E d i t i o n 0 4 , 3 1 J u l y 2 0 1 5 / S h a w w a l 1 4 3 6 , W e s t e r n C a p e E d i t i o n . C o n t a c t : i n f o @ i s l a m h e r e . o r g / 0 2 1 8 3 9 4 3 7 5

Active, Visable, Practised among People www.islamhere.org

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ashington DC’s Pew Research Center and Austria’s Inter-national Institute

for Applied Systems Analysis spent six years gathering the data from 2,500 censuses and surveys. Of re-cent, this research has created a flur-ry of opinion, both positive and neg-ative. This is naturally the case with statistical predictions. The report cannot tell you what will happen by 2050, only what probably will hap-pen based on what has happened already.

According to its research and pro-jections, Islam will become Ameri-ca’s second-largest religion by 2050 according to a report outlining the world’s religious landscape 35 years

from now. The number of Christians in the US will decline from three quarters of the population in 2010 to just two thirds in 2050, research-ers claim. Statistics revealed by the Pew Research Center show the per-centage of atheists across the globe is expected to fall across the same time frame while Muslims will out-number Christians by 2070

Research shows that although Is-lam will be the fastest growing reli-gion in the world over the next four decades, Christians will remain the largest group in 2050. At the same time, those who do not affiliate with any religion, including atheists and agnostics, will make up a ‘declining share of the world’s population’ - even if their numbers are increas-

ing in countries such as the United States, the United Kingdom and France. By 2050 in Europe, Muslims will make up one in ten of the over-all population. The region’s Chris-tian population will shrink from 553million to 454million, according to projections.

The global Buddhist population will remain roughly the same but Hindu and Jewish populations will be larg-er than they are today, according to the report. It reveals that five years ago, there were 2.2billion Christians in the world making it ‘by far’ the world’s largest religion with Islam second with 1.6billion out of a glob-al population of 6.9billion. By 2050, there will be 2.8billion Muslims and 2.9billion Christians, it is estimated.

According to the Daily Telegraph, the report suggests the increase in Muslim populations could be put down to the fact those following the faith are younger while infant mortality rates are decreasing. Meanwhile, a number of countries are expected to have changing re-ligious majorities in four decades. Christians are projected to fall below 50 per cent the population in the United Kingdom, Australia, Benin, Bosnia-Herzegovina, France, the Netherlands, New Zealand and the Republic of Macedonia.

Nigeria and the Republic of Mac-edonia are set to gain Muslim ma-jorities by 2050, it is reported. The findings were produced using data on a range of factors including age,

fertility, mortality, migration and religious switching for ‘multiple reli-gious groups around the world’. The report says: ‘The projections take into account the current size and ge-ographic distribution of the world’s major religions, age differences, fertility and mortality rates, inter-national migration and patterns in conversion.’

Authors point out that the projec-tions were based on current trends and recently gathered statistics but that predictions could change as a result of ‘any events – scientific discoveries, armed conflicts, social movements, political upheavals, natural disasters and changing eco-nomic conditions’

ISLAM HERE

G L O B A L M U S L I M POPULATION F O R E C A S T

WASHINGTON DC’S PEW RESEARCH CENTRE HAVE SOME SURPRISING FORE-CASTS FOR GLOBAL MUSLIM POPULATION OVER THE NEXT 30 - 50 YEARS.

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For many people it comes as a shock to learn that officially there are at least 20

million Muslims in China, that’s al-most half of South Africa. Unofficial-ly, the number is even higher, some saying 65.3m and even 100m Muslims in China – up to 7.5% of the popu-lation. Regardless of the real figure, the reality is that Islam in China is al-most as old as the revelation of Islam to the Prophet Muhammad. Twenty years after the Prophet’s death, dip-lomatic relations were established in China by the Caliph Uthman. Trade was followed by settlement, until eighty years after the hijrah pagoda style mosques appeared in China. A century later, in 755, it became com-mon for Chinese emperors to employ Muslim soldiers in their armies and also as government officials.

Today, the population of China in-cludes 56 ethnic groups, 10 of which are Muslim. Out of these 10 minority groups, the Hui (short for Huizhou) are the largest group at 9.8m, mak-ing up 48% of China’s Muslim pop-ulation. The second largest group is the Uyghurs at 8.4m, or 41% of the Chinese Muslim population. Its im-portant to realise that there are two unique current voices among the county’s Muslims.

The Hui speak Chinese, unlike the Uyghurs and five other Muslim ethnic groups which speak Turkic languages. Overwhelmingly Sunni in belief and practice, the Hui are ethnically and

culturally Chinese, virtually indistin-guishable from the Han, who make up China’s billion-strong community.

For the Uyghurs, who mainly reside in Xiangjiang (Autonomous Territo-ry)and the founders of the Uyghur Khaganate, the Muslim Lands ad-vanced and grew till it came into di-rect contact with the Qing dynasty, new conquerers over the Ming Dynas-ty who were historically friendly to the Muslims. It was under the Qing dynasty that much of the Genocide and repression took place and then continued by the Communist Revo-lution.

For over a millennium, and across five major imperial dynasties the Hui have lived in China peacefully, spread in every province and contributing to every aspect of Chinese life, from the military and the economy to the arts and sciences. Thriving in a non-Mus-lim civilisation, the Hui managed to create an indigenous Islamic culture

that is uniquely and simultaneously Chinese and Muslim. Their experi-ence, as Dru Gladney, author of Dis-locating China puts it, is a “standing refutation of Samuel Huntington’s clash of civilisations.” No identity crisis whatsoever.

1,400 years of History Muslims in China began as traders and soldiers in the seventh century, therefore instilling in the early Mus-lim settlers a sense of belonging and legitimacy; they were not a burden on the country, but valuable contrib-utors. It was only in the thirteenth century however, after the Mongols conquered China, that these Muslims who were classified as ‘foreign guests’ were allowed to live wherever they chose and granted citizenship. This started the development of a fully indigenous Chinese Muslim culture. The Mongols, a minority themselves,

encouraged Muslim migration to Chi-na, and forcibly relocated millions of Muslim immigrants, employing them as government officials and dispersing them throughout China. In the Ming dynasty Hui became the standard title for Chinese Muslims, and they flourished.

Centuries later, during the Man-churian (Qing) dynasty in 1780, com-munal violence between the Han and Hui began, and continued for 150 years. It began with the Manchuri-an’s discriminatory policies towards

the Muslims: forbidding them from building mosques or slaughtering an-imals, paradoxically at a time when then Hui had become an integral part of Chinese culture. One of the worst bloodbaths took place between 1862 and 1878 in the province of Gansu, where the population of 15m was slaughtered to one million, two-thirds

of which were Hui. The Manchurian dynasty was over-thrown in 1912, although violence against the Hui continued until 1930. But then less than 20 years later, communist party Chairman Mao Ze-dong established the People’s Repub-lic of China, a Marxist state that was antagonistic to all religions. The Hui, with other religious minorities, were prosecuted, killed, and had their plac-es of worship destroyed. It was only after Mao’s death that things started to settle down. Realising the econom-ic potential of the Hui, the govern-ment sought to make amends and of-fered them special accommodations.

Imam Ali Noor-Elhuda, Chair-man of the Islamic Association in Beijing, and Imam of the beautiful 1,000-year-old Niujie mosque said, “The government is no longer re-pressing faith and allows everyone to practice their religion. It emphasises respect to everyone. And although in our history there was fighting with the Han, it is mostly peaceful now. And for the most part there is no ideo-logical conflict between Muslims; we believe in one God and one Book. The differences are only in language, food and tradition.” Although Chinese Muslims are currently disfranchised from political involvement (the Chi-nese communist party only admits atheists, according to some students), the political stability of modern Chi-na is hopefully a good omen for the future of the Hui

ISLAM HERE

1400 YEARS OF MUSLIMS IN CHINA

AAnd after 235 years of genocide and repression, for the Hui Muslims in China, stability and intergration mean survial.

Old Painting of an Uyghur Khaganate Prince.

Uyghur Muslims

Pic: Ludovica Iaccino, IBTimes UK

Gate to the Huaisheng Mosque, oldest mosque in China.

Pic: Musa Chowdhury (www.musachowdhury.com)

HuiMuslims

Pic: google image

hank you for picking up the 4th edition of ISLAM HERE. Reflecting on cur-rent events in the world,

both the good and the bad, has left me with a sobering thought. I remember hearing a quote from el-Hajj Malik el-Shabazz otherwise known as Mal-colm X, in high-school when I was de-cidedly more angry and opinionated about pretty much everything. Here is what Hajj Malik had to say to my young mind:

“Who are you? You don’t know? Don’t tell me ‘Negro’ that’s nothing. What were you before the white man named you ‘Negro’? What was your name? It couldn’t have been ‘Smith’ or ‘Jones’ or ‘Bush’ or ‘Powell’ that wasn’t your name. They don’t have those kind of names where you and I come from. No, what was your name? And why don’t you know what your name was then? Where was your history? How did a man wipe out your history? How did the man, what did the man do to make you as dumb, as you are right now?”

Hajj Malik also believed that history is a people’s memory, and without a memory, man is demoted to the low-er self. As an [un-drugged] teenager, this is explosive. It deconstructed the mass mind, enough for me to see glimpses of myself I recognised but did not know. I understood the connection between my ignorance and my current condition. “Who are you?” he said. You have to start there. Of myself, my Deen it is clear I am wholly ignorant. In search of knowl-edge as a remedy, the further I look ahead, the more I see people ahead of me still in deep study. What is only es-tablished so far, is that the condition of one in learning deeply effects his/her behaviour. As more of these peo-ple group in a place, a most astonish-ing thing begins to take place. That behaviour begins to rub off on others.

Knowing yourself and where you come from, is of vital importance to anyone desiring more of his or her-self. It sets the foundation for great things. But we have to see both the good with the bad. Because that is the human situation. There will always be both good and bad as it is in Al-lah’s decree. Which according to our Aqida, we completely accept.

What Hajj Malik had to say long before I was born, was to help lift a young individual, trapped in a his-torically disadvantaged narrative, to open a way forward. As Muslims, what we must realise, historically speaking of course, our great and mo-mentous memory. We must remem-ber. Because of our great explorers, we pioneered in history itself. We pioneered in almost every scientific

field, Physics; Medicine; Mathemat-ical algorithms; Sociology. Art had reached a peak of refinement built entirely around the context of the Muslim lived experience. It effected everything to how a person entered a room or changed his or her behaviour from one zone to another in a building to being a philosophical discussion on the Universe. Volumes could be writ-ten on it and they have. We pioneered in state administration and the har-monious movement of people from different cultural backgrounds on a large scale. We have some of the only moments in history in large empires where poverty was completely eradi-cated. We have a moment in history, where there was a man, whose gener-osity on his way to the Hajj deflated the value of gold in Egypt. In any case we do not inherit narratives, we are the ones who write them.

The recent report on the forecast of Muslim populations globally for the next 30-50 years, shows us signs that the current narratives worldwide ef-fecting Muslims are changing. Even more so when one realises that cur-rently 60% of the global Muslim pop-ulation is below the age of 30 years old. The inability of an already out-dated modernism to adapt to this is evident in its failure to accommodate its own Muslim citizenry. Which in the case of the politic in Europe, has only increased its ineptitude by re-peatedly visiting the same narrative as before out of touch with a chang-ing reality.

What follows from this? We have to focus on a new paradigm. A collective spirit with a common goal. We have

to look after our people. We have to see to each other’s needs. We must build more orphanages, hospitals and learning institutions. We must take care of the poor. Rasullulah, May Allah bless him and grant him peace, said that we will find him amongst them. We must make specific effort to make dawa to the people of South Africa that have not yet entered the Deen. The Muslim’s of South Africa are a special community. The memo-ry of our past here is evident in the shape of the country you see today. It is not that the Muslims were so politi-cally active during apartheid because that is the narrative we were given, it is because that is the narrative we took on to change.

Really, how lucky are we as Muslims that we do not have to look so far into ourselves to see light within. We have everything in our hands by a Merciful Lord and everything in our path by a messenger who is a lived example of everything that can be. A complete blueprint, to traverse a vast, wonder-ful desert beyond understanding and yet still be able to see the end right from the beginning.

May the reader find the Help at every waypoint from Allah, glory be to the Most High. And may you find that all your actions for the sake of Allah be met with Success. May Allah protect you and your family, both from in-ward and outward harm. Amin

Assalaamualaykum.

Nabeel AbdalhaqqEditor

TEditor’s DeskISLAM HERE IS ABOUT:

REPRESENTING A NEW WAVE OF MUSLIM IDENTITY THAT IS ACTIVELY ENGAGED IN HELPING THEIR COMMUNITY FIND THEIR IDENTITY AS PART OF THE MODERN WORLD AND NO LONGER AT THE DISEN-FRANCHISED OUTSKIRTS THAT SIMPLY BREED REACTIONARY AND IN MOST CAS-

ES IGNORANT AGENDAS.

ISLAM HERE PROMOTES ACTION WITH KNOWLEDGE. “TO PRODUCE LEADER-SHIP WITHIN THE COMMUNITY THAT UNDERSTANDS THAT TO SERVE & ED-UCATE EACH OTHER IS TO LEAD.” THIS NEWSPAPER WILL EXPLORE THEMES FOR MUSLIMS LIVING IN A POST-TERROR DIA-LECTIC WORLD. A WORLD IN WHICH THEY CONSTANTLY CONFRONTED BY A HOS-TILE MEDIA FORCING UPON THEM TWO REACTIONARY & EXTREME RESPONSES. ONE OF DEBASEMENT & APOLOGETIC AND OFTEN FALSE PUBLIC RELATIONS AND THE OTHER EXTREME AND VIOLENT. WE SEEK TO FILL THE VOID AND LACK OF EXPRESSION WITH REGARDS TO ISLAM IN

THIS AGE.

EDITOR - NABEEL ABDALHAQQJOURNALISTS - EILEEN SHIM MALAYSIA TOURISM YEHUDA SHAUL ARFAH SHAHID SIDDIQUI MARK HANRAHAN ISMAT SARAH MANGLA ZARINA QURAIBA CHRISTY VAN DER MERVE ADVERTISING - NANGAMSO PRINCE.-NANI

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ISLAM HERE CONSIDERS ITS SOURCES RELIABLE & VERIFIES AS MUCH DATA AS POSSIBLE. THE NEWSPAPER IS MEANT AND UNDERSTOOD TO BE A GUIDE & COUNCIL BY WHICH TO ASSESS CURRENT MODELS OF THE THEMES BEING AD-DRESSED. READERS ARE ENCOURAGED TO RESEARCH AND DISCOVER THOSE THEMES FOR THEMSELVES. THE PUBLICA-TION SEEKS TO AID THE PROCESS IN THE BEST MORAL & ETHICAL MANNER, & WILL NOT TAKE ANY RESPONSIBILITY FOR THE USE OF SUCH EXPLORED THEMES INTO THE INTERPRETATION OF THE READER. ALTHOUGH PERSONS OR COMPANIES MENTIONED HEREIN ARE BELIEVED TO BE REPUTABLE, NEITHER ISLAM HERE PUBLICATION, ASABIYYA TRADING CC, NOR ANY OF ITS EMPLOYEES, SALES EX-ECUTIVES OR CONTRIBUTORS ACCEPT ANY RESPONSIBILITY WHATSOEVER FOR

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ISLAM HERE Newspaper Western Cape

n the wake of recent brutal beheadings by the Islamic State, young Muslims took to Twitter with the hashtag

#NotInMyName to criticize the radical militant group. But as a new viral hashtag points out, why should all Muslims have to apologize for the ac-tions of a violent few?

In the past week, thousands of people have taken to #MuslimApologies to show that an entire culture is not at fault for the actions of a small minority and that it is ridiculous for people to have to apologize for a radical group’s acts when they had no part in them. While some posts were serious, others used humor to point out the hypoc-risy of such a mindset, ridiculing the idea of issuing apologies for some-thing you have nothing to do with.

These moving tweets illustrate what it’s like to be at the receiving end of constant fear and suspicion:

@iHussainAsif: Sorry for con-

stantly having to prove that Islam is peaceful and for suffering for sins

committed by the so-called Muslims. #MuslimApologies

@Naderotb: I’m sorry about every Muslim child was killed by Your

army #MuslimApologies@SubMedina: I am sorry you are sitting in the comfort of ur home

butthurt while mostly Muslim folk fight ISIS. #MuslimApologies

@RemyRemz: I’m sorry that you feel threatened around us because

of the falsified western media your government brainwashes you with.

#MuslimApologies @meeemsx: Sorry about 9/11,

maybe if I wasn’t in my elemen-tary school class like every American child I would’ve been able to stop it

#MuslimApologies

Some chose to highlight Muslim achievements:

@Remziya: I’m sorry we invented Algebra. No seriously I really am. I hate math. #MuslimApologies

@N_Zangi: We’d also like to apol-ogise for the amazing architecture...

for instance the Taj Mahal, really sorry. #MuslimApologies

@jxnann: I’m sorry for inventing surgery, coffee, universities, algebra,

hospitals, toothbrushes, vaccinations,

numbers, & the sort #MuslimApologies

While others brought out the snark and kept their tongues firmly in cheek:

@Brown_Saraah: Sorry you expected us to be terrorists #Musli-

mApologies @elkilanimaliuna: As a Muslim I apologies for the World War One &

World War Two even it has nothing to do with the Muslims but just in case.

#MuslimApologies @omarhuss: Sorry for growing a

beard before it was cool/hipster to do it #MuslimApologies

@Yel3anAbook: I’m sorry I’m uneducated because apparently Fox

News knows more about my religion than I do #MuslimApologies

@missanisah: I’m sorry my halal meat tastes better than anything

you’ve ever tasted. #MuslimApologies

Many female Muslim Twitter users also responded to popular miscon-ceptions regarding hijabs, niqabs and other coverings:

@sumaiyyahhh: Sorry i look like batman when i when get on the

train, sorry you have to move away #MuslimApologies

@SmellTheWilayah: Sorry that

covering my body out of modesty doesn’t fit into your social stereotype of

women #MuslimApologies @ChantillyyyLace: I’m sorry you

still believe my hijab is a symbol of oppression, when it is in fact my

sanctuary, my freedom, my liberation. #MuslimApologies

@BonsaiSky: I’m sorry that Mus-lim women had rights 1400 years

ago while you were still discussing if women had souls. #MuslimApologies

Through anger or humor, what these tweets ultimately show is that there’s an entire spectrum of humanity that identifies as Muslim and that forc-ing members of a group to apologize for the actions of one radical subset is nonsensical. While some of these tweets may look silly, it’s because the idea of a whole religion needing to apologize for the actions of a few is silly in and of itself

Eileen ShimEileen is a writer living in New York. She studied comparative literature and international studies at Yale Uni-versity, and enjoys writing about the intersection of culture and politics.

Muslim Youth respond to being asked to appologise for terrorism.

IResponses on Twitter #MuslimAppologies reveal the feelings of marginalisation amongst Muslim youth.

El Hajj Malik el- Shabazz. AKA Malcolm X

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ana Asma’u (full name: Nana Asma’u bint She-hu Usman dan Fodiyo, 1793–1864) was a prin-cess, poet, teacher, and

daughter of the founder of the Soko-to Caliphate, Usman dan Fodio. She remains a revered figure in northern Nigeria. Nana Asma’u is held up by some as an example of education and independence of women possible un-der Islam, and by others as a precur-sor to modern feminism in Africa.

Nana Asma’u was born some eleven years before the Fulani War, and was named after Asma bint Abi Bakr, a companion of the Muslim Prophet. The daughter of the Sufi-inspired and

Fulani-led Sokoto Caliphate’s found-er and half sister of its Muhammed Bello (the second Sultan of Sokoto), she outlived most of the founding generation of the Caliphate, making her an important source of guidance to its later rulers. From 1805, mem-bers of the Caliph’s family came to great prominence, including the Ca-liph’s female relatives. While Nana Asma’u became the most prominent, her sisters Myram and Fatima, and the Caliph’s wives Aisha and Hawwa played major literary and political roles in the new state. Like her father, she was educated in Qur’anic studies, and placed a high value upon univer-sal education. As exemplars of the Qadiriyyah Sufi school, the dan Fodio

and his followers stressed the sharing of knowledge, especially that of the Sunnah, the example of the prophet Muhammad. To learn without teach-ing, they thought, was sterile and empty. Thus Nana Asma’u was de-voted, in particular, to the education of the Muslim women. Like most of the rest of her family, she became a prolific author.

Well educated in the classics of the Arab and Classical world, and well versed in four languages (Arabic, the Fula language, Hausa and Tamacheq Tuareg), Nana Asma’u had a pub-lic reputation as a leading scholar in the most influential Muslim state in West Africa, which gave her the op-

portunity to correspond broadly. She witnessed many of the wars of the Fulani War and wrote about her ex-periences in a prose narrative Wakar Gewaye “The Journey”. As the Soko-to Caliphate began as a cultural and religious revolutionary movement, the writings of its leaders held a spe-cial place by which later generations, both rulers and ruled, could measure their society. She became a counselor to her brother when he took the Ca-liphate, and is recorded writing in-structions to governors and debating with the scholars of foreign princes.

Amongst her over 60 surviving works written over 40 years, Nana Asma’u left behind a large body of poetry in Arabic, the Fula language and Hausa, all written in the Arabic script. Many of these are historical narratives, but they also include elegies, laments, and admonitions. Her poems of guidance became tools for teaching the found-ing principles of the Caliphate. As-ma’u also collaborated closely with Muhammed Bello, the second Caliph. Her works include and expand upon the dan Fodio’s strong emphasis on women leaders and women’s rights within the community ideals of the Sunnah and Islamic law.

Others of her surviving written works are related to Islamic education: for much of her adult life she was respon-sible for women’s religious education. Starting around 1830, she created a cadre of women teachers (jajis) who travelled throughout the Caliphate educating women in the students’ homes. In turn, each of these ja-jis in turn used Nana Asma’u’s and other Sufi scholars writings, usually through recited mnemonics and poet-ry, to train corps of learned women, called the ’yan-taru, or “those who

congregate together, the sisterhood.” To each jaji she bestowed a malfa (a hat and traditional ceremonial symbol of office of the pagan Bori priestesses in Gobir) tied with a red turban. The jajis became, thus, sym-bols of the new state, the new order, and of Islamic learning even outside women’s community. In part this educational project began as a way to integrate newly conquered pagan captives into a Muslim ruling class. It expanded, though, to include the poor and rural, training teachers who travelled across the sprawling Caliph-ate.

Nana Asma’u continued legacy rests not just on her literary work and role in defining the values of the Sokoto state. Today in Northern Nigeria, Is-lamic women’s organisation, schools, and meeting halls are commonly named for her. She re-entered the de-bate on the role of women in Islam in the 20th century, as her legacy has been carried by Islamic scholars and immigrants to Europe and its aca-demic debates. The republishing and translation of her works has brought added attention to the purely literary value of her prose and poems

ISLAM HERE

NANA ASMA’U BINT DAN FODIONigerian Princess; Scholar; Sufi; Poet and Stateswoman

NMan in Traditional Islamic wear at the Darbar Festival in Nigeria. emblematic of another time.

Pic: Iris - Nigeria

Illustration of Nana Asma’u by UmmahL-egends.com Pic: ummahlegends.com

I S L A M H E R E S H A W A A L 1 4 3 6 , H A L A A L T R A V E L P A G E 7

W E L C O M EMalaysiato

Home to over 20 million Muslims living harmoniously with millions others of diverse ethnics and faiths, all in the name of peace and moderation.n year 2015, as the “Year of Festi-vals” is celebrated across the coun-try, Muslim tourists can be rest as-sured that visiting Malaysia will be a hospitable experience just the way

it should. Whether you are having dinner with your family at the hotel or visiting our majestic towering mosques, it is our commitment to pro-vide the best Muslim friendly services to you, our most important guests.As one of world’s leading Halal hubs, our Ha-lal culinary experience is indeed second to none. Halal eateries from local restaurant to fast food to hotel dining are ubiquitous in the country and they are assuredly certified by our Department of Islamic Development Malaysia (JAKIM).

This year, we invite you to join the celebration and experience our range of Islamic festivals, visit some of the finest Islamic museums in the country, indulge into the best of retail thera-pies at our shopping pavilions and explore the great natural heritage of this land.Located strategically at the heart of Southeast Asia, Malaysia is well-known for its natural beauty and diverse cultural landscape. At its

social core are three of Asia’s oldest civilisa-tions – Malay, Chinese and Indian – as well as the ethnic communities of Sabah and Sarawak, resulting in a unique and inspiring blend of cultures.

Malaysia is recognised as the world’s number one Muslim-friendly destination due to its top notch facilities and unparalleled hospitality. Walk to most hotels, tourists can be rest as-sured that their basic needs as Muslims are taken care of. Obtaining praying essentials like Musallah and women’s prayer garments is just a dial away to the reception and it’s very common for the hotel’s kitchen to produce and cater Halal food for its Muslim guests.Salaah Facilities (Surau) is a ubiquitous in the country especially in the touristy areas such as shopping complexes, theme parks and mu-seums. The country’s mature and advance Halal industry makes it easier for tourists to find Halal certified eateries. From local del-icacies to Western cuisines to international brand of fast food chain, our iconic Halal logo can be spotted everywhere. Whether you are a newlywed or traveling with family or friends, be sure to look up for the best bargain from

our travel agencies and be sure to sign up for Muslim-friendly travel packages that suit your needs and budget.

Theme Parks such as LEGOLAND, Sunway Lagoon and Kidzanina also have Salaah Facil-ities (Surau) including all amenities ensuring a comfortable and effortless visit for Muslim families.As for shopping, Malaysia has achieved out-standing world rankings as the 4th best shop-ping destination in the world and the best in South East Asia, the 7th most affordable desti-nation in the world as well the host of three of the world’s top ten shopping Malls. Aside from these accolades, Malaysia’s shopping products from clothing to food and cosmetics have also been certified as Halal by JAKIM leaving the tourist with peace of mind when going on a shopping spree.

For added convenience and peace of mind, most hotels and accommodations in Malaysia are known to have their kitchens Halal certi-fied and equipped with Muslim-friendly amen-ities. This includes Salaah rooms (Surau), qiblah direction, Full Halaal Breakfasts, wa-

ter hoses in the bathrooms, Quraan in each room, and some hotels even have piped Qiraat throughout the hotel.Our Muslim-friendly directory is periodically updated to assist you with your traveling de-sires and needs throughout your stay for you to explore and experience

Let us be your perfect host and show you the best that Malaysia has to offer. Malaysia wel-comes you to experience the unique splen-dours of Islamic tourism in Malaysia. There is no better time to see, feel and experience Malaysia than now!

MALAYSIA TOURISM PROMOTION BOARD - JOHANNESBURGGround Floor, 5 Commerce Square,39 Rivonia Road, Sandhurst, Johannes-burg, South AfricaT: +27 (0)11 268 0292, F: +27 (0)11 268 0296,M: +27 (0)82 715 3921E- mail : jameel@tourism.gov.myhttp://www.tourismmalaysia.gov.my

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P A G E 8 W O R L D R E P O R T I S L A M H E R E S H A W A A L 1 4 3 6 ,

ERUSALEM — I fin-ished my military service as a fighter in the Israeli military’s Nahal Brigade 11 years ago. That’s when,

together with some friends, I founded the NGO Breaking The Silence. Since then, I’ve talked to hundreds of sol-diers who’ve told me about their ser-vice in the occupied territories. From what the dozens of soldiers and of-ficers who took part in last summer’s Operation Protective Edge told us, the rules of engagement have never been so permissive. Their testimonies reveal how the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) acted and help explain why the fighting left so many Palestinians dead.

But the testimonies only tell one part of the story. They don’t say that Pro-tective Edge was the last in a series of regularly launched IDF operations in Gaza, after the 2008 Operation Hot Winter, Cast Lead in early 2009, and Pillar of Defense in 2012. They also don’t explain why it’s obvious to everybody that it’s only a matter of time before the next one is launched.

This succession of military operations in Gaza is the reflection of a strategy that senior IDF officials have dubbed “mowing the lawn.” Those who sup-port this strategy describe it as an in-evitable answer to the terrorist threat against Israel. It’s presented by these officers as a defensive tool aimed at shaking the powerful terrorist organ-izations that threaten the safety of Israeli citizens.

For them, the threat facing Israel is constant, and can never be complete-ly eradicated. That’s why Israel must regularly “trim” the means used by those terrorists organizations and undermine their fighting skills. The launch of a new operation in Gaza every two or three years is not hap-

penstance, but rather the long-term reflection of a cold and calculated logic.

Heads downYet the last operation, like the previ-ous ones, didn’t just affect the fight-ing infrastructures of Hamas and other armed groups. The main vic-tims of this “mowing the lawn” poli-cy are Palestinian civilians decimated by the perpetual conflicts. What does the future hold for a society that in the span of two months loses sever-al hundred of its children and sees 18,000 of its homes destroyed?

When you look at the IDF’s methods and their results, it’s impossible not to realize that what they’re “mow-ing” isn’t the terrorist organizations’ potential but the ability of an entire society to live, develop and simply hold its head high.

The “lawn mowing” is, indeed, noth-ing more than one part of the mech-anism through which Israel controls the Palestinian population, be it in Gaza or the West Bank. To preserve this control, Israel acts relentlessly, so as to make sure that Palestinian soci-ety remains weak and submissive.

As a soldier, I took part in countless operations aimed at making Palestin-ian civilians in the West Bank “keep their heads down.” This, of course, continues today. In the streets of Pal-estinian cities, at every hour of the day or of the night, security forces raid randomly selected civilians hous-es, install snap checkpoints inside densely populated civilian neighbor-hoods, so the Palestinian population knows that we, Israeli soldiers, are everywhere, always, thus creating among them a “feeling of persecu-tion.”

Other methods, such as imposing a curfew in a village or arresting all

the men there for an undefined peri-od of time, enable the IDF to fix fear among the population and reinforce Israel’s control on them.

The difference between the soldiers’ mission in the West Bank and their mission in Gaza is the result of the different natures of Israel’s grip on the two territories. The West Bank has been submitted for 48 years to a total, direct and daily military con-trol as well as a partial administra-tive control. In Gaza, although Israel hasn’t established a military control there since 2005, it still has a stran-glehold on a certain number of the most basic aspects of the Gazans’ daily lives.

We control Gaza’s air space and ter-ritorial waters, as well as the move-ments of people and commodities to and from it and its registry of births, marriages and deaths. As a matter of fact, the regular assaults in Gaza are just another cog in the wheel of Isra-el’s indirect control over the enclave’s inhabitants, and another way of con-tributing to the dismemberment of Palestinian society.

We should remember that when we take away from the Palestinians the freedom to choose where to live their lives and the right to live in safety with a roof above their heads, we’re hurting ourselves. We’re destroying our values and humanity, but we’re also jeopardizing our security, and with it the hope of a life that isn’t just about waiting for the next war to break out. Only freedom for the Pal-estinians can guarantee the freedom and safety of Israelis

*Yehuda Shaul is the cofounder and a member of Breaking the Silence, an NGO that includes more than 1,000 for-mer IDF troops working to put an end to Israeli occupation.

IDF : MOWING THE LAWN

Was #MakkahLive a PR stunt to appease Arabs and Muslims?

ocial media is powerful. There’s no denying that. Time and time again, so-cial media has proven its efficacy in relaying the

truth regarding social narratives when traditional media has failed to do so. Snapchat is one such power-ful medium. It allows users to share images in 10-second video clips with each other.

Recently, Snapchat introduced a live story option which allows its users to post clips or images from a given loca-tion or event. These ‘snaps’ from the same location or event are then col-lated into a 24-hour live public story available to all users. Here’s the catch

– Snapchat decides what clips make the final cut. This form of gate-keep-ing is significant because it forms the public’s perception of a given place. Reality, then, is what Snapchat de-cides to show to the world.

And thus begins the story of how Snapchat became politicised. You see, Snapchat made the blunder of broad-casting Tel Aviv live exactly a year after one of Israel’s deadliest attacks on Gaza, Operation Protective Edge. Naturally, it caused an outrage. It wasn’t just the fact that Snapchat’s Tel Aviv story recognised a state that colonises, occupies, and violates in-ternational law with no accountabil-ity. Rather, it was the fact that not a

single Palestinian element had been included in that story, almost as if the Arab narrative never existed within the Israeli-Palestinian conflict.

The resulting outrage forced Snap-chat to create a West Bank Live story the very next day. Falafel was recog-nised as a Palestinian snack and snaps mentioning illegal settlements, check-points and the Palestinian symbol of resistance – the kuffiyeh – all made the cut. The world felt right again.

While West Bank Live may have been nothing more than a crisis-averting PR stunt, one can’t deny that it was powerful. It gave Palestinians recog-nition of their existence. It allowed a window to a place torn by one of the worst political conflicts of our time. More importantly, it gave a human perspective of strength, optimism, struggle, and humour despite difficul-ties in a land that has become noth-ing more than statistics to the main-stream media.

The next story that went live after West Bank was Makkah. Yep, one of the holiest Muslim cities was broad-casted live by Snapchat on Monday, Ramazan 27th, which many believe is the night of Laylatul Qadr (Night of power).

Was it a coincidence that Makkah went live on one of the most revered nights of worship for Muslims around the world? Sceptics say this was a sheepish continued effort to appease Arabs and Muslims around the world after the Palestine blunder.

Of course, Arabs and Muslims are of-ten lumped together by mainstream media, and by this logic, Snapchat may have decided to broadcast Mak-kah live next to avert their politically incorrect blunder. However, let’s not forget that Islam has the second-larg-est number of followers in the world and is currently the fastest growing religion. Moreover, one cannot ignore the fact that Snapchat users started trending a #MakkahLive hashtag on Twitter, requesting a chance to show-case Islam.

With so many users at stake, Snap-chat certainly can’t afford this PR crisis – from a purely profit stand-point, of course. PR stunt or not, one can’t deny that broadcasting Makkah is essential in dispelling the negative stereotypes about Islam. At a time when an ISIS version of Islam is the dominant media narrative, a window inside the lives of ordinary Muslims is a much-needed normalisation of a villainised religion.

While some may question this politi-cisation of Snapchat and others may dismiss it as ‘just another social me-dia application’, one would be foolish to ignore the immense potential that this application has.

While demanding a Gaza story on Twitter, users began posting their Snapchat usernames. This would al-low people from Gaza and the occu-pied territories to see the unfiltered reality that dissents from Snapchat’s version.

To reiterate then, Snapchat is power-ful. It is powerful in dispelling stereo-types. It is powerful in disseminating truth to the public. And it is powerful in reclaiming the oft-mistaken main-stream media narratives

Arfah Shahid Siddiqi

The author is a freelance journalist and aspiring human rights lawyer with a passion for human rights, postcolonial thought and gender equality. She cur-rently runs a female empowerment blog aiming to break stereotypes surrounding women in fashion.

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An ex-soldier speaks on the intent of deadly incursions by Israeli Defence Force

Scrrenshots of #meccalive

IDF - firing rockets into the Gaza Strip.

Pic: IDfblog.com

I S L A M H E R E S H A W A A L 1 4 3 6 , W O R L D R E P O R T P A G E 9

Moscow is the largest Muslim city in EuropeBut states inability to accomadate it’s Muslim citizens creates larger issues.

hen Moscow’s Mus-lims gathered at the city’s main mosque Wednesday to mark Eid el-Fitr, the end of

the holy month of Ramadan, tens of thousands of worshippers were forced to take their prayer mats into the street. Lines of police officers stood amid the worshippers, who also had to pass through a security check be-fore they could pray.

As a symbol it is a powerful illustra-tion of two things: firstly, the grow-ing strength of Moscow’s Muslim community; but secondly, the official insecurity and to some extent, hostil-ity toward it.

Islam has always been the second biggest religion in Russia, but it had never been as visible in Moscow as it is now. Moscow has the largest Muslim population in Europe, with estimates suggesting that between 1.5 and 2 million of the Russian capital’s pop-ulation are of the faith. Despite this, Moscow has only six Mosques, hence the necessity for worshippers to con-gregate in the street.

This problem is not new either. In 2012, Hasan Fakhritdinov, imam of what is known as the city’s Historical Mosque, told the BBC that the ex-isting facilities were just not enough. “We are asking the authorities to

let us build new mosques, but they are ignoring our demands,” he says. “Now people have to pray outside in the rain or the snow.”

Moscow Mayor Sergei Sobyanin, a fre-quent critic of Muslim immigrants, said in the past that the “excessive” number of Muslim newcomers to Moscow was “harmful” and that no new building permits for mosques would be granted.

Russia’s Muslims are made up of eth-nic Tatars, Russia’s third largest eth-nic group; Azeris who settled there after fleeing the Armenian-Azeri war; natives of Russia’s Caucasus; and, in recent years, tens of thousands of economic migrants from central Asia and the Middle East.

But distrust between the Muslim community and ethnic Russians re-mains high, in part fueled by the war in Chechnya, and subsequent terror-ist attacks carried out by Muslim ex-tremists.

A 2013 survey by VTsIOM, a state-owned pollster, found that almost one in seven Russians don’t want Muslim neighbors, one quarter do not want to live near a Caucasus native, and 28 percent don’t want Central Asians next door. Some 45 percent of Rus-sians support the nationalist slogan of “Russia for ethnic Russians,” the

poll found, according to Al Jazeera.This antipathy has also lead to vio-lence against Moscow’s Muslim com-munity, and suppression by the au-thorities. A 2013 anti-immigrant riot, triggered by the stabbing of a Slavic man, saw Slavic rioters released by police, but thousands of migrant workers -- the target of the violence -- were detained by the authorities. In addition, politicians called for ban-ning apartment sales to foreigners and for imposing visa restrictions on migrants from the southern Muslim nations that only a generation ago were part of the Soviet Union, Voice of America reported.

In recent months, with international sanctions over Ukraine and falling oil prices imposing increasing economic hardship on Russia, a dislike of all things foreign (albeit focused mainly on the West) has once again crept into the country’s political consciousness.

With Russia’s increasing alienation from the West, some experts believe President Vladimir Putin could use his country’s Muslim citizens as an asset, to assist in forming alliances with conservative, Middle Eastern countries, which share Russia’s un-ease at the perceived encroachment of liberal Western values. If this is part of Russia’s diplomatic strategy, it appears to have borne little in the way of fruit thus far

- Mark Hanrahan

Reuters/Maxim Zmeyev

Reuters/Sergei Karpukhin

Muslims attend the morning prayers of Eid al-Fitr holiday, marking the end of the holy month of Ramadan, in Moscow, Russia

Interior Ministry members stand guard as Muslims attend the morning prayers of Eid al-Fitr

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Why are we still asking Muslims to condemn terrorism?

hen news broke that a 24-year-old man with a Muslim name was responsible for the shooting ram-

page that left five servicemen dead in Chattanooga, the Muslim commu-nity took a deep breath: Here we go again. First, take to social media to decry the attack, then send a press release, maybe conduct a few press

interviews. And still, wait for the in-evitable blame that falls on the whole group solely because of their faith.

“It plays out the same way every time for me and many Muslims: You hear about something horrible happening, and after the initial horror and grief, you hope the suspect is not a Mus-lim,” said Zahra Billoo, an attorney and executive director of the Bay Area chapter of the Council on Amer-ican-Islamic Relations.

If the perpetrator is Muslim, a series of responses ensue, including horror that someone would twist religious teachings to perpetrate violence, fol-lowed by a need to distance: “That person does not represent us, our community, our religion,” said Billoo.Indeed, Muslim organizations around

the country are often quick to join what some call the “condemn-a-thon”-- a frenzied dance to issue statements against such attacks and distance Islam from violence. But many activists believe such actions are counterproductive and indicative of a double standard in American so-ciety -- in which minority groups like blacks and Muslims are expected to condemn individual acts of violence or risk being perceived as giving tacit approval.

“It’s just not fair to Muslims to have to bear this responsibility of con-demning, when there are so many other violent acts occurring in Ameri-ca,” said Tanzila Ahmed, a writer, ac-tivist and host of the#GoodMuslim-BadMuslim podcast. Ahmed believes Muslim groups shouldn’t cave to the

pressure of the condemnation dance. “No other community is asked to do it. We don’t make police condemn all acts of violence perpetrated by cops. Only people of color are expected to bear the responsibility of a larger group in this way.”

Wajahat Ali, a journalist at Al Ja-zeera America and author of “Fear Inc.: The Roots of the Islamophobia Network in America,” agrees.

“Being forced to participate in the condemn-a-thon, wherein a nameless judge, jury and executioner is con-stantly testing our loyalty and mod-eration -- that I won’t do anymore,” said Ali. “There is a double stand-ard that paints a Muslim shooter to be this otherworldly bogeyman, but when it’s a white male, he’s either sanitized, or his ideological roots are not investigated to same extent, or the label of terrorist is not applied equally.”

Double StandardBut Billoo says that many Muslims are torn between standing up for themselves in calling out that double standard and the obligation as a Mus-lim to speak out against evil. “There’s a huge tension. Why are we obligated to do this? But if we don’t, then who will?” she said. “There’s also the idea that such condemnations are ineffec-tive -- that people who will believe us already know where we stand, and the people who question Muslim com-munities won’t. And we continue to associate ourselves with these crimes when we condemn them.”

Ali says the condemnation dance can have severe consequences of further alienating a minority community. And Muslim communities have a real

fear of backlash, as evidenced by the Chattanooga mosque that cancelled its end-of-Ramadan Eid prayers on Friday after the attack.

“No one is denying that there is a problem of people committing vio-lence in the name of Islam. The prob-lem is the double standard that’s em-ployed -- which is married to hysteria that drives anti-Muslim sentiments that are deliberately used to further marginalize American Muslim com-munities, who have never committed violent acts,” said Ali, who added that emerging details about Abdu-lazeez’s life, which included a back-ground of depression, drug abuse, and bankruptcy paint a complicated picture of what could have led him to the rampage.

Some Muslims believe it’s those de-tails that demonstrate how the Amer-ican Muslim community is no differ-ent than any other in the U.S.

“What’s emerging here is that he’s as American as the rest of us. He had problems with alcohol, depression. It triggered something in him,” said Shahed Amanullah, member of the community. “This can be a teaching moment that American Muslims are not different than anybody else -- that we have issues with depression, social isolation, drugs and alcohol. And that as a larger society, we need to come up with ways to help young America deal with young American problems.”

Changed PerceptionsBut one thing many American Mus-lims do agree on is a need for the community to take charge of its own narrative

American Muslims pause to reflect after the recent shooting in Chattanooga, and start focussing on the nar-rative. - Ismat Sarah Mangla

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Muslim women from the community attend mass for the service men that were killed by a young Muslim man in Chattanooga.

Pic: TAMI CHAPPELL

P A G E 1 0 E D U C A T I O N I S L A M H E R E S H A W A A L 1 4 3 6

eflecting on my journey into formal education has and still is an event-ful one! There is so much knowledge out there and

constantly the thought arises, there is so much to learn! Themore you learn the more you realize how little you know. Technology for example has become a frightful ne-cessity and knowledge of it cumber-some and daunting, yet useful. Being involved in higher education for the last twenty five years has put me in a situation where trying to escape is not helpful. Yet the question still remains how much of this do we need?

Being involved in formal education at medical school exposed me to so many aspects of life as I wanted to be involved in developmental education. Students need to be tutored and men-tored. Making the effort to provide scaffolding where it is needed, espe-cially where under prepared students are concerned. Educatingthe whole person. So whatever I be-came involved in should not only in-volve biology but also the psyche and the social. At the two medical schools where I lectured it was important that the approach be biopsychosocial. Getting students to learn in this way helps them to be better practitioners.

Five years ago I became Muslim and the transition into Islam became a difficult journey as I struggled with all my teaching in western formal ed-ucation. I chose this path and I was drawn to it because I wanted some-thing deeper and more meaningful. Slowly it became apparent to me there is a balance in difficulties and ease that one experiences on the path. This realization brought me comfort.

I began to learn a new way of look-ing at the world and at relationships. Understanding that there is another way of responding that should not involve the nafs. Embracing Islam meant many changes being made daily. Establishing the Salaah meant making the prayer timetable a pri-ority instead of fitting the prayer in somewhere in the day. Keeping com-pany with women that I respected and have a high opinion of was es-sential for the journey on the path. The certainty with which they spoke inspired me and encouraged me. The transmission from one to the other is important.

Hajja Rabea Redpath in her article on Purification (page 13) writes “the or-igin of every good action comes from Yaqin (certainty). Absolute certainty is what we want, to remove the con-fusion and fogginess that covers the heart. We must turn from the voices of doubt.” She continues “Shaykh ad Darqawi rahimullah said, do not cul-tivate all that is found in the heart, if you listen to its conversation it will weaken your certainty.” If you do not listen to its conversation your luminosity will grow stronger, when it grows stronger your certainty will grow stronger.” Practical events on a daily basis needed doing and I needed to take responsibility if I was to suc-ceed. My own ideas of what success meant were challenged constantly by what I heard at the mosque and the Dhikrs. Still I had to keep going and focus on what is important and my daily Dua was to be useful to those around me and to use the gifts that I was given.

At the University where I work facili-tating small group learning with first

year medical students became a new challenge for me two years ago. In my small group of 10 students who come in from diverse backgrounds with dif-ferent levels of potential, the dynam-ics are very different to traditional tutorials. Students physically sit very close to you and are aware of your presence as much as you are aware of them. Modelling good behaviour yourself as a facilitator becomes key if you want the group to succeed. One very young Muslim student who whizzed through high school because she was so bright seemed to be qui-et and bored in the group. During my one on one discussion with her I enquired whether she was bored and wondered why. She said she had sim-pler ways of learning the material and the students were complicating the learning.

I also asked her if she had studied the Koran and she replied yes. Then I said to her that she should share what she knew; that Allah had given this to her as a gift to be shared with others. From then on she changed her behaviour in the group and became more energetic and started to volun-teer more to share in the group. The way we view our work situationis often different from the way we view people outside.

Having a high opinion of others means also having a high opinion of your students. Having a high opinion of students gives them more of an op-portunity to be successful and thebest they can be. May Allah subhana-hu wa ta’ala give us Sabr (patience) to reflect on our practice

ZARINA QURAYBA - EDUCATIONALISTE-mail: asabiyyafood@gmail.com

OVERCOMING OBSTACLES IN EDUCATION

REducationalist Zarina looks at the core of teaching as a transmission of the heart.

I S L A M H E R E S H A W A A L 1 4 3 6 , M E D I C A L P A G E 1 1

aving your blood pres-sure tested is a simple but vital health check that should be done at least once a year -

sometimes more if your family has a history of blood pressure-related problems. The acceptable range for blood pressure is between 120/80 139/89, anything above or below that will be classified as abnormal. Of greatest concern is high blood pres-sure as it shows no symptoms, which is why it can catch you unaware and has become known as the silent killer.

High blood pressure One in three South Africans (about 6.3 million people) are said to suffer from high blood pressure. While it may not sound very dangerous, it is a major cause of heart attacks, strokes, kidney failure and premature death. Pharmaceutical company Novartis has reported that about 130 heart attacks and 240 strokes occur every day in South Africa, and these are often linked to high blood pressure. It has become a serious concern for health officials, and even been called an epidemic, particularly because it is a condition that can be easily pre-vented. The exact cause of high blood pressure in a person can be difficult to pinpoint, although there are a num-ber of factors which are linked to high blood pressure, also called hyperten-sion. The following factors are seen as the main causes of hypertension:

• Smoking• Beingoverweight

• Diabetes• Highof saltintake• Andinsufficientmineralssuchaspotassium,calciumandmagnesium• Alackof physicalactivity• Highlevelsof alcoholcon-sumption• Stress• Ageing• Certainmedications• Kidneydisease• Thyroidproblems

Hypertension can quietly damage a person’s body for years before symp-toms develop, attacking the arteries, heart, brain, kidneys, eyes, and can even cause sexual dysfunction. This is why it is imperative to get your blood pressure tested at least once a year, even if you don’t have any symptoms indicating high blood pressure.

Once present, the symptoms of ex-tremely high blood pressure include severe headaches, dizziness, fatigue or confusion, nausea, problems with vi-sion, breathing problems, chest pains, an irregular heartbeat or blood in the urine.

TreatmentHypertension can be managed with medication. People living with high blood pressure should maintain a healthy lifestyle by eating a balanced diet and lowering salt intake, exer-cising regularly, cutting out smoking and limiting alcoholic drinks.

Last words:Prevention is better than cure. Make sure that you familiarise yourself

with the symptoms of hypertension and consult a doctor as soon as any worrisome symptoms present itself. There is a common misconception that hypertension only occurs in old-er males. Hypertension is a condition that can affect anyone of any age or gender, so make sure to maintain good overall health to avoid becoming the next patient!

This article was provided by www.selfmed.co.za

UNDERSTANDING ABNORMAL BLOOD PRESSURE

H- Christy van der Merwe

Selfmed Medical Scheme

FAST FACTS ABOUT HIGH BLOOD PRESSURE:• It’s lowest when you sleep and rises when you get up.• It affects children and teens.• It is prevalent in obese people and heavy drinkers.• It is a common condition amongst women who take oral con- traceptives.• It can develop slowly over years.• It poses a threat to the fetus of pregnant mothers.

Shedding light on a condition said to be effecting 1 in every 3 South Africans

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