VOICE OF GLOBAL UMMAH

VOICE OF GLOBAL UMMAH
Volume 135, June 13, 2010
St. Louis, Missouri, USA

Editors: Mohamed & Rashida Ziauddin

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

EDITORIAL:

HAS JUSTICE BEEN SERVED FOR THE VICTIMS AND PERPETRATORS OF THE WORLD'S WORST INDUSTRIAL DISASTER ?

In the past week, June 7, 2010, the Bhopal Court in Bhopal, India convicted seven former senior employees of Union Carbide's Indian subsidiary of 'death by negligence' for their roles in the Bhopal gas tragedy that left an estimated 15,000 people dead more than a quarter century ago in the world's worst industrial disaster.

According to 12.06.2010 - Mayank Chhaya is a US-based writer and commentator in an article on Bhopal disaster (www.twocircles.net) wrote:

"Had a disaster comparable to Bhopal happened in Union Carbide's plant in the US, justice would have been long served, new stringent laws enacted, the guilty jailed and large sums of money paid out to the victims and their families"

According to one reader who commented on www.twocircles.net: (not verified)

"20,000 people died in the Bhopal Tragedy; but since "most" victims were Indian Muslims, the then State/Centre Govt. did not give a damn. (One Muslim dead, is one Muslim less; seems to have been the mindset). Thats why it was never a priority for any party (Congress, BJP, CPI-M, etc. etc). That is the ugly reality., uttered plainly".

9/11 (3500 casualties) changed world geo-politics., but Bhopal Tragedy showed Indian state's response and intent., most plainly.

HISTORY OF THE BHOPAL DISASTER AT THE INFAMOUS UNION CARBIDE PLANT (WHICH IS NOW A SUBSIDIARY OF DOW CHEMICALS)

On December 3, 1984, a Union Carbide Corporation pesticide plant in Bhopal leaked around 32 tons of toxic gases, including methyl isocyanate gas which lead to the worst industrial disaster to date. The official death toll was initially recorded around 5,000. Many figures suggest that 18,000 died within two weeks, and it is estimated that around 8,000 have died since then of gas-poisoning-related diseases. The Greenpeace organization cites a total casualty figure of 20,000 as its own conservative estimate. The Bhopal disaster is often cited as the world's worst industrial disaster. December 3 is annually observed as the official day of mourning, and every year, all government offices in Bhopal remain closed on this day.

History of Bhopal

Bhopal is said to have been founded by the Parmar King Bhoj (1000–1055), who had his capital at Dhar. The city was originally known as Bhojpal named after Bhoj and the dam ('pal') that is said to have been constructed by him to form the lakes surrounding the city. The fortunes of Bhopal rose and fell with that of its reigning dynasty. As the Parmaras declined in power, the city was ransacked several times and finally faded away into obscurity.

An Afghan soldier of the Orakzai tribe called Dost Mohammad Khan (not to be confused with the later Afghan King carrying the same name) laid out the present city at the same site following the death of the Mughal Emperor Aurangzeb in 1707. He brought with himself the Islamic influence on the culture and architecture of Bhopal, the ruins of which can be found at Islam Nagar.

Bhopal, the second largest Muslim state in pre-independence India was ruled by four Begums from 1819 to 1926. Qudisa Begum was the first female ruler of Bhopal City, who was succeeded by her only daughter Sikandari, who in turn was succeeded by her only daughter, Shahjehan. Kaikhusrau Jahan Begum was the last female ruler, and stepped down for her son. The succession of the ‘Begums’ gave the city such innovations as waterworks, railways and a postal system. Several monuments still stand in the city as reminders of this glorious period in its history. A municipality was constituted in 1907.

It was one of the last princely states to sign the 'Instrument of Accession' 1947. Though India achieved Independence in August 1947, the ruler of Bhopal acceded to India only on 1 May 1949. Sindhi refugees from Pakistan were accommodated in West Bhopal Cities, Bairagarh Sub-Area (Sant Hirdaram nagar), a western suburb of Bhopal. According to the States Reorganization Act of 1956, Bhopal state was integrated into the state of Madhya Pradesh, and Bhopal was declared as its capital. The population of the city rose rapidly thereafter.

BHOPAL- INDIA:

An Indian court has sentenced the former managers of the company blamed for the 1984 Bhopal gas leak to two years in prison in the first convictions over the catastrophe. (AFP/Graphic)

Victims of the Bhopal poison gas tragedy who were blinded in the accident. A lethal plume of gas escaped from a storage tank at the Union Carbide pesticide facility in Bhopal. (AFP/File)

An elderly woman whose eyes were damaged by the 1984 Union Carbide gas leak, sits on the dirt floor of her home in Bhopal. An Indian court has sentenced the former managers of the company blamed for the 1984 Bhopal gas leak to two years in prison in the first convictions over the catastrophe. (AFP/File/Raveendran)

Survivors and mourners hold torches as they shout slogans during a rally on the 25th anniversary of the Bhopal industrial accident. (AFP/File/Indranil Mukherjee)

In this photo taken on November 18, 2009, the Union Carbide factory, which now lies abandoned, is seen in Bhopal. An Indian court sentenced the former top managers of the company blamed for the massive Bhopal gas leak 25 years ago to two years in prison on Monday in the first convictions over the catastrophe. (AFP/Raveendran)

After 25 years, Indian court convicts 7 for roles ...
Elderly survivors hold posters as they wait for the verdict in the premises of Bhopal court in Bhopal, India, Monday, June 7, 2010. The court on Monday convicted seven former senior employees of Union Carbide's Indian subsidiary of 'death by negligence' for their roles in the Bhopal gas tragedy that left an estimated 15,000 people dead more than a quarter century ago in the world's worst industrial disaster.

Survivors of Bhopal gas tragedy beat with sandals a poster of Warren Anderson, the head of Union Carbide Corp. at the time of the gas leak, as they protest against the verdict in the premises of Bhopal court in Bhopal, India, Monday, June 7, 2010. An Indian court on Monday convicted seven former senior employees of Union Carbide's Indian subsidiary of 'death by negligence' for their roles in the Bhopal gas tragedy that left an estimated 15,000 people dead more than a quarter century ago in the world's worst industrial disaster. (AP Photo)

KASHMIR-INDIA

Federal police dispel Kashmiri protesters throwing stones during a protest in Srinagar on June 5. An Indian army officer has been suspended and another removed from his command after police blamed the two for the killing of three Muslim civilians in Kashmir, the army said Sunday. (AFP/File/Rouf Bhat)

MALAYSIA

Muslim and Liberal cleric Asri Zainul Abidin(L), seen here being greeted by supporters at the Syariah court in Kuala Lumpur in April 2010, is the poster boy for liberal Muslims who are tussling with hardliners in this multi-ethnic nation.

Muslim and Liberal cleric Asri Zainul Abidin(L), seen here being greeted by supporters at the Syariah court in Kuala Lumpur in April 2010, is the poster boy for liberal Muslims who are tussling with hardliners in this multi-ethnic nation.(AFP)

IRAN's WOMEN ONLY BANK

A woman draws money from an ATM machine in Tehran May 4, 2008. Iran's first women-only bank branch opened on Monday, allowing women to manage their finances without dealing with unrelated men -- something likely to appeal to religious families who oppose mingling between the sexes. REUTERS/Morteza Nikoubazl/Files

ABU-DHABI
United Arab Emirates

A view of the 160-metre Capital Gate tower, developed by the Abu Dhabi National Exhibition Company, leans at 18 degrees -- over four times the angle of Italy's famous Leaning Tower of Pisa, has been recognised as the "furthest-leaning man-made tower" in the world by Guinness World Records, local newspapers reported. (AFP)

ISRAEL
ARAB Member of Parliament

An Israeli parliamentary committee on Monday recommended that the plenum vote to strip Arab Israeli MP Haneen Zuabi of some of her parliamentary privileges for taking part in last week's bid to break the blockade of Gaza, which ended with a deadly raid by Israeli forces. 48(AFP TV)

Orthodox Jewish demonstrators protest against the government of Israel outside the Israeli mission to the United Nations, in New York, May 31, 2010. Protestors claim the government run by Israel's Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is desecrating grave sites by allowing construction atop an ancient cemetery in the coastal town of Ashkelon.REUTERS/Chip East

SAUDI ARABIA:

RIYADH NIGHT LINE

File photo of a general view of Riyadh. Although most daring novels remain banned from bookshops in this ultra-conservative Muslim kingdom, Saudi book lovers buy them from other Arab countries where they are freely sold. (AFP/File/Hassan Ammar)

SAUDI BOOK CLUB

Saudi men pick books from shelves at a book cafe in the coastal city of Jeddah. In a country where cinema and theatre are banned and most forms of public expression are censored, Saudi novelists are enjoying new popularity by breaking taboos with daring novels. (AFP/Amer Hilabi)

Members of a book club discuss a novel at a book cafe in the Saudi coastal city of Jeddah. In a country where cinemas and theatres are banned and all formsof expression are censored, Saudi literature is achieving success thanks to defiant authors. (AFP/Amer Hilabi)

EUROPE

Controversial Danish Muhammad cartoonist to retire ...
FILE - This is a February 2008 file photo of Danish cartoonist Kurt Westergaard. Westergaard the cartoonist who caricatured the Prophet Muhammad says he is quitting because he is getting old. Westergaard said 'one has to stop at some point.' He says he has been working since the age of 23, first as a teacher and then as an artist. He turns 75 on July 13. (AP Photo, Miriam Dalsgaard/ POLFOTO, File)

Geert Wilders, 46, the flamboyant bleach-blond leader of the populist Freedom Party, who proposes closing Dutch borders to immigrants from Muslim countries, banning the construction of new mosques and charging a 'headscarf tax' for Muslim women, reacts prior to a debate organized by the Economic Faculty Association Rotterdam (EFR) and Een Vandaag TV show at the Erasmus University in Rotterdam, Netherlands, Monday June 7, 2010, two days ahead of June 9 2010 general elections. (AP Photo/Peter Dejong)

AFRICA

DARFUR

Graphic locating the region of Darfur in Sudan. Clashes in west Sudan's Darfur region cost almost 600 lives in May, the highest monthly death toll since peacekeepers were deployed in 2008, according to a UN-African Union document seen by AFP. (AFP/Graphic)

A Darfurian holds a barbed wire outside a Red Crescent hospital in Nyala. Clashes in west Sudan's Darfur region cost almost 600 lives in May -- the highest monthly death toll since peacekeepers were deployed in 2008 -- according to a UN-African Union document seen by AFP. (AFP/File/Mustafa Ozer)

A picture made available by Albany Associates shows a Nigerian soldier of the United Nations-African Union Mission in Darfur (UNAMID) speaking with children during a night patrol through the Krinding camp in el-Geneina, Darfur, in 2008. Clashes in Darfur cost almost 600 lives in May, the highest monthly death toll since peacekeepers were deployed in 2008, according to a UN-African Union document. (AFP/HO/File/Stuart Price)

ON THE LIGHTER SIDE OF LIFE

Thanks to Dr. Lewis for forwarding below e-mail:

The Man Rules

At last, a guy has taken the time to write this all down. Finally, the guy's side of the story. (I must admit, it's pretty good). We always hears "the rules" from the female side.

Now here are the rules from the male side.

These are our rules!

Please note.. these are all numbered "1 "
ON PURPOSE!

1. Men are NOT mind readers.
( FIRST & FOREMOST RULE )

1. Learn to work the toilet seat.
You're a big girl. If it's up, put it down.
We need it up, you need it down.
You don't hear us complaining about you leaving it down.

1. Sunday sports, It's like the full moon
or the changing of the tides.
Let it be.

1. Crying is blackmail.

1. Ask for what you want.
Let us be clear on this one:
Subtle hints do not work!
Strong hints do not work!
Obvious hints do not work!
Just say it!

1. Yes and No are perfectly acceptable answers to almost every question.

1. Come to us with a problem only if you want help solving it. That's what we do..
Sympathy is what your girlfriends are for.

1. Anything we said 6 months ago is inadmissible in an argument. In fact, all comments become Null and void after 7 Days.

1. If you think you're fat, you probably are. Don't ask us.

1. If something we said can be interpreted two ways and one of the ways makes you sad or angry, we meant the other one

1. You can either ask us to do something
Or tell us how you want it done.
Not both.
If you already know best how to do it , just do it yourself.

1. Whenever possible, Please say whatever you have to say during commercials.

1. Christopher Columbus did NOT need directions and neither do we.

1. ALL men see in only 16 colors, like Windows default settings.
Peach, for example, is a fruit, not a color. Pumpkin is also a fruit. We have no idea what mauve is.

1. If it itches, it will be scratched.
We do that.

1. If we ask what is wrong and you say "nothing,"
We will act like nothing's wrong.
We know you are lying, but it is just not worth the hassle.

1. If you ask a question you don't want an answer to,
Expect an answer you don't want to hear.

1. When we have to go somewhere, absolutely anything you wear is fine.... Really .

1. Don't ask us what we're thinking about unless you are prepared to discuss such topics as Football or Hockey.

1. You have enough clothes.

1. You have too many shoes.

1.. I am in shape. Round IS a shape!

1. Thank you for reading this.

Yes, I know, I have to sleep on the couch tonight.

But did you know men really don't mind that? It's like camping.

Pass this to as many men as you can -to give them a laugh.

Pass this to as many women as you can - to give them a bigger laugh

THE END