Friday, May 23, 2008

Another Racist Blogger Arrested

Why are there still racists? Because such ignorant people will always be around.

Acting on a complaint, the police arrested that racist and it is reassuring that some action is taken, and that they didn't just ignore the whole complaint. I presume they would take action on any racist regardless of her or his ethnicity.

Nevertheless, what is appropriate action now after the supposed arrest? Should that blogger be jailed, fined, issued a stern warning or do community service? Which is the action that is most beneficial to society and that blogger at the same time, without turning him more antagonistic towards other races and blaming them for the predicament he is in now somehow?

I think it should be community service as it is his chance to make things right.

Monday, May 12, 2008

Response to Islam in Singapore : Where to from here ?

Unfortunately, the comments section of this is deactivated and so I decided to post my comments here:
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I don’t quite get Dr Alwi’s rhetoric of Singapore’s by attempting to either dilute or modify Islam in order to integrate its Muslim community. As Singaporeans, we should just continue to practice Islam as it is and stop harboring thoughts that others are trying to impede our practices.

First of all, “Islam does not concentrate on filling men’s minds with philosophical ideas, or on excessive dream-like spirituality, or on physical training and perfection, or on self-serving materialistic philosophies such as exist nowadays. The personality of the Muslim is perfectly integrated and balanced, and no aspect of it is overtaken by others, as happens in other societies where man is brought up under imperfect manmade systems which all too often are governed by selfish desires, reprehensible innovations or deviant ideas.”

Secondly all Muslims are supposed to be on good terms with their neighbors, regardless of their religious practices and there isn’t a need to dilute the Islamic practices. “With his neighbor, the true Muslim is an example of good treatment and consideration of others’ feelings and sensitivities. He puts up with mistreatment and turns a blind eye to his neighbor’s faults while taking care not to commit any such errors himself. He always adopts the Islamic attitude whereby treating neighbors well was made a basic principle of Islam, so much so that the Prophet thought that Jibrail would make his neighbor his heir. Therefore he never does anything bad to his neighbor, nor does he fail in his duty towards him; rather, he does not spare any effort to do favors for his neighbor, without expecting any favors, reward or thanks in return.”

Muslims do not unjustly accuse others of ‘fisq’ or ‘kufr’ and should be modest at all times. Nothing can restore the health and authenticity of the Muslim identity except a sincere return to the eternal way of Allah and a deep understanding of the mission with which the Muslim has been entrusted. This will enable the Muslims to fulfill their duty of conveying this message to mankind, after they have adopted it for themselves as an ideology and way of life.

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References:
http://www.crescentlife.com/articles/islam/ideal_muslim.htm

Wednesday, April 9, 2008

Foreign Domestic Workers restrictions on their religious practices in Singapore?

While blog-hopping, came across this http://nusms.blogspot.com/2008/03/religious-freedom-for-indonesian-maids.html.

For a mere SGD$200++ per month, some of these domestic workers need to work like labourers, deprived of food, salaries, religious freedom, and social contact. The full report is available here http://hrw.org/reports/2005/singapore1205/6.htm .

10 Facts abut Foreign Domestic Workers in Singapore- http://www.scwo.org.sg/cms/content/view/111/29/

1. There are more than 140,000 foreign domestic workers (FDWs) in Singapore. Most are from Indonesia and the Philippines. The rest come from Sri Lanka, Thailand, Myanmar, India and Bangladesh.

2. One in eight households in Singapore employs a foreign domestic worker.

3. The number of FDWs has increased almost thirty fold since the Foreign Domestic Worker scheme was introduced in 1978.

4. Each day, an average of 10 FDWs seek help and advice from their embassies because of problems such as physical and/or sexual abuse, non-payment of wages, not being given adequate food, and work-related stress.

5. In 2001, MOM banned 49 people from hiring FDWs. This was 12 times as many as in 1997.

6. Nine out of 10 people accused of maid abuse are women. This has been attributed to the stress of shouldering the household burden alone coupled with the lack of family support at home.

7. In the last four and a half years, 90 FDW’s, mostly Indonesians, have fallen to their deaths from high-rise buildings.

8. In 2001, less than 1% of the total population of FDW’s ran away from their employers and was not successfully repatriated.

9. Employers lodged 350 complaints against maid agencies in 2001, a 50% rise since 1998.

10. Only 19 of the more than 700 maid agencies in Singapore have been accredited under the Case trust scheme so far.

Saturday, March 15, 2008

The End of Affirmative Action in Malaysia?


Cleverly engineered by sour grapes defeated UMNO, shouts of "Hidup Melayu" erupted in Penang yesterday. The tumultuous Malaysian general election paved the way for Democratic Action Party's Lim Guan Eng to be sworn in as Chief Minister for Penang. The new opposition government in Penang announced a few days ago that state contracts will no longer be awarded based on NEP, an affirmative action policy inspired by Article 153 of the Malaysian Constitution and the 1969 race riots which ignited when Malays were deemed marginalised by UMNO. Will the increasingly influential alternative coalition dismantle a bumiputra policy launched in 1971?

Playing the race card and preying on the potential insecurity of the rural Malay population, UMNO has cleverly shifted the arguments to one of the opposition coalition as anti-Malay.

This politicised argument is a seductive one. Very few people would like their privileges revoked and the idea that DAP and its partners will allow the rolling back of Malay supremacy is a sensitive one in Malaysia. If Penang backs down from its declaration that state awards will be based on market forces bidding rather than selective awarding to companies run by Malay elites, is it a victory for UMNO, Malays in Malaysia or all Malaysians in Malaysia in the long term?

Monday, February 11, 2008

The Syariah Law Controversy in the UK



Rowan Williams did not expect the storm he unleashed when he mentioned that it was inevitable that aspects of syariah law would be implemented in the UK. This sparked off a flurry of hostility and calls for his resignation as the leader of the world's Anglican community. The Western media has been playing up the parts about hand-chopping and discrimination against women. However, the current debate in modern UK on Syarian law is probably instead more intended for divorce, inheritance and business for Muslims trying to reconcile both their Muslim and British identities. The Archbishop of Cantebury is enlightened enough to open this topic up for debate despite the howls of his critics. Should there be only one law in a liberal democracy but if so, how does multiculturalism fit in? In Singapore there is a Syariah court which mainly handles marriage-related issues. Maybe the Archbishop had this model in mind.

Too bad that the Islamphobes in the UK are loud and pushy enough to drown out any constructive discussion.

Friday, February 1, 2008

LIDAH PENGARANG AKHBAR CINA, LIANHE ZAOBAO, TENTANG PENAHANAN ISD TERBARU, KELMARIN

BIARKAN AGAMA TERUS MEMBAWA MANFAAT BAGI MASYARAKAT
JABATAN -CyBerita(1 Feb 2008)

Keselamatan Dalam Negeri (ISD) telah memberkas dua lelaki Muslim radikal yang terlibat dalam kegiatan pengganasan dan mengeluarkan Perintah Sekatan ke atas seorang lagi baru-baru ini.

Insiden terbaru itu pula menyusuli penahanan seorang lagi lelaki Muslim yang mempunyai fahaman radikal pada Februari tahun lalu.

Penyelidikan telah menunjukkan golongan belia yang menjadi radikal dengan sendiri melalui risalah, video dan Internet mungkin menyimpan hasrat untuk ke luar negara bagi menjalani latihan dan menjalankan kegiatan sabotaj.

Malah ada sebahagian daripada mereka rela juga mati syahid.
Majlis Ugama Islam Singapura (Muis) telah mengeluarkan kenyataan menyokong langkah yang diambil ISD dan berharap ketiga-tiga lelaki itu akan berubah dan pulang ke pangkal jalan.
Menteri Bertanggungjawab bagi Ehwal Masyarakat Islam, Dr Yaacob Ibrahim, juga telah berkata pihak berkuasa mahu mereka yang ditahan menyedari bahawa pengganasan dan fahaman radikal tidak sihat dan Singapura tidak boleh menyokong fahaman sedemikian.

Namun beliau tetap akur ia merupakan masalah jangka panjang dan satu cabaran penting bagi rakyat Singapura sentiasa berwaspada dan menangani isu tersebut sebagai satu masyarakat.
Kes ketiga-ketiga belia dengan fahaman radikal itu dapat dibongkar dalam tempoh kurang setahun menunjukkan kumpulan-kumpulan ekstremis yang cuba menyebarkan pengganasan masih merebak dan ia sukar untuk dibendung.

Keharmonian masyarakat harus diraih menerusi keharmonian agama dan rakyat Singapura harus berwaspada ketika waktu damai dan menggalak peningkatan fahaman antara berbilang kaum, agama dan budaya bagi mengukuhkan kesepaduan negara, supaya mereka yang mempunyai agenda tidak dapat mempengaruhi kita.

Harus ditekankan bahawa pengganas tidak dihadkan kepada satu bangsa atau agama.
Oleh itu, kekuatan untuk menjaga keamanan dan damai mesti datang daripada rakyatnya dan meliputi semua lapisan masyarakat, dengan orang ramai mengambil inisiatif sendiri untuk berbuat demikian.

Dengan itu, langkah bertepatan ISD itu diperlukan, juga seperti usaha berterusan pemerintah untuk menggalak keharmonian agama, seperti menganjurkan dialog-dialog agama dan perbincangan damai.
Yang paling penting sekali, sedang kita menjadi lebih berwaspada bagi membendung golongan yang mahu memperguna agama untuk menipu dan menyelewengkan belia kita, kita harus menyokong semua kegiatan agama yang berfaedah dan mempromosi semangat keihsanan setiap agama.
Di Singapura, adalah biasa jika kita melihat gereja dan kuil dibina bersebelahan.
Apabila tsunami di Lautan Hindi melanda beberapa tahun lalu, pelbagai kumpulan agama telah juga berganding bahu untuk berdoa dan mengumpul dana untuk mangsa bencana itu.
Semua ini menunjukkan bahawa asas keharmonian agama yang dipegang tidak cetek.
Beberapa kumpulan agama lain yang tidak mempunyai profil yang tinggi, juga secara senyap-senyap menyumbang untuk manfaat masyarakat umum.

Kita harus jelas bahawa sifat murah hati dan kebajikan adalah prinsip universal setiap agama dan tidak terhad kepada satu agama sahaja.
Sedang kegiatan agama yang dirancang harus digalak, mereka perlu mengamalkan disiplin dan ketelusan sewajarnya dalam perniagaan dan kewangan.

Untuk membendung pengganasan dilakukan atas nama agama dan membina masyarakat aman damai, berharmoni dan penyayang, selain membangunkan pertahanan psikologi yang kukuh, memberi kelonggaran kepada kumpulan agama menebar semangat kebajikan dan membenarkan kegiatan agama menjadi satu kuasa yang akan bermanfaat bagi masyarakat adalah satu pendekatan yang perlu diiktiraf.

Thursday, January 31, 2008

Jihad is the Way?














Friday, January 25, 2008

Warga Singapura Ditahan Bawah Akta Keselamatan Dalam Negara (ISA)

Tercetus lagi kes warga Singapura dipengaruhi pahaman radikal melalui alam maya. Jika dahulu kita digegarkan oleh berita seorang peguam dengan pahaman radikal, kes yang terbaru ini membabitkan tiga orang anak muda berusia 26 tahun.

Menurut liputan akhbar, dalang pahaman radikal ialah Zamri. Beliau telah menyebarkan pahaman radikalnya kepada rakan kenalan. Zamri dipercayai menuai pahaman radikal melalui lelaman-lelaman yang berlegar di alam maya. Kebanyakkan lelaman yang dilawatinya berunsur Jihad mengganas dan menpunyai penerbitan dan video yang bertemakan sedemikian. Kedua-dua rakannya yang ditahan telah depengaruhi oleh idelogi jihad mengganas Zamri.

Tatkala menerima berita ini semalam, saya cuba melungsuri dan mencungkil lelaman-lelaman kumpulan pengganas. Menemui lelaman tersebut tidaklah payah, malah terdapat ribuan lelaman sedemikian. Sebahagian besar lelaman sedemikian menggunakan ayat-ayat dari Al-Quran untuk pengaruh sedangkan masyarakat umum tahu Islam adalah agama damai. Persoalan yang berligar di benak saya adalah mengapa masih ada lagi separuh dari masyarakat kita yang terjebak dengan pahaman radikal ini?

Opresi terhadap penganut Islam memang berleluasa di Negara-negara seperti Palestine dan Chechnya. Bagaimanapun, haruskah keganasan dibalas dengan keganasan? Sedangkan Rasullullah(SAW) sentiasa mungkin menyelesaikan segala pembalahan dengan damai, mengapa umat Islam tidak mungkin mengikut contohNya?

Masyarakat damai Islam Singapura terjebak ke lembah syak wasangka sekali lagi apabila berita penangkapan mereka bertiga diiringi dengan penjelasan bahawa mereka cuba sedaya upaya mempelajari kegiatan pengganas. Salah satu daripada kegiatan mereka adalah menerima latihan luar Negara daripada kumpulan pengganas serantau.

Segala usaha untuk menjernihkan syak wasangka terhadap masyarakat Islam Singapura selepas 9/11 seperti sia-sia sahaja menyusuli berita buruk terbaru ini. Walaupun begitu, Kak Pah berharap jurang keretakan kepercayaan masyarakat lain terhadap Islam tidak akan menjadi lebih keruh. Semoga segala kekusutan diselesaikan dengan cepat dan segala keruh diperjenihkan.

Tuesday, January 22, 2008

From Holland, a Storm is Coming

Geert Wilders - Out to score political right wing points by inciting Muslim-bashing and Islamophobia.

In 2005, the Danish newspaper Jyllands-Posten published the infamous Prophet Muhammad (pbuh) cartoons. This started a storm of reciprocal anti-Muslim and anti-Western anger. Was self-censorship expected of the Western media like Jyllands-Posten? Some of the Western media didn't think so and they imposed their cultural world view on an "anything goes" onto us Muslims. They hold nothing sacred except the idea of freedom of expression. When the protests against the cartoons intensified, some other European newspapers further reprinted the cartoons deemed offensive to Muslims to stir up unrest.

Muslims were right to be angry but whether we were right to resort to violence is something that is hard to defend. The Western media had the right to publish what they want but did they have the right to provocatively offend for the sake of controversy and publicity?

Now, it is now not the Danes, but right wing Dutch politicians who are out to incite and raise controversy. Hopefully, the controversy would not blind people to rage and calm would prevail abroad and in Singapore.




Politician to launch film denouncing Quran; Dutch govt fears violent protests

Monday January 21, 2008

AMSTERDAM The Dutch government is bracing itself for violent protests following the scheduled broadcast, later this week, of a provocative anti-Muslim film by a radical right-wing politician, who has threatened to denounce the Quran and broadcast images of the holy book being torn up and desecrated.

Cabinet ministers and officials, fearing a repetition of the crisis sparked by the publication of cartoons of Prophet Mohammed in a Danish newspaper two years ago, have held a series of crisis meetings and ordered counter-terrorist services to draw up security plans. Dutch nationals overseas have also been asked to register with their embassies and local mayors in the Netherlands have been put on standby.

Prime Minister Jan Peter Balkenende told Dutch public television: "We have seen other crises but this is a substantial one."

Dutch diplomats are already trying to pre-empt international reaction.

"It is difficult to anticipate the content of the film, but freedom of expression doesn't mean the right to offend," said Foreign Minister Maxime Verhagen, who was in Madrid to attend the Alliance of Civilisations, an international forum aimed at reducing tensions between the Islamic world and the West.

Government officials are urging mainstream media not to show the film. An Interior Ministry spokesman said: "A broadcast on a public channel could imply that the government supported the project."

The politician at the centre of the storm is Mr Geert Wilders, from the extremist VVD (Freedom) party in the 150-seat Dutch lower house, whose anti-Islam comments have led to death threats. He has promised that his 10-minute film will be aired on television or the Internet regardless of any pressure.

In Amsterdam, Rotterdam and other towns with large Muslim populations, imams have been trying to "calm" growing anger. The Grand Mufti of Syria Ahmad Badr Al Din Hassoun warned last week that Mr Wilders was "inciting bloodshed" and it was the "responsibility of the Dutch people to stop him".