Bloomfield Imam Gives Lecture on Things Liked and Disliked by Allah

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By Adil James, TMO

Bloomfield–April 16–Imam Al-Masry of the Bloomfield Muslim Unity Center gave an educational lecture Saturday evening about the things that Allah likes and dislikes. 

The imam focused on honoring and respecting parents, neighbors, saying that Prophet (s) had said that being good to a neighbor was a clear sign of iman.  The imam spoke about avoiding pride and arrogance, saying that harsh proud men are men of hellfire. 

He gave the example of a man who in the time of Prophet (s) evicted another man from his home for not paying rent, and threw all of his furniture into the street–the man who evicted the renter complained to Prophet (s) because people were cursing him as they encountered the furniture in their way in the street, and Prophet (s) said that Allah had cursed him first for what he had done.
Another good characteristic the imam emphasized was that of serving others–he said that “we should not be embarrassed to serve others,” illustrating this with an example from the Prophet’s (s) life of when he helped an old woman by carrying her belongings.  When she spoke against him (not knowing who he was) and then realized who he was, she said “You were given the best of manners,” and immediately said shahada.

The imam encouraged people not to expose the good that they do, saying Allah doesn’t like that.  He said the hadith that seven will be shaded on the Day of Judgment, including those whose left hand doesn’t know what the right hand does,” meaning they hide their sadaqa.

The imam also quoted a hadith showing that hidden sadaqa is extremely powerful.

Another disliked action, the imam explained, was transgression–he said there is a line beyond which you must not go.

The imam spoke at length against betrayal.  He also spoke against waste and extravagance, and against looking slovenly.

Throughout his lecture the imam illustrated his arguments with examples.

13-17

Letters to the Editor–Disliked Articles

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Dr Nakadar,

I am concerned about a couple of articles that recently appeared in The Muslim Observer. Apart from the articles being controversial it is TMO’s responsibility to avoid slandering those who are devoting their lives to spread the true message of Islam according to the teachings of the Prophet (s).  The article on Dr Zakir Naik was demeaning and hateful….   And similarly is the article of Syed Aslam, against the Imam of Sunnah, Ahmed ibn Hanbal who was viciously tortured to uphold the Sunnah and protect Islam …   These Scholars … deserve our utmost respect, and TMO should have an editorial process to ensure that their reputation is protected, and that the Sunnah is upheld and propagated. 

These are the inheritors of the prophets.

Yes, we need a healthy balance of articles; difference of opinion and critique is one thing, but it should not cross the line in terms of unfair labeling, disrespect, or causing enmity.  As per one hadith, The Muslim is one who other Muslims are safe from his tongue (or in this case, the pen).

…
Masood Ranginwala
Chairman, Islamic Learning Foundation, NY an Institute of I.C.N.A.

13-17

If Cairo Came to Kabul

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By David Swanson

Before Tahrir Square happened almost nobody predicted that President Hosni Mubarak would be forced out of office by a movement that didn’t pick up a gun. Had President Barack Obama expected that outcome, he might have publicly backed Mubarak’s departure before, rather than after, Mubarak stepped down.

Obama can be seen as overcompensating for that performance in Libya, but there he is placing faith in weapons. Anybody can do that. Egypt still has a long way to go on its path to a just society. But the question of whether Tunisian-Egyptian movements will find success elsewhere is the question of whether people can take the far more challenging step of placing trust in nonviolence.

Those who believed a nonviolent movement, one that would involve youth and women, could gain power in Egypt, worked for years to make it happen. Those saying it couldn’t be done were not permitted to get in the way of those doing it. Nonviolent strategists like American Gene Sharp advised the organizers of a force that developed completely beneath the U.S. media’s radar. What burst forth earlier this year appeared to be spontaneous. It was not.

It will come as a surprise to most Americans, and indeed to most Afghans, that a dedicated group of Afghan youth has begun building a principled and disciplined nonviolent movement for peace, independence, and unity in Afghanistan. By independence, the Afghan youth mean independence from the United States and NATO, but also from Pakistan and Iran and all other outside control, as well as independence from rule by the Taliban, warlords, and oligarchs of all stripes. By unity, they mean national Afghan unity inclusive of all ethnicities.

Bringing Cairo to Kabul, the capital of Afghanistan, will not be achieved by occupying a central square this week and gradually increasing the crowd size for months and years as Afghans come to appreciate the value of the movement. Taking over the streets of the capital, if that tactic is employed, will not happen until a great deal of groundwork has been laid. That groundwork will likely involve several steps that have been identified by those working on this project.

Ethnic Unity

First, ethnic divisions will have to be healed. Afghanistan is 42% Pashtun, 27% Tajik, 9% Hazara, 9% Uzbek, and smaller percentages of several other ethnic groups. As long as these groups are rivals, it will be more difficult for the people as a whole to challenge corrupt oligarchs. A newspaper editor in Kabul told me he believed that even legitimate, credible elections — something Afghanistan has not had — would not produce a just and stable representative government, because any president would be from one ethnic group and not the others.

Afghans should be so lucky as to have that problem! The reality is that until the ethnic groups unite, and other progress is achieved, Afghans are unlikely to be able to compel their government to hold open and verifiable elections.

Ramazan Bashardost, a member of the Afghan Parliament, finished third in the official count of the 2009 presidential election. He is Hazara, and the first and second-place finishers were Pashtun and Tajik respectively. But Bashardost told me that he received more support from outside his ethnic group than from within it. Bashardost is a proponent of Gandhian nonviolence, ethnic unity, and national independence. He employs no security guards, cruises around town in a beat-up old car, and holds court in a tent in an empty lot in a particularly poor neighborhood.

Bashardost favors political reforms that would empower the legislature and disempower the president as well as political parties, thus allowing greater representation of minority groups. Bashardost is a powerful voice on the inside of the Afghan government for peace and nonviolence. Here is video of an interview I conducted with him. But Bashardost is not an activist or an organizer. He is a unifying figure, but he is a politician.

Teck Young Wee is another story. He is a medical doctor and a native of Singapore who began working with Afghan refugees in Pakistan 9 years ago and moved to Bamiyan Province in Afghanistan seven years ago. He was taken in by an Afghan family and given the name Hakim. Bamiyan is relatively free of U.S. forces and therefore something of a success story in terms of suffering low levels of violence.

Hakim has been mentoring youth in Bamiyan and elsewhere. The Bamiyan youth, primarily Hazara and Tajik, primarily boys and young men, but including girls and young women and other ethnic groups as well, have established the Afghan Youth Peace Volunteers (AYPV). Peace is a radical idea, and apparently frightening to some. Hakim received threats from unidentified sources, and the people of Bamiyan created a warning system to protect him that involved plans to put their own bodies in the path of any violence. The threat has faded.

AYPV have taken steps toward ethnic unity, controversially arranging for college students from every ethnic group to room together. A similar approach of using housing rental policies to integrate the country on a larger scale is something I’ve heard advocated by professors in Kabul.

Afghan Youth Peace Volunteers from Bamiyan in the north have made particular efforts to reach out to Pashtun youth in the south. Peace volunteers hand made cell phone cases from second-hand leather and hand sewed the word ‘Peace’ in the Dari language on them. They sent these to Pashtun youth in Kandahar along with a video message. Then they phoned Pashtun youth leaders to say they had done this out of love and a desire for reconciliation. A Pashtun leader, in Hakim’s words (here’s video), “said this is impossible – he couldn’t believe it.” He said “this is a love you have shown us and we will never forget it.” That’s a powerful statement in a country where the things you most commonly hear people say they will never forget are acts of violence.

Hakim stresses that part of eliminating ethnic divisions will have to be recognizing and addressing the forces that strengthen them, namely the violence of warlords backed by the United States and NATO. Here, as elsewhere, is a chicken-and-egg dilemma. Unity is needed to drive out the occupiers, but the occupiers are a barrier to unity. Yet, this is always the way, and such traps have been opened before.

Women Behind The Wheel

A second part of the groundwork that is probably needed is the empowerment of women. A nonviolent peace movement stands a far greater chance of success, experts say, when it includes women and embraces a movement for women’s liberation.

An Afghan film director Sahraa Karimi has produced an engaging and illuminating documentary called “Afghan Women Behind the Wheel”. When she told me the title with a bit of an accent, I thought the last word was “Veil.” It could almost as well have been. The film is about the limited rights and options of women in a country that is not just poor and war-ravaged, but in which many men passionately believe women to be inferior.

The movie has great footage for anyone wondering what life in Kabul looks like, and it tells the stories of a number of women who learn to drive. In a scene that drew laughs from all the Afghans watching it with me, a driving instructor tells them “Another important thing is traffic lights, even though we don’t have any.” He goes on to explain what red, yellow, and green mean. I’m told there are a few traffic lights, but I haven’t seen them.

Something else you won’t see much of is women drivers. The women in the movie are violating a taboo. When they begin driving, vicious rumors are spread about them, including that they are working!

It’s actually very hard for anyone to find a job in Afghanistan, and driving lessons cost a good percentage of the average annual income. Some of the women in the movie are in fact working, one in a health clinic, one in a school, and one decides to become a taxi driver. She describes an unloved childhood and a forced marriage to a man 18 years her senior, a man who abused her. She enjoys the sport of Kabul driving, not a skill easily learned by anyone. Her story resembles the others’ — fathers prefer sons, sons inherit property, marriages are forced.

The taxi driver sees driving as the one thing she is able to do, and she is terrified of not being able to afford the gasoline to continue doing it. She dreams that cars might run on water. The same woman builds a house herself and loves it, but is afraid that her stepfather next door might hurt her or her children, and so lives in an apartment. Better times and changes come into her life, which is quite touching and revealing.

I certainly hope to see many more women driving in Afghanistan. If women are going to lead a movement, as they must, to reject both the U.S. occupation and the Taliban, they cannot remain in the position of children always asking for a ride.

A third part of a successful movement will be the educating and organizing of youth. In Afghanistan, 68% of the country is under age 25, and the life expectancy at birth is 44. A nation this young will rise or fall with the actions of youth.

This is almost certainly an advantage, in that youth have fewer years of trauma, bitterness, and ideologies of vengeance to overcome. While some of the leading members of AYPV lost family members to the Taliban, it is the youth more than their elders who carry less weighty memories and resentments. Watch this video of Afghan kids at an orphanage and you will feel more confident about Afghanistan’s future whether you want to or not. Watch this one of Afghan shepherd boys with slingshots and the possibility of David nonviolently halting Goliath’s assaults may appear within reach.

While Hakim is their mentor, the young men of AYPV are the leaders of this budding movement. They are thoughtful, experienced beyond their years, relentlessly energetic and upbeat. Abdullah, age 15, whose father was killed by the Taliban, recently explained his desire for peace and nonviolence from all sides to a defender of the US/NATO occupation. The icy response was that the Taliban ought to have killed him as well. Abdullah was told that he was too young to know real suffering. But the younger man was the wiser in this conversation, responding without anger or hatred and opposing the maintenance of a vicious cycle of violence.

One morning earlier this month, four members of Afghan Youth Peace Volunteers spoke to a college class in Kabul. The professor with the loudest voice argued that the United States and NATO wanted the good of all people. Faiz, age 20, was among those who spoke up in response. Speaking to elders is not part of the tradition these young men have grown up in, but they believe it has become necessary. Some eyes were opened. About half the class, by the end of the session, seemed to believe that peace might be possible.

A fourth important step is precisely that of persuading Afghans who have no experience with peace that peace is indeed possible, and that the nonviolent tools of peace are powerful enough to bring it about and to resist violent seekers of power, whether Afghan or foreign.

The U.S. military encourages Afghans to believe that only foreign violence can prevent domestic terror. Here’s a video showing U.S. advertisements for war in Afghanistan. A poster shows an Afghan baby with the words “suicide bomber or doctor?” The Peace Volunteers reject the notion that one violent force is needed to hold off another.

Afghanistan’s history has much to draw on in countering the idea that violence is inevitable. In particular, there is the history of a nonviolent Pashtun army under the leadership of Badshah Kahn resisting the British occupation of what was then the Northwest Frontier of India and is now Pakistan. A new film telling this story should be viewed by all Americans, but more importantly by all Afghans.

Imagining peace in Afghanistan is made difficult by decades of war, by traditions of honor and vengeance, by the current ubiquity of violence, but also by factors that dominate the lives of Afghans while often slipping from the minds of the rest of us. Afghans are hungry, miserable, suffering, and scared. Many have little or no electricity, healthcare, or potable water. In Afghanistan 850 children die every day.

There is no difficulty in motivating Afghans to protest in anger. But organizing a disciplined campaign of nonviolence moved by justice, while free of anger, may prove — as it usually is — more of a challenge.

A fifth factor is the building of alliances abroad, something the AYPV have been busy with, hosting dozens of foreign peace activists in Afghanistan, scheduling global conference calls on Skype, and sending messages far and wide. Here’s a video of U.S. peace activist Kathy Kelly speaking in the United States last week about her visits to Afghanistan.

The U.S. embassy has refused visas to members of AYPV who have been invited to visit and speak in the United States. What possible harm can the U.S. State Department believe would come from Americans meeting a few Afghans face-to-face and hearing about their plans for nonviolent activism and peace? Former Afghan member of Parliament Malalai Joya recently had a visa to the United States accepted following intense public pressure; so such reversals are possible.

The Revolution Has Begun

Whether a nonviolent movement will succeed in Afghanistan we have no way of knowing. Whether the Afghan Youth Peace Volunteers and others inspired by them will play a major role, I certainly can’t say. Briefly visiting Afghanistan has imprinted the views of a small unrepresentative sample of Afghans on my mind in a way that no reading about the nation can do; and even those who live there are unable to predict the future. If a nonviolent movement achieves power, the basic sequence of events is hard to foresee. The U.S. military could be forced out before a representative government is established, or vice versa. Or everything could come at once. The point I want to make is that such a thing is completely possible and that it may have already begun.

The small group of thoughtful, committed citizens that Margaret Mead said can change the world has already begun working toward peace and justice in Afghanistan. They’ve begun small. Here’s a video of the Peace Volunteers installing an illuminated sign with the word for ‘Peace’ on the side of a mountain. Here they are planting trees for peace last month. Here’s a candlelight vigil. And here is a slideshow from what I hope will be the first of many marches for peace in Kabul — this one held on March 17th of this year.

The march was covered by all of the local television stations in Kabul as a startlingly new phenomenon. Peace? Who even dreams of such a thing, much less proposes a strategy to build it? Police surrounding the marchers with batons and riot gear were a less unusual sight.

Of course, there have always been marches and protests in Afghanistan. As in the United States, such events receive far less media attention than do acts of violence. But most such demonstrations do not propose nonviolence, peace, and love. They oppose particular campaigns of violence and are generally considered at risk of spawning violence of their own. When I was in Kabul earlier this month, students at Kabul University held a march against the U.S. occupation. I would have loved to attend and speak against the crimes of my own government, but as an American I was strongly urged to go nowhere near an event at which being an American could get me killed.

The Afghan Youth Peace Volunteers have sought to send their message of nonviolent opposition to war to the heart of the empire. Here’s a video of U.S. Ambassador Karl Eikenberry in Bamiyan telling the AYPV that he will deliver their message to President Obama. Here’s a video of Congressman Keith Ellison promising the same.

The messages send out by the AYPV are eloquent and important. The immediate actions they advocate include establishing an international mediation team, a cease fire, a peacekeeping force, crisis teams, a unity campaign, restorative justice, and clean elections.

In another direct appeal the Afghan youth implore:

“Humanity has taken too long and lost too many in implementing non-violent, civil ways to resolve human conflict. We human beings can do better than repeatedly resorting to force and war to address human hurts and needs. Stop the killings, stop killing one another, stop killing the people. Stop killing us.”

David Swanson is the author of “War Is A Lie.”

13-17

Estate Planning: Important, Yet Ignored by Muslim Americans

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By Adil Daudi

06Experts have estimated that approximately 70% of Americans live their every day life with no estate plan; and I am sure that number is higher amongst our own Muslim community. A topic that adheres to the protection and distributions of our wealth is a topic that has become commonly ignored. But why? As an Attorney practicing in this area, I have come to realize that for many, the reason for them to overlook this topic is because they don’t understand the concept of what it is and how it actually works. Why purchase a product when you don’t understand the essential benefits of it?

So what is Estate Planning and why is it important for you to have one in place? First, I’ll begin by providing a definition of estate planning and then briefly discuss two components of an estate plan.

Simply put, estate planning is when you take measures to administrate your estate, i.e. making plans on how you want your assets distributed.

There are only two ways you can plan your estate: through the direction of a will or the use of a trust. The two, in Michigan, function completely different from one another. A will is defined as a legal document that directs the distribution of your property after your death. Whereas a trust, is defined as a legal document where you give control of your property to another (a Trustee) for the benefit of your beneficiaries. What’s the difference between two? Among other things, the primary difference is that under a trust you put yourself in a position to avoid any probate court involvement. Probate court is a legal proceeding where the judge overlooks your estate and ensures your assets are distributed according to your wishes. Because a trust transfers ownership of your assets into your trust’s name, leaving nothing under your individual name, there is no need for your assets to be probated.  Only assets that are titled under your individual name go through probate.

A well drafted estate plan consists of more than just a legal document.

To ensure you have a comprehensive plan in place, be sure your attorney includes the following documents: durable power of attorney and medical power of attorney. These two documents are essential for the completion of any estate plan. A durable power of attorney is when you give another the right to control your finances and allow them to make all decisions pertaining to it as if you were making it yourself. A medical power of attorney, similar to durable, is when you give another the right to make all medical decisions for you when you are unable to make it yourself.

As staggering as the number is for people who have yet to establish an estate plan, this number is even higher amongst our own community. For whatever reason, Muslims living in the United States fail to put emphasis on an issue that has been mandated upon us. Narrated by Ibn Umar, prophet Muhammad (PBUH) once said: “It is not right for any Muslim person who has something to bequeath to stay for two nights without having his last will and testament written and kept ready with him.”

So with the obligation requiring each and every Muslim to create an estate plan, it is surprising on the number of people who have yet to take the necessary steps to do so. If it’s because you are not familiar with the topic then acquiring knowledge is always encouraged prior to taking any action. But once you acquire that knowledge it is imperative for you to move forward and ensure you have a sound estate plan in place. Remember, without a plan you are allowing the government to dictate how your assets will be distributed. Not only will your assets be in their control, but the distributions will not be made pursuant to Islamic laws.

Adil Daudi is an Attorney at Joseph, Kroll & Yagalla, P.C., focusing primarily on Estate Planning, Shariah Estate Planning, Asset Protection, Business Litigation, Corporate Formations, Physician Contracts, and Family Law. He can be reached at adil@josephlaw.net or (517) 381-2663.

13-17

Imam Yassin Aref Transferred from CMU

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By Karin Friedemann, TMO

In a surprise move by the Bureau of Prisons (BOP), Albany, New York’s Imam Yassin Aref, who was serving a ten year sentence inside the Communications Management Unit (CMU) in Marion, Illionois, has been moved to the general prison population. Aref stated in an email to his friends dated April 13, 2011:

“Finally and thankfully they accepted my request and agreed for me to come out of CMU. Now I am just a regular human – I mean regular prisoner! I am no longer in CMU, so if any of you come and visit me I promise I am going to hug him! Hopefully after six months they will transfer me to somewhere close to my family so I can see my children but as for why and how? Believe me I don’t know anything more than you! They just told me to pack up. 25 days before that I had a team review. I asked for transfer as usual and they told me they would do the recommendation for me but the decision its not theirs. When I called my son Salah, he told me, “Daddy how is it they let you out?

What has changed?” I told him I am still Yassin and they did not tell me anything. However, I am very thankful they allowed me to be in the regular general population.”

Aref was inside the CMU in Terre Haute, Indiana from May 2007 until March 2009, when he was transferred to the Marion CMU. As of April 10, 2011, Aref is in the same prison building but in a different unit. Now he has more space to walk and more recreational activities. He has more lenient social, visitor and phone call rights. There are some African American Muslim brothers in his new unit and they pray the Friday prayer together. Whenever he leaves his unit to dine, go to the yard or library, and to visit the chaplain, he walks by the door of the CMU. Imam Yassin describes his past experience:

“After spending about 20 Months in total solitary confinement at a county jail, I arrived at CMU Terra Haute, Indiana to find a small Middle Eastern community where inmates from Iraq, Syria, Lebanon, Palestine, Jordan, Egypt and Yemen among others were already there. In CMU, most inmates are Arab or Arabic speakers.

“We are separated because of our nationality and religion. Of course they deny that, but the reality in the CMU proves this segregation is the whole point of a CMU. Otherwise what did I do? Why am I classified as a high risk inmate? How can it be dangerous if they allow me to hug my children? Why do they need to limit my communication? Who I am going to call besides my family?

“All my life in Iraq I was treated as a second degree citizen and half human because I was Kurdish. I left my country to regain my humanity and live free, not to be targeted, imprisoned and placed in a CMU.

When I learned CMU prisoners don’t have the same rights like other prisoners in the BOP, and I found that 65 to 75 percent of the inmates in CMU are Muslim and another 8 to 15 percent are Spanish speakers, I became sad and it seemed like this country is going backward to the dark days of its history when Black people were slaves or treated like slaves. Many inmates in CMU are not criminals. They are political prisoners and victims who were in the wrong place at the wrong time.

Some like me never committed any crime. Yet they treat us as the highest risk inmates!

“My youngest daughter is still a child and she was born while I was in jail. I never carried her or kissed her and I could never buy a candy for her. She doesn’t have any memory with me. Until she was four years old she used to think ‘daddy’ means the phone! That’s because whenever I used to call home, her brothers and sister would run to the phone saying “Daddy, daddy!” So, she thought daddy means phone! Whenever anyone asks her, ‘Where is your daddy?’ she would point or run to the phone and say, ‘That is my daddy!’ It’s heart breaking but I am laughing. In Arabic they say the worst trial is the one which makes you laugh!

“Thank God with all of these unjustices still my heart is full of peace and Love. My faith saved me from hate. I believe God allowed this to happen and that is why it happened. I look for His reward for all my pain and all of what my family going through.”

Aref is involved with a civil rights lawsuit which questions why Muslim prisoners who are considered a low security risk are being put under high security communication restrictions without any legal recourse.

Center for Constitutional Rights (CCR) Attorney Alexis Agathocleous told NPR, “Our clients were designated to the CMUs without due process or oversight, even though they have no significant history of disciplinary infractions.”

However, Aref does not believe that his transfer has anything to do with the lawsuit.

13-17

Hazare’s Anti-Corruption Protest: Genuine Or A Show?

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By Nilofar Suhrawardy, TMO

NEW DELHI: Ironically, of the roughly 17 times that Mahatma Gandhi is known to have fasted throughout his career, none was regarding his stand against corruption. Yet, there is no doubt that the impression held then by the Father of Indian nation, Mohandas K. Gandhi holds true even today. In his opinion, “Corruption and hypocrisy ought not to be inevitable products of democracy, as they undoubtedly are today.” Paradoxically, the manner in which noise has been raised against corruption in today’s age is barely reflective of Gandhian style in taking a strong stand on issues affecting the common people. In fact, the most important fasts undertaken by Gandhi in September, 1947 and January, 1948 were in favor of peace among the different religious communities living in India. Multi-religious secularism was one of the most important goals promoted by fasts undertaken by Gandhi. His first fast in March, 1918 was to display his support for mill workers of Ahmadabad, who were suffering because of cut in their livelihood driving them to the point of starvation. Besides, the dress adopted by him, the Indian-dhoti (loin cloth) wrapped around him, was his style of identifying himself with the Indian poor. It was this dress that led British statesman Winston Churchill to label Gandhi as the “half-naked fakir.”

Against this backdrop, one is naturally tempted to analyze the Gandhian-hype raised by the fast recently undertaken in India by Anna Hazare. Earlier this month, he went on a fast against corruption. He ended his fast after 98 hours, when the central government conceded to his demand and issued a gazette notification setting up a joint committee of ministers and civil society activists to re-draft the Lokpal Bill. Breaking his five-day fast on April 10, he said: “Fasting is the most democratic way of protest. Anti-corruption bodies like the CBI (Central Bureau of Investigation) and Vigilance Commissions have failed, since they are all under the government. Such a law (Lokpal) is urgently needed to ensure independent investigations on corruption charges.”

Welcoming Hazare’s decision to end fast, Prime Minister Manmohan Singh stated: “I am happy that the government and representatives of civil society have reached an agreement in our mutual resolve to combat corruption. This is a scourge that confronts all of us. The government intends to introduce the Lokpal Bill in Parliament during the monsoon session.”

Chaired by Finance Minister Pranab Mukherjee, the joint drafting committee on Lokpal Bill held its first meeting on April 16. The meeting co-chaired by senior advocate Shanti Bhushan lasted for around 90 minutes. The 10-member committee for redrafting the Bill includes Pranab Mukherjee, Home Minister P. Chidambaram, Law Minister M. Veerappa Moily, Human Resources Development Minister Kapil Sibal and Minority Affairs Minister Salman Khursheed. Besides Hazare himself, his nominees are Justice N. Santosh Hegde, Shanti Bhushan, advocate Prashant Bhushan and activist Arvind Kejriwal. The committee’s second meeting is scheduled for May 2.

While Hazare’s fast lasted, the media and political hype created the impression as if the entire country was participating in a major revolution, and they will not rest till their mission was accomplished. With the fast over and the government playing its part in paying due attention to Hazare’s demand, questions are being raised over the credibility of the entire show.  In fact, with each passing day, more questions are being raised on whether the whole affair was worth the attention it secured and money spent over it. Also, Hazare and a few of his nominees in the drafting committee are facing trouble over their individual credentials. Hazare has been strongly criticized for having praised Gujarat Chief Minister Narendra Modi for the state’s development. This has naturally provoked activists and secular Indians to raise questions on whether Hazare has paid any attention to sufferings faced by victims of the Gujarat-carnage that targeted Muslims. People in general are also puzzled at Hazare having included both Shanti Bhushan and his son Prashant in the committee. Besides, “news” on a CD containing an alleged conversation between Shanti and a few politicians over “influencing” a judge, has raised questions over the “clean and corruption-free” image of Hazare’s associates. 

Strongly condemning his praise of Modi, a statement, signed by activists, read: “For the veteran anti-corruption social activist, Hazare to endorse a politician against whom a Supreme Court led investigation into conspiracy to commit mass murder and rape, subversion of evidence and pressure and intimidation of key witnesses is still under way, reveals a narrow and mercenary understanding of the meaning of corruption.”

Drawing attention to there being a linkage between the people close to Hazare and saffron-brigade groups, including the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), Congress leader Digvijay Singh said: “I can’t call him to be supporting the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) or the BJP cause. But he should be careful with some associates he chose. The banner which was used as the backdrop (at the protest site) Bharatmata resembled that of the RSS. People who are close to the Gandhian (Hazare) were somehow close to the BJP also.” Singh suggested that Hazare was being “exploited” by certain people for their own political motives.

Interestingly, while Hazare’s “movement” appeared to be at its peak, there was no dearth of celebrities, including film actors displaying their support for his anti-corruption drive. Questions are being raised on whether the celebrities’ support for Hazare’s stand was genuine or was simply a “lip-service” for media’s sake. Now, those who didn’t support him are justifying their stand. Actor Sharmila Tagore has strongly criticized Hazare’s hunger-strike. Tagore, who has earlier served as chairperson of Central Board of Film Certification (CBFC), said: “In a functioning democracy hunger strike tantamounts to blackmail and the government also gave in to it.” In her opinion, “corruption is a very important issue and it needs to be tackled, but not in the way it was done.” Tagore pointed out: “There was no debate or discussion in the media too. Besides people like Baba Ramdev joining in and Anna’s subsequent praising of Narendra Modi and Raj Thackeray was disturbing.”

While different people may have their own reasons for describing Hazare’s “fight” against corruption as Gandhian or not, clearly, prospects of it succeeding in totally rooting out corruption at all levels from the Indian system remain dim!

13-17

Precious Cargo

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By Sumayyah Meehan, TMO

sleepycraYou can see them popping their heads through an open car sunroof as it speeds down the highway or bouncing up and down in the back of a car in motion. No, they’re not animals such as a cat or dog traveling with its master. They are unrestrained children living in some of the world’s richest nations. It’s a startling phenomena given that America’s legal system has gone to great lengths to protect American children traveling in motor vehicles in the United States by making seat belts and car seats for young children a part of the law. However, the utter disregard for the safety of children traveling in motor vehicles in the Middle East is alarming. In fact, it is an epidemic that threatens entire generations of children.

This past winter a father in Kuwait paid dearly for his lesson in passenger safety. A family trip to the desert turned tragic as the SUV the father was driving jostled under the bumpy desert terrain. His son was standing upright inside the car as his upper body was outside. All it took was a single bump to throw the son from the car and into the path of his father’s vehicle. With no time to regain control of the vehicle, the father ran over his son and crushed him to death. Stories like this are common all across the Middle East as many parents take the road less traveled by not securing all passengers before turning that ignition key.

The problem is widespread and, while most countries in the Middle East pay lip service to restraining children inside of motor vehicles and do have laws requiring car seats and seat belts on the books, there is no enforcement of vehicular laws meant to protect children. It is up to parents to decide whether or not to restrain their children inside the vehicle. Unfortunately, most parents pay little attention to the safety of their children inside the car.

The United Arab Emirates (UAE), for example, has one of the worst records for unrestrained children in the Middle East. According to recent research, car accidents are the number one killer of children in the sheikhdom with 63% of child deaths last year alone being linked to car or roadway accidents. Further, UAE authorities have determined that an estimated 98% of children in the country are not restrained when traveling by motor vehicle.

There is little data regarding children and road safety in other regions of the Middle East as research over the issue in scarce. However the problem will most likely continue to deteriorate, as countless children will undoubtedly pay for the negligence of adults with their very lives.

13-17

Three Cups of… What?

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By Adil James, TMO

GregMortensonGreg Mortenson is apparently a big liar. The founder of the Central Asia Institute (CAI) and writer of the bestseller Three Cups of Tea, one-time mountaineer and world traveler, is in addition a profligate cheat.  60 Minutes did a story this past Sunday on Mr. Mortenson, exposing some of the more expansive exaggerations of which he is guilty. 

Mortenson is famous for promoting the education of Afghan and Pakistani girls despite the region’s reputation for being absolutely religiously charged against the education of girls.

The 60 Minutes expose showed that, first of all, the underlying story which has become the engine for his not-for-profit, for his books, and for his own captivating attraction to the American public eye—is a lie.  Mortenson claims to have come into a village after being separated from a climbing troupe—a village which nursed him back to life and then accepted his intervention in the form of building a school house for the young girls of the village. 

In fact the village of Khorfe that Mortenson mentions is one that he did not hear about until a year after the climbing trip—a trip from which he was never separated and which passed uneventfully.  “A beautiful story… and a lie,” explained interviewee Jon Krakauer, himself a mountaineer and the author of Into Thin Air (a first-hand account of the 1997 Mount Everest disaster).

The other harrowing story that forms the nucleus of his aura of magical transcendence is that of being captured by Taliban and then released after asking for a copy of Qur`an.  The evidence for this story was Mortenson’s picture among about a dozen bearded Afghan men with Kalashnikov rifles.  The truth of this story, however, is apparently that Mr. Mortenson travelled with some friends who happened to have beards and Kalashnikovs (like the other 95% of men in the region), with whom he stayed by choice and not compulsion.  60 Minutes interviewed one of those men, a prominent Pakistani journalist who explained that in fact the other people in the picture were his relatives and fellow travellers—the journalist said that absolutely those men were not Taliban—and also showed a picture where Mortenson held a Kalashnikov while the bearded men did not.

The 60 Minutes crew traveled to 30 of the schools supposedly built and maintained by Mortenson—half of these schools are now defunct, or were never built, or were built by someone else, or were never supported beyond a rudimentary level by Mortenson, and succeeded on their own and without his support.  The 60 Minutes segment is evidence that Mortenson filed a fraudulent IRS Form 990 for his not-for-profit, which lists these problematic or nonexistent schools as recipients of aid. 

The 60 Minutes expose showed the lavish lifestyle of the author, who travels in private jets to see enthralled and adulating audiences around the United States—where he earns $30,000 per speech.  The expenses for these trips are borne by his not-for-profit.  Yet the speaking fee goes to him, and the profits from the book sales also go to him.  In fact the not-for-profit spent 1.7 million dollars in one year to fund his travel on speaking engagements and book tours, more than it spent that year to build or fund schools in Pakistan and Afghanistan.

Mortenson claims outlandish conversations with an individual, who Mortenson claims promised to send all his yaks with provisions to help build a school—conversations that 60 Minutes interviewees described as completely out of character for that individual.  60 Minutes showed footage of the relevant school, explaining that in fact it is now defunct, a small isolated cement structure on a mountain, devoid of use.  He claims to have built multiple schools (sometimes claiming nine, sometimes eleven) in war-torn areas—interviewees explained he had built three schools there, not more.

CAI has suffered some internal rifts which the 60 Minutes report explained as being caused by Mortenson’s lavish living and abuse of his not-for-profit. 

The report contended that Mortenson used the CAI’s money as a personal ATM.  Financial analysts who analyzed the CAI books contended that there was substantial intermingling of his own funds with not-for-profit funds.  In 2002, the report explained, three of Mortenson’s board members including the treasurer quit in protest over his misuse of funds.

Mortenson does not appear to have good answers to the questions raised by the 60 Minutes story—as evidenced by his running away from 60 Minutes reporters and suddenly cancelling a speaking engagement to avoid their questions.

“This is not Bernie Madoff,” said Krakauer.  “He has done good, girls are being educated,” but Krakauer explains that this good is offset by his fraud and lies.

The disturbing underlying reality of this event is that Westerners will pay to hear certain narratives that give them heart in the ideological battle they wish to wage against Islam, they will pay people to sing the songs that match their dreams–unfortunately for them, it looks like this particular pitchman for this narrative was diluting the tea he sold with something less appetizing.

13-17

Of God and Country

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Kassem Zaid has had a connection to the Zionist Hashomer Hatzair movement for decades, but has meanwhile become a devout Muslim. How does he reconcile such contrasting elements in his personality?

By Alit Karp, Ha’aretz

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Zaid: ‘There is no room for extremism.’

Photo by: Yaron Kaminsky

We met 35 years ago. At the time Kassem Zaid was a correspondent for Al Hamishmar, the newspaper affiliated with the left-wing Hashomer Hatzair youth movement. He was also teaching Arabic at educational institutions affiliated with the movement on its kibbutzim (I attended one such school ) and he had close ties with Israeli leftist circles. He wore jeans and checkered shirts and spoke a poetic Hebrew. A short while before Al Hamishmar closed its doors permanently, in early 1995, Zaid lost his job. Subsequently he made the hajj pilgrimage to Mecca and became a devout Muslim.

Before we met about a month ago, I was expecting to see my 74-year-old former teacher bearded and dressed in a galabiya. But he arrived for the interview dressed in a suit and tie, and was clean-shaven. “Islam is a moderate, forgiving religion and it has no ritual clothing,” he explained in Hebrew.

Umm al-Fahm, the city of some 45,000, one of the country’s largest Arab towns, southeast of Haifa, has no sidewalks. Pedestrians, most of whom are youngsters (who wear Western attire, although girls do cover their hair ), walk down the city’s alleys where dumpsters overflow with refuse. Here and there one can see a stream of sewage. Any efforts at gardening are the result of private initiatives by local residents, and can only be seen tucked away in people’s yards.

“Relatively speaking, our situation is not bad,” my host, Zaid, told me, “because [municipal] taxes are collected here. The situation in other communities is much more difficult.” He pointed out that there are many fine Arab physicians and talented high-tech personnel in Israel. “Actually, the lack of equality,” he said, “forces us to excel, but that is a real shame. Discrimination is bad for the country; the human landscape here will never be complete without the Arabs.”

Aren’t some Israeli Jews afraid the Arabs will outnumber them and will drive them out by democratic means?

Zaid: “The Jews have a lot of unjustified fears. As someone who believes in coexistence, I cannot understand this fear. For 63 years, and in five wars, Israeli Arabs displayed loyalty at the highest level. I would like to allay the Jews’ fears: The birth rate among the Arabs has plummeted and there is no apparent danger that the Jews will be outnumbered. That fear would be justified only if the Jews do not return the territories. Then there would be a binational state here and Kassem Zaid would be prime minister.”

What is worrisome is the possibility that Muslim fundamentalists, like Islamic Movement leader Sheikh Ra’ad Salah, will come to power.

“That will never happen. Even in Egypt the Muslim Brotherhood has declared that it will not field any candidate for the premiership or presidency. They are not interested in ruling the country. There is not the slightest chance that an Arab, whether he is Sheikh Ra’ad Salah or Kassem Zaid, will ever be prime minister. That is not at the top of the list of our priorities.”

So what is at the top of the list?

“We want equality. We want the Jews to look us straight in the eye, not look down on us. What is happening here now never happened even in South Africa. [Foreign Minister] Avigdor Lieberman has pushed for a ‘citizenship loyalty’ law, but how can any of us know what another person is thinking or feeling? Even before Lieberman, we were unhappy. We were accused of being responsible for all the ills of Israeli society. There are even some expressions, like ‘Arab work,’ that articulate this feeling of contempt.

“I want Israel to be a ‘state of all its citizens,’” declares Zaid. “Although I also do not like to open up old wounds, I will state here that my family’s lands are located in the place where Moshav Hayogev was established [northeast of Umm al-Fahm]. I am not arguing that the kibbutzim and moshavim founded on those lands should be torn down, but nonetheless, we should receive compensation.”
Don’t you feel you belong in the State of Israel? In the kibbutz dining hall years ago, you looked as if you did.

“I still belong, but the country does not give me that feeling. I belong, despite all those who want to deny me the right to have that feeling. My sense of belonging is a result of my ability to cope with our situation.”

On the night of May 14, 1948, when Israeli independence was declared, you were 11 years old. What do you remember from that period?

“Nothing much happened that night because Israel received the ‘Triangle’ area of Arab villages after the country’s establishment, in accordance with the Rhodes Agreement. Before that agreement, we were Jordanian subjects. The agreement led us to feel that King Abdullah [I of Jordan] had betrayed us. After we came under Israeli administration, the Jews announced, using loudspeakers, that all those who had weapons in their possession must hand them over to the mukhtar [village headman]; the Jews also asked us to ensure that law and order be maintained in our communities.

“People were afraid of change. Obviously, I would have preferred seeing a Palestinian state established; however, people made peace with the new situation and, besides, there are a lot of advantages to living in Israel. On the personal level, Arab individuals can lead their lives in dignity, there is a senior citizens allowance, there is a guaranteed income allowance and no one suffers from abject hunger. My personal dignity is not trampled upon. But man does not live by bread alone. I am concerned about the relationship between Jews and Arabs in this country. Prior to the 1990s, that relationship was better than it is today. It is steadily deteriorating now.”

Who is responsible for this?

“In this struggle, the Jews fired both the first shot and the last one. Although there are some Arabs who undermine Arab-Jewish coexistence in this country, the Jews are the majority and they are the ones who run the government.”

To what extent will recent events in the Middle East have an influence on Israeli Arabs?

“They will have no influence whatsoever. I want to state here categorically that these events will not produce extremism among Israeli Arabs. All of you can relax: These events stem not from pan-Arabism or Islamization, but rather from the fact that the public in those states is fed up with their leaders’ corruption. Muslim circles in the Middle East have no ambitions with regard to seizing control. They want to field candidates in general elections [for parliament], but not for positions of leadership. Even if they had such ambitions, it should be recalled here that those who generated the revolution in Egypt are secular Muslims who use Facebook and Google. They will not allow any party with a religious character to take control of the country in which they live. It is important that leaders in the Middle East remember that people are interested first of all in having their dignity respected and that only afterward are they interested in bread.”

For years, you embraced the State of Israel and maintained close ties with Hashomer Hatzair’s kibbutzim. You were a communist and now you have become someone else, someone who prays five times a day. What happened?

“I was not a communist. I did not turn into someone else and I am still close to Hashomer Hatzair’s kibbutzim.”

The alarm clock rang, reminding Zaid that it was time for prayer, but he rejected our suggestion that we join him in the mosque. “Previously, I observed three of Islam’s commandments,” he explains, referring to accepting the faith of Islam, fasting during Ramadan and giving alms to the needy. “Then I added the commandments of prayer and the hajj.”

How do you resolve the paradox between religion and the aspiration for national equality?

“Islam is a religion that preaches equality between men and women, and God sent the Prophet Muhammad (s) to all humanity. If there is a reason why Islam sees itself as a religion that is preferable to other faiths, it is because Muhammad (s) was the last of the prophets. God sent him in order to complete what is missing in the other religions, not to invalidate them.”

And what about jihad?

“Jihad is not one of Islam’s basic principles. Jihad is the struggle that each person wages against himself or herself, in the metaphoric sense; it is not necessarily an actual war against some external enemy. The great jihad that Muhammad (s) refers to is an ongoing, daily war, not a war against infidels per se. However, even if we agree that jihad is holy war, all the peace agreements that Arab states have signed with Israel are being honored, and if the Palestinians receive their rights, there will no war in this land. The future depends on the intellectuals, not the religious leaders.”

There was a case here of an intellectual who headed an Israeli political party and who, when accused of collaboration with Hezbollah, fled the country in order not to stand trial.

“Azmi Bishara [of the Balad, or National Democratic Alliance, party] is a very intelligent person, but I do not agree with him and his approach. There is no room for extremism and if he did help Hezbollah, I reject him totally. I also call upon [Hezbollah chief] Hassan Nasrallah, who is trying to recruit collaborators among Israeli Arabs, to leave us alone. We have more important tasks to pursue, concerning our citizenship in the State of Israel. Despite the discrimination, I am against the idea of anyone committing treason against this country. We feel that this is a state of all its citizens and that we are among those citizens.”

The term “a state of all its citizens” arouses considerable anxiety in the hearts of many Israeli Jews.

“I am not saying this to irritate the Jews, but this is a fact: Two nations live in this land and I want to be a citizen here with equal rights.”

Did this feeling lead you to seek refuge in Islam?

“I do not consider Islam a refuge. After all, I am a member of one of the oldest Muslim families in the world. My family belongs to the Prophet Muhammad (s)’s dynasty.”

But what happened when you suddenly became a devout Muslim?

“There is no such thing as an atheist Muslim. Anyone who refuses to recognize the Koran and the Prophet Muhammad (s) is simply not a Muslim, but a person who does not observe one of Islam’s commandments is not necessarily severing ties with Islam.”

When did you start praying daily?

“It did not happen on any specific date. I had planned this for a long time. Perhaps I did not have the time to do it, or perhaps I was just lazy, but 20 years ago, I began to pray five times a day. If I have the time, I go to a mosque; if I do not, I pray at home. The prayer lasts less than five minutes and a Muslim can pray anywhere.”

In 2004, Zaid performed the Muslim commandment of the hajj, along with his wife Salwa. As he circled the Kaaba – the most sacred site in Islam, in Mecca – he was deeply moved.
“When I saw millions of people all wearing the same attire, beggars alongside princes and tycoons, all wearing the same robe and praying to the same God, I had a feeling that was simply indescribable. There, and only there,” he said, “I felt that everyone was truly equal.”

Born again

Sociologist Prof. Aziz Haidar is a senior researcher at the Van Leer Jerusalem Institute who teaches at the Hebrew University of Jerusalem’s Harry S. Truman Institute for the Advancement of Peace, says Kassem Zaid is not a unique case, in terms of his acquired religious identity.

“The phenomenon of the newly observant in the Israeli Arab community is a trend that began back in the 1970s, in the wake of the [Arab] defeat in the 1967 war, and due to disillusionment with pan-Arabism. The trend became more prominent in the 1980s and 1990s. One of the factors that contributed to it was the possibility that was provided in the early 1980s for making the hajj to Mecca. Two other factors were the collapse of communism and disenchantment with the Palestinian national movement.

“A prominent aspect of the phenomenon in the ’90s,” Haidar continues, “was the fact that it was not connected to religious extremism. Quite the contrary. And the vast majority of newly observant Muslims today are people with moderate views. In the ’70s, on the other hand, the first wave of newly observant Muslims was characterized by such extremism. Today these pious Muslims accept the ‘other’ and do not necessarily use external symbols such as attire in order to draw attention to their religiosity. It is hard to pick them out in a crowd − and I am referring here to those who have performed the commandment of making the pilgrimage to Mecca: They enjoy the good life, take vacations and engage in sports.

“Most young Muslim women who cover their heads dress like their secular counterparts and sometimes even provocatively. Even women who dress according to the Muslim religious code generally choose colorful attire, rather than the drab shades that one sees in other countries. Some of these young women do not even cover their heads. A relatively new trend is the phenomenon of women praying in the mosques. Prior to the ’90s, Muslim women in Israel did not pray in mosques, but today they do so during the month of Ramadan and on Fridays. There are even those who pray daily. This is modern, or postmodern, Islam, which is quite unlike what was observed in the past.

“One of the results of the national and democratic awakening in Arab states today may be the weakening of the Islamic movements, and even perhaps … newly observant Muslims…   Ha`aretz

13-17

Naheed Ali’s Book on Diabetes Receives Rave Reviews

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dr AliIn this day and age, readers of all ages everywhere are looking at their quality of life, dietary habits, and physical issues linked to unrelenting diseases such as diabetes. Bestselling author Naheed Ali takes charge and counts on life-changing answers to help diabetics have a fruitful, better life in his brand new project titled ‘Diabetes and You: A Comprehensive, Holistic Approach.’

The objective is to raise knowledge and information concerning diabetes via this realistic guide book. The information is offered without any nonsense and utilizes a straight-to-the-point technique. The book also tells us how diabetes brews stress and how someone can tackle the illness in more ways than one.

In this remarkably thorough book, Dr. Ali brings up issues and provides genuine outtakes and useful findings for healthy living as a diabetes sufferer. Under his thoughts, fundamental concepts about the heart, mind, motivation, and everyday diet, affect the overall knock which diabetes has on our health. Additionally, he thinks diabetics should have a comprehensive idea about diabetes to stay away from further physical mishaps that this disease can bring to the table. The book serves up the steps one needs for churning up a healthy lifestyle to face diabetes the proper way, as the author is an avid supporter of the adage, ‘Prevention is quite better than cure.’

Naheed Ali, MD, is an author, speaker, and health advocate. His book, ‘Diabetes and You: A Comprehensive, Holistic Approach’ became the #1 diabetes book on Amazon.com recently. Ali has been quoted or heard on KDRO Radio Kansas City, Weight Watchers Magazine, Star Magazine, Atlanta Business Chronicle, Fox News, Dallas Morning News, MSN Health, WVON Radio Chicago, AOL News, and others.

Dr. Ali received a Biology degree from Adelphi University and went on to earn his M.D. in 2008. He published a refereed medical journal article at 23, and now pens books with detailed health information that normally remains unresolved, often interpreted on his own hard knock experiences.

13-17

Bahrain’s Protests Taper Off

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…with little public support from the west and Arab states.

By Ian Black

INTERNATIONAL-US-BAHRAIN-OPPOSITION

A protester waves a Bahraini flag from the top of a tree during a rally organized by Lebanon’s Hezbollah in front of the U.N. headquarters in Beirut March 16, 2011, in support of Bahraini protesters.

REUTERS/Cynthia Karam

History and geography explain why Bahrain’s peaceful uprising was the early exception to the “Arab spring”, which began with high hopes in Tunisia and Egypt but now faces bloody uncertainties in Libya and Syria.

Sitting astride the faultline between the Shia and Sunni worlds, the small Gulf island state lies at the heart of a strategically sensitive region that is dominated by bitter rivals Iran and Saudi Arabia – both very tough neighbors.

Bahrain was always going to be a prime candidate if unrest erupted in the Arabian peninsula. But it was not easy to predict that the Al-Khalifa dynasty, Sunnis who rule over a restive 70% Shia majority, would react so brutally when protests mushroomed in February. Still, the activists who streamed to Manama’s Pearl roundabout in a deliberate echo of Cairo’s Tahrir Square were demanding reform, not the overthrow of the regime.

By regional standards, King Hamad was not the most repressive of rulers. Bahrain, unlike Saudi Arabia, has a parliament and a legal opposition. Bahrain’s press operated within “red lines” but had a margin for maneuver. Expensive western PR companies were employed to promote the country’s image.

Prospects for political change looked reasonable until last summer when a sudden security crackdown began. The government was alarmed by joint Shia-Sunni demands to investigate the acquisition of prime real estate by the royals: Google Earth showed just how much of the island – where public beaches are rare – was already owned by the Al-Khalifa family.

Last October the mildly Islamist Shia opposition party al-Wefaq won a plurality of seats in the lower house of parliament – despite being smeared by the government as Hezbollah-type extremists. But progressives in Bahrain emphasize nationality, not religious sect – thus the catchy slogan “not Shias, not Sunnis, we are all Bahrainis”.

Bahrain’s politics are as local as any other country’s, though international pressures count for a lot, too. Projecting an image of stability also mattered hugely for a leading financial centre that has been struggling to compete with flashier and wealthier Dubai.

As the base for the US Fifth Fleet, Bahrain is important to Washington, which values Hamad’s bellicose attitude towards Tehran – revealed in WikiLeaks’ releases of state department cables. The king’s choice of a Bahraini Jewish woman as ambassador to the US was a savvy move.

Long-standing claims of Iranian meddling have not been substantiated.

But Saudi concerns about Bahrain quickly became apparent in the face of the unrest just across the causeway from the kingdom’s oil-producing Shia eastern province. What the Bahraini opposition calls an “occupation force” was deployed by agreement with the Saudi-dominated Gulf Co-operation Council and portrayed as answering the call of a sister nation in need.

The Saudis were already unsettled by the way Barack Obama had washed his hands of Egypt’s Hosni Mubarak. Thus their insistence on maintaining regional order – triggering the grim repression that has now become a permanent feature of Bahraini life.

Britain and France have announced reviews of arms sales and the European Union is speaking out. The US has expressed concern but its public comments have been muted. Washington’s tone, similar to that it uses with Israel, is of a candid friend. It has conspicuously failed to support the demands of the protesters. The contrast with Libya could hardly be greater.

Arab leaders back Bahrain to the hilt. Only Iraq’s Shia prime minister, Nouri al-Maliki, has dared to criticize Hamad’s crackdown. Iran – ignoring its own appalling record of crushing peaceful protests – is warning gleefully that the Saudis are “playing with fire”.

For most observers, the lesson is clear: western and Arab governments alike badly need the Gulf region’s energy and financial resources.

That’s why Bahrain’s spring is already over.

Ian Black, Middle East editor guardian.co.uk

13-17

The Caliphs Gave News Services and Postal Systems to the World

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By Mohammad Yacoob

The book, The Timeline of History, published during the fourth quarter of the 20th century, documents historical facts by establishing a linkage between people and events, and records introduction of the first organized news service in the Muslim world by the Caliph in 650 C.E. It also mentions the availability, in 942 C.E., of approximately 1000 stations of postal and news services to the public in the Caliph’s Empire. This timeline does not provide any details.

These milestones provided advanced communication between the various strata of the Muslim society in the Muslim world. The Divine message of ‘Read’ and spread the word of Allah, was taken to heart by the Muslim Ummah during the life of Prophet Muhammad, may Allah bless and greet him, whose instructions and guidance brought a change in the lives of tribal and ethnic groups.

A cursory look at the golden age of Islam reveals that the scientific achievements made by Muslims were continuous during that era. The decline of the Muslim political power saw total absence of scientific achievements. Yet, the Muslim contributions to the human civilization are enormous and include astronomy, mathematics, physics, chemistry, natural sciences, medicine, music, philosophy, literature, history, geography, political sciences, sociology, architecture and arts. These are some of the representative achievements of some and not all of the scientists, inventors, philosophers and thinkers in the Muslim world.

Astronomy: The Caliphs, Sultans and Khans in the various regions of the Muslim world and during various times were very much interested in astronomy. This gave rise to the development and establishments of observatories throughout the Islamic world in cities of Baghdad, Cairo, Cordova, Toledo and Samarkand. The most famous Baghdad School of Astronomy was established by Caliph Mansur, whose reign lasted from 754 to 775 C.E. This school is credited for discovery of the movement of the sun’s apogee. It was also involved in evaluation of the obliquity of the elliptical diminution, which means the determination of the inclination of the earth towards the plane of orbit around the sun and the orbital path. The scientists at the Baghdad astronomy school also made detailed study of exact duration of the year, forecasted sunspots, studied eclipses and appearances of comets. These findings and other information data were recorded and compiled in the “verified Tables” prepared by Yahya Ben Abu Mansur. The great astronomers were Al Batani, Abul Wefa, Maslamah Al Maherbi, Omar Ibn Khaldoun, Averroes, Ali Ibn Younis, who invented pendulum and edited Hakemite Tables; Hasan Ibn Al Haitan wrote treatise on optics; Al Biruni published a list of towns and their latitudes and longitude; Nasr Ed Dine authored Ilkanian Tables of astronomy; and Ulug Beg’s work on astronomy was published in France in 1437.

Mathematics: Basic principles of arithmetic, geometry and algebra were developed by the Arab mathematicians. Al Khawarizmi wrote the algebra treatise entitled Hisab Al-Jabr Wal Muqabalah, Thabit Ben Garrah translated Ptolemy’s Almagest, Al Batani developed trigonometry and Mohammed Ben Ahmed is credited with the invention of zero.

Physics: Hassan Ali Haitan (Alhasan) conducted research into magnifying lenses and gave an exact description of eye, lenses and binocular vision. He finally completed a lengthy treatise on optics. Documented proof mentions that Muslim scientists were involved in perfecting the compass. Arab discovered use of pendulum for clocks. Ben Hamin of Toledo, Spain, gave description of the famous clock in the Mosque of Damascus. Muslim scientists developed navigational system and put compass to practical use by applying the magnetic needle.

Chemistry: The science of Kimiah was cultivated and advanced by Muslims scientists who discovered alcohol, sulphuric acid, aqua regia and nitric acid. They developed many chemical processes including distillation, sublimation, crystallization, coagulation cupellation, and more. Abu Mussa DJafar Al Sufi prepared Chemistry Scientific Encyclopedia called Sum of Perfection. Zakaria Al Razi (Razes) wrote a book on chemistry entitled al Hawi that listed the procedure and method of making sulphuric acid and alcohol. The other areas of chemistry that were given to this world are camphor, distilled water, plasters, syrups, ointments, art of dyeing, curing leather, tampering steel, paper and gunpowder.

Medicine: Medical services attracted Muslims most after mathematics and chemistry. Medicine formed an integral part of the education system during the first centuries of Hijri calendar. The medical research, encyclopedias, books and treatises written by Abu Bakr Ibn Zakaria Al Razi (Rhases), Abu Ali Al Hussein Ibn Abdulla Abi Sina (Avicenna), Abul Cassis and Ibn Zohar were used in European universities for centuries and these books were responsible for the advancement of medical sciences in Europe. Medical manual written by Abu Bakr Ibn Zakaria Al Razi became part of the curriculum of the Paris Faculty of Medicine in 1395. Abu Ali Al Hussein Ibn Abdulla Abi Sina’s Qanoon Fil Tib, published in Rome in 1593, deals with physiology, hygiene, pathology, therapeutics treatment methods and much more. The Qanoon Fil Tib was the most revered book that was used for medical studies in France and Italy from 12th to 17th centuries. A pharmacopoeia prepared at that time listed approximately 760 drugs for the treatment of diseases.

Natural Sciences: The Arab pharmacopoeia contained names of plants and medical substances which were unknown to Europeans and Greeks. Some of them are rhubarb, tamarind pulp, cssia, manna, sana leaves and camphor. The Arabs developed processes and used sugar instead of honey to concoct syrups, juleps, and also preserve herbs and fruits. They introduced perfumes and spices to the whole world including incense, sweet-smelling resins, attars of roses, nutmeg, cloves and pepper; also, tomatoes, asparagus, artichokes and exquisite flowers. The coffee was discovered by Arabs; it originated in Yemen.

Bernard Grunn wrote a book entitled The Timetable of History – A Horizontal Linkage of People and Events. It was published by Simon and Schuster, New York in 1982. The recorded achievements of Muslims given in that book are listed here:

Seventh Century: Year 650: News Services. The Caliph Introduced the First Organized News Service. 695: Coin; First Arab Coinage.

Eighth Century: 711: Spanish Jews, Freed by Arabs, Begin their Cultural Development. 720: Abu Musa Dshaffar, Arab Chemist; Sulphuric Acid, Nitric Acid and Aquaregia. 750: Medicine and Various Sciences. Spain, Prime of Medicine, Astronomy, Mathematics, Optics and Chemistry. 760: Arabic Numerals in Baghdad. 774: Euclid’s ‘Elements’ Translated into Arabic. 782: Jabir, Great Arab scientist Begins Chemical Studies, Distinct from Alchemy.

Ninth Century: 810: M. Ibn Musa Alkhawarazmi wrote a book on equations and coined “Algebra”. 813: School of Astronomy in Baghdad. 814: Zero – Arabs take over Indian numerals including Zero to multiply by ten. 828: Astronomical System of Ptolemy translated into Arabic “Almagest”. 850: Coffee. Arabian Goat Herder Kaldi credited with discovery of coffee.

850: Astrolabe perfected by Arabs. 870: Philosopher / mathematician Al Farabi died. Al Kindi also died. 873: Physician Honain Ibn Iszhak died. 878: Al Battani, Arab astronomer, begins his observations. 885: Ibn Khordadbeh completed The Book of Roads and Countries. 889: Ibn Koteiba, Arab scholar and historian died. 900: Arab physician Rhases (died 923) mentions plague, consumption small pox and rabies as infectious diseases and describes them.

Tenth Century: 904: Ibn Doried prepared a manual of genealogy and etymology. 930: Cordoba, Spain, Seat of Learning, Science, Commerce and Industry. 940:  Abu Wefa, Astronomer / Mathematician, Born in Baghdad. 942: Arabs bring kettledrum and trumpet to Europe. 942: Postal and news services in the Caliph’s Empire have at their disposal approximately 1000 stations.

Eleventh Century:  1009: Ibn Junis authored Hikmite Table of astronomy. 1020: Poetry: Firdusi died. 1027: Omar Khayyam, poet and scientist born. 1038: Al Hazen, Arab physicist died. 1050: Important astronomic instruments arrive in Europe from eastern countries. 1059: Al Ghazali, Arab Theologian born. 1080: Astronomy. Toledan tables of position of stars completed.

Twelfth Century: 1100: Decline of Islamic science begins. 1150: Arabs in Spain manufacture paper. 1154: Geography – Mohammad Al-Idrisi published Geography at Palermo.

Thirteenth Century:         1200: Scientists – Ibn Al-Baiter, Arab Scientist born. 1201: Scholar Nasir Ed-din Et-Tusi born. 1201: Abdullah Ur-Rumi (1179-1229) published, Mu’jam Ul-Bulda, a Geographical Encyclopaedia.

Fourteenth Century: 1352: Ibn Battuta explores Sahara Desert.

The timeline of history does not record any other significant scientific events after the world famous Ibn Batutta travels. This timeline, however, mentions about News Services and Postal System introduced in 650 C.E.

The caliphs and the administrators working under the caliphs established a very strong communication system based on the words of Prophet Muhammad (s), may Allah bless and greet him, whose main purpose in life was to bring about the spiritual renaissance in this world and propagate the word of Allah. They used news services and postal system as early as 650 C.E. to spread the word of God.

In conclusion, a greater emphasis should be placed on holding on to the Islamic values. We must vigorously commence research into the past scientific achievements by Muslims. At the same time, we must continue research and knowledge acquisition in modern technology. It is our responsibility to help correct deficiencies found in contemporary world regarding Muslim achievement. This will also identify the ideas put forth by Muslims, discoveries made by them and treatises written that were stolen and plagiarized by the Europeans. We have to expose these people. We gave to the world the news services and postal system and why did we lose their ownership? We must find the causes of the decline of scientific achievement among Muslims. We must move into the forefront of spiritual renaissance and scientific advancement. We must work for welfare and improvement of mankind. We must work for Deen and Duniya. 

The world must be made aware of the contributions made by Muslims to modern civilization. We must provide this as a basis for our children to excel in achieving scientific knowledge. We must help our children become leaders not only in the spiritual arena but also in the scientific fields.

This can be done at two fronts: Visibility and Leverage. Become more visible in the scientific field. Involve yourself in scientific conferences, seminars and workshops. Display Islamic hospitality. Write a thesis, if involved in research, on a Muslim scientist, scholar or philosopher. Invite Muslims and non-Muslims to these conferences. Assert yourself, while holding on to the Islamic values. Continue to work hard. Make others realize that Muslims excelled and can still achieve excellence in scientific and communication fields. Remember, during the golden age of Islam, Muslims were making things happen. In this world, there are three types of people: those who make things happen, those who watch things happen and those who wonder what happened. We must struggle, strive and make tireless strivings, and consider this as a part of survival. We must make this happen.

[The writer is Industrial Engineer and Engineering Proposal Analyst working at Northrop Grumman Aircraft Company in Los Angeles, California]
………….

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Sania Mirza Wins Another Doubles Title

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By Parvez Fatteh, Founder of http://sportingummah.com, sports@muslimobserver.com

10It appears that there may be a new Muslim doubles tennis star from the Indian subcontinent, to join Pakistan’s men’s doubles ace Aisam-Ul-Haq Qureshi. That would be Indian female tennis player Sania Mirza, who has now won two doubles tournament titles in three weeks with new partner Elena Vesnina from Russia. The pair most recently won the Family Circle Cup in Charleston, South Carolina. And most impressively, they won the tournament as an unseeded team. In the finals, Mirza and Vesnina ousted Americans Bethanie Mattek-Sands and Meghann Shaughnessy 6-4, 6-4 to win the Women’s Tennis Association (WTA) event. Along the way, Mirza and Vesnina also took out another high-powered American team, the second-seeded team Lisa Raymond and Liezel Huber. 6-3, 6-4 was the score for that match.

It wasn’t a bad singles tournament for Sania either. She fought her way through the qualifying tournament to make it into the main draw. Then, again as an unseeded player, she went all the way to the quarterfinals before succumbing to 11th-seeded Chinese woman Peng Shuai 6-2, 2-6, 6-2. But Mirza was able to exact revenge against Shuai by beating her in the doubles quarterfinals. For her efforts Mirza saw her world singles ranking jump from 90 to 73 after the tournament’s results were in.

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2011 Indian Premier League Cricket Season Under Way

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By Parvez Fatteh, Founder of http://sportingummah.com, sports@muslimobserver.com

Indian Premier League_1The fourth season of Indian Premier League cricket kicked off on Friday April 8th. And through ten matches thus far, the Mumbai Indians and the Rajasthan Royals have jumped to the early lead in the standings. Those two teams are the only undefeated clubs remaining with identical 2-0 records. Rajasthan started their season with an eight wicket victory over the Deccan Chargers. They followed that up with a six wicket victory over the Delhi Daredevils.

Mumbai were finalists in last season’s IPL, so their thirst for the cup is great, knowing that they were within a whisker of the title last year. They opened their season this year with an eight wicket victory over the Delhi Daredevils. In that match, Muslim bowlers Ali Murtaza and Munaf Patel were a big part of the victory. The left-handed Murtaza bowled four overs, giving up only 21 runs, and grabbing one wicket. His right-handed Muslim counterpart, Patel, completed three overs, giving up only 20 runs, without any wickets.

In their second match, Mumbai demolished the Royal Challengers Bangalore by nine wickets. Murtaza and Patel proved quite dependable in that match as well. Murtaza tossed a steady four overs, giving up 26 runs without any wickets. Patel, meanwhile, bowled three overs and gave up a miniscule 10 runs, without any wickets. It appears that if Mumbai are to take that next step and win the 2011 IPL title, this lefty-righty Muslim tandem will definitely play a role.

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Amir Khan in Final Preparations for McCloskey Fight

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By Parvez Fatteh, Founder of http://sportingummah.com, sports@muslimobserver.com

Amir_1
 

Pakistani-British boxer Amir Khan is in the final stages of training for the next rung in his ladder of success. He takes on Northern Ireland’s Paul McCloskey this weekend in a defense of his World Boxing Association (WBA) light welterweight title. Khan has been so focused in fact that he shut down his Twitter and Facebook accounts several weeks ahead of the bout in order to avoid additional distractions. He even spent a few weeks in the Phillipines to train with boxing superstar Manny Pacqiao as well as the expert trainer whom they share as clients, Freddie Roach. Roach has now come to Manchester, England to assist Khan in the days leading up to the April 16th fight.

There was some controversy this past week when the Khan-McCloskey fight was dropped from pay-per-view to regular cable television viewing on England’s SkySports 3. Khan took this as an insult to the fighters, and he and his camp have now shifted the fight to a lower level of pay-per-view on Primetime TV. The reasons for the downgrade were apparently related to the underwhelming caliber of fighters on the undercard, which came into view in particular after fellow Muslim boxer Hasim Rahman pulled out of his fight against undefeated Brit Tyson Fury.

McCloskey himself is in fact undefeated, so this will be no cakewalk for Khan. And there is already talk that a unification bout with World Boxing Council (WBC) and World Boxing Organization (WBO) light-welterweight titleholder Timothy Bradley has already been penciled in for July 23rd in Las Vegas. And if Khan were able to win that fight, he would be, at age 24, the youngest undisputed world champion in British boxing history. So even more than Twitter or Facebook, that is the kind of distraction that Khan will have to keep out of his mind if he wants to be known the world over as King Khan and not A Mere Con.

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Helping Hand (USA) Signs MoU with Medical Bridges Inc.

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U. S. South Central Region Coordinator for the Helping Hand (USA) in Houston, ILyas Hasan Choudry; President, CEO of Medical Bridges Dorothy Bolettieri…

Dorothy Bolettieri, President, CEO of Medical Bridges; Steve Bolfing; Steven Bolfing, Business Development Manager; and Kourtnei Ramirez, Special Projects Coordinator for Medical Bridges…

The Helping Hand (USA) For Relief & Development has signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with Houston based Medical Bridges, Inc., according to which between April and December 2011, Helping Hand (USA) will be sending to several countries, where most needed; ten large 40-Feet containers of medical equipment and supplies provided by Medical Bridges. Total shipment will be approximately 3-to-4 million dollars.

Tentatively the beneficiary countries will include Bangladesh, Sri Lanka, Haiti, and Pakistan. Also there is a chance to include the historical city of “Caravan” in Tunisia as one of the places for a container (determination on this will soon be made).

In a statement, the U. S. South Central Region Coordinator for the Helping Hand (USA) in Houston, ILyas Hasan Choudry has said: “Helping Hand (USA) in partnership with Medical Bridges will send donated good quality medical equipment and supplies of 3-to-4 million dollars worth. Hundreds and thousands of less fortunate brothers and sisters in humanity will benefit from this effort and several lives will be saved. All of these people will remember in their prayers the patrons, supporters, donors, volunteers, and staff of Helping Hand (USA). I want to appeal to all the blessed persons to whole-heartedly contribute towards the Helping Hand’s discretionary fund by visiting www.HHRD.Org”

At a simple occasion at the office of Medical Bridges, the U. S. South Central Region Coordinator for the Helping Hand (USA) For Relief & Development, ILyas Hasan Choudry; and Dorothy Bolettieri, President and CEO of Medical Bridges; signed the MoU documents. Also present were Steven Bolfing, Business Development Manager; and Kourtnei Ramirez, Special Projects Coordinator for Medical Bridges.

In a communiqué to Helping Hand at the eve of signing of the MoU, Dorothy Bolettieri of Medical Bridges wrote: “I’m delighted that the MOU has been approved and that we will work together to help improve the health-care delivery in areas that so desperately need support and assistance.”

Steven Bolfing wrote: “Medical Bridges would not be able to assist humanity without organizations such as yours (Helping Hand USA).”

Talking to our media representative, ILyas Hasan Choudry has said: “We are really appreciative of the efforts and services of Medical Bridges towards the overall health of the humanity. We are extremely delighted to partner with them. By the Grace of God, this effort will save many lives; and in our faith it has been informed to us in Quran that if we will save the lives of one person, it is as if we have saved the lives of the whole humanity.”

Other than this, Helping Hand (USA) will also be sending from their headquarter in Detroit, Michigan; large 40-Feet containers of medical equipments’ and supplies’ provided by the World Medical Relief of Michigan.

Helping Hand (USA) also has their own In-Kind Donation Centers in Ontario California; Houston Texas; Sanford Florida; Ijamsville Maryland; Somerset New Jersey; and Bay Shore New York; where medical equipments’ & supplies’; household, fresh non-perishable food, & hygiene items; new clothes, comforters, blankets, jackets; and many other things are accepted on almost daily basis.
Addresses and phone numbers of these In-Kind Donation Centers can be found at www.HHRD.Org

Other than of course these material donations, Helping Hand (USA) is requesting to monetarily support this In-Kind Donation Program by contributing towards the Helping Hand (USA) Discretionary Fund at www.HHRD.Org – This way the patrons of Helping Hand (USA) will receive the most necessary prayers of hundreds and thousands, whose lives will be saved and bettered by this useful program.

For more information, one can call 1-832-275-0786 or 1-888-808-HELP(4357).

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Community News (V13-I16)

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Khawja Shamsuddin Receives Outstanding Volunteer Service Award

Khwaja-ShamsuddinOLYMPIA, WA — Bellevue Police Volunteer Khawja “Shams” Shamsuddin received the Governor’s 2011 Outstanding Volunteer Service Award at a reception on April 11. This award, in its seventh year, is presented by Governor Gregoire on behalf of the Washington Commission for National and Community Service to citizens who “effect real change in their communities through volunteer service.”
The award is presented to coincide with the start of National Volunteer Week.

Shamsuddin has been a Bellevue Police volunteer for more than 12 years. To date he has served in excess of 2,600 hours, primarily at the Factoria substation. Throughout the years he has participated on several entry-level officer oral boards and is a member of Chief Linda Pillo’s Diversity Focus Group, which helps the department understand and respond to the needs and concerns of the city’s various ethnic communities.

When not volunteering at the police department, Shamsuddin is a mediator, interpreter, community relations advisor and fundraiser in the local Bangladeshi, Pakistani, Arab and Indian communities. He also is a sought-after speaker with the Islamic Speakers Bureau and an organizer for the Eastside Interfaith Group.

As Police Volunteer Coordinator Marjorie Trachtman wrote in his award nomination, “Being of service to others is as instinctive to Shams as breathing. (He) embodies the values this award seeks to recognize.”

“We are so fortunate to have such dedicated citizens volunteering with our Department. Their efforts are part of the reason we’re able to provide such a high level of service to the community,” says Chief Linda Pillo.

Ahmed Zewail received top chemistry honor

AhmedZewailNobel laureate Ahmed Zewail has another top feather in his already dazzling cap.  The Linus Pauling Professor of Chemistry & Professor of Physics at the California Institute of Technology and Nobel Laureate in Chemistry, was recently  honored with the 2011 Priestley Medal for developing “ultrafast-motion” imaging.

The prestigious award was presented to Zewail by the American Chemical Society (ACS) in recognition of “his development of revolutionary methods for the study of ultrafast processes in chemistry, biology, and materials science.”

Zewail’s pioneering work in femtochemistry—the study of chemical processes on the femtosecond (10–15 second) timescale—established methodology for following the intricacies of chemical transformations as reactants evolve into products by way of fleeting reaction intermediates. His laser-driven “pump-probe” techniques, which were demonstrated initially on gas-phase reactions, captured “snapshots” of intermediates that existed for barely more than the femtosecond period of a molecular vibration.

It may also be noted here that Zewail’s name was also mentioned as the possible president of Egypt as that is his country of birth. However, he had rejected such speculations saying that while he supports democracy he is not interested in that job.

Islamic Studies program to reopen at UCLA

LOS ANGELES,CA–The Islamic Studies graduate program at UCLA has reopened after being suspended in 2007. According to the Daily Bruin the suspension was due to the concerns of the Graduate Council over the lack of faculty commitment to students. Because the program utilizes professors from many departments, students often felt marginalized or ignored because they did not have full-time faculty to guide them, said program chair Khaled Abou El Fadl.

Islamic Studies has significantly changed its policies since its suspension. It is better organized and administered, and professors who want to be involved with the program now have to sign a contract that states they will give students appropriate attention, Abou El Fadl said.

Consequently, one of the most important admissions criteria is a good match between a student and an interested professor.

Colorado State University to Host Lecture on Impact of Muslim-Based Media April 20

Nabil Echchaibi

As unrest grows in the Middle East, what impacts are new Muslim-based media and social media having on revolutions in the region?

To address these and other topics, Colorado State University will host a lecture by Nabil Echchaibi, assistant professor of journalism and media studies at the University of Colorado-Boulder. The lecture, “Formations of the Muslim Modern: Media, Islam, and Alternative Modernity,” will be held at 7 p.m. Wednesday, April 20, in CSU’s Clark Building, Room A202.

The lecture will focus on the rise of new media in the Muslim world and the impact media has on Muslim culture and identity, especially among young people.

Echchaibi has a forthcoming book of the same title. In his research on this topic, he analyzed case studies of Muslim media in six cities around the world. He examined how satellite television and digital media have created a new platform for discussion of what it means to be a modern Muslim.

A native of Morocco, Echchaibi also serves as associate director of the Center for Media, Religion, and Culture at CU. He specializes in identity politics among young Muslims in the Arab world.

He also is currently directing a project funded by the Social Science Research Council, which will compile a cultural history of Muslims in the mountain west region of the United States. The project will produce a web resource and a documentary film.

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IFLC Responds to Threat to Religious Harmony

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IFLC Press Release

The Interfaith Leadership Council of Metropolitan Detroit  (IFLC) has launched a petition drive in response to a potential threat to religious harmony rumored for our region later this month.

An extremist group has announced plans to demonstrate in Dearborn on April 22.

“We are asking people to sign on to ‘A Simple Affirmation for our Community’ as a way to indicate their rejection of fear-mongering and intolerance,” according to Rev. Daniel Buttry, a minister with the American Baptist Churches and a board member of the Interfaith Leadership Council.

The text of the petition reads:

We, as caring neighbors in southeastern Michigan, stand together in condemning the actions of those who spew hate and fear, and who misuse and desecrate holy books of faith.  Instead we call on people to carry out the best traditions of all religious faiths, embodied in the idea of doing to others as we would have them do to us.

In the spirit of cooperation and harmony, the essential basis of this great country, we affirm our support for religious freedom and civil discourse.  We stand together strong in our vision of the beloved community where all are respected and treasured.

The petition is being circulated among religious congregations throughout the metropolitan area and also is available at change.org.

“Our goal is two-fold,” Buttry said.  “We want to give folks the chance to express their own support for the idea of harmony and peace among all people in our region, and we also want to demonstrate to the rest of the world that there are thousands of people in our region who reject hate and support conciliation.”

The Interfaith Leadership Council of Metropolitan Detroit is a civic organization comprised of religious and lay leaders of many faiths “who work together to build a community of good will.”

http://www.detroitinterfaithcouncil.com/welcome/2011/4/9/iflc-launches-a-simple-affirmation-for-our-community.html

The InterFaith Leadership Council of Metropolitan Detroit is made up of independent, visionary clerical and lay leaders of many faiths whose shared values and desire to build a just community where we live in harmony with one another compels us to be dedicated to the support of interfaith community organizing.

We fully respect our religious differences while building a unified, but not uniform community, where we work together on our shared interests and values.

In short, we bring people of faith together so that we can live together. We have much to do, and are looking forward to working with you to build the beloved community.

Sincerely,

Robert A. Bruttell, Board Chair, InterFaith Leadership Council of Metropolitan Detroit.

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Tawhid Center Events

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By Adil James, TMO

Tawheed8

Farmington–April 9–The Tawhid Center has undergone a major transformation over the past few years, yet TMO has not looked at the center since completion of its construction work.

The prayer hall, the subject of years of fundraising and construction, now can hold about 500 people on the lower level, plus another 150 on the mezzanine level.  The women’s area can hold 500 people–in total the mosque can hold about 1,200 people.  The dining area can accommodate 400 people and is available to the community for events at only $800 (for rental and cleaning fee combined)–this provides the luxury of being able to pray in immediate proximity of your event. 

Says Asim Khan of the Tawhid Center, “This has been a big hit actually, it is a central location… We provide the tables and chairs, and [clients] provide the cutlery and food.”

The schools at Tawhid continue, with about 24 hifz students ($400 per child per month), about 30 students in the evening maktab school ($100 per month), about 70 students in the Sunday school ($50 per month).  The summer school is planned to open in July, and will cost about $300 for the entire summer of 6-8 weeks, 10AM to 4PM, Monday thru Thursday.

May 21 Tawhid has invited best-selling author Haroon Siddiqui.  On June 11 they plan to hold an open house and provide free health care services.

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Press Release: Remembering Deir Yassin

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Deir Yasin

For Palestinians, 9th of April is imprinted in their collective memory.

It is the anniversary of Deir Yassin massacre when in the early morning of April 9, 1948, commandos of the Irgun and the Stern Gang, attacked the village of Deir Yassin, killing over 200 Palestinians. Armed with explosives and machine guns, a force of 120 men attacked the sleeping village at 4:30 in the morning in what was then code named “Operation Unity”. Eye witnesses and British interrogating officers confirmed brutal killing of women and children.

The massacre in Deir Yassin was part of an official Zionist strategy to frighten Palestinians out of their land and into neighboring countries.

Yosef Weitz, member of the Jewish Agency’s Transfer Committee declared that “between ourselves it must be clear that there is no room for both people together in this country… we shall not achieve our goal with the Arabs in this small country. The only solution is a Palestine without the Arabs and there is no other way than to transfer Arabs from here to the neighboring countries, to transfer all of them, not one village not one tribe should be left”.

“Deir Yassin is one in a list of many atrocities against the Palestinians”, said Majed Al Zeer, the General Director of PRC. “Many other atrocities and massacres were carried out simultaneously in 1947 and 1948, when Zionist Para military forces were embarked on a program to expel Palestinians out of their ancestral land. 750,000 Palestinians, over a quarter of the population, were exiled and continue to endure suffering as refugees”.

“Though Palestinians fled, they could not escape Israel’s violence and aggression. Many more atrocities followed, most notably Sabra Shatilla, Jenin, Khan Younis, Hebron and Gaza. Even now as we remember Deir Yassin, Palestinians in Gaza are being killed by Israel”, said Mr. Zeer.

Gaza continues to be gripped by a siege and on the anniversary of Deir Yassin 11 more, including 5 children were killed and many more were wounded as the Israeli army shelled the already damaged Gaza International Airport in Rafah. Israeli air strikes were also carried out in central Gaza where many homes on the eastern part of the city were shelled.

According to Palestine News Network, A Palestinian farmer was also wounded when the Israeli Air Force fired missiles into the Al Waha area, North West of Gaza city. Several Air Strikes also targeted areas east of Dir Al-Balah in the central Gaza Strip, and Al Hawouz area in addition to the Al Rantissi Base, north of Gaza, causing excessive damage.

PRC calls on all to take a moment and remember Deir Yassin and bear in mind that the forces of aggression and the conditions of injustice behind this massacre has locked Palestinians into a cycle of oppression, exile and violence which has disgracefully normalized violence and aggression against the Palestinians.

Ending this ongoing cycle of violence against the Palestinians and giving them their rights is the only just and realistic path to peace.

This will not happen unless the international community demands that Israel respect and abide by the rule of law and until the international community takes effective measures to enforce them, as it did in Libya.

The international community must show the same level of concern as it did for the civilians of Ben Gazi and impose a similar heavy price on an Israeli regime that drops bombs just because it can. Such double standards must end and real justice must prevail over the national self interest of one party if we are serious about justice and peace.

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