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"The European court has trodden on our rights, our culture, our history, our traditions and our values,'' said Roberto Calderoli, Minister without portfolio for Legislative Simplification. "The presence of a crucifix in the classroom does not signify adherence to Roman Catholicism, it is a traditional symbol." The European Court of Human Rights ruled on Tuesday, November 3, that the display of crucifixes at classrooms goes against educational pluralism, which was part of the European rights charters recognized by Italy. "The presence of a crucifix in classrooms could also be disturbing for pupils who practiced other religions or were atheists, particularly if they belonged to religious minorities." The ruling marked the end of an eight-year legal battle by Soile Lautsi, who opposed the display of crucifixes at the school where her two children were studying in north-east Italy. She appealed to Strasbourg three years ago after her case was thrown out by Italy's constitutional court. The opposition joined the government in protesting the ruling. "Common sense has become a victim of the law," said Pierluigi Bersani, head of the main left wing opposition Democratic Party. "An ancient tradition like the crucifix cannot be offensive to anyone." The debate whether crucifixes should be allowed in public schools has been already raging in Spain, France and Britain. The landmark ruling could prompt a Europe-wide review of the use of religious symbols in state-run schools. Christian Identity Several ministers insisted, however, that the crucifix were not a tradition, but rather a symbol of Italy's Christian identity. "No one, and certainly not an ideological European court, will succeed in erasing our identity," thundered Education Minister Mariastella Gelmini. Foreign Minister Franco Frattini echoed the same sentiment. "At a time when we're trying to bring religions closer together, this is a blow to Christianity," he said during a visit to Morocco. He insisted that Europe's roots lay in its "Christian identity," an argument shared by European Affairs Minister Andrea Ronchi. "The court's verdict was a symptom, a worrying sign of anti-spirituality in Europe," he told one of the TV channels owned by Premier Silvio Berlusconi. "The crucifix will never be taken away, not from any secular place nor from anywhere in our Italy," he said defiantly. "I think the government should and will appeal this sentence." The government's lawyer said he would seek leave to appeal to the Strasbourg court's 17-member Grand Chamber. If his petition is rejected, or if an appeal is subsequently thrown out, then Italy would be obliged to comply with the ruling. The Vatican, the religious authority and reference for some 1.1 billion Catholic adherents worldwide, strongly rejected the verdict. "The ruling of the European court was received in the Vatican with shock and sadness," said Vatican spokesman Father Federico Lombardi. "A European court had no right intervening in such a profoundly Italian matter." He insisted that the crucifix was a fundamental sign of the importance of religious values in Italian history and culture. "It seems as if the court wanted to ignore the role of Christianity in forming Europe's identity, which was and remains essential. |
Friday, November 6, 2009
Italy, Vatican Unite in Defending Crucifix
Waziristan Kids Get Alternative Schools
Waziristan Kids Get Alternative Schools | |||
"This is great news for me and my colleagues, who have been worried about their education," Haneef Khan, a ninth grader student, told IslamOnline.net after registering at a local school. Khan is staying at a shelter camp in the suburbs of Dera Ismail Khan along with his 9-member family. Around 250,000 people have fled South Waziristan and settled in nearby district since the army unleashed it onslaught on Taliban militants last month. Thousands of students like Khan had to discontinue their schools and colleges as a result. The government has issued directives to state and private schools to arrange evening shifts for the students so that they could continue their education. Apart from government and private schools, some NGOs have set up makeshift schools where hundreds of affected students are being enrolled. "We have informed the IDPs (internally displaced persons) to get their children registered at the registration centers or the nearby schools so that they could continue their studies, Abdul Khalique Khan, a regional director of the education department at Al-Khidmat Foundation, the country’s largest NGO, told IOL. "I appeal to all the parents that instead of letting their children wander or stand in queues to get relief goods send them back to school," he pleaded. "All the expenses, including tuition fees, books and stationary will be born out by the government." Sigh of Relief The displaced students are pleased by the government’s decision. "It’s the only good news that I have heard in months," said a smiling Khan, who hails from Sararogha, a Taliban stronghold captured by the army earlier this week. "I thought I would not be able to continue my education keeping the situation in my area in view. But thanks to Allah I'm going to resume my education." Azam Khan Mehsud, an 8th grader, feels the same. "This is a sigh of relief for us because we don’t know when we will go back to our areas and resume our studies in our schools." Fighting is continuing between militants and troops in the streets of his Laddah area, another Taliban stronghold. "I have no idea how long we will stay here. We and our parents were so much worried about our studies. I am so happy to go back to school." Dr Mohammad Iqbal Khalil, the NWFP president of Al-Khidmat Foundation, says the resumption of schooling would keep the youths from falling prey to militancy. "If they just wander or sit idle, they may be diverted to subversive activities," he told IOL. Many have warned that unless immediate measures are taken to involve the tribal youths in educational and other healthy activities, they may fall prey to Taliban. "We appeal to the people of Pakistan to help us send these youths to school in order to prevent them from drifting to extremism." |
Muslims Sue Wales for Airport Profiling
Muslims Sue Wales for Airport Profiling | |||
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"It was clear discrimination," Sajid Hussain, a 30-year-old garage owner, told Wales Online on Wednesday, November 4. "We were the only Asians in the airport. "We understand they have a job to do and have to pull some people over, but it’s just the fact that it was all seven of us." The seven men, all brought up in Cardiff, say they were singled out by armed airport police on October 24 for their beards and Asian features. "It was like they were saying to me, ‘You have got a beard, so you look like a terrorist’," fumes Hussain. "I felt quite bad that, just because of my appearance, I am considered half way to becoming a terrorist." Many Muslims have complained for being singled out for further airport checking and questions after 9/11 attacks only because of their Muslim names or dresses. Scores of airport profiling accidents, largely dubbed as "flying while a Muslim", were reported all in US, British and other international airports. Grilled The Muslim men say they were unfairly rounded up, detained and humiliated over two hours. "They called us over to the side and checked our passports," recalls Atif Shabir, a 27-year-old self-employed property developer. "They also took our names, addresses and date of birth and asked us where we were going." Nadeem Ashraf, 29, an accountant, said they were denied any information about the reason of the detention. "I asked the police officer why we were being pulled aside and he basically said he was airport police and he could do what he wanted." Taken to separate rooms, the seven were asked to empty their pockets, hand over their mobile phones and banks cards. Over the next two hours, interrogation police questioned them about radical thoughts and whether they had ever been asked to carry out a terrorist attack. "They asked me if, at the mosque, they were talking about the English Defence League and Welsh Defence League," recalled Naweed Akram. "I said that at the mosque, they just teach us about religion." Though being eventually released without charges, the experience changed the seven men's notion of freedom in the UK. "We have gone to Afghanistan to promote our way of life – that is a very tolerant society that is very accepting," Hussain said. "While here, the picture is different and is getting worse. It’s a very sad situation. |
Stop Al-Quds Provocations: UN Tells Israel abusalihOnline.com & Newsagency
Stop Al-Quds Provocations: UN Tells Israel | |||||
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"The Secretary-General is dismayed at continued Israeli actions in occupied East Jerusalem, including the demolition of Palestinian homes, the eviction of Palestinian families and the insertion of settlers into Palestinian neighborhoods," his office said in a statement cited by Haaretz on Wednesday, November 4. The statement came in reaction to the eviction of a Palestinian family from the Sheikh Jarrah neighborhood of Al-Quds on Tuesday, November 3. Dozens of Jewish settlers broke into the closed part of Al-Kurds house owned by an 85-year-old woman and threw the family onto the street. "These actions stoke tensions, cause suffering and further undermine trust," the UN chief said. "Israel (has) to cease such provocative actions." Israel occupied the holy city in the 1967 war and later annexed it in a move not recognized by the international community or UN resolutions. Since then, Israel has adopted a series of oppressive measures to force the Palestinians out of the city, home to Al-Haram Al-Sharif, which includes Islam's third holiest shrine, including systematic homes demolitions. Earlier this year, the occupation authorities issued demolition orders for more than 88 houses in Silwan neighborhood of the city. A recent UN report has also warned that thousands of Palestinian houses in Al-Quds are facing the risk of mass demolitions by Israel.
Halt Settlements Ban Ki-moon also urged Israel to stop all its illegal settlement activities in the occupied Palestinian land. He asked Israel to abide by its obligations under the internationally-backed roadmap peace plan "by freezing all settlement activity, including natural growth; dismantling outposts; and reopening Palestinian institutions in East Jerusalem." The roadmap stipulates that Israel must freeze all settlement activities and vacate all settlements constructed after March 2001. There are more than 164 Jewish settlements in the West Bank, eating up more than 40 percent of the occupied territory. Nearly 10 percent of Al-Quds is seized for building additional Jewish settlements, leaving only 13 percent of the original area for the city’s 450, 000 Palestinian inhabitants. The international community considers all Israeli settlements on occupied Palestinian land illegal. "Settlements are illegal in our view and an obstacle to peace settlement in the West Bank and East Jerusalem," British Foreign Secretary David Miliband said Tuesday. "The settlements challenge the heart of…a Palestinian state." |
Obama Seeks New Page with Iran I
Obama Seeks New Page with Iran | |||
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"This event helped set the United States and Iran on a path of sustained suspicion, mistrust, and confrontation," Obama said in a statement cited by Agence France Presse (AFP). "I have made it clear that the United States of America wants to move beyond this past, and seeks a relationship with the Islamic Republic of Iran based upon mutual interests and mutual respect." On the same day 1979, Iranian students stormed the US embassy in Tehran and took 52 Americans hostage for 444 days. The action strained US-Iranian relations and pushed Washington to rapture diplomatic ties with Tehran till now. Thousands of Iranians staged a noisy anti-US rally in central Tehran to mark the storming of the American embassy. Huge crowds from early morning descended on the former US embassy complex in central Tehran, dubbed the "Den of Spies." They smashed up posters they had brought with them of the American "Uncle Sam" symbol. The hostility between American and Iran increased in recent years, especially under former US president George W. Bush, who lumped Iran into an "axis of evil" along with North Korea and Iraq. The US and Israel accuse Iran of developing nuclear weapons while Tehran insists that its program is for peaceful civilian use. After his inaugurations early this year, Obama offered a "new beginning" engagement with Iran, seeking to open up diplomatic channels. Nuke Deal Obama also used the occasion to urge Iran to accept the UN-drafted nuclear deal. "It is time for the Iranian government to decide whether it will make the choices that will open the door to greater opportunity, prosperity and justice for its people." He noted that the US has recognized Iran's right to peaceful nuclear power and has taken steps, along with other Western powers, to restore Tehran's confidence. "Iran must choose," Obama stressed. "We have heard for thirty years what the Iranian government is against; the question, now, is what kind of future it is for." Iran said on Monday that it wants more talks on a UN-drafted nuclear deal and to import atomic fuel rather than send its own uranium abroad for processing, terms the world powers are likely to rebuff. US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton insisted on Monday that no changes would be made to the original deal to accommodate the Iranian demands. "This is a pivotal moment for Iran," Clinton said. "Acceptance fully of this proposal would be a good indication that Iran does not wish to be isolated and does wish to cooperate." Obama said if Iran accepts the extended hand, things would be much better. "We have made clear that if Iran lives up to the obligations that every nation has, it will have a path to a more prosperous and productive relationship with the international community. |
Mosque Closures Anger Azeris
Mosque Closures Anger Azeris | ||||
"They closed our mosque just after the new law came in," Vidady Abasov, the muezzin of the Akhli Sunni Mosque in the city of Ganca, told the BBC News Online on Tuesday, November 3. "It made us angry. Why did they do it?" The government says the mosque has been closed for restoration, a claim refuted by Abasov. "The fact is that they don't like us because we have spent some time abroad," said Abasov, who said he had spent some time in Central Asia. "They think we are too radical." The closure of the mosque in September came two months after the parliament passed a law banning anyone who received their education abroad from leading prayers. Under the new law, the government has taken steps to monitor and control who leads prayers and religious services. It requires everyone who leads mosques to have state approval. "We have been faced with the problem of radicalism and it continues," says Hidayat Orujov, the Minister for Works with Religious Associations. "People don't want us to be another Chechnya, Dagestan or Ingushetia." The authorities announced in 2007 they had thwarted an attack on oil installations and the US and British embassies by a "radical Wahhabi group." Earlier this year, a court jailed two Lebanese for plotting to attack the Israeli embassy in Baku, linking them to Al-Qaeda. Official statistics put at 90 percent the number of Muslims in Azerbaijan, officially a secular state with a total population of 8.2 million.
Exaggerated The government has also closed down the Abu Bakr Mosque, accusing it of radicalizing people. "There is no extremism here, and we reject the label of radical Wahhabis often put on us," insists Gamet Suleymanov, the mosque's imam. "We are Salafis, not Wahhabis." A grenade was thrown into the mosque building in 2008 killed two worshippers. The mosque congregation insists they were targeted because they are not radical enough. Imam Suleymanov warns the government that if they continue to try to prevent his community from praying in the mosque it could cause ill-feeling and spread radicalism rather than prevent it. Anar Valiyev, an independent analyst based in Baku, agrees. He believes the government is exaggerating the threat of extremism to tighten controls on religion and to restrict freedom of expression. "Definitely there were extremist organizations existing in Azerbaijan," he told the BBC. "They were mostly liquidated. And at some point the law enforcement agencies couldn't stop," he maintained. "You had public figures coming out and saying Wahhabis are terrorists and it was just to put a negative image on the whole religion." The US State Department has expressed concerns over the closure of mosques in Azerbaijan. "There were changes to the constitution that undermined religious freedom," it said in its 2009 International Religious Freedom Report. It also cited "some deterioration in the status of respect for religious freedom by the government. |
Iraq’s Booming Funeral Market
Iraq’s Booming Funeral Market | |||
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“Before US-led invasion, I had one ceremony to take care,” mourner Ali Abdel-Kareem al-Shuwafi, 48, told IslamOnline.net on Friday, October 30. “But in the last four years, I had to hire 12 employees and other 15 who are used when we have many ceremonies to hold in the same day.
Hundreds of thousands of Iraqis have been killed in violence plaguing Iraq since the US invaded the country in 2003 to topple the Saddam Hussein regime. “Violence in Iraq changed my life. I know that it isn’t a nice sentence to say but it is the true,” said Shuwafi. “The continuing killings in my country helped me become a wealthy man and able to give a very good life to my family who years ago were suffering with the need of everything.” Before the US invasion, Shuwafi was hardly able to provide basics to his family. But his life has totally changed after the US troops invaded the oil-rich country. “I decided to open a shop in Baghdad two years ago which takes care of everything, the three days mourning process, the burying and other ceremonies asked by our clients,” he said. Shuwafi had borrowed money from a friend of his to open his shop. “After few months, I had enough to pay him back and open more two shops, one in Baghdad and one in Basra where my brother takes care,” he said. “I know I’m successful today because of people suffering, however, I didn’t kill them and just made a way for families to be well supported in a so hard moment of their lives. “The war changed my life for better but I sometimes I wish that things were like before and I would had been able to improve my living conditions under other ways offered by the government.” Lucrative Like Shuwafi, many mourning professionals have made a fortune from the deadly violence. “There was periods where I had to refuse ceremonies because I didn’t have enough materials to organize it,” Kamal al-Jumeiri, a funeral business owner in Baghdad, told IOL. “During 2006 and 2007 I was able to make enough money to send my family away to Jordan to protect them and I use to visit my kids and wife every three months. “My family accuse me of taking advantage and making money from people who were victims but someone had to make it and I had enough conditions to offer my skills.” Jumeiri recalls that he only owned two coffins to run his business before the US invasion. “After violence in 2006, I had enough money to open two shops,” he said. “By two trucks, I import supplies from outside with better quality, offer a proper burial with all stuff needed like chairs for the mourners, recorders, speakers, people to read Qur’anic verses, kitchen apparatus to cook food during the three days ceremony, generators, tents and other specific things that sometimes is asked by grieving families.” According to Iraqi traditions, families rent tents for the three days of mourning and professional mourners to add emotions by crying while speaking verses of the Qur’an. In addition, coffee, tea and cigarettes should be offered to visitors during the three days of mourning. In the last day, food is cooked and offered to all people present, including poor people who usually get close to get free food. “I moved from a simple mourning workers into a first-class business and most of my clients have wealthy living conditions and hire my work due to my excellent materials used,” said Jumeiri. The booming funeral market is also sparking rivalry among mourning professionals. “I suffered threats from other mourning professionals,” said Jumeiri. “Many of them, not all, have organised gangs to prevent us from keeping work and leave all ceremonies to them but I insisted and have to pay a security guard to follow me.” Prices for the funeral services have skyrocketed over the violence. “I lost my father before invasion from heart disease and didn’t spend more than US $50 for all ceremony and coffin,” Haydar Muhammad Khalif, a government employee, told IOL. “But two months ago, my uncle was killed and we had to pay US $300 for the same ceremony, without any changes.” Coffins now cost about $80, from only $10 before the US invasion. A complete ceremony would cost from $150 to $400, from only $60 before the invasion. “Even to die in Iraq you have to have enough money or you will have to be buried without proper Iraqi Muslim traditions,” said Khalif. |
