How bad can it get?

“Uncertainty, violence darken Afghans’ hopeBy Paul Wiseman, USA TODAY

DOAB, Afghanistan

— For the first time, the girls in this village were starting to learn — reading, writing, geography, history, math, science. They were starting to dream, too: Star student Roya Noori, 15, illiterate two years ago, wanted to become an architect. Harzoo Mohammedy, 14, planned to go to medical school.  And Zuhal Noori, 12, saw herself at the controls of a commercial jet.  Then the learning stopped.  The new schoolhouse came under rocket fire last spring from the surrounding hills. Mysterious letters turned up at night, threatening to kill any girls who stayed in school and their principal…”

These days one cannot read world new without getting really upset about the state of the Muslims and their ever-worsening image due to ignorant self-tought extremists.    .Yesterday the Taliban announced on their (banned) radio station in Northern Pakistan (which is in fact Taliban controlled territory) that they are going to kill girls who go to school.

“Taliban extremists in Pakistan’s troubled northwest Swat Valley have banned girls from attending school, threatening to kill any female students.The threat was delivered this week by local Taliban commander Shah Durran in an address carried on an illegally-run radio station in the area……Swat residents said Taliban fighters had already destroyed scores of government-run schools, leading some to set up private schools in their homes to educate girls.An official at the Pakistani education ministry said there are more than 1,580 schools registered in Swat - once known for its top-flight schools.”Already Taliban militants have destroyed 252 schools, mainly those where girls and boys were studying together,” he added…. “

This campaign against girl’s schools has been going on for some time. 

Once more fear stalks the streets of Kandahar.

Al Jazeera network reports of  acid attacks on school girls.

“Afghan girls scarred in acid attack Five Afghan schoolgils have been attacked with battery acid by suspected Taliban fighters in the southern city of Kandahar.The attack on Wednesday occurred when two men on motorbikes confronted the students outside the Mirwais Nika Girls High School.Two girls were seriously injured by what was discovered to be battery acid.School girls in Kandahar are easily identifiable by their uniform - black trousers, a white shirt, black coat and a headscarf.”

VIDEO 

Where did the Taliban come from?

This is a crucial question. Before the invasion of Afghanistan by communist Russia it was despite of grave poverty a striving country, almost a role model for other backward countries with almost a half of the people on government payroll were women, mostly women teachers.

“The government began to bring in much-needed reforms, but with restraint and prudence. Labour unions were legalized, a minimum wage was established, a progressive income tax was introduced, men and women were given equal rights, and girls were encouraged to go to school.

On September 1, 1978, there was an abolition of all debts owed by farmers. A program was being  developed for major land reform, and it was expected that 

all farm families (including landlords)  would be given the equivalent of equal amounts of land… “   

During the Russian occupation thousands of “Quran schools” were established close to the Afghan border in Northern Pakistan in order to educate “mujahedeen” (freedom fighters). Religion was a very powerful motivation as communists are known atheists.  Generations of students  (meaning “Taliban” in Arabic) have graduated from them by now. After they had successfully driven “the infidel Russians” out of the country they turned to other threats to their ideology . And it was the Western interests in their strategic position in the middle of an oil and natural gas rich region. 

Taliban are the most strict and extreme interpretation of  Wahhabism coming from Saudi Arabia.    In Islam  the education is one of the most important duties for both sexes (as it is stated in the Quran and which should be the first and foremost source of understanding) .  These extremists get their ideology of  the Hadith’s,  traditions of which I am quite critical about  (human memory can fail even with best intensions). They were collected and selected only after 250-300 years after the death of Prophet Mohammed.  In many cases they contradict direct advice found in the Quran.

Since in Saudi Arabia the first girl’s schools opened just 2 years after the opening of the first boy’s school they  have never been closed.   Building Bridges: A Conversation with Princess Loulwa Al-Faisal Question: What concerns you about the perception among Americans about the role of women in Saudi Arabia?Princess Loulwa al-Faisal: Well, if they were to listen only to the media they would think that the women in Saudi Arabia are completely suppressed, not educated, and don’t have any jobs. The reality is that while education started for men in 1960, it started for women just two years later in 1962. Actually, prior to the start of the Ministry of Education there already were schools for women, private schools, including Dar-Al-Hanan which my mother [Queen Effat] opened in 1955.You should also know that at that point in our history we were a country of 5% literacy and at the moment we’re a country of 5% illiteracy. That shows how far we have come in just seventy years - even less if you consider that formal education started 50 years ago.”

From another article about schooling in Saudi Arabia we learn, that the government did not interfere in teaching methods or in the content of the school books for a very long time, it was left to the Muslim clerics alone:

“The Saudi government has allowed Muslim clerics to control education for many years and it’s modern version is The Ministry of Education, founded during the reign of King Saud and with the current King Fahd as the first Minister and he was responsible for the creation of the education system and curriculum. What went on in the classrooms, though, was largely invisible to the government bureaucracy. The curriculum itself was modeled on traditional education methods, emphasizing memorization at the expense of critical thinking. The texts, heavily influenced by religious authorities, compounded the narrowness of the education. No outside analysis of the Saudi textbooks had been made before 2002, so the content of those books is not really known. Following analyses in 2002, however, the Saudi government concluded that there were problems with the books…”Yet from another article I learn that “Saudi Arabia Discovers School Busing for Girls”

While researching for this theme I became a little more optimistic after all since Saudi Arabia, which has an enormous influence in being a role model, have started to show the way for the radical elements within the Muslim community. Too long these matters were left to the Clerics alone.

The world changes and Mulims must adjust to it, otherwise we will have  enormous problems when modernity and tradition collide. There is no other way than building bridges and find a way to live peacefully in a shrinking world.

Muslims hate dogs?

In the news, again, are Muslims and how “narrow minded they can be!”:    “Muslims outraged at police advert featuring cute puppy sitting in policeman’s hat.”

A postcard featuring a cute puppy sitting in a policeman’s hat advertising a Scottish police force’s new telephone number has sparked outrage from Muslims.   Tayside Police’s new non-emergency phone number has prompted complaints from members of the Islamic community.The choice of image on the Tayside Police cards - a black dog sitting in a police officer’s hat - has now been raised with Chief Constable John Vine.

Tayside Police caused uproar in the Muslim community after they released this advertisement featuring police puppy Rebel sitting in a hat         

“The advert has upset Muslims because dogs are considered ritually unclean and has sparked such anger that some shopkeepers in Dundee have refused to display the advert.   Dundee councillor Mohammed Asif said:  ’My concern was that it’s not welcomed by all communities, with the dog on the cards.  ‘It was probably a waste of resources going to these communities.  ’They (the police) should have understood.   Since then, the police have explained that it was an oversight on their part, and that if they’d seen it was going to cause upset they wouldn’t have done it.’   Councillor Asif, who is a member of the Tayside Joint Police Board, said that the force had a diversity adviser and was generally very aware of such issues…..”

Since beginning of time, well since man started to domesticate animals for company, for protection, as working animals, milk and meat produces  dogs were first domesticated  from wolf ancestors about 15,000 years ago.    It is widely  known as mans best friend as it defends its owner unconditionally.

In my experience and understanding/knowing dogs are not filthier or dirtier or anything worse than other animals either.  The same goes for pigs.  

Animals should not be kept in houses, because the daily prayers are done on a clean floor or a mat.  At least that one room should be kept out of reach of  pets. The floor must be clean, also of  toddler’s waste (“accidents” happen) and other impurities .          “Cleanliness is part of faith” (Quran)  

Muslims are not allowed to eat dead meat, blood, the flesh of swine. Also animals that eat other animals or especially dead meat are forbidden as are meat eating birds.  Only grass eating animals having hoofs and only one set of jaws are allowed. In fact in the Jewish religion the food law is even stricter.

Anyone who ever visited the Middle East must have seen shepherds wandering around with their flock of sheep and a dog or two guarding them. You must have noticed, how friendly there are with their dogs and the vast majority of them are Muslims.

As far as I know most Muslims in Britain are of Pakistani origin. I have heard some strange beliefs from them which have nothing to do with Islam but very much with Culture and their own tradition.  Only recently I read a newspaper article mentioning, that the most radical Muslims preachers in British mosques are of Pakistani origin.

I do not know what to say. May God grand them wisdom and insight.  From the article above I understood that the British police  is aware of the problem with Cultural sensitivities, but they are human and make mistakes.

In this case, I think they did not do any mistake. The majority of the British love cute little dogs and there is nothing wrong in putting a puppy in a police hat.  And if a Muslim finds the postcard offending he or she does not need to look at it,  as simple as that. 

The Adoration, by Domenico Ghirlandaio. 

Newborn Jesus child surrounded by animals, a donkey, a cow and most probably  by sheep and  a sheep dog.T

.

As the Christmas Holiday nearing I would like greet my Christian readers with wishes of peace and tolerance!

Eidkum  Mubarak,

Festive  Greetings  to  all  my  readers!

It  is  Hajj  time  again,  once  in  a  lifetime  obligation for Muslims   to  visit   the   holy  places  in  Mecca  and  Medina ,   if  they  can  afford  it. 

May  God,  the  Almighty,  show  all  human  kind  His  Wisdom,  bring  us  together,  and  forgive  us  our  mistakes.

Mona