VOICE OF GLOBAL UMMAH

Volume 39, August 3, 2008

St. Louis, Missouri

Editors: Mohamed and Rashida Ziauddin

In the Name of Allah, the Most Beneficent and the Most Merciful

Contents:

1. Inside view of Kaaba

2. Muslims call to adopt MECCA TIME

3. California group starts website as Muslim alternative to YouTube

4. Top ten intellectuals in a poll by two prestigious western magazines were MUSLIMS.

5. Flashpoints for Ummah in India: Bangalore (pigs head found in Masjid), West Bengal (Muslims attack Hindu pilgrims) and Srinagar (Muslims demonstrate land transfer to Hindus).

6. US Govt condemns China's treatment of Chinese Muslims

7. Muslim politicians in Missouri: Spotlight on Sister Jameela Nashaad - American Ummah's Who's Who's

8. City of London is a Model and leads the #1 spot for having the most diverse Islamic activities in the western world. Samples of some of its activities.

9. Updated report from ICCT - Muslim Orphanage Project in Sri Lanka

10. Pictures from Pakistan

INSIDE VIEW OF KAABA

(E-Mail forwarded by Br. Sameer Qureishi with below caption:
" Please Forward this picture to every Muslim because very few lucky Muslims got a chance to see the inner of the Kaaba!!
Jazak-Allah o Khair"

MUSLIM CALL TO ADOPT MECCA TIME:

Magdi Abdelhadi, BBC Arab Affairs Analyst BBC NEWS; April 21, 08

One cleric said science had proved Mecca to be the centre of the Earth. Muslim scientists and clerics have called for the adoption of Mecca time to replace GMT, arguing that the Saudi city is the true centre of the Earth. Mecca is the direction all Muslims face when they perform their daily prayers. The call was issued at a conference held in the Gulf state of Qatar under the title: Mecca, the Centre of the Earth, Theory and Practice. One geologist argued that unlike other longitudes, Mecca's was in perfect alignment to magnetic north. He said the English had imposed GMT on the rest of the world by force when Britain was a big colonial power, and it was about time that changed.

MECCA WATCH:

A prominent cleric, Sheikh Youssef al-Qaradawy, said modern science had at last provided evidence that Mecca was the true centre of the Earth; proof, he said, of the greatness of the Muslim "qibla" - the Arabic word for the direction Muslims turn to when they pray. The meeting also reviewed what has been described as a Mecca watch, the brainchild of a French Muslim. The watch is said to rotate anti-clockwise and is supposed to help Muslims determine the direction of Mecca from any point on Earth. The meeting in Qatar is part of a popular trend in some Muslim societies of seeking to find Koranic precedents for modern science. It is called "Ijaz al-Koran", which roughly translates as the "miraculous nature of the holy text". The underlying belief is that scientific truths were also revealed in the Muslim holy book, and it is the work of scholars to unearth and publicise the textual evidence.

CALIFORNIA GROUP STARTS WEBSITE AS A MUSLIM ALTERNATIVE TO YOU-TUBE:

TheState.com (South Carolina's Home Page)

By DAVID OLSON - The Press-Enterprise of Riverside, California

The Press-Enterprise of Riverside, Calif. - A Temecula, California group has launched a Muslim version of YouTube. It aims to educate non-Muslims about Islam and provide an Internet site for Muslims to view videos without worrying about anti-Islamic tirades or sexually explicit content, said Tarek Ayoub, a volunteer for the site and for the site's nonprofit founder - "Islam the Answer Corp".

"It's a way for Muslim users to feel safe," Ayoub said.

The site also includes non-religious programming, such as comedy, travel, sports and cultural videos, along with documentaries containing trenchant political commentary on subjects such as the Israeli occupation of the Palestinian territories. The volunteer-run site will not accept advertising or donations, to avoid compromising its mission, Ayoub said.

Larry Slusser, Secretary of Temecula's Southwest Riverside County Interfaith Council and a Mormon, praised the idea behind the site.

"I think it's great anytime someone can dispel misconceptions and promote understanding of and appreciation for a faith," said Slusser, who has not visited the site. "As a Latter-day Saint, I know many people have misperceptions about my faith. There's enough hatred in the world. We need more understanding of our differences."

Hussam Ayloush, Executive Director of the Southern California Office of the Council on American-Islamic Relations, said MuslimChannels TV's nonreligious videos show how Muslims are culturally and ethnically diverse and cannot be defined solely by their religion.

Ayoub said the site was founded in part because he and other Muslims grew weary of seeing viciously anti-Muslim comments that YouTube users posted as reactions to Islamic-oriented videos. Some YouTube users e-mailed Muslim video-posters and threatened them with violence -- in some cases with warnings such as "We know your address" -- or made sexually demeaning comments toward Muslim women, Ayoub said.

Ayoub said he and others have met with FBI agents about the threats. FBI spokeswoman Laura Eimiller said the agency does not typically confirm or deny investigations. Ayoub said YouTube did not respond to repeated phone calls and e-mails about the anti-Muslim comments or to allegations that the company suspended the accounts of some people who had posted videos critical of Israel.

In an e-mailed statement, YouTube said it does not comment on individual videos. The company said it relies on users to flag content that violates YouTube's prohibition on hate speech, defined as speech that demeans people based upon their religion, race, ethnic origin, disability, gender, age, veteran status, sexual orientation or gender identity. YouTube staff reviews flagged material and usually removes it within minutes if it is deemed hate speech, the statement said.

Although Islam the Answer founded MuslimChannels.tv in part as an alternative to sites such as YouTube, volunteers with the group are also forming a team to better respond to the anti-Muslim comments on YouTube and other sites, said Cait Ramshaw, a Florida volunteer for MuslimChannels.tv and a sister site, MuslimBridges.org.

Muslims need to ensure that misrepresentations of Islam do not go unanswered, and that the responses are reasoned and factual rather than angry, said Ramshaw.

E-mail David Olson at dolson@PE.com
Distributed by Scripps Howard News Service, www.scrippsnews.com.

WORLD'S TOP TEN INTELLECTUALS ARE MUSLIMS:

middleeastonline (7/28/08)
Patrick Seale

In a recent poll, by two prestigious Western magazines, (Foreign Policy and Prospect) the top one hundred intellectuals in the world were picked. The top ten selected were all Muslim scholars and activists, notes Patrick Seale.

Two prestigious Western magazines - Foreign Policy in the United States and Prospect in Britain - asked their readers to choose which among the world’s 100 public intellectuals deserved the top honours. Over 500,000 people cast their votes via the internet. The results published this July were surprising. The first ten names on the list were Muslims, from countries as diverse as Turkey, Bangladesh, Egypt, Pakistan, Iran and Uganda.

Heading the list was the Turkish Sufi scholar, Fethullah Gülen. He was followed - in order of voters’ preference - by Muhammad Yunus, the microfinancier from Bangladesh; Yusuf al-Qaradawi, the Egyptian cleric who hosts the popular “Sharia and Life” TV programme on Al-Jazeera in Qatar; the Turkish novelist Orhan Pamuk; the Pakistani lawyer and politician Aitzaz Ahsan; the Egyptian television preacher Amr Khaled; the Iranian religious theorist Abdolkarim Soroush; the Islamic philosopher Tariq Ramadan; the Ugandan cultural anthropologist Mahmood Mamdani; and the Iranian lawyer and human rights activist Shirin Ebadi.

It is striking that -- for various reasons including hostility and even persecution -- several of these intellectuals have chosen to live outside their native land. Fethullah Gülen lives just outside Philadelphia in the United States; Orhan Pamuk teaches literature at Columbia University, New York; Amr Khaled counsels young second-generation Muslims in Britain; Abdolkarim Soroush lives in Europe and the United States; Tariq Ramadan teaches at Oxford.

The brave Shirin Ebadi, who has won renown throughout the world for her defense of human rights -- especially of women’s and children’s rights -- remains in Iran, although she has faced intense criticism and harassment. Earlier this year, she issued a statement saying that threats against her life and security and those of her family had intensified.

Yet, the top ten list points to the awakening of the Muslim world to modern means of communication. To vote in the Prospect/Foreign Affairs poll required access to the internet. Turkey is said to boast three million Facebook users, more than any country apart from the United States, Britain and Canada, while Persian is said to be the fourth most popular language in the world for internet blogs. Without wishing to cast doubt on his distinction and personal following, it must be said that Fethullah Gülen won his position at the head of the top ten list largely because of the promotion given to his candidacy by Zaman, Turkey’s highest-selling newspaper with a circulation of 700,000.

Gülen is an unusual Sufi in that his global movement of some five million volunteers and sympathizers is at home with technology, markets and multinational business. His message is that there is no contradiction between science and religion, between the modern world and traditional values, such as faith in God. Indeed, he attributes the backwardness of many Muslim societies to a neglect of modern knowledge, especially of science. In politics, he has lent his support to Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan, and has encouraged the ruling AK party to embrace human rights and give up any notion of introducing Sharia. However, many hard-line secularists do not trust him, accusing him of being a Trojan horse for political Islam. Muhammad Yunus has devoted a lifetime to fighting poverty. His Grameen Bank, operating in more than 100 countries, has loaned nearly $7bn in small sums to more than 7 million borrowers -- 97 per cent of them women. Aitzaz Ahsan, president of Pakistan’s Supreme Court Bar Association, was a leading opponent of President Pervez Musharraf and is now a key member of the Pakistan People’s Party.

Although very different, Abdolkarim Soroush and Tariq Ramadan are both distinguished Islamic scholars who attempt to bridge the cultural and religious clash between Islam and the West. All these thinkers and activists deserve attention and respect -- not least in their native countries. They are a reminder to rulers that the grasp and spread of often abstract ideas by means of higher education is an essential component of a society’s development.

Patrick Seale is a leading British writer on the Middle East.

FLASHPOINTS FOR UMMAH IN INDIA:

MISCHIEF AT MOSQUES SPARKS PROTESTS:

July 12 2008
Express News Service

Bangalore, India:

Violence broke out in two separate areas of the city when miscreants placed severed pig’s heads inside the compounds of two mosques in Jaya Chamarajendra (JC) Nagar and Hebbal on Friday.

Four police personnel including a Central Armed Reserve Police Inspector, Dayanand, and a police constable of Regulated Market Committee (RMC) Yard police station, Venkatarama T, sustained injuries while on duty trying to bring the situation under control.

Police resorted to lathi-charge and fired tear gas shells to disperse violent mobs who went on a rampage, shouting slogans and damaging buses and lorries.

The new Police Commissioner, Shankar Bidari, who began his tenure with the riot on his very first day in office, ordered the imposition of prohibitory orders till July 13. The situation was brought under control by the evening, said M R Pujar, Additional Commissioner of Police (Law & Order).

The police clarified that there were no inter-communal clashes; the violence was purely a reaction, protesting the desecration of the two mosques; the pig is considered “haraam” according to the tenets of Islam.

Mohammed Ali, manager of a hostel at J C Nagar, was at the Jamia Masjid at 5 am when the pig’s head was being taken away by the police. “The pig’s head was found at the washing area near the entrance of the mosque, sometime after the gates of the mosque were opened at 4 am,” he said. Around 15 people had gathered at the mosque at the time, and the incident delayed the prayer by 30 minutes.

The JC Nagar police were alerted. A mob went to the J C Nagar police station and staged a dharna, demanding that the miscreants be arrested and punished. DCP (North) Sayed Ulfat Hussain and other senior officials rushed to the spot and assured the restive crowd that proper police action would be initiated to bring the culprits to book. The situation worsened when more members of the community learnt of the morning incident at the noon prayers.

A large group staged a rasta-roko (block-the-road) on Munireddypalya road and J C Road junction. Some miscreants started pelting stones at a BMTC bus (Volvo) which was enroute to the new international airport at Devanahalli; a lorry was also attacked. Tyres of vehicles were set ablaze on the road to prevent the movement of traffic.

A slogan-shouting mob gheraoed the J C Nagar police station and started pelting stones at the police personnel trapped inside, along with media photographers.

To bring the situation under control, police lathi-charged the mob to disperse them and later fired three rounds of tear gas shells. The mob then went around the roads in J C Nagar police limits and pelted stones on buildings and shops.

Meanwhile in a replay of the morning’s incident, another pig’s head was found inside a Hebbal mosque, which led to tensions there, said Pujar. Some protestors staged a dharna near the Hebbal flyover, which obstructed traffic on the arterial roads.

Five platoons of reserved police forces have been deployed in the J C Nagar area and one DCP is exclusively looking after the law and order situation. Also, additional police forces have been posted in sensitive areas in the city, said Police Commissioner Shankar Bidari.

A Peace Committee meeting was held under the leadership of Wakf Minister Dr Mumtaz Ali Khan, attended by about 50 citizens of the area.

MUSLIM MOB ATTACKS HINDU PILGRIMS IN INDIA

newindpress. July 12, 2008

West Bengal, India (AINA)

A mob of nearly 7000 Muslims attacked a group of Hindu pilgrims in West Bengal, a state in Eastern India that borders Bangladesh on the west. According to a Hindu blog, a sacred Hindu site frequented by Hindu pilgrims, including women and children, has experienced a sustained attack since Thursday evening. Muslims have thrown gas cylinders and Molotov cocktails at the pilgrims, burning down the camp building and trapping 180 men, women and children, along with fifteen police officers, within the confines of the compound.

The Muslims attempted to breach the wall of the compound by exploding gas cylinders against it. The fifteen police officers have not been able to disperse the mob, even after firing several rounds.

Fifteen people have been injured; seven of them are critically injured and are not expected to survive. Two victims could not be identified because of serious facial burns. Nine victims are missing and are believed to have been kidnapped by the Muslims. Two police officers have been injured.

The police have issued an arrest warrant against the Hindu leader, Sri Tapan Kumar Ghosh, and 15 other Hindus. They are charged with "Incitement and Instigation for Rioting" and "Disruption of Communal Harmony."

Land Transfer to Hindu Site Inflames Kashmir Muslims

New York Times. June 28, 2008

SRINAGAR, Kashmir (Dar Yasin AP)

Tens of thousands of Muslim demonstrators filled the streets in Indian-controlled Kashmir on Friday, burning flags and effigies of Indian leaders on a fifth day of protests against the transfer of land to a Hindu shrine.

Protesters clashed with riot police officers in several parts of Srinagar, the main city in the region, which has a Muslim majority. The police responded with tear gas, said Prabhakar Tripathi, a spokesman for the Central Reserve Police Force.

Three people have died and dozens of others, including at least 22 police officers, have been wounded since Monday, as the police have struggled to control angry mobs protesting the transfer of 99 acres of land by the state government to the Shri Amarnath Shrine Board, a trust running the popular Hindu shrine.

Protesters accuse the Indian government of planning to build Hindu settlements in India’s only Muslim-majority state in an effort to change the demographic balance in the region.

Anti-Indian sentiment is strong in Kashmir, where nearly a dozen militant groups have been fighting since 1989 for independence or a merger with neighboring Pakistan. But Kashmiris had been enjoying a period of relative calm until this week’s protests, which rank among the angriest displays in two decades.

In an effort to ease tensions, the chief minister of the state of Jammu and Kashmir, Ghulam Nabi Azad, promised Wednesday that there would be no construction on the transferred land and pledged to meet with local political parties to address the protesters’ grievances.

The Amarnath shrine is a cave that houses a large ice stalagmite revered by Hindus as an incarnation of Shiva, the god of destruction and reproduction. Hundreds of thousands of Hindus are descending on the area as part of an annual pilgrimage to the cave.

This year, as in the past, thousands of soldiers are guarding the pilgrims’ route. In previous years, the pilgrims made tempting targets for militant Islamist separatists, who claim that India, which has a Hindu majority, uses the event to bolster its claim over the Kashmir region.

US GOVT STRONGLY CONDEMNS CHINA FOR ITS CRACKDOWN ON CHINESE MUSLIMS

WASHINGTON (AFP)
US lawmakers "strongly condemned" what they called Beijing's harsh pre-Olympic crackdown in China's Muslim-populated far northwest Xinjiang region. The bipartisan leadership of the Congressional Human Rights Caucus in a statement cited "credible" reports about a July 9 conviction in a closed trial of 15 minority Muslim Uighurs on terrorism charges that led to "the immediate execution of two" of them. Three others were given suspended death sentences and the remaining 10 received life imprisonment, it said.

These are "abuses of due process and rule of law," said Caucus co-chairman Democrat Jim McGovern and Republican Frank Wolf. On the same day, they said, police in Urumchi, the regional capital of Xinjiang, reportedly killed five Uighur men who authorities claimed were part of a 15-member criminal gang allegedly trained for "holy war." "The Chinese government should not be permitted to use the 'war on terror' or Olympic security as a front to persecute the Uighurs," Wolf said.

"These trials' appear to be no more than a ploy to oppress religious freedom and ethnic minority groups," he said.

MUSLIM POLITICIANS IN MISSOURI:

From the Muslim politicians in Missouri, we have nominated Sister. Jameela Nasheed in our directory of AMERICAN UMMAH'S WHO'S WHO.

SPOT LIGHT ON SISTER. JAMEELA NASHEED:

A recent announcement was made during Friday's Khutba by the Imam of Masjid Al Muiminun encouraging the local residents to vote on the three Muslims listed below. Voting is scheduled on August 5th, 2008.

LOCAL MUSLIMS PUSH TO RE-ELECT SISTER JAMEELA NASHEED:

Rep. Jamilah Nasheed was elected to the Missouri House of Representatives in 2006. She is a member of Appropriations Committee, Rep. Nasheed, a Democrat, represents part of St. Louis City (District 60) in the Missouri House of Representatives. She was elected to the House in November 2006. Rep. Nasheed is a small business owner in St. Louis City. Rep. Nasheed serves as the Vice-Chairperson Women in the Democratic Caucus and Vice-Chairperson of the Freshman Democratic Caucus. In addition to her legislative duties, Rep. Nasheed is a member of the St. Louis Public Schools Role Model Program and the Lexington Mentor Program. She is also an active member of the St. Louis Association of Colored Women’s Club.

Rep. Nasheed was born in St. Louis, Missouri, where she currently resides with her husband, Fahim Nasheed. Sister Nasheed grew up with her grandmother. Her father was killed in a drive-by-shooting while her mother was pregnant with her. And later her mother, due to depression had killed herself when Nasheed was just two years old.

(ED NOTE: Many individuals face difficulties in different and unique ways. As indicated above in the case of Sister Nasheed, she perceived it as a challenge and still moved ahead to climb the ladder of success. In some cases, certain negative developments in one's life may indeed slow down the rate of progress of one's life in terms of achieving success, while in certain other cases, the individual may scapegoat such a negative development to be characterized as "Oh, poor me". For example, "Oh, if only my parents were not divorced I would have been way up in my life by now". Ex. President Gerald Ford was also raised by his step-father and went on to take the most powerful position (President of USA) in the world.)

Despite being a orphan Nasheed had climbed up the ladder of success and is a HOPE and BECON to all Muslims especially Muslim women. Nasheed became an activist and co-founded URBAN ACADEMY FOR POLITICAL DEVELOPMENT. She went up against Missour Dept of Transportation and MetroLink for their allegedly unequal hiring practices. She was on the frontline in protest of the St. Louis Public Schools's controversial multi-million dollar contract with a consulting firm.

In her second year in the Missouri State Legislature she was appointed to the House Budget Committee- one of the State's most influential assignments because of itts role in determining grevenue allocation. She introduced HB21, a bill that expanded the prior scholarship based A plus School Program,. Nasheed's bill, which the Governor Matt Blunt redcently signed into law, opens the community college scholarship to all students based on their own performance instead of district accrfeditation status. "It was a good time for the bill because Pell Grants are being cut and deserving students witht a 2.5 GPA can go to a two year community college or vocational school for free, " Nasheed explained.

She has plans for a bill to abolish sales tax on food, as have morre than 30 other states in the nation. (St. Louis American, July 31-Aug6, 2008)

SECOND MUSLIM POLITICIAN: Br. Talibdin El-Amin

RE-ELECT Talibdin El-Amin as Missouri’s State Representative 57th District:

JUSTICE: HOUSE CONCURRENT RESOLUTION 22: Standing for justice, Rep. El-Amin issues a call to officially apologize for Missouri’s role in slavery. “Change is fundamental to our existence. As a change agent for the 57th District, I hold a personal obligation to improving the quality of life and the pursuit of equality for residents like you”. By voting for me on August 5, 2008 you help to ensure that progress is no longer a remnant, but rather a possibility in the 57th districts foreseeable future.

THANK YOU FOR YOUR SUPPORT.

Democrat for State Representative – 57th District. Talibdin El-Amin.

THIRD MUSLIM POLITICIAN: Khatib Waheed

Please Elect: Khatib Waheed as Missouri’s 26th Ward Committeeman “I am committed to being responsive, accessible, supportive of the community’s needs for continued progress and unity in the 26th ward”. – Khatib Waheed 26th Ward Committeeman.

LONDON - JUDGED AS THE NUMBER ONE CITY IN THE WESTERN WORLD TO HAVE THE MOST DIVERSE ISLAMIC ACTIVITIES:

We as Editors of VOGU have been to London, Paris, Munich, Rome, Madrid, Toronto, Istanbul, New York, Chicago, Los Angeles and many other cities. We also researched on the number of Islamic activities of various cities.

Undoubtedly, LONDON stands NUMBER ONE IN THE WESTERN WORLD. They have already implemented, what we have been saying all along, that is, please do not SPIRITUALLY FREEZE IN TIME by just confining as most Islamic Centers do by offering five times prayers, Friday prayers, Ramadan Tarawee prayers and a symbolic program during every Sunday afternoon. As seen from a sample below, they are far ahead than any city in the United States or Canada or in Europe in offering the diversity of Islamic programs. OUR CONGRATULATIONS TO EACH AND EVERY MUSLIM IN LONDON THAT WORKED IN THEIR OWN WAY AND CAPACITY TO MAKE ABOVE A REALITY AND SPECIAL THANKS TO "ISLAMIC CIRCLES" TO CONSTANTLY UPDATE US WITH ABOVE INFORMATION. "WE ARE INDEED ONE UMMAH"

BELOW IS A SAMPLE OF THEIR DIVERSE ACTIVITIES TOUCHING VARIOUS DISCIPLINES.

NEW GROUP FOR TEENAGE MUSLIMAHS IN SW LONDON

Young Mu'minat (IYM): New club designed for young Muslim girls aged from 11-17 where Muslimahs can socialize and take part in a variety of fun activites and Islamic talks in a relaxed environment. Activities include: Getting to know you event, Group intro Meeting new people, Exchange of ideas

For more information please contact:
Tel: 07725163726 / 07871687882
E-mail: iym@live.co.uk

LEGAL ADVICE CLINIC AT Q.M.T

"And if you judge, judge between them justly
Allah loves the just" (Quran 5:42)

Free legal advice includes Family law, wills & probate,
employment, commercial, litigation and other areas.

Dates: 2nd Sunday of each month
Sunday 17 August : Sunday 14 September
Sunday 19 October : Sunday 16 November : Sunday 14 December

Times: Asr - Maghrib
Venue: Qur'ani Murkuz Trust, 10-14 Mulberry Way, South Woodford, E18 1AQ

By appointment only

For more information please call 07801 267 584


RECRUITMENT FOR YOUTH PROGRAM AT JIMAS 2008

Are you passionate about nurturing Iman?
Are you enthusiastic and creative?
Do you love making a difference in the life of children?
Are you free during the August bank holiday weekend this year?
Yes? then WE WANT YOU!

The JIMAS Youth Programme is a two day learning event for children held every year during the renowned August bank holiday JIMAS conference in Leicester.

The programme aims to take children through a series of learning acitivities to enhance their iman and examine issues related to the conference theme in a child-friendly way.

It is a unique and intensive experience in which commited and talented volunteers each lead a group of children between the ages of 8 and 13yrs, facilitating their learning, helping them have fun and safeguarding their welfare.

We are in the process of recruiting volunteers: places are limited so apply early to win the opportunity to earn valuable experience working with and teaching children as well as the du'as of those children and their parents and the awesome reward of Allah in this life and the next -bi-idhn-Illah.


At the Youth Programme you will have the great blessing of inspiring and planting seeds of iman in the hearts and minds of children.

If you are one of those unique individuals who put aside their own comfort and strive to do good for Allah's pleasure and you love inspiring children and have relevant experience of working with children, do not delay: Send a copy of your CV with the contact details (email address, mobile numbers & addresses) of two referees and a copy of a recent CRB check with a brief covering letter introducing yourself and why you would like to take part, to:

Youth Program Coordinator,
619-625 Green Lane,
Ilford, Essex, IG3 9RP

EMOTIONAL SUPPORT SERVICE FOR MUSLIMS

Muslim Community Helpline* available to provide emotional support and guidance to the community. Staffed by experienced former-members of Muslim Women's Helpline.

Telephone numbers: 0208 904 8193 / 0208 908 6713 (Mon-Fri, 10am to 1pm core hours, other times according to staff availability).

Email (not for counseling): ess4m@btinternet.com

*MUSLIM COMMUNITY HELPLINE is An independent emotional support service for Muslims provided by experienced former-MWHL counselors.

Address: MCH, PO Box 803, Harrow HA1 9DY.

FREE WEEKLY WALK-IN COUNSELING AND MEDIATION SERVICES

Date: Every Saturdays
Time: 5pm - 7pm
Venue: Froud Centre, Romford Road, Manor Park, London, E12 5JF

This service has been organised due to the increasing number of social problems within the Muslim community and the pitiful lack of support from mosques and Muslim organisationsin addressing such issues. The sessions will be run by experienced and practicing Muslim counsellors, and both brothers and sisters will be available. We hope to offer a confidential and professional service to all Muslims with concerns ranging from personal, social, family or academic worries to longer term, often more complex, psychological problems. Attendees will benefit from a one-to-one service. We will also be joined by the Muslim Mediation Service* who will be offering one-to-one drop in sessions with a Muslim Mediator, where you can discuss any matters arising from any conflicts you are experiencing within the home or the community free of charge.

*The Muslim Mediation Service has been resolving family and community conflicts since 2003. Their trained and experienced Mediators have been supporting individuals, parents and children and couples facing disputes by working with them to resolve their issues through listening, understanding and communicating effectively.

Please note that the initial session will be free and if the person requires further help then they would need to contact alternative services or the individual counsellors themselves. All are welcome.

For more information please contact: Tel: 07909 941 179 Mediation: 079410 22 371 E-mail: counselling@islamiccircles.org

CONTRIBUTIONS OF MUSLIM WOMEN IN HISTORY

With Sisters Shahnaz and Rizwana

Date: Saturday 2nd August 2008
Time: 2pm - 5pm
Venue: 447-451 Romford Rd, Forest Gate, London E7 8AB

All women welcome

For more information please contact:
Tel: 020 8555 6258 / 07905149767
E-mail: info@iza.org.uk

KNIFE CRIME, CAN RELIGION SAVE OUR YOUTH?

Date: Sunday 3rd August 2008
Time: 4pm
Venue: Tooting Leisure Centre, Greaves Place (off Garratt lane)
London SW17 ONE

With the recent spate of knife crimes in London, particularly south London, Hizb ut Tahrir will hold a debate to discuss the issues behind the youth knife crime epidemic and whether religion can provide answers to this societal crisis.

Key issues to be tackled include: Why is youth violence getting worse? What is modern youth culture based on? How can we re-educate youth? Is society as a whole losing its moral values? Is there a consistent secular moral code? Do only religious people have morals? What is the way forward?

All welcome and free entrance For more information please visit: www.hizb.org.uk

ISLAM CENTRAL - FIRST MAGAZINE FOR MUSLIM STUDENTS:

info@islamcentral.co.uk

On this world we are all students, Islam Central is UK’s 1st Magazine for Muslim Students. Our aim is to spread Islamic Dawah across UK and the world, we aim to take the Ummah to a place never been before, beyond the duniya and the materialistic world, there is a world of everlasting comfort where the world of Islamic beauty lies and where the soul attains nothing but peace. Join us on this remarkable journey to this everlasting resting place at www.islamcentral.co.uk.

Our magazine will include amazing and engaging articles along with the amazing 7 part special of the Sacred Night Journey, Laylatul Miraj, with beautiful Islamic poetry, haddith, real stories and much more.

Our magazine will Inshallah go out FREE at universities across the UK, however only limited copies can be distributed. Therefore we are offering a cheap subscription to those Muslims who will not have the magazine distributed at their university and to those who are not in the UK. The Subscription will entitle you to receive every edition in the year sent straight to your doorstep.

Also for a limited time only we are offering the 1st edition PDF version of the magazine for ONLY 50p !!! We will email you the magazine. Do not miss this opportunity.

Also take advantage of our other offers such as the Student Survival Sack, this sack contains the 7 most essential items a Muslim needs to survive.

Not forgetting the famous Al Furqan Islamic iPod for £89.99, £10 cheaper than any ware else.

Or why not pre-order you Rhymes of Praise Nasheed CD from Labbayk and has it shipped out on the day it is released?

Make the most of it, go to the website and join us on this incredible journey

Jazak Allah
Islam Central Team
www.islamcentral.co.uk

UPDATED REPORT FROM I.C.C.T - NEW ZEALAND:

(If you recall, we had published an appeal for help from ICCCT a Muslim Organization who is helping orphans in Sri-Lanka. Are certain charity organizations like politicians who make sure to contact their constituents only before elections to garner their votes in terms of the charity organizations coming to the donars primarily during the month of Ramadan ? Of course ICCCT has been different in terms of periodically updating us of their progress and developments. WE REALLY APPRECIATE SUCH PERIODIC UPDATES. While we may not be able to publish all such updates, below is one update we felt happy to publish)

"Assalamaualaikum Warahamathullahi Wabarakathuhu,

Allah SWT made it possible to complete the well project for the orphanage on 7/7/08. The well is 16.5' deep from the ground, 4' above the ground and 10.5' in diameter.

Because the rock beneath the ground has to be blasted to dig, water is gushing forth from the spring beneath. Alhamdulillah! Our brothers from Sri Lanka report that while the wells in the neighbourhood area do not have water because of the draught in the area, it is Allah's Nihmath that this well has abundance of water and they have decided to allow villagers in the neighbourhood to fetch drinking water from the well.

You will receive merit for this Sadaqat-ul-Jariyah even after death, Insha Allah. This was made possible due to the generous contribution made by you and savings made by our volunteers of ICC on the overhead cost from your contribution to sponsor an orphan.

For further information, please visit: http://www.iccct.org/

Please pray for our volunteers worldwide who are devoting their time, money and effort towards this noble cause.

May Allah accept your Ibada! Aameen!

Fee Amanillah!
Alhaj DR A Sheik Muhammed Ali
6 Margaret Avenue
Mt Albert
Auckland 1003
New Zealand
Tel:+649 815 0700

Al Qur'an: And give to the orphans their property, and do not substitute worthless (things) for (their) good (ones), and do not devour their property (as an addition) to your own property; this is surely a great crime. (Chapter #4, Verse #2)

AlQur'an: (As for) those who swallow the property of the orphans unjustly, surely they only swallow fire into their bellies and they shall enter burning fire. (Chapter #4, Verse #10)

Muslim translation : Abu Huraira reported that Allah's Messenger (may peace be upon him) said: One who looks after the orphan whether he is his relative or not, I and he would be together in Paradise like this, and Malik (explained it) with the gesture by drawing his index finger and middle finger close together . (Book #042, Hadith #7108)

PICTURES FROM PAKISTAN:

As usual, please feel free to e-mail your comments to amyusuf786@yahoo.com.

VOICE OF GLOBAL UMMAH

Volume 38, July 27, 2008

St. Louis, Missouri

Editors: Mohamed & Rashida Ziauddin

In the Name of Allah, the Most Beneficent and the Most Merciful

EDITORIAL:

We received an email from Sister Mumtaz of Bangalore, India titled "Flight Details". We found, it had deep meaning and ample food for thought. It is also a wake up call particularly for those who are blindly caught up with the contemporary rat race in this materialistic world at the expense of preparation for the hereafter. It is also a reminder for those with various forms of materialistic and worldly addictions, that we have limited time and our life's clock is ticking, one day at a time and with each passing day, we are coming one day closer to take the below mentioned flight. We felt it was important enough to have it as the FOCUS OF THE WEEK for this issue.

FOCUS OF THE WEEK: "Flight Details"

"Assalamualikum Warahmatullahi Wa Barkata hu

You may be thinking, 'What flight details. It is not me planning to send you anywhere...?!'

Read on and you'll see what trip we're talking about.

IN THE NAME OF ALLAH, MOST GRACIOUS, MOST MERCIFUL

FLIGHT DETAILS:

Ticket Type: One-way

Price: Absolutely free (booking confirmed).

Passenger Details:

Name: One of the Children of Adam.

Origins: From clay.

Address: Planet Earth.


Conditions Of Travel:

Departure: From life on earth.

Destination: Eternal life.

Stop-over: Hotel (2 meters under the ground, for one person)

Duration of flight: From couple of seconds to several millions of years.

Departure time: Time of death: Exact time is unknown (but it can happen earlier than expected)

Arrival time: On the Judgment Day (not specified in the timetable)

Information About Interrogation: On the arrival to the hotel (grave):

Incorruptible Auditors - two angels: Munkar & Nakir, will immediately start questioning. Three questions will be asked:

1. Who is your GOD?

2. Who is your Prophet?

3. What is your Religion?

Questions will follow about your life on earth.

For more information, refer to 27th Ayah of Sura 'Ibrahim' of the Holy Quran.

Luggage:

1. Despite the fact that the air transfers only one passenger at a time, there are some restrictions on the amount of baggage that you can take with you.

2. You can take with you 5 meters of white cloth

3. Any items of material life of earth are strictly forbidden.

4. Realistic luggage should consist of good deeds, modest behavior and of well spent time on calling people to Islam.

Important instructions:

All the passengers should remember that tickets are not exchangeable or refundable. This journey is compulsory for representatives of all races, nationalities, religions and of all ages. Delays are not stipulated.

Captain:

Angel of Death will not compromise on changing the date and time of departure.

For more information: Read instructions, which you can find in The Holy Qur'aan and Sunnah, you could also consult scholars. Please do it as soon as possible.

During your journey you will not be provided with oxygen mask, as your breathing system will be terminated just before the departure time.

Additional instructions: You don't need to take care of your boarding pass, passport and other travel documents.

To prepare for a comfortable flight:

Pray 5 times a day.

Read the Holy Quran.

Follow the Sunnah to the best of your ability and be ready for your flight, as you may have to depart any minute (even now)

Final warning:

Final destination depends on you! Please do not waste your time on planet earth.

Remember, you have one-way ticket:, Either to Hell or to Paradise ; Jahannam OR Janna. Hence read & practice the instructions from the manuals (Qur'an and Sunnah) carefully and follow to reach JANNAH. Insha ALLAH , with HIS Grace, We all will meet there in the Gardens of Jannah. The Prophet (PBUH) said "Pass on knowledge from me even if it is only one verse".

Allah Hafeez"

As usual, feel free to e-mail your valuable comments to amyusuf786@yahoo.com

VOICE OF GLOBAL UMMAH:

Volume 37, July 20, 2008

St. Louis, Missouri


Editors: Mohamed and Rashida Ziauddin


In the Name of Allah, the Most Beneficent and the Most Merciful


HONOR KILLINGS - ACTIONS OF MISGUIDED MUSLIMS


Condensed verse from Holy Quran: "Save a Life, Save All Humanity--Take a Life, Kill All Humanity"

Editorial:

Recently we have seen an increase in the number of honor killings and honor attacks against our Muslim sisters by our own members of the UMMAH who as a family member of their victims have become self-styled judges and executioners with total disregard to the gems of Islam and the laws of their land in which they reside.

IS THIS A SYMPTOM OF A LARGER PROBLEM ?

In terms of communication pattern among the global UMMAH, basically there are two types. The majority of the UMMAH seem to be passive while a small minority who are aggressive have taken the UMMAH literally as hostage and in the eyes of the Islamophobes, they have become the "poster child" representing ISLAM as a religion of violence and intolerance.

On an organizational level such aggressive minority Muslims represent the terrorist organizations, while on an individual level, such aggressive minority represent the murderers involved in honor killing. The common point is that above both types of minority aggressive groups (wrongly) ascribe their actions to the peaceful religion of ISLAM. There are certain Muslims who scapegoat the WEST for their problems and they are WRONG, while the non-Muslims who blame ISLAM for the honor killings are also WRONG.

FROM A POINT OF VIEW OF STYLE OF COMMUNICATION, WHAT IS REALLY NEEDED IS A SHIFT BY THE MAJORITY OF THE UMMAH FROM BEING "PASSIVE" TO "ASSERTIVE". For example, if Islam is being defamed, instead of immediately getting emotional and running amuck destroying property or attacking innocents, the shift should be to express our disapproval ASSERTIVELY THROUGH ALL POSSIBLE ALTERNATIVE PEACEFUL MEANS.

Chapter 2, verse 256: Let there be no compulsion in religion: Truth stands out clear from Error: whoever rejects evil and believes in Allah hath grasped the most trustworthy hand-hold, that never breaks. And Allah heareth and knoweth all things.

Starting from the Imams who give eloquent speeches in the pulpits of Masjids to expression by the members of the UMMAH in various other ways, we need to emphasize that HONOR KILLINGS should not only be prohibited but strongly condemned.

Allah says in the Holy Quran :Chapter 5, verse 32,

"On that account: We ordained for the Children of Israel that if any one slew a person--unless it be for murder or for spreading mischief in the land--it would be as if he slew the whole people: and if anyone saved a life, it would be as if he saved the life of the whole people".

From a psychological perspective, each and every individual has a "self-talk" and a perception of what others would think of their actions. Unfortunately for the perpetrators of the honor killings, they have a dysfunctional and faulty self-talk and deviated perception of what others would think of their specific actions.

One such example would be of a perpetrator who feels that most of the Muslims would be sympathetic towards his actions. He may assume that they would think on the following lines:

"Which father would kill his own daughter. Obviously his love for Islam and his love for Allah was so great that it superseded his love for his own daughter and since she violated the Islamic codes, he had to do what he had to do to uphold Islam".

Thus far there is no consensus on a single reason to fully explain honor killings and there are many perspectives to it. Some argue that it is not just confined to Islam and is found practised by people of other religions too and therefore it is more a cultural practice than a religious practice. While others such as Ajay Nair (indicated below) believes that it is a anomaly and the real problem is domestic violence.

When CNN consulted Ajay Nair, Associate Dean of Multicultural affairs at Columbia University, to see if honor killing was a “South Asian” problem. Certainly not, explained Nair: “My immediate reaction was that this is an anomaly in the South Asian community. This isn’t a rampant problem within South Asian communities. What is a problem, I think, is domestic violence, and that cuts across all communities.”

As far as honor killings in the Muslim community is concerned, the most common point found in almost all cases is the wide differences in the value systems between the perpetrator and the victim.

The perpetrator has an extremist & deviant Islamic ideology which usually is hand in glove with being INTOLERANT. In most cases because of parent's faulty & dysfunctional upbringing the victim has alienated herself from being a practicing Muslim.

The perpetrator Chaudhry Rashid killed his 25 year old married daughter (mentioned as one of the examples of honor killings below) because of "marriage related" issues. The specific cause of murder in her context is generally not the norm but an exception in honor killings. There are thousands of Muslim and non-Muslim married women who are currently dissatisfied with their current marriages OR hundreds of Muslim and non-Muslim women who prefer to remain single for the rest of their lives and have told their fathers about it. There is no evidence whatsoever that the Muslim women have been murdered by their fathers at a higher rate than non-Muslim women due to the above two reasons.

Coming back to the perpetrators of honor killings, although claiming to be devout Muslims they generally care less about above mentioned Quranic verse prohibiting murder nor do they emulate in practice our beloved Prophet Mohamed (SAW) kind and loving treatment towards all his family members including spouses and children with ZERO incidents of abuse towards his family members.

We would argue that honor killing is not only a criminal offense against the local laws of perpetrators homeland, but also an act that is a violation of Islamic code and the perpetrator should be punished to the fullest extent of the law.

There are several reasons that result in such a sad tragedy. Honor killing is generally on the extreme end of the spectrum. Suicide by a Muslim youth or teenager or young adult female due to conflict with parents or husband is also a tragedy. Besides the above two tragedies, there are millions of hard working, sincere, honest Muslim parents struggling to do their best to raise their children to be practicing Muslims against all odds. As you read this article, there may be many parent-child conflicts escalating in the homes of many Muslim families.

Typically a Muslim child in a western country experiences two different cultures one in the non-Muslim community and the other at his or her own home. While Churches have Christian Counseling Programs in place to encourage their members to receive support and solutions to resolve their marital, parent-child and family conflicts, how many Islamic Centers offer the same ? WE ARE ONE UMMAH RIGHT ? WE SHOULD BE THERE FOR ONE ANOTHER, IF NOT ACROSS THE WORLD, AT LEAST IN OUR LOCAL COMMUNITY, RIGHT ?

The dynamics of each Muslim family is different and the issue of Islamic-Psycho-Social development is a complex one. While we will not delve into details we would like to spotlight few aspects that play a very critical role in our Muslim youth getting deviated from Islam.

Many Muslim parents focus on the periodic aspects of Islam in terms of attending Friday prayers, both Idd prayers, Tarawee during the month of Ramzan etc but are not proactive FROM THE START in terms of raising their children in an Islamic line in terms of day-to-day life. It is understandable that all families cannot go to Islamic Center even once everyday for prayers due to various reasons, but can they do family jamaat prayers at least once each day (if not 5 times) WITHIN THEIR OWN HOME ?

What percentage of Muslim families do at least one time prayer as a group. How many Muslim families have posted a schedule of the Islamic prayer times at their home and compare such numbers or percentage to other decorative pieces and art displayed in the home ? Should we be generous and not include such display in the rooms of our teenagers while calculating percentages ? The importance given to Islam varies from family to family and from each member to the other member of the same family.

There was a huge advertisement board along a particular freeway sponsored by a Church that said: A FAMILY THAT PRAYS TOGETHER, STAYS TOGETHER. What percentage of Muslim families are actively involved in Islamic activities including volunteer work at local Islamic Centers ? How many Muslim parents have been able to guide their children to practice Islam voluntarily without use of harsh disciplinary methods and verbal abuse which they adopted from the previous generation. THE REALITY IS THAT MANY MUSLIM PARENTS DO NOT HAVE THE TOOLS IN TERMS OF LATEST ISLAMIC PSYCHO THERAPEUTIC TECHNIQUES to be able to guide their children in Islamic way without any force but purely from the heart for the love of Allah.

How many Islamic friendly support groups have you found in local Islamic Centers that are available for parents who have hard time dealing with their children, anger management groups, stress management groups, special group for Muslim teenagers et.c ? Could the existence of such groups been a proactive step from the Ummah to reduce the percentages of suicides, honor killings et.c.


Parents are quick to tell their teenage children NOT TO DO THIS or NOT TO DO THAT but WHAT ALTERNATIVES DO THEY HAVE TO OFFER THE TEENAGERS TO DO INSTEAD, SPECIALLY IN THEIR FREE TIME WHICH INCLUDES WEEKENDS AND VACATIONS ? In the absence of Islamic friendly activities which the local Islamic Centers could have organized and sponsored for the youth, many parents (to avoid the stress of dealing with the children) take the easiest route by giving an OK for the electronic baby sitter - TELEVISION (NO NEED TO PAY HOURLY WAGES). If the foundation of the child in terms of transmission of environmental information is absorbed for hundreds of hours from the child through the TV, IT IS BUT NATURAL for the same child to go to the next EXTENSION including but not limited to other electronic gadgets as they move towards adulthood. We are definitely NOT OPPOSED to TV in the house. What we are opposed to the number of hours an average child spends literally glued to the TV to the point that many of them cannot eat food unless they sit in front of the TV.

FOR SOME REASON, IT IS PERFECTLY OKAY FOR THE WHOLE FAMILY TO GET TOGETHER TO WATCH THE TV WHETHER WHILE EATING FOOD OR OTHERWISE, BUT SOMEHOW WHEN THE ISSUE IS RAISED TO PRAY TOGETHER, THEN.........SOME MEMBERS MAY INSTANTLY BECOME UNCOMFORTABLE ?

If you calculate in numbers, the amount of time the parents have allowed their child to watch regular TV programs and compare it to the time they have taken to expose their child to Islamic oriented education, training and activities, ONE SHOULD NEVER BE SURPRISED of the outcome of what an average child will grow up to be in terms of being a practicing Muslim or non-practicing Muslim. Are you then surprised to see a very low number of youth at the Islamic Centers ?

One of the biggest mistakes the parents make is to undervalue the impact that the TV is having on a child in terms of shaping the child's behavior, interests and values. WHEN TV, NON-ISLAMIC COMPANY OF FRIENDS, NON-ISLAMIC ENVIRONMENT AT PUBLIC SCHOOL ET.C ARE THE MAIN SOURCE OF CONTACT WITH THE GROWING CHILD, THERE CONTINUES A SUBTLE FORM OF ONGOING TRANSMISSION OF VALUES TO THE CHILD.

Compare and contrast above transmission of values TO ISLAMIC VALUES TRANSMITTED FROM THE PARENTS TO THE CHILD in terms of the time in clock hours spent by the parents directly or indirectly on the child, then you will be clear as to why the child has grown up to be what she or he is today, ESPECIALLY IN TERMS OF BEING DISCONNECTED FROM ISLAM in terms of being a practicing Muslim. To top it, add the factors of LOW SELF-ESTEEM which is common among MUSLIM CHILDREN and inappropriate disciplinary methods (verbal and physical abuse) to enforce Islam by parents, from such a negative combination what else do you expect ?

Thanks to the many Muslim Psychotherapists who distanced themselves from Islam, the UMMAH basically has been unable to learn proven and effective ISLAMIC PSYCHO THERAPEUTIC techniques that could have made it possible to bring a child in an Islamic line WITHOUT ABUSING THE CHILD and winning the child's heart towards ISLAM purely for the love of ISLAM.

In the absence of using advanced Islamic psycho therapeutic techniques, the only cushion that is most commonly used is TO PRAY ALLAH TO GUIDE OUR CHILDREN. Such prayers is definitely important but we argue why not back it up with practical implementation of above Islamic Psycho therapeutic techniques. (Our sister newsletter on "Islamic Psychotherapy" would be discussing such techniques in detail).

Below are several examples on the topic of honor killing. First example is of honor attack and the rest of honor killings:

HONOR KILLING IN THE UNITED STATES:

GEORGIA - I

HENRIETTA MUSLIM KNIFING CALLED "HONOR ATTACK"

Michael Zeigler • Staff writer

www. democratandchronicle.com

An immigrant from Afghanistan, Waheed Allah Mohammad, is accused of trying to murder his sister with a knife because he thought she had brought dishonor to their family

Infuriated because his younger sister was going to clubs, wearing immodest clothing and planning to leave her family for a new life in New York City, Waheed Allah Mohammad stabbed her outside their Henrietta home, prosecutors allege.

Afterward, he told Monroe County sheriff's investigators that he attacked his sister because she had disgraced their family and was a "bad Muslim girl," according to court documents.

Mohammad, 22, is scheduled to appear Friday in Monroe County Court on charges of attempted second-degree murder and first-degree assault in the May 8 attack on Fauzia A. Mohammad, age 19.

The case is the second in four years in Monroe County in which an immigrant from South Asia is alleged to have killed or tried to kill a family member over the perceived loss of family honor — an occurrence that is not uncommon in South Asia but is rare in the United States.

Although the defendants in both cases are Muslims, resorting to homicide to restore family honor in mostly Muslim South Asia is a custom that predates Islam, said Aly Nahas, a retired professor of pharmacology at the University of Rochester who is a student of Islamic tradition.

"In my belief, it has nothing to do with Islam," said Nahas, a practicing Muslim. "I know Islam well, and I do not believe it is Islamic. There is nothing in Islam that talks about honor killing."

Nahas said, however, that many Westerners don't accept his assertion.

"And they will not because it occurs in countries that have been Muslim for 1,000 years," he said. "People will ask, 'Why isn't it stopped?' I can't answer that."

According to the United Nations Population Fund, up to 5,000 women are killed each year in South Asia for allegedly disgracing their families.

Assistant District Attorney Joseph Waldorf, who is prosecuting Mohammad, declined to characterize the case as an "honor attack" or otherwise. Fauzia Mohammad is recovering from her wounds, Waldorf said.

Mohammad was charged after his sister was stabbed outside their family's apartment on Linhome Drive, west of East River Road and south of Jefferson Road.......

According to court documents, a female friend of Fauzia Mohammad had arranged to pick her up outside the apartment to take her to New York.

During a family argument that spilled outside, Waheed Mohammad is accused of retrieving a knife from his car and chasing his sister. He allegedly lunged at her with the knife and stabbed her multiple times.

"He described her as a 'bad Muslim girl' and (said) that he did not approve of her clothing," a sheriff's investigator said in court documents. "They argued and he got angry."

After the stabbing, Mohammad allegedly threw the knife into a pond behind the apartment and fled in his car. Deputies stopped Mohammad minutes later at East River and Jefferson roads. Divers recovered the knife later.

MZEIGLER@DemocratandChronicle.com

GEORGIA - II

Atlanta, Georgia (CNN)
7/8/2008

A Pakistani man is charged with killing his 25-year-old daughter in Georgia because she wanted out of an arranged marriage, police said. Somber and tearful, Chaudhry Rashid, 54, of Jonesboro, an Atlanta suburb, made his first court appearance Tuesday in connection with the death of Sandeela Kanwal.

He was advised through an interpreter of the murder charge, and of his legal rights.

He was arrested early Sunday, after his wife called police at about 2 a.m. She reported that she had been awakened by screaming but couldn't understand the language, a Clayton County police report said. She said she was afraid and left the house to call police.

Officers found Kanwal dead in an upstairs bedroom of the home, according to the police report.

Rashid's wife told authorities Kanwal recently had been married in Pakistan -- an arranged marriage, she said. The young woman's husband was living in Chicago, Illinois, police said, but Kanwal remained at her father's home and worked at a metro Atlanta Wal-Mart for a brief time.

"The victim was not interested in marrying, nor remaining married to her husband," the police report said, citing information authorities received from Rashid's wife. "This was causing a great deal of friction between the victim and her father," so much so that the two had not spoken in two months, the report said.

Police found Rashid sitting behind a vehicle in the driveway, and he seemed "distraught and possibly mournful," the report said. He told police, "My daughter is dead." But when asked how she died, Rashid did not answer -- "he just dropped his head."...

When Rashid appeared before a judge, Chaudhry Rashid insisted: “I have done nothing wrong.”

OHIO

The trial of two men accused of killing their cousin in what is being call an "honor killing," began Monday. (Newsnet5.com 4/25/2000)

Methal Dayem, a 22-year-old Cleveland State student, was murdered more than a year ago. Prosecutors say that Dayem's own cousins killed her, because she was turning her back on an arranged marriage from her Palestinian-Arab culture.

Musa Saleh and Yezen Dayem were arrested for the so-called "honor killing" -- an outdated medieval custom that's illegal in the United States.

NewsChannel5 reports that the defense attorney for Saleh argued against any jurors being on the panel who might have biases against Arabs. He also argued against the use of the term "honor killing," saying it might inflame the jury.

"One of the issues I'd like to raise today is that none of this evidence should be admissible," Saleh's defense attorney Jerome Emoff said.

Emoff says that "honor killing" has sinister overtones and might give jurors the impression of guilt before the trial starts.

Prosecutors say that "honor killing" was the cousins' words. That's how they say Saleh and his cousin described the killing during an interview with police.

"It's a reference to his knowledge about that crime and why it occurred," Assistant County Prosecutor Carmen Marino told the court. "It shows evident knowledge about the reason why that crime occurred. He's not guessing this was an honor killing. He said this was an Arab tradition, and this was an honor killing."

The defense asked the judge to ban the "honor killing" phrase, but Judge Brian Corrigan agreed with prosecutors that it could be a legitimate motive for the murder.

TEXAS

(Amina and Sarah were shot to death in their father's taxi)

The girls’ great aunt, Gail Gartrell, told reporters, “This was an honor killing.” She explained that Yaser Said had long abused the girls, and after discovering that they had boyfriends, had threatened to kill them -- whereupon their mother fled with them. “She ran with them,” said Gartrell, “because she knew he would carry out the threat.” But Said found them, and apparently did carry it out.

Honor killing, the practice of murdering a female family member who is believed to have sullied the family honor, enjoys widespread acceptance in some areas of the Islamic world.

However, Islam Said, the brother of Amina and Sarah, has denied that the murders had anything to do with Islam at all. “It’s not religion,” he insisted. “It’s something else. Religion has nothing to do with it.”

CANADA:

(Aqsa Parvez - Victim of honor killing. Perpetrators: Her father and brother angry over her not wearing hijab, and leading a unislamic lifestyle. )

HONOR KILLING IN TURKEY

"The Zaman" July 12, 2008

Honor killing perpetrators welcomed by society, study reveals. A study being conducted by a team from Dicle University in the Southeast on honor killings has so far shown that little if any social stigma is attached to the act.

Anthropologists, sociologists, psychologists and social workers are involved in the study, due to conclude in August. Associate Professor Mazhar Bagli from Dicle
University Department of Sociology is supervising the study. The team visited 44 prisons in the region and interviewed 180 perpetrators of honor killings. Of these, 100 percent say they do not regret their actions, Professor Bagli notes. In some cases, the victim’s relatives even praised the perpetrator, he adds.

Causes of honor killings vary. “It is not appropriate to associate honor killings with only one section of society. Some people think that it is related to a feudal structure, but this has proven to be false. There are also perpetrators who are well-educated university graduates. Of all those surveyed, 60 percent are either high school or university gradates or at the very least, literate. The victims of honor killing are not always women; males have also been targeted,” Bagli says.

He also drew attention to a misperception in the society concerning the motive. “These murders are not motivated by rumors such as ‘she wore blue jeans,’ ‘she sent an SMS to her boyfriend’ or ‘she went to the park.’” Suggesting an illegitimate sexual relationship as the primary reason for the murders, Bagli said cheating is an unforgivable act in the Southeast, even for a woman who “cheats” after divorcing her husband by remarrying.

“The ultimate punishment in such a situation is death. Both the groom’s and the bride’s families agree on this. Murder becomes inevitable when honor is at stake and turning to murder in such a situation is seen as a respectable act by the society,” he said.

Bagli also emphasized the importance of raising public awareness and introducing punishments for perpetrators to deter them from carrying out an honor killing. “If we sit and do nothing, we will continue witnessing these tragic events,” he warned.

He also noted the final report to be produced by the study will be forwarded to relevant institutions, organizations and NGOs in one-and-a-half months, when the study is expected to conclude.

HONOR KILLINGS IN THE UNITED KINGDOM

Mohammed Riaz made every conceivable attempt to prevent his wife and daughters enjoying their Westernised lifestyle. He destroyed their clothes - modest by Western standards but tight fitting by his own - when they came out of the wash and he railed against plans to allow alcohol at his terminally ill son's 18th birthday party - which had been brought forward because of his prognosis.

Increasingly alienated and in despair over the illness of his son, Adam, the labourer killed his wife and four daughters by throwing petrol over them as they slept and igniting it. At the inquest in Blackburn, Lancashire, yesterday the coroner, Mike Singleton, recorded a verdict that Caneze Riaz, 39, and her four daughters, Sayrah, 16, Sophia, 15, Alicia, 10, and Hannah, three, were unlawfully killed at their terrace home in Accrington, and that Mr Riaz, who died in hospital two days after the fire, took his own life. Adam died six weeks later.

Police investigations revealed how estranged Mr Riaz, a traditionalist and a practising Muslim who grew up in the North West Frontier Province of Pakistan, had become from his vivacious wife, a high-profile community worker who had co-founded the local Aawaz women's group, mentored teenage girls at a high school in nearby Rishton, and was a school governor and board member on several diversity groups. Mrs Riaz

The children flourished in Britain. The eldest daughter, Sayrah, was a "second mother" to her sisters, according to the family, and had a passion for fashion design; Sophia, 13, loved rap music and wanted to be an MC, while Alicia was the closest to her father. She embraced Asian culture the most and was a regular at the mosque....Early on 1 November last year, Mr Riaz decided the pressures were too much. As his wife and daughters slept in three upstairs bedrooms, he threw petrol over them and trailed more around the house, then lit three fires.

UNITED KINGDOM - PART II

LONDON (Reuters) - A Kurdish woman was brutally raped, stamped on and strangled by members of her family and their friends in an “honor killing” carried out at her London home because she had fallen in love with the wrong man.

Banaz Mahmod, 20, was subjected to the 2-1/2 hour ordeal before she was garroted with a bootlace. Her body was stuffed into a suitcase and taken about 100 miles to Birmingham where it was buried in the back garden of a house.

Her badly decomposed body was found in April 2006, three months after the killing.

Last month a jury found her father Mahmod Mahmod, 52, and his brother Ari Mahmod, 51, guilty of murder after a three-month trial. Their associate Mohamad Hama, 30, had earlier admitted killing her…

They believed Banaz had brought shame on the family by leaving her husband, an Iraqi Kurd she had been forced to marry at 17, and falling in love with Rahmat Suleimani, an Iranian Kurd.

PART III:

Samaira Nazir was a victim of honour killing.

In July 2006, 25-year old Samaira Nazir's killers were jailed for life. Her 21-year-old brother and teenage cousin murdered her for wanting to marry "an unsuitable boy". Campaigners say so-called "honour" murders in the UK are happening more often and that large numbers of British Asian women across the country are seeking help.

ITALY:

The case of Hina Salem whose mutilated body has been recovered from her parents' back garden in Italy reminds us that honour killing is still prevalent in Europe. Just as self-immolation is not a Buddhist tendancy, honour killing has no direct connection to religion. On the contrary such types of murder reflect patriarchial belief systems. The Killers are more often than not fathers or brothers who can not accept life decisions made by their sisters or daughters & thus kill their family members to preserve "honour". Hina was 20 years of age, her body was placed with head facing Mecca after her father and other male family members punished her for co-habitating with her 32 year old boyfriend.

EXAMPLES OF HONOR KILLINGS IN SWEDEN:

Abbas Rezai (2005): A 20-year-old Iranian man, gets killed in Hogsby. The motive is supposedly that his girlfriend’s family, who comes from Afghanistan, could not accept their relationship. The trial found the girlfriend’s brother guilty and fined him four years in institutional youth welfare and banishment from Sweden for life. Her parents are free. The lawyer of the mother to the murdered man is convinced that they planned the killing and has the opinion that they also should be sentenced for the murder.

A Kurdish Wife (2003): A 28-year-old Kurdish man stabs his one-year-younger wife with 37 slashes in Strangnas. The man did not accept that his wife wanted to get a divorce. The trial found him guilty and fined him ten years in prison and banishment from Sweden for life.

Fadime Sahindal (2002): A 26-year-old Kurdish girl, was killed in Uppsala in the evening of the 21st January. Her father did not accept that she had a Swedish boyfriend and wanted to have Swedish life style. The trial found her father guilty and he got a life sentence. Two months before she was killed she held a speech in the Swedish Parliament about her life and how she was treated by her family, relatives and Swedish authorities.

Pela Atroshi (1999): She was shot to death in Dhouk in Iraqi Kurdistan. Her sister called the Swedish police and reported the murder. Two uncles got a life sentence for the murder. The father is still wanted by the authorities.

Umea (1996): A 15-year-old Iraqi girl in Umea was killed by her brother and cousin after a party. The motive was that she had a Swedish life style.

Palestinian Girl (1994): A Palestinian man in Vastmanland killed his 18-year-old daughter when she refused to marry the man the father had chosen for her.

Parvin Kaboli

HONOR KILLING IN GERMANY:

(Hatin Surucu- Turkish immigrant in Germany)

As usual, feel free to email your comments at amyusuf786@yahoo.com