For Palestinians, Every Day Is Kristallnacht

Foreign Policy Journal
December 15, 2009
by Paul Craig Roberts

Israel_stealing_palestine“Settlers attack West Bank mosque and burn holy Muslim books” was a London Times headline on December 11, 2009.

These attacks, together with the demolition of Palestinian homes, the uprooting of Palestinians’ olive groves, the innumerable checkpoints that prevent Palestinians from accessing schools, work, and medical care, the Israeli Wall that denies Palestinians access to the land stolen from them, and the isolation and blockade of the Gaza Ghetto, are part of the Israeli government’s policy of genocide for the Palestinians.

The Israel Lobby has such power over America that even former President Jimmy Carter, a good friend of Israel, is demonized for using the polite term–apartheid–for the genocide that has occurred over the decades during which American “Christian” preachers, together with bought-and-paid-for politicians, justified Israel’s policy of slow genocide for Palestine.

Israelis who still have a moral conscience–a small part of the population–endeavor to use moral protests against the inhumanity of the Israeli government. Israelis Jeff Halper and Angela Godfrey-Goldstein lead the Israeli Committee Against House Demolition (ICAHD), a non-violent, direct-action group established to oppose and resist Israeli demolition of Palestinian homes in the Occupied Territories.

Under international law an occupier by military force is forbidden to steal the occupied land. The US, however, has protected Israel’s violation of international law for decades by vetoing UN resolutions. Israel has been able to steal Palestine from the Palestinians, because the US government used its power to prevent Israel from being held accountable under international law.

In March 2003 American citizen Rachel Corrie stood in front of an Israeli bulldozer, made by Caterpillar and sent to destroy a Palestinian home. Her courageous act of defiance was regarded as an annoyance, and she was run over and murdered by the Israeli bulldozer operator. Israel suffered no consequences for its murder of an American citizen who had a moral conscience.

In the Israeli-controlled American media, we hear endlessly that Palestinians are terrorists who strap on explosives in order to kill innocent Israelis and who terrorize Israeli towns by firing rockets into them. One look at the maps above is enough to make clear who the real terrorist is. The success of Israeli propaganda in the face of totally obvious facts damns the ignorance and unconcern of the American people.

The Israeli newspaper, Haaretz, which also has a moral conscience and is intelligent to boot, wrote on December 4, 2009: “Every appointee to the American government must endure a thorough background check by the American Jewish community.” Haaretz notes that any American that the President of the United States proposes for an appointment to his government is subject to the approval of the Israel Lobby, which can blackball appointees at will.

Haaretz gives the example of Charles Freeman, whom President Obama intended to appoint as head of the National Intelligence Council. The Israel Lobby proved, again, that it was more powerful than a mere American President and prevented the appointment, citing Freeman’s “anti-israel leaning.” In other words, because Freeman was not an overboard apologist for Israel’s crimes he was unacceptable to the Israel Lobby.

Haaretz reports: “The next attempt to appoint an intelligence aide, in this case, former Republican senator Chuck Hagel, also resulted in vast criticism over his not having a pro-Israel record.” The Israel Lobby has blocked Hagel’s appointment by President Obama. Hagel doesn’t want to start a war with Iran for Israel’s benefit and was blackballed by Morton A. Klein, the president of the Zionist Organization of America. Hagel, it seems, “refused to sign a letter calling on then-president George Bush to speak about Iran’s nuclear program at the G8 summit that year.”

Now it is a Jewish daughter of a Holocaust survivor, Hannah Rosenthal, whose appointment to head the US Office to Monitor and Combat Anti-Semitism, an office that is another indication of America’s puppet state status, is under attack. Rosenthal was the head of the Jewish Council for Public Affairs during 2000-2005. Her black mark came from serving on the advisory board of the J Street Lobby, a recently-formed American Jewish organization formed in opposition to AIPAC’s murderous militarism.

The Israel Lobby’s opposition to Hannah Rosenthal shows that no moral person can survive the Israel Lobby’s blackball.

The US, “the world’s only superpower,” has no independent voice in Middle Eastern affairs. The real power rests in the hands of the settler thug, Avigdor Lieberman, Deputy Prime Minister of Israel and Minister of Foreign Affairs. This is the man who controls the Obama government’s Middle East policy. Lieberman forced the “all-powerful President of the US, Barack Omama,” to rescind his order to Israel to halt the illegal settler settlements on occupied Palestinian land. Obama was given the bird and submitted to his master.

Macho Americans who prance around as if they owned the world are nothing but the puppets of Israel. The US is not a country. It is a colony.
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Paul Craig Roberts
Hon. Paul Craig Roberts was educated at the Georgia Institute of Technology, the University of Virginia, the University of California, Berkeley, and Oxford University where he was a member of Merton College. Dr. Roberts has held numerous academic appointments, including Senior Research Fellow, Hoover Institution, Stanford University, and William E. Simon Chair, Center for Strategic and International Studies, Georgetown University. Dr. Roberts served in the Congressional Staff in the House and Senate and was appointed Assistant Secretary of the Treasury by President Ronald Reagan. He was awarded the French Legion of Honor in 1987. Dr. Roberts is author of 'Alienation and the Soviet Economy' and 'The Supply-Side Revolution'. He is coauthor with Matthew Stephenson of 'Marx’s Theory of Exchange, Alienation, and Crisis'. He is coauthor with Karen LaFollette Araujo of 'Meltdown: Inside the Soviet Economy and The Capitalist Revolution in Latin America'. He is coauthor with Lawrence Stratton of 'The New Color Line and The Tyranny of Good Intentions'. His latest book, 'How The Economy Was Lost', will be published by CounterPunch in October 2009. Dr. Roberts is a columnist for Creators Syndicate in Los Angeles.

http://www.foreignpolicyjournal.com/2009/12/15/for-palestinians-every-day-is-kristallnacht/

Disputed Kashmir serves China’s interest

The optimism is misplaced. With China issuing stapled visas, only Kashmiris end up on the losing side.

Rising Kashmir
Ghulam Nabi
On November 12, Indian Foreign Affairs Ministry declared it officially that no stapled visa issued by Chinese Embassy in Delhi will be entertained. Before that, it was only at the international Airport where Kashmiri people who had stapled visa would be informed that they can’t board the flight because of having different visa; which does not say anything different from normal visa except that it is not pasted, but stapled on the passport.
The issue is not as simple as it seems. Why China started issuing separate visas to Kashmiris now when it has always treated it as a disputed region? Though a section of Kashmiri society is jubilant about it thinking that China might be a saviour to help Kashmir secure its independence, but if we look into history then it seems a hoax. Though China has never treated Kashmir as part of India, but it has always adopted different policies vis-à-vis Kashmir, shaped according to her interest.

During 1950’s China adapted neutral policy, but in 1960’s and 1970’s the country towed her position towards Pakistan because of the deteriorating relations between USSR and China. Their relations aggravated first because of lack of support of USSR to China in 1962 Sino-India war, and later turned worse during the time of Cultural Revolution. So there was no love relation for Pakistan, which made China to modify their stand in favour of her “all weather ally”. As the old saying goes, my enemy’s enemy is my friend. With the shift in China’s overall foreign policy during Deng Xiaoping’s period who unlike his predecessor without any doubt gave more importance to economic reformation than sticking to a political ideology. China tried to build its business relations with different foreign countries including India. With the revival of business linkages with India, China’s stand on Kashmir also changed, it went back to its 50s position – ‘Kashmir is a bilateral issue between India and Pakistan’. Thus it secured its business interests while at the same time maintained its relation with Pakistan.
China continued with its post-1980 policy towards Kashmir issue till this year with little variations every now and then. However, it is pertinent to mention here that China alongside the US pushed Pakistan to withdraw from kargil war in 1999. Why China pushed Pakistan to withdraw from Kargil? Either, it does not want war in its neighborhood and if Kargil war could go worse it might affect China also or was it something else?
Coming back to visa controversy, with Chinese embassy in India is issuing separate visas to Kashmiri students and businessmen, some political commentators in Kashmir believe it is good for Kashmir, but if we give it a deep thought, it is the Kashmiri who is on the losing side.
There are 23 resolutions pending with the United Nations on Kashmir issue. There is an armed conflict, which is supported by peaceful non-violent resistance movement - going on from the last 20 years. The disputed nature of conflict is being discussed in every important forum. Even political commentators go on to say the road for peace in South Asia goes through Kashmir. But that has turned into rhetoric. So how would stapled visa help solve Kashmir issue? All it does is that it bars Kashmiri students to get their education in China. Similarly, when whole world is trying to build their business relations with China, Kashmiri business community can’t take benefit of it unlike the Indian business community which doesn’t face such restrictions. China has emerged as India’s largest trading partner in 2008, while surpassing United States. Just one decade ago, the bilateral trade between the two Asian giants was $2 Billion, and it has reached $51.8 billion in 2008.
If China was sincere to help Kashmir, it would help Kashmiri students to get admission and scholarship in Chinese universities on priority bases. It would also give concession to Kashmiri traders, which would not only help China to connect with Kashmiri people, but would also boost deteriorated Kashmiri economy. However, it is doing entirely opposite.
The very jubilance in Kashmir about China is coming is like “aaya aaya Lashkar aaya”. Lashkar is coming, Jaish is coming and now China is coming. These comings neither helped in the past nor they are going to help in the future. It might be of the interest of Indian business community (excluding trigger-happy FCCI people who formed task force of retired army generals and bureaucrats, which proposed to wage war in Pakistan, without knowing consequences of it) to have good relation with Pakistan if the Kashmir problem is solved. India which is not able to get access to Central Asian market will not only get that, but the solution will also help to build a successful South Asian block, which is in a way threat for China. So if China wants to fulfill its dream to rule Asia, it is in her benefit to have conflict like Kashmir in South Asia. This argument can be also looked in the context of a recent article titled “If China takes a little action, the so-called Great Indian Federation can be broken up” published by a Chinese writer Zhong Guo Zhan Lue Gang on 8th of August, 2009 which says China should use its forces and take support from countries like Pakistan, Nepal etc to split India. The fragmentation of India would only help China to be sole economic power in the region.
Though at the political level, China does not have good relations with India, but it does not want its politics effect its economic cooperation with India. And at the same time it’s getting free hand to do any kind of business in Pakistan. The all-weather ally and sweeter than sugar friendship with Pakistan is strategically important for China. On one hand Pakistan recognizes Xinjiang as part of China and on the other hand China is getting access and enormous support in Muslim we of its friendship with Pakistan. However, it cannot be negated that China has been relatively good with Muslim world compared to many western countries, but it remains to be seen how long this good-will remains.
Finally it has to be seen from one of my Pakistani friend’s perspective, who says whenever he visits China if he sees two people, one is Indian and the other is Chinese. He adds that he prefers to talk to Indian than Chinese. I can relate something to him; we share same culture, language, tradition, food habits. The day Kashmir problem is solved we will have more close relations with India than China. So will it be in the Chinese interest to solve Kashmir problem when it sees its competitor, India, without having a proper trade relation with South Asia and Central Asia and yet chasing him in every direction, and if they get access to this area that can be the threat to the Chinese market, and that too when USA is going to provide India every kind of support to contain China.
The author is a social activist and can be contacted at gkashmiri @gmail.com

Beyond Media Rhetoric, Muslims Enjoy a Respectable Life in Beijing

When we talk about china’s approach towards religious minorities’. The first thing that comes in our mind is: China does not recognize any religion, religious minorities and specifically Muslims are being harassed, ill treated by the Chinese Government. Coming from the Muslim background, I too had the same conception about China, and there was a reason to be skeptical, worried as I had seen on The Tsinghua University website that no religious activity should be performed inside the campus; yet on the other hand when I browsed the same website I saw there is a Muslims dinning hall available for Muslim students between zijing 21 and 22 dormitories.
I arrived in Tsinghua on August 2008, after taking shower I tried to look for the Dinning hall I had seen on the website, but unfortunately I was told that the dinning hall does not serve Muslim food, though it is meant for Muslims, they buy Halhal meat, yet they mix Alcohol in the food, which makes it Haram (prohibited) for Muslims to eat. While I was looking for Muslim food, I accidently met an Indian student here in Tsinghua, who took me to a restaurant near Wudakho where I had my dinner. The night passed, the worry started again, where should I take breakfast, lunch. I decided to visit my School, the school of Public Policy and Management, but for me reaching my school was not easy as I could not speak a single Chinese word. So I started looking for some one who could speak English, fortunately I found a guy, who could speak English, I requested him to show me the school of Public policy. This was the first time when I saw the warmth of Chinese people. This student not only came with me to my school but he took me around the whole Tsinghua campus; more importantly when I told him I am Muslim, He helped me to get the dinning card, took me to another Muslim restaurant inside the Tsinghua, which is meant for Chinese Muslim students. I was elated to see Muslim restaurant, though not as sophisticated as other canteens in the campus; but the restaurant even provided me free Sehri during the month of Ramadan , which I had never expected to get here.
With the passing time, I came to know china’s policy towards its minorities. I found that unlike most of the universities in the world, in china all the universities have special restaurants for Muslim students, which serve subsidized food. Besides, these Muslim restaurants inside the campus, there are a number of Muslim restaurants outside the campus as well. A Muslim can find Halhal food in every super market. From meat to milk, and from bread to ice-cream and juice, Halhal food is available all the corners of Beijing
Outside the university campus, China offered me a chance to visit one of the oldest mosques of Islam; Niujie Mosque in Beijing, which was built in 996 AD. It was again surprising for me to see men and women flock together to offer the prayers. The gathering was so huge I thought I am somewhere in a Muslim country.
When we look back to Chinese history since Mao’s period, Muslims were least affected even in the Cultural Revolution period. Chinese government has been always effectively protecting the Muslims community and their sentiments. The example of these policies can be seen from the Pig year 2007, when China banned any mention of pigs in the TV adds, in order not to antagonize Muslim community in China which constitute two percent of china’s population .
As I become familiar with the people, culture, and society here in China , I don’t see any problem in practicing my religion, I some times feel more secure, empowered than in my homeland.
While looking at China’s pro minority policies, I realize whey china is so close to Muslim world, Whether it is china’s all time close friend Pakistan, or it is Saudi Arabiya, Iran, or any other Muslim country; China has a cordial relation with whole Muslim world. The result of that can be seen not a single Chinese person was touched in Iraq, and in Afghanistan. Ultimately truth prevails, beyond media rhetoric I would say Muslims in Beijing are freer, independent and empowered then many Muslim communities in the world.

In Search of My Identity

‘He has got Indian passport but he does not look like an Indian.’

It was August 26, when I first arrived in Beijing. Beijing was busy welcoming guests from across the globe. Beijing was blooming and there was no reason why it should not have been, as China was hosting 2008 Olympic Games. Thousands of ordinary people thronged to Beijing to watch historic Olympic Games. One could see volunteers – trained and acclimatized with the foreign cultures – everywhere including airports, railway stations, highways, at all most all the commercial and tourist places - to help and do the interpretation for visitors. What added color to the Olympics in Beijing and made China proudest host was when their athletes won most of the gold medals. If 2001 formally opened China to the world market, 2008 opened gates of Chinese culture to the world culture and vice-versa.
When I arrived in Beijing, before I could come out of the airport, I faced a hard but truthful reality. At the immigration check despite the clearance, they asked me to wait. As Chinese was indeed alien for me till that time, I knew only one Chinese word Ni hao (hello), I could not understood the reason they stopped me. After waiting for 20 minutes, I started looking for an interpreter who could help me, what they are looking for, but I could not find one. All I could see, they were calling some people on the phone that made me scared. I thought they will arrest me for the reason I don’t know, or I will never know. Coming from the conflict hit Kashmir region, I could only imagine how people were arrested, killed, or disappeared during nineties, so I was just preparing my self for the same experience. I had a sigh of relief when I saw an Indian man talking to them and after waiting impatiently again for 20 minutes, they let me go. Though I got a bit of relief, but felt very perturbed why did they halt me here? So what was it; they were looking for? Why did they allow everybody to go and kept me waiting? What was the problem? These questions were hammering my mind, I rushed to see that an Indian man, to find out what were these officials looking for, after some minutes of search I could find him and ask him; can you please tell me: Why didn’t they allow me to go first? Why they asked me to wait for more than half an hour? What is the problem? … He smiled and said: they didn’t believe you are an Indian. They said, ‘he has got an Indian passport, but does not look like an Indian.’ This puzzled me and was the starting point when I realized that it is not only me, but people outside Indian boundaries too don’t accept me as an Indian. I remember when I was questioned at Amsterdam Airport in 2006 for the same reason. This was the time again I was forced to think ‘who am I? What is my identity?’ My passport calls me an Indian, but despite having Indian passport people don’t accept me as an Indian. From my classmates to other acquaintances from around the world, everybody know me as a Kashmiri, why so? It is not me only who would proudly love to be called as Kashmiri than Indian, but the people around me don’t accept me as an Indian either.
Chinese being predominantly Han ethnic group have little knowledge about religions. Yes, there is no doubt they know the major religions of the world, like: Christianity, Buddhism, and Islam. Christianity because of Christmas celebrations, which most of the Chinese love to celebrate, though most of them don’t know why they do so. Buddhism had an amicable impact on Chinese society, and Islam, as Muslims are the second largest minority here in China. There are around two hundred thousand Muslims living in China. Though the state does not recognize any religion, but I have not seen any restrictions on the practice of any religion here. Unlike most of the democratic countries, all most all the universities have separate restaurants for Muslim students, which offer Halhal and subsidized food. Finding Halhal food outside the universities is not difficult, either. Besides a number of Muslim restaurants, one can find packed Halhal food with Islamic organization stamp on it, in almost all the supermarkets in Beijing, and other cities of China.
When I arrived in Tsinghua University, the university I had never heard of before I applied for it .Tsinghua is among the top fifty universities in the world, with more than 30,000 undergrad and grad students, and around 5000 Ph. D. scholars indeed was unimaginable for me. It takes 30 minutes by bicycle to shutter from one department to other, and hard to explore whole campus even you spend whole day walking or riding bicycle. Joining (MID) Program in The School of Public Policy, which has 42 students from 32 nationalities; Teachers who been teaching or taught around the globe; The School where from Bill Gates, Bill Clinton, Tony Blair Bush, Sonia Gandhi, and Hillary Clinton, to the noble prize winners like Al Gore and Joseph Stieglitz have delivered lectures, has fascinated me in every respect.
Studying in Tsinghua is not only challenging for me in academic respect, but it also became more challenging for me owing to my Muslim identity. I have to answer questions posed by my fellow students and people around me on the issues related to Muslim world. Whether there is attack in Islamabad in Pakistan, or it is a discussion of American aggression in Iraq and Afghanistan, or be politics, economy and social system in Muslim world. The most frequently of them asked is: Why Muslims become terrorists? Why women are not treated well in Muslims countries. These very questions forced me to read more about my religion, and Muslim world. Then came a unique, yet surprising and challenging opportunity for me, which nobody had got so for in post Cultural Revolution in China. I was asked to give presentation on Islam in the Tsinghua University, for which school provided official funds for arrangements. I couldn’t believe it, as if it was a dream. How can they allow me to do presentation on Islam? State does not recognize any religion here. Just I could not believe, nor did my friends. Then came the time to do presentation, I could see posters pasted on the school wall, presentation on Islam, teachers and students from other departments have been invited too to join the presentation. I was nervous and there was reason to be, as I had to do presentation on the most discussed religion in the world. When I did my presentation on Islam, it was again dominated by questions like, Terrorism, women’s rights in Islam, and problems faced by Muslim world. The important and relevant example of present Muslim world I could quote was Kashmir’s transition from armed moment to the non-violent moment. I was surprised, when one of my classmate from United Kingdom, during the question answer session stood up and said, ‘I am shameful for whatever is happening in Kashmir, as it is the creation of my country, UK.’
Over the last six months in Beijing I have faced very harsh realities of identity, am I an Indian, or a Kashmiri, if I am Muslim, I should be then a terrorist, an orthodox or an illiterate. What not. I don’t go to discos or bars, yet I know the history and culture of western world, I can speak in their language; I am as modern as they are, I speak more against terrorism than any non-Muslim. Yet they know ‘he is a Muslim; a threat for the world.’ This is not what they say me; this is what I always feel.
I was astonished to see Beijing as a clean city despite so populated and congested. When I was in Sweden in 2006, I was amazed to see the cleanliness there but when I came to China, I realized keeping Uppsala or Stockholm clean is not a difficult task, as the population of these Scandinavian cities is proportionately very less as compared to Beijing. From Starbucks to MacDonald, and jazz music Beijing has everything to offer. (Even) as a Muslim, it paved me chance to visit Chinas first and one of the world’s oldest mosque, Niujie Mosque, built in 996 AD. Masjids are a connecting force for people of the faith. It is Hidian Mosque, not far from Peking, and Tsinghua universities, which helps me to meet Muslim students from around the globe. But more impotently Hidian Mosque provided me the chance to meet cream of Pakistani scholars, who pursue their Ph.D. degrees in different universities in Beijing. Interacting and meeting with this influential Pakistani intelligentsia is something enriching. There are more than 30 Pakistani scholars pursuing PhD in Beijing, on HEC (higher education commission) scholarship of Pakistan. But recently a friend who belongs to other part of Kashmir told me that scholarship program has been now closed by the new government, which he perceived as a blow to the education system in Pakistan. After interacting with most of the Pakistani students, I realized none of them is in favor of independence of Kashmir. Yes all of them are against gun culture, they call it terrorism. I wonder when the same people are sent to Kashmir, how they become Mujahids. I was told a sizable number of them were criminals and thugs from many other countries, who had been given choice either to go jail, or Kashmir.
Amidst this networking, studying, and playing in a foreign country, I feel very safe, as safe as I have never been in my whole life. Here I don’t have to show my identity card, unlike my own land, where I cannot step out of my home without it. But here too the question of identity haunts me.
….Ends….

Muslims need ''Knowledge capital''; West understanding and tolerance

“Read! Recite! Proclaim! In the name of thy Lord and cherisher who created - created the human, out of a congealed clot of blood (a leach-like substance). Read and thy Lord is Most Bountiful. He who taught (the use of) the Pen- taught man that which he knew not (Holley Quran 96: 1-5).


The first revelation to the Prophet of Islam revealed by God was ‘to read’. God didn’t say fight, be clean, do charity, pray, but he said ‘read’. With the passage of time Mohammad (peace be upon him) stressed his followers to gain knowledge, he says “seek knowledge even unto China”. The importance of china in my understanding was in two contexts, one Chinese language was alien to Arabs and other Islamic world at that time besides being very far off place to the Arab world. And second was the knowledge capital of china that would have made it focus of Prophet, as China was advanced, even than western world, in knowledge at that time. The emphasis given on knowledge by Prophet of Islam motivated most of the Muslims to seek knowledge and to transfer this knowledge from generation to generation. Within the hundred years after the emergence of Islam, Muslims proved to be very educative and innovative.

The non-commercialization of education in Islamic world and the zeal to propagate this knowledge made Islamic world front runner and torch bearer of knowledge. When whole of the west was in Dark period, Islamic world was blooming with knowledge and prosperity. Muslim scholars contributed in almost all major fields of knowledge and innovations. The thirst of knowledge in the Muslim world gave birth to scholars like Abu Ali al-Hussain Ibn Abdallah Ibn Sina, known as Avicinna, Hunayn ibn Ishaq, Abu Bakr Muhammad ibn Zakariya al-Razi, Al-Idrisi, Ibn al-Baitars who immensely contributed in the field of medicine and science, besides these scholars Muslim world created scholars like; Muhammad ibn Musa al-Khwarizmi, Ghiyath al-Din al Kashani, Umar Khayyam, Abu al-Hassan al Haitham and many others. They too proved to be masters and architects of the modern scientific fields of medicine, astronomy, physics, mathematics and social sciences like Sociology and History, of which example of Ibn khaldun is a ready reminder to everybody. Unfortunately we can not find names of these people anymore in our academic books and papers, as there legacy was not continued and their innovations were not patented, when Intellectual property law IPR was implemented. With the result western scholars adopted their innovation and patented them in their own name, as they did with the number of Chinese innovations like gun powder, printing press etc.

The knowledge capital of Muslim world could not sustain long, as the coming generation failed to preserve and work with it with the changing times. With the result after 13th century, influence of Muslim world in the field of knowledge and innovation started declining. Though the influence and contribution of Muslim scholars to this legacy remained for one more century, but after fifteenth century we could not see such innovations and rapid application of knowledge in the Islamic world. Despite the fact that in the medieval period three greatest Muslim Empires came to existence- Ottaman in Turkey, Safavid In Iran, and Mughal in Indian subcontinent. Still in modern time, we could not see much contribution in scientific knowledge by Islamic world. Why the greed of seeking and imparting knowledge declined in Muslim world? Why Muslim countries are far behind than non-Muslim countries in education, technology, and economic development? Why Muslim women are less educated than the non-Muslim women? Despite the fact, Islam gives equal rights to both male and female to seek education /knowledge. According to (Al-Bayhaqi), the Prophet Muhammad (Pbuh) says, “It is obligatory for every Muslim – male or female – to acquire knowledge.” If Islam would not have allowed women to seek knowledge we would not have seen the wife of Prophet Mohammad (PBuh) - Aisha bente Abu Bakir, who had gained a tremendous knowledge of law, religion, literature and even medicine - guiding many sahaabi’s (companions of prophet Mohammad) after the death of Prophet Mohammad. But present day Muslim world has forgotten this.

The recent ban on girl education and demolition of Schools in the picturesque Swat valley in NWFP (North-Western Frontier Province) in Pakistan by Taliban is a new challenge which Muslim world is facing by its own people. Though national assembly of Pakistan later rejected the ban, Taliban’s second in command Mula Shah Duran ordered prohibition of girl’s education Calling it un-Islamic. One fails to understand which Islam he is talking of. As we have already seen din-i-illahi, din-i- Qadyani , and now we have dine–i-Talibani, which does everything except the things which Islam teaches. According to Washington Times, dated January 5, 2009, “Three years ago, more than 120,000 girls attended schools and colleges in the region (NWFP), which has a population of 1.8 million. Now only about 40,000 are enrolled”. The enrolment has effected because of the speeches of so called local religious demagogues against girl education. If the situation continues time is not far when we will find no girls in schools, and boys either in opium cultivation or in jihadi camps. If we go by Taliban means of education, then we have to confine girls inside homes and teach them to read Quran. What should these girls do, just to recite Quran-- which they don’t even understand as most of us in south Asia do-- is not enough to progress. If learning means to learn to read Quran only, than Prophet Mohammad (Pbuh) would not have asked his people seek knowledge even if you have to go China.

Muslims in the present world feel helplessness, vulnerability, frustration and reaction to their every action, whether sane or insane, with the result they either go for Jihad or come to the streets to protest. That only alienates them from the rest of the world. On the other hand America and other western countries that feel Muslim as the biggest threat, with the result they have been using force to eliminate a section of people who oppose American/western hegemony. The antagonism and hatred by western countries for Muslim world, going on from many centuries, is a creation of Christian Church who felt threat of Islam. This creation of hatred is still going on in western world despite their liberal education and thinking. Thanks to the American and western culture and so called modernism that has trapped and jaundiced their vision. If they would have kept, otherwise, eye on their history that could have led them to learn the truth about their past.

The second biggest challenge now, west and America feels, is ideological challenge. All the ideologies vanished, because of the influence of western ideology. Hindus, Buddhists, Communists, and other sects fell into the lap of west. Even the most politically and culturally rigid country; China follows all the footsteps of West. The culture, way of living, eating habits, and dressing in China goes western way; thus on cultural sector even China has fallen into their lap. Then ,there remains only one ideology which challenges western ideology, i.e Islamic ideology .this is the ideology which challenges western ideology and goes against the western way of life style. This way, it is Muslim world that become only challenging force for the western world. So there remain only two prominent ideologies: western ideology and Muslim ideology. Parallel force is always, and has been always, challenge unless it bows down its head and accepts the supremacy of the other. If you are not with us, you are against us. And the one who is against us has to accept our hegemony or face the music, that is the direct and indirect message of American and western world to the Muslim world.

At this important point of time, when a black African becomes president of USA, Taliban forces in Afghanistan are able to gain control, and America is loosing their “war on terror”. The humiliation of Bush in Iraq where he was given farewell with shoes, the Israeli attack on Palestine that lead to death of thousands of people and further strengthened the Hamas, one wonders where the world is heading. In one hand America and its allies have realized that they cannot defeat Muslim world with force, they need to negotiate and find a different strategy. One the other hand Muslim world is getting ray of hope after America’s shameful exist form Iraq, and their helplessness in Afghanistan. But what is Muslim world doing? Excluding one or two Muslims nations, USA and other Western countries control all most all the Muslim nations. That starts from the nuclear power Pakistan to the natural resource rich countries of Middle East. But, despite America’s indirect control on these governments, it could not control the emotion and loyalty of the people of these countries, who have started hating America and western world because of its anti-Muslim policies.

Despite having enough economic resources Muslim world could not establish a single world class university. This had a direct impact on the knowledge capital of Muslim world. Why can’t Muslims produce ibn Sina, and Muhammad ibn Musa al-Khwarizmi like people now? Muslims in the world have enough resources, access to technology and knowledge; why still they are behind the west. If Muslims were masters of knowledge, why are they most illiterate and ignorant at this point? This ignorance and lack of knowledge keeps Muslims behind the world, especially the West. Why a community of 14 million Jews can maneuver things in the world, why not Muslims with more the 1 billion population. Muslims world need brains, not countless heads. Muslim uma in general and Ulemas in particular need to come out of there stereotypic notions about science, and encourage young generation -boys –girls to seek more and more scientific knowledge. If Muslims can not speed up and work in the field of knowledge which is imperative for the success of a nation, state, village and for the growth of an individual; they will remain where they are. On the other hand, if the west and America will not take Muslims seriously, the word of ‘jihad’ which has now become a household discussion may have an impact on every household.

Why People Defied Election Boycott Call In Jammu And Kashmir

By Ghulam Nabi

28 January, 2009
Countercurrents.org

Elections were held, voter turnout was exceptional, and the government is now formed. But the big question remained unanswered why did people vote this time. The large scale turnout surprised the pro-freedom leadership and pro-Indian parties as well as the state of Pakistan, and India. While the Indian state project the voter turnout in favor of Indian state, and the Kashmir based political parties including the ruling party believes this vote is for development, not for the resolution of Kashmir. New Delhi based news channels and news papers forgot their journalistic ethics which they often do, when it comes to the matter of projecting India as a biggest democracy, and Kashmir as an integral part of India. While some news papers and news channels projected the voter turn out as the defeat of separatist sentiment in Kashmir, while the others wrote Pakistan should stop now taking about Kashmir, as the kashmiris have shown faith on Indian democracy. Indian president in her address to the Nation on the eve of 60th Republic day of India also projected elections in Kashmir as the Kashmiri people’s faith on Indian polity. One wonders how she could forget the protests of hundreds of thousands of people in recent Amarnath controversy when people marched to the streets of Kashmir to demand for Aazadi (independence). On the other hand this was again the time when separatist like Mirvaiz Umar Farooq, first time confessed that the governance and resolution are two separate issues ,alas had separatist leadership realized it earlier we would not have lost hundreds of lives which were killed because they either contested election or casted their vote .

Unlike this election, Elections in Kashmir were either rigged like 1987, or people were forced to vote like 1996, 2002. But amidst this rigging and coercion we could not see a large voter turn out, than this election, why? I believe the resilience of militants not to use gun against the contestants and voters is the biggest reason for large scale voter turn out , as National conference president Farooq Abdullah said in a public debate on NDTV , that if Pakistan and militants had not restrained from attacking we would not have seen this large scale turn out . But at the same time we have seen people from Srinagar, and some other small towns observing complete boycott of elections. So does this mean only people from Srinagar and other small town which observed boycott want aazadi and rest don’t? I would argue with a big No, those who voted do not want to be part of India, as the ones who did not vote; their ends are same, but the means to reach that destination can be different. If we look at the press briefings and speeches of all mainstream parties during their election campaign, either they disassociate themselves with the resolution of Kashmir conflict, and fought the election on the name of governance or they projected themselves as the facilitators for the resolution of Kashmir dispute. In both ways mainstream parties tried their best to disassociate themselves from projecting the so called glory of Indian democracy which has been very much understood by Kashmiri people from last sixty years. However at the same time, regional/religious centric parties like BJP in Jammu and PDP in Kashmir managed to win more seats on the name of religion and region, thus lays the foundation of communal politics in Kashmir, which had failed so far to take its organized form.

History is witness to the fact that Kashmiris have fought against those who went against their wishes .be it towering leader of Kashmir; sheikh Mohammad Abdullah, who was highly praised and respected by the people of Jammu and Kashmir, unlike any of the separatist or mainstream leader of present time, but when people understood he has compromised on Kashmir cause, they went to the extent of dig his corpse out of his grave in 1990’s. The 1990 arms movement created a new leadership who started ruling people, and some times went to the extent of giving judgments on family /community disputes. A section of this community later become part of Hurriyat conference, which virtually started ruling Kashmir. Hurriyat become biggest force after 1990. But the state elections in 1996 when National conference rule was enthroned on Kashmiri people, NC workers started reaching out to people, but Hurriyat’s power did not vanish with it, it played its role and become a parallel force till august 2008, when it again got a control on the mass movement. Thanks to the then Governor of Jammu and Kashmir sate S .K Sinha who forced Aazad lead Congress and PDP coalition government to transfer land to the Amarnath shrine Board, which provoked kashmiris to fight back and get land allotment order revoked. Hurriyat tried to exploit this sentiment, and convert it into mass movement for independence, but the internal politics in both the sections of Hurriyat conference disappointed people and we lost the opportunity to negotiate with India. This was the second chance when India was ready to discuss any solution after 1990, and this time we had gained support from some sections of Indian civil society. Then came the election period, not only two factions of Hurriyat but Yaseen malik , and Sajad Lone who was earlier delinking elections in J&K with the resolution of Kashmir , lost his sanity and was swayed by August protests decided to launch anti election campaign. But they got in response what they had sown. This time they could not lure people for there false claims of bringing independence overnight. So the question arises, why people voted, if they were protesting against India and for aazadi just three months back? The answer is failure of institutionalization of movement.

Almost everybody in Kashmir knows, millions were being donated by people for the Kashmir cause, but the money went to the pockets of our separatist leader’s .For twenty years of resistance they failed to create even a single school, college, library, or hospital. Families of militants and other poor people always remained at the mercy of pro India parties. Even the deceased of august 2008 protests did not receive any monitory support from Hurriyat, except some meager amount of money and award from JKLF to some of the martyrs who were killed in Police firing. With the absence of alternative support, failure of Hurriyat and pro-freedom leadership to support needy ones, people chose what they felt is better for them. They voted, but not compromised their mission to fight for aazadi, thus they proved to be masters of negotiation, unlike our Hurriyat leaders who failed to understand the ground situation. History is testimony to the fact, that those people, who vote, are the same people who were part of 1990 and august 2008 mass movements. They are the people who face the brunt of army, police, and some times the harassments by militants. They fought for independence at every point, but they have been betrayed and disappointed at every time by our separatist leadership, yet they say they vote for development, not for India. At the same time mainstream parties succeeded in delinking elections with the resolution of Kashmir, and thus projected elections for the development and solution for local problems. Thus they succeeded in bringing people out to vote. This is the lesson for Hurriyat and pro-freedom leadership, they need to do introspection and chalk out a proper strategy to lead this movement to the logical conclusion. If they are not able to do it, it is better for them to get out of the way.

Sahibnabi@yahoo.co.in