Friday Bulletin 322

7/25/2019 Friday Bulletin 322

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Issue No. 322

www.islamkenya.comThis Newsletter contains some of Allahs names. Please do not throw in the trash. Either keep, circulate or shred

This Week

Youth and Children

Friday BulletinThe

The Weekly Muslim News Update

How to train your willpower to work for you P5

Da'waHow to be successful in life and hereafter P3

Rights body calls for Inquiry intoMandera Torture

Editorial

Women Issues

I'm proud of being a Muslim, says track king P2

Story Continues To Page 6

Torture, rape, and other abuses were the characteris-tics of the joint police and military personnel opera-tion which was conducted last year in Mandera to os-

tensibly disarm the warring communities.A report releasedby an international human rights group implicates Kenyan se-curity forces for the torture of hundreds of civilians during thedisarmament operation in Mandera district in October 2008.

During the launching of the damning report, Human RightsWatch called on the Kenyan government to establish an inde-pendent inquiry without further delay to investigate and pros-ecute those responsible.The New York based organisation is also calling on PresidentKibaki to make it a priority in implementing the recommenda-tions of the Waki Commission and the UN special rapporteur toprosecute senior police and military ofcials responsible for seri-ous crimes in Mandera, Mount Elgon, and elsewhere. "Kenyaneeds to make it absolutely clear to security forces that they willbe held accountable for the serious abuses," said Kenneth Roth,executive director of Human Rights Watch."The right way to start is to conduct independent inquiries intothese brutal operations in Mandera and elsewhere and to removethe police commissioner and attorney general", he added.

The 57-page report titled, "Bring the Gun or You'll Die docu-ments rampant abuses during the operation and provides de-tailed accounts of the events in four of the 10 communities thatwere targeted in Mandera. Across all 10 communities the evi-dence collected by Human Rights Watch indicates that securityforces tortured scores of men, wounded at least 1,200 people,including one man who died from his injuries, and raped at leasta dozen women over the course of the three-day operation. Hu-man Rights Watch said this is part of a broader pattern of similarabuses by security forces."Instead of protecting Mandera residents, the military and policesystematically beat and tortured them," said Roth. "Unless thebehavior of the security forces changes, and perpetrators andespecially commanders are held to account, all the government

talk about police reform is meaningless."The brutal security operation which was ostensibly intended todisarm local militias, took place from October 25 to 28 last yearin towns and villages in Mandera East and Central districts fol-

Save us AP and Police Wrangles, protect Kenyans P2

Rajab 10 1430/July 03 2009

Strategic plans are underway to completely lock out Muslim Relief or-

ganizations and promote so-called Muslim liberalism and Islamic mys-ticism as the alternative form of Islam for Muslims in the country.

An American think tank recently released details of the well orches-trated campaign to propagate what they term as a moderate form ofIslam agreeable to the United States.Rand Corporation, an American research organization which was com-missioned to conduct the study in Kenya and the East African statedthat the US government would extend support to moderate groups inorder to promote the US government-friendly mode of Islam.The research corporation stated that this will be done to lock out theinuence of Islamic relief organizations which they referred to as Is-lamist.Reduce the inuence of foreign Islamist organizations by identify-

ing mainstream and Su Muslim sectors and helping them propagatemoderate interpretations of Islam and delegitimize terrorism,it stated.

It gives a clear indication of the reason why some Islamic organizationsin the country which were providing educational and relief support toremote communities were shut down following the advent of the socalled war on terror. Given that Islamist organizations use the provi-

US campaigns to promoteso-called Moderate Islam


How Hijab protects and benefts women and

society P4

Pupils from a Nairobi School during their recent educational tour to

Jamia Mosque recently. As part of its Da'wa programmmes, Jamia

Mosque Committee provides guided tours to the mosque for institu-

tions and individuals, including foreign tourists to the mosque


2/8

The Friday Bulletin Rajab 10 1430/July 03 2009

Save us AP and Police Wrangles,Protect Kenyans

2

I'm proud of my new faith, saysmarathon champion

Story Continues From Page 1

EDITORIAL

The wrangles between the Administration Police and theregular police force can not have come at a worse timethan now when insecurity in the country is at its highestlevel if the incidents which have been experienced in

the recent past are put into consideration.Political Intrigues never seem to end in our country andwhen it is not the coalition partners outshining each oth-er on who has more powers in the coalition government;it is scandals of billions of shillings being swindled fromthe public coffers by some crooked politician or busi-nessman.The latest act in our theatre of antics is the wranglingbetween the Administration Police and the Kenya Policewrangling on whether one of the units should be mergedinto the other or which one gets to spend more of publicfunds than the other.Meanwhile the ordinary mwananchi continues to suf-fer and is worried on whether they will go out of their

houses in the morning and return back home safely inthe evening. Insecurity has become a daily occurrencethat no one has been spared in the melee. When it isnot a young child being grabbed by kidnappers for ran-som money at the Coast it is a government ofcial whois armed and is supposed to be having a body guardbeing accosted by gangsters and in a fatal shooting inthe city. Crime is becoming sophisticated that the hunterhas become the hunted and even the Criminal Investi-gation ofcers have not been spared and some havebeen murdered by the very people whom they are sup-posed to contain.

Although the incident in Mombasa last Saturday wheretwo AP Inspectors Badi Said Mwanjirani and Juma Ab-dalla Mwangatu were shot dead by Police ofcers was

dismissed as recklessness with the Police opening rewithout having properly identied their targets this is thereason which calls for reassessment of this problem.The investigation ordered by Internal Security ministerGeorge Saitoti should satisfy the public that the realcause of these shootings has been ascertained and ad-dressed.If the problem is the conict over the policing of the bil-lion shillings illegal drug trade especially at the Coast-as some have suggested, the government needs tocome up with new strategies and more commitment oneliminating the root cause of the problem rather thandeal with the symptoms. It has been alleged that thesecurity personnel target petty trafckers in the trade

rather than deal with the real drug barons who are saidto be compromising the security ofcers with bribes.Else if the problem is one of communication and overlyaggressive tactics solutions can be accommodated inplanned police reforms.Eventually, like the Prime Minister Raila Odinga empha-sized the law enforcement agencies need to soberlydischarge their duties because their failure is likely toderail government efforts to woo investors through theongoing establishment of infrastructural development.We do not expect these two top security organs to con-tinue wrangling and expect that they will be in a goodform to cater for the internal security of the country. Onthe contrary the criminals must be having a eld daywatching the two continue to wrangle as they harass

citizens left right and centre. It is no wonder that thecriminals have gathered courage to even target law en-forcement ofcers.Our government needs to put the two forces into properorder and have them deal with criminals who have al-

Four-time Boston Mara-thon Champion who wasformerly known as Rob-ert Kipkoech Cheruiyot

now says that he pre-fers being called by hisIslamic name which heacquired early this yearwhen he changed hisreligious afliation.I would like to be re-ferred to as Omar

Ahmed and not RobertCheruiyot because Ihave become a Muslimand I want to be identi-ed with the name of myIslamic identity, saidthe winning athlete.

Speaking to The FridayBulletin he said that al-though he had encoun-tered some problemswith changing his of-


US campaigns to promote 'moderates'

sion of social services to advance their agenda, ways should be explored tohelp moderate Muslim non governmental organizations (NGOs) provide so-cial services and therefore reduce the inuence of Islamist NGOs. Of course,this assistance should be extended in ways that do not compromise the cred-ibility of the moderate groups.

Although the report named a couple of Muslim organizations and individualsin Kenya which they are already working with to realize their agenda, It alsostated that some names of the individuals they are working with could notbe mentioned because of the political sensitivity of the issues discussed andthe individuals also had requested that they preferred not to be named in the

report.In 2005, the Rand Corporation released a report, Civil Democratic Islamwhich received wide condemnation in the Muslim world. The report detailedmeasures for creating discord and divisions among Muslims and called for theUS government to increase nancial and other support to so-called moderateand mysticism groups which it praised for projecting a form of Islam whichwas in consistence with American values.

cial documents, he is convinced of his faith and wants to be recognized byhis new name.

Although, other athletes who reverted to Islam ditched their Kenyan citizen-ship to go to oil rich Gulf States, on the contrary Omar claried that this wasnot the reason why he joined the religion.I have had a problem with acquiring an afdavit from my lawyer who has beendelaying the process. This has made it difcult for me to change my passportand other documents. I will be seeking the services of another lawyer to facili-tate this process, said Omar.

I became a Muslim for religious purposes but I have had problems changingmy name on ofcial documents. They can have Robert Cheruiyot in my pass-port but in my heart I am Omar Ahmed, said the 30 year old champion.The Marathoner who has made history in the athletics world by winning theannual US event three times consecutively in 2006, 2007 and 2006, also wonthe event in 2003, a record which has not been achieved by any other athletesince 1980.He says that from when he reverted to Islam he has since discovered thatfaith, humility and success are inseparable. He had gone for his fth BostonMarathon victory this year but he pulled out of the competition citing a stomachailment which made him drop from the track after 30km of the race.

An upbeat Omar Ahmed Kipkoech Cheruiyot also known as Mwafrika in theathletics circles is currently training for his next event where he will be repre-senting the country in the World Marathon Championship this year in Italy.

This year it is all about the world championships for me. I am leaving thecountry on July 5 for Italy to continue with preparations there, he said.

Omar Ahmed (formerly Robert Cheruiyot) crosses the

fnishing line to win the Boston marathon in 2008. He

has since become a Muslim.


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The Friday Bulletin

How to be successful in life and hereafterDA'WAH

Praise be to Allah. Peace of mind, content-ment, happiness and freedom from worriesand anxiety these are what everyonewants, and these are the ways in whichpeople can have a good life and nd com-plete happiness and joy. There are religious

means of achieving that, and natural andpractical means, but no one can combineall of them except the believers; althoughother people may achieve some of them,they will miss out on others.

There follows a summary of the means ofachieving this aim for which everyone isstriving. In some cases, those who achievemany of them will live a joyful life and agood life; in other cases, those who fail toachieve all of them will live a life of miseryand hardship. And there are others whichare in between, according to what themeans he is able to attain. These means

include the following:Faith and righteous deeds:

This is the greatest and most fundamen-tal of means. Allah says Whoever worksrighteousness whether male or female while he (or she) is a true believer (ofIslamic Monotheism) verily, to him We willgive a good life (in this world with respect,contentment and lawful provision), and Weshall pay them certainly a reward in propor-tion to the best of what they used to do (i.e.Paradise in the Hereafter) (Quran, 16:97)

Allah tells us and promises us that whoevercombines faith with righteous deeds will

have a good life and a good reward in thisworld and in the Hereafter.

The reason for that is clear: those who be-lieve in Allah with sincere faith that mo-tivates them to do righteous deeds thatchange hearts and attitudes and guidesthem to the straight path in this world andthe Hereafter follow principles and guide-lines by means of which they deal witheverything that happens to them, be it thecauses of happiness and excitement or thecauses of anxiety, worry and grief.

They deal with the things that they like byaccepting them and giving thanks for them,

and using them in good ways. When theydeal with them in this manner, that createsin them a sense of excitement and the hopethat it will continue and that they will be re-warded for their gratitude, which is moreimportant than the good things that hap-pen to them. And they deal with bad things,worries and distress by resisting those thatthey can resist, alleviating those that theycan alleviate, and bearing with goodly pa-tience those that they cannot avoid. Thusas a result of the bad things they gain a lotof benets, experience, strength, patienceand hope of reward, which are more impor-tant and which diminish the hardships they

have undergone and replace them with hap-piness and hope for the bounty and rewardof Allah. The Prophet (peace and blessingsof Allah be upon him) expressed this in asaheeh hadeeth in which he said: Howwonderful is the situation of the believer, for

all his affairs are good. If something goodhappens to him, he gives thanks for it andthat is good for him; if something bad hap-pens to him, he bears it with patience, andthat is good for him. This does not apply toanyone but the believer. (Narrated by Mus-

lim, no. 2999).The Prophet (peace and blessings of Allahbe upon him) told us that the believer is al-ways gaining and the reward for his deeds isalways multiplying, no matter what happensto him, good or bad.

Being kind to people in word and deed,and all kinds of doing good.

This is one of the means of removing worry,distress and anxiety. By this means Allahwards off worries and distress from right-eous and immoral like, but the believerhas the greater share of that, and is dis-tinguished by the fact that his kindness to

others stems from sincerity and the hopeof reward, so Allah makes it easy for him tobe kind to others because of the hope thatthis will bring good things and ward off badthings, by means of his sincerity and hopeof reward. Allah says: There is no good inmost of their secret talks save (in) him whoorders Sadaqah (charity in Allah's Cause),or Maroof (Islamic Monotheism and all thegood and righteous deeds which Allah hasordained), or conciliation between mankind;and he who does this, seeking the goodPleasure of Allah, We shall give him a greatreward (Quran, 4:114)

Part of that great reward is relief from worry,distress, troubles, etc.

Another of the means of warding off anxietythat stems from nervous tension and beingpreoccupied with disturbing thoughts is tooccupy oneself with good deeds or seekingbenecial knowledge, for that will distractone from dwelling on the matters that arecausing anxiety. In this way a person mayforget about the things that are making himworried and distressed, and he may becomehappy and more energetic. This is anothermeans that believers and others have incommon, but the believer is distinguished byhis faith, sincerity and hope of reward when

he occupies himself with that knowledgewhich he is learning or teaching, or with thegood deeds that he is doing.The work with which he occupies himselfshould be something that he likes and en-

joys, for that is more likely to produce thedesired results. And Allah knows best.

Another thing that may ward off worry andanxiety is focusing all ones thoughts of thepresent day, and not worrying about the fu-ture or grieving about the past. Hence theProphet (peace and blessings of Allah be

upon him) sought refuge with Allah fromworry and regret, from regret for things in thepast which one cannot put right or change,and worry which may come because of fearfor the future. So one should focus only onthe present day, and focus one's efforts on

getting things right today. For if a person isfocused on that, this means that he will dothings properly and forget about worry andregret.

When the Prophet (peace and blessings ofAllah be upon him) said a duaa or taught aduaa to his Ummah, as well as urging themto seek the help of Allah and hope for Hisbounty, he was also urging them to striveto attain the thing they were praying forthrough their own efforts and to forget aboutthe thing which they were praying would bewarded off from them. Because duaa (sup-plication) must be accompanied by action.

So a person must strive to attain that whichwill benet him in worldly and spiritual terms,and ask his Lord to make his efforts suc-cessful, and he should seek His help in that,as the Prophet (peace and blessings of Al-lah be upon him) said: Strive for that whichwill benet you and seek the help of Allah,and do not be helpless. If anything (bad)happens to you, do not say, If only I haddone such-and-such, then such-and-suchwould have happened. Rather you shouldsay, Qaddara Allah wa ma shaa faala (Al-lah decrees, and what He wills He does),for (the words) If only open the door to theShaytaan. (Narrated by Muslim).

The Prophet (peace and blessings of Allahbe upon him) connected the matter of striv-ing to achieve good things with the matter ofseeking the help of Allah and not giving in tofeelings of helplessness which are a harm-ful kind of laziness, and with the matter ofaccepting things in the past which are overand done with, and acknowledging that thewill and decree of Allah will inevitably cometo pass. He described matters as being oftwo types:

Matters which a person may strive toachieve or to achieve whatever he can ofthem, or to ward them off or alleviate them.

In such cases a person must strive and makethe effort, and also seek the help of Allah.

Matters where such is not possible, so hemust have peace of mind, accept them andsubmit to Allah's will.Undoubtedly paying attention to this princi-ple will bring happiness and relieve worryand distress.One of the greatest means of feeling con-tent and relaxed and of acquiring peaceof mind is to remember Allah a great deal(dhikr). That has a great effect in bringingcontentment and peace of mind, and reliev-ing worry and distress. Allah says: Verily,

in the remembrance of Allah do hearts ndrest (Quran, 13:28)Remembering Allah (dhikr) has a great ef-fect in achieving this aim because it has aspecial inuence and because of the hopethat it brings of reward.

Saturday Lecture

TarbiyatulIslamiya

Sheikh Shaaban Ismail

04 July 2009 2.00 pm-4.00 pm

Jamia Mosque Multi Purpose Hall

Sheikh Muhammed Salih Al-Munajjid

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Rajab 10 1430/July 03 2009

To be Continue in the Next Issue


4/8

4

WOMEN ISSUES

The Friday Bulletin

How Hijab Protects and Benefts Women and Society

I want to inform you through the words of a sister, why and how hijab(Islamic code of dress) protects a woman and what are its advan-tages. This is not coming from me but from a western woman whowas born and raised in the western culture, spent most of her life on

the wild side, found a deep vacuum in her life, discovered Islam, ac-cepted it wholeheartedly, and turned her life around completely - forthe better.

This sister is an Irish American, has a Ph.D., teaches in a prestigiousUS university, wears hijab wherever she goes - in the class roomswhile teaching, in the conferences and meetings she attends. Sheis very proud of Islam and her hijab and in the following explains theadvantages and wisdom of wearing hijab. So please read with anopen mind. Those who are open to reason get the guidance and bet-ter their lives, but those who have "eyes but can't see, and ears butcan't hear" will wander in the wilderness of life forever. No amount oflogical reasoning will help them. However, our job as Muslims, i.e.,those who surrendered to Allah, is only to convey the message tothe darkest corners of the world. Our job as Muslims is not to impose

anything on disbelivers because as Allah says in Quran, "For you isyour religion, and for them is theirs".

May Allah give guidance to all of us and enable us to follow Islamwhich is the manual of human life. May Allah grant us the wisdomto understand Islam and to live our lives to its fullest by followingits teachings. May Allah make us realize that education is not onlyabout getting a piece of paper called degree but education is aboutlearning and understanding life, the world, and the etiquette of living.May Allah enable us to nd solutions to all the problems we encoun-ter in life in His great message - the message of Islam. Ameen.

O Allah, no amount of gratefullness will be enough to thank for theblessing of your message of guidance you have given us. O Allah,enable all human beings to know the message of Islam, so this worldwill become a cradle of peace and stability and so that the forces of

darkness will be defeated from the face of the earth. May Allah beour guide in this journey of life. Ameen.

The Quran, the Muslim's holy scripture, clearly enjoins Muslim menand women to dress and behave modestly. Muslim women are spe-cically instructed to cover their heads when in the presence of non-mahrem (potentially marriageable) men: Surah Al-Nur (the Light)(24:31) in the Quran states: "They (the believing women) shoulddraw their head coverings over their bosoms...". . Surah Al-Ahzab(33:59) states: "O Prophet [Sala Allahu alayhi wasallam] Tell thywives and daughters and the believing women that they should puton their outer garments; that is most convenient in order that theymay be recognized (as Muslims) and not be molested."

This is an effective rebuttal to the argument some Muslim womenhave against wearing Hijab, that by wearing it they will be recognized

and will be attacked. Allah clearly wants Muslims to be recognizedin whatever community they live in. Their lives lived as Muslims willget other people interested in them and that will be a way of spread-ing the message of Islam. People will approach them and ask themwhy they dress like that, why they are different. Their curiousity willautomatically draw them towards Islam. Allah is the most supremestrategist of the universe. He blessed us with the message of Islam(Islam means peace and security) and told us strategies to spreadthe message which only benets us and not Allah. Allah is beyondall needs.

Allah says in Quran that if the whole world gets united against aMuslim and want to harm him, they won't except if Allah wills, and ifthe whole world unites to benet a Muslim, it won't except for Allah'swill. Therefore security comes from Allah. Allah is the protector ofbelievers. One should never fear anyone but Allah and then all of

his/her fears will be erased from the heart. Those who bow beforeAllah, bow to no one in the world - no one.

Both of the above Quranic references instruct the Muslim woman tocover herself with a large, loose overcoat (jilbab) and full head cov-ering (khimar) so that no provocative part of her body will be visible.

Her modest appearance would make it clear to everyone that she isa chaste, Believing Woman, and no one is to molest her or sexuallyexploit her. This is an effective solution to the problem of sexual har-assment because a Muslim woman's modest appearance is a social

statement that she is not to be messed with!!.THE BENEFITS OF HIJAB (COVERING) FOR WOMEN

For Muslim women, covering the head is not the sign of degradationor oppression. It is a commandment from Allah, who is not male orfemale, and thus, would not discriminate against women, a segmentof His creation.

Rather, head-covering is a sign of purity and dignity. It highlights theMuslim woman as a pure, chaste woman and sets her apart from theimmoral behavior associated with women who dress immodestly.The hijab is a sort of "screen" between the chaste muslim womanand the evil that exists in the world. When a woman wears a hijabshe is less likely to be harassed by men with lusty motives; she isless likely to be exploited for her beauty and feminity.

The Hijab allows a woman to move about outside the connes ofher home with her attention on the tasks she has set out to do. TheMuslim woman does not try to impress anyone but Allah when out-side of her home. She is not concerned if men nd her attractive, orif people are impressed because she has the latest fashions, or thenewest hairstyle. She leaves her home as a self-condent part ofhuman race, not as a fashion-plate seeking stares and adoration inorder to gain self-esteem.

The hijab cuts down on competition among women. How many peo-ple in the West sacrice nancial savings and health in order to haveplastic surgery - in a desperate attempt to meet up to an unrealisticstandard of beauty. In Islam, women are appreciated for their knowl-edge, piety and contribution to society. When women wear hijab onends that the most beautiful women are not necessarily the mostpopular. Rather, a woman is assessed for her mind, and not just

supercial physical traits.

The Friday Bulletin

Ingredients

Kitchen

CRISPS FRIED FISH

Share your favourite recipes with our readers. Send them to P. O. Box 40629-00100 or email:[email protected] or [email protected]

8 sh llets

I cup white our and another 3 tbsp tbsp black pepper

tbsp baking powder

Juice of 2 lemons

3 tbsp cooking oil

1 egg white cup Luke warm water Salt to taste

Ginger, garlic and green chilies chopped (optional)

Wash and pat dry the sh llets.

Rub juice of lemon, coat with 3tbsp our and keep aside

For the batter, mix 1 cup white our. Salt, black pepper, baking

powder, ginger, garlic, green chilies crushed.

Make a well in the centre and add 1 tbsp oil.

Keep aside for hour. Whisk 1 egg white till stiff and fold into batter.

Dip sh in batter and fry till crispy and golden brown.

Method

Rajab 10 1430/July 03 2009

Irfan Hasan


5/8

The Friday Bulletin

Many people fail to get ahead because they have no willpower to do what

they know they should be doing. Nor can they help themselves to avoid thethings which they know will ruin them. Many such people would like to giveup smoking, to stop using drugs, or to avoid affairs outside of marriage.Many nd that gambling or alcohol addiction is wrecking their lives. Yet these

people have no willpower to set their lives on the right course. They feelhelpless and have to deal with a nagging conscience that pricks them with

what they would have done, or should have done.Yet there are some strong-willed people who seem to be able to do whatthey know is right and avoid what they know is wrong. Such people experi-ence peace of mind knowing that they are doing the right thing. Their will-power is obviously working for them.

But how do they do it? What is the secret? The secret is that you can trainyour willpower. Suppose you made a resolution to skip lunch for a month andactually stuck to your decision. You may save your lunch money, lose a few

pounds, develop sympathy for the poor, and give your digestive system amuch-needed rest. More importantly, you will strengthen your willpower.The reason this works is that you teach yourself to avoid lunch even whenyou know you could have it if you decide. Your stomach may growl, but you

wont listen. Thus you train yourself to ignore the calling of your lower physi-cal self and reach for the higher goals of real human achievement. Doing theright thing even when your desires are calling for something else.

Every year, for one month, able Muslims go through a similar fasting exer-cise. They observe the fast as a compulsory practice which God prescribedin His revealed messages, especially in the nal revealed book. One of themany benets they experience from fasting is its training aspect.

The willpower they develop in that one month helps them to continue doingthe right thing and avoid the wrong throughout the year. They nd the fastsuch an effective method of spiritual training and of achieving closeness withtheir creator that many Muslims also keep some additional, optional fasts on

other days of the year.They eat an early breakfast before dawn and a late dinner after sunset.From dawn to sunset they would have no food or drink; they would also

refrain from sexual activity. Whereas the baser selves regularly call for thesethings, Muslims train themselves with the help of God to fulll their naturalneeds in the time and manner that God declared suitable for human dignity

and well being.During the fast Muslims also train themselves to always avoid lying, cheat-ing, backbiting, and all manner of false speech and immoral actions

YOUTH AND CHILDREN

Knowledge is power, as the famous sayinggoes. In Islam acquiring knowledge is requiredof every Muslim whether male or female. Infact, acquiring knowledge is so important inIslam that the rst instruction from Allahto Prophet Mohammad (Sall-Allahu alayhi wasallam) was to read:Recite in the name of your Lord who created.Created man from a clinging substance. Reciteand your Lord is Most Generous, who taughtby pen. Taught man that which he knew not.(96:1-5)In the above verses, Allah tells Prophet Mo-hammad (Sall-Allahu alayhi wa sallam) to re-

cite in the name of his Lord. Allah also tellsProphet Muhammad (Sall-Allahu alayhi wasallam) that knowledge ows from the Crea-tor to the creation.Two Types of knowledgeAll the knowledge that we have can be dividedinto two types: The knowledge that we gainby our own senses and experience, which tellsus about the world around us, and the knowl-edge that is revealed by Allah to the Proph-ets, which tells us how to live as good hu-

man beings. Some people are misled becausethey think that they are self-sufcient anddont need guidance from Allah. They do notfeel that they need anything beyond worldlyknowledge gained from their own senses. Al-lah says about such people,They know what is apparent of the worldlylife, but of the hereafter they are unaware.(30:7)The world is full of many attractive thingsthat can lead a person away from Allahsstraight path. If people dont have strongfaith, they are lost in this life and in thehereafter. And if they dont have the worldlyeducation, they will be deprived of the greatmaterial benets that this knowledge brings.It is obvious that to succeed, human beingsneed both kinds of knowledge.It is greatly benecial for a Muslim to ac-quire worldly knowledge, but at the same timehe or she must remember to keep their faith

strong as well, and the way to gain this faithis to follow the revealed knowledge. Properattention to these two aspects of life will en-able a person to succeed in this world and thenext.

Knowledge is powerHow to Train your WillPower to Work for You?

5

Rajab 10 1430/July 03 2009

DOWN

1 Arabic term for

matyrdom

2 English word for a

'Nabii' of Allah

5 Giving alms.

8 Bending down

during salah (Arabicword)

10 Traditions of

Prophet Muhammad

(sala Allahu alaihi

wasallam)

12 The religion that

Muslims follow

14 Leader of the

prayer (In Arabic)

ACROSS

3 Reward for good deeds in the hereafter.

4 The book revealed to Prophet Muhammad

(sala Allahu alaihi wasallam)

6 The proper dressing for Muslim Women.

7 The book that was revealed to Prophet Musa

(alayhi sallam) (in English)

9 The fourth pillar of Islam

11 Pilgrimage to Makkah

13 To make clean

15 God in Arabic

16 A person who follows the religion of Islam

ISLAMIC CROSSWORD

Answers will appear

next week insha

Allah


6/8

The Friday Bulletin

NATIONAL NEWS

Story From Page 1

6

Rajab 10 1430/July 03 2009

Call for Inquiry in operation

most taken the country hostage.

The Waki commission which investigated and documented evidence on the 2007 postelection violence recommended the merger of the two departments, citing a lack of ac-countability. The Government apparently seems reluctant to implement these recom-mendations and is committed to retaining the forces separate, they should then ensurethat they do all that is possible to keep sanity in the two forces.The AP ofcers Commandant, Kinuthia Mbugua has argued that the AP is a uniquebut very strategic and an important internal security arrangement which should notbe merged with the Kenya police. And the Police commissioner wants the two unitsmerged to enable the holder of that ofce assume full responsibility of the Administra-tion Police.Bottom line is that Kenyans are suffering the consequences of the wrangling and thata solution needs to be found to ensure that the rule of law is upheld and guaranteedto all. Whatever the reasons, the government needs to put the two security organs-charged with protecting the internal security of the ordinary mwananchi - in order to

ensure that the country is safe.

Save us AP and Police Wrangles, protect KenyansStory From Page 1

NAIROBI MUSLIM ACADEMY A WELL ESTABLISHED

SCHOOL IN NAIROBI

Requires an experienced Diploma holder in Early Childhood

Education and a Class helper with a Certifcate in Early Childhood

Education to teach the nursery school

Ability to teach Islamic Studies is an added

advantage.

Apply before 15th JULY 2009 to:The Principal

P. O Box 18421 00500

Industrial Area

NAIROBI

Vacancy for Nursery school teacher

lowing deadly clashes between the local clans, which left 21 people dead.The report seen by The Friday Bulletin, states that, in three communities witnesses saidthat senior civilian ofcials as well as police and military commanders were present dur-ing the beatings and torture, supervising the operation and giving orders."This is not a question of a few bad apples disobeying orders," Roth said. "This opera-tion was the result of a strategy devised by senior ofcials to use brutal force againstKenyan citizens."During the launch of the report at a Nairobi hotel on Monday, Human Rights Watchactivists narrated how their researchers visited ve of the towns in February this yearand documented consistent accounts from more than 90 victims about how the securityforces entered early in the morning, rounded up all of the men they could nd, and se-verely beat them for hours to try to extract information about the alleged whereaboutsof rearms and militias.The report further states how security ofcers went house to house, searching for re-arms. In several communities, these searches devolved into widespread looting, andraping of women. One held my head on the ground, and the other one started rapingme. ... I fainted because I was pregnant, and when I woke up I just found myself dam-aged from the rape states the witness account of one women.Most of the rape victims interviewed by Human Rights Watch ed to the countryside

and did not seek immediate treatment, although the Kenya Red Cross airlifted one rapevictim in critical condition to Nairobi.Hundreds of men were made to lie on the ground for hours and were beaten with riebutts, sticks, canes, and iron rods. Members of the security forces tortured some menby twisting, crushing, or ripping open their testicles.Hundreds of men sought medical treatment in the hospital at El Wak, local clinics inWargadud, Lafey.Noting that the Mandera operation is not the rst operation to have violently targetedcivilians, Human Rights Watch also called for investigations in other past incidenceswhere the security forces are alleged to have committed horrendousness human rightsabuses.

The government has launched a number of ini-tiatives which aim at community development

and uplifting the social and economic status

of Kenyans. Such initiatives include the Con-

stituency Development Fund (CDF), HIV/AIDS

Fund, Constituency Bursary Fund (CBF),

Youth Enterprise Development Fund, Women

Enterprise Development Fund and of more re-

cent the Kazi kwa Vijana programme.

These initiatives have received wide acclaim

for their role in promoting development among

Kenyans.

Millions of shillings have been disbursed

through various avenues to beneciaries which

have gone towards enhancing the social andeconomic welfare of the population and the

country at large.

But even with these successes, the level of

participation by Muslims has remained lat a

disturbing low level.

In the Youth Enterprise Development Fund,

for example, ofcial gures indicate that North

Eastern Province had the least number of

beneciaries with only two percent of youths

beneting. Even with measures from the gov-

ernment to provide Shariah nancing scheme

through the First Community Bank, still, many

did not turn up to take their share of the avail-

able funds.In the Constituency Development Fund and

the Constituency Bursary Fund, it has been

found out that in many constituencies, despite

a requirement for Muslim representatives to sit

on the committees which are in charge of dis-

bursing the funds, this has not been the case

leaving many deserving Muslims to miss out

on the available opportunities.

Without active participation, we emerge the

losers in these schemes which could other-

wise have uplifted the economic and social

conditions of the community.

It is pivotal that we invigorate our participation

in these schemes to ensure that we also have

our fair share of these national initiatives.

Each of us has a role to play in creating more

awareness to increase our participation. We

can encourage individuals as well as social

welfare groups to seek these funds to uplift

their wellbeing and service to the community.

Such awareness will ultimately led to sev-

eral orphans, widows, needy students, unem-

ployed youths as well as essential community

projects to benet from these state-funded

programmes.

We can also take a step further and seek out

our representatives in the local authorities and

bring their attention to address other commu-

nity needs. In the event that there is no Muslimrepresentation, let us take it upon ourselves to

inform the appropriate bodies like SUPKEM to

fulll their obligation in ensuring that the rights

of Muslims are fullled.

More awareness needed in

community fund projects


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The Friday BulletinRajab 10 1430/July 03 2009


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The Friday Bulletin is a Publication of Jamia Masjid Committee, P. O. Box 100786-00101 Nairobi, Tel: 2243504/5 Fax: 342147 E-mail: [email protected] [email protected]. Printed by Colour Magic Production Ltd-Kirinyaga Crescent P. O. Box 9581-00100 Nairobi

Amnesty blasts Swiss minaret ban planAmnesty International blastedon Sunday, June 28, a far-rightcampaign to ban minaret con-struction in Switzerland, warn-ing the drive aims to exploitfears of Muslims and encour-age xenophobia for politicalgains."This initiative claims to be adefense against 'rampant Is-lamication' of Switzerland,"Daniel Bolomey, the head of

Amnesty's Swiss ofce, saidin a statement cited by AgenceFrance-Presse (AFP)."But it seeks to discredit Mus-lims and defames them, pureand simple."

A campaign was launchedlast year by the far-right Swiss

People's Party (SVP) and asmall ultra-conservative Chris-tian party to have the buildingof minarets banned in Switzer-land.The far-right parties claim thata minaret is not necessary forworship but is rather a symbolof Islamic law which is incom-patible with Switzerland's legalsystem.The campaign has caused anoutcry in the Swiss politicalworld, with the government de-nouncing it as unconstitutional

and discriminatory.The SVP has amassed 113,000votes to force a nationwide bal-lot on the minaret ban.Under Swiss rules, the elector-ate can request a popular voteif it manages to collect 100,000signatures within 18 monthsfrom eligible voters for the ini-tiative.No date has been set for thevote, but it is not expected totake place before November.

A nationwide referendum on

the issue would be bindingunder the country's system ofdirect democracy.

Amnesty said the far-rightcampaigners want to exploitthe fear of Muslims and en-courage xenophobia for politi-cal gains."For those behind this plan, theproblem is not linked to mina-rets," said Bolomey."In reality, they want to exploitfears that already exist amongpeople and whip up xenopho-bic feelings for political gain."

The center-right Free Demo-cratic Party (FDP) also at-tacked the far-right campaign,saying it would only compound"unfounded" fears against thecountry's Muslims.

The campaign has already shocked Switzerland's350,000 Muslims, many of whom have been cam-paigning for decades for more recognition for theirfaith.Switzerland is a secular state, whose constitution

guarantees freedom of religious expression to all.Mosques in Switzerland tend to be conned to disusedwarehouses and factories.

Across the country, there are only four mosques withminarets; none of them is used to raise the Azan, thecall to prayer.In Switzerland's capital Berne, the larg-est mosque is in a former underground car park.Islam is the second religion in the country after Chris-tianity; however Muslims are often the object of ani-mosity.

Russia continues to commit gross rights abuses

in a culture of impunity in Chechnya, a leading

rights organization said on Wednesday, July 1,

warning that injustices would spell destabiliza-

tion for the entire Mainly-Muslim North Cauca-

sus region.Serious human rights violations continue to be

committed in a climate of impunity, Amnesty In-

ternational said in its Rule without law: Human

rights violations in the North Caucasus report.

The report, based on testimonies, afrms that

though Moscow has ofcially declared an end to

its military operations in the Caucasus republic

last April, abuses and rights violations continues

to exist under the so-called counter-terrorist op-

erations.

Russia Abuses with Impunity in Chechnya

Friday Bulletin 322

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