MG
I read MG articles with great interest and appreciate your efforts.
Nadeem Shafiq Malik, Rawalpindi
nsmqq@hotmail.com
United Religions
I have a suggestion which I want to be spread through the world. We, human
population of this very earth have already an organisation called UN, yes!
United Nations. Don't we miss a "UR"? What? Yes ofcourse: United
Religions.
Benny Aalto, Finland
ba@aland.net
Hijab in Kerala
Apropos of your special report (MG, 1-15 Sept 2001) ‘Muslim Women in
Hijab on the Road to Freedom’ by Arif Zain. I am very happy to see that,
it was up the point. I wish to bring to your notice a point which I fear
has been missed. It is about the role of ‘ Kerala Nadwatul Mujahideen’
which is one of the major motivating spirits behind this culture of
Islamic dress code.
It is strange irony, indeed, that when the cloak of Christian nuns is
considered a symbol of freedom and pride, Muslim women’s similar attire
it is considered a sign of slavery and confinement! I congratulate the
writer and the MG for publishing this.
PMA Gaffor Poongode,
Malapuram Kerala.
Purdah
This refers to your editorial ‘"Brains in purdah". I am not
going to argue whether any individual is authorized to enforce code of
conduct for the community or not. But one thing is for sure that Islam has
given equal status to both the sexes but has prescribed different duties
for the two. Islam encourages regulated love in order to build up happy
family lives since it is healthy families that provide the blocks to
construct a healthy society; but it abhors promiscuity which ruins
people's family lives and seriously damages people through the ultimate
disaster of illicit sexual relationships. In this regard both believing
men and women have been asked to lower their gaze and guard their modesty,
and hijab has been made mandatory for a believing woman. So it is unfair
to say that it is upto a woman to observe hijab or stay behind closed
doors. As hijab is a binding dictat of the Qur’an and not of some Urdu
book. Qur'an clearly says: ‘And play your role by being in your houses
and do not keep exhibiting your beauty and decorations like what used to
happen in the Jahiliyyah period (before Islam)’ (33:33). Islamic hijab
is not a Jahiliyyah doctrine, that is why prophet (PBUH) allowed women to
go out for necessities but with certain restrictions and allowed
relaxations in the limits of hijab as demanded by the circumstances. That
is the Justice of Islam.....
Tauheed Ahmad, Jhansi
tauhheed@yahoo.co.uk
Stand up!
Please, please, Mullas, Imams, stand up and say this atrocity in America
is nothing to do with ordinary Muslims. To say this would help your
fellow-Muslims a lot. (I speak as an agnostic, not a Christian).
Vivian Pritchard
vivpritchard@ntlworld.com
Venom!
Regret to say that this magazine is ONLY spitting venom. A nation comes
first followed by harmony. Religion is a personal choice and it should NOT
be misused. Convey the message of UNITY instead of HATRED.
J. Joshi, Tennessee
jnj53@yahoo.com
Tyagi arrest
Even the most accomplished professional contortionist will be ashamed by
the expert machinations of the duo of Vilasrao Deshmukh and Chhagan
Bhujbal, when it comes to bringing the former Police Commissioner RD Tyagi
to justice as per the recommendation of Justice Sri Krishna Commission.
In Tamil Nadu, highest police officers in person can haul up a former
Chief Minister of a state in the dead of night, drag him to jail without
producing even an arrest warrant ---- all on allegation of a civil case of
corruption; in Maharashtra, the Congress-led coalition government appears
to be going through the motions of serving the noble cause of justice
after a lapse of eight long years and has to depend on Supreme Court
directions for each step in the procedural obstacle course, to bring to
justice those accused of what Muslims overwhelmingly believe as ‘blatant
mob style gang murder of nine innocent citizens of India’. The famous
taunt of the policeman shot the innocent: India ka khata hai aur Pakistan
ka gata hai ---shows up the limit of sickness that had corroded the morals
of the communalised police force. No small blame should go to the
vernacular media, which had whipped up the frenzy by printing totally
untrue and exaggerated account of the so-called ‘Muslim attacks’ in
the aftermath of Babri Masjid demolition.
Ghulam Muhammad, Mumbai
ghulam_muhammed@hotmail.com
Re-writing history
The recent wave of deliberate efforts of some people-in-power to rewrite
Indian history and implement "value-based" education has put
Indian Muslims in a very precarious situation. The Muslims in India (or
Muslims from India) are portrayed as unpatriotic unless they provide some
proof of their patriotism. Even individuals like Shabana Azmi or Dileep
Kumar have to constantly pass some kind of a litmus test all the time. For
example, the statement issued by Shabana and her husband, Javed Akhtar,
condemning demonstration by some Muslims protesting screening of the movie
Ghadar was labeled as ‘her support for a fellow Muslim actor’. This is
the same Shabana, who was chastised by a fraction of Muslims for shaving
her head for a movie role.
Zafar Iqbal, raabta1@hotmail.com
Dialogue
A re-play of Baghdad?
I feel genuinely perturbed at the crisis that is going to face us all in
the Muslim world; an abiding regret is that the Muslim world seems least
prepared to deal with the deluge knocking at its door. I get the feeling
that we are back in the 13th century when the Mongols laid waste the
Islamic world and ravaged it to such an extent that it hasn't fully
recovered from that shock in 7 centuries.
Karamat Ghori, Toronto k_k_ghori@hotmail.com
Editor: The 'terrorist' tag will harm the
world of Islam no doubt but I doubt that the 'war' will be allowed to
reach a point where the long-term interests of the West will be harmed
beyond repair since there is mutual need and inter-dependence and we are
not living in the middle ages anyway. I hope I am correct that the 'war'
will be localised and will serve to satisfy the internal demands for
revenge rather than a long-term programme of war which, if happened, will
only benefit the forces they will be trying to hurt and discredit in the
first place. Their allies all over the world of Islam will fall like a
pack of cards just as was witnessed in the Arab World after the emergence
of Israel when Arab regimes lost all legitimacy in the eyes of the common
man. They have many good brains and I sincerely hope that good sense will
prevail after the initial outrage and they will learn from the past
events.
KG: You're right. Prudence demands that retaliation be kept
strictly localised and short-termed. Of course, any prolongation of it
would destablise the very regimes that the west is ostensibly trying to
shield from the encroaching shadows of radicalism. I've no doubt, like
you, about the presence of sound minds in the midst of policy makers and
leaders. I hope they are not blinded by the outrage and get carried away
by surging emotions. That would be suicidal for the long term interest of
the west. My only fear is the preponderance of Jews and Jewish interest in
Washington. They have a pathological hatred against the Muslims and would
try to steer the policy on this occasion to effect as great a chasm
between the Islamic world and U.S. as possible.Interestingly, this
realization has, very gently, very quietly, started to sink in that
America has invited this massive wrath of Islam upon it because of its
totally purblind support for Israel. As America's agony compounds, this
feeling, currently incipient, would become a groundswell. We should pray
for that watershed to happen, sooner than later.
Let us keep a close watch on what unfolds, in the next few days, in
Pakistan and Afghanistan. There are rumblings of discontent already in
Islamabad. The radicals in Pakistan aren't going to take Musharraf's
decision to give a chance to Washington to swipe at the Taliban lying
down.
Black
Tuesday
Suicidal Hijacker alive!
Abdulrehman al-Omari, the Saudi pilot named by the U.S. as one of the
suicidal hijackers is very much alive in Jeddah and has contacted the U.S.
Embassy there. Does it not prove beyond any shadow of doubt that the
hijackers were travelling on fake documents? And that they deliberately
chose Muslim names with Arab identities to mislead the half literate and
minority elected President Bush and his henchmen towards Osama Ben Laden
a natural and readily acceptable enemy. The U.S. media has also broken
under the pressure and gone berserk with Osama phobia. They are all
sincerely advised to keep their composure and not be blinded by the
pre-conceived notions of demanding Osama Dead or Alive. They must instead
look all around, including inwards, for the real perpetrators of this most
heinous crime for which the people of Pakistan fully sympathise with them.
Riaz Jafri, Rawalpindi Jafri@rifiela.com
The tragic events of 11th September, 2001 were heart-rending. No words are
enough to condemn the perpetrators of these criminal acts of terrorism
which led to colossal loss of life and property. One of the unfortunate
results is that this terrorism has given rise to a strong hostility to
Muslims in some Western countries, but especially in North America.
I naturally feel much disturbed for my brothers and sisters there, for all
of them. But for those who are known and close to me, either because of
kinship or friendship, are naturally much more in my thoughts.
Zafar Ishaq Ansari, Islamabad amzia555@apollo.net.pk
Terrorism
A full page advertisement in Economic Times, Mumbai, on September 18, 2001
announces ‘Solidarity Day against Terrorism- 18.9.2001’, where
everybody is asked to observe a 2-minutes silence at 10.30 as a silent
prayer: a silent resolve. The sponsor of the advertisement is not
identified, though it was concluded with the slogan -- ‘The nation
stands united behind the decision of the All Party Meeting on September
15, 2001.
The bone of contention is the arbitrary selection of four events as
representing the face of terrorism: Mumbai Bomb Blasts-March 1993; Plane
Hijack, Kandahar-December 1999; Anantnag Massacre, March, 2001; Attack on
WTC, New York-September 11,2001. One wonders if all political parties have
agreed to ignore the worst terrorist attack of India’s 54 year history:
Demolition of Babri Masjid - December 1992., or is it the daylight
hijacking of Indian history by the Sangh Parivar.
The public interest advertisement should have carried the full name of the
sponsor/s to confirm the fact that all political parties are not only ‘united’
in the gesture of spending a lakh or two, to promote national resolve to
fight terrorism, but are in full agreement with the sponsors in ignoring
Babri Masjid Demolition and the resultant massacre of innocents as not a
representative terrorist act to be included in the national shame.
Incidentally, the newspaper carries with the same issue a supplement on
Israel, marking in the words of Israeli Ambassador to India ---through the
unstinted efforts of ‘The Times of India Group’, the Jewish New Year
‘Rosh Hashanah’. Trying to identify Solidarity Day against Terrorism
with Jewish New Year is a direct incursion in the public life of
independent India. Those who are familiar with US media scene, will have
no difficulty in noting that full page advertisements in New York Times
are the brand of favorite Jewish public relations exercise.
150 million Muslims have every right to protest the new jugalbandi between
the Sangh Parivar and Israel to hijack the nation in the name of all
political parties. It is time people with foresight understand the full
implication of this association and come out with their forthright
responses.
Ghulam Muhammad, Mumbai-400050.
ghulam_muhammed@hotmail.com
In the context of present crisis we have come up with some interesting
facts, given below. Please try to get them published in maximum number of
newspapers,covering all the main languages,in India/Pakistan etc.
Bush’s quagmire. Kill Taleban and Russia takes away Afghanistan. Don’t
kill them and Israelis threaten, next target Airforce One. Solution, ask
China’s help at home.
If US wants to remain a super power, know what masses of this world think
NOT their leaders. If West wants to win against terrorism, take the masses
of the third world with them NOT their leaders.
Israel has always manipulated US against Muslims, only difference this
time was, Internet helped to uncover the conspiracy, even before the ‘proofs’
could be fabricated.
US could still destroy Taliban, but it has already lost the information
war, thanks to Internet facility available to billions of Muslims in 52
countries.
If US punishes Bin Laden wrongly, imagine the havoc his groups, “well
organised in various countries” can cause. If US finds, right culprits
(short sellers at N.Y. stock exchange), imagine the goodwill, created in
Muslim masses.
Fight terrorism, by creating good will for America amongst others, NOT
terrorising them, and that too for pleasing just one country out of 159
countries.
‘Short sellers benefited by WTC attack’ say European leaders. By what
stretch of imagination, the money trail will reach caves of Afghanistan.
Advice: look for money lenders at home.
Have Americans already forgotten the CNN clip wherein Mr. Netinyahu
threatened Mr. Clinton, to put Washington on fire if he keeps insisting on
“land for peace” deal.
Afsar Zaman afsar_zaman@yahoo.com
The reason so many in the west are branding all Muslims is because the
voice of the Islamic people has been deafening silent against the
atrocities committed by those who purport to follow Allah's example.
We in the west see so many Muslims protesting against the release of Osama
bin Laden to the states for justice. Where are Muslims who are truly for
justice when the human atrocities are committed in the name of Allah?
Seems Muslims are worried more about themselves than the blaspheming of
Allah's name when scoundrels use his teachings to beget terrorism and
annihilation.
I have searched the internet to see Muslim express sorrow and demanding
that Osama Bin Ladin face justice. but instead what I see are weak-kneed
responses by Muslims saying that we can not contribute to justice because
Osamah himself is Muslim. As long as this continues and the Islamic world
is hiding behind Allah instead of assisting justice I am afraid the Muslim
world is continuing its downward toilet spiral in its image.
And so that you may not think I am a jew or catholic infidel, I am myself
Muslim-born, West-educated. And my family strongly believes Osamah should
be hanged in the West for his demonic deeds and that all Muslims should be
fighting a war against Muslim extremists and terrorists. I am ashamed to
identify my self as a Muslim because I am ashamed by the reaction of my
faith since Sept 11.
Allah is great, Allah is good, and his followers are peaceful. Osaman Bin
Laden and Al Quaeda are not muslims nor are Muslims who come to his
defence and protest against the west.
A good Muslim seeks justice across religious boundaries and does not
forsake a neighbor because his beliefs and practices are different. Allah
speaks to this .
Aasyiah M Haji , North America
proud@tobehuman.com
Spilling of human blood should, doubtlessly, be felt abhorring, be it by
arrogant oppressors or the oppressed persons who have been made desperate.
The fact is that the proud and arrogant administrators elected by American
masses have forced many self-respecting people in many countries like
Vietnam, Korea, Cuba, Nicaragua, Palestine, Lebanon, Libya, Iran and even
America itself to resort to suicidal warfare to stop massive state
terrorism.
The latest assault on America by such desperate bombers is really like the
attack of an oppressed David on an oppressor giant Goliath:
There can be no peace so long as oppression and injustice continues in any
part of the ever-shrinking world. The only Supper Power GOD, when angered,
can turn towns into graveyards instantly by just shaking HIS earth for a
few seconds!
S. Akhtar Khanpur Deh-392150
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