Islam awarded rights to women in 7th century

New York: Islam is the religion of equality and there is no biasness in the religion as it is a false propaganda against Islam and the Muslims that Islam does not treat women equally. In fact, Islam gad givenequal rights to women rights in the 7th century and the women in the West acquired the same rights in the 19th and 20th centuries, living without them for almost 13 centuries. These facts about Islam are being highlighted by the multimedia page at the website for the Women’s Rights National Historical Park, New York.It highlights the campaign for women’s rights and has created a series of at least three videos with students from the local AnNur Islamic School. The videos provide a forum for students to say about Islam and complain about how they are treated. The students also express their beliefs about their own behavior and conduct. One of the students said, “People think that Islam oppresses women and there’s no equality, but they’re wrong – there’s equity … 7th century A.D. Islam gave women the right to be involved in politics, the right to earn and keep her own money.” “Islam gave women the right to work outside of the home, Islam gave women the right to own property, Islam gave women the right to divorce, Islam gave women the right to choose who she marries,” he added. “Islam gave women a whole bunch of rights that Western women acquired later in the 19th and 20th centuries, and we’ve had these rights since the 7th century A.D., and it’s just not acknowledged worldwide,” he declared. The Independent Journal Review commented foolishly that it’s “fantastic that the National Park Service is out there using taxpayer dollars to correct the false record against Muslims, such as the ‘moderate’ Muslim Brotherhood’s scathing backlash against the U.N.’s Declaration of Women’s Rights” or “Muslim states’ objection to ‘gay rights’ at a U.N. human rights forum.” “Well thank goodness the National Park Service is doing the job that no one else will – defend the history of Islam’s contributions to women’s liberation!” it added. In one of the videos, a student complains of discrimination, “A few years ago they made Eid, like a day for schools to close down and people could take a break. People were saying why should it be changed, this is a Christian country. We shouldn’t change for them. But if you look at the Constitution, there’s separation from state and church. So they’re saying if you’re going to go to an Arab country, they are not going to break for Christmas but over here we’re going to break for Eid and Ramadan and stuff. It’s actual separation from state and church and they don’t understand that and they think since the majority of the U.S. is Christian that we shouldn’t be equal to other people.” The Women’s Rights National Historical Park, established in 1980, comprises about seven acres. It includes four historical properties, one of which is the Wesleyan Chapel, the site of the first Women’s Rights Convention. The park says that movements seeking to end discrimination based on race, religion and sexual orientation “are all connected in the fight for civil and human rights.” “Women’s Rights National Historical Park recognizes the efforts of not just Women’s Rights advocates, but all people who struggle to achieve civil and human rights in the United States and around the world,” it added.

Nawaz Sharif again harps on Kashmir - but finds no takers

Washington : Ahead of a meeting with US President Barack Obama here Wednesday, Pakistan Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif made yet another attempt to draw Washington into the Kashmir dispute, but once again found no takers. "Given its relationship with India, US has capacity to do more to help Pakistan and India resolve their disputes, including Kashmir," he said in an address to the US Institute of Peace, a US Congress funded federal institution Tuesday. It was his third call in three days to Washington to get involved in the dispute, which US has made clear it considers a bilateral matter between New Delhi and Islamabad. Sharif made his first plea on Kashmir in London Sunday. He repeated it again that evening during a dinner meeting with Secretary of State John Kerry saying "The people of Pakistan want to see all of our issues with India resolved through dialogue." "Kashmir, of course, is a very difficult issue and very difficult to resolve," Sharif acknowledged in his speech Tuesday. "But I think, by sitting and talking, we will be able to find some way of resolving that, too," he said, calling it "a flashpoint not only in the region, but the whole world." US had rejected out of hand Sharif's call for Washington to get involved to resolve the Kashmir issue even before he landed here Sunday with a senior administration official saying that "On Kashmir, our policy has not changed an iota." And as Time magazine noted, "New Delhi, though, has no interest in American mediation of its disputes with Islamabad, nor is there much indication that the Obama administration would want to be involved." On the issue of terrorism emanating from Pakistan, which is of equal concern to both India and the US, also Sharif sought to portray Pakistan as a victim of terrorism and not an "epicentre of terrorism" as asserted by Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Singh. Calling terrorism and extremism as the greatest challenge to a democratic Pakistan, Sharif said, "Pakistan is neither a source of, nor the epicentre of terrorism as is sometimes alleged." Pakistan was "rather a victim of the scourge", he said, asserting "My government is firmly committed to ending cycle of violence in Pakistan." "We want to transform our relations with friends around the world, as well as our immediate neighbours," he said. During his meeting last month with Sharif in New York as also in his address to the UN general assembly, Manmohan Singh had served a stern warning to its neighbour to shut down its "terrorist machinery" to make peace. Reasserting what he had told Obama at his Sep 27 summit and the UN general assembly about Pakistan being the "epicentre of terrorism", Manmohan Singh had made it clear to Sharif that their composite dialogue could not be resumed without restoration of peace on the Line of Control in Kashmir. Sharif also voiced another of Pakistan's pet peeves - denial of an India like civil nuclear deal, a proposition that has received little support in the US Congress. "We would hope for a non-discriminatory approach in fields like civil nuclear cooperation," he said asking US to help in developing Pakistan economy, not only through aid but by promoting trade. For the record, the White House calling the US-Pakistan relationship "obviously a very important relationship" has said "the president looks forward to welcoming Prime Minister Sharif" as "we are strengthening US-Pakistan relations". But it's yet to be seen how receptive would Obama be to Sharif's pleas.

US defends drone strikes as Sharif demands their end

Washington : Pakistan Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif reiterated Islamabad's demand for putting an end to US drone strikes inside his country's territory, but the White House defended their use in counter-terror efforts. Ahead of his first meeting with President Barack Obama here Wednesday, Sharif said he wants to see US-Pakistan relations improve "but the issue of drones has become a major irritant in our bilateral relationship". "The use of drones is not only a continual violation of our territorial integrity but also detrimental to our resolve and efforts at eliminating terrorism from our country," he said in an address Tuesday at the US Institute of Peace in Washington. His comments came as Amnesty International and Human Rights Watch issued reports Tuesday detailing civilian casualties from US drone strikes and called for more transparency from the Obama administration. The Amnesty report even suggested the US "appears to have committed very serious" human rights violations that might even amount to war crimes. But White House Spokesman Jay Carney said the US strongly disagrees with claims that the drone strikes violate international law. "US counterterrorism operations are precise, they are lawful, and they are effective, and the United States does not take lethal strikes when we or our partners have the ability to capture individual terrorists," he said. The US takes "extraordinary care" to avoid the loss of civilian lives, Carney said, but there's "risk that exists in every war" that civilians will be harmed. He also said that the estimates made by outside groups of the number of civilian casualties are much higher than the US government's totals, calling the difference in totals a "wide gap." In a preview of the Obama-Sharif meeting, Daniel Markey, a senior fellow at the Council on Foreign Relations, said the US and Pakistan are not in alignment over which groups are targeted by drones. "Both of them are willing to go after Al Qaeda core leadership to some extent and both of them are certainly willing to go after Pakistani Taliban," he said. "There has been difference of opinion on Afghan Taliban and in particular [the] Haqqani network which the US has seen as being affiliated with Al Qaeda, has been wanting to target and has been targeting with drones." But Pakistan sees it "as being less of a threat and certainly not a direct threat to Pakistani civilians or the Pakistani state."

One BSF trooper killed in firing by Pakistan Rangers

Jammu : One Indian paramilitary trooper was killed and four people, including three Border Security Force (BSF) troopers and one civilian, were injured in firing by Pakistan Rangers in the R.S.Pura sector of the Jammu region overnight. A senior police officer told IANS that the BSF trooper and the injured came under heavy shelling by the Pakistan Rangers on Indian positions on the international border in the R.S.Pura sector of Jammu district in the state. The Rangers violated ceasefire at 20 locations in the sector using 82 mm mortars, heavy weapons and automatics, said a senior BSF officer. He said intermittent firing exchanges continued at many places Wednesday morning. The BSF has strongly retaliated to Pakistan firing and heavy shelling, the officer said. Union Home Minister Sushilkumar Shinde had Tuesday visited Jammu to take stock of the situation arising from the repeated ceasefire violations by Pakistan Rangers on the international border.

Nawaz Sharif to convince Obama on drone attacks

Islamabad : Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif will try to convince US President Barack Obama about Islamabad's concerns on the drone attacks when the two leaders meet Wednesday, reported Xinhua citing Pakistan's information minister. Sharif will also inform Obama about the dialogue process with the Taliban towards establishing peace in the country, Pervaiz Rashid said Tuesday. According to Pakistan's foreign ministry, Sharif is scheduled to meet President Obama at the White House in Washington Wednesday, the last day of his three-day official visit. It will be the first meeting of the two leaders. Meanwhile, the information minister's remarks came hours after a rights group report said that the US has killed civilians in unlawful drone attacks in the country's tribal regions. The Amnesty International's report "Will I be next?" said the Obama administration may be guilty of war crimes as many of those killed accounted for by the US military as terrorists were in fact civilians, including a 68-year-old grandmother and a 14-year- old boy. Pakistan's principled stand is that these attacks are not only infringement of sovereignty but also against the international laws, and its benefits are less than its negative implications in the war on terror, a Pakistani foreign ministry spokesperson said. "This stance is now accepted across the world. The UN secretary general and the world human rights groups endorse it," he added.

Despite rebuff, Nawaz Sharif seeks US intervention in Kashmir

Washington : Despite a rebuff from both India and the US, Pakistan Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif Tuesday once again sought to draw Washington into the Kashmir dispute ahead of his meeting with President Barack Obama. "Given its relationship with India, US has capacity to do more to help Pakistan-India resolve their disputes, including Kashmir," he said in an address to the US Institute of Peace, a US Congress funded federal institution, on the eve of his meeting with Obama. "Pakistan appreciate the constrictive role US is playing between Pakistan and India," Sharif said asking US to do more, repeating the comments he had made Sunday in London on way to Washington. US had rejected out of hand Sharif's call for Washington to get involved to resolve the Kashmir issue even before he landed here Sunday with a senior administration official saying that "On Kashmir, our policy has not changed an iota." While it encouraged a dialogue between the two countries, "the pace, scope, and character of India and Pakistan's dialogue on Kashmir is for those two countries to determine with each other," the official repeating the oft-repeated US stand. India too has rejected any third party intervention in Kashmir with External Affairs Minister Salman Khurshid making it clear that the matter can be discussed only under the 1972 Shimla Pact.

We are not interested in tensions between West and Muslim world- Putin

“Today tension between Western powers and the Muslim world is growing. Some politicians try to take advantage of it adding fuel to the fire. We’re not interested in it,” Putin claimed during a meeting with muftis in Ufa on Tuesday. The Russian leader also noted that today the necessity in “Russian presence is growing” in the Middle East in particular and in the Muslim world in general. “We should act more actively unmasking harmful for mankind projects which aim at manipulating countries and peoples, information and public opinion,” Putin stressed. Vladimir Putin assured that Russian wasn’t only not interested either in a split or “reshaping of the Muslim world” but, on the contrary, tried to pursue a consistent and hard line for consolidating its unity. Politicization of Islam The leaders of Russian Muslim organizations must resist the politicization of Islam jointly with the government, said Putin. "A politicization of religion - not always positive - is going on among the various tracks in Russia, including Islam. The government and the Russian Muslim community are facing new problems and tasks in this setting, which can only be resolved jointly," Vladimir Putin added. He also pointed out that "some political forces are making use of Islam - to be more exact its radical trends, which, by the way are untypical of the Russian Muslim community - in order to weaken the state, to create conflicts, governed from outside, to split ethnic groups within the Muslim community and to incite separatism in the regions." The attempts to divide should be countered by the Russian Muslims' devotion to their historical traditions, he said, adding that despite a variety of schools and trends in Islam, Russia's Muslims "have always been united in their service to the public and the state." Putin urged Russia's Muslims to establish partnership relations with other religions, first of all the Russian Orthodox Church. Russia's Islamic theologian school The president has proposed restoring Russia's Islamic theologian school: "If the present-day challenges are to be tackled effectively, the high authority of Russia's Muslim clergy and of the Islamic theologian school should be maintained." Russia's Islam has ample capabilities to play its role in promoting the rich theologian legacy, guided by the centuries-old national experience in the system of religious education, Putin said. "Among the most important tasks is that of recreating the national Islamic theologian school that would guarantee the sovereignty of the Russian religious space," the president added. This school should respond quickly to the most acute developments in Russia and in the world as a whole, and make assessments "that would be clear and respected by believers." Putin urges to stop inter-ethnic conflicts at the initial stage In this respect he called on local authorities to react actively to citizens’ inquiries. "One-time emergency measures to prevent inter-ethnic conflicts are not effective. We need to find modern systematic methods and approaches which are envisaged by the new National Policy Strategy. It will start working to its full extent only when regions are interested in it and take it as a guiding principle in actions and thorough systematic work aimed at strengthening inter-ethnic peace," Putin said. He underlined that substantial and active efforts made by local authorities and their willingness to implement a strategy were of particular importance. “However, we need to admit the work has been proceeding slowly. Only nine Russian regions drew up draft plans for implementation of a Federal Strategy. I repeat that we’re speaking only about plans and first necessary measures. If we analyze the actual work done I guess the situation will appear to be even more frustrating,” Putin added. “As far as actual strategic documents are concerned, 21 Federal subjects approved them. But it was done not as we wanted it to be as the majority of documents are out-of date,” Putin said. Vladimir Putin has also warned against disregarding unlawful deeds committed by immigrants. “It is unacceptable to tolerate unlawful actions by visitors violating the immigration law and committing offenses," Putin said at a meeting of the Council on Interethnic Relations. National policy Russia should gradually resolve problems of its national policy without stopping in the face of difficulties, Russian President Vladimir Putin has said during a session of the Russian International Affairs Council. “This topic is very important and not only to us but to all the developing countries,” he stated. Putin mentioned that problems in this field arouse in many developing countries. “Some of our foreign colleagues are speaking about the failure of their national policies,” he noted. “We can’t speak about it. Moreover, we have no right to even think about it,” the Russian President added. Ethnic relations Vladimir Putin claimed that ethnic harmony has always been a feature of Russian society. "Our fathers and grandfathers never discriminated against each other on the basis of ethnicity or faith," Putin said at an event on Tuesday marking the 225th anniversary of Russia's Central Muslim Spiritual Administration, the governing body of the country's large Muslim community. "They valued mutual respect, supported each other in joy and sorrow, and have left us a legacy of great, invincible friendship, the friendship that we will allow no one to destroy or blacken," he said. Putin also credited the Muslim community with a special role in Russia's ethnic relations. He insisted that younger generations be imbued with respect for other ethnic groups and with a sense of co-citizenship, patriotism and pan-national self-awareness.

Brunei to bring new sharia law

Brunei plans to implement a tough new sharia criminal code next year that could see citizens stoned for adultery or having a limb amputated for theft. Those convicted of drinking alcohol or committing other violations – such as abortion – could be flogged. Sultan Hassanal Bolkiah – who is thought to be worth about $20bn (£12.3bn) and exercises tight control over the Muslim-majority country – described the legislation as "part of the great history of our nation" and a form of "special guidance" from God. "It is because of our need that Allah the Almighty, in all his generosity, has created laws for us, so that we can utilise them to obtain justice," the 67-year-old was quoted as saying in local media. The oil-rich sultanate already forbid the sale of alcohol and bans the evangelism of religions other than Islam. It is known for practising a more conservative form of Islam than its majority-Muslim neighbour Malaysia. While sharia law already exists within the small Southeast Asian nation – which is home to roughly 406,000 people, two-thirds of whom are Muslim – the Islamic court has, to date, primarily handled family-related affairs like marriage and inheritance. The new penal code will be enforced in phases, local media reported, and will apply only to Muslims. However, visitors to the Brunei could be flogged under existing secular laws for crimes including immigration offences. Caning is also used as punishment in Malaysia, Indonesia and Singapore. Brunei – which also calls itself the "abode of peace" – has seen an increase in crime in recent years, with courts dealing with petty robberies, drug trafficking, fraud and prostitution. Many in the country seem to welcome the new legislation, with many taking to social media to write "long live the sultan" and "praise be to Allah". Human rights activists denounced the move as "feudal" and "abhorrent". Brunei's leading Islamic scholar described the sharia code as "guarantee[d] justice for everyone". Mufti Awang Abdul Aziz told a legal conference on Tuesday: "Let us not just look at the hand-cutting or the stoning or the caning per se. It is not indiscriminate cutting or stoning or caning. There are conditions and there are methods that are just and fair." He said that tourists should not fear the new legislation as long as they were law-abiding. "Do all potential tourists to Brunei plan to steal? If they do not, then what do they need to fear? Believe me when I say that with our sharia criminal law, everyone – including tourists – will receive proper protection," he said. The sultan – who has reigned since 1967 and lives in an 1,800-room palace – also implied that those outside Brunei would do better not to judge the adoption of the new code. "We view others … without any form of prejudice," he said. "In return, we also have the right to expect that others will view Brunei in the same light."

Malaysia court rules non-Muslims cannot use 'Allah'

A court in Muslim-majority Malaysia ruled Monday (Oct. 14) that only Muslims are permitted to use the Arabic word “Allah” to describe God, overturning a lower court’s 2009 decision that allowed others to use the word. “The usage of the word ‘Allah’ is not an integral part of the faith in Christianity,” Chief Judge Mohamed Apandi Ali said in the ruling, supporting the government’s case. “The intended usage will cause unnecessary confusion within the Islamic community and is surely not conducive to the peaceful and harmonious tempo of life in the country,” said Ali, according to the government-run Bernama news agency. Allah is the Arabic word for God. Ali expressed the unanimous decision by the court’s three Muslim judges. “The name ‘Allah’ does not appear, even once, in either the Old or New Testaments. In the Bible world, God has always been known as ‘Yahweh,’” Ali said. The ruling was aimed primarily at a Catholic newspaper, The Herald, which had been printing the word in its Malay-language stories to describe the Christian God, until the government deemed it was illegal in 2008. When The Herald sued, a lower court ruled in favour of free speech in 2009 and allowed the paper to use the word. That decision resulted in clashes between the two religions, including arson attacks against dozens of churches and a few mosques. “It is a retrograde step in the development of law in relation to the fundamental liberty of religious minorities,” The Herald’s editor, the Rev. Lawrence Andrew, said after losing the case. Andrew said he would appeal to Malaysia’s highest court. “Some Muslim groups have said that the Christian use of the word ‘Allah’ could be used to encourage Muslims to convert to Christianity,” the BBC reported. Christians in Malaysia had used the word “Allah” for decades in churches and Malay-language Bibles, but the government decided a judicial ruling was needed to determine if the terminology should be legal