France: Anti-Islam domestic agenda while courting Muslims internationally

22 September 2011

For years ‘France’, to a common man in the Muslim world was associated with the Eiffel Tower and the French Fries, however in recent years it has begun to be associated with negative connotations. Having already banned wearing of Hijab in schools, this year in April France imposed a fine of 150 Euro on wearing a face veil by Muslim women. And in September, it has now enforced a ban on praying on street. The hostility of the French government is clearly evident from these legislations, which target tenants of Islam. This exposes the true nature of a secularism that France proudly boasts about.

The foreign policy of France with regards to the Muslim world, also resembles its domestic policies. In the past the French had collaborated with the British to break apart the Caliphate into nation states, by signing the Sykes–Picot Agreement of 1916.  After succeeding in division of the Muslim lands once unified under Khilafah, the French Gov. and the British Gov. maintained cordial relationship with the dictators they planted over the Muslim lands, and plundered their resources.

The Coalition for Clean and Fair Elections and the ‘Hibiscus Revolution’

16 September 2011

The positive movement for a more transparent and less corrupt political system in Malaysia has been largely ignored by the western press, perhaps lost in the chaos of the Arab Spring.

The Bersih 2.0 rally (also dubbed as the “Walk for Democracy”) which took place in Kuala Lumpur on the 9^th July was reported in the world’s media as a brave demonstration for political reform which was met with an overly forceful police crackdown. But after the 10,000 to 20,000 demonstrators were dispersed – 1,700-odd arrested – the western media filed their reports and looked elsewhere.

Perhaps the demonstration, coming in a year in which the Middle East has been in revolt, did not fit into the general narrative of democratic revolutions against autocratic states. Bersih 2.0 has its own unique narrative, spawning from the 2007 Bersih movement which sought to heighten awareness of the corruption within the Election Commission of Malaysia (EC) and the unfair practices of the ruling Barisan Nasional (BN) coalition.

Panic on the streets of London

09 August 2011

It is a worrying time for Londoners, who have seen a riot in Tottenham escalate to widespread unrest across the city and beyond within 72 hours: looting, attacks on police, the burning of cars, businesses and residential properties. We are more used to seeing burnt out cars on our TV screens on the streets of Baghdad, Mogadishu or Karachi than we are in London. So it’s a deep humiliation for the UK which is a country without the depth of problems affecting those other places mentioned. It is hardly surprising that people are speculating about the causes of this unrest and outbreak of criminality.

The rapidly infectious nature of this gross unrest suggests it is not simply related to the shooting  by police of a suspect last Thursday.

Profile of AbdelHakim Belhaj – Head of Military in Tripoli and former LIFG Amir

30 August 2011

AbdelHakim Belhaj (or Abdul Hakim Belhadj) is the military leader in Tripoli who led the campaign on the Libyan capital, including the attack on the iconic bab al-azizziya. That night of liberation saw him drawing parallels between the fight in Tripoli and the conquest of Mecca while surrounded by several others celebrating around him. He has since held more formal press conferences where he outlined the objectives of uniting the military factions in Tripoli under a single command, taking weapons out of the hands of militias, as well as rejecting the existence of any extremists within the ranks of the revolutionary army.

Belhaj was born in 1966 and completed his education gaining a diploma in civil engineering. Straight after graduation he travelled to Afghanistan in 1988 to participate in the Jihad there, andreturned to Libya in 1994. He was then a member of the Libyan Islamic Fighting Group (LIFG) which opposed the rule of Moammar Gaddafi for more than a decade. After confrontation with the Gaddafi regime which led to the killing of the then leader of the group Abdul Rahman al-Hattab, Belhaj managed to leave Libya and returned to Afghanistan in 1995.

The Ugly Truth of British and American Collusion with Gaddafi’s Torturers

03 September 2011

The depth of British and American collusion with the Gaddafi regime is slowly being exposed with the capture of documents from the offices of Moussa Koussa former regime security chief and right-hand man of Moammar Gaddafi. The documents highlight the long-standing co-operation between the Western intelligence agencies MI6 and CIA, and the Gaddafi regimes security apparatus.

Though it was known that there was previously collaboration between the agencies, the extent of it indicates just how deeply entrenched the West was in supporting the Libyan regime against its opponents up to and until the uprisings this February. It now transpires that AbdulHakim Belhaj (also known alternatively as Abu Abdullah al-Sadiq) was requested by the Libyan regime in 2004, to which the CIA replied that they were “committed to developing this relationship for the benefit of both our services,” and promised their best to locate him for the Libyans. They promptly did so, and tortured him before sending him to Libya. Having recovered from his rendition and torture at the hands of both the CIA and Gaddafi regime, he is now the head of the military council in Tripoli.

Rationality, religion and atheism

Religious teaching, insofar as it seeks to influence the political sphere, should be subject to rational scrutiny, argues Russell Blackford.

For those of us cultured upon the understanding that all teachings must be subject to rational scrutiny this may not be a ground-breaking thesis. It is nevertheless an argument increasingly made by advocates of a ‘new’ atheism.

Applying scrutiny to the argument itself however reveals that behind the innocent promotion of rationality lie many cobwebs that betray such an advocacy.

Paxman and Dawkins – Evangelising Militant Atheism

19 September 2011

On 13th September 2011, BBC Newsnight aired a conversation between Jeremy Paxman and Professor Richard Dawkins discussing Dawkins’ new book, ‘The Magic of Reality’. The programme seemed to offer Dawkins an almost unchallenged platform to proselytise his position whilst holding the semblance of a debate. When Paxman did ‘challenge’ Dawkins it was on the very weak propositions that religious narratives offered more comfort than scientific ones and better stories.

Throughout the interview both guest and host smirked at each other’s derisory comments about “religious hogwash”, even going as far as to say on national television that Christians who believed literally in the Bible were “stupid”. Sadly, this barely concealed mockery did very little to enlighten viewers on what should have been a stimulating topic about the roles of myth, allegory and rationality in the beliefs people carry.

Christiaan Snouck Hurgronje: History of Orientalist Manipulation of Islam

"According to Snouck the fundamental problem with Islam was the fact that Muslims believed in the need for Unity of State, with a Khalifah governing over all of them according to Sharia law. In a letter to Goldziher in 1886, one year after his journey to Mecca, Snouck said: “… I never had any objections to the religious elements of this institute [Islam]. Only its political influence is, in my opinion, deplorable. And as a Dutchmen especially I feel a strong need to warn against this."

Although dead for over half a century, Christiaan Snouck Hurgronje remains a highly controversial figure in both the western and the Muslim world.

In his time he was a world-famous orientalist, because he had travelled to Mecca and studied and documented Muslim life there. For many years also he lived and worked amongst the Muslims in Indonesia, making him an expert in the traditions, languages and religion of the various tribes in Indonesia.

Beheading the Cultural Zombie – Liberal society’s illiberal response to Islam?

22 June 2011

Jacques Derrida argues the Hollywood figure of the zombie is an example of the problem we face when two opposing elements cohabit the same space. Zombies are both dead and alive. They disrupt “binaries” and undermine pure categories. The zombie is thus: “undecidable”.

In a classic horror movie, the hero simply kills his “enemy”. However, he cannot kill a zombie. They are dead. He therefore needs to act beyond the classical approach. He needs a creative solution. In Hollywood it is straightforward. The hero breaks the rules. He sends zombies back to the stable category of “the dead” by beheading them.

There is an infamous photograph of 911 survivors entirely covered in the collapsing twin tower’s black dust. They look like walking statues. They were ashen, colorless, but still walking towards safety. They looked both dead and alive. They looked like zombies. They signaled an undecidability. They brought about anxiety.

Islam and the West: Ever the twain shall meet

05 September 2011

The world today is experiencing unprecedented crisis, with war raging and environmental degradation threatening the entire planet. Who is responsible? The West argues that its agenda of extending US hegemony, capitalism and trade is the answer to the crisis, but is stymied by a backward and fractious Muslim world unwilling to embrace modernity. For its part the world of Islam sees the West as irreligious, continuing its age-old struggle to undermine the dar al-salam (the house of peace). Having strayed from the “straight path” long ago, it continues to do the bidding of Iblis (Satan). Clearly relations between East and West continue to be plagued by mistrust and misunderstanding; however, the fact of the global village means we must on the contrary strive to understand and trust the eternal “other”.

The Muslim Brotherhood in Egypt: Agents of change or status-quo?

21 September 2011

The Muslim Brotherhood (MB) is facing numerous dilemmas and challenges post-revolution, in particular stemming from the strained relationship between various factions in the movement, which have become more apparent in a more open political environment in Egypt. Also, the movement has been trying to venture out into new territory by trying to improve relations with the Egyptian military to strengthen its role in a future Egypt.

The youth in the movement encouraged by the removal of the Egyptian regime have demanded more reforms in the movement, which has led to confrontation with the MB leadership, which has been reluctant to entertain any changes that would result in a weakening of control over the movement.

Garis

Seekor kuda unggulan jenis Lusiano tampak berlari santai menelusuri jalan setapak. Postur tubuhnya yang tegap dan langsing menjadikannya begitu ringan dan mantap ketika berlari. Nyaris, tak satu pun hewan di kawasan hutan lindung itu yang mampu menandingi larinya.

Setiap kali ada kuda-kuda lain yang tampak berlari, Lusiano selalu memacu larinya untuk bisa sejajar. Ia pun menoleh ke arah kuda itu dan mengajaknya untuk berlomba. Tapi, tak satu pun yang tertarik. Soalnya, ujungnya selalu sama: kalah.

Yang menyakitkan dari kekalahan oleh Lusiano, bukan pada kalahnya. Tapi, dari kesombongan Lusiano yang begitu menyakitkan lawan. ”Payah, lari kok mundur!” ucap Lusiano sambil tertawa.

Balon

Seorang anak lima tahunan tampak dikelilingi balon-balon yang berserakan di lantai. Sesekali ia berusaha melempar salah satu balon ke atas, tapi balon itu tak mau terbang. Setelah sampai di puncak ketinggian, balon pun balik lagi ke lantai.

Mendapati kekecewaan itu, sang kakak pun menghampiri. “Kamu ingin balon-balonmu itu terbang?” ucap sang kakak kepada adiknya.

Sang adik pun mengangguk penuh semangat. “Tapi, bagaimana caranya, Kak?” tanya sang adik kemudian.

Sayap

Sekumpulan burung dara tampak berkerumun di depan sarang mereka di sebuah pohon besar di tepian hutan. Keluarga besar burung ini sepertinya sedang bersiap untuk terbang ke suatu tempat. Wajah-wajah riang menghias tingkah mereka.

Hari itu, keluarga besar burung dara itu memang akan berangkat menuju ladang jagung yang bersebelahan dengan hutan tempat mereka tinggal. Naluri mereka seperti sudah menjadwalkan kalau hari itu butiran-butiran jagung lezat akan berserakan seusai panen petani.

Tamu

Seorang kakek sedang asyik menyisiri rambutnya di hadapan cemin ketika cucunya tiba-tiba di belakangnya. “Kakek lagi ngapain,” tanya sang cucu yang disambut sang kakek dengan senyum.

“Mau ada tamu, ya!” ucap sang cucu lagi walau pertanyaan pertama belum dijawab kakek.

Sang kakek pun membalikkan badannya ke arah cucu balitanya. “Kamu benar, Cu! Tak lama lagi, kakek akan kedatangan tamu,” jawab sang kakek sambil membungkukkan badannya.

Tak lama kemudian, sang kakek pun menggelar sajadah untuk kemudian shalat. Mendapati tingkah kakeknya, sang cucu hanya terheran-heran. “Mau ada tamu, kok, malah shalat,” ujar sang cucu membatin.
Lama sekali sang kakek terpekur dalam zikir panjang di shalat sunnahnya di pagi hari. Setelah salam, sang kakek pun meraih pundak cucunya untuk mengajaknya zikir bersama. Tingkah itu kian membuat sang cucu terheran.

“Kata kakek mau ada tamu, kok, malah shalat sama zikir?” ucap sang cucu sambil duduk di pangkuan kakeknya. “Apa tamunya sudah ngasih tahu ke kakek?” ucapnya lagi kemudian.

Terbang

Seorang anak tampak asyik menatap ke arah langit. Ia tidak sedang menatap indahnya awan. Bukan pula eloknya biru langit yang dihias awan putih. Sang anak sedang asyik menatapi bergeraknya sebuah balon udara besar.

”Yah, apa di balon itu ada yang mengendarai?” tanya si anak ke ayahnya yang tampak mendekat.

”Ya anakku. Di balon itu bisa memuat empat orang,” jawab sang ayah sambil ikut menatap ke arah langit.

”Apa balon itu terus terbang dan tidak ke bumi lagi?” tanya si anak lagi.

Pangkal

Seekor tupai tampak berlari kencang. Ia juga melompat dari satu ranting ke ranting dengan begitu lincahnya. Ia terus berlari dan melompat, hingga akhirnya berhenti di pucuk sebuah pohon. Di situlah akhirnya tupai bernafas lega, “Ah, akhirnya aku bisa selamat dari kejaran petani itu!” ucapnya sambil menoleh-noleh ke arah bawah pohon.

Tak jauh dari situ, seorang petani tampak berlari sambil mendongak ke atas. Ia seperti mencari-cari sesuatu. “Aku harus bisa menangkap tupai itu,” ucapnya sambil menahan nafas yang mulai tersengal-sengal. Hingga akhirnya, ia berhasil menemukan jejak tupai yang bertengger di puncak sebuah pohon.

Perahu

Sebuah perahu kayu berpenumpang tampak melintas di sungai nan jernih. Sepanjang jalan, para penumpang perahu benar-benar terbuai dengan pepohonan hijau yang memagari tepian sungai. Para penumpang yang berada di lantai atas ini benar-benar beruntung dengan pemandangan indah itu.

Dua lantai perahu penumpang itu memang punya harga sewa yang berbeda. Lantai atas lebih mahal dari yang di bawah. Bahkan mencapai dua kali lipat. Walau begitu, penumpang di lantai bawah masih bisa melihat pemandangan dari balik jendela kecil yang tertutup kaca.