Dr.Fawzia Siddiqui-----A sisters story

This is a picture of Dr. Fawzia Siddiqui...The sister of Aafia Siddiqui.My aunt met her a few days ago and shared this picture with me. She is currently in South Africa to discuss her sisters plight with the local community.Her sister has been tortured and abused at the hands of the American government...The following paragraphs are excerpts from her radio interview.....

Inna lillahi wa inna ilayhi raji'un...

'Indeed she has captured the hearts of many Muslims and non-Muslims around the world. Her plight and difficulties has created an ocean, the content of which is supplied by the tears of millions of supporters around the globe. Aafia Siddiqui, 39, who was accused and convicted of assault with intent to murder, was sentenced in September 2010, to 86 years in prison by a United States district court.'

Radio Islam International caused that ocean of tears to overflow, in an interview with Aafia’s sister, Dr. Fawzia Siddiqui.

Speaking to Ml. Sulaiman Ravat on the Sabaahul Muslim programme, Dr. Fawzia Siddiqui gave the listeners of Radio Islam an insight into the current happenings of our sister’s life.

“She is not doing well…apparently she is being slow poisoned. There is also a rumour of her being pregnant…and these are higher authorities in the prison and in the Pakistan council who informed us about this.”

Apparently there is a letter which states these allegations however, Dr. Fawzia is still waiting to receive the letter. Dr. Fawzia mentioned that the family had some sort of communication with Aafia. The family was granted 10 minutes a day to speak to their beloved after much difficulty.

“We were allowed phone calls after about two years of struggle. We were 300 minutes per month.”

Unfortunately, on the 28 October 2011, even those privileges were cut away. Dr. Fawzia stated a possible reason for this.

“She had agreed to signing for the appeal and whichever attorney we, as a family would recommend for her.”
“And I think it’s almost after she agreed to the attorney that they suddenly shut down the conversations.”

As the words passed through a lump in Fawzia’s throat, the hearts of many listeners crashed into millions of pieces.

“For the first time in 8 years her daughter spoke to her mother (and) made a connection.”

“She was very very concerned about her children, their education and if they were happy…and if they were eating.”

When asked about food, she simply replied “Don’t ask me”.

However the interview made the listeners realize that Allah’s unseen help is like a cloud over Aafia on a hot day. Her spirit of hope during phone calls at times, as described by her sister is absolutely amazing.

“There was a lot of pain and it was obviously pain on both sides I am sure…after some conversations there was hope. There were times were we would be despairing and she would be counseling us.”

There were also reports that her Quraan was thrown into a bin. However, little does the enemy realize, Islaam and Imaan is not only in Quraan. In fact, it lives in the heart.

“She tells her mother that you have no idea how much at peace I am because I know that I am innocent. My Creator knows and the Habib (Prophet Peace be upon him) knows and they are with me and I know that I am in the right.”

Ml. Sulaiman Ravat described it as “A heart wrenching interview”. Dr. Fawzia Siddiqui stated that there is no contact with Aafia since the 28 of October.

It is indeed a responsibility of all Muslims to remember Aafia in their Duaas and to the best of their ability, make all other possible efforts for the freedom of Aafia and all Muslims around the world. Freedom is not a Muslim right…it is a human right!!!

Janadriyah Festival 2012

So last Thursday, best friend and I had the opportunity of visiting the Janadriyya 2012 festival situated an hour outside Riyadh city. We hopped onto the bus at around 15:45 but only got to the Janadriyya at around 18:30 due to the horrendous traffic. At the gate we were greeted by military personnel who were making sure that no single males enter the premises. In previous years the Janadriyya allocated specific days for males and females but this year it was open to families and single females only. This has created an uproar with the religious police and there has been reports from people that frequented the Janadriyya that approximately 60 mutawwa or religious police gathered outside the festival and had an altercation with the military as they were not allowed inside. Apparently a few gun shots were fired in the air in order to disperse them. These reports have been denied by the military, however many onlookers have confirmed this report as true. The religious police were against the mixing of the sexes as families entered together and they also had an issue with the beautifully orchestrated traditional dances which they believe caused the women to clap and sway themselves thereby stirring the desire of males. Absolute nonsense in my opinion!!
The fact that families were allowed to enter together without segregation is in my opinion a bold step made by the octogenarian Monarchy Abu Metab who is known to be a reformer and a promoter of women's rights. I personally think that this is a big step in the right direction. The feeling inside the festival was like any other country. Everyone interacted and enjoyed the activities that were offered. Naturally there were many expatriates that visited to get an insight into Saudi culture and they all interacted very well with the local Saudi people.

The Janadriyya festival is basically a festival that highlights the arts, culture, poetry, dance and traditional heritage of the Saudi people from all over the Kingdom. Each year a guest nation is also invited to showcase and promote their country. This year Korea was the guest of honour. The city of Medina, Abha, Jizan,Qassim and Jeddah all had the opportunity to showcase their unique customs and traditions. I particularly enjoyed the dance by Jizan. It was a very vibrant dance that had a lovely beat and tempo to it. There was a cute little boy that was a part of the group and he was dancing away simply enjoying himself to the adoration of the entire crowd present.

Many artisans and craftsmen  from all over the Kingdom had the opportunity to showcase their talent. I was particularly impressed with the lampshades made out of seashells and a frame with Arabic calligraphy carved out of a tree trunk. The artisan was apparently offered SR25000 for his masterpiece but he refused to sell it as it was his passion. He crafted and sculpted purely for pleasure and as a hobby. There was also a hall dedicated entirely to females only. This hall showcased traditional Saudi clothing for women and also the wedding customs that usually occur when a Saudi woman gets married. For those women who were enthusiastic to adorn their hands with henna, their were many henna artists availale to carry out this task as well

The Korean hall was very futuristic and high tech as the country aimed at showcasing themselves as the leaders in technology. At the entrance  of the hall we were greeted by Korean representatives who were very warm and welcoming and allowed guests to take photos with them. One of the female represenatives could speak perfect Arabic to the amazement of local people.The main foyer then led into a time tunnel that highlighted the ongoing relationship between the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia and Korea. At the end of the time tunnel guests were welcomed to a full fledged state of the art 3D movie theatre. The Saudi people were very happy with this feature as there are no cinemas in the country. Despite this, Saudis are very knowledgable when it comes to movies and cinema as they do watch the latest films in the comfort of their own homes or abroad. For many of the Bedouin type people the cimena was quite and attraction as well as a fascination. Whilst I felt that the hall was impressive in terms of LCD screens and technology, I was expecting the country to have showcased more on their culture and heritage in terms of arts and crafts. The Korean dances were beautifully choreographed and got the entire crowd stamping their feet, clapping and cheering them on. Local Saudis seemed impressed with the Korean display and I can assure you that  many Saudis will choose Korea as their next holiday destination. Best friend and I also had the opportunity of meeting two Korean diplomats who actually escorted us in to the venue and prevented us from waiting in the long queue outside

There were many little eating stalls available where you could grab a bite and best friend and I were quite famished after the two hour bus ride getting to the Janadriyya. We bought some mutabbak (a snack or an appetizer stuffed with egg, garlic, meat and onion) and shwarmas. It was delicious.We washed it down with an ice cold 'Bebsi' and were rejuvenated to walk from one hall to the next.

With a country so rich and diverse in culture and heritage I fail to understand why the new generation Saudi's have turned to the west for inspiration. Saudi youth have tried to adopt the American way of life in terms of thinking, clothing, style and fashion and yet what their own country has is truly remarkable and beautiful. I urge and encourage all the Saudi youth out there to go back to their roots and learn about their culture and to hold onto it for future generations to come. A very big thumbs up and heartiest congratulations to the various ministries involved in making the Janadriyya festival a well organised and a fun filled educational event that is undoubtedly on par with any other international event.
 

The heavy cost of light skin

by Joan Baxter

The use of bleaching creams to lighten complexions seems to have reached epidemic proportions in Mali, despite widespread education campaigns.

Women who refuse to bleach often find themselves regarded as second class citizens.

A woman who did not bleach her skin said she is often not offered a chair at baptisms, and is asked to make herself scarce when group photographs are taken at marriages.

A quick survey shows there are more than 100 bleaching products available on the market in the capital, Bamako.

Sold under brand names such as Marie-Claire or Diana, the products come from Morocco, Nigeria, the United States or Saudi Arabia.

Dermatologists estimate that more than half the women in Mali are now using these creams to lighten their skin. These products are costly and often cause pain and blemishes.

So why are so many women in Mali using them? The answer is simple, according to one Malian woman singer: The creams make her white, and impart a certain charm.

But Malian physician Dr Ali Gindo finds bleached skin anything but charming.

"They are just burning themselves," he says. "It's painful and it's awful."

Dr Gindo says bleaching can cause skin cancer and the poorest people are the most at risk, because the cheaper the product, the more dangerous it is.

But he says it is not just poor women are bleaching their skin.

"We have also people who are well educated like lawyers, writers or professors, or people on the TV - and this is a real problem because if people who are leaders of opinion bleach themselves, you can imagine how deep the problem is."

Many of the women who use these products told me they do so because Malian men prefer women with bleached skin.

But male musician Al Hassan Soumali disagrees.

"I don't think Malian men like bleached women," he says. "It's better for Malian women to change their minds."

Source:

http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/africa/718359.stm

Have they forgotten that she is in actual fact a BLACK WOMAN????

The blonde wig may be throwing us off, but Rihanna is on the cover of British Vogue’s November 2011 issue and she’s looking much lighter.

It could be the actual lighting on set, it could be that we’ve gotten used to her wearing a fire engine-red wig, or it could be that someone forget to tell Vogue’s retoucher that Rihanna is in fact black.

What do think? Chime in the comments and help us figure it out. 

Skin lightening in beauty magazines is an all too common practice. At this point it’s just a question of how severely a person will be lightened. ELLE did it to the most beautiful woman in the world most recently, they’ve transformed Gabourey Sidibe into a much lighter cover girl. L’Oreal whitewashed Beyonce, too.

There’s a thriving skin lightening beauty industry too and that one can be dangerous. In 2003, Dr. S. Allen Counter, a professor of neurophysiology and neurology at Harvard Medical School questioned why it was mostly women who were dealing with increased rates of mercury poisoning in places like Mexico, Saudi Arabia, Pakistan and even in the Southwestern United States

"In every case, clinical questioning revealed that the women had used skin-whitening creams — many for years. In other words, these women had tried so desperately to whiten their skin color that they had poisoned their bodies by applying mercury-based “beauty creams.”

Ninety percent of the women entering border clinics in Arizona with mercury poisoning were Mexican-American, and they like their Mexican counterparts had been using skin-whitening creams such as “Crema de Belleza-Manning,” which is manufactured in Mexico. These skin-whitening creams contain mercurous chloride, which is readily absorbed through the skin. Saudi, African, and Asian women were also using these skin-bleaching chemicals in a tragic attempt to change their appearance to that of white women."

Hamza Kashghari

As many now know, a Saudi writer – Hamza Kashghari – is in deep trouble. He went on Twitter on or near the Prophet’s Birthday (which is not, incidentally, officially observed in Saudi Arabia, though it is a national holiday in many other Islamic countries) and made some unfortunate remarks. These remarks questioned the almighty. Under Shariah law, that is a major crime, apostasy (ridda or irtidad) one which can lead to execution if not promptly repented. Kashghari appears to have repented in that he took down his offensive Twits as soon as he was told how unwise they were and acknowledged that they were a mistake. But he also fled the country.

Too late. As Arab News reports, not only does he now have the highest religious authority in the Kingdom calling, literally, for his head, but apparently he offended King Abdullah as well [link goes to Arabic source].

Ifta wants Kashghari tried for apostasy
ARAB NEWS
RIYADH: In a new development in the case of Saudi writer Hamza Kashghari, who wrote a few tweets that were considered slanderous to Almighty Allah and His Prophet (peace be upon him), the Permanent Committee for Scholarly Research and Religious Edicts (Ifta) issued a strongly worded statement in which it said mocking Allah or His Prophet is a downright sacrilegious act, kufr (infidelity) and apostasy that should no go undetected, local daily Al-Eqtisadiah reported Thursday.
“Whoever dares make a mockery of Allah, the Prophet or the Holy Book undermines the religion and displays enmity toward it. It is the duty of the rulers to try such a criminal,” the committee said, warning Muslims to stay away from such practices so as to avoid exasperating God.
The committee issued its statement after a meeting under its chairman Sheikh Abdul Aziz Al-Asheikh, the Grand Mufti.
…

Various media pieces note that Kashghari fled to Southeast Asia. The Washington Post reports that he did, in fact, go to Malaysia, where an American human rights activist, David Keyes of Advancing Human Rightsconversed with him by phone. According to Keyes, Kashghari has been detained by Malaysian authorities pending extradition back to Saudi Arabia.
Keyes notes that this case has the makings of an international cause cause célèbre. International jurists are starting to line up to argue against his extradition. If he ends up being sent back, there will be loud and broad international calls for mercy.
Non-prosecution does not seem to be an available goal. Because Saudi Arabia closely follows Shariah law, it will be compelled to follow its rulings. The Quran [2:217] appears to consider apostasy to be a serious sin/crime, but that is to be punished in the afterlife. Numerous ahadith, however, call for the death of the apostate. The question is under debate in various parts of the Islamic world, but for the ulema in Saudi Arabia, the question is settled.

Saudi writer Hamza Kashgari faces charge of blasphemy
after tweets about Muhammad
David Keyes
Saudi journalist Hamza Kashgari was detained in Malaysia on Wednesday night and is likely to be extradited soon to Saudi Arabia, where he will be tried for blaspheming religion. Kashgari, 23, had fled the kingdom Monday after he received thousands of death threats. His crime? He posted on Twitter a series of mock conversations between himself and the Islamic prophet Muhammad.
… The tweets came to light last week around a celebration of Muhammad’s birthday, and Kashgari’s ordeal began. Hours before he was detained, Kashgari spoke to me by phone from the house in which he was hiding. “I was with sitting with my friends and one of them checked Twitter on his mobile phone,” he said. “Suddenly there were thousands of tweets of people calling to kill me because they said I’m against religion.”
…

Saudi Arabia is not exactly a theocracy: the religious leaders are not also the secular leaders. Islam is so important that the government does things likesend out a quarter million copies of the Quran. But Islam and Shariah law are so intertwined in the Kingdom that religious judgments hold the force of law; many things which would be sins are also crimes. International human rights generally see sin as a moral failing and crime as a subset of those failings. Not all sins, however, are crimes. Certain things, like the ability to change or to leave one’s religion are seen as fundamental human rights, guaranteed to all mankind. Shariah law does not agree.
The recent years have seen conflicts over this issue in several countries. In some, human rights advocates have been able to exert sufficient pressure to save the lives of the apostates; in others, they have failed. We’ll have to see how the case of Hamza Kashghari works out, starting with his extradition.

http://en-maktoob.news.yahoo.com/rights-groups-urge-malaysia-not-deport-saudi-055705267.html

Saher to the Rescue?

‘Saher’ is the traffic monitoring system the Saudi government has implemented to make the country’s roads less hazardous. It combines cameras and radar to track speeding as well as the running of red lights. It is not very popular, but it does save lives and resources, this article from Saudi Gazette reports.

In South Africa radar and laser speed-monitoring has been in effect for decades.There are however grave questions about whether they truly serve to reduce accidents (there is conflicting research) or are just mechanisms through which government extracts extra money from drivers’ pockets.
In the Kingdom, though, they seem to be having an effect. The piece states that since the introduction of the Saher program in August, 2010, Jeddah alone has seen a 35% decrease in road deaths, a 36% reduction in accidents, and a 38% reduction in injuries. Those are significant numbers.
The program has also been used, the paper reports, to track stolen vehicles as well as ‘suspicious’ ones, i.e., those being used by potential criminals. Those uses, though not major, are just a bonus. Anything that makes driving in Saudi Arabia less hazardous should be applauded.

Saher, a savior on the Kingdom’s roads
Amal Al-Sibai | Saudi Gazette
Were you furious when you were cruising down Jeddah’s Madinah Highway, and were discreetly clicked by a Saher camera? And you raged with anger when you were fined SR300.
Well, don’t be furious because it may affect the ‘cool show’ you are trying to put on by cruising and screeching in your fancy cars, but in reality Saher is saving lives of many such drivers and innocent victims of such sordid show.
A recent study by the Jeddah Traffic Police revealed that the introduction of Saher camera has significantly contributed to the safety of drivers, passengers and pedestrians. The immediate and costly penalties incurred on traffic violators have improved the driving behavior of many motorists, for they fear being clicked by Saher and slapped with heavy fines.