Bush world is round

India, The Bush World Is Round

The article follows my comments.

MJ Akbar is the founder of the Asianage Magazine in India and has acheived spectacular success in fulfilling the obligations of the press in a democarcy. I enjoy his logic and analysis. This article intriuged me, particularly the essence of one senentece; George Bush has Globalized defeat, indeed, he has.

I do hope the Manmohan Sing administration watches itself and maintains justice for every one as its core value, the economic boom has to reach the downtrodden, and the poor, if not, it has the potential to choke the system.

Mike Ghouse

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The World Is Round
M.J. Akbar, mjakbar@asianage.com
http://www.arabnews.com/?page=7§ion=0&article=108142&d=23&m=3&y=2008

If Dr. Manmohan Singh loses the next general election — predicted for October by the knowledgeable — he will know whom to blame: His best new friend George Bush. Bush has achieved something unique. He has globalized defeat.

The reasons and means vary. In Britain Tony Blair may be eased out and in Australia John Howard may be driven out, but the word in common is “out”. Bush crippled himself long before time made him a lame duck. He began to cripple his friends at the height of his power, and the curse continues in the twilight of his term.

Prime Minister Manmohan Singh escaped the swamps of Iraq but he could become the victim of one bilateral Bush initiative, the potential nuclear deal with India, and the huge, chaotic mismanagement of the economy that has compounded the gushing fiscal wounds of the Iraq-Afghanistan war. Bush has financed this colossal misadventure with IOUs on history and debt from the world economy, setting off a sinful (as opposed to virtuous) cycle.

Debt and war have destroyed perpetrator and victim alike in the past. They are doing so again. Bush’s wars cost $33.8 billion in 2002; they have ballooned to $171 billion by 2007. Joseph Stiglitz, winner of the Nobel for Economics, has estimated that the cost of the Bush wars could cross $3 trillion by 2017, that is, in another 10 years. Go figure, as they say in America. Where has the money come from? Debt.

Debt has helped weaken the dollar. Producers who sell oil in dollars, seeking to keep their income constant in real terms, and oil companies who profit in whichever direction the wheel spins, have kept raising the price of oil. A spiral effect has driven prices into the stratosphere. Oil was $23 a barrel when the Iraq war began; it is over $110 now. The pressure of prices has induced an impassioned chorus for alternative energy. Bush decided to subsidize the production of ethanol to produce this alternative energy. American farmers switched from food-for-the-stomach to crops-for-cash. There is now a critical shortage of wheat and rice around the world. The temptation of cash and higher prices impact on the pattern of agriculture. Cash crops replace staple crops. The prices of basic edibles join the spiral. India is now on the cusp of inflationary pressures that could go ballistic, even as the government has no solution in mind except a series of sops that will be throwing a bucket of water into a desert. Prices of basic food and oil in the Indian bazaar are rising at a dramatic pace. For the poor, this is a kick where it hurts most, in the stomach. Their pain will be reflected in the vote in the next general elections.

This too is globalization, a chain of sequence and consequence that is linked across the world.

The managers of “globalization,” a vast and varied array of vested interests that my not necessarily be in harmony on some issues but always closes rank to protect its core interest, take care to cohere globalization to good news. It is a brand that needs protection in order to get promotion. Bad news, even when it becomes a worldwide epidemic from a single virus, is never called globalization. No one uses the term when the New York Stock Exchange sneezes and Mumbai catches a cold. This would tarnish the image of globalization as the panacea in a post-Marxist age, a libertarian answer to socialism’s impenetrable dogma. Very few — although Stiglitz is famously among the few — wonder about the tipping point, when the liberty of this philosophy morphs into license into virtually printing money.

One reason — of course, not the only one — why share markets today are as flat as the globalized world is because the meaning of capital has changed, shifting in the process the original goalposts of capitalism. Capital was the means necessary for the production of goods and services that could be sold for a profit, creating jobs and higher-standard lifestyles. Profit, of course, has always been an elastic word, stretching as far as the market will bear. Hence, marketing became a tool by which a need was enhanced into an illusion in order to raise prices and maximize profits. Thus soap, a need for the elimination of dirt, was elevated into a magic wand that would make you into a film star. Perfume is no longer a discreet veil over body odor, but a sex accessory. A handbag is no longer a convenience; it is a photograph of your bank statement. A watch no longer merely tells the time; it is a status symbol. But all this is acceptable because, at the core, there is a product, created out of capital.

But we have now moved into share markets and a world economy where there is illusion without a base, and value is attached to a fiction; and when the principal purpose of money is not to add to the quantum of goods and services but merely to make more paper or plastic money. The Sensex keeps rising in increasingly thin air, crossing peaks that are not made of rock but are arbitrary niches in the financial ozone layer. Even in the best of times, turbulence in the American economy, by far the most powerful, would have sent shudders. But connectivity now honed to marginal shifts in value, a subprime crisis in America wipes out bank profits in India. There is little insulation.

The Congress theory of political success in the next election consists of simple arithmetic. Rural sops will bring the rural vote. The nuclear deal will bring in the urban vote. The massage of promises and words will retain the Muslim vote. Hallelujah! We are all in power for five more years. The arithmetic could get disjointed by algebra. Prices cross the rural-urban divide, leaving anger in their wake. The minorities have heard the talk, and got nothing substantive; while Muslims are angry at the alliance with Bush which makes India a possible ally in Bush’s wars against Muslim nations.

The most consistent fact of democracy is its ability to surprise governments who think they have won elections before the votes have been counted. This happened with the last national government in Delhi. The BJP has still not psychologically recovered from the shock that told the party that India was not shining as luminously as it thought. If the Congress does not watch out, it could face some shock therapy soon.

Women in Hijab

Western Female Politicians in Hijab
For years it has been the tradition of any dignitary to wear the costumes of the host country.

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Princess Diana in hijab.
Hilary Clinton, when she was still wife of the U.S. president in 1997, traveled to Eritrea and put on a headscarf. Interestingly, her daughter Chelsea, seen in the background, did not.

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Hillary Rodham Clinton traveling in Eritrea in 1997 with a headscarf on.
But on another occasion, Chelsea joined her in wearing a hijab.

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Mother and daughter, Hillary and Chelsea Clinton, wearing hijabs.
Prince Charles' wife, Camilla Parker Bowles, got into complete Egyptian Muslim garb, including hijab, on a visit to Al-Azhar.

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Camilla Parker Bowles with Prince Charles in Egypt.
U.S. Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice visiting a mosque in Dushanbe, Tajikistan in October 2005, wearing a black cover on her hair.
Nancy Pelosi, speaker of the U.S. House of Representatives, donned a headscarf when she visited Damascus on April 3, 2007.

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Nancy Pelosi, speaker of the U.S. House of Representatives, in Damascus.
On June 27, 2007, three senior Bush administration staffers wore makeshift hijabs as they listened to the president address an audience at Washington's Islamic Center.

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Assistant to the President for Homeland Security and Counterterrorism Fran Townsend (far left), NSC Senior Director for European Affairs Judy Ansley (left), and Under Secretary of State for Public Diplomacy and Public Affairs Karen Hughes (right) listen to President Bush wearing makeshift hijabs.

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On a trip to Saudi Arabia in October 2007, George W. Bush's wife Laura wore a particularly severe-looking hijab.

Laura Bush in Saudi Arabia.
Switzerland's Foreign Minister Micheline Calmy-Rey met with Iran's President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad in Tehran, on March 17, wearing a hijab as she signed a natural gas deal with him. (March 19, 2008)

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Switzerland's Foreign Minister Micheline Calmy-Rey meets with Iran's President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad in Tehran.

Bloodbath in Jerusalem

Bloodbath in Jerusalem

"I Came, I Saw, I Destroyed"

by Uri Avnery
March 15, 2008

Mike Ghouse: Until the silent majority of Jews in America and Israel speak up against injustices, and until the majority of the Palestinians speak up, Peace is difficult to come by. The extremists on both sides will keep killing the people, while shamelessly blaming the other. It is not the other, it is the extremists who are a blockade to peace. Their ideas have not worked in 60 years, why should they work now? They are destructive! People, take over the leadership and let peace makers bring real peace.

Uri Avnery:

What happened this week is so infuriating, so impertinent, that it stands out even in our familiar landscape of governmental irresponsibility.

On the near horizon, a de facto suspension of hostilities was taking shape. The Egyptians had made great efforts to turn it into an official cease-fire. The flame was already burning visibly lower. The launching of Qassams and Grads from the Gaza Strip into Israel had fallen from dozens a day to two or three.

And then something happened that turned the flame up high again: undercover soldiers of the Israeli army killed four Palestinians militants in Bethlehem. A fifth was killed in a village near Tulkarm.

THE MODUS OPERANDI left no doubt about the intention.

As usual, the official version was mendacious. (When the army spokesman speaks the truth, he is ashamed and immediately hurries on to the next lie.) The four, it was said, drew their weapons and endangered the life of the soldiers, who only wanted to arrest them, so they were compelled to open fire.

Anyone with half a brain knows that this is a lie. The four were in a small car on the main street of Bethlehem, the road that has joined Jerusalem and Hebron since British (or Turkish) times. They were indeed armed, but they had no chance at all of drawing their weapons. The car was simply sprayed with dozens of bullets.

That was not an attempt to make an arrest. That was an execution, pure and simple, one of those summary executions in which the Shin Bet fulfils the roles of prosecutor, judge and executioner.

This time no effort was even made to pretend that the four were about to carry out a murderous attack. It was not claimed, for example, that they had anything to do with last week's attack on the Mercaz Harav seminary, the flagship of the settlers' fleet. Actually, no such pretense could be put forward, because the most important of the four had recently given interviews to the Israeli media and announced that he was availing himself of the Israeli "pardon scheme" - a Shin Bet program under which "wanted" militants give up their arms and undertake to cease resistance to the occupation. He was also a candidate in the last Palestinian elections.

If so, why where they killed? The Shin Bet did not hide the reason: two of the four had participated in attacks in 2001 in which Israelis were killed.

"Our long arm will get them even years later," Ehud Barak boasted on TV, "we shall get everyone with Jewish blood on his hands."

SIMPLY PUT: The Defense Minister and his men endangered today's cease-fire in order to avenge something that happened seven years ago.

It was obvious to all that the killing of Islamic Jihad militants in Bethlehem would cause the renewal of the Qassam launchings on Sderot. And so it happened.

The effect of a Qassam rocket is completely unpredictable. For the residents of Sderot, this is a kind of Israeli Roulette - the rocket may fall in an empty field, it may fall on a building, sometimes it kills people.

In other words, according to Barak himself, he was ready to risk Jewish lives today in order to take revenge on persons who may perhaps have shed blood years ago and have since given up their armed activity.

The emphasis is on the word "Jewish". In his statement, Barak took care not to speak about persons "with blood on their hands", but about those "with Jewish blood on their hands". Jewish blood, of course, is quite different from any other blood. And indeed, there is no person in the Israeli leadership with so much blood on his hands as him. Not abstract blood, not metaphorical blood, but very real red blood. In the course of his military service, Barak has personally killed quite a number of Arabs. Whoever shakes his hand - from Condoleezza Rice to this week's honored guest, Angela Merkel - is shaking a hand with blood on it.

THE BETHLEHEM killing raises a number of hard questions, but with very few exceptions, the media did not voice them. They shirk their duty, as usual when it concerns "security" problems.

Real journalists in a real democratic state would have asked the following questions:

Who was it who decided on the executions in Bethlehem - Ehud Olmert? Ehud Barak? The Shin Bet? All of them? None of them?
Did the decision-makers understand that by condemning the militants in Bethlehem to death, they were also condemning to death any residents of Sderot or Ashkelon who might be killed by the rockets launched in revenge?
Did they understand that they were also boxing the ears of Mahmoud Abbas, whose security forces, which in theory are in charge of Bethlehem, would be accused of collaborating with the Israeli death-squad?
Was the real aim of the action to undermine the cease-fire that had come about in practice in the Gaza Strip (and the reality of which was official denied both by Olmert and Barak, even while the number of rockets launched fell from dozens a day to just two or three?)
Does the Israeli government generally object to a cease-fire that would free Sderot and Ashkelon from the threat of the rockets?
If so, why?
The media did not demand that Olmert and Barak expose to the public the considerations that led them to adopt this decision, which concerns every person in Israel. And no wonder. These are, after all, the same media that danced for joy when the same government started an ill-considered and superfluous war in Lebanon. They are also the same media that kept silent, this week, when the government decided to hit the freedom of the press and to boycott the Aljazeera TV network, as punishment for showing babies killed during the Israeli army's recent incursion in Gaza.

But for two or three courageous journalists with an independent mind, all our written and broadcast media march in lockstep, like a Prussian regiment on parade, when the word "security" is mentioned.

(This phenomenon was exposed this week in CounterPunch by a journalist named Yonatan Mendel, a former employee of the popular Israeli web-site Walla. He pointed out that all the media, from the Channel 1 news program to the Haaretz news pages, as if by order, voluntarily use exactly the same slanted terminology: the Israeli army confirms and the Palestinians claim, Jews are murdered while Palestinians are killed or find their death, Jews are abducted while Arabs are arrested, the Israeli army always responds while the Palestinians always attack, the Jews are soldiers while Arabs are terrorists or just murderers, the Israeli army always hits high-ranking terrorists and never low-ranking terrorists, men and women suffering from shock are always Jews, never Arabs. And, as we said, people with blood on their hands are always Arabs, never-ever Jews. This, by the way, also goes for much of the foreign coverage of events here.)

WHEN THE GOVERNMENT does not disclose its intentions, we have no choice but to deduce its intentions from its actions. That is a judicial rule: when a person does something with a foreseeable result, it is assumed that he did it in order to obtain this result.

The government which decided on the killing in Bethlehem undoubtedly intended to torpedo the cease-fire.

Why does it want to do so?

There are several possible kinds of cease-fire. The most simple is the cessation of hostilities on the Gaza Strip border. No Qassams, Grads and mortar shells on the one side, no targeted assassinations, bombardments, shelling and incursion on the other side.

It is known that the army objects to that. They want to be free to "liquidate" from the air and raid on the ground. They want a one-sided cease-fire.

A limited cease-fire is impossible. Hamas cannot agree to it, as long as the blockade cuts the Strip off on all sides and turn life there into hell - not enough medicines, not enough food, the seriously ill cannot reach appropriate hospitals, the movement of cars has come to an almost complete standstill, no imports or exports, no production or commercial activity. The opening of all border crossings for the movement of goods is, therefore, an essential component of a cease-fire.

Our government is not willing to do that, because it would mean the consolidation of the Hamas government in the Gaza Strip. Government sources hint that Abbas and his people in Ramallah also object to the lifting of the blockade - a malicious rumor, because it would mean that Abbas is conducting a war against his own people. President Bush also rejects a cease-fire, even while his people pretend the opposite. Europe, as usual, is trailing along behind the US.

Can Hamas agree to a cease-fire that would apply only to the Gaza Strip but not to the West Bank? That is doubtful. This week it was proven that the Islamic Jihad organization in Gaza cannot stand idly by while its members are killed in Bethlehem. Hamas could not stand by in Gaza and enjoy the fruits of government if the Israeli army were to kill Hamas militants in Nablus or Jenin. And, of course, no Palestinian would agree that the Gaza Strip and the West Bank are two separate entities.

A Gaza-only cease-fire would allow Barak to blow it to pieces at any moment by a Bethlehem-style provocation. This is how it could go: Hamas agrees to a Gaza-only cease-fire, the Israeli army kills a dozen Hamas members in Hebron, Hamas responds by launching Grad missiles at Ashkelon, Olmert tells the world: You see? The terrorist Hamas is violating the cease-fire, which proves that we have no partner!

This means that a real and durable cease-fire, which would create the necessary atmosphere for real peace negotiations, must include the West Bank, too. Olmert-Barak would not dream of agreeing to that. And as long as George Bush is around, there will be no effective pressure on our government.

APROPOS: who is really in charge in Israel at this time?

This week's events point to the answer: the man who makes the decisions is Ehud Barak, the most dangerous person in Israel, the very same Barak who blew up the Camp David conference and persuaded the entire Israeli public that "we have no partner for peace".

2052 years ago today, on the Ides of March, Julius Caesar was assassinated. Ehud Barak sees himself as a latter-day local replica of the Roman general. He, too, would dearly want to report: "I came, I saw, I conquered."

But the reality is rather different: He came, he saw, he destroyed.

Uri Avneri, is a German-born Israeli journalist, peace activist, and former three-term Knesset member, who was originally a member of the right-wing Revisionist Zionist movement. He is a founding member, Israeli Council for Israeli-Palestinian Peace and a founding member, "Gush Shalom" (Peace Bloc), Independent Peace Mevement.

This column can be found online at: http://zope.gush-shalom.org/home/en/channels/

Posted by Profile of Mike Ghouse at 9:48 AM 0 comments
Labels: injustice, Israel, Jerusalem, Neocons, Palestine, zionists

ABC News expose' on Bigotry

ABC News' expose' on Bigotry in America.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PqbQWxHIn4U

We applaud ABC for doing this, we hope at least this will mitigate the ugliness seated in many of us.

Terrorism is anti-Islamic

TERRORISM IS ANTI-ISLAMIC, A declaration by 10,000 Clerics

I am pleased to see this statement aka Fatwa by one of the World's largest Islamic learning centers. It is good to see the establishment take action. I welcome this wholeheartedly.

Bush's war on terrorism is a dismal failure because it does not target the individual criminals who can be reached, accessed and punished. Instead he blames the religion, which is intangible, meaning cannot punish the religion, as it is not a target, or gives birth to terrorists. He and his advisors fail to understand that it is not the religion, it is the individuals that need to be targeted, then we will have success. (article on why the war on terror failed http://mikeghouseforamerica.blogspot.com/2007/05/laser-barking-at-terrorists.html )

The President and his men, do not have the guts to deal with issue head on, i.e., going after the terrorist individuals, instead they run amuck, blazing the gun in every direction hoping something will come in its way and gets killed. On the other hand the declared war on terrorism may be a sham, it may be really a war to control the energy resources, we are the beneficiaries not doubt, but I would rather focus on alternate sources than have the means on some one else's blood.

Mike Ghouse

The Deoband Declaration on Terrorism: Why Now?
Dost Mittar March 10, 2008
http://www.chowk.com/articles/13709
Darul Uloom of Deoband is the second most important institute of Islamic learning in the world after the Al Azhar University of Cairo. On February 25, 2008, it held a large “All India Terrorism Conference” in its hometown, which was attended by over 10,000 Islamic clerics, scholars, muftis and teachers of Madrasas owing allegiance not only to Deobandi but also Barelavi and Shia schools of Islamic thought. The conference issued a statement that included the following declaration:

"Islam is the religion of mercy for all humanity. It is the fountainhead of eternal peace, tranquility [and] security. Islam has given so much importance to human beings that it regards the killing of a single person [as] the killing [of] the entire humanity, without differentiation based on creed and caste. Its teaching of peace encompasses all humanity. Islam has taught its followers to treat all mankind with equality, mercy, tolerance [and] justice. Islam sternly condemns all kinds of oppression, violence and terrorism. It has regarded oppression, mischief, rioting and murdering among [the] severest sins and crimes.
"This All India Anti-Terrorism Conference, attended by the representatives of all Muslim schools of thought, organised by Rabta Madaris Islamiah Arabia (The Islamic Madrasas Association) Darul Uloom Deoband, condemns all kinds of violence and terrorism in the strongest possible terms.
"The Conference expresses its deep concern and agony [over] the alarming global and national conditions [presently prevailing in the world], in which most of the nations are adopting an attitude against their citizens - especially the Muslims - that cannot be justified in any way, in order to appease the tyrant and colonial master of the West. It is a matter of [even] greater concern that the internal and external policies of our country are becoming heavily influenced by these forces. Their aggression, barbarism and state-sponsored terrorism - not only in Palestine, Iraq and Afghanistan, but also in Bosnia and various South American countries - have surpassed all records known to human history. Our great nation, [on the other hand], has always been known for impartiality and [for] its moral and spiritual values.
"Now the situation has worsened [to such an extent] that every Indian Muslim - especially those associated with madrasas, who are innocent with good record of character - are always gripped by the fear that they might be trapped by the administrative machinery anytime. Today countless innocent Muslims are spending their lives behind bars, and are forced to bear many intolerable tortures. [At the same time], those spreading terror, attacking police stations, killing police [officers] in broad daylight and [carrying] illegal arms are roaming about freely, while the government takes no effective and preventive steps to check their acts of terrorism and violence.
"This [discriminatory] attitude has put a big question mark on the secular character of the government, posing a great threat to the country. The All India Anti-Terrorism Conference strongly condemns this attitude, expresses its deep concern [over] this partiality of the government officials, and declares its continuous joint struggle for [rule] of law, justice and [secularism].”


The above declaration does not refer to specific acts of terrorism, such as against the World Trade Centre or the Indian Parliament and the emphasis seems to be on the effect of negative publicity against Muslims in gerneral and on Indian Muslims in particular. It has been hailed as a strong condemnation of acts of terrorism in the name of Islam by the authoritative religious body. Leaders of both the Congress and the BJP parties have praised this statement.

Ever since the September 11 attack on the World Trade Centre, Muslim religious organizations have been under persistent demands by the West to denounce such acts of terrorism. Such Western pressures have been especially intense on Darul Uloom of Deoband as many jihadi organizations have identified themselves as Deobandi. Jamiat Ulema Islami of Maulan Fazalul Rehman owes its allegiance to Deoband and Mullah Umar of Taliban was trained in a Deobandi madrassa. Al Qaida operatives are described as Wahabis who can be described as ideological twins of Deobandis. All these years, the religious leaders of Deoband have resisted the call for a denunciation of terrorist acts committed in the name of Islam. So, why this sudden need to issue this fatwa?

I think that the timing of the statement is related to the internal political dynamics of India. The Deobandis could earlier ignore the Western call for a religious edict against terrorism as Indian Muslims had by and large remained outside the influence of the international Islamic Jihad. On the other hand, they were paraded as an example of how Muslims can be peaceful under a democracy and democracy was prescribed as a cure-all against the influence of Islamic jihadists. Influential writers, such as Thomas Freedman of New York Times, attributed India’s democracy to the fact that no Indian Muslim was found in the Guantanamo Bay prison camp in Cuba for the Al Qaida suspects. They were also helped by the fact that Indian governments of all political persuasions routinely blamed Pakistan and Pakistani agencies for all acts of terrorism committed in India.

The situation has changed in recent months. Indian Muslims have been involved in international acts of terrorism, including suicide bombing. The thaw in the Indo-Pak relations has resulted in Indian officials not blaming Pakistan in a routine manner for all acts of terrorism in India. More and more of the recent attacks have been traced to homegrown terrorists and to members of organizations such as SIMI. This has increased pressure of the Indian security agencies on Indian Muslims, leading to the difficult situation of hapless Indian Muslims alluded to in the Deobandi declaration.

Another domestic development is the possibility of a general election for the Indian Lok Sabha. The UPA government has been busy clearing the decks for a possible general election later this year. It has brought in a popular Railways budget which has reduced passenger fares for all and provided free passes and further concessions for students and senior citizens. In a populous general buget, it has waived Rs. 60,000 crores worth of loans to farmers and substantially raised income tax exemptions which affect the middle class.

The Congress Party also wants to be in the good books of Indian Muslims. It is quite conscious of losing its hold on its Muslim vote bank, following the demolition of the Babri Masjid and has been working assiduously in recent years to rehabilitate itself as their natural party once again. It instituted the Sachar Commission to examine the state of Indian Muslims. The Commission came out with a significant set of recommendations to improve the conditions of Indian Muslims and to bring them into the national mainstream. The government has decided to implement many of those recommendations and has set aside a substantial amount for this purpose in the current budget.

The UPA government is also aware of the fact that the BJP is planning to make national security a major election issue in the next election and hopes to repeat the success it had with that issue in the Gujarat state elections last year. To blunt such an attack, the Congress and Left Parties, who are deemed to be friendly towards Indian Muslims, have been pleading with Darul Uloom, Deoband and other Muslim organizations to come out openly against terrorism in the name of Islam. I believe that this conference and its declaration are the result of this pressure. This is also the reason why the statement lays emphasis on the adverse impact of the charge of terrorism on Indian Muslims.

Will there be an election in India this year? I think that the Congress Party has taken the decision to go ahead with the Indo-US nuclear deal despite the staunch opposition to it by the Communist parties who have made it loud and clear that they will withdraw their support to the government in such an eventuality. If the Communists withdraw their support, the government is bound to fall, leading to an election. Another variable in determining the likelihood of elections this year will be the outcome of state elections in important states, such as Karnataka, Madhya Pradesh and Rajasthan. If the Congress Party does well in these elections, there would be an extra incentive for it to call an election, regardless of the outcome of the nuclear deal.

As a screaming headline in the Times of India proclaimed, All Voting Lines Are Clear!

Two other articles: http://worldmuslimcongress.blogspot.com/2008/03/terrorism-un-islamic.html

Tags: terrorism , Indian Muslims , Deoband , madrassas , India

PLEASE SEND YOUR COMMENTS TO : Foundationforpluralism@gmail.com

SUBJECT LINE : Terrorism is anti-Islamic

Gender Equality Now

A peace maker constantly seeks to mitigate conflicts and nurtures goodwill for peaceful co-existence. His or Her words and actions do not make things worse, but bring some sense and understanding to the situation. God wants us to live in peace and harmony with his creation; indeed that is the purpose religion. – Mike Ghouse

Special issue: International Women’s day 20 Articles from around the World

GENDER EQUALITY NOW
Mike Ghouse, March 8, 2008

The great poet Philosopher Sir Mohammad Iqbal had said "Wajood-e-zan say hai kayanaat may khushboo" in his beautiful Poetry in Urdu. The essence of which is presence of a woman makes the universe beautiful and complete and vice verse.

Men and women are each others protectors, saviors and serve each other in living a purposeful life. One is incomplete without the other, adds the Qur'aan, "Men and Women are each others garments". Just as the garments shield one from the cold and heat, the metaphor encompasses every aspect of life including the vows; in happiness and sorrow, sickness and health, poverty or wealth, weakness or strength, difficulties and comforts, men and women are indeed each other's garment. No matter what faith or culture you follow, the essence of the vows is the same; justice.
Justice is the basis for peace, be it between spouses, family members, business partners, stockholders and consumers, president and the public, minorities and majorities, communities, nations or the globe. Whenever one takes advantage of the other, the balance is lost and the unit is crippled. In personal relationships, the disadvantaged ones are patiently waiting for the moment to get even or get justice. It is the hope that keeps the life moving forward.

A disgruntled couple was traveling in the country side; neither was speaking with the other. As they drove by a preserve, both of them spotted the wild boars on the roadside fighting each other. The spouting Husband opens his murderous mouth and looks at his wife "Your relatives?" She retorts right back "Yes, in-laws".
It is time for men and women to pledge to be fair and just, there is joy in it. When there is justness, peace is the outcome.

Men need to outgrow their insecurities. To feel secure, some men scream, shout, suppress and oppress the other, deep down that makes them even more insecure. Men need to learn that to be secure; they have to learn to be equal with their partner in life. Accept it when you or she is wrong, there is no need to pretend and feed the insecurity. She is there to protect you and vice versa. You are each others respect and dignity.

From an Afghan to a Texan to a Zulu; from an Atheist to a Muslim to a Zoroastrian and every one in between, men have not been just to women. No one needs to rejoice as no one group can cast the first stone. The problem is with individuals and not with education, ethnicity, religion or race. So, let's treat this is an individual problem one family at a time.

Mothers have more influence with the kids than the fathers; it behooves them to train their kids to grow up respecting every human regardless of their gender, age, race, face or faith. Let the kids learn that work is genderless; with a few well defined exceptions, each person is capable of doing every work. Two generations from now, you can expect the men and women to be true partners and true garments of each other.

Change does not have to happen with a Tsunami, it should happen with each single effort. We should not demand others to do it, we have to do it ourselves first, and let others do it with their own volition. At least we can we say, we have don our part and it will serve us well.

I will do my part.

Mike Ghouse is a Speaker, Thinker, Writer and a Moderator. He is a frequent guest on talk radio and local television network discussing Pluralism, politics, Islam, Religion, Terrorism, India and civic issues. His comments, news analysis, opinions and columns can be found on the Websites and Blogs listed at his personal website www.MikeGhouse.net. He can be reached at MikeGhouse@gmail.com

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14. Karzai Urges More Freedoms for Women
15. Iraqi women demand equality, end to violence
16. Rallies, Celebrations Mark International Women's Day
17. India - Women more equipped with skills
18. If you want more sex, do the dishes
19. UN chief calls for end of violence against women
20. 'Support and protect our women'
    

Yes we can, Peace in Gaza

YES WE CAN BRING PEACE TO GAZA
Mike Ghouse, March 8, 2008

Justice is the basis for peace, and the responsibility to bring justice falls squarely on the powerful shoulders of the al-mighty nations.

Israel owes peace and security to her citizens and it is directly dependent on the security and peace needs of the Palestinians. You cannot live in peace, when your neighbor's aren't. Finding a balance is the most difficult thing to do and both the nations are trying and failing. No wonder the phrase "love thy neighbor" plays such a crucial role in every society.

When Hamas does not rein in those who are shelling the rockets into Israeli territory, Israel finds tempting to avenge it out and the world takes a back step as well.

Hamas can earn the moral high grounds by holding the shelling, and if Israel continues the attacks, then the world will empathize with the Palestinians and most likely the peace process gets a chance. The unfortunate reality is that every time Israelis and Palestinians are inclined to talk, we mess it up badly with a veto against the consensus of the world, and shamelessly it is against the long term interests of Israel. Neither the Hawks in Israel, nor our administration is willing to refresh their thinking. Ultimately, the parties have to figure out how to co-exist.
Mother Teresa said, "If you want peace, go talk with your enemies, you don't make peace with your friends". I do hope the state department genuinely attempts to assess the policies that would work. Right now, they are chasing their own tails.

A few basics need to be addressed and understood by all the parties.

Jews have a need to be understood and be acknowledged for their eternal security needs, not the military, but mental security where they can put their guards down and live their life in peace.

Palestinians have suffered immeasurably; no human should be stripped of his or her hope and dignity; hopes to have a family, work and own a house and call a place their homeland and live a life of dignity.

The end game of our policy should be peace. Our Presidents need to seriously look at what works and develop a vision for peace. They must understand that it may be going against the general opinion and perhaps against their very supporters; AIPAC. We need to take bold steps and produce peace for the people of Israel and Palestine.

Our foreign policy has relied on our gun powder and our ability to dole out alms to shove nations around the World to achieve our goals. The state department has forgotten that 'lasting relationships' hinge on a dialogue based on treating all parties on an equal footing.
If protection of Israel is based on injustice to either Palestinians or the Jews, our integrity has become questionable. We need to be above reproach. Mighty empires can crush the weak for a short term; in the long run every one goes down the tube. We cannot rob anyone and live with a good conscience.

The ways adopted by Israel and Hamas leaders has not worked and most likely will not produce the desired results; peace. We need to listen to average Israelis and Palestinians, we need to encourage the peace makers on both sides and give peace a chance.

I urge both the Moderate Jews and Palestinians to speak up; they need to put justice above the fear of repercussion from the neighbors and members of their communities. Right now, the shots are called by extremists on both sides, it needs to change. It is the fear of what the next Muslim or next Jew will tell them that frightens the moderates. They need to speak up and rein in, they are the absolute majority on both sides, otherwise the evil will persist, if the good people do nothing about it.



Write your comments to: CommentstoMike@Gmail.com
In the subject line please write :: Yes we can bring peace to Gaza

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------


Mike Ghouse is a Speaker, Thinker, Writer and a Moderator. He is a frequent guest on talk radio and local television network discussing Pluralism, politics, Islam, Religion, Terrorism, India and civic issues. His comments, news analysis, opinions and columns can be found on the Websites and Blogs listed at his personal website www.MikeGhouse.net. He can be reached at MikeGhouse@gmail.com or (214) 325-1916

© MIKE GHOUSE 2001- 2008 :: ALL RIGHTS RESERVED

Prayers in Carrollton

PLURALISM PRAYERS

City of Carrollton, March 4, 2008

Hon. Becky Miller, Mayor of City of Carrollton introduced Mike Ghouse to do deliver the invocation at the Carrollton City council - 7:00 PM, Tuesday, March 4, 2008.

Good evening;

Greetings, I am pleased to share the various, but not all the Carrolltonian greetings in alphabetical order, I will pause after each one, and you are welcome to repeat after me.

Bahai Greetings; Allah Abho

Buddhist: Buddha Namo

Christian: Peace be upon you

Hindu : Namaste

Muslim : Salaam

Jainism: Jai Jinendra

Judaism : Shalom

Sikhism: Satsri Akaal

Zoroastrianism: Hamazor Hamo Asho bed

And a big Hi for All others;

I am Mike Ghouse, with the Foundation for Pluralism and our mission is to open our hearts and minds towards our fellow beings, we believe, if we can learn to accept and respect the God given uniqueness of each one of us, then conflicts fade and solutions emerge.

AND NOW, THE PRAYERS:

Dear God, Please accept our prayers in every name we call upon you, we love to call you Father God, Ahura Mazda, Allah, Jehovah, Brahma, Vishnu, Wahe Guru, Mahavir, Buddha, Jesus Christ and every name that we are not aware.

Dear God, help us keep the purity of our hearts, and help us achieve humility.

Dear God, help us learn to overcome our prejudices, anger, and our jealousies

Dear God, help us overcome our ignorance about others.

Dear God, help us honor other ways of worshipping you.

Dear God, help us recognize that arrogance is the root cause of all evil and keep us away from it.

Dear God, help us live a life of following your guidance.

Dear God, help us believe in the supremacy of you and the oneness of humankind.

Dear God, thank you for allowing us to reach this season, for sustaining us, and for bringing together this evening for this event.

Dear God, bless our men and women who are protecting our freedom for us.

Dear God, help us in upholding Justice and liberty for every American.

Dear God, bless our Mayor, this august council and the staff for serving our City.

Dear God, to night, our Fire Department men and women are being honored for their exemplary service to our City, please bless them with your grace.

Dear God, in your name we begin tonight’s meeting and seek your blessings and guidance to do the right and Just thing.

Amen

Write your comments to: MikeGhouse@Gmail.com
In the subject line please write :: Pluralism Prayers in Carrollton

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Mike Ghouse is a Speaker, Thinker, Writer and a Moderator. He is a frequent guest on talk radio and local television network discussing Pluralism, politics, Islam, Religion, Terrorism, India and civic issues. His comments, news analysis, opinions and columns can be found on the Websites and Blogs listed at his personal website www.MikeGhouse.net. He can be reached at MikeGhouse@gmail.com or (214) 325-1916

© MIKE GHOUSE 2001- 2008

Petition for Fawza Falih

Religious Leaders Call for Halt to Saudi Arabia 'Witchcraft' Execution

Please sign the petition to halt the execution - It does make a difference: http://www.petitiononline.com/AIDFAWZA/petition.html

Fawza Falih to be beheaded by Saudi Arabia for making a man "impotent"
Thursday, February 28 2008 @ 11:25 AM EST
Edited by: Michael Hess
http://bbsnews.net/article.php/20080228112529235
BBSNews 2008-02-28 -- (AWRL) Twenty prominent religious leaders from a dozen faiths have united to call for the halt to the execution of a Saudi woman sentenced to death by beheading for the crime of "witchcraft."

Human Rights Watch, the largest human rights organization in the United States, has declared that the conviction of FAWZA FALIH is a travesty of justice. The BBC reports, "The illiterate woman was detained by religious police in 2005 and allegedly beaten and forced to fingerprint a confession that she could not read. Among her accusers was a man who alleged she made him impotent."

Detainees in Saudi Arabia are commonly the victims of systematic and multiple violations of due process and fair trial rights including arbitrary arrest and torture. The most frequent victims are women, who already suffer severe restrictions on daily life in Saudi Arabia and cannot appear before a judge without a male representative.

According to information posted on the Human Rights Watch website, human rights abuses in Saudi Arabia are often ignored by United States officials. Saudi Arabia is an important ally in the "War on Terror" and it is estimated that the United States has armed the Saudi's at an estimated cost of $7 billion dollars.

An international coalition of religious leaders, including Muslims, Jews, Christians, Hindus, Buddhists, Wiccans, Native Americans and other faith traditions, have written a letter with an attached petition, signed by more than 2,700 additional clergy and individuals, to King Abdullah bin Abd al-'Aziz Al Saud pleading for FAWZA FALIH'S release. Asking for mercy and compassion, the letter points out that "In the seventh chapter of the Qur'an it is God who tells us 'My mercy encompasses all,' a mercy which bestows profound peace and infinite love. Is it not the principle of divine compassion that rules the heart in Islam?"

Rev. Phyllis Curott, member of the Assembly of World Religious Leaders, called for a global interfaith effort saying: "Violence against women can never be justified by religion. As religious leaders of most of the world's faiths– including Muslims – we are standing together to renounce this heinous execution and to urge the King to adhere to universal principles of human rights by releasing FAWZA FALIH immediately."

Rabbi Michael Learner, Editor of Tikkun Magazine spoke out in support of Fawza's release saying, "Ancient prejudices against witches are today being manipulated into a general assault against women's autonomy in the repressive Saudi Arabian society that misuses Islam to justify its patriarchal assumptions. Just as we need to challenge every form of racism and hatred, including the misuse of these kinds of incidents to throw dirt on the entire Muslim population of the world, so we need to ask the people of the world to say unequivocally to the crude dictators who run Saudi Arabia that they must stop this outrage of contemporary witch-burning once and for all."

Mike Mohamed Ghouse, President of the World Muslim Congress was disturbed that such a trivial item has consumed international attention. "It should not have even taken up the judicial time. Fawza Falih is a human being like every one else and does not possess any such super-natural powers to affect the lives of other human beings, let alone cause one to be impotent. As Muslims, we believe that no one but God has such powers and he alone is the master of the Day of Judgment. I appeal to His Excellency King Abdullah to put an end to this by releasing Fawza Falih and offer her state protection from any public harassment."

To read and sign the petition to save Fawza Falih's life go to:

http://www.petitiononline.com/AIDFAWZA/petition.html

The letter will be delivered to the Saudi ambassadors to the United Nations and the United States. A campaign is also underway by US citizens urging their Senators to pressure the State Department to negotiate for FAWZA FALIH'S release.

###

3.02.2008

Interview with Phyllis Curott
http://www.wildhunt.org/2008/03/interview-with-phyllis-curott.html

Recently, religious authorities in Saudi Arabia sentenced a woman, Fawza Falih Muhammad Ali, to death for the crime of "witchcraft". The "proof" for these acts were completely happenstance, attributing sorcerous causes to everyday occurrences, and her "confession" (since recanted) coerced through a string of beatings by the Mutaween (religious police). Lawyer, author, and activist Phyllis Curott has organized an interfaith response to this injustice, and I was lucky enough to be able to conduct a short interview with her regarding this case. What the facts are, what we can do, and why this issue should be important to modern Pagans.

Phyllis Curott

How did you hear about the case of Fawza Falih Muhammad Ali?

Because I'm an a attorney who's been active for about 25 years in the courts and media as an advocate for the rights of Wiccans, Pagans and others, I have "clipping" services that update me every day about events involving Witches, Witchcraft and related matters, particularly incidents of discrimination or persecution. Human Rights Watch sent their letter about FAWZA FALIH to King Abdullah on February 14th and the story was picked up by two important media outlets, CNN and the BBC, and the online services.

I read the HRW legal analysis of her case and was appalled. Her persecution, arrest by the military police, beating and torture, "trial," the whole thing was a grotesque travesty of justice. I kept imagining - feeling -- how frightened she must feel alone in prison waiting to die. After I finished crying, I got angry. I had to do something. I drafted an email asking people to join me in signing a letter that would be sent to King Abdullah, calling for her immediate pardon and release. I sent it to Our Freedom, and to clergy who'd become friends through Interfaith work.

I've always hoped that when we needed it, the Interfaith community would support us, and that's what happened. It's very moving to me to look at the list of the first twenty signators - the President of the World Muslim Congress, followed by a Rabbi who is the editor of Tikkun magazine, an Apache spiritual leader followed by several Christian ministers, Hindus, Jains, a Druid, a Wiccan and others. And now in one week we've gotten over 7000 signatures from people all over the world, from every faith tradition imaginable, and from people who are not religious.

Can you give us a little background on how this happened to her?

I would like to have more information. But, thanks to Human Rights Watch, this is what we know: She was arrested by the religious police in the northern town of Quraiyat in Saudi Arabia, May 4 2005. They held her and interrogated her for 35 days at the Commission for the Promotion of Virtue and Prevention of Vice (CPVPV). In her appeal she said that she was beaten during her interrogation and she named an official of the governorate. She said that she lost consciousness during one beating and was treated at the hospital where other female prisoners bandaged her wounds. Human Rights Watch spoke to a relative who was allowed to visit her for the first time after about 20 days in CPVPV detention, after her hospital treatment, and saw marks from beatings on her back. So there's evidence that her confession was coerced.

The judges in the Quraiyat court did not define the meaning of "witchcraft." Instead they cited a variety of alleged actions, "intentions," and "tools" for "witchcraft." The court cited the claim of a man who said that he became impotent after being "bewitched." And a divorced woman reportedly returned to her ex-husband during the month predicted by Fawza, who also supposedly "cast the spell." The court record reveals that the "witchcraft" accusations were substantiated solely on the basis of statements by individuals who believed they had been "bewitched," and by "strange" objects reportedly found in Fawza's home and on a tree nearby - some noxious smelling stuff, two robes, one with money tied into knots in the robe.

She was never given the opportunity to prove her innocence against absurd charges that have no basis in law or fact. Fawza confessed, but it was coerced. She's illiterate and she says that her confession was not read to her and that she was forced to fingerprint because she couldn't sign it. Her family wasn't allowed to see her, she was denied access to her attorney, was not allowed to be present during most of the "trial" against her, couldn't confront witnesses. The appeal court overturned the lower court's decision because she had retracted her confession. But the judges in Quraiyat, reached a new verdict of June 6, 2007 and sentenced Fawza to death on a "discretionary" basis, in the name of "public interest" and to "preserve the creed and the souls and property of this country." Having exhausted her appeals, she is now awaiting execution by beheading. There is no date set, it could happen at any time, unless the King pardons her. That is why there is such urgency.

In addition to Saudi Arabia, Iran is now attempting to change its penal code to allow executions for witchcraft. How common do you feel cases like this are in the Middle East? Is this a new trend, or have we simply not been paying attention?

I don't know if it's a new trend or an old custom. Either way, we need to pay attention. Last year, in Saudi Arabia an Egyptian pharmacist was convicted of "sorcery" for supposedly trying to separate a couple, and he was beheaded in November 2007. The effort to change the Iranian penal code is very disturbing. The European Union has sent a letter protesting, but they'll probably be ignored.

We have to pay careful attention, we have to be vocal, organized, politically astute and connected, and quick to respond when we hear of any of these cases. At some point we may need to replace ad hoc activism with solid ongoing organization. The widescale repression of women, out of which this incident arises, has to be challenged. Unlike the ending of apartheid, the global community has failed in its moral responsibility. We need to be the voice of its conscience. That is one of the most important roles of new religious faiths - to reinvigorate and transform what has become dead and deadly.

But I am very concerned about what comes next for a historical reason. I realized while working on my next book that the feminine divine was expunged from the old Hebrew traditions and priestesses were killed around 1300 - 1400 years into the development of the Hebrew religion. Around 1300 years into Christianity, the Witchcraze began. It is now about 1300 years into the development of Islam, which began in the 700s. It seems that at this particular point in their development, all three of the monotheistic male-dominated religions go through a phase of authoritarian fundamentalism, violent misogyny and very bloody repression of women. I'm afraid that we may be witnessing that now in the fundamentalist Islamic states. It is, however, offset by progressive, educated elements within those countries and within Islam, and a broader sense of human rights in the world that surrounds them. That is where hope, and change, comes from.

Why do you feel this is case should be important to the modern Pagan community?

But for a few hundred years of history or a bit of geography or a few more years of fundamentalist political influence in this country, what is happening to Fawza could be happening to any one of us. The fact that she is illiterate, that she is a simple woman in a remote part of the world who is facing this terror all alone makes her the most important person in the world. She is the measure of our humanity, our compassion, our decency, our commitment to our spirituality. We're all connected. Her suffering is ours, her pain is ours. I felt and I had to do something. There are endless differences in our community, but I believe that we are all united in a divine power that is present in the world. If we live in a sacred world, we must behave in a sacred manner. Whether we are Wiccans, or Christians, or Muslims we are all children of the Earth, of the Sacred. We are kin, we are connected.

And there's another reason. I don't think that Fawza was practicing anything resembling what most of us now call Wicca and Witchcraft. If she was doing anything, which is not clear, it may have been some kind of old traditional folk magic. It doesn't matter - she is sentenced to die by beheading for Witchcraft. That is the word many of us use to identify ourselves. That word means that she is a member of our community. And we are not a community if we don't take care of each other. We may not be able to save Fawza, but we must try.

Should the worldwide problem of witch-killings and persecutions in places like the Middle East, Africa, and India be a Pagan issue?

Yes, I believe it is. We are all connected. But it is a huge problem and I'm realistic about what we can and can't accomplish. I'm also an optimist and an activist and if we don't try to change things, nothing will change. Look at this movement we're all a part of - it's huge, it's growing, it's public, we have legal clergy and legal rights. That was not the case 30 years ago. It was a struggle, a battle to achieve a lot of those things. I know, I was part of those fights. And we're still fighting - the pentacle case is the most recent example. But when we fight, we win.

I get articles about killings from the African and Indian press almost every day. People - so often women - are singled out and murdered just because of an accusation of Witchcraft. We know what that means. That is part of our history. I think we need to respond to that dangerous persecution wherever it arises. It has to be stopped before it spreads. But it may be years before our community is large enough, has enough resources and enough presence in the global community to affect these situations. Working to save Fawza can teach us how to be effective the next time something like this happens -- we'll have better skills, better organization, better contacts, more wisdom.

You have been instrumental in building an interfaith coalition to put moral pressure on Saudi Arabia, how have other faith communities and religious leaders responded to this crisis?

They've been wonderful. Granted, the people I approached were people I knew, had close relationships with, had worked with. And they in turn reached out to people with whom they had relationships. They are very courageous and compassionate and I have such gratitude and respect for all of them. To me they are the proof that at the heart of all faiths is the common aspiration to live in the most compassionate, loving, kind and generous way, because that is what divinity is truly about, no matter what face it wears or name it's called. Now all sorts of clergy and people from all over the globe are signing the petition. Amazing, wonderful. It's so inspiring, it gives me hope that we can have a future where all faith traditions not only live together in peace, but in community.

Have Muslim groups been receptive to your efforts?

The first person who responded to my letter was Mike Ghouse, the President of the World Muslim Congress. He worked so hard on this, helping to draft the letter to the King, emailing Muslim organizations, contacting friends of his and other faith organizations. Sheila Musaji, Editor of The American Muslim, was also among the first to sign. There are many Muslim organizations on the petition. We got great support from IranDokht, an online newsletter with more than 450,000 readers.

Mike is now drafting a letter to the King specifically from Muslim organizations, which can say things in a way that will be very meaningful and helpful for Fawza. And it will be very important in the press in Saudi Arabia and in the region, which could be hugely helpful.

What can American Pagans concerned about this case do aside from signing your petition, should we contact our elected officials? Send letters to the Saudi Arabian embassy?

I'm so glad you asked. First, please sign the petition:

http://www.petitiononline.com/AIDFAWZA/petition.html

And send the link to as many people and organizations as you can. This is so important because the more signatures we have, the more press coverage the story is like to get and the more pressure there is on the politicians and the King. Next, write to your Senators. A sample letter and links to the Senators is posted in the story on Fawza on the front page of WitchVox.

Send the letter to the Saudi Embassies in Washington and in New York.

Send the letter to Prince Sultan bin Salman bin Abdulaziz, secretary general of the Supreme Commission of Tourism of Saudi Arabia, who is very concerned about Saudi Arabia's image.

Send the letter to the State Department asking them to negotiate for Fawza's freedom.

Contact your local press, write a letter to the editor, ask the religion writer to do a story about the case, ask the radio and tv station to cover her story. Write Bill Maher and Steven Colbert and Keith Oberman and Nikolas Kristoff at the NYTimes and the various hosts on AirAmerica and ask them to cover the story.

If we do manage to help save Fawza Falih, what can we do to help ensure such a tragic turn of events doesn't happen again? It seems unlikely that major law reform will be coming to places like Saudi Arabia (or Iran) any time soon.

If we help to save Fawza, I hope people will see that when we stand up and fight for what's right, when we work together as a community, when we reach out to others to help us, when we're willing to sacrifice some time and energy to help someone, we can make a difference. No, we're not going to change the Saudi or the Iranian legal system. And we can't ensure that this never happens again. But if it happens again, we can do everything we can to help, perhaps we can change things one case at a time. That's everything.

And maybe, gradually, over time we'll educate people - that's one reason I do Interfaith work. By supporting those who are seeking to change things from within, the culture will also change. Change is a law of nature. And we can participate in a global effort to end the abuse and legal enslavement of women. It took years to change apartheid. But it WAS changed because people with vision worked for change. And a little magic won't hurt either. Just don't do it in a fundamentalist country.

Islam and competing in good

ISLAM AND COMPETING IN DOING GOOD

Jennie S. Bev, Jakarta Post, March 3, 2008
http://www.foundationforpluralism.com/WorldMuslimCongress/Articles/Islam-and-competing-in-good.asp

The article by Jennie Bev followed by my comments

At the World Muslim Congress, I invite you to join and discuss the issues.. Your are welcome to send an email to: WorldMuslimCongress-subscribe@yahoogroups.com to become a member and participate. It is a moderated group and no more than three emails will be sent to you in a day. Currently, we are discussing Islam and Pluralism. Please keep your comments to 100 words.

As Muslims we may have never confronted this issue of Pluralism before, but we are going to be facing this every day from here forward. We don't live in exclusive enclaves; we do not live on Islands. Every street will have people of different faiths; every work place will have interaction between every faith, race, ethnicity and other uniqueness. For Muslims, Qur’aan has all the answers, like Bible for the Christians, Torah for the Jews and Vedas for the Hindus.

We need to have an open mind and willingness to search for the truth for creating peaceful societies (peace is another name for Islam). The followers of all faiths will be facing these challenges. I urge Muslims and our friends from other faiths to search for validity on both sides of the issue without denigrating another point of view.

Pluralism is an attitude, a civil attitude of respecting God’s creation in its various manifestations. Pluralism does not promote any particular faith or one single ideology as superior to the other, if it were, it would be a competing system. Pluralism does not attempt to merge, synchronize or dismiss the differences, it is the acceptance of you, the way you are, and when you accept the otherness of other, conflicts fade and solutions emerge.

The issue is simple but demands thinking – Is my faith good because of its merits to me, or is it good because there can be only one good, and everything else has to be bad? This is a serious question and we need to speak our heart, mind and the soul. Are we open to the idea that my faith is good to me as other’s faith is good to them? Is it a sin to be open to an idea like this? Are we arrogant enough to believe that we can claim ours is good and not give the other person the same right? Does one good negate the other?

Peace be upon you, we are not lost in the above paragraph. As a Muslim I believe Islam is the right faith for me and it works for me to give peace to my soul, pleasure to my heart and justness to my mind and I won’t deny same peace, pleasure and justness to Christians, Hindus, Jews and others whose faith does the same to them. God would have denied that, but he chose not to. He wanted to test our ability to create heaven on the earth and co-exist harmoniously with the diversity he has deliberately created.

Arrogance is the mother of all evil;

The moment one thinks that his/her belief is superior to the other, arrogance gets uploaded and feeds a condescending attitude towards the other person. When you believe that other's belief is less than yours, you fall in to the pit of missionizing the other, no matter what the other person has to say, you devalue his knowledge and bombard the person with your own ideas hoping, thinking and believing that the other one has to see the truth and has to come towards you.

This creates a conflict and perhaps resentment, if the other person feels bad that he or she cannot defend his/her own belief. Even if the person yields, it will be with resentment.

Those who feel oppressed at work or feel compelled to work, act differently when they have some control...they feel like the king or queen on the road, and will not let you in when you are switching the lanes. I have seen the native Indians grief, the grief from Hindus on forced conversion and the grief from others.

Free will brings about sustainable peace. Hence, arrogance is the biggest evil that breaks the lasting peace in the world. Our own arrogance (military power) breeds a lot of resentment in the oppressed ones. Some day, they say to themselves, when they have the power, they will get even.

Mike Ghouse

# # #

ISLAM AND COMPETING IN DOING GOOD
Jennie S. Bev, Jakarta Post, March 3, 2008

Indonesia is a country with three legal systems: civil (continental), Islamic and adat (customary). Above all, Indonesia is said to be a country based on the concept of rule of law, which is reflected in the 1945 Constitution. But there are also gray areas throughout, and this unique environment serves as a fertile breeding ground for multitudes of interpretations in legal, political and cultural domains.

Based on the rule of law, no one is above the law and the truth occupies the highest form of intent. The continental legal system in Indonesia, which originated from the Dutch imperialism era, is based on this principle.

However, according to Seyyed Hossein Nasr, an Islamic scholar who was educated at MIT and Harvard, in The Heart of Islam (pg. 288), "The rights of God stand above the rights of human beings."

It is clear that these two systems interpret justice based on different standards. In Islam, there is an absolute body outside the realm of human beings, which is called God, whose final verdicts can never be contested. In short, the Islamic judicial system acknowledges the concepts of absolutism and absolute power.

In a country with three legal systems, whose historical origins and notions of justice differ significantly from one another, it would take a group of people with mantic capacities to push the country forward in light of being accepted as a part of international society with universal humanitarian standards. Because unless this occurs brazenly in continuum, Indonesia might need to accept the fact that it may degrade itself into the darkness.

A few Islamic scholars and activists have taken their stance in showing the world how Islam is a tolerant religion and that Islamic laws and jurisprudence are adaptable in modern society. Other than our own Abdurrahman "Gus Dur" Wahid, Azyumardi Azra and a few pluralistic ulema and scholars, professor of law at Emory University, Abdullahi Ahmed An-Na'im, and a research fellow at the Lokahi Foundation in Switzerland, Tariq Ramadan, who is nicknamed the "Martin Luther of Islam", are two other examples of outspoken moderates whose voices are heard by the world, including leaders in Western countries.

The world needs more people like them to break the silence of the moderate Muslim majority and to embrace the notions of diversity and tolerance, which the Koran has been preaching to the world but are rarely heard.

It would not be fair for Islam as an institution to be "represented" in the world by noisy fundamentalists and extremists. Because, after all, most Muslims long to live in peaceful coexistence with others.

Tariq Ramadan is one exemplary moderate scholar and preacher. In his book Western Muslims and the Future of Islam (pg. 202), he encourages interfaith and interreligious dialogue, as he believes that it is how God wants the totality of humankind to behave.

Ramadan explains, "If there were no differences between people, if power were in the hands of one group alone (one nation, one race, one religion), the earth would be corrupt because human beings need others to limit their impulsive desire for expansion and domination. So, just as diversity is the source of our test, the balance of power is a requirement for our destiny."

This statement is so beautiful that I would contemplate its profound meanings every night before going to bed. Islam is, indeed, a great religion for acknowledging the rainbow of humankind in a balanced mind-and-heart perspective.

Realistically speaking, back to Indonesia, the gray areas in the intertwining legal systems have proven to be very costly. This was evident when Home Minister Mardiyanto did not have a second thought in declaring that the government did not see any need to revise the 600 sharia-based and sharia-inspired bylaws, regardless of the catastrophic consequences that might follow, including opening a Pandora's box to an unjust society and to the end of a democratic republic.

This is quite bothersome because both the people and the religion of peace itself are greatly affected.

A good analysis was put forth by Prof. Abdullahi Ahmed An-Na'im in Toward an Islamic Reformation: Civil Liberties, Human Rights, and International Law (pg. 8-9): "If historical Shari'a is applied today, the population of Muslim countries would lose the most significant benefits of secularization. Even Muslim men, who are the only full citizens of an Islamic state under Sharia, stand to lose some of their fundamental constitutional rights if Shari'a is restored as the public law of the land."

Under sharia public law, freedom of belief, expression and association of Muslim men would be greatly affected by the law of apostasy and the ruler's powers.

This is a valid argument, as Indonesian analysts point out that substance-wise the sharia-inspired bylaws go against the democratic principles contained in the 1945 Constitution. Articles 28D and 28I state everyone should be free from discrimination and entitled to equal treatment before the law.

An-Na'im also offered a solution that we all need to ponder upon: "The only way to reconcile these competing imperatives for change in the public law of Muslim countries is to develop a version of Islamic public law which is compatible with modern standards of constitutionalism, criminal justice, international law, and human rights."

While An-Na'im gave examples of Islamic countries, which Indonesia is clearly not, Indonesia should be able to grasp the insightful statements as a way to resolve the gray areas between national civil law and Islamic public law.

The 1945 Constitution, in fact, was the brainchild of our founding fathers, most of whom were well-educated and broad-minded moderate Muslims. Thus, in the case of Indonesia as a modern nation, there is no need to reformulate another version of Islamic public law.

For Indonesia to stand tall and be accepted as a member of the international community, which is dignified and democratic with high humanitarian standards, we need to remember that God intended to create communities so we all can compete in doing good for one another and to be each other's check-and-balance. After all, the world does not revolve around Indonesia; Indonesia revolves around the world.

http://old.thejakartapost.com/detaileditorial.asp?fileid=20080303.E02&irec=1

The writer is a columnist, a former law lecturer and an adjunct professor based in Northern California. She graduated from University of Indonesia Law School. She can be found at JennieSBev.com.



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SUBJECT LINE : Islam and competing in doing good

The World Muslim Congress is driven by the Qur'an, Al-Hujurat, Surah 49:13: "O mankind! We have created you male and female, and have made you nations and tribes that ye may know one another. The noblest of you, in sight of Allah, is the best in conduct. Allah Knows and is Aware." Our Mission is to work for a world of co-existence through inclusiveness and participation. As a member of diverse family of faiths, our efforts will be directed towards justice and equity to attain peace for the humankind with a firm grounding in commonly held values. No one should have advantages at the cost of others. Such benefits are temporary and deleterious to lasting peace. We believe what is good for Muslims has got to be good for the world, and vice versa, to sustain it. Indeed we aspire to promote goodwill amongst people of different affiliations, regardless of their faith, gender, race, nationality, culture or any other uniqueness blessed by the creator. www.WorldMuslimCongress.com