Thursday, February 7, 2008
The Many Aspects Of Shirk by Abdur Raheem Green
This lecture covers a detailed background on the various aspects of Shirk and goes into discussion on how a great number of people may fall prey of going into/committing shirk realizing it. Additionally, towards the end the speaker answers questions from the audience.
Shirk means ascribing partners to Allah for example to describe that Allah has a son.
The Three Prophets - One Message- Abdur Raheem Green
This lecture is about three of the final prophets to be sent to the world (Prophet Musa, Isa, Muhammad, peace be upon them all). Who were they? Did they have different messages or same call?
Wednesday, February 6, 2008
Turkey: Parliament debates Islamic head scarf ban at schools
ANKARA, Turkey (AP) — Legislators on Wednesday will debate one of secular but predominantly Muslim Turkey's most fiery issues: whether to allow female students to enter university campuses wearing Islamic head scarves.
Parliament will hold a first round of debate and voting on the Islamic-rooted government's proposed amendments to the secular constitution, which would remove the decades-old ban. The proposal includes the insertion of a paragraph stating that "no one can be deprived of (his or her) right to higher education." A second and final round of voting is slated for Saturday.
The head scarf issue is a source of tension in Turkey and has divided the population among those who consider the ban an affront to religious freedoms of pious Muslims and those who fear removing the ban would erode Turkey's secular education system.
Military-backed secularists regard the head covering as a political statement and argue it has no place in schools. They also fear that lifting the ban at universities would pile pressure on female students to cover themselves up.
More than 125,000 people — mostly women — marched in Ankara over the weekend to denounce plans to remove the ban. University deans from dozens of private and state universities also gathered in the capital last week to show their opposition.
The deputy head of Turkey's Appeals Court joined the fray on Monday, warning that the move would "weaken" secularism. The military, however, has chosen to stay out of the debate for now even though generals have periodically spoken up against what they view as moves to undermine secular principles introduced by the national founder, Mustafa Kemal Ataturk.
The government has the backing of a nationalist opposition party, and together they have more than the two-thirds majority in the 550-seat assembly required to amend the constitution.
But the secularist Republican People's Party — which has said that lifting the ban would amount to a first step toward a more Islamic rule — has vowed to challenge any change at the Constitutional Court.
To ease concerns, Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan's party has stated that a loosening of the ban would be limited to universities, and would not be expanded to high schools or public offices.
In an attempt to soften secularist opposition, the government is also making changes to regulations governing higher education, to make clear that female students would be allowed to wear head scarves at universities as long as they tied them under the chin, leaving their faces more exposed. That attire, is accepted in barracks and military guest houses and is not necessarily associated with Islam.
Ataturk, who founded modern Turkey after the collapse of the Ottoman Empire, banned religious attire in daily life. The ban has been vigorously enforced in public office and schools since a 1980 military coup.
Both Erdogan's wife and President Abdullah Gul's wife wear Islamic-style head scarves.
Gul's wife challenged Turkey's head scarf ban at the European Court of Human Rights after being barred from university in 1998 — only to withdraw her complaint when her husband became foreign minister.
Parliament will hold a first round of debate and voting on the Islamic-rooted government's proposed amendments to the secular constitution, which would remove the decades-old ban. The proposal includes the insertion of a paragraph stating that "no one can be deprived of (his or her) right to higher education." A second and final round of voting is slated for Saturday.
The head scarf issue is a source of tension in Turkey and has divided the population among those who consider the ban an affront to religious freedoms of pious Muslims and those who fear removing the ban would erode Turkey's secular education system.
Military-backed secularists regard the head covering as a political statement and argue it has no place in schools. They also fear that lifting the ban at universities would pile pressure on female students to cover themselves up.
More than 125,000 people — mostly women — marched in Ankara over the weekend to denounce plans to remove the ban. University deans from dozens of private and state universities also gathered in the capital last week to show their opposition.
The deputy head of Turkey's Appeals Court joined the fray on Monday, warning that the move would "weaken" secularism. The military, however, has chosen to stay out of the debate for now even though generals have periodically spoken up against what they view as moves to undermine secular principles introduced by the national founder, Mustafa Kemal Ataturk.
The government has the backing of a nationalist opposition party, and together they have more than the two-thirds majority in the 550-seat assembly required to amend the constitution.
But the secularist Republican People's Party — which has said that lifting the ban would amount to a first step toward a more Islamic rule — has vowed to challenge any change at the Constitutional Court.
To ease concerns, Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan's party has stated that a loosening of the ban would be limited to universities, and would not be expanded to high schools or public offices.
In an attempt to soften secularist opposition, the government is also making changes to regulations governing higher education, to make clear that female students would be allowed to wear head scarves at universities as long as they tied them under the chin, leaving their faces more exposed. That attire, is accepted in barracks and military guest houses and is not necessarily associated with Islam.
Ataturk, who founded modern Turkey after the collapse of the Ottoman Empire, banned religious attire in daily life. The ban has been vigorously enforced in public office and schools since a 1980 military coup.
Both Erdogan's wife and President Abdullah Gul's wife wear Islamic-style head scarves.
Gul's wife challenged Turkey's head scarf ban at the European Court of Human Rights after being barred from university in 1998 — only to withdraw her complaint when her husband became foreign minister.
Editor: The story about head scarve ban for female university students in Turkey baffled me for a long time. Fortunately Turkey now has "sane" leaders (of sound mind) who could change this madness introduced by the madman by the name of Kamal Atarturk.
Quran and World Peace
Man’s most fundamental needs can be summed as the need for knowledge, the need for peace and harmony, and the need for a way to salvation. That these needs have many degrees and modes and that they are closely related to one another cannot be denied. It is with these very questions that the Holy Qur’an — the last of the Divine Books — deals. Mostly people from outside look at it as a book containing some instructions about certain facts and principles of life and conduct. It, however, is not so. There are guiding principles regarding all vital issues, and one can unfold any number of valid interpretations.
Many of the best minds devoted to burning questions such as ecological problems, pollution, feeding of mankind, conquest of disease, bridging the gap between rich and poor and, in particular, world peace, have been inspired by the faith and tenets of Islam. And rightly so. Belief in One God brings us to believe in the oneness of mankind and on the unity of mankind is built the concept of human dignity and brotherhood. On the metaphysical-existential plane, many would concede today that true human happiness (in contradistinction to sensuous pleasure), mental peace, and tranquillity are not possible to attain without some sort of spiritual orientation. When man follows Divine Guidance, he becomes free from any fear for the present or the future, and any grief or sorrow for the past (khauf and huzn in the Qur’anic terminology).
According to the Qur’anic teachings, it is shirk (assigning partners to Allah) and kufr (repudiation and disbelief in Allah) that causes fasad (colossal wrongness) across the world — the corruption and disorder in which people indulge in this world, an active perversity which degrades things and depraves men. Iman (staunch religious belief), on the contrary, grants a believer serenity of spirit and heart, resultant upon faith and prayer, the awareness of the Divine sufficiency and inner tranquillity. A truly believing and practicing Muslim experiences in his heart sakinah (the Scheehinah of the Old Testament), the token of Divine Presence and the peace it brings with it. Needless to say, true faith and belief also entails ceaseless vigil on purity of motive and inner integrity.
Dr. Israr Ahmad, the author of this tract, firmly believes that the deep trouble and distress in today’s world may have a simple cause that we humans — and we must also add, we Muslims too — have not properly obeyed God’s essential instructions and thereby have missed our main goal. In his own modest way, Dr. Israr Ahmad has been actively busy in propagating and disseminating the Qur’anic message for the last twenty years. The present tract is based on a speech which he delivered on several occasions at well-attended meetings of students and general public with the sole purpose of calling people back to the Qur’an. I pray to the Almighty that this humble effort may serve the purpose of bringing entire humanity in the fold of genuine religious fellowship.
DR. ABSAR AHMAD
I shall deal with the topic of "The Qur’an and World Peace" at three different levels, viz., the peace and tranquillity of an individual person, the socio-political peace of a group, and finally, world peace.
An Individual Person’s Peace and Tranquillity
One may be surprised that I am embarking upon a discussion of world peace by first mentioning an individual’s personal peace and inner state of harmony. But a moment’s reflection will be sufficient to bring home to the reader the all-important truth that the most effective factor in establishing world peace is personal peace and mental satisfaction of an individual. This is so because of the following four reasons:
Firstly, an individual human being is the basic unit of humanity. A wall, however high and long it may be, is after all a complex of bricks. Its strength and stability depends on the strength and good quality of individual bricks. Similarly world peace is unthinkable without the spiritual and psychological peace of a large majority of its inhabitants.
Secondly, man in himself is a "miniature universe" and as such his consciousness reflects the entire cosmos. This important truth has been fully realized by the Sufis of Islam — the greatest researchers into human psychology. That is the reason why I have chosen their term — "miniature universe" or microcosm — to express my meaning.
Just as external and environmental happenings influence the inner state of man, it is equally true that man also influences the macro-cosmic physical universe around him. His inner state affects and brings about changes in the vast expanses of the material cosmos. Therefore, the peace and tranquillity enjoyed by human individuals necessarily makes its impression on the outer world. In other words, the subjective peace experienced within makes harmony possible in the world outside the individual.
Thirdly, even a cursory glance at world history is enough to show that often the personal disquietude of a few individuals led to disastrous wars resulting in widespread bloodshed and destruction. If we study closely the life-history and personalities of leaders like Hulagu Khan, Genghis Khan, Hitler and Mussolini, we come to know that it was due to their mental disquietude and perversity that the world peace was shattered and innumerable innocent human beings were savagely killed.
Fourthly, even now if we consider for a moment the few persons in whom tremendous powers are vested (such as those who preside in the White House and the Kremlin), we will be assured that world peace largely depends upon the inner peace and tranquillity of these very few individuals. Not to speak of mental disruption, even the nervous tension or anxiety of a single one of these men might spark off an extremely devastating nuclear war.
Iman — Doctrinal Belief
Viewed from this angle, Islam seems to occupy a unique position in the community of world religions. Iman is the collective term for all those beliefs on which the Islamic faith is based. The root of the word Iman is a-m-n, which points to the peace and tranquillity that the believer enjoys in his heart as a result of entertaining and upholding these beliefs.
The quintessence of Iman is belief in Almighty God, or Iman billah, which is constituted by intuitive knowledge of Allah (SWT) and a relationship to Him of hope and total dependence and submission. Only this type of personal and subjective relationship with Allah (SWT) can engender true and lasting peace in the heart of a man, providing a positive and durable ground for the stability of his inner being. Tauheed — oneness of God, which we translate as "unity" or "unityism" — is the characteristic term for this pure spiritual relation of a man to his Creator, which ultimately leads him to a state described by the Qur’an in these words: "Allah became pleased with them and they became pleased with Him" (Al-Bayyinah 97:8). This is a state in which the Creator and the worshipper are in total consonance with each other. A believer who has obtained this spiritual height is completely free from all anxiety and fear, and his mind and heart experience a bliss which can be felt but cannot be described in words.
In Surah Al-An‘am, Allah (SWT) first poses a question in this manner
…Which of the two parties has more right to security and peace, (tell me) if you know. (Al-An‘am 6:82)
and then the answer is supplied thus
It is those who believed and did not pollute their faith with zulm that are truly in security and are rightly guided. (Al-An‘am 6:83)
In short, true belief in Allah (SWT) is the sole positive and real ground for a man’s inner peace and happiness. This devotional relationship with Allah (SWT) accompanied with pure and resolute submission to His commands can be achieved and enhanced by remembrance of Allah (or zikr). The Qur’an says:
…Verily, in the remembrance of Allah do hearts find peace and satisfaction. (Ra‘d 13:28)
A person who is deprived of belief in Almighty Allah (SWT) can never enjoy even the semblance of mental peace. As a result of this lack of belief, he is always obsessed by ever-growing worldly ambitions. He is ever entangled in the blinding cobweb of his limitless desires. Most men die before seeing their desires and ambitions materialized, no better than travelers in the desert pursuing a mirage, whereas the more intelligent of these fall prey to assorted mental aberrations. Their minds become arenas of strife and conflicts. Their desires lead them to intense internal conflicts and frustrations and consequently they are transformed into infernos — their hearts set ablaze. These inner disruptions manifest themselves outwardly, giving rise not only to a ruthless and savage struggle for existence but also to vile competition, the use of unfair means in business and trade, greed, caprice, and false ostentation. As a result of all this, God’s earth becomes rampant with immorality, crime, corruption, and lawlessness.
At this stage, only belief in the Hereafter, which is a corollary of belief in Allah (SWT), comes to rescue a man from the abysmal depths of darkness. It provides an effective check against corruption and immoral conduct. The eschatological beliefs in bodily resurrection, the Day of Judgment, and reward and punishment in a future life, provide a powerful incentive to a believer not to omit his duties, to be content with his lawful rights, and to abide by the rules laid down in the Divine Law (Shari‘ah) regulating the conduct of his terrestrial existence. The Qur’an asserts unequivocally that there is only one psychological factor which can effectively keep man from transgression and immorality, and that is the belief in the Hereafter and in accountability on the Day of Reckoning.
Indeed not! Man behaves rebelliously for he deems himself to be independent. (But) towards your Lord indeed is the return. (Al-Alaq 96: 6-8)
It should be crystal clear from the above that it is impossible to have serenity of heart if we do not have a staunch belief in religious truths. Any scheme or plan of action geared towards bringing about world peace and harmony, if not based on the belief in Almighty Allah (SWT) and in the Day of Reckoning, is bound to fail. It can succeed only if it is based upon the tenets of Islamic faith.
Islam
As stated above, Iman or religious belief is essentially related with the inner realm and mental state of a person, and the internal peace and calm enjoyed by him is its greatest fruit. The external manifestation of this inner peace takes the form of an attitude towards life known as Islam, which in turn guarantees outer peace and harmony. Iman and Islam are indeed like the two sides of a single picture. Whereas one provides guarantee for inner peace and happiness, the other does so for external peace and harmony. The Holy Prophet’s (SAW) prayer which he used to say at the sight of a new moon every month contains a significant allusion to this very truth. The prayer, couched in simple but beautiful phrases, reads:
O Lord! Make this new moon full of glad tidings for us: of peace, Iman, well-being, and Islam
These truths were expressed more fully and explicitly in other traditions of the Prophet (SAW). For example, in one tradition he negated Iman (and swore thrice to emphasize it) in a person whose neighbor is not safe from his misbehavior. Secondly, morally wholesome behavior was regarded as the zenith of both Iman and Islam. Thirdly, the Prophet (SAW) defined a Muslim as one from whose hands and tongue other Muslims are safe. Fourthly, he preached in a very wide and general way to "take pity on the inhabitants of earth, if you wish that the Lord of the heavens takes pity on you."
Socio-Political Peace and Well-Being —Salamah
Human beings are gregarious by nature. Their relationships with each other assume the form of ever-widening circles. Starting from the interactions within the family nucleus, they develop to encompass clans, tribes, complex social systems, and political states. Quite logically, world peace lies in the amicability and cordiality of relations between these states because the world is, after all, nothing but a large multitude of these socio-culturaI groups and states. The internal harmony of a single group bears the same analogy to the peace of the total world as the inner serenity (i.e., Iman) of a person bears to the external well-being (i.e., Islam). That is why Islam has put the greatest emphasis on social peace and political and economic justice. As delineated by the Holy Prophet (SAW), the character-traits of a Muslim individual, which is the basic unit of Muslim social polity, are the highest ideals of human character ever envisaged by any moral philosopher. One can well imagine the tranquillity enjoyed at the social level by a community that is founded on such noble principles and whose members are so considerate, affectionate, and benevolent among themselves.
The Islamic social structure is established on the positive foundation of Al-hubb lillah — love for the sake of Allah (SWT) and in obedience to Him. Peace and well-being are its marks of distinction. That is why sincerity and companionship of two Muslims for the sake of Allah (SWT) is regarded by Him as the most excellent of religious virtues. This very attitude is amply reflected in the way people greet each other in the Islamic society by wishing each other peace and well-being. Assalamo Alaikum and Wa Alaikum Assalam are the cheering phrases constantly uttered and heard when Muslims meet and part with each other. The Holy Prophet (SAW) described these twin characteristics of a typical Islamic society in one of his sayings thus:
(O Muslims!) You will never enter Paradise unless you are believers. And you will never achieve genuine belief unless you love (and respect) each other. Shall I not tell you the way you can create love amongst yourselves? (That way lies in) frequently greeting each other with salam. (Reported by Abu Hurairah and narrated by Imam Muslim)
A major portion of the Surah of the Holy Qur’an entitled Al-Hujurat, revealed in Madinah, contains meticulously detailed instructions that help to maintain social harmony and well-being. Respectful behavior towards the leader and elders, in manner, voice, and demeanor, are the bonds and cement of an organized community. Rumors should be tested and selfish impatience should be curbed by discipline. Scandal or slander of all kinds should be condemned. All quarrels and differences should be patched up and reconciled, by the force of the community if necessary, but with perfect fairness and justice. Ridicule, taunts, and biting words should be avoided, whether the person spoken of is present or absent. Suspicion and spying are unworthy of believers. Mutual respect and confidence are a duty and a privilege in Islam. One can well imagine how much importance Islam assigns to social peace by enjoining upon Muslims to shun anything that corrodes it.
More than that, the Holy Qur’an delineates such golden principles of social and group life which cannot be found in any other religious book. For example:
…help one another in righteousness and piety, but do not help one another in sin and wickedness…. (Al-Ma’idah 5:2)
O believers! Stand out firmly for justice, as witnesses for the sake of Allah, even (if this may go) against yourselves, or your parents, or your kin…. (Al-Nisa 4:135)
O believers! Stand out firmly for Allah, as witnesses for the sake of justice, and let not the enmity of a people cause you to turn away from justice. Do justice, for that is akin to piety…. (Al-Ma’ida 5:8)
We have surely sent our messengers with clear signs (i.e., miracles and proofs), and sent with them the Book (i.e., revealed guidance) and the Balance (i.e., the Shari‘ah), so that mankind may stand by justice…. (Al-Hadeed 57:25)
The above verses of the Qur’an make it clear that the four fundamental principles of Islamic polity are righteousness, piety, justice, and fairness. The sole aim before a truly Islamic society should be to achieve these so that people live in peace and harmony.
World Peace
As far as I can understand, Islam has two schemes to offer for the promotion of peace: (a) a real and long-term scheme, and (b) a short-term or interim one.
As regards the real, durable, and universal scheme to bring about peace on earth, Islam asserts emphatically and unambiguously that it can be achieved only through responding to the call of Islam, by believing in Allah (SWT) as the Creator and Sustainer of the universe and submitting to His will as expressed in the last Divine Revelation, i.e., the Holy Qur’an. A true Islamic society has the potential to expand and take the entire world into its fold, and thus to save all human beings from exploitation, disruption, oppression, and disquietude. The vicissitudes of human history are witness to the fact that whenever humanity adopted an ideology and way of life other than Islam, the world was torn by injustice and warfare. The Holy Qur’an says:
Have you not seen how your Lord dealt with the Ad, of the (city of) Iram with lofty pillars, the like of whom were not created in (all) the land? And with the Thamud, who cut out (huge) rocks in the valley? And with Pharaoh of Stakes? They were those who had committed great excesses in the lands, and spread great mischief in them. (Al-Fajr 89:6-12)
Thus, the main emphasis of Islam is on calling the entire humankind towards faith in its Lord and Creator, and urging it to submit to His Will. Indeed, the real way to establish lasting peace on earth is the following: First of all, a true Islamic society and a genuine Islamic State needs to be established in one part of the world; this would act as a beacon, inviting the humankind towards the light of Iman and Islam. As a result, the boundaries of Islamic society and Islamic State would keep on expanding till the entire humanity would come within the fold of the love, benevolence and mercy of its Creator.
Under the present circumstances, however, this seems like a far-fetched idea. But Islam has a message of peace, love, and harmony for the interim period as well. Islam provides us with two cardinal principles, on the basis of which the peoples of the world can be united in global harmony. Thus, the ayah 13 of Surah Al-Hujurat reads:
O mankind! We created you from a single (pair of a) male and a female, and made you into nations and tribes, so that you may know each other. Verily the most honored of you in the sight of Allah is (one who is) the most righteous of you.... (Al-Hujurat 49:13)
Here the Holy Qur’an mentions two points which can create a deep sense of unity among the diverse races and religio-cultural groups of the world, viz., the unity of the Creator which leads us to the essential equality of humankind, and the common origin of the entire human race in the primordial pair of Adam and Eve, which leads us to the idea of universal brotherhood.
This ayah addresses all of humanity and not just the Muslim community. All humankind has descended from the first couple, Adam and Eve. Their tribes, races, and nations are conventional labels by which we may know their differing characteristics. Before Allah (SWT) they are all one, and the most righteous is the most honorable. Allah (SWT) is the Creator of all human beings and as such they are all equal before Him.
These two principles of unity of the human race and oneness of Creator may appear rather theoretical, but history tells us that the Prophet of Islam (SAW) established a society based on these very principles which was free of internal strife and conflict. Even H. G. Wells, who otherwise is a critic of the personal life of the Holy Prophet (SAW), acclaims that it was a great feat of Muhammad (SAW) that he, in fact, established a human society based on the lofty moral ideals of Islam.
Everybody knows that modern science and technology has brought about fantastic changes in contemporary life. Our globe has shrunk tremendously; we can travel from one corner of the earth to another in a matter of hours. The world has been reduced to a village, various countries being like localities of a single town. But this elimination of distance is entirely a physical and outer phenomenon. Mentally and psychologically, the various nations of the world are still far apart from each other. Even though at the political level men aspire to develop a universal brotherhood and a single world-State, yet in reality they cannot find a basis or value through which to overcome the barriers of color, creed, and race.
The desire for world peace and cordial relations among the nations of the world led to the formation of "League of Nations" in the early part of this century. But it failed miserably and ceased to exist after a few years because of the utterly selfish and inhuman attitude of some of the member countries. The yearning for peace and amicability in international relations persisted and it again resulted in the formation of a world body known as the "United Nations Organization." It is an open secret, however, that it too has failed to achieve its purpose. Most resolutions passed by the UNO are not implemented in clear defiance of its Charter. Even though it has a prestigious paraphernalia of offices and divisions, its efficacy as a custodian of peace has never been up to the mark.
If we look at the matter from the right perspective, we realize that only Islam can meet the challenge of the time. The failure of peace-making world bodies like the UNO lies in the fact that these cannot possibly offer a ground for treating various national and ethnic groups as equal partners in the community of nations. Islam, on the other hand, gives us two such fundamental concepts which alone can bind the human race in one single totality. It tells us that all human beings living on the surface of this earth come from one primordial pair — Adam and Eve — and as such they are like members of one family. Again, the Creator of all is Allah (SWT) and as such they are all equal in His eyes. White people have no superiority over colored nations, nor have Western nations any ground to boast against the Eastern ones. Islam totally negates all baseless values and attitudes which treat some people as inferior to others in any respect whatsoever.
The contents of the above mentioned ayah of Surah Al-Hujurat have appeared in reverse order in the first ayah of Surah Al-Nisa thus:
O mankind! Be mindful of your Guardian-Lord Who created you from a single person. Created, of like nature, his mate and from them twain scattered countless men and women. Be mindful of Allah through Whom you demand (your mutual rights), and (be mindful of violating relations based on) the wombs; for Allah ever watches over you. (Al-Nisa 4:1)
All our mutual rights and duties, according to Islam, are referred to Allah (SWT). We are His creatures; His will is the standard and measure of good, and our duties are measured by our conformity to His Will. The Prophet of Islam (SAW) has not only shown a way to salvation in a future life, but has also brought practical answers to the problems of this-worldly life. And surely we do need concrete facts. In today’s situation of crisis the call for renewal, change, and progress is heard everywhere. The Prophet Muhammad (SAW) is the prime example of a personality who understood how to bring about revolutionary progress and build a community of true brotherhood. For example, his address on the occasion of the Farewell Pilgrimage epitomizes the climax of his mission, in which he said: "An Arab has no superiority over a non-Arab, nor has a non-Arab over an Arab. You are all born of Adam, and Adam was made out of clay." This universalism is also depicted subtly in the above cited Qur’anic ayaat; both address all humanity and thus make explicit the fundamental facts shared by all human beings.
The role of an important pillar of Islam, Hajj, is also very significant in this context. The spirit of Hajj is the spirit of sacrifice of vanities, dress and personal appearance, pride relating to birth, national origin, accomplishments, work or social status. It signifies the brotherhood of all Muslims, demonstrated in the greatest of all international assemblies. The privileged cast away their arrogance and pride because they know it is a sin to be harsh or scornful to one’s bother. In bridging the gap between man and man, forgiveness (which is closely related with taqwa) plays an essential part. Magnanimity is a sign of strength.
Obviously, Qur’anic teachings can give lead to the rest of the world on the question of race relations. Islam has the best record of racial tolerance. Its mosque and pilgrimage gatherings have known no racial discrimination. The message of Islam has completely rejected racial prejudice or superiority of one race over the other. Even the western non-Muslim scholars admit this, the historian Arnold Toynbee among them. He writes:
The extinction of race consciousness as between Muslims is one of the outstanding moral achievements of Islam, and in the contemporary world there is, as it happens, a crying need for the propagation of this Islamic virtue. The forces of racial toleration, which at present seem to be fighting a losing battle in a spiritual struggle of immense importance to mankind, might still regain the upper hand if any strong influence militating against racial consciousness were now to be thrown into the scales. It is conceivable that the spirit of Islam might be the timely reinforcement which would decide this issue in favor of tolerance and peace. (A. J. Toynbee, Civiization an Trial, Oxford university Press, 1948, pp. 205-6)
The disregard of color and race in the Muslim world is expressed by Malcolm X in a moving account of his experiences in Makkah. He wrote:
For the past week, I have been utterly speechless and spellbound by the graciousness I see displayed at around me by people of all colors You may be shocked by these words coming from me. But on this pilgrimage, what I have seen and experienced, has forced me to rearrange much of my thought patterns previously held, and to toss aside some of my previous conclusions…. Perhaps if White Americans could accept in reality the Oneness of mankind — and cease to measure and hinder and harm others in terms of their "differences" in color…. Each hour here in the Holy Land enables me to have greater spiritual insight into what is happening in American between black and white.
It is most unfortunate that, to the total neglect of such magnificent teachings of universal brotherhood, Muslims themselves are taking to various secular slogans for uniting cross-sections of the world population on the basis of racial and national loyalties. It is height of insanity that people who produced the finest examples of human equality and brotherhood in their past on the basis of their faith alone are now adopting racial and ethnic nationalism as a panacea for their social and political ills. To give an historical example, Omar Ibn Al-Khattab (RAA) who belonged to the respectable Arab tribe of Quryaish and was the head of the then largest Muslim State of his time, used to address Bilal (RAA) — a black Muslim and a former slave of humble means — as Sayyidina (our master).
The upshot of my discussion is that the truth which is essential for the happiness and peace (of both individual as well as social at the widest level) is all there and complete in the Qur’an and the Sunnah (i.e., the tradition and practice of the Prophet). Whoever amongst Muslims studies the Holy Qur’an and the life of Prophet of Islam (SAW) in earnest must face the question: "Are you ready to follow the heights that Allah (SWT) shows you and be a witness to this unto the world?" I believe that the need of the hour is to explain and spread the teachings and wisdom of the Holy Qur’an, first among the Muslims themselves and then among the entire humankind. This can be achieved only through sincere and tireless efforts of those young men who decide to dedicate their lives to the learning and teaching of the Book of Allah (SWT). --(UniquePakistan)
Many of the best minds devoted to burning questions such as ecological problems, pollution, feeding of mankind, conquest of disease, bridging the gap between rich and poor and, in particular, world peace, have been inspired by the faith and tenets of Islam. And rightly so. Belief in One God brings us to believe in the oneness of mankind and on the unity of mankind is built the concept of human dignity and brotherhood. On the metaphysical-existential plane, many would concede today that true human happiness (in contradistinction to sensuous pleasure), mental peace, and tranquillity are not possible to attain without some sort of spiritual orientation. When man follows Divine Guidance, he becomes free from any fear for the present or the future, and any grief or sorrow for the past (khauf and huzn in the Qur’anic terminology).
According to the Qur’anic teachings, it is shirk (assigning partners to Allah) and kufr (repudiation and disbelief in Allah) that causes fasad (colossal wrongness) across the world — the corruption and disorder in which people indulge in this world, an active perversity which degrades things and depraves men. Iman (staunch religious belief), on the contrary, grants a believer serenity of spirit and heart, resultant upon faith and prayer, the awareness of the Divine sufficiency and inner tranquillity. A truly believing and practicing Muslim experiences in his heart sakinah (the Scheehinah of the Old Testament), the token of Divine Presence and the peace it brings with it. Needless to say, true faith and belief also entails ceaseless vigil on purity of motive and inner integrity.
Dr. Israr Ahmad, the author of this tract, firmly believes that the deep trouble and distress in today’s world may have a simple cause that we humans — and we must also add, we Muslims too — have not properly obeyed God’s essential instructions and thereby have missed our main goal. In his own modest way, Dr. Israr Ahmad has been actively busy in propagating and disseminating the Qur’anic message for the last twenty years. The present tract is based on a speech which he delivered on several occasions at well-attended meetings of students and general public with the sole purpose of calling people back to the Qur’an. I pray to the Almighty that this humble effort may serve the purpose of bringing entire humanity in the fold of genuine religious fellowship.
DR. ABSAR AHMAD
I shall deal with the topic of "The Qur’an and World Peace" at three different levels, viz., the peace and tranquillity of an individual person, the socio-political peace of a group, and finally, world peace.
An Individual Person’s Peace and Tranquillity
One may be surprised that I am embarking upon a discussion of world peace by first mentioning an individual’s personal peace and inner state of harmony. But a moment’s reflection will be sufficient to bring home to the reader the all-important truth that the most effective factor in establishing world peace is personal peace and mental satisfaction of an individual. This is so because of the following four reasons:
Firstly, an individual human being is the basic unit of humanity. A wall, however high and long it may be, is after all a complex of bricks. Its strength and stability depends on the strength and good quality of individual bricks. Similarly world peace is unthinkable without the spiritual and psychological peace of a large majority of its inhabitants.
Secondly, man in himself is a "miniature universe" and as such his consciousness reflects the entire cosmos. This important truth has been fully realized by the Sufis of Islam — the greatest researchers into human psychology. That is the reason why I have chosen their term — "miniature universe" or microcosm — to express my meaning.
Just as external and environmental happenings influence the inner state of man, it is equally true that man also influences the macro-cosmic physical universe around him. His inner state affects and brings about changes in the vast expanses of the material cosmos. Therefore, the peace and tranquillity enjoyed by human individuals necessarily makes its impression on the outer world. In other words, the subjective peace experienced within makes harmony possible in the world outside the individual.
Thirdly, even a cursory glance at world history is enough to show that often the personal disquietude of a few individuals led to disastrous wars resulting in widespread bloodshed and destruction. If we study closely the life-history and personalities of leaders like Hulagu Khan, Genghis Khan, Hitler and Mussolini, we come to know that it was due to their mental disquietude and perversity that the world peace was shattered and innumerable innocent human beings were savagely killed.
Fourthly, even now if we consider for a moment the few persons in whom tremendous powers are vested (such as those who preside in the White House and the Kremlin), we will be assured that world peace largely depends upon the inner peace and tranquillity of these very few individuals. Not to speak of mental disruption, even the nervous tension or anxiety of a single one of these men might spark off an extremely devastating nuclear war.
Iman — Doctrinal Belief
Viewed from this angle, Islam seems to occupy a unique position in the community of world religions. Iman is the collective term for all those beliefs on which the Islamic faith is based. The root of the word Iman is a-m-n, which points to the peace and tranquillity that the believer enjoys in his heart as a result of entertaining and upholding these beliefs.
The quintessence of Iman is belief in Almighty God, or Iman billah, which is constituted by intuitive knowledge of Allah (SWT) and a relationship to Him of hope and total dependence and submission. Only this type of personal and subjective relationship with Allah (SWT) can engender true and lasting peace in the heart of a man, providing a positive and durable ground for the stability of his inner being. Tauheed — oneness of God, which we translate as "unity" or "unityism" — is the characteristic term for this pure spiritual relation of a man to his Creator, which ultimately leads him to a state described by the Qur’an in these words: "Allah became pleased with them and they became pleased with Him" (Al-Bayyinah 97:8). This is a state in which the Creator and the worshipper are in total consonance with each other. A believer who has obtained this spiritual height is completely free from all anxiety and fear, and his mind and heart experience a bliss which can be felt but cannot be described in words.
In Surah Al-An‘am, Allah (SWT) first poses a question in this manner
…Which of the two parties has more right to security and peace, (tell me) if you know. (Al-An‘am 6:82)
and then the answer is supplied thus
It is those who believed and did not pollute their faith with zulm that are truly in security and are rightly guided. (Al-An‘am 6:83)
In short, true belief in Allah (SWT) is the sole positive and real ground for a man’s inner peace and happiness. This devotional relationship with Allah (SWT) accompanied with pure and resolute submission to His commands can be achieved and enhanced by remembrance of Allah (or zikr). The Qur’an says:
…Verily, in the remembrance of Allah do hearts find peace and satisfaction. (Ra‘d 13:28)
A person who is deprived of belief in Almighty Allah (SWT) can never enjoy even the semblance of mental peace. As a result of this lack of belief, he is always obsessed by ever-growing worldly ambitions. He is ever entangled in the blinding cobweb of his limitless desires. Most men die before seeing their desires and ambitions materialized, no better than travelers in the desert pursuing a mirage, whereas the more intelligent of these fall prey to assorted mental aberrations. Their minds become arenas of strife and conflicts. Their desires lead them to intense internal conflicts and frustrations and consequently they are transformed into infernos — their hearts set ablaze. These inner disruptions manifest themselves outwardly, giving rise not only to a ruthless and savage struggle for existence but also to vile competition, the use of unfair means in business and trade, greed, caprice, and false ostentation. As a result of all this, God’s earth becomes rampant with immorality, crime, corruption, and lawlessness.
At this stage, only belief in the Hereafter, which is a corollary of belief in Allah (SWT), comes to rescue a man from the abysmal depths of darkness. It provides an effective check against corruption and immoral conduct. The eschatological beliefs in bodily resurrection, the Day of Judgment, and reward and punishment in a future life, provide a powerful incentive to a believer not to omit his duties, to be content with his lawful rights, and to abide by the rules laid down in the Divine Law (Shari‘ah) regulating the conduct of his terrestrial existence. The Qur’an asserts unequivocally that there is only one psychological factor which can effectively keep man from transgression and immorality, and that is the belief in the Hereafter and in accountability on the Day of Reckoning.
Indeed not! Man behaves rebelliously for he deems himself to be independent. (But) towards your Lord indeed is the return. (Al-Alaq 96: 6-8)
It should be crystal clear from the above that it is impossible to have serenity of heart if we do not have a staunch belief in religious truths. Any scheme or plan of action geared towards bringing about world peace and harmony, if not based on the belief in Almighty Allah (SWT) and in the Day of Reckoning, is bound to fail. It can succeed only if it is based upon the tenets of Islamic faith.
Islam
As stated above, Iman or religious belief is essentially related with the inner realm and mental state of a person, and the internal peace and calm enjoyed by him is its greatest fruit. The external manifestation of this inner peace takes the form of an attitude towards life known as Islam, which in turn guarantees outer peace and harmony. Iman and Islam are indeed like the two sides of a single picture. Whereas one provides guarantee for inner peace and happiness, the other does so for external peace and harmony. The Holy Prophet’s (SAW) prayer which he used to say at the sight of a new moon every month contains a significant allusion to this very truth. The prayer, couched in simple but beautiful phrases, reads:
O Lord! Make this new moon full of glad tidings for us: of peace, Iman, well-being, and Islam
These truths were expressed more fully and explicitly in other traditions of the Prophet (SAW). For example, in one tradition he negated Iman (and swore thrice to emphasize it) in a person whose neighbor is not safe from his misbehavior. Secondly, morally wholesome behavior was regarded as the zenith of both Iman and Islam. Thirdly, the Prophet (SAW) defined a Muslim as one from whose hands and tongue other Muslims are safe. Fourthly, he preached in a very wide and general way to "take pity on the inhabitants of earth, if you wish that the Lord of the heavens takes pity on you."
Socio-Political Peace and Well-Being —Salamah
Human beings are gregarious by nature. Their relationships with each other assume the form of ever-widening circles. Starting from the interactions within the family nucleus, they develop to encompass clans, tribes, complex social systems, and political states. Quite logically, world peace lies in the amicability and cordiality of relations between these states because the world is, after all, nothing but a large multitude of these socio-culturaI groups and states. The internal harmony of a single group bears the same analogy to the peace of the total world as the inner serenity (i.e., Iman) of a person bears to the external well-being (i.e., Islam). That is why Islam has put the greatest emphasis on social peace and political and economic justice. As delineated by the Holy Prophet (SAW), the character-traits of a Muslim individual, which is the basic unit of Muslim social polity, are the highest ideals of human character ever envisaged by any moral philosopher. One can well imagine the tranquillity enjoyed at the social level by a community that is founded on such noble principles and whose members are so considerate, affectionate, and benevolent among themselves.
The Islamic social structure is established on the positive foundation of Al-hubb lillah — love for the sake of Allah (SWT) and in obedience to Him. Peace and well-being are its marks of distinction. That is why sincerity and companionship of two Muslims for the sake of Allah (SWT) is regarded by Him as the most excellent of religious virtues. This very attitude is amply reflected in the way people greet each other in the Islamic society by wishing each other peace and well-being. Assalamo Alaikum and Wa Alaikum Assalam are the cheering phrases constantly uttered and heard when Muslims meet and part with each other. The Holy Prophet (SAW) described these twin characteristics of a typical Islamic society in one of his sayings thus:
(O Muslims!) You will never enter Paradise unless you are believers. And you will never achieve genuine belief unless you love (and respect) each other. Shall I not tell you the way you can create love amongst yourselves? (That way lies in) frequently greeting each other with salam. (Reported by Abu Hurairah and narrated by Imam Muslim)
A major portion of the Surah of the Holy Qur’an entitled Al-Hujurat, revealed in Madinah, contains meticulously detailed instructions that help to maintain social harmony and well-being. Respectful behavior towards the leader and elders, in manner, voice, and demeanor, are the bonds and cement of an organized community. Rumors should be tested and selfish impatience should be curbed by discipline. Scandal or slander of all kinds should be condemned. All quarrels and differences should be patched up and reconciled, by the force of the community if necessary, but with perfect fairness and justice. Ridicule, taunts, and biting words should be avoided, whether the person spoken of is present or absent. Suspicion and spying are unworthy of believers. Mutual respect and confidence are a duty and a privilege in Islam. One can well imagine how much importance Islam assigns to social peace by enjoining upon Muslims to shun anything that corrodes it.
More than that, the Holy Qur’an delineates such golden principles of social and group life which cannot be found in any other religious book. For example:
…help one another in righteousness and piety, but do not help one another in sin and wickedness…. (Al-Ma’idah 5:2)
O believers! Stand out firmly for justice, as witnesses for the sake of Allah, even (if this may go) against yourselves, or your parents, or your kin…. (Al-Nisa 4:135)
O believers! Stand out firmly for Allah, as witnesses for the sake of justice, and let not the enmity of a people cause you to turn away from justice. Do justice, for that is akin to piety…. (Al-Ma’ida 5:8)
We have surely sent our messengers with clear signs (i.e., miracles and proofs), and sent with them the Book (i.e., revealed guidance) and the Balance (i.e., the Shari‘ah), so that mankind may stand by justice…. (Al-Hadeed 57:25)
The above verses of the Qur’an make it clear that the four fundamental principles of Islamic polity are righteousness, piety, justice, and fairness. The sole aim before a truly Islamic society should be to achieve these so that people live in peace and harmony.
World Peace
As far as I can understand, Islam has two schemes to offer for the promotion of peace: (a) a real and long-term scheme, and (b) a short-term or interim one.
As regards the real, durable, and universal scheme to bring about peace on earth, Islam asserts emphatically and unambiguously that it can be achieved only through responding to the call of Islam, by believing in Allah (SWT) as the Creator and Sustainer of the universe and submitting to His will as expressed in the last Divine Revelation, i.e., the Holy Qur’an. A true Islamic society has the potential to expand and take the entire world into its fold, and thus to save all human beings from exploitation, disruption, oppression, and disquietude. The vicissitudes of human history are witness to the fact that whenever humanity adopted an ideology and way of life other than Islam, the world was torn by injustice and warfare. The Holy Qur’an says:
Have you not seen how your Lord dealt with the Ad, of the (city of) Iram with lofty pillars, the like of whom were not created in (all) the land? And with the Thamud, who cut out (huge) rocks in the valley? And with Pharaoh of Stakes? They were those who had committed great excesses in the lands, and spread great mischief in them. (Al-Fajr 89:6-12)
Thus, the main emphasis of Islam is on calling the entire humankind towards faith in its Lord and Creator, and urging it to submit to His Will. Indeed, the real way to establish lasting peace on earth is the following: First of all, a true Islamic society and a genuine Islamic State needs to be established in one part of the world; this would act as a beacon, inviting the humankind towards the light of Iman and Islam. As a result, the boundaries of Islamic society and Islamic State would keep on expanding till the entire humanity would come within the fold of the love, benevolence and mercy of its Creator.
Under the present circumstances, however, this seems like a far-fetched idea. But Islam has a message of peace, love, and harmony for the interim period as well. Islam provides us with two cardinal principles, on the basis of which the peoples of the world can be united in global harmony. Thus, the ayah 13 of Surah Al-Hujurat reads:
O mankind! We created you from a single (pair of a) male and a female, and made you into nations and tribes, so that you may know each other. Verily the most honored of you in the sight of Allah is (one who is) the most righteous of you.... (Al-Hujurat 49:13)
Here the Holy Qur’an mentions two points which can create a deep sense of unity among the diverse races and religio-cultural groups of the world, viz., the unity of the Creator which leads us to the essential equality of humankind, and the common origin of the entire human race in the primordial pair of Adam and Eve, which leads us to the idea of universal brotherhood.
This ayah addresses all of humanity and not just the Muslim community. All humankind has descended from the first couple, Adam and Eve. Their tribes, races, and nations are conventional labels by which we may know their differing characteristics. Before Allah (SWT) they are all one, and the most righteous is the most honorable. Allah (SWT) is the Creator of all human beings and as such they are all equal before Him.
These two principles of unity of the human race and oneness of Creator may appear rather theoretical, but history tells us that the Prophet of Islam (SAW) established a society based on these very principles which was free of internal strife and conflict. Even H. G. Wells, who otherwise is a critic of the personal life of the Holy Prophet (SAW), acclaims that it was a great feat of Muhammad (SAW) that he, in fact, established a human society based on the lofty moral ideals of Islam.
Everybody knows that modern science and technology has brought about fantastic changes in contemporary life. Our globe has shrunk tremendously; we can travel from one corner of the earth to another in a matter of hours. The world has been reduced to a village, various countries being like localities of a single town. But this elimination of distance is entirely a physical and outer phenomenon. Mentally and psychologically, the various nations of the world are still far apart from each other. Even though at the political level men aspire to develop a universal brotherhood and a single world-State, yet in reality they cannot find a basis or value through which to overcome the barriers of color, creed, and race.
The desire for world peace and cordial relations among the nations of the world led to the formation of "League of Nations" in the early part of this century. But it failed miserably and ceased to exist after a few years because of the utterly selfish and inhuman attitude of some of the member countries. The yearning for peace and amicability in international relations persisted and it again resulted in the formation of a world body known as the "United Nations Organization." It is an open secret, however, that it too has failed to achieve its purpose. Most resolutions passed by the UNO are not implemented in clear defiance of its Charter. Even though it has a prestigious paraphernalia of offices and divisions, its efficacy as a custodian of peace has never been up to the mark.
If we look at the matter from the right perspective, we realize that only Islam can meet the challenge of the time. The failure of peace-making world bodies like the UNO lies in the fact that these cannot possibly offer a ground for treating various national and ethnic groups as equal partners in the community of nations. Islam, on the other hand, gives us two such fundamental concepts which alone can bind the human race in one single totality. It tells us that all human beings living on the surface of this earth come from one primordial pair — Adam and Eve — and as such they are like members of one family. Again, the Creator of all is Allah (SWT) and as such they are all equal in His eyes. White people have no superiority over colored nations, nor have Western nations any ground to boast against the Eastern ones. Islam totally negates all baseless values and attitudes which treat some people as inferior to others in any respect whatsoever.
The contents of the above mentioned ayah of Surah Al-Hujurat have appeared in reverse order in the first ayah of Surah Al-Nisa thus:
O mankind! Be mindful of your Guardian-Lord Who created you from a single person. Created, of like nature, his mate and from them twain scattered countless men and women. Be mindful of Allah through Whom you demand (your mutual rights), and (be mindful of violating relations based on) the wombs; for Allah ever watches over you. (Al-Nisa 4:1)
All our mutual rights and duties, according to Islam, are referred to Allah (SWT). We are His creatures; His will is the standard and measure of good, and our duties are measured by our conformity to His Will. The Prophet of Islam (SAW) has not only shown a way to salvation in a future life, but has also brought practical answers to the problems of this-worldly life. And surely we do need concrete facts. In today’s situation of crisis the call for renewal, change, and progress is heard everywhere. The Prophet Muhammad (SAW) is the prime example of a personality who understood how to bring about revolutionary progress and build a community of true brotherhood. For example, his address on the occasion of the Farewell Pilgrimage epitomizes the climax of his mission, in which he said: "An Arab has no superiority over a non-Arab, nor has a non-Arab over an Arab. You are all born of Adam, and Adam was made out of clay." This universalism is also depicted subtly in the above cited Qur’anic ayaat; both address all humanity and thus make explicit the fundamental facts shared by all human beings.
The role of an important pillar of Islam, Hajj, is also very significant in this context. The spirit of Hajj is the spirit of sacrifice of vanities, dress and personal appearance, pride relating to birth, national origin, accomplishments, work or social status. It signifies the brotherhood of all Muslims, demonstrated in the greatest of all international assemblies. The privileged cast away their arrogance and pride because they know it is a sin to be harsh or scornful to one’s bother. In bridging the gap between man and man, forgiveness (which is closely related with taqwa) plays an essential part. Magnanimity is a sign of strength.
Obviously, Qur’anic teachings can give lead to the rest of the world on the question of race relations. Islam has the best record of racial tolerance. Its mosque and pilgrimage gatherings have known no racial discrimination. The message of Islam has completely rejected racial prejudice or superiority of one race over the other. Even the western non-Muslim scholars admit this, the historian Arnold Toynbee among them. He writes:
The extinction of race consciousness as between Muslims is one of the outstanding moral achievements of Islam, and in the contemporary world there is, as it happens, a crying need for the propagation of this Islamic virtue. The forces of racial toleration, which at present seem to be fighting a losing battle in a spiritual struggle of immense importance to mankind, might still regain the upper hand if any strong influence militating against racial consciousness were now to be thrown into the scales. It is conceivable that the spirit of Islam might be the timely reinforcement which would decide this issue in favor of tolerance and peace. (A. J. Toynbee, Civiization an Trial, Oxford university Press, 1948, pp. 205-6)
The disregard of color and race in the Muslim world is expressed by Malcolm X in a moving account of his experiences in Makkah. He wrote:
For the past week, I have been utterly speechless and spellbound by the graciousness I see displayed at around me by people of all colors You may be shocked by these words coming from me. But on this pilgrimage, what I have seen and experienced, has forced me to rearrange much of my thought patterns previously held, and to toss aside some of my previous conclusions…. Perhaps if White Americans could accept in reality the Oneness of mankind — and cease to measure and hinder and harm others in terms of their "differences" in color…. Each hour here in the Holy Land enables me to have greater spiritual insight into what is happening in American between black and white.
It is most unfortunate that, to the total neglect of such magnificent teachings of universal brotherhood, Muslims themselves are taking to various secular slogans for uniting cross-sections of the world population on the basis of racial and national loyalties. It is height of insanity that people who produced the finest examples of human equality and brotherhood in their past on the basis of their faith alone are now adopting racial and ethnic nationalism as a panacea for their social and political ills. To give an historical example, Omar Ibn Al-Khattab (RAA) who belonged to the respectable Arab tribe of Quryaish and was the head of the then largest Muslim State of his time, used to address Bilal (RAA) — a black Muslim and a former slave of humble means — as Sayyidina (our master).
The upshot of my discussion is that the truth which is essential for the happiness and peace (of both individual as well as social at the widest level) is all there and complete in the Qur’an and the Sunnah (i.e., the tradition and practice of the Prophet). Whoever amongst Muslims studies the Holy Qur’an and the life of Prophet of Islam (SAW) in earnest must face the question: "Are you ready to follow the heights that Allah (SWT) shows you and be a witness to this unto the world?" I believe that the need of the hour is to explain and spread the teachings and wisdom of the Holy Qur’an, first among the Muslims themselves and then among the entire humankind. This can be achieved only through sincere and tireless efforts of those young men who decide to dedicate their lives to the learning and teaching of the Book of Allah (SWT). --(UniquePakistan)
Tuesday, February 5, 2008
Nigeria: Shariah Has Come to Stay in Zamfara - Gov Shinkafi
by Shehu AbubakarGusau
Shariah has now been fully integrated in Zamfara as no government can succeed in truncating or frustrating its existence, Governor Mahmuda Aliyu Shinkafi, has said.
The governor said in an exclusive interview with Daily Trust that Shariah has now become part of the life of an average Zamfara man that no one can separate between Shariah from the life style of the people of the state.
Governor Shinkafi said to change or cancel Shariah from Zamfara State would be like forcing the people to change their religion from Islam to any other religion.
"You know they will use the last drop of their blood to resist it."
"To a Muslim, Shariah is a complete way of life. It is the moral teachings of a religion that must be observed by all Muslims. It contains legislations about alcoholism, gambling, prostitution, cheating and other vices associated with our day to day activities.
"When Shariah was first implemented in the state, people were apprehensive. We carried out a lot of enlightenment. The Hisbah then had a hectic time going from one place to the other to arrest offenders. All that is now history.
"There is absolute peace in Zamfara State today because people have abstained from committing crimes. The rate of crime is very low in the state. The Muslims are fully Shariah compliant while the non-Muslims are very cooperative," he said.
Governor Shinkafi said both Muslims and non-Muslims in the state are now very conversant and appreci-ative of the tenets of Shariah which guarantees peace and harmony among them.
He said Muslims in the state were now aware that Shariah has no alternative and so they have decided to respect its teachings. He said the people are now policing themselves to ensure that only the correct things are done.
"Those that were saying that it was only a matter of time the Shariah, would be outlawed or that it was a political Shariah have now been proved wrong. The Shariah has now brought Muslims and Christians in the state very close. The two communities live together in peace.
"Now you cannot find a beer parlor or a brothel in the state. Armed robbers who were mostly being harboured by prostitutes have no where to live in Zamfara since the prostitutes do not exist there any more," he said.
Governor Shinkafi expressed satisfaction with the good rapport existing between the Muslim and Christian communities in the state which he said was as a result of the Shariah being practiced in the state.
He said the effect of the Shariah has gone beyond the 12 states that introduced it, adding, "When you go to places like Enugu State and see those female Fulani that go about half nude before the introduction of Shariah, they now dress in veils (Hijab). The essence of the Shariah as we have been saying always is not to punish but to educ-ate and correct the people.
"Again, to tell you how the people value Shariah and take the teachings very seriously, just last week I was invited to distribute over N8 million zakkat collected from only one local government in Zamfara. In the past, you hardly saw anybody coming out to give zakkat.
"So, the people are now happy practicing the moral teachings of Shariah. Nobody can come and change Shariah now in Zamfara because it has become the way of life of the people," he said.
He said his administration was now addressing the problems of poverty and education which he said has been the major problems of the people.
He said government was now funding Islamiyya scho-ols and was building classr-ooms for them with a view to modernizing the system. He said the government has also improved girl-child education in the state.
Monday, February 4, 2008
Nuclear physicist/Muslim cleric fights to get back job, security clearance
Sunday, February 03, 2008By Sally Kalson, Pittsburgh Post-Gazette
Dr. Moniem El-Ganayni is not the only imam to have served as a chaplain inside a state prison. But he may be the only one who is also a nuclear physicist working on classified U.S. military projects that require a security clearance.
At least, he used to do classified work at the Bettis Laboratory, an advanced naval nuclear propulsion technology lab in West Mifflin operated by Bechtel Bettis Inc. for the U.S. Department of Energy.
But in October, the two tracks of his life collided. His security clearance was suspended, barring him from the lab where he has worked for 18 years.
Long a respected member of the Pittsburgh Muslim community and a founder of the Islamic Center of Pittsburgh in Oakland, the Egyptian-born Dr. El-Ganayni also was the imam at Pennsylvania State Correctional Institution-Forest in Marienville, Forest County, for five months in 2007. His contract was canceled in August after disputes over Ramadan observance and visiting policies.
Twelve weeks after that, agents from the Energy Department, and later the Pittsburgh FBI, began questioning him about a book he distributed to inmates at the prison as well as speeches he made opposing FBI recruitment at local mosques and prayers he led there.
His clearance was suspended on Oct. 24 pending further review. His pay has been cut in half pending the outcome.
Without his clearance, and at age 57, Dr. El-Ganayni stands to lose much of what he has worked for since arriving in this country in 1980. His job and medical benefits are in jeopardy. A U.S. citizen since 1988, he won't be able to work in his field, and, if his clearance is not reinstated after an upcoming hearing, he says he'll probably return to Egypt with his American-born wife.
Dr. El-Ganayni is the second local imam to run into a wall in recent months. Kadir Gunduz, 48, who has lived in Pittsburgh since 1988 and has raised three children here, was jailed in December on a visa technicality. He was released after a public outcry, but still faces deportation to his native Turkey. His appeal is pending.
An untold number of Middle Eastern immigrants and Muslims across the country have been quietly ensnared by measures aimed at strengthening national security in a post-9/11 world, including some, like Dr. El-Ganayni, who have lost their security clearance.
There is no way of knowing just how many, said Art Spitzer, director of the Washington, D.C., affiliate, of the American Civil Liberties Union.
"We've heard about a number of cases involving security clearances, so there must be a lot more we haven't heard about," Mr. Spitzer said.
The DOE, FBI, Bettis and SCI-Forest all declined comment on Dr. El-Ganayni.
Science or subversion?
It all began with a book, "The Miracle in the Ant," one of numerous volumes published by Harun Yahya, an Islamic creationist from Turkey. The book details ant anatomy and behavior, and argues that these characteristics disprove the theory of evolution.
Dr. El-Ganayni had ordered the book for the Forest prison library and was passing out photocopied chapters for the Muslim inmates housed in segregation to read in their cells. Eventually, he came to the chapter called "Defence and War Tactics," about ants that produce acid, use camouflage or enslave other ants.
Then there's this passage, under the heading "Walking Bombs":
"The ultimate in public service is to destroy enemies by committing suicide in defense of the colony. Many kinds of ants are prepared to assume this kamikaze role in one way or another, but none more dramatically than a species of Camponotus of the saundersi group living in the rain forests of Malaysia."
A quick Internet search shows that this passage and others (minus the creationism) were lifted almost verbatim from "Journey to the Ants," by Pulitzer Prize winning biologists Edward O. Wilson and Bert Holldobler. "Journey" was published by Harvard University Press in 1994, six years before the Harun Yahya version.
Dr. El-Ganayni said he scanned the chapters before passing them out, and the "walking bomb" passage didn't seem problematic because it was a scientific description of an insect. The passage must have raised hackles at the prison, however, because the Rev. Glenn McQuown, the chaplaincy director, was asked to examine the book -- he declined to say by whom.
"In my view, the book was completely benign," said the Rev. McQuown from Fort Bragg, N.C., where he was about to deploy to Afghanistan with the U.S. Army. He added that he would be happy to work again with Dr. El-Ganayni anytime and said, "I have him on my list to call for support as I prepare to engage with Muslims in Afghanistan."
Somehow, the prison literature made its way to the DOE. Dr. El-Ganayni is convinced it was sent in retaliation for his dispute with prison authorities, but Sue McNaughton, spokeswoman for the state Department of Corrections in Harrisburg, said any prison employee or inmate could have put a copy in the mail.
In any case, the DOE questioning began. "They asked, 'Would you support killing Americans?' I said, 'Of course not.' 'Are you loyal?' I said, 'Yes.' 'Would you do anything to harm this country?' I said, 'No.' "
Then they asked if he advocated suicide bombing, and if the "walking bomb" passage could be read as promoting attacks against Americans.
"I couldn't believe my ears," Dr. El-Ganayni said. "I am an American. How could I advocate killing myself? I am also a Muslim, a man of peace. I do not advocate killing anyone."
He said he told his questioners that he was against suicide bombing, and explained repeatedly that the passage was about ants, not people.
"You can twist anything to mean something else if you want to," he said.
From his office at Harvard, Dr. Wilson, the world's foremost authority on ants and the real author of passage, said he was startled to learn that his words had become an issue for Dr. El-Ganayni. "My reaction is astonishment at the unfairness of it," Dr. Wilson said.
Dr. El-Ganayni said he was similarly astonished. "I told them, 'Look at my actions. I have been here since 1980; I never had a problem at work; I never broke a law; I never had any trouble except the dispute at the prison.'
"Now they are taking two sentences from a book about ants that anyone can get in the bookstore, and making it more important than [my] 27 years in this country."
FBI interviewers also brought up a passage from the Quran -- Chapter Two, Verse 286, the last few lines (in English translation): "Oh God ... Thou art our protector. Help us against disbelievers."
The line is the Muslim equivalent of the Lord's Prayer's "deliver us from evil," according to Ahmed Rehab, spokesman for the Council of American Islamic Relations in Washington, D.C.
"It's a standard line that allies Islam with good against evil. It is not meant to be read through the filter of modern conflict," Mr. Rehab said.
The FBI saw it in a different light, said Dr. El-Ganayni.
"They asked me, did I ever pray in the mosque for God to grant victory to the mujahadeen [holy warriors] over kufra [disbelievers]?
"I said I read that passage, it is one of the most common prayers for Muslims, but they were misinterpreting it. It's not about war against Christians or Jews or Americans or any other group."
The agents also asked about Dr. El-Ganayni's speech opposing FBI recruitment at mosques, specifically two flyers from the bureau describing its work and inviting members to consider working for the agency.
Since the Sept. 11 terror attacks, U.S. investigators have tried various ways, including flyers and the use of informants, to get inside a community whose language, beliefs and practices are not well understood by most Americans and whose skills the agency sorely needs.
Lillie Leonardi, community affairs coordinator for the Pittsburgh FBI, said her office has arranged meetings with Muslim leaders, but that if flyers were left at mosques, it wasn't by her.
"That would be disrespectful in trying to build a relationship," she said.
The FBI interviewers asked Dr. El-Ganayni if he had attacked the bureau in speeches in the mosques.
"I said no, I attacked only their transgressions against the Muslim community.
"I said it's not good for us to report on each other because it makes a climate of fear in the mosque. No one will feel safe confiding their private problems about money or their marriage if they think it will be reported to the government and used against them. That is not against the FBI and America, it is against intimidation and coercion."
He showed a reporter a 2006 Wall Street Journal article about Yassine Ouassif, a 24-year-old Moroccan living in San Francisco. The FBI took away Mr. Ouassif's green card and threatened to deport him unless he informed on his friends. He refused and was jailed until Homeland Security cleared him.
"I never thought these things could happen here," Dr. El-Ganayni said. "This is not the America I came to in 1980."
Putting security first
There is no Constitutional right to a security clearance, but there's also no forfeiture of nonwork-related free speech by those doing classified jobs.
Hank Van Dyke, a lawyer for the security arm of the Schenectady Naval Reactors Office, said that in 18 years with the agency, he'd never seen anyone's clearance pulled because of conversations unrelated to work.
Yet as the Code of Federal Regulations is written, virtually any statement or "derogatory" information can be used against an applicant. And the Supreme Court has ruled that the courts will not review security denials.
The code directs officials to reach "a comprehensive, common sense judgment, made after consideration of all relevant material, favorable and unfavorable ... consistent with the national interest."
It further states: "Any doubt ... shall be resolved in favor of the national security."
That sentence has cost plenty of people their clearances for reasons that seem insubstantial, according to Mr. Spitzer, of the ACLU.
"The incentive for the agents is always to protect themselves by erring on the side of denial," Mr. Spitzer said.
Prison troubles
Up to now, Dr. El-Ganayni's life has been an immigrant success story.
He left his native Egypt in his mid-20s with a master's degree in nuclear physics from Ain Shams University in Cairo. He enrolled at the University of Pittsburgh, earning another master's in the same subject in 1981. The following year, he married Jean Louise Dell'Aquila, then a recent convert to Islam from a large Italian family.
In 1988, he became a U.S. citizen. Two years later, he earned his doctorate in atomic physics at Pitt and was hired at the lab, then run by Westinghouse Electric Corp.
The religious side of his life was an outgrowth of his upbringing, he said -- his father has the equivalent of a doctorate in Islamic law. So, finding few Muslim institutions in Pittsburgh, Dr. El-Ganayni helped found the Islamic Center. Over the years, he's been president, board member, committee chairman, teacher, prayer leader, prison outreach worker and relief-provider for people in need.
His apartment overlooking the Highland Park reservoir attests to his lifelong interest in learning. The walls are lined with shelves holding hundreds of beautifully bound Arabic-language books, arranged by subject matter: The Quran and commentaries; the sayings of the Prophet Muhammad; Islamic beliefs, law and history; Arabic, cultural studies and comparative religions. Other shelves hold many of the same works in English translation, as well as books on physics and math.
There are also signs of the charitable acts he has performed -- notably, a slab of marble bearing the painted image of a rabbi holding the Torah, the holy scroll of Judaism. It was given to him by an ailing, elderly Jewish woman in his building whom he and his wife helped with medical and financial support.
Until the trouble started, Dr. El-Ganayni was a senior scientist at the Bettis lab. Every few years, security agents would interview him. He said the exchanges were always friendly and his clearance was never at issue.
Bettis knew he had a sideline as a prison imam, he said. His first such job was at Belmont Correctional Institution in Ohio from 1999 to 2005. Kathy Cole, a spokeswoman for Belmont, confirmed that Dr. El-Ganayni had no trouble with authorities there.
Then he signed a one-year contract with SCI-Forest, described on its Web site as "a state-of-the-art maximum-security prison" built to house 2,200 adult male inmates.
Things went well enough at first, but during a three-week period in July, relations grew strained.
First, he says, officials at Forest refused to allow him to arrange for donations from the Muslim community to help impoverished inmates pay for a special holiday meal at the end of Ramadan, the month in which Muslims fast from dawn to dusk each day. He said he asked five times to meet with the superintendant, to no avail.
The next week, he had a run-in with officials at SCI-Muncy, the women's prison in Lycoming County. Dr. El-Ganayni said he had driven relatives of inmate Karena Dorsey on a four-hour trip to the prison after checking to make sure the family would be allowed to see her, but when they arrived, officials barred the visit. He disputed the decision, again to no avail.
In a letter of warning dated July 23, Muncy Superintendent D. M. Chamberlain said staffers had reported the imam to be "insistent and agitated" as well as "abusive and threatening toward the staff" -- a description he denied.
The week after that, he distributed the passage from the ant book. Then, in a letter dated Aug. 1 and giving no reason, SCI-Forest terminated his contract, seven months early. On Aug. 20, Dr. El-Ganayni and his wife launched a Web site, the Pennsylvania Department of Corrections Monitor -- pa-doc-monitor.org -- posting criticism of the prison system. Two months later, his clearance at Bettis was suspended. He had hoped it was a misunderstanding that would be cleared up quickly, but that didn't happen.
On Jan. 17, Dr. El-Ganayni received a letter from the DOE offering the option of a hearing to present his side of the story. He took the option and is waiting for a date.
"I will make my case," he said, "but I am not going to beg for mercy. If the government fights me, I get a lawyer and fight back. If I win, I get my job back. If I lose, I leave."
Farooq Husseini, director of interfaith relations at the Islamic Center, called it "astonishing" that two respected imams from Pittsburgh were suddenly in jeopardy.
"These are good men, very kind, very loyal," Mr. Husseini said. "If this can happen to them, it can happen to anybody."
At least, he used to do classified work at the Bettis Laboratory, an advanced naval nuclear propulsion technology lab in West Mifflin operated by Bechtel Bettis Inc. for the U.S. Department of Energy.
But in October, the two tracks of his life collided. His security clearance was suspended, barring him from the lab where he has worked for 18 years.
Long a respected member of the Pittsburgh Muslim community and a founder of the Islamic Center of Pittsburgh in Oakland, the Egyptian-born Dr. El-Ganayni also was the imam at Pennsylvania State Correctional Institution-Forest in Marienville, Forest County, for five months in 2007. His contract was canceled in August after disputes over Ramadan observance and visiting policies.
Twelve weeks after that, agents from the Energy Department, and later the Pittsburgh FBI, began questioning him about a book he distributed to inmates at the prison as well as speeches he made opposing FBI recruitment at local mosques and prayers he led there.
His clearance was suspended on Oct. 24 pending further review. His pay has been cut in half pending the outcome.
Without his clearance, and at age 57, Dr. El-Ganayni stands to lose much of what he has worked for since arriving in this country in 1980. His job and medical benefits are in jeopardy. A U.S. citizen since 1988, he won't be able to work in his field, and, if his clearance is not reinstated after an upcoming hearing, he says he'll probably return to Egypt with his American-born wife.
Dr. El-Ganayni is the second local imam to run into a wall in recent months. Kadir Gunduz, 48, who has lived in Pittsburgh since 1988 and has raised three children here, was jailed in December on a visa technicality. He was released after a public outcry, but still faces deportation to his native Turkey. His appeal is pending.
An untold number of Middle Eastern immigrants and Muslims across the country have been quietly ensnared by measures aimed at strengthening national security in a post-9/11 world, including some, like Dr. El-Ganayni, who have lost their security clearance.
There is no way of knowing just how many, said Art Spitzer, director of the Washington, D.C., affiliate, of the American Civil Liberties Union.
"We've heard about a number of cases involving security clearances, so there must be a lot more we haven't heard about," Mr. Spitzer said.
The DOE, FBI, Bettis and SCI-Forest all declined comment on Dr. El-Ganayni.
Science or subversion?
It all began with a book, "The Miracle in the Ant," one of numerous volumes published by Harun Yahya, an Islamic creationist from Turkey. The book details ant anatomy and behavior, and argues that these characteristics disprove the theory of evolution.
Dr. El-Ganayni had ordered the book for the Forest prison library and was passing out photocopied chapters for the Muslim inmates housed in segregation to read in their cells. Eventually, he came to the chapter called "Defence and War Tactics," about ants that produce acid, use camouflage or enslave other ants.
Then there's this passage, under the heading "Walking Bombs":
"The ultimate in public service is to destroy enemies by committing suicide in defense of the colony. Many kinds of ants are prepared to assume this kamikaze role in one way or another, but none more dramatically than a species of Camponotus of the saundersi group living in the rain forests of Malaysia."
A quick Internet search shows that this passage and others (minus the creationism) were lifted almost verbatim from "Journey to the Ants," by Pulitzer Prize winning biologists Edward O. Wilson and Bert Holldobler. "Journey" was published by Harvard University Press in 1994, six years before the Harun Yahya version.
Dr. El-Ganayni said he scanned the chapters before passing them out, and the "walking bomb" passage didn't seem problematic because it was a scientific description of an insect. The passage must have raised hackles at the prison, however, because the Rev. Glenn McQuown, the chaplaincy director, was asked to examine the book -- he declined to say by whom.
"In my view, the book was completely benign," said the Rev. McQuown from Fort Bragg, N.C., where he was about to deploy to Afghanistan with the U.S. Army. He added that he would be happy to work again with Dr. El-Ganayni anytime and said, "I have him on my list to call for support as I prepare to engage with Muslims in Afghanistan."
Somehow, the prison literature made its way to the DOE. Dr. El-Ganayni is convinced it was sent in retaliation for his dispute with prison authorities, but Sue McNaughton, spokeswoman for the state Department of Corrections in Harrisburg, said any prison employee or inmate could have put a copy in the mail.
In any case, the DOE questioning began. "They asked, 'Would you support killing Americans?' I said, 'Of course not.' 'Are you loyal?' I said, 'Yes.' 'Would you do anything to harm this country?' I said, 'No.' "
Then they asked if he advocated suicide bombing, and if the "walking bomb" passage could be read as promoting attacks against Americans.
"I couldn't believe my ears," Dr. El-Ganayni said. "I am an American. How could I advocate killing myself? I am also a Muslim, a man of peace. I do not advocate killing anyone."
He said he told his questioners that he was against suicide bombing, and explained repeatedly that the passage was about ants, not people.
"You can twist anything to mean something else if you want to," he said.
From his office at Harvard, Dr. Wilson, the world's foremost authority on ants and the real author of passage, said he was startled to learn that his words had become an issue for Dr. El-Ganayni. "My reaction is astonishment at the unfairness of it," Dr. Wilson said.
Dr. El-Ganayni said he was similarly astonished. "I told them, 'Look at my actions. I have been here since 1980; I never had a problem at work; I never broke a law; I never had any trouble except the dispute at the prison.'
"Now they are taking two sentences from a book about ants that anyone can get in the bookstore, and making it more important than [my] 27 years in this country."
FBI interviewers also brought up a passage from the Quran -- Chapter Two, Verse 286, the last few lines (in English translation): "Oh God ... Thou art our protector. Help us against disbelievers."
The line is the Muslim equivalent of the Lord's Prayer's "deliver us from evil," according to Ahmed Rehab, spokesman for the Council of American Islamic Relations in Washington, D.C.
"It's a standard line that allies Islam with good against evil. It is not meant to be read through the filter of modern conflict," Mr. Rehab said.
The FBI saw it in a different light, said Dr. El-Ganayni.
"They asked me, did I ever pray in the mosque for God to grant victory to the mujahadeen [holy warriors] over kufra [disbelievers]?
"I said I read that passage, it is one of the most common prayers for Muslims, but they were misinterpreting it. It's not about war against Christians or Jews or Americans or any other group."
The agents also asked about Dr. El-Ganayni's speech opposing FBI recruitment at mosques, specifically two flyers from the bureau describing its work and inviting members to consider working for the agency.
Since the Sept. 11 terror attacks, U.S. investigators have tried various ways, including flyers and the use of informants, to get inside a community whose language, beliefs and practices are not well understood by most Americans and whose skills the agency sorely needs.
Lillie Leonardi, community affairs coordinator for the Pittsburgh FBI, said her office has arranged meetings with Muslim leaders, but that if flyers were left at mosques, it wasn't by her.
"That would be disrespectful in trying to build a relationship," she said.
The FBI interviewers asked Dr. El-Ganayni if he had attacked the bureau in speeches in the mosques.
"I said no, I attacked only their transgressions against the Muslim community.
"I said it's not good for us to report on each other because it makes a climate of fear in the mosque. No one will feel safe confiding their private problems about money or their marriage if they think it will be reported to the government and used against them. That is not against the FBI and America, it is against intimidation and coercion."
He showed a reporter a 2006 Wall Street Journal article about Yassine Ouassif, a 24-year-old Moroccan living in San Francisco. The FBI took away Mr. Ouassif's green card and threatened to deport him unless he informed on his friends. He refused and was jailed until Homeland Security cleared him.
"I never thought these things could happen here," Dr. El-Ganayni said. "This is not the America I came to in 1980."
Putting security first
There is no Constitutional right to a security clearance, but there's also no forfeiture of nonwork-related free speech by those doing classified jobs.
Hank Van Dyke, a lawyer for the security arm of the Schenectady Naval Reactors Office, said that in 18 years with the agency, he'd never seen anyone's clearance pulled because of conversations unrelated to work.
Yet as the Code of Federal Regulations is written, virtually any statement or "derogatory" information can be used against an applicant. And the Supreme Court has ruled that the courts will not review security denials.
The code directs officials to reach "a comprehensive, common sense judgment, made after consideration of all relevant material, favorable and unfavorable ... consistent with the national interest."
It further states: "Any doubt ... shall be resolved in favor of the national security."
That sentence has cost plenty of people their clearances for reasons that seem insubstantial, according to Mr. Spitzer, of the ACLU.
"The incentive for the agents is always to protect themselves by erring on the side of denial," Mr. Spitzer said.
Prison troubles
Up to now, Dr. El-Ganayni's life has been an immigrant success story.
He left his native Egypt in his mid-20s with a master's degree in nuclear physics from Ain Shams University in Cairo. He enrolled at the University of Pittsburgh, earning another master's in the same subject in 1981. The following year, he married Jean Louise Dell'Aquila, then a recent convert to Islam from a large Italian family.
In 1988, he became a U.S. citizen. Two years later, he earned his doctorate in atomic physics at Pitt and was hired at the lab, then run by Westinghouse Electric Corp.
The religious side of his life was an outgrowth of his upbringing, he said -- his father has the equivalent of a doctorate in Islamic law. So, finding few Muslim institutions in Pittsburgh, Dr. El-Ganayni helped found the Islamic Center. Over the years, he's been president, board member, committee chairman, teacher, prayer leader, prison outreach worker and relief-provider for people in need.
His apartment overlooking the Highland Park reservoir attests to his lifelong interest in learning. The walls are lined with shelves holding hundreds of beautifully bound Arabic-language books, arranged by subject matter: The Quran and commentaries; the sayings of the Prophet Muhammad; Islamic beliefs, law and history; Arabic, cultural studies and comparative religions. Other shelves hold many of the same works in English translation, as well as books on physics and math.
There are also signs of the charitable acts he has performed -- notably, a slab of marble bearing the painted image of a rabbi holding the Torah, the holy scroll of Judaism. It was given to him by an ailing, elderly Jewish woman in his building whom he and his wife helped with medical and financial support.
Until the trouble started, Dr. El-Ganayni was a senior scientist at the Bettis lab. Every few years, security agents would interview him. He said the exchanges were always friendly and his clearance was never at issue.
Bettis knew he had a sideline as a prison imam, he said. His first such job was at Belmont Correctional Institution in Ohio from 1999 to 2005. Kathy Cole, a spokeswoman for Belmont, confirmed that Dr. El-Ganayni had no trouble with authorities there.
Then he signed a one-year contract with SCI-Forest, described on its Web site as "a state-of-the-art maximum-security prison" built to house 2,200 adult male inmates.
Things went well enough at first, but during a three-week period in July, relations grew strained.
First, he says, officials at Forest refused to allow him to arrange for donations from the Muslim community to help impoverished inmates pay for a special holiday meal at the end of Ramadan, the month in which Muslims fast from dawn to dusk each day. He said he asked five times to meet with the superintendant, to no avail.
The next week, he had a run-in with officials at SCI-Muncy, the women's prison in Lycoming County. Dr. El-Ganayni said he had driven relatives of inmate Karena Dorsey on a four-hour trip to the prison after checking to make sure the family would be allowed to see her, but when they arrived, officials barred the visit. He disputed the decision, again to no avail.
In a letter of warning dated July 23, Muncy Superintendent D. M. Chamberlain said staffers had reported the imam to be "insistent and agitated" as well as "abusive and threatening toward the staff" -- a description he denied.
The week after that, he distributed the passage from the ant book. Then, in a letter dated Aug. 1 and giving no reason, SCI-Forest terminated his contract, seven months early. On Aug. 20, Dr. El-Ganayni and his wife launched a Web site, the Pennsylvania Department of Corrections Monitor -- pa-doc-monitor.org -- posting criticism of the prison system. Two months later, his clearance at Bettis was suspended. He had hoped it was a misunderstanding that would be cleared up quickly, but that didn't happen.
On Jan. 17, Dr. El-Ganayni received a letter from the DOE offering the option of a hearing to present his side of the story. He took the option and is waiting for a date.
"I will make my case," he said, "but I am not going to beg for mercy. If the government fights me, I get a lawyer and fight back. If I win, I get my job back. If I lose, I leave."
Farooq Husseini, director of interfaith relations at the Islamic Center, called it "astonishing" that two respected imams from Pittsburgh were suddenly in jeopardy.
"These are good men, very kind, very loyal," Mr. Husseini said. "If this can happen to them, it can happen to anybody."
Friday, February 1, 2008
Let Us Codify Shariah Laws
by Samar Fatany, Arab News
The judicial system has often been criticized at home and abroad for its failure to administer justice, largely due to inadequate legal procedures, red tape and rigid interpretation of Shariah law by some of the appointed judges.
Many legal experts have pointed out that the problem with the current system is both qualitative and quantitative. Courts are overburdened, and there is an acute shortage of judges; therefore, courts may take years to rule on simple cases of divorce or family disputes. Furthermore, bureaucracy and red tape create further delays.
Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques King Abdullah announced a major project to reform the judicial system, and SR7 billion has been allocated to upgrade courts and to train judges in an attempt to reform the entire judiciary. Planned changes include establishing special criminal courts and family courts along with courts for issues related to traffic, the economy, business and sports.
The Ministry of Justice has defined the new jobs that will be available with the start of the specialized courts this year. The ministry will also provide legal training to guarantee more qualified judges and lawyers.
However, Muslim scholars believe that more drastic measures need to be taken to achieve successful reforms.
“To reform the judiciary, we need to reform the Shariah colleges first and upgrade the level of these institutions,” said Dr. Tarek Al-Suwaidan, a prominent Muslim scholar. “There should be a more advanced curriculum, and the teaching standards should be enhanced.”
The reason behind the poor quality of education in these very important institutions is the poor academic standard of their students. The students who enroll in these colleges are the ones who graduate from school with poor or average grades; therefore, they are not usually the brightest. Furthermore, their studies are mostly confined to subjects related to Islamic jurisprudence.
Al-Suwaidan urged the creation of well-rounded Muslim scholars and judges familiar with international law and educated on aspects of modern-day needs and concerns. Students who join Shariah colleges should have a bachelor’s degree in business, law or other specialized fields to make them more knowledgeable and guarantee a higher standard of qualification. Shariah law graduates should be well-versed in current commercial laws and be familiar with cyberspace crime, copyright violations or labor issues.
The inadequacy of current judges and their narrow breadth of knowledge have created many grievances and denied both nationals and expatriates their right to fair trials and legal representation in the Kingdom.
When the Prophet (peace be upon him) spoke more than 1,400 years ago, he tailored his words to the people of that time and addressed the issues of those days in terms understandable to much simpler people in much simpler times. In a world made smaller by transportation and telecommunications networks and a world of great cities and global commerce, it is incumbent upon the keepers of Shariah law to ensure the relevance of its interpretation in the daily lives of the millions of adherents to Islam today.
For judges to ignore such advancements either through ignorance or tunnel vision is to jeopardize the relevance of Shariah law in a modern world — an attitude that draws the derision of the world when a young rape victim, already sentenced to prison and corporal punishment, has her sentence increased because she spoke to a newspaper. What message is sent to the people of this Kingdom and the world, for that matter, when a gang of rapists gets sentences of a few years because of “mitigating” circumstances?
The Qatif rape case received public and international condemnation, and there was strong public pressure demanding her acquittal. However, the Saudi judiciary refused to alter its sentence until Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques King Abdullah finally intervened to save the poor victim from the brutal sentence.
What do we tell our own people or the world, for that matter, about how we value the rights of women when her brothers can order her divorce because they don’t approve of the husband their late father chose? The brothers’ contention was that she had shamed her tribe, but we as a people should be ashamed of a legal system where such a case could be initiated, where a family could be broken up and a mother and her children could be forced to live in a shelter. We should support our leaders in their efforts to reform such a system.
How can we take pride in a system that denies a mother’s petitions to gain custody of a child from her abusive husband that becomes moot after the man beats his child to death?
The National Society for Human Rights recently published a report that strongly criticized the judicial system for failing to serve justice. The report outlined many human rights violations, among them rampant discrimination against women, essentially sanctioning domestic violence, awful conditions in Saudi prisons, and the maltreatment of non-Saudis in the Kingdom. The report also railed against the actions of the Commission for the Promotion of Virtue and Prevention of Vice in its dealings with law-abiding citizens.
“We need to establish civic courts administered by judges who have graduated from law colleges with degrees obtained from abroad,” said Kamel Ahmad Al-Shamsi, a Saudi legal expert. “We need to use the expertise of other, more advanced Arab countries in civic law and sign contracts with cadres who can serve as consultants and judges.”
It is unfortunate that these views are not shared by many of the Saudi judges who insist that students should learn through apprenticeships and with scholars who can trace their learning to Islam’s roots — not from qualified law professors. This is the reason behind the lack of a globally accepted qualification of a Shariah scholar and the absence of globally accepted standards for Shariah rules. Shariah rules continue to be subject to different interpretations from different Muslim scholars who are reluctant to codify Shariah laws, and there is a lack of consensus on many issues that are of major concern to Muslims today.
Some Shariah experts say it may take more than a decade to train more scholars, and even the optimistic ones do not expect a new generation of qualified scholars for at least five years. However, Muslim scholars cannot afford to lag behind and miss the global opportunities for progress and development, they must contribute toward the advancement of their societies. Any misstep could lead our people back to an impoverished past instead of a prosperous future.
The rest of the world will not stop and give us a decade to figure it out. Our indecision and acquiescence on such matters just improve the chances for other nations to better the lives of their people at our expense.
Sheikh Nizam Yaquby, one of the most respected Shariah scholars, recently told reporters that it is essential to train more scholars for Islamic bank supervision to keep up with the global demand. He said: “There are roughly 50 to 60 scholars in the world qualified to advise banks on Islamic law, and as many as ten times more are required to serve in the Middle East alone.” The London-based Chartered Institute of Management Accountants said: “The rapid growth of Islamic banking had fueled a need for Muslim financial experts. However, scholars must be experts in Islamic law and Islamic banking and, at the same time, have a thorough knowledge of conventional laws and banking systems, which requires a high standard of English.”
Reforming the legal system and training more judges will not be easy; however, it should continue to be a government priority. It is essential for our scholars to be globally connected with the needs and concerns of the international Muslim community. The codification of the Shariah law is, therefore, necessary. Moreover, it is essential not only to outline the rights and duties of citizens and expatriates alike but also to define the responsibilities and limits of all religious officials.
No one should be above the law — not judges, not members of the Commission for the Promotion of Virtue and Prevention of Vice, not the wealthy, not religious scholars. Our country will prosper only when our citizens and our guest workers are guaranteed the protection of the law. Future generations will be able to contribute and compete with the rest of the world only if they are assured the implementation of justice for all — and all can only mean everybody.
The judicial system has often been criticized at home and abroad for its failure to administer justice, largely due to inadequate legal procedures, red tape and rigid interpretation of Shariah law by some of the appointed judges.
Many legal experts have pointed out that the problem with the current system is both qualitative and quantitative. Courts are overburdened, and there is an acute shortage of judges; therefore, courts may take years to rule on simple cases of divorce or family disputes. Furthermore, bureaucracy and red tape create further delays.
Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques King Abdullah announced a major project to reform the judicial system, and SR7 billion has been allocated to upgrade courts and to train judges in an attempt to reform the entire judiciary. Planned changes include establishing special criminal courts and family courts along with courts for issues related to traffic, the economy, business and sports.
The Ministry of Justice has defined the new jobs that will be available with the start of the specialized courts this year. The ministry will also provide legal training to guarantee more qualified judges and lawyers.
However, Muslim scholars believe that more drastic measures need to be taken to achieve successful reforms.
“To reform the judiciary, we need to reform the Shariah colleges first and upgrade the level of these institutions,” said Dr. Tarek Al-Suwaidan, a prominent Muslim scholar. “There should be a more advanced curriculum, and the teaching standards should be enhanced.”
The reason behind the poor quality of education in these very important institutions is the poor academic standard of their students. The students who enroll in these colleges are the ones who graduate from school with poor or average grades; therefore, they are not usually the brightest. Furthermore, their studies are mostly confined to subjects related to Islamic jurisprudence.
Al-Suwaidan urged the creation of well-rounded Muslim scholars and judges familiar with international law and educated on aspects of modern-day needs and concerns. Students who join Shariah colleges should have a bachelor’s degree in business, law or other specialized fields to make them more knowledgeable and guarantee a higher standard of qualification. Shariah law graduates should be well-versed in current commercial laws and be familiar with cyberspace crime, copyright violations or labor issues.
The inadequacy of current judges and their narrow breadth of knowledge have created many grievances and denied both nationals and expatriates their right to fair trials and legal representation in the Kingdom.
When the Prophet (peace be upon him) spoke more than 1,400 years ago, he tailored his words to the people of that time and addressed the issues of those days in terms understandable to much simpler people in much simpler times. In a world made smaller by transportation and telecommunications networks and a world of great cities and global commerce, it is incumbent upon the keepers of Shariah law to ensure the relevance of its interpretation in the daily lives of the millions of adherents to Islam today.
For judges to ignore such advancements either through ignorance or tunnel vision is to jeopardize the relevance of Shariah law in a modern world — an attitude that draws the derision of the world when a young rape victim, already sentenced to prison and corporal punishment, has her sentence increased because she spoke to a newspaper. What message is sent to the people of this Kingdom and the world, for that matter, when a gang of rapists gets sentences of a few years because of “mitigating” circumstances?
The Qatif rape case received public and international condemnation, and there was strong public pressure demanding her acquittal. However, the Saudi judiciary refused to alter its sentence until Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques King Abdullah finally intervened to save the poor victim from the brutal sentence.
What do we tell our own people or the world, for that matter, about how we value the rights of women when her brothers can order her divorce because they don’t approve of the husband their late father chose? The brothers’ contention was that she had shamed her tribe, but we as a people should be ashamed of a legal system where such a case could be initiated, where a family could be broken up and a mother and her children could be forced to live in a shelter. We should support our leaders in their efforts to reform such a system.
How can we take pride in a system that denies a mother’s petitions to gain custody of a child from her abusive husband that becomes moot after the man beats his child to death?
The National Society for Human Rights recently published a report that strongly criticized the judicial system for failing to serve justice. The report outlined many human rights violations, among them rampant discrimination against women, essentially sanctioning domestic violence, awful conditions in Saudi prisons, and the maltreatment of non-Saudis in the Kingdom. The report also railed against the actions of the Commission for the Promotion of Virtue and Prevention of Vice in its dealings with law-abiding citizens.
“We need to establish civic courts administered by judges who have graduated from law colleges with degrees obtained from abroad,” said Kamel Ahmad Al-Shamsi, a Saudi legal expert. “We need to use the expertise of other, more advanced Arab countries in civic law and sign contracts with cadres who can serve as consultants and judges.”
It is unfortunate that these views are not shared by many of the Saudi judges who insist that students should learn through apprenticeships and with scholars who can trace their learning to Islam’s roots — not from qualified law professors. This is the reason behind the lack of a globally accepted qualification of a Shariah scholar and the absence of globally accepted standards for Shariah rules. Shariah rules continue to be subject to different interpretations from different Muslim scholars who are reluctant to codify Shariah laws, and there is a lack of consensus on many issues that are of major concern to Muslims today.
Some Shariah experts say it may take more than a decade to train more scholars, and even the optimistic ones do not expect a new generation of qualified scholars for at least five years. However, Muslim scholars cannot afford to lag behind and miss the global opportunities for progress and development, they must contribute toward the advancement of their societies. Any misstep could lead our people back to an impoverished past instead of a prosperous future.
The rest of the world will not stop and give us a decade to figure it out. Our indecision and acquiescence on such matters just improve the chances for other nations to better the lives of their people at our expense.
Sheikh Nizam Yaquby, one of the most respected Shariah scholars, recently told reporters that it is essential to train more scholars for Islamic bank supervision to keep up with the global demand. He said: “There are roughly 50 to 60 scholars in the world qualified to advise banks on Islamic law, and as many as ten times more are required to serve in the Middle East alone.” The London-based Chartered Institute of Management Accountants said: “The rapid growth of Islamic banking had fueled a need for Muslim financial experts. However, scholars must be experts in Islamic law and Islamic banking and, at the same time, have a thorough knowledge of conventional laws and banking systems, which requires a high standard of English.”
Reforming the legal system and training more judges will not be easy; however, it should continue to be a government priority. It is essential for our scholars to be globally connected with the needs and concerns of the international Muslim community. The codification of the Shariah law is, therefore, necessary. Moreover, it is essential not only to outline the rights and duties of citizens and expatriates alike but also to define the responsibilities and limits of all religious officials.
No one should be above the law — not judges, not members of the Commission for the Promotion of Virtue and Prevention of Vice, not the wealthy, not religious scholars. Our country will prosper only when our citizens and our guest workers are guaranteed the protection of the law. Future generations will be able to contribute and compete with the rest of the world only if they are assured the implementation of justice for all — and all can only mean everybody.
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