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Thursday, June 3, 2010

[ALOCHONA] Global protest against Amar Desh closure



Global protest against Amar Desh closure

Closure of opposition daily Amar Desh and arrest of its Editor Mahmudur Rahman have drawn global condemnation against the government of Sheikh hasina.Media watchdog Reporters Without Borders (RSF) on Thursday condemned Bangladesh authorities for closing an opposition newspaper and said it was concerned about the paper's detained editor.

The Paris-based group said it was "outraged" by Bangladesh's decision to shut the Bengali-language Amar Desh and arrest its acting editor, Mahmudur Rahman, on charges of fraud and violently resisting arrest."The night-time raid by armed police on the daily's headquarters and the use of force to arrest editor Mahmudur Rahman are unworthy of a government that claims to respect the rule of law," the group said in a statement.

"The Awami League government is clearly unable to tolerate criticism from this opposition newspaper," it added. Rahman was the energy adviser to BNP leader Khaleda Zia during her second term as Bangladeshi premier, from 2001 to 2006. He has been a vocal critic of the current Awami League government since it swept to power in December 2008 elections.

Several of the paper's journalists, who attempted to prevent police from arresting Rahman, have also been arrested and charged. Reporters without Borders called for "an independent and transparent investigation" into the charges against the paper, and said the paper should be allowed to continue publishing.

Reporters Without Borders said members of the National Security Intelligence service had taken the publisher, Hashmat Ali, to their headquarters where he was forced to sign blank sheets of papers.

IPI

The Vienna-based ( Austria) International Press Institute(IPI) also expressed concern about the Amar Desh urging Prime Minister Hasina to refrain from using administrative sanctions to limit press freedom.

IPI is a global network of editors, media executives and leading journalists. We are dedicated to the furtherance and safeguarding of press freedom, the protection of freedom of opinion and expression, the promotion of the free flow of news and information, and the improvement of the practices of journalism.

We are concerned that the Bangladeshi government is using administrative sanctions to limit the newspaper's ability to criticize its policies," said IPI Director David Dadge. "I urge Prime Minister Sheik Hasina to live up to her promises and ensure that journalists are allowed to distribute information and opinions free of harassment or intimidation."

During an IPI Press Freedom Mission to Bangladesh in December 2008, Sheik Hasina personally gave her commitment to press freedom to an IPI delegation visiting the country. Sheikh Hasina acknowledged that freedom of expression was necessary if journalists were to play a vital role in supporting democracy and secularism, and said that journalists in Bangladesh enjoyed full freedom of expression.

The New York based Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ) carried similar statement on Wednesday. The CPJ demanded that he Bangladeshi government must fully explain the circumstances that led police to close the Bengali-language, pro-opposition daily Amar Desh based in the capital, Dhaka. . Quoting news reports the CPJ observed that the shutdown appeared to be politically motivated.

"Using 200 police to shut down a newspaper in the middle of the night over alleged publication irregularities is excessive and suggests the government is trying to suppress a critical media outlet. There needs to be a full explanation of the motives behind such a drastic move," said Bob Dietz, CPJ's Asia program coordinator. "Amar Desh should be allowed to resume publishing."

Meanwhile, the report on Amar Desh got headlines in the foreign press including BBC, the Guardian in UK, The Hindu in India, and AFP

 http://nation.ittefaq.com/issues/2010/06/04/news0321.htm



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[ALOCHONA] US wants India's involvement in Nepal's politics



US wants India's involvement in Nepal's politics: Burns
 
Kathmandu, June 3:
 
A senior US government official said his country wants more involvement of India in South Asian politics including Nepal where political deadlock has badly hampered the peace process and constitution writing.

"As India looks eastward, its role in its immediate neighbourhood obviously remains crucial. We have complementary interests on the subcontinent, and the United States supports India's leadership in encouraging the emergence of a stable democratic government in Bangladesh... easing tensions in Nepal... and promoting peace and reconciliation in Sri Lanka," US Under Secretary for Political Affairs William J Burns said while speaking at the Council on Foreign Relations in Washington on India's rise and promise of US-India partnership ahead of the first ever India-US Strategic Dialogue.

He further said, "Neither of us intends to outsource South Asia policy to the other, but more often than not our policy prescriptions converge." Stating that India's strength and progress on the world stage is in the strategic interest of the United States, Burns said India plays an increasingly significant role in Asia and that India's expanding global role will naturally make it an important part of any future consideration of reform of the UN Security Council.
 
 


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[ALOCHONA] Re: [Bangladesh-Zindabad] Newspaper & Media VS Fascism

Dear All,
AMARDESH was banned due to gross violations of conducts and rules of publications and Mahmudur Rahman was arrested due to misconduct with LAW-ENFORCING forces. So, OUTCRY OF BNP-JAMAT JOTE is baseless!! More over Mahmudur Rahman, a self proclaimed JOURNALIST, with ILL-MOTIVES was publishing FALSE- FABRICATIVE-FRAUDULENT news to DEFAME the Govt. and BLUFF the countrymen. Mahmudur Rahman as an adviser to Khaleda Zia was instrumental to sell country's interests to TATA, the Indian giant!! He was the main architect of the NOTORIOUS UTTORA CONSPIRACY!! If Mohiuddin Alamgir get JAIL IMPRISONMENT for JANATAR MANCHA, then what's wrong with imprisonment of an UNSCRUPULOUS person like Mr. Rahman !! BNP-JAMAT- PRO PAKI JOTE on and off are outbursting regarding socalled banning of news papers in 1975 ----- ironically they allowed only four like minded news papers to be distributed in Cantonment , Madrashas,etc !! More over they banned BANGLAR BANI, BANGLADESH TIMES, WEEKLY BICHITRA and popular TV Channel ETV during their tenure of misrule!!

 

NOW OUTCRYING FOR "AMAR DESH AND M. RAHMAN''  SOUNDS LIKE "BHUTER MUKHE RAAM NAAM"!!!

 

DR. MANIK





________________________________
From: M h Khan <mhkhan71bd@yahoo.com>
To: world_peace_movement@yahoogroups.com; alochona@yahoogroups.com; mukto_mona@yahoo.com; khabor@yahoogroups.com; sonarbangladesh@yahoogroups.com; voice-of-south@yahoogroups.com; odhora@yahoogroups.com; bangladesh-zindabad@yahoogroups.com; amra-bangladeshi@yahoogroups.com; notun_bangladesh@yahoogroups.com
Sent: Thu, June 3, 2010 3:13:25 AM
Subject: [Bangladesh-Zindabad] Newspaper & Media VS Fascism

 
Dear Friends,
 
What is called 1st step fascism, then 2nd, 3rd etc?
 
We noticed anxiously that the Daily Amar Desh, the most courageous (for this reason gaining popularity rapidly) newspaper of Bangladesh is ban & the brave son of time, Editor Engr. Mahmuhudur Rahman (He was the man who had taken his pen against the inhuman oppression on Sk. Hasina & Khaleda Zia by Moyeen-Fakhruddin illegal CA Government) is arrested. In the history of world there is no such heinous crimes occurred against a popular newspaper by a democratic government. Mentionable that few days ago Chanel 1 & Face Book were also closed. You tube was also closed earlier.
 
We could remember that in 16 June 1975, the black day of newspaper, all the newspapers were ban by the then one party BAKSHAL government under the leadership by Morhum Sk. Mujibar Rahman except 4 under direct control of BAKSHAL.
 
We are very sorry that again the heinous crime against newspaper happened on the same month, the 1st June, 2010 by the democratic government under the leadership of Sk. Hasina, the daughter of Sk Mujib.  
 
For detail pl go through the following links :
 
http://amardeshonline.com/pages/latestnews/2010/06/01/435
 
http://amardeshonline.com/pages/details/2010/06/01/34631
 
Thank you,
 
M H Khan

[ALOCHONA] Mr. Motiur Rahman, please explain yourself



Mr. Motiur Rahman, please explain yourself
 
June 16, 2009

On reading the special editorialwritten by Matiur Rahman, Prothom Alo editor, the day his masterMoeen U. Ahmed retired as Army Chief, a number of questions came up. Actually, what came up first was disgust at the incredible level of smugness that was on display as Matiur Rahman pretended that the change of government that took place on January 11, 2007 did not happen with his direct knowledge and collusion. But eventually, on a second and third reading, some questions did come up.

The intial point that struck me was the sheer disregard of journalistic ethos that Mr. Rahman puts on display here. If any of us bloggers had written this piece, our inboxes would be flooded by now with demands that we either back up what we wrote as facts or admit that they are baseless innuendo. I do not see why the standard should be any different for the editor of Bangladesh's most widely-circulated Bangla newspaper. In his article, Matiur Rahman states:

  • After last year's election, a powerful portion of the Army wanted Moeen's tenure as Army Chief extended by another year.
  • Presumably the same part of the Army wanted Moeen to become either Defense Minister or the "Joint Chief of Staff."
  • After the Pilkhana massacre, Army officers openly criticized Moeen, inside and outside the Army, for not being able to save the lives of his men.
  • The Government would still like to reward Moeen.
  • Diplomatic sources say that Moeen may be made the Permanent Representative to the United Nations in New York.

Let us take these points one by one. After Moeen toppled the caretaker government in 2007 and promoted himself to General, he spent a great deal of time and energy putting his men in as many key army positions as he could, and sending army officers who refused to countenance his authority into forced retirement. Thus, it is probably not a surprise that Moeen still has a constituency left in the Army, even though, ideally, the entire Army should be his constituency.

That there were ever any suggestions of Moeen being made Defense Minister or Joint Chief of Staff is quiet sensational news. If Motiur Rahman knew about this previously but did not inform us, his readers, he has done us a great disservice. As far as I know, Bangladesh has never had a Defense Minister, with the Prime Minister not being able to trust anyone else (unwisely, in my opinion) with this portfolio. For a very brief period of time, Khandoqar Mushtaq's government did set up a Combined Chief of Staff, but that was more to keep Maj. Gen. Ziaur Rahman, as Army Chief, from having any real power, than anything else. Moeen has already permanently distorted our defense establishment by promoting himself to General rank, giving nations around the world one more reason to titter at us behind our back. Appointing the same man to one of the posts described above would have been a momentous step; one we deserved to hear about ahead of time.

The Pilkhana massacre laid bare the full extent of the damage that Moeen had done to the very institution he was supposed to protect and safeguard: the Bangladesh Army. Barely two years after he had stormed into Bongobhaban, the Presidential Palace, and forced President Iajuddin Ahmed to retire as Chief Advisor, a democratic government barely two months old could scarcely trust him to again lead an operation in the heart of Dhaka. And so it was they fifty-plus of our officers were tortured and killed, while the government sat and dithered before, first allowing enough armour units to enter Dhaka, and then letting them approach Pilkhana. Moeen has undone the work of thousands of honest and dedicated officers who obeyed the constitutional dictate that our armed forces stay subservient to the civilian government, through his coup in 2007 and the torture he inflicted on a broad swathe of politicians from all across the political spectrum the next two years. Going forward, it will take years to mend the damage he has wrought.

Therefore, we do not see how Matiur Rahman can now claim that Army officers have criticized and blamed Moeen for the loss of lives in Pilkhana. Why was Matiur Rahman silent when the government instituted an Army-probe into this massacre under the same person who was blamed for letting it happen? How could such a probe have any credibility with members of our armed forces, let alone the general public?

Even after making these incredible allegations, Matiur Rahman then turns around and claims that even after the Pilkhana massacre, the government would like to still reward Moeen. The question begs to be asked, what is the government rewarding Moeen for? Providing the incompetent leadership that allowed so many of his men to be killed? Indirectly causing the mutiny – by green-lighting the BDR into Operation DalBhaat? Or, as Matiur Rahman hints near the end, because of the election held in 29 December, 2008? Do we really want to become a nation that remains in thrall to its Army Chief for allowing elections to go through?

And do we really want our United Nations representative to be a wannabe military strongman? Asif Ali Zardari and Pervez Musharraf made a far more explicit pact after the Pakistani election. But even Musharraf did not have the gumption of trying to claim diplomatic immunity and representing our country in the world stage.

Of course, if Moeen ever leaves Bangladesh, we can rest assured he will never return again. His underling Brig. Fazlul Bari had the right idea when he decided he liked America too much. One can confidently expect Moeen to follow suit; he has already made his liking for the balmy climate of Florida well-known. Perhaps, once they are united there, advance accommodations could be arranged for Gen. Masud as well.

Fighting the rearguard battle to justify his own support for the overthrow of the CTG in 2007, Matiur Rahman claims that the new regime had "massive support" from the people. Yet, in the very next sentence, he is forced to acknowledge that Awami League only supported this move initially, until the true nature of the regime that followed became clear and Sheikh Hasina was herself thrown into jail after she spoke out against military intervention, through DGFI, in politics. BNP, of course, never supported the regime. Then how does Matiur Rahman find broad support for a regime which is not supported by BNP and AL, which together represent about 260 of the 300 seats in both the current as well as the former parliament?

The job of a newspaper editor is different from that of a gossip columnist. It is really different from that of a sycophant. Unfortunately, Mr. Matiur Rahman seems unclear about both these distinctions. The activities of our last regime left behind enough tar to cover most of its proponents and supporters. With this piece, Matiur Rahman just slapped some more tar firmly on his face.



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[ALOCHONA] Young. British. Female. Muslim.



Young. British. Female. Muslim.
 
Thousands of young British women living in the UK decide to convert to Islam - here are some of their stories
 
From Left: Sukina Douglas, Catherine Heseltine, Aqeela Lindsay Wheeler, Catherine Huntley and Joanne Bailey (Photographed by Sheila Rock)
From left: Sukina Douglas, Catherine Heseltine, Aqeela Lindsay Wheeler, Catherine Huntley and Joanne Bailey
 

It's a controversial time for British women to be wearing the hijab, the basic Muslim headscarf. Last month, Belgium became the first European country to pass legislation to ban the burka (the most concealing of Islamic veils), calling it a "threat" to female dignity, while France looks poised to follow suit. In Italy earlier this month, a Muslim woman was fined €500 (£430) for wearing the Islamic veil outside a post office.

And yet, while less than 2 per cent of the population now attends a Church of England service every week, the number of female converts to Islam is on the rise. At the London Central Mosque in Regent's Park, women account for roughly two thirds of the "New Muslims" who make their official declarations of faith there – and most of them are under the age of 30.

Conversion statistics are frustratingly patchy, but at the time of the 2001 Census, there were at least 30,000 British Muslim converts in the UK. According to Kevin Brice, of the Centre for Migration Policy Research, Swansea University, this number may now be closer to 50,000 – and the majority are women. "Basic analysis shows that increasing numbers of young, university-educated women in their twenties and thirties are converting to Islam," confirms Brice.

"Our liberal, pluralistic 21st-century society means we can choose our careers, our politics – and we can pick and choose who we want to be spiritually," explains Dr Mohammad S. Seddon, lecturer in Islamic Studies at the University of Chester. We're in an era of the "religious supermarket", he says. Joanne Bailey Solicitor, 30, Bradford

"The first time I wore my hijab into the office, I was so nervous, I stood outside on the phone to my friend for ages going, 'What on earth is everyone going to say?' When I walked in, a couple of people asked, 'Why are you wearing that scarf? I didn't know you were a Muslim.'

"I'm the last person you'd expect to convert to Islam: I had a very sheltered, working-class upbringing in South Yorkshire. I'd hardly even seen a Muslim before I went to university.

"In my first job at a solicitor's firm in Barnsley, I remember desperately trying to play the role of the young, single, career woman: obsessively dieting, shopping and going to bars – but I never felt truly comfortable.

"Then one afternoon in 2004 everything changed: I was chatting to a Muslim friend over coffee, when he noticed the little gold crucifix around my neck. He said, 'Do you believe in God, then?' I wore it more for fashion than religion and said, 'No, I don't think so,' and he started talking about his faith.

"I brushed him off at first, but his words stuck in my mind. A few days later, I found myself ordering a copy of the Koran on the internet.

"It took me a while to work up the courage to go to a women's social event run by the Leeds New Muslims group. I remember hovering outside the door thinking, 'What the hell am I doing here?' I imagined they would be dressed head-to-toe in black robes: what could I, a 25-year-old, blonde English girl, possibly have in common with them?

"But when I walked in, none of them fitted the stereotype of the oppressed Muslim housewife; they were all doctors, teachers and psychiatrists. I was struck by how content and secure they seemed. It was meeting these women, more than any of the books I read, that convinced me that I wanted to become a Muslim.

"After four years, in March 2008, I made the declaration of faith at a friend's house. At first, I was anxious that I hadn't done the right thing, but I soon relaxed into it – a bit like starting a new job.

"A few months later, I sat my parents down and said, 'I've got something to tell you.' There was a silence and my mum said, 'You're going to become Muslim, aren't you?' She burst into tears and kept asking things like, 'What happens when you get married? Do you have to cover up? What about your job?' I tried to reassure her that I'd still be me, but she was concerned for my welfare.

"Contrary to what most people think, Islam doesn't oppress me; it lets me be the person that I was all along. Now I'm so much more content and grateful for the things I've got. A few months ago, I got engaged to a Muslim solicitor I met on a training course. He has absolutely no problem with my career, but I do agree with the Islamic perspective on the traditional roles for men and women. I want to look after my husband and children, but I also want my independence. I'm proud to be British and I'm proud to be Muslim – and I don't see them as conflicting in any way."

Aqeela Lindsay Wheeler
Housewife and mother, 26, Leicester

"As a teenager I thought all religion was pathetic. I used to spend every weekend getting drunk outside the leisure centre, in high-heeled sandals and miniskirts. My view was: what's the point in putting restrictions on yourself? You only live once.

"At university, I lived the typical student existence, drinking and going clubbing, but I'd always wake up the next morning with a hangover and think, what's the point?

"It wasn't until my second year that I met Hussein. I knew he was a Muslim, but we were falling in love, so I brushed the whole issue of religion under the carpet. But six months into our relationship, he told me that being with me was 'against his faith'.

"I was so confused. That night I sat up all night reading two books on Islam that Hussein had given me. I remember bursting into tears because I was so overwhelmed. I thought, 'This could be the whole meaning of life.' But I had a lot of questions: why should I cover my head? Why can't I eat what I like?

"I started talking to Muslim women at university and they completely changed my view. They were educated, successful – and actually found the headscarf liberating. I was convinced, and three weeks later officially converted to Islam.

"When I told my mum a few weeks later, I don't think she took it seriously. She made a few comments like, 'Why would you wear that scarf? You've got lovely hair,' but she didn't seem to understand what it meant.

"My best friend at university completely turned on me: she couldn't understand how one week I was out clubbing, and the next I'd given everything up and converted to Islam. She was too close to my old life, so I don't regret losing her as a friend.

"I chose the name Aqeela because it means 'sensible and intelligent' – and that's what I was aspiring to become when I converted to Islam six years ago. I became a whole new person: everything to do with Lindsay, I've erased from my memory.

"The most difficult thing was changing the way I dressed, because I was always so fashion-conscious. The first time I tried on the hijab, I remember sitting in front of the mirror, thinking, 'What am I doing putting a piece of cloth over my head? I look crazy!' Now I'd feel naked without it and only occasionally daydream about feeling the wind blow through my hair. Once or twice, I've come home and burst into tears because of how frumpy I feel – but that's just vanity.

"It's a relief not to feel that pressure any more. Wearing the hijab reminds me that all I need to do is serve God and be humble. I've even gone through phases of wearing the niqab [face veil] because I felt it was more appropriate – but it can cause problems, too.

"When people see a white girl wearing a niqab they assume I've stuck my fingers up at my own culture to 'follow a bunch of Asians'. I've even had teenage boys shout at me in the street, 'Get that s*** off your head, you white bastard.' After the London bombings, I was scared to walk about in the streets for fear of retaliation.

"For the most part, I have a very happy life. I married Hussein and now we have a one-year-old son, Zakir. We try to follow the traditional Muslim roles: I'm foremost a housewife and mother, while he goes out to work. I used to dream of having a successful career as a psychologist, but now it's not something I desire.

"Becoming a Muslim certainly wasn't an easy way out. This life can sometimes feel like a prison, with so many rules and restrictions, but we believe that we will be rewarded in the afterlife."

Catherine Heseltine
Nursery school teacher, 31, North London

"If you'd asked me at the age of 16 if I'd like to become a Muslim, I would have said, 'No thanks.' I was quite happy drinking, partying and fitting in with my friends.

"Growing up in North London, we never practised religion at home; I always thought it was slightly old-fashioned and irrelevant. But when I met my future husband, Syed, in the sixth form, he challenged all my preconceptions. He was young, Muslim, believed in God – and yet he was normal. The only difference was that, unlike most teenage boys, he never drank.

"A year later, we were head over heels in love, but we quickly realised: how could we be together if he was a Muslim and I wasn't?

"Before meeting Syed, I'd never actually questioned what I believed in; I'd just picked up my casual agnosticism through osmosis. So I started reading a few books on Islam out of curiosity.

"In the beginning, the Koran appealed to me on an intellectual level; the emotional and spiritual side didn't come until later. I loved its explanations of the natural world and discovered that 1,500 years ago, Islam gave women rights that they didn't have here in the West until relatively recently. It was a revelation.

"Religion wasn't exactly a 'cool' thing to talk about, so for three years I kept my interest in Islam to myself. But in my first year at university, Syed and I decided to get married – and I knew it was time to tell my parents. My mum's initial reaction was, 'Couldn't you just live together first?' She had concerns about me rushing into marriage and the role of women in Muslim households – but no one realised how seriously I was taking my religious conversion. I remember going out for dinner with my dad and him saying, 'Go on, have a glass of wine. I won't tell Syed!' A lot of people assumed I was only converting to Islam to keep his family happy, not because I believed in it.

"Later that year, we had an enormous Bengali wedding, and moved into a flat together – but I certainly wasn't chained to the kitchen sink. I didn't even wear the hijab at all to start with, and wore a bandana or a hat instead.

"I was used to getting a certain amount of attention from guys when I went out to clubs and bars, but I had to let that go. I gradually adopted the Islamic way of thinking: I wanted people to judge me for my intelligence and my character – not for the way I looked. It was empowering.

"I'd never been part of a religious minority before, so that was a big adjustment, but my friends were very accepting. Some of them were a bit shocked: 'What, no drink, no drugs, no men? I couldn't do that!' And it took a while for my male friends at university to remember things like not kissing me hello on the cheek any more. I'd have to say, 'Sorry, it's a Muslim thing.'

"Over time, I actually became more religious than my husband. We started growing apart in other ways, too. In the end, I think the responsibility of marriage was too much for him; he became distant and disengaged. After seven years together, I decided to get a divorce.

"When I moved back in with my parents, people were surprised I was still wandering around in a headscarf. But if anything, being on my own strengthened my faith: I began to gain a sense of myself as a Muslim, independent of him.

"Islam has given me a sense of direction and purpose. I'm involved with the Muslim Public Affairs Committee, and lead campaigns against Islamophobia, discrimination against women in mosques, poverty and the situation in Palestine. When people call us 'extremists' or 'the dark underbelly of British politics', I just think it's ridiculous. There are a lot of problems in the Muslim community, but when people feel under siege it makes progress even more difficult.

"I still feel very much part of white British society, but I am also a Muslim. It has taken a while to fit those two identities together, but now I feel very confident being who I am. I'm part of both worlds and no one can take that away from me."

Sukina Douglas
Spoken-word poet, 28, London

"Before I found Islam, my gaze was firmly fixed on Africa. I was raised a Rastafarian and used to have crazy-long dreadlocks: one half blonde and the other half black.

"Then, in 2005, my ex-boyfriend came back from a trip to Africa and announced that he'd converted to Islam. I was furious and told him he was 'losing his African roots'. Why was he trying to be an Arab? It was so foreign to how I lived my life. Every time I saw a Muslim woman in the street I thought, 'Why do they have to cover up like that? Aren't they hot?' It looked oppressive to me.

"Islam was already in my consciousness, but when I started reading the autobiography of Malcolm X at university, something opened up inside me. One day I said to my best friend, Muneera, 'I'm falling in love with Islam.' She laughed and said, 'Be quiet, Sukina!' She only started exploring Islam to prove me wrong, but soon enough she started believing it, too.

"I was always passionate about women's rights; there was no way I would have entered a religion that sought to degrade me. So when I came across a book by a Moroccan feminist, it unravelled all my negative opinions: Islam didn't oppress women; people did.

"Before I converted, I conducted an experiment. I covered up in a long gypsy skirt and headscarf and went out. But I didn't feel frumpy; I felt beautiful. I realised, I'm not a sexual commodity for men to lust after; I want to be judged for what I contribute mentally.

"Muneera and I took our shahada [declaration of faith] together a few months later, and I cut my dreadlocks off to represent renewal: it was the beginning of a new life.

"Just three weeks after our conversion, the 7/7 bombings happened; suddenly we were public enemy No 1. I'd never experienced racism in London before, but in the weeks after the bombs, people would throw eggs at me and say, 'Go back to your own country,' even though this was my country.

"I'm not trying to shy away from any aspect of who I am. Some people dress in Arabian or Pakistani styles, but I'm British and Caribbean, so my national dress is Primark and Topshop, layered with colourful charity-shop scarves.

"Six months after I converted, I got back together with my ex-boyfriend, and now we're married. Our roles in the home are different, because we are different people, but he would never try to order me around; that's not how I was raised.

"Before I found Islam, I was a rebel without a cause, but now I have a purpose in life: I can identify my flaws and work towards becoming a better person. To me, being a Muslim means contributing to your society, no matter where you come from."

Catherine Huntley
Retail assistant, 21, Bournemouth

"My parents always thought I was abnormal, even before I became a Muslim. In my early teens, they'd find me watching TV on a Friday night and say, 'What are you doing at home? Haven't you got any friends to go out with?'

"The truth was: I didn't like alcohol, I've never tried smoking and I wasn't interested in boys. You'd think they'd have been pleased.

"I've always been quite a spiritual person, so when I started studying Islam in my first year of GCSEs, something just clicked. I would spend every lunchtime reading about Islam on the computer. I had peace in my heart and nothing else mattered any more. It was a weird experience – I'd found myself, but the person I found wasn't like anyone else I knew.

"I'd hardly ever seen a Muslim before, so I didn't have any preconceptions, but my parents weren't so open-minded. I hid all my Muslim books and headscarves in a drawer, because I was so scared they'd find out.

"When I told my parents, they were horrified and said, 'We'll talk about it when you're 18.' But my passion for Islam just grew stronger. I started dressing more modestly and would secretly fast during Ramadan. I got very good at leading a double life until one day, when I was 17, I couldn't wait any longer.

"I sneaked out of the house, put my hijab in a carrier bag and got on the train to Bournemouth. I must have looked completely crazy putting it on in the train carriage, using a wastebin lid as a mirror. When a couple of old people gave me dirty looks, I didn't care. For the first time in my life, I felt like myself.

"A week after my conversion, my mum came marching into my room and said, 'Have you got something to tell me?' She pulled my certificate of conversion out of her pocket. I think they'd rather have found anything else at that point – drugs, cigarettes, condoms – because at least they could have put it down to teenage rebellion.

"I could see the fear in her eyes. She couldn't comprehend why I'd want to give up my freedom for the sake of a foreign religion. Why would I want to join all those terrorists and suicide bombers?

"It was hard being a Muslim in my parents' house. I'll never forget one evening, there were two women in burkas on the front page of the newspaper, and they started joking, 'That'll be Catherine soon.'

"They didn't like me praying five times a day either; they thought it was 'obsessive'. I'd pray right in front of my bedroom door so my mum couldn't walk in, but she would always call upstairs, 'Catherine, do you want a cup of tea?' just so I'd have to stop.

"Four years on, my grandad still says things like, 'Muslim women have to walk three steps behind their husbands.' It gets me really angry, because that's the culture, not the religion. My fiancé, whom I met eight months ago, is from Afghanistan and he believes that a Muslim woman is a pearl and her husband is the shell that protects her. I value that old-fashioned way of life: I'm glad that when we get married he'll take care of paying the bills. I always wanted to be a housewife anyway.

"Marrying an Afghan man was the cherry on the cake for my parents. They think I'm completely crazy now. He's an accountant and actually speaks better English than I do, but they don't care. The wedding will be in a mosque, so I don't think they'll come. It hurts to think I'll never have that fairytale wedding, surrounded by my family. But I hope my new life with my husband will be a lot happier. I'll create the home I've always wanted, without having to feel the pain of people judging me."

http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/comment/faith/article7135026.ece#comment-have-your-say



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[ALOCHONA] Fresh torture allegations raised over third British man held in Bangladesh



Fresh torture allegations raised over third British man held in Bangladesh
 
  • guardian.co.uk, Tuesday 1 June 2010
  • A third UK citizen has been detained in Bangladesh and allegedly mistreated while being interrogated about his associates and activities in both countries, raising further concerns about possible British complicity in torture.

    Faisal Mostafa is said by his lawyers to have been subjected to "physical torture, threats, coercion and intimidation" when he was being questioned about his work for the Muslim Parliament in London, about associates in the UK who had fought as mujahideen in Afghanistan, and about fundraising activities in the UK.

    Mostafa, a chemist from Stockport, Greater Manchester – who was once accused, but cleared, of involvement in al-Qaida's first plot to attack the UK – is said to have been suspended from his wrists and his ankles for long periods, subjected to electric shocks, beaten on the soles of his feet, deprived of food and exposed to bright lights for long periods.

    Members of his legal team told the Guardian that the periods during which Mostafa was suspended lasted for days rather than hours. Another person familiar with the defence being mounted by Mostafa's lawyers said: "Faisal was tortured. And his questioning was mainly about what was going on abroad in the UK."The allegations relate to the period of his detention following his arrest in March last year. Earlier this year he was released on bail and is receiving hospital treatment in Dhaka for acute renal failure which his lawyers blame, in part, on his mistreatment.

    Lawyers representing two other British nationals of Bangladeshi origin have said they were detained and tortured while being questioned about terrorism offences, and allege there is clear evidence that MI5 was involved in the mistreatment. One of the men, Gulam Mustafa, a businessman from Birmingham, who is no relation, remains in custody. When brought before court last month after several weeks in an interrogation centre, a journalist working for the Guardian could see that the man appeared too exhausted to stand, at one point sinking to his knees in the dock, while relatives say his face was swollen.

    Counterterrorism officials in Dhaka have told the Guardian that, at the request of UK intelligence officials, they have investigated about 12 British nationals of Bangladeshi origin in recent years, and indicated that this was done in a manner that would have been unlawful in Britain. One senior Bangladeshi official said the questions that were being asked about these individuals "could not have been dealt with by British law - because of the question of human rights". The official declined to elaborate.

    British security and intelligence officials warned three years ago that significant numbers of Britons were travelling to Bangladesh to receive terrorism training.The country remains a concern to officials, as assessments of the terrorist threat to the UK suggest an ever-changing picture. Known or suspected plots with links to Pakistan have reduced slightly in number, while Somalia and Yemen – and to a lesser extent Bangladesh – now pose potential problems.

    It is thought that one British-Bangladeshi man has killed himself in a suicide bomb attack, possibly in Afghanistan.However, the emergence of another case of alleged British collusion in foreign torture is likely to lead to renewed calls from civil liberties campaigners for the coalition government to establish a judicial inquiry to examine the UK's role in rendition and torture.

    Earlier this month William Hague, the foreign secretary, said there would be "an inquiry of some form" into allegations of complicity in torture, but did not give any further details. Whitehall officials later said the promise "came out of the blue" and suggested that any such inquiry would be held in secret.That is unlikely to satisfy human rights groups and backbench MPs, who believe it should be held in public, and insist that it should examine the extent to which decisions taken by ministers in the last government led to abuses.

    Faisal Mostafa, 46, came to the attention of MI5 in the mid-90s, having been acquitted of conspiring to cause explosions, after a trial in Manchester in 1996. He was sentenced to four years for illegal possession of a pistol with intent to endanger life.Four years later he was arrested in Birmingham and accused of conspiring to cause explosions after police and MI5 officers discovered chemicals that could be used to produce the high explosive HMTD, along with a number of detonators, at a house in the city. Traces of the explosive were also found on the pin-stripe jacket he was wearing at the time of his arrest.

    Mostafa did not deny an interest in explosives - the court heard that the tips of several of his fingers had been blown off during one experiment in the mid-80s - but denied being a terrorist, and was again acquitted. His co-defendant was convicted and jailed for 20 years. In 2006 John Reid, then home secretary, cited this case when insisting that al-Qaida's plots against the UK preceded the UK's involvement in the invasion of Iraq or in the war in Afghanistan.

    After being detained and allegedly tortured in Bangladesh in March last year, Mostafa is said to have been questioned about his co-defendants in both these trials. When he was brought to court a month later, accused of hoarding firearms and explosives at a madrasa he was managing at Bhola, in the south-west of the country, the magistrate questioned him about each case.

    Mostafa was arrested by a Bangladeshi unit called the Rapid Action Battalion (RAB), days after the weapons were alleged to have been discovered. He was held at a secret location by RAB - notorious in Bangladesh for reports of hundreds of extrajudicial killings and frequent use of torture - for about 13 days before his capture was officially announced. RAB said at the time of his arrest, they had "shared information" with British intelligence as part of "bilateral co-operation".

    Mostafa is accused of running a terrorism training camp at the madrasa, employing funds raised through a charity, Green Crescent Bangladesh UK, that he ran from Stockport. He denies the charges.The allegations of torture, and of the effects on his health, are disclosed in some detail in a bail application that his lawyers lodged with the courts late last year.

    http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2010/jun/01/bangladesh-british-terror-torture-allegations



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    [ALOCHONA] Facebook agrees to remove offensive items



    Facebook agrees to remove offensive items

    Bangladesh has received feedback from the Facebook authority on removing offensive items, which is a new development that can help lifting the ban on the most popular social network soon, BTRC Chairman Zia Ahmed said.

    "I look forward to learn more about your local standards and work together to promote safe use of Facebook in Bangladesh," said Joe Sullivan, chief security officer at Facebook in a reply to the BTRC on Thursday.

    "My team is responsible for managing law enforcement relations on Facebook and promoting a safe experience on the site for our users. I can be your main point of contact as we work through and establish detailed processes for removing troubling content in the future," Sullivan said in the mail. This is the first reply from the Facebook to Bangladesh after the site was blocked in the country.

    The BTRC chairman said already some offensive links have been removed but some are still there."As we have now a channel to communicate with the Facebook team, I believe everything will be solved within a short time," said chairman of Bangladesh Telecommunication Regulatory Commission.

    Around nine lakh Facebook users in Bangladesh remain offline since Saturday after the government temporarily blocked access to the popular social networking website.

    The decision came after the arrest of a youth for uploading satiric images of some leading politicians including the prime minister and the leader of the opposition. BTRC said the largest social networking website was blocked also for hosting of some anti-religious and pornographic links by users across the globe.

    http://www.thedailystar.net/newDesign/latest_news.php?nid=24046



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    [ALOCHONA] Blocked, Banned, Censured and Beaten in Bangladesh



    Facebook Ban – Blocked, Banned, Censured and Beaten in Bangladesh


    I think it should be made clear that the Facebook ban in Bangladesh has very little to do with what happened in Pakistan or any perceived insult or threat to Islamic sensibilities. The real reason for the banning was that –


    1. A caricature of Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina had been uploaded on to Facebook in which her face was superimposed on to the body of a Hindu goddess. An arrest has been made in this connection.


    2. An unedited investigation report of BDR massacre was published (by head of investigation) in Facebook that directly implicated Sheikh Hasina, her ministers, Awami League MP's and Hasina's nephew and local Awami leaders in the massacre.


    The decision of Pakistan to ban Facebook and the perceived insult to Islam was used as an excuse/pretext to ban the site in Bangladesh but for most people in the country these issues were largely irrelevant. The main objective in the banning was to suppress freedom of expression and speech that is critical of the government. The government is undertaking certain secularization policies so its concern about Islamic sentiments seems highly dubious. There is now widespread repression in the country and people opposed to the government policies and corruption are now targets of secret killings that has recently been highlighted by Amnesty International. The closure of Amar Desh newspaper is merely another example of the Baksalite tendencies of the government.


    THE HIT LIST SO FAR -

    • Channel One closed
    • Jumuna TV closed
    • DeshCalling blog banned ( http://deshcalling.blogspot.com )
    • Talkshow Point of Order closed
    • You Tube banned
    • Facebook banned
    • Amardesh journalist attacked and beaten
    • Amardesh editor was attacked in Dhaka and in London by Awami league thugs
    • New Age editor Nurul Kabir threatened and car followed by armed men
    • Amardesh publisher is arrested by NSI
    • Amardesh closed
    • Amardesh Acting Editor Mahmudur Rahman arrested and jailed

     



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    [ALOCHONA] BP and CIA



    From the 1953 CIA Overthrow of Democracy in Iran, to the Iraq War, to the Criminal Gulf Catastrophe and Deaths, BP Was There



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    RE: [ALOCHONA] A personal note about Ahmedis



    Dear sirs,

    Assalamu Alaikum. First of all I have condemned all terrorism including this heinous attack on Ahmadis in Pakistan.These terrorist law breakers must be punished.

    However, the issue is not whether individual Ahmadi person is good or bad. The point is Ahmadi faith is serious deviation from Islam and all senior Islamic scholars of the Muslim world have expressed their opinion that Ahmadi or Qadiani  deviation is most major on the issue of Prophethood ( believing that Mirza Golam Ahmad was a prophet of sort,not full prophet, but Zilli and Buruzi prophet and many more such prophets will come).According to these scholars of Islam they have gone out of boundary of Islam and the only way for them to be Muslims is to repent and join any main stream school of thought of Muslims.

    I agree with the scholars.If we persist, one day they will repent and return to truth.

     

    Shah Abdul Hannan

     


    From: alochona@yahoogroups.com [mailto:alochona@yahoogroups.com] On Behalf Of Robin Khundkar
    Sent: Tuesday, June 01, 2010 5:36 PM
    Subject: [ALOCHONA] A personal note about Ahmedis

     

     

     Something written by my wife Syeda.

    -----Forwarded Message-----
    >From: Syeda Khundkar
    >Sent: May 31, 2010 11:26 PM
    >To: 
    >Subject: Re: killers of ahmadis came from all over pakistan
    >
    >I wish to state that my family's experience with a single Ahmedi family in Dhaka, Bangladesh was a life saving one. My father met with an accident while at work in Khulna and died. The Managing Director of the company he worked for was Mr. Anwar Kalon. This man set up a Insurance Claim for my mother who was a widow with two small children. This money was our sole income for years to come. The kindness and respect that Mr. Kalon and his family showed my mother during her vists to his office and his lovely home in Dhanmondi was something a good human being would do. Years later when we had been in the United States and I was planning to visit London my beloved mother had one request to make of me. She requested that I look up Mr. Kalon, speak with him if possible and let him know that we were doing well in the US. I located him through the Mosque and did speak with him.That was my Mother's present from me to her from London. This only shows that both parties did what was the right thing to do at the right time. Nothing was left out because of religion. In fact everything was included perhaps because of it. He helped a widow with two small children, because he anticipated the hard times for her ahead in life and she did the only thing she could, respected and remembered him through out her life and made sure that the two orphaned children did the same. I grieve for all Ahmadis all over the world for their loss, for the brutal murders commited in Pakistan on their community. We cannot forget or forgive this organized crime.
    >
    >Syeda Khundkar ( Syeda A. Mahmood)
    >
    >-----Original Message-----
    >>From: Sekhar Ramakrishnan
    >>Sent: May 31, 2010 9:14 PM
    >>To: foil-l@insaf.net
    >>Subject: Re: [foil] killers of ahmadis came from all over pakistan
    >>
    >>http://www.nytimes.com/2010/06/01/world/asia/01lahore.html
    >>http://www.dawn.com/wps/wcm/connect/dawn-content-library/dawn/the-
    >>newspaper/front-page/audacious-attack-follows-strike-on-ahmadis-terrorists-
    >>fail-to-reach-comrade-in-lahore-hospital-160
    >>with two reports on the attack on a hospital caring for the wounded in the
    >>Friday attack on Ahmadis,
    >>
    >>http://www.dawn.com/wps/wcm/connect/dawn-content-
    >>library/dawn/news/pakistan/provinces/04-ahmadi-stabbed-narowal-qs-07
    >>with another example of how little Ahmadi life is worth in Pakistan (supporting
    >>the editorial below), and
    >>
    >>http://www.dawn.com/wps/wcm/connect/dawn-content-library/dawn/the-
    >>newspaper/editorial/19-culture-of-intolerance-050-hh-12
    >>with Dawn's editorial view
    >>
    >>contain the material below.
    >>
    >>Sekhar
    >>
    >> NY Times June 1, 2010
    >>
    >> Four Dead in Attack on Hospital in Pakistan
    >>
    >> By WAQAR GILLANI and ADAM B. ELLICK
    >>
    >>LAHORE, Pakistan - Gunmen stormed into a major hospital in Lahore early
    >>Tuesday, killing at least six people before fleeing, local officials said.
    >>
    >>Lahore´s police chief, Shafique Gujjar, said that the motive for the raid on
    >>Jinnah Hospital was to free a militant who has been on a ventilator since he
    >>was wounded Friday, in the brazen attacks at two mosques in Lahore that
    >>killed more than 80 members of a minority Muslim sect called the Ahmadis.
    >>About 35 Ahmadis wounded Friday are also being treated at the hospital.
    >>
    >>A different motive, though, was offered by local television commentators,
    >>who said the attackers had wanted to kill the militant to keep him from
    >>revealing any information to the authorities.
    >>
    >>A witness, Mohammad Iqbal, 43, said "blood was everywhere" as four
    >>gunmen dressed in police uniforms tried unsuccessfully to enter the intensive
    >>care unit where the militant is being treated. The attackers were driven by
    >>police gunfire, said Mr. Iqbal, whose father is also a patient on the unit.
    >>
    >>Mr. Gujjar, the police chief, said the attackers fired indiscriminately after
    >>storming into the back of the hospital near the emergency ward just after
    >>midnight.
    >>
    >>The Punjab Province police force summoned large numbers of armored
    >>vans and elite forces as the firing continued. Three police officers and a
    >>woman were killed before the gunmen escaped into an open area dotted with
    >>trees behind the hospital.
    >>
    >>Two people who were critically wounded later died, said the hospital´s
    >>executive director, Javed Akram, and six others were wounded, two of them
    >>critically.
    >>
    >>"A search for the gunmen was under way," said a senior police officer, Suhail
    >>Sukhera. "We will trace them by any costs. We are in a state of war."
    >>
    >>The Pakistani Taliban have claimed responsibility for Friday´s mosque
    >>attacks. The Taliban, who are Sunni Muslim, have increasingly focused on
    >>attacking minority Muslim groups.
    >>
    >>There are about two million Ahmadis in Pakistan, where the sect has
    >>suffered severe discrimination in Pakistan for decades. Ahmadis are
    >>considered heretical by many mainstream Muslims because they believe that
    >>Mirza Ghulam Ahmad, who founded their movement in 1889, was a messiah.
    >>A basic tenet of Islam is that Muhammad was the final prophet.
    >>
    >>Waqar Gillani reported from Lahore, and Adam B. Ellick from Islamabad,
    >>Pakistan.
    >>
    >> Dawn June 1, 2010
    >>
    >> Audacious attack follows strike on Ahmadis:
    >> Terrorists fail to reach comrade in Lahore hospital
    >>
    >> By Zulqernain Tahir
    >>
    >>LAHORE, May 31: Terrorists targeted Lahore´s Jinnah Hospital on Monday
    >>midnight to "free or kill" their fellow, who was injured in Friday´s attack on
    >>Ahmadis´ worship place in Model Town, leaving at least five persons dead
    >>and six injured.
    >>
    >>Some 10 Ahmadis and terrorist Moaz alias Amir Moavia were under
    >>treatment in the hospital when the terror attack took place at around
    >>11.45pm.
    >>
    >>Acting Lahore police chief SSP Chaudhry Shafiq Ahmed told Dawn that four
    >>terrorists wearing police uniform stormed the hospital´s intensive care unit
    >>(ICU) on the first floor and opened indiscriminate fire on the policemen
    >>deployed outside the entrance to guard the injured terrorist.
    >>
    >>"The terrorists then entered the ICU block where they had an exchange of
    >>fire with policemen present there. Failing to clear the passage to reach Moaz,
    >>they managed to flee," the SSP said.
    >>
    >>He said an ASI, two constables and a man and a woman were among the
    >>dead while four others injured. He said that one of the terrorists was injured
    >>in the gunbattle. "The terrorists came to either kill or free Moaz but they
    >>failed," he said.
    >>
    >>Soon after the incident, Jinnah Hospital´s chief executive Prof Javed Akram
    >>had claimed that "12 people were killed in the attack". However, his claim
    >>could not be verified from the city morgue as only five dead bodies were
    >>brought there.
    >>
    >>Punjab IGP Tariq Saleem said: "It was the security arrangements that
    >>prevented the terrorists from succeeding in their plan. They have fled
    >>towards Hingerwal and we are after them," he said and sounded optimistic
    >>that police would soon hunt down the terrorists.
    >>
    >>It was business as usual in the major health facility of the city when doctors,
    >>paramedics, patients and their attendants ran for their lives after the terrorists
    >>forced their entry into it from the rooftop.
    >>
    >>"I was in the emergency when I heard gunshots. We locked ourselves in the
    >>ward. The firing continued for about 10 minutes," Jinnah Hospital Medical
    >>Superintendent Dr Muhammad Hasan said.
    >>
    >>Dr Moazam who was present in the cardiology ward told Dawn that everyone
    >>was running for his or her life. "My patients suffered a shock and I have been
    >>trying to make them stable," he said.
    >>
    >>Police and other law-enforcement personnel rushed to the spot after having
    >>been alerted by the hospital doctors. They cordoned off the area and took
    >>positions. "By the time the police entered the hospital building equipped with
    >>automatic weapons the terrorists had fled," a police official told this reporter.
    >>
    >>"However, the police thoroughly searched the building and the adjacent
    >>Allama Iqbal Medical College area for over an hour," he said. The hospital
    >>lights were switched off during the search operation.
    >>
    >>The injured terrorist Moaz is being shifted to unknown place.
    >>
    >>The attack on Jinnah Hospital put more pressure on the government of Chief
    >>Minister Shahbaz Sharif to crack down on militants in Punjab.
    >>
    >>Only a day earlier federal Minister for Interior Rehman Malik had spoken in
    >>Lahore about the presence of militants in the province, indicating that a large
    >>number of them may be concentrated in `southern Punjab´. Mr Malik had held
    >>that these militants were born out of an alliance of convenience between the
    >>Taliban and Al Qaeda and the sectarian groups that have been active not
    >>only in southern parts of Punjab but in fact all over the province.
    >>
    >>This promptly brought the federal minister and his PPP government at the
    >>centre into confrontation with the PML-N set-up in Punjab.
    >>
    >>Punjab Law Minister Rana Sanaullah was quick to reject Rehman Malik´s
    >>assertions. He went further by declaring that the mention of Punjab or its
    >>southern districts as a possible area for a clean-up operation was part of an
    >>"international conspiracy".
    >>
    >>The statements made in the wake of the Jinnah Hospital incident provided
    >>more proof of just how far apart the governments in Islamabad and Lahore
    >>stand on an issue that may have the gravest of consequences for the whole
    >>country.
    >>
    >>Responding to remarks that the attack on the hospital may have been aimed
    >>at either eliminating or freeing an assailant of the Friday´s strikes against
    >>Ahmadis, Rehman Malik said it was not in his "notice" that the suspect was
    >>being treated at Jinnah.
    >>
    >>This obviously suggested that he would have asked the authorities to keep
    >>the whereabouts of the suspect secret.
    >>
    >>Ignorant as the federal minister did sound, his latest remarks were
    >>tantamount to an expression of distrust in the ability and the will of the
    >>Punjab government to tackle the fast growing monster of militancy. It was a
    >>sign that if no one else, the centre and Punjab were moving towards a
    >>showdown on what have come to be known as Punjabi Taliban.
    >>
    >> Dawn June 1, 2010
    >>
    >> Ahmadi man stabbed to death in Narowal
    >>
    >>LAHORE: An Ahmadi man was stabbed to death by an enraged man in
    >>Pakistan on Monday, just days after gun, grenade and suicide attacks
    >>targeting the religious minority killed more than 80 people, police said.
    >>
    >>The stabbing took place in the town of Narowal, some 100 kilometres
    >>northeast of Lahore, where suspected militants wearing suicide vests burst
    >>into prayer halls on Friday and killed 82 worshippers.
    >>
    >>"In the morning, a man identified as Abid Butt climbed the wall of the house
    >>of a local Ahmadi family and stabbed Naimatullah, 55, and his son Mansoor
    >>Ahmed," local police station chief Riaz Sangha told AFP by telephone.
    >>
    >>Naimatullah died of knife wounds and his son was rushed to hospital, he
    >>added.
    >>
    >>The attacker escaped, the officer said.
    >>
    >>Sangha quoted residents as saying that the assailant threatened to not leave
    >>any Ahmadi alive.
    >>
    >>Salimuddin, a spokesman for Lahore's Ahmadi community "strongly
    >>condemned" what he called a "targeted killing".
    >>
    >>Pakistan declared Ahmadis non-Muslims in 1974 and 10 years later they
    >>were barred from calling themselves Muslims.
    >>
    >>A US State Department report on human rights says that 11 Ahmadis were
    >>killed for their faith in 2009.
    >>
    >>Religious violence in Pakistan, mostly between majority Sunni Muslims and
    >>minority Shias, has killed more than 4,000 people in the past decade.
    >>
    >> Dawn May 31, 2010
    >>
    >> EDITORIAL: Culture of intolerance
    >>
    >>Friday's gruesome attacks on Ahmadi worshippers in Lahore were a tragic
    >>reminder of the growing intolerance that is threatening to destroy our social
    >>fabric. Bigotry in this country has been decades in the making and is
    >>expressed in a variety of ways. Violence by individuals or groups against
    >>those who hold divergent views may be the most despicable manifestation of
    >>such prejudice but it is by no means the only one. Religious minorities in
    >>Pakistan have not only been shunted to the margins of society but also face
    >>outright persecution on a regular basis.
    >>
    >>Take the police force, which is notorious for terrorising the poor. Even within
    >>that section of society, however, it reserves its harshest treatment for non-
    >>Muslims, for the simple reason that brutal or coercive acts directed against
    >>minorities are even less likely to get policemen into trouble. There is no
    >>shortage of more insidious means of discrimination either. To this day many
    >>job applications require candidates to state their religion. Has the irrelevance
    >>of this query never struck the organisations in question, or is it part of a
    >>screening process designed to weed out `undesirables´? Now let´s venture
    >>down to the basic building blocks of society, from institutions to households.
    >>In many middle-class and affluent Muslim homes, separate eating utensils of
    >>distinctly poorer quality are reserved for domestic staff. But there´s more: a
    >>further distinction in entitlement is made between Muslim and non-Muslim
    >>employees.
    >>
    >>None of this is surprising in a country whose statute books are riddled with
    >>discriminatory laws, where jingoism is drummed into the heads of
    >>schoolchildren and where radio and television talk show participants can
    >>casually state that "we are all Muslims here in Pakistan", which is patently not
    >>the case. This is a country where a non-Muslim cannot, by law, become
    >>president or prime minister. The blasphemy laws continue to be abused to
    >>settle personal scores, evade debts owed to non-Muslims and to grab their
    >>land by forcing them to flee in the face of violence. The state, meanwhile,
    >>remains largely unmoved by the plight of minorities - and that isn´t
    >>surprising either for it is a party to this persecution.
    >>
    >>Tackling the terrorists who kill almost at will isn´t the only job at hand. The
    >>culture of intolerance has become ingrained in Pakistan and wide-ranging
    >>measures are required to change our collective mindset. Textbooks need to
    >>be revised and the perils of both brazen and covert narrow-mindedness must
    >>be publicly debated. It would also help if major religious parties came forward
    >>to condemn atrocities such as Friday´s attacks on Ahmadis in Lahore. But
    >>that is perhaps asking for too much.
    >>
    >>_______________________________________________
    >>Foil-l mailing list
    >>Foil-l@insaf.net
    >>http://insaf.net/mailman/listinfo/foil-l_insaf.net



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