Their defense against the prejudice they have done nothing to deserve
"WHAT IS the first thing that comes to your mind when you think of Islam?" During a quick survey on Aug. 15, college students gave answers such as turbans, the Koran, or the mosque to this question. Despite many neutral responses, there were still replies that showed negative images of Islam, such as Islamic fighters, terror, and Osama bin Laden. 
The 5% that do not represent the other 95%
Korean people may tend to link violence and terrorism with Islam. However, it is wrong to presume that the whole Muslim population is connected with terrorism, merely judging from the few radical Islamic extremists who commit terrorist attacks. These extremists, who make up only 5% of the Muslim population of 1.3 billion people over 56 countries around the world, are those who do not hesitate to use violence for political reasons. They are ostracized even among Islamic countries, where their inhuman and ruthless acts are severely chastised. The other 95% of Muslims, or Islamic moderates, are people who pursue peace and condemn violence committed in their religion's name. The true colors and notions of the Islamic moderates are being brutally distorted because people in Korea mistakenly believe that the radical 5% represent the whole Muslim population.
Where does the prejudice stem from? 
▲ "A lady came up to me and asked if beheading people was an Islamic doctrine."
-Amir-
This misunderstanding is mainly due to the fact that Korean people have been watching the news about war and conflict in the Middle East through the Korean media, which reports the U.S. side of the story. Since the media failed to deal with both the perspective of the Middle East and the U.S., Koreans came to accept the view of the U.S., a country that is in conflict with the Islamic world. So, it is not hard to imagine what kind of treatment the 35,000 Muslims in Korea - Korean Muslims, diplomats from Islamic countries, and foreign workers from countries such as Bangladesh, Pakistan, and Indonesia - are receiving because of the prejudice. "In the past, Muslims in Korea did not have much difficulty, but these days people tend to hold a negative view about Muslims," remarked Jeong Jin-soo, a Korean Muslim.
Unfounded accusation from the public
Amir, a Malaysian student currently studying at the Dept. of Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering at Seoul National Univ., received an absurd accusation from a Korean woman while visiting Busan. "A lady came up to me and asked if beheading people was an Islamic doctrine," he said, shaking his head incredulously. Apparently, the woman was judging from the incident in which Kim Sun-il was killed by a terrorist organization last year. "I explained to the lady that Islam is, in fact, a religion of peace. One example of this is that Muslims greet one another by saying salem, and as you know, salem means peace. I guess Korean people have prejudice about Muslims because they just do not know about Muslims," Amir said regretfully.
Cyber-terrorism by anti-Muslims
Now that people can freely express their thoughts and opinions through the Internet, there are cases where a small group of people are branded with digital scarlet letters. Muslims are not an exception. Most Muslim-related websites on the Internet are doing no good to set straight the public's view about Muslims. "There are people who bombard the Internet with words that defame Islam," said Jeong. "Most of the Internet sites that introduce Islam are managed by people who do not have Islamic faith - usually people who believe in other religions. They pretend to understand Islam and provide a lot of information about it. But upon a closer look, one can see that the important parts are distorted," he explained.
S
uspicion cast by the government 
▲ "I was interrogated by a government intelligence agency while working as a translator for the Zaytun division."
-Jeong-
The ignorant public and anti-Muslims are not the only ones who are giving Muslims a hard time with unjustifiable prejudice and unfounded suspicion. It looks as though even government intelligence agencies are suspecting innocent people for being linked with terrorist groups. "I went to Iraq to work as a translator for the Korea Zaytun division and was suspected of being related with the al-Qaeda. I was interrogated by a government intelligence agency," said Jeong. "Nowadays, it is hard to lead a peaceful religious life," he deplored.
Just a little respect and concern
What Muslims in Korea are asking for is not a lot. All they wish for is to be able to continue their religious lives without being wrongfully linked with terrorism and receiving undeserved treatment because of it. "I wish people would try to understand the basic facts about our religion, such as what we believe and what we are trying to pursue. And I wish people would respect all this - even people who have different religious convictions," said Jeong. Amir, who says Islam is not merely a religion but a way of life, suggested, "It would be nice for non-Muslim Koreans to show interest in Islam, visit our mosque, and personally see what a peaceful religion Islam is." Through continued effort from Korean society to understand Islam, a day may come in which Islam recovers its true image of a religion that pursues peace and purity.