On Sunday 14 January, the
Logan Roos Soccer Club held
their first fundraising
soccer carnival at their
clubhouse at Oates Park
Woodridge.
The Logan Roos soccer club
is sponsored
by the Islamic Council of
Queensland.
It was a great day with many
families and parents
attending and having fun,
even though it was a hot
day. Ten senior teams joined
the tournament to play
7-a-side soccer tournament
as well as a girls team.
Four junior teams entered to
play against the the Logan
Roos junior team. the Mini
Roos. At the end of the
carnival the winning team
was Team Somalia Boys,
receiving the prize money.
The Logan Roos Clubhouse
canteen provided a variety
of food to eat during the
carnival. The Sisters
Support Services sold
drinks, ice-blocks and
desserts at the carnival to
help keep everyone cool.
Other stall holders offered
face painting and henna, and
sold baby accessories and
organic honey. The Slacks
Creek madrassah also held a
stall. The Islamic Council
of Queensland sponsored a
jumping castle for the kids
and food vouchers for new
migrants and refugees.
Federal MP, Mr Jim Chalmers,
also attended to lend his
support to the initiative.
The Mini Roos helped to
organise kids soccer skills
workshops for kids
interested in soccer. A
number of new players
excitedly signed up to join
the team.
Great fun was had by
everyone at this successful
carnival helping to raise
money for the Logan Roos
Soccer Club.
Over the weekend of 12-14th
January 2018, a group of 51
indigenous and Muslim women
from diverse cultural
backgrounds participated in
a camp organised by the
Islamic Women’s Association
of Australia (IWAA).
The camp was an activity
under the Indigenous and
Muslim Women Connected
Project. The project was
developed in response to
concerns raised by
Indigenous Female Elders at
recent meetings and at a
meeting with IWAA on the
20th January 2017 regarding
simmering tensions between
the Indigenous community and
other cultures.
The project offered an
opportunity for Muslim and
indigenous women to feel
accepted into the community,
as they engage with each
other and gain an
understanding of their
similarities and create
local connections and
networks.
A first of its kind, the
camp was a culmination of a
series of
activities/workshops over
the past four months that
ranged from arts & crafts,
experiencing indigenous
culture, food and music,
visit to Yugambeh language
museum and visit to
historical village. The camp
was a very unique,
interesting, and amazing
experience. Although the
heat was unbearable at
times, everyone participated
in the different activities
in some way. Activities
included:
damper making (in
the oven and on coal
fire)
raft-building
abseiling
kayaking
giant swing
master-class cooking
sumer chicken with
noodles (a Torres
Strait Islander dish
influenced by
Japanese who came to
TSI looking for
pearls)
mark-making and
milestones
shared personal
stories around the
camp-fire
tricks to building a
safe camp-fire
weaving workshop by
one of the Torres
Strait Islander (TSI)
weavers
bush medicine
understanding and
respecting the roles
& responsibilities
of Traditional
Owners & Elders and
community Leaders
respect for being on
Country and
protocols
In addition, we gathered
around in a Yarning Circle
and talked about some
traditional practices and
remedies both from
Indigenous and Muslim world.
There was a lot of shared
laughter as well as building
friendships and
intercultural connections.
We learnt a lot about each
other and the similarities
between our groups. There
were opportunities to
creating pathways and
strengthening connections by
engaging different groups as
well as
working as teams to build
confidence in each other.
Some of the activities were
a first-time for some
participants but after an
initial reluctance, they
were confident enough to try
it more than once (of course
with a cheering squad in the
background). It was great to
see the care
some of the younger
generation took with the
Elders and the respect given
in learning new skills.
To tie the weekend together,
we had a large canvas
painting for the group to
put their representation on
the canvas which will
eventually be displayed at
IWAA office.
We would like to take this
opportunity to thank the
guidance and patience of
Aunty Peggy, Aunty Debra and
Aunty Halima and the support
of the incredible staff at
IWAA as well as the
participants who came and
contributed in different
ways.
In moving forward, we hope
that we can have more
workshops and anticipate
having another camp
(definitely in a different
weather condition) and
engage other groups
insha'Allah.
A
community memorandum
dated 28 December 2017 has
been released detailing the
conclusion of the
arbitration between Imam
Afroz Ali and former members
of the Al-Ghazzali Centre,
Sydney.
The Council of Arbitration
was made up of Shaykh Faraz
Rabbani, Imam Zaid Shakir,
Aarif Rasheed (Arbitrator)
and Dr Umar Abd·Allah
(Advisor).
“The Council now advises
that the process of
arbitration it undertook has
come to an end, and the
Council issues an
unequivocal warning to all
concerned to avoid future
engagement with Mr Ali
unless and until he
demonstrates appropriate
rehabilitation and
establishes an acceptable
pattern of behaviour.”
Sonny Bill
Williams has made a visit to
Mecca as part of an Islamic
pilgrimage.
The All Blacks star took the
trip to the city in Saudi Arabia
before commencing preseason
training with Super Rugby team
the Blues.
The trip was an Umrah
pilgrimage, rather than the
famous Hajj, as it was being
undertaken at the wrong time of
year for the annual mass
gathering of Muslims in the
central location of the faith.
Participating in the Hajj was
one of the five tenets of Islam,
required by all practising
members of the faith to complete
at least once in a lifetime.
Before making the trip, Williams
spent a month training with
friend Quade Cooper, preparing
for the 2018 rugby season.
He has been
posting pictures of himself on
Twitter and described the
experience as "an amazing
feeling".
Williams said on Tuesday that he
had spent the morning visiting
the Baghi Cemetery and "making
dua" for some of the greatest
people in Islamic history. Dua
was a profound act of worship
conducted by Muslims.
Sonny Bill
Williams posts a picture of
himself visiting Mecca on an
Umrah pilgrimage on January 16,
2017.
Right-wing activist Neil
Erikson (right) outside court on
Monday.
Anti-Islam activist Neil
Erikson has admitted
breaching court orders by
failing to return a uniform
to former employer Toll and
publishing online footage
and photographs of
high-profile confrontations
in which his associates are
wearing the logistics
company's uniforms.
Erikson mistakenly picked up
the Koran as he prepared to
give sworn evidence in the
witness stand in the Federal
Circuit Court on Monday,
until the court's associate
pointed him to the Bible,
and later submitted to the
court he was "just a simple
forklift driver" in a "David
versus Goliath" legal stoush
against Toll.
But in between those
moments, the court heard
Erikson lied to Toll about
his criminal past when
hired, told Toll he had
passed Year 11 when he left
school in Year 8 ("Who
doesn't lie on their
resumes?" he said) and was
shown footage of him
criticising the company in a
video filmed outside the
court and uploaded to
Facebook on Monday morning.
In a hearing to determine
whether a penalty is imposed
for contempt of court,
Erikson said he failed to
return to Toll his uniform
after he was sacked last
year, that he published
video footage of a
confrontation with then
senator Sam Dastyari in a
Melbourne pub, and that he
tweeted a news photograph of
a friend wearing a Toll
shirt during a scuffle
outside a speaking event
featuring controversial
commentator Milo
Yiannopoulos.
It also emerged during
Monday's hearing that he was
one of four men charged by
police over the fights
outside the Yiannopoulos
event in Kensington in
December.
Erikson told the court he
had been charged with
affray, behaving in a
riotous manner and two
counts each of assault with
a weapon and unlawful
assault. He is due to appear
before a magistrate at a
later date.
Toll sacked Erikson in both
2014 and last year, the
court heard, and first
requested its uniform back
from him several years ago.
It again requested he return
the uniform when Erikson
featured in a video of men
racially abusing Mr Dastyari
in a Melbourne hotel in
November. The men told Mr
Dastyari he was a
"terrorist" and that he
should go back to his birth
country of Iran.
Erikson admitted on Monday
he had not returned the
uniform to Toll despite
being ordered to do so by
Justice Suzanne Jones on
December 7, that the footage
of the clash with Mr
Dastyari was still on one of
his YouTube channels a week
after the judge made her
orders, and that a
photograph of friend Ricky
Turner in a scuffle outside
the Yiannopoulos event was
still on his Twitter page a
week after the judge's
orders.
Mr Turner was wearing a Toll
shirt in the photograph
despite never having worked
for the company. Erikson
said he didn't give his
friend the shirt.
Erikson said he had told
Toll he would return the
uniform, but instead threw
the shirts away.
"I admit I didn't return
them. I discarded them," he
said.
He also said he was unaware
the video footage of Mr
Dastyari and the photograph
of Mr Turner were on his
social media pages until he
was contacted by Toll's
lawyers, after Justice Jones
made her orders. He said he
removed the online material
as soon as he became aware
it was there.
He did not act on an earlier
request to remove the
material, he said, because
he hardly ever used Twitter
and had several YouTube
channels, was "overwhelmed"
by the volume of emails from
Toll's lawyers and was not
sent web links to the
offending material.
Erikson said he was unfairly
sacked by Toll last year
when news emerged that he
had been charged over a mock
beheading he and two other
men performed outside the
City of Bendigo offices in
October 2015, in protest
against plans to build a
mosque in Bendigo.
But under cross-examination
from Myles Tehan, for Toll,
Erikson conceded he had
provided Toll with false
information when he was
hired, including denying he
had a prior criminal
conviction [for stalking, in
2014] and that he had been
charged over the Bendigo
protest.
Erikson and United Patriots
Front colleagues Blair
Cottrell and Christopher
Shortis were last year found
guilty in Melbourne
Magistrates Court of
inciting contempt, revulsion
and ridicule of Muslims. All
three men were fined $2000.
Justice Jones said Erikson
was "travelling close" to
breaching court orders over
the video filmed on Monday
morning, which was uploaded
to the Nationalists Uprising
Facebook page.
The judge also chastised
three of Erikson's
supporters in court, who
sniggered when he explained
what the acronym LMFAO
referred to. The acronym was
a Facebook post attached to
a news report about Erikson
breaching court orders.
Justice Jones said the post
was an insult to her.
She told Erikson he had the
right to air his views, but
not while wearing Toll
uniform that purported he
worked there.
"The fact is Toll don't want
to be associated with your
views," she said.
In a statement of claim
previously lodged, Toll has
asked the court to
permanently ban Erikson from
publishing "injurious
falsehoods" about the
company, and is seeking
damages.
Mr Tehan said none of
Erikson's evidence to court
stacked up and he had not
provided an adequate
explanation for throwing out
the uniform rather than
returning it to Toll.
Justice Jones reserved her
judgment on the contempt
case.
Following
Cassie Cohen and
Jackson Bursill on their
marathon a day (see CCN), here
are two local stories:
Story 51 – Fatima Elmi
.
“My mother is my role model.
She’s a very strong woman.
She still tells me off every
morning. And now, if I don’t
answer my phone because it’s
on silent, she knows which
number, she knows which day
I’m working in the hospital
and she knows which day I’m
working in the day care, and
she calls that number. She
doesn’t read, she doesn’t
write.
.
One time, my daughter’s
friend was at our place for
lunch. She went and gave him
all this advice about his
weight, about his hair, and
we’re sitting there
sweating, and I’m like ‘Ok
Mum, we have to go.’ And she
said, ‘No, we have to tell
him ‘he’s too skinny, the
wind will take him, he needs
to eat and be fat.’ Later,
she said, ‘Of all the people
in the world, why did she
have to choose him?’ I said,
‘Mum, they’re just friends.
And she said, ‘Yes, but
friendship leads to
marriage.’”
When we were in Brisbane, we
were lucky enough to meet
Fatima, a well known figure
in the Somalian community.
Fatima had generously
prepared a delicious
Somalian meal of rice (2
kilograms worth!) and a lamb
curry. As we ate, we heard
Fatima’s funny stories about
the intersection between
Somalian and Australian
cultures. While she is of
Somalian background, Fatima
has never actually set foot
in Somalia. She spent her
childhood in a refugee camp
in Kenya, before being
accepted into New Zealand in
1994, at the age of 19.
Fatima had her first child
at the age of 19, and says
that she was considered
quite old by typical
standards at the time. She
now has three children (2
girls and a boy). The family
moved to Brisbane in 2009,
where Fatima works as a
nurse. As well as English,
Fatima also speaks Swahili
and Somalian languages.
Story 51 – Mustafa Ally
Dr Mustafa Ally OAM grew up
in Durban, South Africa. He
migrated to Australia in
1994 with his wife Nazima
and their three sons, Riyaad,
Junaid and Zahir. Mustafa
won a scholarship to study a
computer science degree in
the UK, before moving back
to South Africa to become
one of the first non-white
programmers in his country.
Dr Mustafa is currently
lecturing in Information
Systems, e-Commerce and
Crypto-Currencies at the
University of Southern
Queensland. Dr Ally was
awarded the Order of
Australia Medal in the 2012
Australia Day Awards for his
services to various
communities and for his
promotion of interfaith
harmony. He was also
appointed a People of
Australia Ambassador in the
same year by the Australian
Government “in recognition
of (his) significant
contribution to (his)
community and the wider
Australian society”.
Last year, Dr Mustafa
started a ‘CoderDojo’, a
class run by volunteers to
teach children how to write
computer programs in code, a
program he hopes to extend
to refugee groups this year.
Dr Mustafa is also leading a
group to found the
‘Australian Muslim Advocacy
Network’ which he hopes will
allow the Australian-Islamic
community to speak with a
unified voice on issues
where the community has been
historically misrepresented.
Tensions have
long been high over the Chinese
government’s influence and
continued crackdowns on the
cultural identity of the Uighur
ethnic group
Kashgar is widely
regarded as the best-preserved
Islamic city in central Asia.
For years, though, the heritage
of the old city and Uighur
culture in general have come
under threat as Beijing exerts
control – pouring billions of
dollars into the region’s
development and enforcing strict
crackdowns on religion and
traditions
There are approximately 1.84
billion Muslims in the world
today, making up 24.38% of
the world’s population, or
just under one-quarter of
mankind. As well as being
citizens of their respective
countries, they also have a
sense of belonging to the ‘ummah’,
the worldwide Muslim
community.
The Muslim500 publication
sets out to ascertain the
influence some Muslims have
on this community, or on
behalf of the community.
Influence is: any person who
has the power (be it
cultural, ideological,
financial, political or
otherwise) to make a change
that will have a significant
impact on the Muslim world.
Note that the impact can be
either positive or negative,
depending on one’s point of
view of course.
"Radicalisation thrives on
economic insecurity and
exclusion. to create
stakeholders in a peaceful
world, people need
opportunities to fulfil
their potential and build
good lives. Helping them is
a powerful message of
respect."
King of the Hashemite
Kingdom of Jordan and
Custodian of the Holy Sites
of Jerusalem
HM King Abdullah II is the
constitutional monarch of
the Hashemite Kingdom of
Jordan, and the Supreme
Commander of the Jordan Arab
Army: reportedly the best
army, man for man, in the
Arab World. He is also the
Custodian of the Muslim and
Christian Holy Sites in
Jerusalem.
Prophetic
Lineage: King Abdullah II is
a 41st generation direct
descendant of the Prophet
Muhammad through the line of
the Prophet’s grandson Al-Hasan.
The Hashemite Dynasty is the
oldest ruling dynasty in the
Islamic World, and the
second-oldest in the world,
after that of Japan. As the
current bearer of the
Hashemite legacy, HM King
Abdullah II has a unique
prestige in the Islamic
World.
Support for Jerusalem (Al-Quds):
HM King Abdullah II is the
custodian of Al-Haram Al-Sharif
in Jerusalem, the sacred
compound which contains Al
Aqsa Mosque and the Dome of
the Rock. On 2 August 2017,
King Abdullah donated $1.4
million to the Jerusalem
Waqf, the body that belongs
to Jordan and is responsible
for administering Al-Aqsa
mosque.
Reformer: HM King Abdullah’s
progressive vision for
Jordan is based on political
openness, economic and
social development, and the
Islamic values of goodwill
and tolerance. Under his
reign, and during the Arab
Spring, Jordan has witnessed
sweeping constitutional
changes (one third of the
Constitution was amended),
and political and social
reforms aimed at increasing
governmental transparency
and accountability. King
Abdullah has convened the
World Economic Forum many
times in Jordan and
tirelessly tried to improve
the Jordanian economic
climate for investors.
Safe Haven: Jordan has
around 2 million registered
and unregistered refugees
from Syria and Iraq and
other regional conflicts
(such as Libya and Yemen),
in addition to around 2
million refugees from the
Palestine conflict. Despite
its paucity of resources,
Jordan has welcomed and
accommodated a staggering
number of refugees and is
seen by many as the most
stable country in a
turbulent region.
ANOTHER FROM THE TOP 50 INFLUENTIAL MUSLIMS
IN NEXT WEEK'S CCN
Zheng He
was born
in 1371
in the
southern
China
region
of
Yunnan
to a Hui
(a
Muslim
Chinese
ethnic
group)
family.
When people
think of great
explorers, they
think of the
usual names:
Marco Polo, Ibn
Battuta, Evliya
Çelebi,
Christopher
Columbus, etc.
But not many
know of one of
the most
interesting and
influential of
all time.
In China, he is
well known,
although not
always globally
recognized or
glorified. He is
Zheng He, the
Muslim who
became China’s
greatest
admiral,
explorer, and
diplomat.
Origins
Zheng was
born in 1371 in
the southern
China region of Yunnan to a Hui
(a Muslim
Chinese ethnic
group) family.
His birth name
was Ma He. In
China, the
family name is
said first,
followed by the
given name. “Ma”
is known in
China as short
for “Muhammad”,
indicating Zheng
He’s Muslim
heritage. Both
his father and
his grandfather
were able to
travel to Makkah
and perform
Hajj, so Zheng
He came from a
practicing
Muslim family.
At a young age,
his town was
raided by the
Ming Dynasty’s
army. He was
captured and
transported to
the capital,
Nanjing, where
he served in the
imperial
household.
Despite the
oppressive and
difficult
circumstances he
was in, Zheng He
actually
befriended one
of the princes,
Zhu Di, and when
he became the
emperor, Zheng
He rose to the
highest
positions in
government. At
this time, he
was given the
honorific title
“Zheng” and was
known as Zheng
He.
Greece
prepares to do
away with
compulsory
sharia in
Western Thrace
Nearly a century after the
sultans left, Greek Muslims will
no longer have to live by
Ottoman rules
.....there is
one little patch
of the European
Union where
sharia has
hitherto held
sway, not as a
self-imposed
code of
behaviour but as
a system under
which Muslim
citizens have
been pressured
to regulate
their business,
especially
involving
inheritance.
That region is
Western Thrace,
a part of Greece
adjoining the
land border with
Turkey.
Alexis Tsipras,
Greece’s leftist
prime minister,
is about to
introduce
legislation that
will change that
odd state of
affairs.
...legislation
(will) make the
practice of
sharia voluntary
rather than
compulsory. In
other words, an
extended family
will still be
able organise
its affairs on
sharia
principles if it
wants to, but
only by the
freely given
consent of all
interested
parties. In the
absence of such
consent, Greek
civil law will
have default
jurisdiction.
A long legal
saga involving
three Muslim
women from
Greece has
brought things
to this point.
Hatijah Molla
Salli, a woman
from the
Thracian town of
Kommotini who is
now in her late
sixties,
inherited her
husband’s
property when he
passed away
nearly a decade
ago. Although
Muslim, he had
chosen to bypass
the sharia
system and make
a secular will,
leaving his
assets to her.
(Anecdotal
evidence
suggests that
huge numbers of
Thracian Muslims
prefer to use
secular legal
system if they
can.)
The will was
immediately
disputed by the
dead man’s
sisters: they
contended that
under the norms
of Islam he
should have made
some provision
for them. Greek
courts then had
to determine
whether a Muslim
in Thrace had
the right to
draw up a
secular
testament. A
lower court
vindicated the
widow, but the
country’s
highest tribunal
decided
otherwise: a
Muslim in Greek
Thrace was not
merely entitled
but obliged to
arrange his
affairs under
Islamic law, as
interpreted
where necessary
by a mufti. The
widow then took
her case to the
ECHR in
Strasbourg.
........
In many press
reports, it has
been asserted
that Greece is
the only place
in Europe where
sharia is
practised. But
that statement
needs to be
qualified. In
Britain, dozens
of sharia
councils exist
to adjudicate
(on a voluntary
basis, although
there may be
strong social
pressures) the
marital affairs
of Muslim
citizens. Most
people who
approach these
councils are
women seeking a
religiously
sanctioned
divorce. And the
Kremlin-backed
rulers of
Chechnya, which
is at least
geographically
part of European
Russia, already
enforce many
Muslim norms
(with regard to
headgear and
grooming) and
they have
pledged to
introduce a
full-blown
sharia regime.
Europe’s
peripheries are
a long way from
Kansas.
Hijab-Wearing Model Amena
Khan Featured In Hair Ad
HuffPost
L’Oréal Paris just made history by featuring YouTuber Amena Khan, wearing her headscarf. It’s the first time a major mainstream hair campaign has featured a woman in a hijab.
Our NEW Beauty Squad | Amena
L'Oréal Paris UK
& Ireland
Amena's story | From
self-doubt to self-worth
Amena
If there's one thing we all have to do it's to find self-worth. Some of us have to go through a lot of self-doubt before we can discover our true worth... but it can be done. I’m incredibly proud to announce that I’m one of 15 ambassadors partnering with The Prince’s Trust and L'Oréal Paris working to help thousands of young people turn self-doubt into self-worth.
Meet the immigrant Muslim
women under 40
TRT World
Despite
increasing Islamophobia and
anti-immigrant sentiment in
North America and Europe, these
Muslim women have been elected
to public office.
Hina Rabbani Khar on Trump's tweet
Global Village
Space
"We should be
concerned about the tweeter
rather than the tweet," says
Pakistan's former Foreign
Minister Hina Rabbani Khar after
Trump slammed Pakistan on
Twitter.
US Muslim Clinic supporting
community
Ask A Muslim
Volunteer doctors
in Muslim Clinic of Ohio have
been supporting people without
health insurance and are making
a big impact for seven years.
New British Army Recruitment
Advert Shows Muslim Soldier
Praying On Battlefield
Muslim American took oath on
Quran to become secretary of
education
Siasat Daily
Atif Qarni was sworn on the holy
Quran to become the next
secretary of education,
Pakistani American Atif Qarni,
who is also a military veteran,
was appointed as the Secretary
of Education for the state of
Virgina by Virginia Gov.-elect
Ralph Northam
Qarni has been active in local
politics for a long time. In
2013, he challenged Robert G.
Marshall for the 13th District
House of Delegates seat and
again in 2015 in a Primary
Election against State Senator
Jeremy McPike.
Basheer Jones sworn in as
Councilman
Ward 7 Councilman
Basheer Jones was elected in
November 2017, becoming the
city’s first Muslim council
representative. He represents an
area which includes the historic
Hough district, as well as the
St. Clair-Superior, Midtown and
Asia Town neighborhoods.
Councilman Jones has been
recognized nationally for his
grass-roots activism relating to
issues of social justice and
empowering those who are left
out of the American Dream.
During the 2008 presidential
election, Councilman Jones
hosted rallies in Cleveland for
Barack Obama and organized a
youth voter registration drive
in the city.
He has received various awards
for his work, including the
“Emerging Leader” award from
U.S. Rep. Marcia Fudge and the
Urban League’s “Distinguished
Men” award. Councilman Jones is
a member of the NAACP and Alpha
Phi Alpha Fraternity.
Feeding the poor in
Washington D.C.
From Darkness to
Light
While Trump has
banned aid to Pakistan, this
Pakistani man’s restaurant is
feeding poor people in
Washington D.C.
PLEASE
NOTE
It is the usual policy of CCN to
include notices of events, video links and articles that
some readers may find interesting or relevant. Such notices
are often posted as received. Including such messages/links
or providing the details of such events does not necessarily
imply endorsement or agreement by CCN of the contents
therein.
Nus
Ghani is first Muslim woman minister to
speak in Commons
UK: Nusrat Ghani becomes
the first female Muslim minister to
speak at the House of Commons despatch
box. Ms Ghani, who is the daughter of
Pakistani immigrants, was promoted by
Theresa May in last week's reshuffle
Nusrat Ghani has become the first female
Muslim minister to speak at the Commons
despatch box.
Ms Ghani, who is the daughter of
Pakistani immigrants, was promoted by
Theresa May in last week's reshuffle in
which the prime minister tried to make
her frontbench look "more like the
country it serves".
The new parliamentary under-secretary at
the Department for Transport has been
Wealden MP since 2015.
And today she was cheered by
parliamentary colleagues as she answered
questions on access for disabled people
at train stations.
The prime minister also passed on her
congratulations.
Theresa May tweeted: "Congratulations
Nusrat - a historic moment indeed, and a
role in which I've no doubt you'll
flourish."
Speaking about the milestone, Ms Ghani
said it was an "important moment".
"As many people know, this year is also
a significant milestone in this country,
as 2018 marks 100 years of votes for
women," she said.
Nusrat Ghani first stood for the
Conservatives in Birmingham in 2010
(Image: Birmingham Post and Mail)
"I hope that today, young people can see
that regardless of their background,
heritage or faith, there will be a warm
welcome on the green benches - and no
matter where you are from, you can
achieve your dreams and ambitions.
"I am thrilled to be a minister at the
Department for Transport, which is
working hard to encourage more diversity
in the transport sector.
"I'm excited to meet head on the
opportunities and challenges that this
new role this will bring."
Centre
ends Haj subsidy as part of policy to
'empower minorities without appeasement'
NEW DELHI: Haj pilgrims
will no longer receive any subsidy this
year onwards, with the government saying
the decision is part of its agenda of
empowerment of minorities without
appeasement.
Union minister for minority affairs
Mukhtar Abbas Naqvi on Tuesday confirmed
that the Haj subsidy has been withdrawn.
"This is part of our policy to empower
minorities with dignity and without
appeasement," Naqvi told reporters.
A policy to withdraw the Haj subsidy had
been drafted in light of a 2012 Supreme
Court order asking the Centre to abolish
it gradually by 2022.
The government will offer air and
waterways option for the pilgrims as
cost will go up.
The cut in funds meant for subsidy will
be used for educational empowerment and
welfare of girls from minority
communities, Naqvi told TOI.
The policy aims at rationalising
distribution of the Haj quota between
the Haj Committee of India and private
tour operators in the ratio of 70:30 for
the next five years. It also stresses on
breaking the cartel of contractors with
a transparent bidding process.
The highest number of pilgrims are
likely to go for Haj pilgrimage in 2018,
after Saudi Arabia hiked India's pilgrim
quota by 5,000 earlier this year. Now, a
total of 1.75 lakh Indian citizens can
go for Haj.
Around 1,300 women from India will make
the annual pilgrimage without a "Mehram"
(unmarriageable male kin) after Riyadh
relaxed norms and allowed a group of at
least four women over the age of 45 to
go on Haj unchaperoned.
Saudi
Arabia begins screening films after
decades-long ban lifted
General view
of the new first Saudi cinema at
cultural club in Jeddah, Saudi
Arabia January 13, 2018.
JEDDAH, Saudi Arabia:
Saudi Arabia began screening
feature-length animated children’s films
this weekend in a makeshift theatre,
after a 35-year-old ban on cinemas was
lifted in the conservative Islamic
kingdom.
The first permanent theatres could open
as early as March, part of a
liberalizing reform drive that has
already opened the door to concerts,
comedy shows and women drivers over the
past year.
For now, the authorities are sponsoring
temporary settings, like the state-run
cultural hall in the Red Sea city of
Jeddah equipped with a projector, a red
carpet and a popcorn machine.
“Until now, there is no infrastructure
for movie theatres, so we are trying to
take advantage of (alternative) venues
to approximate the cinematic form,” said
Mamdouh Salim, whose Cinema 70 brand
organized the week-long screenings.
“We tried to use these films to be a
starting point as the first cinematic
screening after the decision on Dec. 11
to permit movie theatres.”
Cinemas were banned in the early 1980s
under pressure from Islamists as Saudi
society turned towards a particularly
conservative form of religion that
discouraged public entertainment and
public mixing between men and women.
But reforms led by 32-year-old Crown
Prince Mohammed bin Salman have eased
many of those restrictions, as the
government tries to broaden the economy
and lessen its dependence on oil
In a nod to conservatives, films will be
censored to make sure they remain in
line with the kingdom’s “moral values”.
MORE FUN
After watching The Emoji Movie with his
wife and daughter on Sunday evening,
28-year-old Sultan al-Otaibi said Saudis
are happy to see movies in the theater
instead of staying at home.
“It’s more comfortable, more fun to have
a change of scenery and an activity on
the weekend. It is a step that was very
late in coming but thank God it’s
happening now.”
Thousands of Saudis currently travel to
Bahrain, the United Arab Emirates and
other countries for entertainment. The
government wants to retain the money
spent on those trips.
The authorities expect to open 300
cinemas with 2,000 screens by 2030,
building an industry it hopes will
contribute more then 90 billion riyals
($24 billion) to the economy and create
30,000 permanent jobs.
Regional and international cinema chains
are also eyeing the Saudi market, keen
to tap the spending power of the young
people who make up roughly 70 percent of
the population.
“I want to see everything because it is
something new for Saudi,” said
30-year-old movie-goer Ibtisam Abu Talib.
“I hope everything is available -
action, romance, children’s films,
comedy. Everything, God willing.”
Saudi
women score right to watch men’s soccer in
stadiums
Female Saudi
supporters of Al-Ahli attend
their teams football match
against Al-Batin in the
Saudi Pro League at the King
Abdullah Sports City in
Jeddah on January 12, 2018
JEDDAH, Saudi Arabia:
Saudi women were allowed into a sports
stadium for the first time Friday to
watch a soccer match between two local
teams — though they were segregated in
the stands from the male-only crowd with
designated seating in the so-called
"family section."
The move was the first of Saudi Arabia's
social reforms planned for this year to
ease restrictions on women, spearheaded
by the kingdom's 32-year-old crown
prince. The kingdom has also announced
that starting in June women will be
allowed to drive, lifting the world's
only ban on female drivers.
On Thursday, Jeddah held Saudi Arabia's
first car exhibition aimed at women.
The presence of women in the sports
stadium underscored a wider effort to
integrate women in society and grant
them more public visibility in a country
where gender segregation is widely
enforced and where most women cover
their faces and hair with black veils
and don loose-flowing black robes, known
as abayas.
The first stadium to open its doors to
women was in the Red Sea city of Jeddah.
The stadium in the capital, Riyadh, will
open to women on Saturday, followed by
the western city of Dammam on Thursday.
It's very festive and very well
organized. A lot of people are just
really happy to be here. I think there's
a lot of excitement when you walked in,
especially among the children," said
Sarah Swick of the match between Saudi
soccer teams Al-Ahli and Al-Batin.
Swick, who grew up in Maryland and has
been living in Saudi Arabia for the past
nine years, has attended football games
in the U.S. and soccer matches in
France, but said she was impressed with
how organized Friday night's match was.
"I definitely think we will come back,"
she said.
To prepare for the change, the kingdom
designated so-called "family sections"
in the stands for women, separated by
barriers from the male-only crowds. The
stadiums were also fitted with female
prayer areas and restrooms, as well as
separate entrances and parking lots for
female spectators. Local media said
women would also have their own
designated smoking areas.
"Family sections" are ubiquitous across
the kingdom, allowing married couples,
direct relatives and sometimes groups of
friends to sit together, isolated from
male-only tables at restaurants and in
waiting areas at banks and hospitals.
The sections also include women out on
their own or in groups with other women.
Female Saudi supporters of
Al-Ahli queue at an entrance
for families and women at
the King Abdullah Sports
City in Jeddah on January
12, 2018, ahead of their
teams football match against
Al-Batin in the Saudi Pro
League.
An Arabic hashtag on Twitter about women
entering stadiums garnered tens of
thousands of tweets on Friday, with some
using the hashtag to share photos of
female spectators wearing their team's
colors in scarves thrown over their
black abayas.
While many welcomed the decision to
allow women into stadiums, others spoke
out against it.
Some used the hashtag to write that
women's place should be in the home,
focusing on their children and
preserving their faith, and not at a
stadium where male crowds frequently
curse and chant raucously.
Saudi Arabia's Crown Prince Mohammed bin
Salman is seen as the driving force
behind the loosened restrictions on
women. Still in place, however, are
guardianship laws that prevent women
from traveling abroad, obtaining a
passport or marrying without a male
relative's consent.
Set to inherit a country where more than
half the population is under 25 years
old and hungry for change, the young
crown prince has looked to boost his
popularity by curbing nearly four
decades of deeply entrenched
ultraconservative influence.
His reforms, which include allowing
movie theaters to open in March after a
more than 35-year ban, are also aimed at
creating more jobs and increasing local
spending on entertainment as the country
faces several more years of budget
deficit amid continued lower oil prices.
Many young Saudis regard his recent
ascent to power as proof their
generation is taking a central place in
running a country whose patriarchal
traditions have for decades made power
the province of the old and blocked
women's progress.
"Honestly this decision should have
happened a long time ago," said Muneera
al-Ghamdi, an attendee. "But thank god
that it came in the right time, and
hopefully what's to come will be even
more beautiful for women.
A Young American Woman's Journey to Love and Islam
by
G. Willow Wilson
Description
The extraordinary
story of an all-American girl’s conversion to
Islam and her ensuing romance with a young
Egyptian man, The Butterfly Mosque is a stunning
articulation of a Westerner embracing the Muslim
world.
When G. Willow Wilson—already an accomplished
writer on modern religion and the Middle East at
just twenty-seven—leaves her atheist parents in
Denver to study at Boston University, she
enrolls in an Islamic Studies course that leads
to her shocking conversion to Islam and sends
her on a fated journey across continents and
into an uncertain future.
She settles in Cairo where she teaches English
and submerges herself in a culture based on her
adopted religion. And then she meets Omar, a
passionate young man with a mild resentment of
the Western influences in his homeland. They
fall in love, entering into a daring
relationship that calls into question the very
nature of family, belief, and tradition. Torn
between the secular West and Muslim East, Willow
records her intensely personal struggle to forge
a “third culture” that might accommodate her own
values without compromising the friends and
family on both sides of the divide.
KB says:
The lassi is a refreshing smoothie-style drink
of yoghurt, which is often served alongside
curries to cool the palate, or just whenever
it’s needed to beat the heat.
Mango
Lassi
Ingredients
1 cup almond milk
½ cup honey yoghurt or ordinary yoghurt if the
mangoes are naturally sweet
2 cups of mango, peeled and pits removed (the
riper the mango the better)
Method
Combine all ingredients in a blender and process
until smooth.
You may need to add a little water to achieve
the consistency you desire or add ice just
before serving.
Do you have a recipe to share with CCN
readers?
Send in your favourite recipe to me at
admin@ccnonline.com.au and be my "guest chef" for the week.
Welcome to my weekly
column on
Self-Care and
Clarity of Mind.
If you’re taking
time out to read
this, pat yourself
on the back because
you have shown
commitment to taking
care of your mind
and body.
Today, In Shaa
ALLAH, we will
explore the topic:
Being Loyal Is Not
The Same As Being
Faithful
There is a
significant
difference in the
words Loyal
and Faithful.
Loyal means to
stay true to a
particular group or
cause to which one
belongs. For
example, being loyal
to the constitution
of your country,
being loyal to your
marriage, being
loyal to your family
traditions and
culture. In times of
need, it is your
loyalty that fuels
your passion to
fight for the
survival of the
group or cause to
which you belong.
Loyalty does not
focus on whether the
intentions of the
group or cause are
righteous. Loyalty
only focuses on
allegiance.
Faithful means to
harbour and show
unconditional love,
trust and honesty in
a personal
relationship with
someone or with your
creator. For
example, having
unconditional love,
trust and honesty in
your relationship
with ALLAH. Another
example is when you
have unconditional
love, trust and
honesty with your
spouse. Being
faithful revolves
around your
feelings, unlike
being loyal which
revolves around
terms and conditions
set by the senior
members of the
group.
Being loyal is
NOT the same as
being faithful.
And this is where
you as a Muslim,
must reflect on your
personal choices and
deeds and find clear
distinctions between
where you are being
faithful and where
you are being loyal.
A deeper
self-reflection
would enable you to
understand where
your choices to be
loyal may be getting
in the way of you
being faithful to
ALLAH.
How Does Loyalty
Affect You From
Being Faithful To
ALLAH
Loyalty does not
focus on whether the
intentions or deeds
carried out by the
group (country,
family, sect) you
are loyal to are
righteous.
The way to
understand where
your loyalty lies
and whether that is
affecting your
faithful
relationship with
ALLAH is to answer
the following
questions with
complete honesty:
1. Make a list
of all the
groups and
causes that you
have loyalty
towards. For
example, your
family, your
in-laws, your
country, your
mosque/imam,
your school/
college/
committee.
2. Beside each
group, write
down the values
and beliefs of
that group.
3. Now take each
of these values
and beliefs and
answer Yes or No
to the question:
Is this value or
belief in
alignment with
ALLAH’s
commandments?
To make this
reflective exercise
easier, you may use
the following table:
I am loyal
to
What are
their values
and beliefs?
Yes, this
value/belief
aligns with
ALLAH’s
commandments
No, this
value/belief
does not
align with
ALLAH’s
commandments
1
My family
2
My in-laws
3
My work/
school
4
My friends
5
My mosque/
imam
6
My country
Once you have a
clearer idea on how
your loyalty is
affecting your
faithful
relationship with
ALLAH, you will make
better decisions so
that your own
thoughts, words and
deeds are ALWAYS in
alignment with
ALLAH’s
commandments. THIS
IS YOUR ONLY
PURPOSE...to be a
Muslim, to be in
alignment with
ALLAH’s
commandments.
Sometimes being
loyal can deviate us
from this purpose.
Is it worth
deviating from your
purpose when you
have been told the
following ayats?
And no bearer of
burdens will bear
the burden of
another. And if a
heavily laden soul
calls [another] to
[carry some of] its
load, nothing of it
will be carried,
even if he should be
a close relative.
You can only warn
those who fear their
Lord unseen and have
established prayer.
And whoever purifies
himself only
purifies himself for
[the benefit of] his
soul. And to Allah
is the [final]
destination.
(HOLY QURAN
TRANSLATION - VERSE
35:18)
Whoever is guided
is only guided for
[the benefit of] his
soul. And whoever
errs only errs
against it. And no
bearer of burdens
will bear the burden
of another. And
never would We
punish until We sent
a messenger.
(HOLY QURAN
TRANSLATION - VERSE
17:15)
Whoever does
righteousness - it
is for his [own]
soul; and whoever
does evil [does so]
against it. And your
Lord is not ever
unjust to [His]
servants.
(HOLY QURAN
TRANSLATION - VERSE
41:46)
If you wish to know
about a specific
topic with regards
to Self-Care and
Clarity of Mind,
please text or email
me or visit
www.muslimahmindmatters.com.
If you wish to have
a FREE one hour
Finding Clarity
telephone session,
contact me on
0451977786.
Construction of
the Cultural Centre (Dawah &
Youth Centre) is progressing
well.
This week the doors, windows and
beams for the roof of our GC
Islamic Cultural Centre have
been installed. The plumbing
work is currently in progress
and the interior walls have been
partitioned for rooms and
toilets..
We still need donations to fund
this construction.
1. All Islamic Event dates given above are supplied by
the Council of Imams QLD (CIQ) and are provided as a guide and are
tentative and subject to the sighting of the moon.
2. The Islamic date changes to the next day starting in
the evenings after maghrib. Therefore, exceptfor Lailatul
Mehraj,
Lailatul Bhahraat
and
Lailatul Qadr – these dates refer to the commencement of the event
starting in the evening of the corresponding day.
HikmahWay offers online and
in-person Islamic courses to
equip Muslims of today with
the knowledge, understanding
and wisdom to lead balanced,
wholesome and beneficial
lives.
Articles and
opinions appearing in this newsletter do not necessarily
reflect the opinions of the CCN Team, its Editor or its
Sponsors, particularly if they eventually turn out to be
libellous, unfounded, objectionable, obnoxious, offensive,
slanderous and/or downright distasteful.
It is the usual policy of CCN to
include from time to time, notices of events that some
readers may find interesting or relevant. Such notices are
often posted as received. Including such messages or
providing the details of such events does not necessarily
imply endorsement of the contents of these events by CCN
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A
Nus
Ghani is first Muslim woman minister to
speak in Commons
post comments on
our Wall
7
August 2011