dearborn-based Arab American News, said candidates from both parties who are running for governor and the U.S. Senate have met with him in recent months as the 2026 midterm races start. He also met with Detroit Mayor Mike Duggan, a longtime Democrat who is running as an independent for the governor's office. Siblani called the travel ban a 'racist' executive action that does nothing to help people in war-torn Yemen and Sudan, nations where many metro Detroit residents have relatives. But their disappointment in both Democrats and Republicans may leave them looking for a third option.
