PUTERI SENJA

Pemimpin Islam jadi 'balaci'

2010-02-28T16:17:00.000+08:00

Ahli Parlimen Kulim-Bandar Baharu, Zulkifli Noordin

KUALA LUMPUR 27 Feb. - Ahli Parlimen Kulim-Bandar Baharu, Zulkifli Noordin menyifatkan pemimpin Islam yang bersetuju dengan cubaan pihak tertentu membatalkan sambutan Maulidur Rasul sebagai "bajingan" serta "balaci" yang rela dicucuk hidung seperti lembu.

Beliau bagaimanapun tidak menyatakan pihak mana yang cuba membatalkan sambutan itu dan mereka yang dimaksudkannya sebagai bajingan tersebut.

Katanya, pemimpin Islam seperti itu umpama lalang yang akan mengikut segala rentak yang dimainkan oleh pihak yang cuba membatalkan sambutan yang menjadi syiar bagi umat Islam di negara ini.

"Dan yang paling malang, ada di kalangan kita yang bersedia menjadi bajingan dan balaci mereka, menjadi seperti lembu yang dicucuk hidung.

"Bila kafir ini meniup ke kiri, maka terkinja-kinjalah kita berjoget ke kiri. Bila mereka menghembus ke kanan, maka terkial-kiallah kita berzapin ke kanan," katanya sewaktu membacakan khutbah sembahyang Jumaat, semalam.

Entri bertajuk "Khutbah Maulidur Rasul" itu turut dimasukkan dalam blognya, http://zul4kulim.blogspot.com.

Sebelum ini, Utusan Malaysia melaporkan pendedahan Setiausaha Sekretariat Perhimpunan Melayu Pulau Pinang, Mohd. Nor Suhaili Jamali mengenai pembatalan perarakan sempena Maulidur Rasul oleh kerajaan Pulau Pinang.

Bagaimanapun, selepas dikritik hebat dan bimbang kehilangan sokongan orang Melayu, Ketua Menteri, Lim Guan Eng membuat keputusan untuk mengadakan perarakan tersebut mengikut program asal sebelum ia dibatalkan.

Malah, Guan Eng menafikan perarakan itu dibatalkan dan menuduh Utusan Malaysia berbohong dan membuat fitnah untuk memburuk-burukkan kerajaan negeri.

Tambah Zulkifli, penghinaan itu berlaku kerana penyakit 'wahan' (cintakan dunia dan takutkan mati) apabila pemimpin Islam terbabit terlalu sayangkan kedudukan, jawatan dan habuan.

"Kita mengenepikan semua prinsip dan matlamat perjuangan demi mengejar impian keduniaan dan kerusi empuk kekuasaan.

"Hingga kita sampai mempertuhankan politik dan demokrasi. Kita takut kedudukan, jawatan dan habuan kita itu mati dan hilang.

"Maka hari ini kita menjadi umat yang hina di mana-mana sahaja kita berada. Yang tinggal hanya sejemput janggut dan senipis serban, kita hanya muncul Islam pada nama, tetapi tong kosong di dalam," katanya.

Jelas Zulkifli, kesatuan umat Islam bukannya bersandarkan kepada nasionalisme; assabiyah puak, kumpulan atau pertubuhan tetapi kekuatannya berpunca daripada pegangan kukuh kepada al-Quran.

-UTUSAN MALAYSIA

Gugurkan tuntutan

2010-01-11T23:35:00.015+08:00

KOTA KINABALU 10 Jan. – Akhbar Herald-The Catholic Weekly perlu bersedia menggugurkan kes tuntutan penggunaan kalimah Allah oleh bukan Islam di mahkamah berikutan perkembangan yang semakin membimbangkan hingga mengakibatkan beberapa gereja dibakar.

Presiden Majlis Jaksa Pendamai Malaysia, Datuk Clarence Bongkos Malakun berkata, langkah tersebut perlu untuk keamanan dan kestabilan rakyat berbilang kaum di negara ini.

‘‘Sudah tiba masanya kita, masyarakat Kristian khususnya Katholik membuat penilaian kepada keadaan sekarang demi keselamatan dan ketenteraman awam supaya dengan senang hati menggugurkan perkataan Allah untuk menenangkan saudara Islam kita.

‘‘Daripada terus mendesak hak untuk menggunakan perkataan Allah adalah lebih baik jika Katholik hanya menggunakan perkataan ‘Tuhan’ atau ‘Tuhan Yang Maha Kuasa’.[selanjutnya]

Ekorannya;....
Zaki sokong penuh saranan Presiden Majlis Jaksa Pendamai Malaysia
11th January, 2010
KENINGAU: Naib Ketua Belia Usia Negeri Sabah, Mohd Zaki Laumin, menyokong penuh saranan Presiden Majlis Jaksa Pandamai Malaysia, Datuk Seri Panglima Clarence Malakun supaya rela menggugurkan perkataan Allah, bagi menjaga perasaan masyarakat Islam di negara ini.

“Kita hidup dalam sebuah negara yang paling aman, dan tidak perlu bagi kita untuk terlalu emosi dalam sensitiviti agama,” katanya.

Clarence dalam satu kenyataan yang diterbitkan oleh hampir kesemua akhbar tempatan di negeri ini, dipetik sebagai berkata; “Orang Kristian sepatutnya faham masyarakat Islam marah kerana perkataan ‘Allah’ telah digunakan di Malaysia sejak azali lagi dan ia juga merujuk kepada Tuhan bagi Islam’.[selanjutnya]

Performing Arts centre badly needed: Masidi

2009-12-19T02:12:00.001+08:00

Published on: Thursday, December 17, 2009

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Kota Kinabalu: A Centre for Performing Arts should be built in Sabah to provide a conducive atmosphere for talented Sabahans to practise their crafts, said State Tourism, Culture and Environment Minister Datuk Masidi Manjun.

He believes the centre would be the platform to further promote artistic initiatives within Sabah." There are so many talented people in Sabah but I believe we may not have provided them a conducive atmosphere to practise their craft," he said after viewing "Karaoke", a film by Sabahan Chris Chong, at GSC 1Borneo, Tuesday.

The 75-minute film did Malaysia proud when it was adjudged the winner of the Maverick Prize in the 2009 Calgary International Film Festival apart from being chosen as the official selection 2009 in the Toronto International Film Festival as well as becoming the first Malaysian film in 14 years to be presented at the Cannes 2009 Directors Fortnight. Read More

Muslim America’s Image Crisis

2009-11-21T02:15:00.000+08:00

This week’s column was going to be about how the Obama Administration’s vigilance against domestic terror plots has further bruised Islam’s battered image among Americans, and what Muslims can do about it – when along came Fort Hood, where a Muslim-American army major reportedly gunned down 13 people on Thursday.

American Muslim leaders were swift to distance Islam from the tragedy.

“We make it [clear] that the American Muslim community condemns the attack in the strongest possible words,” Nihad Awad, Executive Director of the Council on American Muslim Relations (CAIR), was quoted as saying. “No political or religious ideology could ever justify or excuse such wanton and indiscriminate violence.”

The message is vital. Most Muslims are not terrorists.

Pembantu rumah Indonesia didera meninggal dunia

2009-10-27T10:56:00.005+08:00

Isnin Oktober 26, 2009 Pembantu rumah Indonesia didera meninggal dunia KLANG: Pembantu rumah warga Indonesia, yang ditemui separuh pengsan dengan kesan lebam dan luka hampir seluruh badan, dipercayai didera oleh majikannya di dalam tandas sebuah rumah di Taman Sentosa di sini meninggal dunia hari ini.

Mangsa dikenali sebagai Mantik Hani, 36, menghembuskan nafas terakhir kirakira pukul 10 pagi di Unit Rawatan Rapi (ICU) Hospital Tengku Ampuan Rahimah (HTAR) di sini, sejak dimasukkan ke hospital itu Selasa lepas. Pengarah HTAR, Dr Ghazali Hasni Md Hassan, berkata mangsa meninggal dunia selepas didapati tidak bertindak balas dengan rawatan yang diberikan sepasukan doktor pakar. "Mangsa sepatutnya menjalani pembedahan tetapi ia tidak dapat diteruskan disebabkan keadaannya tidak mengizinkan," kata beliau ketika ditemui pemberita di HTAR di sini. Dua pegawai wanita yang mewakili pejabat Kedutaan Indonesia di Malaysia turut berada di HTAR untuk melawat mangsa tetapi membatalkan rancangan itu selepas dimaklumkan wanita berkenaan telah meninggal dunia.

Pembantu rumah terbabit pada 20 Okt lepas ditemui dalam keadaan 'nyawa-nyawa ikan' dipercayai didera, dikurung dalam tandas, kepala dicukur hampir botak dan tidak diberi makan beberapa hari oleh majikannya. Polis menyelamatkan pembantu rumah itu pada pukul 7 petang hari sama selepas menerima laporan mengenai penderaan itu daripada seorang tukang sapu yang bertugas membersihkan kediaman rumah suspek, dan terus menghantar wanita berkenaan ke HTAR untuk mendapatkan rawatan lanjut.

Susulan itu, polis menahan reman majikan pembantu rumah itu, yang bekerja sebagai peniaga pasar dan isterinya untuk membantu siasatan. Lelaki itu menyerah diri kepada polis sehari selepas pembantu rumah itu ditemui dan direman sehingga 28 Okt manakala isterinya direman sehingga esok. Ketua Polis Daerah Klang, Asisten Komisioner Mohamad Mat Yusop berkata dua suspek itu disiasat kini mengikut Seksyen 302 Kanun Keseksaan kerana membunuh dan pihaknya masih mencari saksi untuk membantu siasatan termasuk ibu majikan dan bekas majikan pembantu rumah itu. "Jenazah mangsa akan dilakukan bedah siasat di HTAR bagi menentukan punca kematiannya," katanya. BERNAMA

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PANDANGAN PUTERI SENJA

Sudah tiba masanya kerajaan Malaysia perlu menggubal undang-undang yang mengenakan hukuman yang lebih berat ke atas mereka yang terlibat mendera pembantu rumah yang tidak bersalah ini. Hukuman berat termasuk hukuman sebat ke atas pesalah harus dikenakan.

Selain itu hukuman berat harus dikenakan kepada mereka yang mengambil pembantu rumah tanpa permit kerana pekerja tanpa permit inilah yang selalu menjadi mangsa kerana mereka tiada tempat bergantung dan takut lari dari majikan walaupun mereka tertindas dan teraniahya.Pastikan juga pembantu rumah yang berugama Islam tidak diambil bekerja sebagai pembantu rumah kepada majikan yang tidak berugama Islam.

Amah didera, dipaksa makan babi. Mana Shahrizat? Mana Muslimah PAS?

2009-10-07T02:46:00.006+08:00

KUALA LUMPUR - Seorang wanita warga India yang cuba mengubah nasib dirinya dengan merantau jauh ke negara ini untuk mencari rezeki dengan bekerja sebagai pembantu rumah tidak menduga kehidupannya di sini lebih merana apabila dia didera malah dipaksa makan babi oleh majikannya.

Kejadian malang itu menimpa Aishabeevi, 36 (gambar) , selepas lima hari dia menjejakkan kaki ke rumah majikannya di Taman Gaya Pelangi di Johor Bahru pada 10 Julai lalu sebaik tiba dari Chennai, India. Selain majikannya yang merupakan suami isteri, turut tinggal di rumah tersebut ialah seorang anak pasangan itu dan seorang wanita warga emas.

Aishabeevi, ibu kepada dua anak perempuan berusia 11 dan 13 tahun mendakwa, dia mula didera seperti dipukul, dikurung, dipaksa makan babi selain tidak dibenar bersembahyang pada hari keenam dia bekerja di rumah itu dan ia berlarutan sehingga dia melarikan diri Jumaat lalu. Dia juga mendakwa tidak dibenarkan memakai jubah atau tudung.

Soalan:
1. Kenapa pembantu rumah yang berugama Islam dibenarkan untuk bekerja dan tinggal bersama majikan bukan Islam? Adalah wanita ini mempunyai permit bekerja yang sah? Kenapa agennya memantau dan tidak dipantau?

2. Apa peranan Shahrizat sebagai Menteri yang bertanggungjawab mengenai hal ehwal wanita? Mana Muslimah PAS yang memperjuangkan hukum?

3. Menteri Sumber tak akan melakukan tranformasi mengenai kes ini yang kerap berulang?

KOSMO

AS labur RM146 juta pastikan keselamatan perairan Sabah

2009-10-02T23:53:00.002+08:00

SUBANG 1 Okt. - Amerika Syarikat (AS) telah melabur sebanyak RM146 juta bagi memastikan keselamatan di perairan Sabah sejak beberapa tahun lalu. Duta Besar AS ke Malaysia, James R. Keith berkata, komitmen itu membuktikan negara kuasa besar berkenaan bersungguh-sungguh dalam mempromosi keamanan di peringkat global.

"AS telah melatih 1,400 pegawai dan anggota tentera Malaysia sejak 10 tahun lalu dan melabur sebanyak AS$42 juta (RM146 juta) bagi keselamatan perairan di Sabah," ujarnya. Beliau berkata demikian pada sidang akhbar bagi memperkenalkan pasukan aerobatik Thunderbirds dari angkatan udara AS sempena Pameran Udara Subang 2009 di Pangkalan Tentera Udara Diraja Malaysia (TUDM) di sini hari ini.

Hadir sama Panglima Operasi Udara TUDM, Leftenan Jeneral Datuk Seri Bashir Abu Bakar dan ketua pasukan Thunderbirds, Mejar Anthony Mulhare. Menurut kenyataan Angkatan Tentera Malaysia (ATM), AS kini sedang membekalkan beberapa buah radar Inisiatif 1206 secara percuma untuk dipasang secara berperingkat bermula di Bukit Tinagat, Tawau sejak tahun lalu. Selain radar itu, AS juga membekalkan beberapa bot tempur serta aktif menjalankan latihan ketenteraan dengan ATM dari semasa ke semasa.

Kepada satu soalan, Keith menegaskan, kehadiran pasukan tentera AS dalam pelbagai operasi, latihan dan pertunjukan di seluruh dunia adalah bagi mempromosikan 'nilai-nilai Amerika' yang cintakan keamanan. "Ia bukannya untuk menunjukkan kami kuasa dunia atau bersifat unilateral dalam tindak-tanduk kami seperti yang anda katakan," jelasnya. Kata beliau, penglibatan ketenteraan AS dalam sebarang aktiviti di sini adalah bagi memastikan kegiatan ekonomi terus berjalan lancar tanpa ancaman pengganas dan lanun.

Selain itu jelasnya, kehadiran armada-armada negara itu juga membuktikan keakraban hubungan dua hala dengan negara-negara yang dilawati. Dalam pada itu Bashir memberitahu, Pertunjukan Udara Subang 2009 pada Sabtu ini mengambil masa kira-kira empat jam bermula pukul 9 pagi. "Pertunjukan udara secara percuma ini melibatkan lapan pesawat F-16C Thunderbirds dan tiga pesawat tempur paling moden yang berada dalam inventori TUDM iaitu SU-30MKM Sukhoi," katanya.

Tambahnya, dua pesawat Thunderbirds turut melakukan penerbangan di sekeliling menara berkembar Petronas di ibu negara dari Subang bagi tujuan latihan dan menghiburkan orang ramai. Bashir turut mengesahkan kehadiran pesawat pengebom B-52 milik AS pada Pameran Udara dan Maritim Antarabangsa Langkawi (LIMA) 2009 pada Disember ini.

Salam Aidilfitri Buat Rakan -Rakan Sekalian.

2009-09-20T03:14:00.004+08:00

Allahu Akbar
Allahu Akbar
Allahu Akbar
Allahu Akbar Walillah il hamd'

Selamat Hari Raya Aidilfirti
Dengan Ingatan Tulus
Maaf Segala Batin Zahir..

Daripada
PUTERI SENJA.

Noordin Mat Top disahkan terbunuh - Polis Indonesia

2009-09-18T04:36:00.003+08:00

JAKARTA: Ketua Polis Indonesia Jen Bambang Hendarso Danuri mengesahkan pengganas paling dikehendaki di negara ini, Noordin Mohd Top mati ditembak dalam operasi polis di Solo, Jawa Tengah, awal pagi ini.

Katanya, polis berani mengesahkan bahawa lelaki itu ialah Noordin berdasarkan cap jari dan 14 lagi tanda dan ciri-ciri yang dikenali di badan lelaki yang berasal dari Malaysia itu. "Alhamdulillah, dengan kebesaran Allah dan berkat di akhir bulan Ramadan ini, dia adalah Noordin Mohd Top," katanya pada sidang media di pejabatnya di sini Khamis, yang disiarkan secara langsung oleh stesen televisyen tempatan.

Katanya, polis terutama pasukan khas anti pengganas Densus 88 telah bekerja keras selama sembilan tahun mengesan dan memburu jejak Noordin dan akhirnya pada awal pagi ini dalam operasi di Solo, berhasil membunuh Noordin dan tiga pengganas lain serta seorang lagi yang cedera ditembak. Bambang juga berkata polis turut menjumpai 200 kilogram bahan letupan yang sedia untuk digunakan di dalam rumah yang diserang hendap itu selain senjata M16 yang lengkap berisi peluru, selain komputer riba dan pelbagai dokumen. BERNAMA

Perhimpunan bulanan Jabatan Perdana Menteri

2009-09-07T22:40:00.004+08:00

Perdana Menteri, Datuk Seri Najib Tun Razak semasa menyampaikan ucapan pada perhimpunan bulanan Jabatan Perdana Menteri di Dataran Putra berhadapan Bangunan Perdana Putra, Putrajaya, hari ini. Turut hadir, Timbalan Perdana Menteri, Tan Sri Muhyiddin Yassin dan Menteri-menteri di Jabatan Jabatan Perdana Menteri, Tan Sri Nor Mohamad Yakcop dan Datuk Seri Idris Jala.--fotoTHE STAR oleh Rohaizat Md Darus

Nota:
Warna tali leher sama, suit sama. Inilah gambaran dan imej kesepakatan sebenar dalam 1Malaysia.

Anwar's Bid To Disqualify Prosecution A Blatant Abuse, Says Senior Federal Counsel

2009-09-04T02:17:00.003+08:00

KUALA LUMPUR, Sept 3 (Bernama) -- Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim's application to disqualify the entire prosecution team of his sodomy trial is nothing less than a blatant abuse of the process of the court, the High Court here heard on Thursday.

Senior Federal Counsel See Mee Chun submitted that the court should dismiss the application on the ground that Anwar was seeking to prohibit the prosecution team from performing their statutory duties.

"This application is baseless. We submit that this application be struck out or dismissed with costs," See said.

She said the conduct of the prosecution in respect of the sodomy case was non-reviewable by the appelate court.

"The bid is an "outright" attack on the powers of the Attorney-General under Article 145 of the Federal Constitution," she added.

She also submitted that Anwar's application was to undermine the successful prosecution of the criminal trial.

Anwar filed an application to disqualify the entire prosecution team in his sodomy case on Aug 11, citing "a real danger of bias" as one of the grounds.

He named Solicitor-General I Datuk Idrus Harun, Solicitor-General II Datuk Mohamed Yusof Zainal Abiden, deputy public prosecutors Datuk Nordin Hassan, Mohamad Hanafiah Zakaria, Wong Chiang Kiat, Shamsul Sulaiman and Noorin Badaruddin, the Public Prosecutor and the Government, as respondents.

Anwar contended that Attorney-General Tan Sri Abdul Gani Patail's signing the Section 418A certificate was strongly indicative of the fact that he was the person behind the scenes "pulling and manipulating the strings of the prosecutors to his tune."

Among others, he is seeking a declaration that the prosecution team handling his sodomy case is not qualified to represent the public prosecutor or conduct any proceeding or appeal against him.

Anwar, 62, is charged with sodomising his former aide, Mohd Saiful Bukhari Azlan, 24, at a condominium in Bukit Damansara here on June 26, last year.

See also submitted further that allegations of bias, prosecutorial misconduct and conflict of interest against the respondents were baseless.

She said all issues related to the 1998 sodomy trial had been decided by the courts and a Royal Commission of Inquiry.

Earlier, Anwar's counsel R. Sivarasa submitted that leave for judicial review should be granted to restrain the respondents from exercising their powers maliciously against his client.

"In exercising their powers they must perform their duties impartially and in accordance with the basic notion of natural justice," argued Sivarasa.

He said the application should not be misunderstood as an intent to stop or derail the sodomy trial.

"What we are saying is that these seven respondents are tainted with bias, the Attorney-General has many other prosecutors to take over this trial," added Sivarasa.

Justice Datuk Alizatul Khair Osman Khairuddin fixed Sept 15 for a decision on the leave application.

-- BERNAMA

Tunjuk perasaan bantah larangan pakai burqa

2009-09-01T05:05:00.001+08:00

HYDERABAD: Sekumpulan pelajar Islam di Mehdipatman membantah selepas pengetua sebuah kolej rendah perempuan melarang pelajarnya memakai burqa ke kelas dan menghalang mereka memasuki kawasan kolej.

Bantahan itu bagaimanapun bertukar kepada insiden membaling batu selepas sekumpulan pelajar lelaki dari kolej berjiran dan ibu bapa pelajar perempuan terbabit menyertai mereka. Keadaan hanya terkawal selepas polis dipanggil pengurusan kolej terbabit untuk menyelesaikan perkara itu.

Kejadian itu berlaku sehari selepas sekumpulan pelajar sehari sebelumnya membantah berikutan kegagalan pengurusan kolej terbabit bertindak terhadap satu kes penculikan pelajar perempuan pada minggu sebelumnya.

Pihak pengurusan bagaimanapun mendakwa pelajar berkenaan melarikan diri bersama teman lelakinya tetapi pulang semula ke kolej pada petangnya.

Dalam bantahan mengenai larangan mengenakan burqa pihak pengurusan kolej mendakwa bahawa pemakaian burqa adalah tidak bersesuaian dengan seragam (salwar kameez) yang dikenakan pelajar terbabit.

Keengganan pihak pengetua membenarkan pelajar terbabit memasuki kawasan kolej mencetuskan kemarahan pelajar terbabit.

Driven to driving a taxi despite having a PhD INSIGHT DOWN SOUTH

2009-08-29T23:47:00.002+08:00

By SEAH CHIANG NEE

Bio-chemist Dr Cai Minnjie who failed to land another research position after losing his job last year now happily prowls the streets as a cabbie. SINGAPORE’S fraternity of taxi drivers, with its fair share of retrenched executives, has now an exalted new member – a PhD bio-chemist from Stanford University. Prowling the streets of Singapore today is 57-year-old unemployed scientist Dr Cai Mingjie who lost his job at Singapore’s premier A-Star biomedical research institute last year.

The China-born naturalised citizen with 16 years of research accomplishments said he began driving a taxi last October after failed efforts to land another job. The news shocked this nation, which holds an unshakable faith in the power of an advanced university education. One surprised white-collar worker said he had believed that such a doctorate and experience was as good as life-long employment and success. “If he has to drive a taxi, what chances do ordinary people like us have?” he asked. I have met a number of highly qualified taxi drivers in recent years, including former managers and a retrenched engineer.

One cheerful driver – a former stock-broker – surprised me one day in giving me detailed reasons on what stocks to buy or avoid. “At a time like this, the taxi business is probably the only business in Singapore that still actively recruits people,” said Dr Cai. To me, his plight is taking Singapore into a new chapter. “(I am) probably the only taxi driver in the world with a PhD from Stanford and a proven track record of scientific accomplishments ...,” blogged Dr Cai. “I have been forced out of my research job at the height of my scientific career” and was unable to find another job “for reasons I can only describe as something uniquely Singapore”.

The story quickly spread far and wide over the Internet. Most Singaporeans expressed admiration for his ability to adapt so quickly to his new life. Two young Singaporeans asked for his taxi number, saying they would love to travel in his cab and talk to him. “There’s so much he can pass on to me,” one said. Others questioned why, despite his tremendous scientific experience, he is unable to find a teaching job. His unhappy exit is generally attributed to a personal cause (he has alleged chaotic management by research heads) rather than any decline in Singapore’s bio-tech project, which appears to be surviving the downturn. The case highlights a general weakening of the R and D (research and development) market in smallish Singapore. “The bad economy means not many firms are hiring professional scientists,” one surfer said. “Academia isn’t much of a help – there’s a long history of too many PhDs chasing too few jobs.” While the image of taxi drivers has received a tremendous boost, the same cannot be said of Singapore’s biomedical project – particularly its efforts to nourish home-grown research talent. “It may turn more Singaporeans away from Life Sciences as a career,” said one blogger.

One writer said: “In my opinion, PhDs are useless, especially in Singapore. It’s just another certificate and doesn’t mean much.” Another added: “The US is in a worse situation. Many are coming here to look for jobs.” “I won’t want my child to study for years to end up driving a taxi,” said a housewife with a teenage daughter. The naturalised Singaporean citizen underwent his PhD training at Stanford University, the majority of his work revolving around the study of yeast proteins. His case is not unique. US research-scientist Douglas Prasher, who isolated the gene that creates the green fluorescent protein (and just missed the 2008 Chemistry Nobel Prize) faced similar straits. Prasher moved from one research institution to another when his funding dried up, and he eventually quit science – to drive a courtesy shuttle in Alabama. “Still, he remains humble and happy and seems content with his minivan driver job,” said a surfer. With an evolving job market as more employers resort to multi-tasking and short-term contracts, more Singaporeans are chasing after split degrees, like accountancy and law or computer and business.

Others avoid post-graduate studies or specialised courses of a fixed discipline in favour of general or multi-discipline studies. “Experience is king” is the watchword; there has been a rush for no-pay internships. “The future favours graduates with multiple skills and career flexibility, people who are able to adapt to different types of work,” one business executive said. During the past few years, as globalisation deepened, there has been a growing disconnect between what Singaporeans studied in university and their subsequent careers. It follows the trend in the developed world where old businesses disappear – almost overnight – and new ones spring up, which poses problems for graduates with an inflexible job expectation. I know of a young man who graduated from one of America’s top civil engineering universities abandoning the construction hard hat for a teaching gown.

Another engineer I met is running his father’s lucrative coffee shop. Lawyers have become musicians or journalists, and so on. Cases of people working in jobs unrelated to their university training have become so common that interviewers have stopped asking candidates questions like “Why should a trained scientist like you want to work as a junior executive with us?” In the past, parents would crack their heads pondering what their children should study – accountancy or law or engineering, the so-called secure careers – and see them move single-mindedly into these professions. A doctor was then a doctor, a biologist generally worked in the lab and a lawyer argued cases in courts – square pegs in square holes, so to speak. Today the world is slowly moving away from this neat pattern.

Ummah boleh capai lebih banyak kejayaan jika bersatu

2009-08-25T02:47:00.005+08:00

Gambar Hiasan:"Bertapa Manisnya Hidup jika Umat Islam Bersatu Padu"

PEKAN: Umat Islam mampu mencapai lebih banyak kejayaan apabila bersatu padu dan mengamalkan lebih permuafakatan kerana ia adalah inti pati dan falsafah penting dalam membina tamadun Islam yang gemilang, kata Datuk Seri Najib Razak.

Perdana Menteri berkata, umat Islam pada masa ini perlu mengambil contoh kejayaan umat Islam terdahulu sehingga mampu membina tamadun Islam yang berjaya dan diiktiraf dalam lipatan sejarah kerana perjuangan mereka berasaskan perpaduan dan disiplin yang kuat.

"Namun, apabila perpaduan berkecai dan disiplin longgar menyebabkan umat Islam tewas begitu juga dengan tamadun yang sudah dibina ratusan tahun dahulu.
"Ia kerana umat Islam tidak pentingkan lagi perpaduan dan disiplin iaitu nilai-nilai untuk membina tamadun yang kukuh," katanya berucap pada majlis berbuka puasa dan penyampaian sumbangan peribadi kepada 144 golongan kurang berkemampuan di Masjid At-Taufik di Peramu Tiga, di sini petang semalam.

Hadir sama isterinya, Datin Seri Rosmah Mansor.

Najib dan Rosmah kemudian turut berbuka puasa bersama lebih 100 penduduk tempatan. Najib yang juga Ahli Parlimen Pekan juga meminta rakyat meningkatkan amalan infaq, iaitu pemberian kebajikan seperti mengeluarkan zakat dan bersedekah sempena Ramadan ini.

"Infaq adalah satu daripada tiang utama kepada konsep ekonomi dalam sistem sosial Islam dengan mengamalkannya dengan baik mampu memberi kejayaan kepada umat Islam," katanya.

Pada majlis berasingan, Najib dan Rosmah turut meluangkan masa untuk bersembahyang sunat tarawih bersama kira-kira 200 penduduk di Taman LKNP, di sini serta menyampaikan sumbangan wang tunai dan hamper kepada 19 orang yang kurang berkemampuan.

Terdahulu, Najib yang berucap pada majlis penyampaian sumbangan kepada wakil daripada 55 masjid dan 153 surau di kawasan Parlimen Pekan, di Dewan Umno, di sini, meminta jawatankuasa masjid dan surau memikirkan pendekatan terbaik bagi menarik minat golongan muda menghayati serta mengikuti pelbagai aktiviti keagamaan di institusi berkenaan. Perdana Menteri berkata, ia juga bertujuan membolehkan kumpulan remaja dan belia tidak hanya pergi ke masjid secara bermusim seperti dalam bulan Ramadan untuk membaca al-Quran atau bersembahyang sunat termasuk bertarawih secara jemaah.

"Sepanjang Ramadan ini kita boleh lihat rumah Allah (masjid) menjadi tumpuan golongan tua dan muda. Oleh itu, terlintas di hati saya adakah keadaan ini dapat dipertahankan selepas tamatnya bulan Ramadan?

"Oleh itu, penting bagi kita dan jawatankuasa masjid dan surau dapat memikirkan serta mengambil langkah untuk memastikan golongan muda datang ke masjid untuk menghadiri majlis keagamaan selepas ini. Kita tidak mahu selepas Ramadan, masjid dan surau sepi," katanya.

Beliau berkata, ahli jawatankuasa masjid dan surau mungkin juga boleh mengadakan pelbagai kegiatan dan aktiviti sepanjang bulan bagi menarik minat golongan muda untuk mendekati masjid.

Menteri Dikritik Keluar Majlis Kahwin

2009-08-16T15:48:00.003+08:00

Menteri Alam Sekitar, Pertanian dan Makanan, Jim Fitzpatrick dikritik kerana keluar majlis kahwin

LONDON: Seorang menteri dituduh berkelakuan buruk dan tidak wajar dengan berjalan keluar dari majlis perkahwinan Islam di London selepas diminta duduk berasingan dengan isterinya. Menteri Alam Sekitar, Pertanian dan Makanan, Jim Fitzpatrick, meninggalkan majlis perkahwinan di Pusat Islam London, yang dikendalikan masjid London Timur di Whitechapel selepas dimaklumkan tetamu lelaki dan wanita diasingkan. Fitzpatrick berkata, adalah pelik beliau tidak boleh duduk bersama isterinya, Sheila pada majlis itu.

“Kami menghadiri majlis perkahwinan (Islam) bersama selama beberapa tahun, tetapi hanya baru-baru ini garis panduan ketat dibuat. Kami meninggalkan majlis supaya tidak mencetuskan kemarahan,” katanya. Bagaimanapun, Majlis Islam Britain (MBC) menyifatkan menteri itu menjadikan perkara peribadi keluarga sebagai isu politik. - Agensi

FREEDOM OF CHOICE

2009-08-14T10:30:00.004+08:00

In this Feb.15, 2007 file photo, Sama Wareh walks along the sand dressed in swimwear designed for Muslim women Newport Beach, Calif. A French Muslim was denied last Aug.1, 2009 entry to a swimming pool for wearing an Islamic-style full-body swimsuit. Officials say the head-to-toe 'burquini' is unhygienic and harmful to other bathers, but the woman complains of religious discrimination. The incident adds to controversy over wearing explicitly religious symbols in public places in this secular country.

"So long as my head is covered, I can say anything I want, do anything I wish, and will not be afraid.". A Posting By My Sister in Islam.

2009-08-04T16:47:00.007+08:00

MORE....

http://thelongjourneybackhome.blogspot.com/2009/07/hijab-and-being-only-child-doesnt.html

"So long as my head is covered, I can say anything I want, do anything I wish, and will not be afraid."
Bismillah al-rahman al-rahim....

Hijab wasn't always easy for me. It started out as a way to get attention in 1999 and became a fashion statement of colorful Turkish silk. Some of you may wonder how I could go on to wear niqaab knowing this. Well I took on niqaab purely to spite husband. I figured that all-black with gloves up to my elbows, an abaya, face-veil, and mini-terrorist sunglasses would be the best way to ruin husband's green card dreams. Coupled with the fact that Belal worked across from the airport with a bunch of Arabs, it seemed to be a win-win situation. Sure enough the FBI came calling.

Terror allegations against NC man shock neighbors

2009-07-29T17:55:00.002+08:00

Daniel Boyd, 39,

Terror allegations against NC man shock neighbors

RALEIGH, N.C. – A North Carolina man described as family-oriented and quick to help neighbors was recruiting and training aspiring terrorists to wage jihad, federal authorities say, accusations that family and neighbors find hard to believe.

Daniel Boyd, 39, spent three years traveling to the Middle East, secretly buying guns, and leading a group of men planning to kidnap, kill and maim people abroad, according to charges in an indictment released Monday. His family's travels caught the attention of authorities in Israel two years ago, when they denied members of his family entry to the country, an Israeli security official told The Associated Press on Tuesday.

Neighbors of the family who live in an unassuming lakeside home in a rural area south of Raleigh are having a hard time reconciling the man they know with what prosecutors are alleging. "If he's a terrorist, he's the nicest terrorist I ever met in my life. I don't think he is," said Charles Casale, 46, a neighbor in Willow Spring who recently got pointers on planting vegetables from the Boyd, who worked as a drywall contractor, and his wife.

Boyd was arrested along with six others — including two sons — accused of being the ringleader of the group involved in three years of nefarious international travel, gun buys and military-style training trips. Authorities claim the group, including an eighth suspect believed to be in Pakistan, were gearing up for a "violent jihad," though prosecutors haven't detailed any specific targets or timeframe. If convicted, the men could face life in prison.
More...http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20090729/ap_on_re_us/us_nc_terror_arrests

Very PC police force issues its WPCs with Muslim headscarves complete with badge

2009-07-28T02:35:00.002+08:00

Assistant Chief Constable Jackie Roberts (R) models the new headscarf

Very PC police force issues its WPCs with Muslim headscarves complete with badge
By Daily Mail ReporterLast updated at 7:03 PM on 27th July 2009

Female police officers are being issued with head scarves to wear when they visit a mosque. Officers are expected to place the coverings over their heads shortly before they enter the mosque, in keeping with Islamic custom. There are two versions of the head covering - to match the black of a police officer's uniform and the blue of the Police Community Support Officer uniforms. The head scarves have been issued force-wide by Avon and Somerset police - and even have the force's emblem sewn on. They have already been given to seven police officers and eight police community support officers, including Assistant Chief Constable Jackie Roberts. Mrs Roberts said: 'Producing head coverings for our officers and staff to wear in places of worship is part of our commitment to engage with all our communities. 'It recognises and respects the cultural and religious practices of our communities. This is a very positive addition to the Avon and Somerset uniform and one which I'm sure will be a welcome item for many of our officers.'

Islamic custom expects women to cover their head inside a place of worship. During an official visit last year, the Queen wore a headscarf, alongside the wife of Turkey’s President, to tour the crypt and caverns of a historic Islamic shrine. The police are the second of the emergency services to adapt their uniform to include a head covering.

Earlier this year, the fire service unveiled full-length skirts, hijab headscarfs and long- sleeved shirts for Muslim women recruits. The hope is that the uniforms, designed for wearing round the station and for outings such as school trips, will be smarter and better fitting for every firefighter. Rashad Azami, Imam and director of the Bath Islamic Society, said: 'It is highly pleasing to see that the Avon and Somerset Constabulary is introducing specially designed head coverings for female officers as part of their police uniform.

There are two versions of the head covering - to match the black of a police officer's uniform and the blue of the Police Community Support Officer uniforms. 'This will go a long way in encouraging a trustful relationship between the police and the Muslim community. The police have been working closely with the Muslim community in the area on many levels for the last few years. 'We have found their co-operation very helpful and hope this step will further strengthen the mutual relationship.'

Avon and Somerset Police were embroiled in a race row two years ago when the force rejected 186 white applicants at the first stage of selection. The force received 800 applications for just 180 jobs and admitted it had "deselected" white male applicants in a bid to increase ethnic diversity. Chief Constable Colin Port was forced to apologise.

REDA

2009-07-24T13:14:00.002+08:00

Reda Menerima Hukuman Sebat kerana perbuatannya meminum arak.

Read This link:

http://www.mmail.com.my/content/8727-shock-over-whipping-sentence

Sebat: Reda-Hukumlah.

Apakah hukuman meminum arak di dunia ini akan membersikah dia dari hukuman meminum arak di akhirat nanti ?.

Tergerak hati saya melihat wajahnya di dada media. Dia reda dengan sereda-redanya menerima hukuman. Cuma kita yang terfikir bahawa di luar sana masih ramai mereka yang masih menikmati "air kencing syaitan" @ arak. Pergilah ke pub dan puast hiburan. Ramai yang melanggar hukum seperi yang pernah dilanggar model ini. Kenapa mereka masih bebas? Kenapa hukum tidak dikenakan kepada mereka? Apakah hukum hanya dikenakan kepada mereka yang ada di depan mata dan mereka yang di bawah kerdipan spotlight dipersetankan?.

Model ini reda menerima hukum. Malah memohon untuk segera dilaksanakan hukum terhadapnya. Bergenang aimata saya di kelopak membaca pengakuannya dan keredaanya. Di luar sana di Ibu Negara barangkali masih terpampang banner demonstrasi mengenai kematian Teo yang masih dalam tanda tanya. Dibunuh pembunuh upahan atau siapa?Wanita berusia 32 tahun yang dijatuhi hukuman enam kali sebatan oleh Mahkamah Tinggi Syariah Kuantan, Pahang Isnin lalu atas kesalahan meminum arak di khalayak ramai di sebuah hotel di Cherating meminta ia dilaksanakan secepat mungkin.Agaknya kaum wanita lebih akur akan kehendak hukum, manakala lelaki lebih gemar lari dari hukuman?.

Lihatlah sekeliling dan bacalah media dan blog. Anda akan dapati sekurang-kurangnya dua individu (M for male) tidak mahu menghadapi keadilan di mahkamah; apatah lagi akur terhadap hukum. Allhuwallam.

FROM-Senjaliza: http://senjaliza.blogspot.com/2009/07/sebat-reda-hukumlah.html

Rep. Ellison Slams King’s Anti-Muslim Comment

2009-07-23T21:13:00.001+08:00

Rep. Ellison Slams King’s Anti-Muslim Comment

Washington, DC: Rep. Keith Ellison, the first US Muslim Congressman, reacted strongly to last week’s statement by his Republican counterpart, Rep. Peter King (R-NY), who said in an interview that there are “too many” mosques in the United States and urged a more aggressive law enforcement approach toward them…Ellison was attending an Iftar held at the Council on American Islamic Relations on Thursday in honor of Ekmeleddin Ihsanoglu, secretary general of the Organization of the Islamic Conference, who was in Washington meeting with lawmakers in Congress before traveling to New York where he will speak at the United Nations.

“Rep. King’s remarks that there ‘are too many mosques in the US’ cuts into the basis of the US Constitution, which guarantees all Americans freedom of their religion,” Ellison told Arab News...In the US, you can practice any religion you want. This is guaranteed by both the Constitution and the 1st Amendment,” said Ellison, 44, following prayers and Iftar at CAIR’s Washington headquarters.“While we have some people in Congress who make offensive comments, it is important for us, as Muslims, to lift the level of debate, and demonstrate the true character of Islam,” said Ellison.

“The comment by Rep. King was surely heard throughout the Muslim world, and I think it undermines our national security because it gives people who are really hostile to the US — terrorists and murders — recruiting tools.”Ellison, who converted from Catholicism to Sunni Islam at age nineteen, while attending university, said: “There is nothing about Islam that should be associated with terrorism, and nothing about terrorism that should be association with Islam.“The US has the right to defend itself, but not to insult Muslims. This statement by Rep. King is insulting to all Muslims, and also to all people who believe in religious pluralism, the Jeffersonian tradition and those that support tolerance.

”Asked if people were tolerant to him, the first Muslim congressman, Ellison said: “People here have been overwhelmingly tolerant of me.”Then returning to King, he said: “Please tell your readers that Rep. King represents a very small minority view, but — because his comments were so inflammatory — they get a lot of attention.“Just as we [Muslims] don’t want to be judged by the actions of a small [extremist] minority, I ask the Muslim world not to judge Congress by the remarks of one congressman.”

SOURCE

http://images.google.co.uk/imgres?imgurl=http://www.pakistanlink.com/Community/2007/Oct07/05/keith%2520ellison.JPG&imgrefurl=http://www.pakistanlink.com/Community/2007/Oct07/05/10.HTM&usg=__4QHkhCVhksqTcY22BaljgNPtWQo=&h=516&w=401&sz=110&hl=en&start=1&um=1&tbnid=PnV5AXXpck9B0M:&tbnh=131&tbnw=102&prev=/images%3Fq%3DKeith%2BEllison%26hl%3Den%26rlz%3D1T4GFRE_enMY317MY317%26sa%3DN%26um%3D1

Islamic group paid for congressman’s pilgrimage to Mecca

2009-07-23T21:06:00.001+08:00

Islamic group paid for congressman’s pilgrimage to Mecca
By Kevin Diaz / Star Tribune (Minneapolis)Wednesday, July 22, 2009

WASHINGTON — Days after his return from an unannounced pilgrimage to the Islamic holy site of Mecca, Rep. Keith Ellison talked about it as a transformational personal experience, saying "I didn’t want to turn it into a politics thing."Nearly eight months later, the Minnesota Democrat faces a House Ethics Committee review of his decision to keep the trip’s costs under wraps — even though it was paid for by a Minnesota Islamic nonprofit and typically would be reported as a gift to a public official.

Asked about the trip this week, Ellison said that he is "not privy to the internal workings of the organization" that covered his costs, and that he complied with all House Ethics panel disclosure requirements. "Why should I waive a right that’s accorded me under the rules?" he said.Tax records show the group that paid Ellison’s expenses, the Muslim American Society of Minnesota, received nearly $900,000 in taxpayer money in 2006 and 2007 from a rental arrangement for Tarek ibn Ziyad Academy (TiZA), a charter school in Inver Grove Heights, Minn. a Twin Cities suburb. The man who accompanied Ellison to Mecca, Asad Zaman, is executive director of the TiZA school, a political contributor of Ellison’s and was president of the Muslim American Society until August, when the Mecca trip was planned.

TiZA has been sued by the American Civil Liberties Union and probed by state officials for allegedly promoting Islam, which would violate the church and state separation required of public schools — including charter schools. The school received state funding to pay rent to the Muslim American Society Property Holding Corp., a nonprofit spinoff of the Muslim American Society that owned the building. The corporation then turned over $879,000 to the Muslim society as a grant.Those close connections have opened Ellison to questions about the nature of the trip. Ellison on Tuesday called it "a private trip," adding that he had told the ethics committee of the trip beforehand and received its approval. A spokesman for the school says no public money was used for the trip, or Hajj, which Ellison took as a once-in-a-lifetime fulfillment of his religious duty as a practicing Muslim. The 16-day pilgrimage is considered one of the most solemn acts in Islam, one that is supposed to be undertaken free of debts and unmet family obligations.

MORE.....

http://news.bostonherald.com/news/us_politics/view/20090722islamic_group_paid_for_congressmans_pilgrimage_to_mecca/srvc=home&position=recent

Nizar sepatutnya tidak hadir nyalakan lilin – Dewan Ulama Pas

2009-07-23T03:21:00.000+08:00

Nizar sepatutnya tidak hadir nyalakan lilin – Dewan Ulama Pas
Oleh SAIFULIZAM MOHAMAD

KUALA LUMPUR 22 Julai – Dewan Ulama Pas menyifatkan majlis menyalakan lilin bagi memperingati kematian Teoh Beng Hock di Ipoh, Jumaat lalu yang turut disertai oleh Datuk Seri Mohammad Nizar Jamaluddin sebagai meragukan.

Sehubungan itu Ketuanya, Datuk Harun Taib berkata, Timbalan Pesuruhjaya Pas Perak itu sepatutnya tidak hadir pada majlis tersebut kerana sifatnya yang meragukan itu. Menurutnya, Rasulullah sendiri amat menitikberatkan perkara berkenaan seperti sabdanya yang bermaksud tinggalkan perkara yang engkau ragu dan ambillah perkara yang engkau tidak ragu.

“Hadis ini menyuruh kita meninggalkan perkara-perkara yang meragukan iaitu sesuatu yang hukumnya tidak jelas sama ada halal atau haram. Seperti majlis ini adakah ini upacara agama atau sebaliknya? “Sebenarnya Pas telah pun membuat satu garis panduan bahawa majlis-majlis yang meragukan tidak harus dihadiri oleh pemimpin-pemimpin serta ahli-ahli kita,” katanya kepada Utusan Malaysia di sini hari ini.

Beliau mengulas tindakan Mohammad Nizar menyertai majlis menyalakan lilin anjuran DAP Perak semasa memperingati kematian Beng Hock di Ipoh, Jumaat lepas dan gambar majlis itu disiar oleh New Straits Times pada Sabtu lepas.

Bagaimanapun Ahli Jawatankuasa Pas Pusat, Datuk Husam Musa dalam laporan akhbar hari ini mempertahankan tindakan Mohammad Nizar dengan menyatakan ia tidak menyalahi ajaran Islam. Menteri Besar Perak, Datuk Seri Dr. Zambry Abdul Kadir pula ketika mengulas isu itu telah meminta ulama Pas mengeluarkan satu fatwa berhubung tindakan Mohammad Nizar.

Dalam pada itu, Harun berkata, beliau tidak pasti sama ada Mohammad Nizar sedar atau tidak mengenai garis panduan berkenaan. “Ini bukan satu fatwa tetapi inilah ketetapan atau garis panduan yang telah kita putuskan selama ini.

Bosnian Serbs jailed for burning Muslims alive

2009-07-21T14:00:00.000+08:00

Former Bosnian Serb palimentarian Milan (L) and Serb Seedoje Lukic listen to judgement at the UN War Criminal Trinunal.

Bosnian Serbs jailed for burning Muslims alive

THE HAGUE, July 21 — Bosnian Serb cousins Milan and Sredoje Lukic were convicted by the Yugoslavia war crimes tribunal yesterday of burning dozens of Bosnian Muslims alive in the country’s 1992-1995 war.

Milan Lukic, 41, who prosecutors said led a Serb paramilitary group known as the “White Eagles” or “Avengers,” was sentenced by the tribunal in The Hague to life in prison for killing at least 119 Bosnians in two incidents in June 1992. Sredoje Lukic, 48, who prosecutors said was also a member of the unit, was given 30 years imprisonment. The court ruled it had not been proved that he was present at one of the attacks.Both men had pleaded not guilty to all charges and said they were not present in the eastern Bosnian town of Visegrad at the time of the crimes. Defense lawyers had requested acquittals.

“The perpetration by Milan Lukic and Sredoje Lukic of crimes in this case is characterised by a callous and vicious disregard for human life,” Judge Patrick Robinson said.

The court found about 59 Bosnian Muslims were burned alive in a house set ablaze with an accelerant and an explosive, while at least 60 people died after being barricaded inside another home before grenades were thrown into the building. Judge Robinson said the court found Milan Lukic guilty of both incidents, adding he played a dominant role in the attacks in that he personally closed the door of one of the houses, set them on fire and shot at people who tried to escape.

The court found Sredoje Lukic was not present at the second incident, but his presence at the first “substantially contributed to the deaths” despite the fact he did not set fire to the house or shoot at the victims. Bakira Hasecic, president of support group “Women-Victims of War”, said she hoped both men would be tried by Bosnia’s own war crimes court for rapes and torture for which they were not indicted in The Hague.

“They only concentrated on the gravest crimes but it is only 5 per cent of all the crimes they committed,” said Hasecic, herself a rape victim during the war. Milan Lukic was convicted on 21 counts of crimes against humanity and violations of laws or customs of war, including murder, inhumane acts, cruel treatment and extermination. Sredoje was convicted on seven counts. Milan Lukic was also convicted of shooting and killing 12 Bosnian Muslim men on the bank of the River Drina.

After seven years on the run, he was arrested in Argentina in August 2005. Sredoje surrendered to Bosnian Serb authorities the following month. Their trial started in July last year. — Reuters

Islamic identity in America

2009-07-20T14:40:00.000+08:00

COMMENT: Islamic identity in America —Saleem H Ali

The fanatics are still there and their dormant presence cannot be ignored, but increasingly Muslim communities in America are realising that they must marginalise such elements. Much has been written or reported through various media sources on Islam in America, but the complexity of Muslim lives in this great country has eluded most analysts. There is either a tendency to celebrate America as the most diverse land of opportunity or to lament the legacy of discrimination towards Muslims following September 11, 2001.It was thus quite refreshing to watch a new documentary titled Journey into America, in which some of the struggles that Muslim-Americans face within their own communities, as well as externally, were presented with nuance and objectivity.

The film had some very dominant Pakistani overtones since the producer and host was none other than Dr Akbar S Ahmed, a former Pakistani civil servant and ambassador to the United Kingdom a decade ago, and now a famed and often controversial public intellectual. Perhaps best known in Pakistan for his feature film production on Jinnah, Dr Ahmed’s latest venture brought forth his anthropological pedigree most favourably.Travelling with a group of American students through scores of Muslim communities in North America from “sea to shining sea”, the documentary attempted to show how the clash of cultures that is so frequently talked about is affecting daily lives for Muslims and non-Muslims alike.

The film starts with the “Muslim Day Parade” in New York City, which is greeted with celebration by one side of the street and invective on the other. While some non-Muslim onlookers are cheering on the crowds as a mark of American diversity, others are jeering them with slogans of “no sharia”, and defamatory slogans. There are even some Muslims themselves who are seen opposing the march as a mark of subservience and acquiescence to the dominant culture. The parade is an apt allegory for the messy state of Muslim affairs in America which continues to struggle with reconciling its multiple identities.

Most significantly, the documentary recognises that the greatest challenge to Islamic identity in America comes from within the Muslim community, which continues to be fragmented by fanaticism.In one telling story, the documentary notes the story of Farhan in Michigan, the president of the Muslim Students Association at a local college, who was attacked by other Muslims and barely escaped being run-over with a car by the assailants. His only “crime” in the eyes of his jihadist attackers was that he was trying to promote dialogue between Muslims, Jews and Christians. Such stories of Muslims attacking Muslims in America are not isolated and frequently, progressive Muslims receive threats by radical elements for spreading “fitnah”.

MORE.....

http://www.dailytimes.com.pk/default.asp?page=2009%5C07%5C19%5Cstory_19-7-2009_pg3_3

KEMATIAN: Kenapa ada yang tunjuk Perasaan?

2009-07-17T14:49:00.000+08:00

Mereka mogok atas kemati seorang insan.

Kematian seorang Ibu dan seorang bayi dalam kandungan. Kenapa tidak seorangpun yang mogok. Di mana letaknya kemanusiaan?

Kuota bumiputera ASM dilelong

2009-07-16T09:57:00.001+08:00

KUALA LUMPUR - Sebanyak 1.6 bilion baki unit Amanah Saham Malaysia (ASM) kuota bumiputera yang tidak terjual akan dibuka untuk jualan kepada semua kaum mulai Selasa minggu depan.

Presiden dan Ketua Eksekutif Kumpulan Permodalan Nasional Berhad (PNB), Tan Sri Hamad Kama Piah Che Othman (gambar) berkata, jualan itu bagaimanapun akan dihadkan kepada 20,000 unit kepada setiap pemegang akaun dan kuota itu akan dijual sehingga 27 Julai ini. "Selepas tarikh itu, pelabur boleh melanggan unit ASM ini tanpa sebarang had pelaburan maksimum dan ini bergantung kepada unit yang masih ada. Jualan ini berasaskan siapa cepat, dia dapat," katanya pada sidang media khas di sini semalam.

Menurut Hamad Kama Piah, unit berkenaan boleh dilanggan di pejabat cawangan Amanah Saham Nasional Berhad (ASNB) dan Pos Malaysia bermula pukul 8 pagi sehingga 4 petang manakala jualan melalui ejen-ejen ASNB seperti Maybank, RHB Bank dan CIMB Bank akan bermula pukul 9.15 pagi sehingga operasi bank tamat.

KOSMO 16 JULY 2009

Penyebar Agama Kristian, termasuk wargannegara asing, ditahan di UPM

2009-07-16T08:43:00.000+08:00

UPM: Di dakwa sering dikunjungi penyebar agama Kristian termasuk orang asing.

Sembilan penganut Kristian termasuk dua pelajar Universiti Putra Malaysia (UPM) ditahan polis semalam berhubung dakwaan cuba menukar agama pelajar universiti tersebut. Mereka yang ditangkap di kampus Serdang menjelang 10 malam tadi dibebaskan di balai polis Sepang kira-kira 3.45 petang ini, kata peguam Annou Xavier kepada Malaysiakini hari ini.

Kesemua mereka ditahan di sebuah bilik pelajar di Kolej ke-10 sewaktu berkunjung ke situ tetapi aduan polis dibuat dengan dakwaan mereka cuba menyebarkan Kristian. Selain dua mahasiswa, kumpulan itu termasuklah tiga rakyat tempatan dan empat warga Hong Kong. Tindakan tersebut diambil susulan satu aduan polis yang dibuat oleh lima pelajar UPM terhadap kumpulan tersebut.

Seorang daripada kumpulan itu Yip Bok Wan, selepas dibebaskan, membuat aduan balas di balai polis terbabit, menafikan pembabitan mereka dan menuduh laporan awal berasaskan maklumat palsu. Beliau dan peguam tersebut enggan memberikan butiran lanjut saat-saat penangkapan mereka.

Sumber-sumber pelajar memberita Malaysiakini hari ini, kumpulan itu berada beberapa hari di beberapa kolej kediaman UPM dengan bergerak dari bilik ke bilik untuk menyampaikan ajaran mereka. "Selain itu, mereka juga didapati menyebarkan risalah kepada warga kampus dan bergerak di tiga buah kolej iaitu Kolej Pendeta Zaaba, Kolej Sepuluh, dan Kolej Sebelas," kata Presiden Persatuan Mahasiswa Islam UPM Safwan Abdul Ghani dalam satu kenyataan."Aktiviti yang berlaku beberapa hari itu akhirnya membawa kepada penangkapan sembilan individu tersebut."Bagaimanapun tiada pengesahan rasmi diperolehi daripada pihak universiti dan polis, setakat ini.Undang-undang negara melarang seseorang bukan Islam menyebarkan agama kepada seorang Muslim.

- MALAYSIAKINI

Untold Story of a Pregnant Muslim Woman Killed in a German Courtroom

2009-07-14T21:22:00.000+08:00

"Dr. Marwa Al-Sarbini, a medica doctor and a pharmaceutical stab 18 times by a jobless in front of the judge in the court room in Germany. His husband was shot by police for protecting her".

Untold Story of a Pregnant Muslim Woman Killed in a German Courtroom
Extracts from a facebook group dedicated to her.

…Today I will tell u the story of an honoured woman who was proud of her religion to such an extent that she had to give away her life for that. Her name is Dr. Marwa Al Sharbini. She was 32 years old, 3 months pregnant Egyptian woman and a pharmaceutical. She lived in Germany She was married and she had a cute son aged 3 years. She was stabbed 18 times by a German in the courtroom. This incident happened in 1st of July in Dresdane of Germany.

The beginning of this was less than 1 year ago when her son was playing in park and a 28 years old unemployed German named Alex stopped her son. So she went ahead to defend her son. Alex then called her terrorist and tried to remove her hijab forcefully. She filed a lawsuit before German courts.

Alex was fined 750 euros in compensation. Alex wanted to take revenge. so he appealed in court and in the court he stabbed sister Marwa 18 times in front of Judge and police. when her husband went ahead to protect ahead, the police shot her husband instead of that savage(Alex). She became Shaheedah(Martyr) and her husband’s situation is now critical.

This happened in one of the civilized(!) countries of the west where an oppressed justice seeker woman gets killed in the courtroom because of representing her belief.

Unfortunately this incident couldn’t gain the needed value to be presented in BBC, CNN, ABC, Fox News and all other western media(!). The double standard of western media has been exposed by this. I request my brothers to take lessons from this incident and to wake up. I also request my sisters to take lessons from her and to firm your faith like her. We will never forget u, our sister. You will remain our inspiration in the way our struggle.

- In the memory of Shaheedatul Hijab (Martyr of Hijab) Sister Marwa Al Sharbini
Somewhere under all the other important stories like the real father of MJ’s daughter and story of a small ice ball falling from a plane. I managed to find this: Pregnant Muslim Woman Killed in German Courtroom

It’s worth remembering how the Dubai court was criticised for arresting those two British for having sex on the beach. Remember all the TV channels, newspaper headlines, so I guess the story of two law disobeying people is far more important than killing of an innocent pregnant Muslim woman. Talk about double standard.

24 jam sehari tidak cukup

2009-07-13T18:34:00.000+08:00

"24 jam sehari tidak cukup"
Najib Tun Razak diwawancara oleh Sayed Munawar Sayed Mustar pada rancangan Khas - 100 Hari Pentadbiran Perdana Menteri yang disiarkan secara langsung oleh TV1 RTM, malam tadi. - UTUSAN/Halim Khalid

KUALA LUMPUR 12 Julai - Kesibukan Datuk Seri Najib Tun Razak berkhidmat untuk rakyat menyebabkan beliau merasakan tempoh 24 jam sehari tidak mencukupi untuknya. Perdana Menteri berkata, beliau sangat sibuk kerana sepanjang 100 hari mentadbir negara ini, terdapat pelbagai ujian yang perlu dihadapinya khususnya bagi meningkatkan keyakinan rakyat terhadap kerajaan. ''Jadi Perdana Menteri ini lain, kerana saya rasakan 24 jam itu tidak cukup. Saya beritahu isteri (Datin Seri Rosmah Mansor) masa siang kini adalah lebih panjang dan masa malam juga makin singkat.

''Masa untuk tidur juga sudah kurang kerana banyak program dan ini tidak pernah saya alami sebelum jadi Perdana Menteri," ujarnya. Beliau berkata demikian dalam sesi wawancara eksklusif sempena 100 Hari Pentadbiran Perdana Menteri yang disiarkan secara langsung melalui saluran TV1 Radio Televisyen Malaysia (RTM) di sini malam ini. Menurut Najib, masa terluang ketika di rumah juga digunakan untuk berfikir mengenai langkah-langkah untuk menyelesaikan masalah rakyat.

''Ramai yang tidak faham kerana ingat apabila Perdana Menteri berada di rumah dia free. Duduk rumah bukan bererti bersantai kerana kalau tidak berfikir saya akan baca buku atau (sediakan) ucapan esok. Tengok fail atau tandatangan sijil yang saya tidak dapat lakukan di pejabat," jelasnya.

Menyentuh tentang gagasan 1Malaysia, beliau menjelaskan, tumpuannya kini adalah untuk mendapat sokongan daripada kumpulan yang faham dan menerima pendekatan itu serta kumpulan yang tidak berapa faham tetapi yakin kepada kerajaan. Sebelum mengakhiri temu bual itu, Najib juga sempat berpesan kepada semua rakyat supaya menganggap apa yang telah dilakukannya dalam tempoh 100 hari hanya sebagai satu titik permulaan.

''Saya telah bina asas permulaan dan saya memohon supaya rakyat akan bersama-sama kerajaan dalam perjalanan selanjutnya ke arah negara Malaysia yang semakin berjaya, hubungan kaum semakin mantap dan imej kerajaan semakin positif. ''Ini adalah bagi membolehkan saya memperkenalkan pembaharuan dan meneruskan kesinambungan pemimpin sebelum ini,'' ujarnya.

UTUSAN

VAKSIN SELESMA BABI H1N1

2009-07-13T01:45:00.000+08:00

Tiga firma rebut pasaran lumayan -Malaysia antara 30 negara yang berminat membuat tempahan awal vaksin H1N1

Tiga buah firma farmaseutikal gergasi dunia kini bersaing hebat menghasilkan vaksin selesema babi atau H1N1 dengan lebih 3 0 negara sudah menyatakan minat untuk mendapatkan bekalan terawal. Antara negara itu ialah Malaysia yang sehingga semalam sudah mempunyai 671 kes jangkitan wabak tersebut. Kosmo! Ahad difahamkan, daripada tiga firma itu, Novartis yang berpangkalan di Switzerland menjadi pilihan banyak negara.

Dua lagi pesaingnya ialah GlaxoSmithKline (GSK) dan Baxter International Inc. Ketiga-tiga firma itu menjangkakan bekalan pertama vaksin dipasarkan dalam masa terdekat. Novartis berjaya menghasilkan vaksin fasa pertama beberapa minggu lebih awal daripada jadual dengan menggunakan teknologi berasaskan sel sekali gus membolehkan kadar pengeluaran disegerakan tanpa perlu membiakkan virus untuk ujian seperti mana dilakukan sebelum ini.

Syarikat itu dalam laman webnya mendakwa sudah menerima tempahan dari 30 negara. Pada masa yang sama, GSK turut membangunkan vaksin di beberapa lokasi di Kanada dan Jerman manakala Baxter mengumumkan ujian dan penilaian vaksin telah siap dan kini dalam proses pengeluaran. Menurut syarikat berkenaan yang beribu pejabat di Austria, vaksin itu akan dapat digunakan dalam masa terdekat.

Menteri Kesihatan, Datuk Seri Liow Tiong Lai ketika dihubungi semalam bagaimanapun belum dapat mengesahkan vaksin pilihan Malaysia memandangkan ia masih lagi di peringkat kajian.

DARI KOSMO.

KERAJAAN PERPADUAN

2009-07-12T21:06:00.001+08:00

“Pertentangan ini hanya akan berakhir apabila kedua-duanya bersatu dalam Islam atau keluar daripadanya. Jika bersatu dalam Islam, Allah akan mempertemukan mereka dengan musuh baru yang menentang Islam,” -NIK ABDUH NIK AZIZ-Exco Pemuda PAS.

MJ Final Rehearsal

2009-07-12T17:31:00.000+08:00

China sekat solat Jumaat di Urumqi

2009-07-11T14:58:00.000+08:00

WALAUPUN masjid diarah tutup semalam, penduduk Islam di Urumqi tetap berkumpul dan merayu supaya membolehkan mereka solat Jumaat. Tak semua masjid ikut perintah.

URUMQI: Masjid di bandar ini yang dilanda rusuhan diarahkan ditutup untuk solat Jumaat akibat keganasan etnik yang mengorbankan sekurang-kurangnya 156 orang, kata seorang pegawai sementara pihak berkuasa di sebuah bandar lain di barat China di Xinjiang, menghalau warga asing. Bagaimanapun, ada masjid membenarkan jemaah masuk bagi menunaikan solat Jumaat, manakala anggota keselamatan menyuraikan protes kecil selepas sembahyang di sebuah masjid lain.

Ada juga laporan mengatakan, 10,000 penduduk Islam keluar dari Urumqi setiap hari sejak kekacauan meletus. Solat Jumaat adalah kemuncak bagi minoriti Islam Uighur menyebabkan pihak berkuasa China cuba mengehadkannya dalam cubaan jelas menghalang mana-mana perjumpaan besar-besaran di masjid. "Bagi kepentingan keselamatan awam semua masjid memberitahu penduduk tiada solat Jumaat dan mereka perlu tinggal di rumah dan bersolat Zuhur," kata pegawai di masjid Yang Hang di pinggir bandar ini. Katanya, beliau adalah kakitangan kerajaan namun enggan dikenali.

Di luar sebuah masjid yang mempunyai kubah emas dan dua menara, penduduk membaca notis ditulis pada kertas putih membatalkan solat Jumaat. Seorang wanita Uighur pertengahan umur yang enggan dikenali berkata beliau fikir masjid itu akan terus dibuka. "Tidak perlu menutupnya kerana sesiapa saja yang masuk ke dalam adalah seorang Islam. Ia akan selamat," katanya. "Kami seperti tidak berkuasa," tambahnya. Berhampiran, seorang wanita tua China Han mengganggu seorang wartawan asing sebelum beliau dapat bercakap dengan dua wanita tua Uighur berpakaian baju tradisional panjang dan tudung kepala. "Masjid itu perlu ditutup kerana kerosakan yang berlaku," kata wanita China Han dengan suara kuat. "Ia adalah tindakan patriotik bagi masa depan etnik," katanya. - AP

FAITHFUL PRINCESS

2009-07-11T03:17:00.000+08:00