From left : Al-Sheikh Imran Jamaldeen,Sri Lanka Bureau of Foreign Employment (SLBFE) Chairman Kingsley Ranawake, Secretary Foreign Employment Promotion and Welfare Ministry Nissanka N Wijeratne and Muslim Theologians Council Secretary General Al-Sheikh M.S.M. Thassim are seen after the press briefing held at the Sri Lankan Embassy in Riyadh on Friday.

Published: Nov 18, 2011 23:55 Updated: Nov 19, 2011 01:49

RIYADH: A Sri Lankan delegation visiting Dawadmi, 380 km from the capital, was given a warm welcome by the Otaibi tribe leader  Mohamed Faihan Shoraim Al-Otaibi on Thursday.

The high-powered delegation led by Sri Lanka’s Western Province Gov. Alavi Mowlana met the tribal leaders of the Otaibi family on Thursday to seek pardon for Rizana Nafeek.

Nafeek was convicted of murdering a four-month-old infant in Dawadmi on May 2005. The warm welcome accorded to the visiting panel raised fresh hopes for the release of death row housemaid Nafeek.

Other members of the visiting team included Foreign Employment Promotion and Welfare Ministry Secretary Nissanka N. Wijeratne, Sri Lanka Bureau of Foreign Employment (SLBFE) Chairman Kingsley Ranawake, External Affairs Ministry Additional Secretary Ibrahim Sahib Ansar, Mohammed Sheriff Mohammed Thowfeek, a Sri Lankan member of Parliament who works in Nafeek’s constituency, Abdul Hameed Mohammed Azwer, senior legislator, Muslim Theologians Council Secretary-General  M.S.M. Thassim and  Imran Jamaldeen and  M.B.M. Zarook.

According to legal experts, Nafeek can only be saved if she is pardoned by the victim’s family. The pardon can be offered with or without a request for blood money.

“We are leaving the shores of the Kingdom with an ardent hope of getting this convicted maid released on humanitarian grounds,”  Thassim told Arab News on Friday on the eve of his departure.

“We were given a warm welcome by the members of the Otaibi family in Dawadmi under the leadership of Faihan, who said he would do all that is possible under Islamic law to release the maid who was a victim of circumstances,” Thassim noted.

Speaking on the occasion,  Jamaldeen said the Sri Lankan government respects the laws of the host country. “We only seek pardon from the parents of the deceased infant according to Islamic Shariah.”

He added that the visit opened a new chapter in the relations between the Otaibi family and the government of Sri Lanka which would eventually lead to a happy ending.

Gov. Mowlana told Arab News that he was happy that the visit opened a dialogue between the two parties. He said he was positive that the parents of the deceased child would graciously pardon the maid on sympathetic grounds.

The governor thanked the Saudi government and its embassy in Colombo for paving the way for a smooth dialogue between the parties.

The delegation also met  Mirdath Fahad Al-Otaibi, grandfather of the deceased infant.  Mirdath told the visiting team that he would negotiate for a pardon from his daughter and son-in-law Naif Jiziyan Khalaf Al-Otaibi to release the maid from death row.

Nafeek was sentenced to death by a three-member bench at Dawadmi High Court for killing the baby she was entrusted to look after in the absence of her Saudi employers at home. The accused maintained that the newborn choked during bottle-feeding, and that she tried to seek help.

In August this year, the Royal Court handled Nafeek’s case to reach an amicable settlement with the Saudi parents of the victim.

A 32-year-old mother from France is set to become the first woman ever to be sent to prison for wearing an Islamic veil.

Hind Ahmas refuses to accept the legitimacy of a Paris court which has ordered her to spend 15 days learning her civic duties.

She was sentenced by magistrates in Meaux, a Paris suburb, yesterday – after being arrested wearing an outlawed veil outside the Elysee Palace in the French capital on April 11.

That was shortly after Nicolas Sarkozy’s government introduced a ban on all forms of Islamic head coverings, including the niqab and the burka.

Ahmas was not allowed into the hearing at Meaux Criminal Court because she refused to remove her face covering.

But prosecutors made it clear to her lawyer, Gilles Devers, that Ahmas now faces two years in prison and a £27,000 fine.

‘There is no possibility of me removing the veil,’ Ahmas said.

‘I’m not taking it off. The judge needs citizenship lessons, not me.’

Ahmas, who has already refused to pay a fine of around £100 for wearing a veil on another occasion, intends to take her case to the European Court of Human Rights.

She has launched a pressure group, Do Not Touch My Constitution, along with Kenza Drider, another veil wearer who wants to run for president in the Spring.

If Ahmas does become the first woman in the world to go to prison for wearing a veil, then it will be seen as a huge propaganda coup for Islamic-rights campaigners.

Mr Sarkozy said the ban on head coverings was not aimed at persecuting Muslims, but merely to make France a more tolerant, inclusive society.

When it was introduced, he said the ban was aimed at stopping criminals – from terrorists to shoplifters – disguising their faces from security staff and CCTV.

But the sight of a young mother being led away to the cells merely because she refuses to take off her veil will cause outrage around the world.

Mr Devers said the veil ban was ‘unconstitutional’, while senior police officers have told judges that it is unenforceable without persecuting women.

France became the first country in Europe to outlaw the veil, while similar legislation has since been passed in Belgium and Holland.

One has been mooted in Britain by a number of politicians, including Conservative backbenchers, but there are no immediate plans to introduce one.

Read more: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2073579/Mother-32-set-woman-jailed-wearing-Islamic-veil.html#ixzz1gXFzq7by

Queenie Padilla interviewed after performing hajj in Makkah Saudi Arabia. Queenie Padilla is a daughter of the famous celebrity Robin Padilla who has also Embraced Islam.

MANILA, Philippines — Actress Queenie Padilla has quit show business for her Muslim religion.

In an interview with ABS-CBN News, Padilla said she finds inner peace and direction in life in Islam.

"Islam is a way of life. When you start to [become a] Muslim, you know [what] your life purpose really is. I am such a sinful person, but Allah invited me to his house. I am so close to him," she said.

Padilla recently performed the Hajj, a pilgrimage to Makkah in Saudi Arabia. She said she has become a totally different person because of Islam.

"When I was in showbiz, I was very unhappy. I was lost and I always felt I never belong. But now that Allah is in my life, Alhamdullilah, La illa illalah, I am so happy and content in my life," she said.

As she enjoys her new life, Padilla said she will not go back to show business.

"Haram kasi sa isang babae ang maging artista kasi lahat ng aura pinapakita mo. Kasi ang babaeng Muslim ay napaka-modest. At ang babae sa Islam ay parang jewel… Actually I already quit [showbiz] like 8 months [ago], since my last appearance on TV," she said.

Padilla thanked her father, action star Robin Padilla, who introduced her to Islam.

"I just want to thank my father for giving me the opportunity to perform Hajj. And I love him so much because without my father, I might not have been a Muslim," she said.

Even Padilla's relatives and friends in Saudi Arabia were inspired by her new image.

As she returns to the country, Padilla said she will carry with her the experiences she had while doing Hajj, adding that she will share these to her fellow Filipinos. — Report from Charles Tabbu, ABS-CBN News

Dr. Zakir Naik, is a dynamic international orator on Islam and Comparative Religion. He is a driving spirit forgetting worldwide acclaim for the proper presentation, understanding and clarification of Islam, as well as removing misconceptions about Islam

A talk by Dr zakir Naik. To know more about women's right in islam

Women right's in islam : Modernising or Outdated

Women right's in islam : Modernising or Outdated 2/2

Amina Saeed of the UAE had always dreamed of making an achievement in Islamic studies, so she decided to memorise the Quran and participate in international contests to fulfill her dream.

Motivated by her 25 brothers and sisters, who memorise parts of Quran, she outperformed them and managed to memorise the entire holy book in just 100 days.

The 19-year-old Amina, a student at the Sharjah college of Shariah and Islamic studies, then travelled to Jordan to participate in an international Quran memorisation contest. Amina was sure she would excess in the contest but had not expected she would outperform all other participants from 15 countries.

“I got the top position in the contest in Jordan and I am proud to make this achievement for my country,” she said, quoted by 'Emarat Al Youm' daily.

“I had always wanted to memorise the Quran and I was encouraged by the fact that all my 25 bothers and sisters, who are older than me, memorise parts of the holy book…I have spent an average 12 hours a day in an intensive Quran memorisation course until I memorised it all in just 100 days.”

Amina said she had already won second and third prizes in local contests but added that her biggest achievement was that she snatched the top position in the Amman contest, which was attended by scores of Muslims from 15 nations.

“I used to memorise parts of the Quran when I was a child at schools in Dubai…when I became 17 years old, I decided it was time to memorise all the holy book…I succeeded in doing so in just 100 days and was ahead of all my brothers and sisters and their children, who all memorise parts of the Quran.”Amina said she would keep reading the Quran daily to maintain her ability to control every word in the holy book, which has 114 suras (chapters), comprising more than 6,300 Ayat (sentences) that include in excess of 77,000 words.
 

The number of Britons choosing to become Muslims has nearly doubled in the past decade, according to one of the most comprehensive attempts to estimate how many people have embraced Islam.

Following the global spread of violent Islamism, British Muslims have faced more scrutiny, criticism and analysis than any other religious community. Yet, despite the often negative portrayal of Islam, thousands of Britons are adopting the religion every year.

Estimating the number of converts living in Britain has always been difficult because census data does not differentiate between whether a religious person has adopted a new faith or was born into it. Previous estimates have placed the number of Muslim converts inthe UK at between 14,000 and 25,000.

But a new study by the inter-faith think-tank Faith Matters suggests the real figure could be as high as 100,000, with as many as 5,000 new conversions nationwide each year.

By using data from the Scottish 2001 census – the only survey to ask respondents what their religion was at birth as well as at the time of the survey – researchers broke down what proportion of Muslim converts there were by ethnicity and then extrapolated the figures for Britain as a whole.

In all they estimated that there were 60,699 converts living in Britain in 2001. With no new census planned until next year, researchers polled mosques in London to try to calculate how many conversions take place a year. The results gave a figure of 1,400 conversions in the capital in the past 12 months which, when extrapolated nationwide, would mean approximately 5,200 people adopting Islam every year. The figures are comparable with studies in Germany and France which found that there were around 4,000 conversions a year.

Fiyaz Mughal, director of Faith Matters, admitted that coming up with a reliable estimate of the number of converts to Islam was notoriously difficult. "This report is the best intellectual 'guestimate' using census numbers, local authority data and polling from mosques," he said. "Either way few people doubt that the number adopting Islam in the UK has risen dramatically in the past 10 years."

Asked why people were converting in such large numbers he replied: "I think there is definitely a relationship between conversions being on the increase and the prominence of Islam in the public domain. People are interested in finding out what Islam is all about and when they do that they go in different directions. Most shrug their shoulders and return to their lives but some will inevitably end up liking what they discover and will convert."

Batool al-Toma, an Irish born convert to Islam of 25 years who works at the Islamic Foundation and runs the New Muslims Project, one of the earliest groups set up specifically to help converts, said she believed the new figures were "a little on the high side".

"My guess would be the real figure is somewhere in between previous estimates, which were too low, and this latest one," she said. "I definitely think there has been a noticeable increase in the number of converts in recent years. The media often tries to pinpoint specifics but the reasons are as varied as the converts themselves."

Inayat Bunglawala, founder of Muslims4UK, which promotes active Muslim engagement in British society, said the figures were "not implausible".

"It would mean that around one in 600 Britons is a convert to the faith," he said. "Islam is a missionary religion and many Muslim organisations and particularly university students' Islamic societies have active outreach programmes designed to remove popular misconceptions about the faith."

The report by Faith Matters also studied the way converts were portrayed by the media and found that while 32 per cent of articles on Islam published since 2001 were linked to terrorism or extremism, the figure jumped to 62 per cent with converts.

Earlier this month, for example, it was reported that two converts to Islam who used the noms de guerre Abu Bakr and Mansoor Ahmed were killed in a CIA drone strike in an area of Pakistan with a strong al-Qa'ida presence.

"Converts who become extremists or terrorists are, of course, a legitimate story," said Mr Mughal. "But my worry is that the saturation of such stories risks equating all Muslim converts with being some sort of problem when the vast majority are not". Catherine Heseltine, a 31-year-old convert to Islam, made history earlier this year when she became the first female convert to be elected the head of a British Muslim organisation – the Muslim Public Affairs Committee. "Among certain sections of society, there is a deep mistrust of converts," she said. "There's a feeling that the one thing worse than a Muslim is a convert because they're perceived as going over the other side. Overall, though, I think conversions arouse more curiosity than hostility."

How to become a Muslim

Islam is one of the easiest religions to convert to. Technically, all a person needs to do is recite the Shahada, the formal declaration of faith, which states: "There is no God but Allah and Mohamed is his Prophet." A single honest recitation is all that is needed to become a Muslim, but most converts choose to do so in front of at least two witnesses, one being an imam.

Converts to Islam

Hana Tajima, 23, fashion designer

Hana Tajima converted to Islam when she was 17. Frustrated by the lack of variety in Islamic clothing for converts she founded Maysaa, a fashion house that designs western-inspired clothing that conforms to hijab. 

"It's true that I never decided to convert to Islam, nor was there a defining moment where I realised I wanted to be Muslim.  My family aren't particularly religious.  I was interested in religion, but very disinterested in how it related to my life.  I grew up in rural Devon where my Japanese father was the ethnic diversity of the village.  It wasn't until I studied at college that I met people who weren't of the exact same background, into Jeff Buckley, underground hip-hop, drinking, and getting high.  I met and became friends with a few Muslims in college, and was slightly affronted and curious at their lack of wanting to go out to clubs or socialise in that sense.  I think it was just the shock of it, like, how can you not want to go out, in this day and age.   

"It was at about that time that I started to study philosophy, and without sounding too much like I dyed my hair black and wore my fringe in front of my face, I began to get confused about my life. I was pretty popular, had good friends, boyfriends, I had everything I was supposed to have, but still I felt like 'is that it?'  So these things all happened simultaneously, I read more about religion, learned more about friends of other backgrounds, had a quarter life crisis.  There were things that drew me to Islam in particular, it wasn't like I was reaching for whatever was there.  The fact that the Qur'an is the same now as it ever was means there's always a reference point. The issues of women's rights were shockingly contemporary.  The more I read, the more I found myself agreeing with the ideas behind it and I could see why Islam coloured the lives of my Muslim friends.  It made sense, really, I didn't and still don't want to be Muslim, but there came a point where I couldn't say that I wasn't Muslim. 

"Telling my family was the easy part.  I knew they'd be happy as long as I was happy, and they could see that it was an incredibly positive thing.  My friends went one of two ways, met with a lack of any reaction and lost to the social scene, or interested and supportive.  More the former, less the latter."

Denise Horsley, 26, dance teacher

Denise Horsley lives in North London. She converted to Islam last year and is planning to marry her Muslim boyfriend next year. 

"I was introduced to Islam by my boyfriend Naushad. A lot of people ask whether I converted because of him but actually he had nothing to do with it. I was interested in his faith but I went on my own journey to discover more about religion. 

"I bought loads of books on all the different religions but I kept coming back to Islam – there was something about it that just made sense, it seemed to answer all the questions I had. 

"I would spend hours in the library at Regents Park Mosque reading up on everything from women's rights to food. Before I went to prayers for the first time I remember sitting in my car frantically looking up how to pray on my Blackberry. I was so sure people would know straight away that I wasn't a Muslim but if they did no-one seemed to care. 

"During Ramadan I'd sit and listen to the Qur'anic recitations and would be filled with such happiness and warmth. One day I decided there and then to take my shahada. I walked down to the reception and said I was ready to convert, it was as simple as that. 

"My friends and family were rather shocked, I think they expected there would be some sort of huge baptism ceremony but they were very supportive of my decision. I think they were just pleased to see me happy and caring about something so passionately. 

"I grew up Christian and went to a Catholic school. Islam to me seemed to be a natural extension of Christianity. The Qur'an is filled with information about Jesus, Mary, the angels and the Torah. It's part of a natural transition. 

"I do now wear a headscarf but it wasn't something I adopted straightaway. Hijab is such an important concept in Islam but it's not just about clothing. It's about being modest in everything you do. I started dressing more modestly – forgoing low cut tops and short skirts – but before I donned a headscarf I had to make sure I was comfortable on the inside before turning my attention to the outside. Now I feel completely protected in my headscarf. People treat you with a new level of respect, they judge you by your words and your deeds, not how you look. It's the kind of respect every dad wants for their daughter. 

"There have been some problems. Immediately after converting I isolated myself a bit, which I now recognise was a mistake and not what Islam teaches. I remember a lady on a bus who got really angry and abusive when she found out I had converted. I also noticed quite a few friends stopped calling. I think they just got tired of hearing me say no – no to going clubbing, no to going down the pub. 

"But my good friends embraced it. They simply found other things to do when I was around. Ultimately I'm still exactly the same person apart from the fact that I don't drink, don't eat pork and pray five times a day. Other than that I'm still Denise."

Dawud Beale, 23

Dawud Beale was a self-confirmed "racist" two years ago who knew nothing about Islam and supported the BNP. Now a Muslim, he describes himself as a Salafi – the deeply socially conservative and ultra-orthodox sect of Islam whose followers try to live exactly like the Prophet did. 

"I was very ignorant to Islam for most of my life and then I went on holiday to Morocco, which was the first time I was exposed to Muslims. I was literally a racist before Morocco and by the time I was flying home on the plane a week later, I had already decided to become a Muslim." 

"I realised Islam is not a foreign religion, but had a lot of similarities with what I already believed. When I came back home to Somerset, I spent three months trying to find local Muslims, but there wasn't even a mosque in my town. I eventually met Sufi Muslims who took me to Cyprus to convert. 

"When I came back, I was finding out a lot of what they were saying was contradictory to what it said in the Qur'an. I wasn't finding them very authentic, to be honest. I went to London and became involved with Hizb-ut-Tahrir, the political group who call for the establishment of an Islamic state. 

"But while I believe in the benefits of Sharia law, I left this group as well. The problem was it was too into politics and not as concerned with practicing the religion. For me, it is about keeping an Islamic appearance and studying hard. I think we do need an Islamic state, but the way to achieve it is not through political activism or fighting. Allah doesn't change the situation of people until they see what's within themselves. 

"I have a big dislike for culture in Islamic communities, when it means bringing new things into the religion, such as polytheism or encouraging music and dance. There is something pure about Salafi Muslims; we take every word of the Qur'an for truth.  I have definitely found the right path. I also met my wife through the community and we are expecting our first child next year." 

Paul Martin, 27

Paul Martin was just a student when he decided to convert to Islam in an ice-cream shop in Manchester four years ago. Bored of what he saw as the hedonistic lifestyle of many of his friends at university and attracted to what he calls "Islam's emphasis on seeking knowledge," he says a one-off meeting with an older Muslim changed his life. 

"I liked the way the Muslims students I knew conducted themselves. It's nice to think about people having one partner for life and not doing anything harmful to their body. I just preferred the Islamic lifestyle and from there I looked into the Qur'an. I was amazed to see Islam's big emphasis on science. 

"Then I was introduced by a Muslim friend to a doctor who was a few years older than me. We went for a coffee and then a few weeks later for an ice cream. It was there that I said I would like to be a Muslim. I made my shahada right there, in the ice cream shop. I know some people like to be all formal and do it in a mosque, but for me religion is not a physical thing, it is what is in your heart. 

"I hadn't been to a mosque before I became a Muslim. Sometimes it can be bit daunting, I mean I don't really fit into this criteria of a Muslim person. But there is nothing to say you can't be a British Muslim who wears jeans and a shirt and a jacket. Now in my mosque in Leeds, many different languages are spoken and there are lots of converts. 

"With my family, it was gradual. I didn't just come home and say I was a Muslim. There was a long process before I converted where I wouldn't eat pork and I wouldn't drink. Now, we still have Sunday dinner together, we just buy a joint of lamb that is halal. 

"If someone at college had said to me 'You are going to be a Muslim', I would not in a million years have believed it. It would have been too far-fetched. But now I have just come back from Hajj – the pilgrimage Muslims make to Mecca." 

Stuart Mee, 46

Stuart Mee is a divorced civil servant who describes himself as a "middle-of-the-road Muslim." Having converted to Islam last year after talking with Muslim colleagues at work, he says Islam offers him a sense of community he feels is missing in much of Britain today. 

"Everything is so consumer-driven here, there are always adverts pushing you to buy the next thing. I knew there must be something longer term and always admired the sense of contentment within my colleagues' lives, their sense of peace and calmness. It was just one of those things that happened – we talked, I read books and I related to it. 

"I emailed the Imam at London Central Mosque and effectively had a 15 minute interview with him. It was about making sure that this was the right thing for me, that I was doing it at the right time. He wanted to make sure I was committed. It is a life changing decision. 

"It is surprisingly easy, the process of converting. You do your shahada, which is the declaration of your faith. You say that in front of two witnesses and then you think, 'What do I do next?' I went to an Islamic bookstore and bought a child's book on how to pray. I followed that because, in Islamic terms, I was basically one month old. 

"I went to a local mosque in Reading and expected someone to stop me say, 'Are you a Muslim?' but it didn't happen. It was just automatic acceptance. You can have all the trappings of being a Muslim – the beard and the bits and pieces that go with it, but Islam spreads over such a wide area and people have different styles, clothes and approaches to life. 

"Provided I am working within Islamic values, I see no need in changing my name and I don't have any intention of doing it. Islam has bought peace, stability, and comfort to my life. It has helped me identify just what is important to me. That can only be a good thing." 

Khadijah Roebuck, 48

Khadijah Roebuck was born Tracey Roebuck into a Christian family. She was married for twenty five years and attended church with her children every week while they lived at home. Now, divorced and having practiced Islam for the last six months, she says she is still not sure what motivated her to make such a big change to her life. 

"I know it sounds odd, but one day I was Tracey the Christian and the next day I was Khadijah the Muslim, it just seemed right. The only thing I knew about Muslims before was that they didn't drink alcohol and they didn't eat pork. 

"I remember the first time I drove up to the mosque. It was so funny; I was in my sports car and had the music blaring. I wasn't sure if I was even allowed to go in but I asked to speak to the man in charge, I didn't even know he was called an Imam. Now I wear a hijab and pray five times a day. 

"My son at first was horrified, he just couldn't believe it. It's been especially hard for my mum, who is Roman Catholic and doesn't accept it at all. But the main thing I feel is a sense of peace, which I never found with the Church, which is interesting. Through Ramadan, I absolutely loved every second. On the last day, I even cried. 

"It is interesting because people sometimes confuse cultures with Islam. Each Muslim brings their different culture to the mosque and different takes on the religion. There are Saudi Arabians, Egyptians and Pakistanis and then of course there is me. I slot in everywhere. A lot of the other sisters say to me, 'That is why we love you, Khadijah, you are just yourself.'"

Religious scholars from different Islamic sects have unanimously announced that the custom of dowry in vogue in India, Pakistan and Bangladesh was un-Islamic. Speaking in a seminar held by the Social Reforms Society, Ahmaduddin Owaisi said that this system was synonymous with corruption and was, therefore, invalid.

The ulema have passed a resolution that says that the marriage ceremonies in which dowry is given and accepted and the entire expenses of the dinner or lunch hosted in honour of the baratis are borne by the bride’s side would be totally boycotted.

Aleem Khan Falaki said that the Sharia can permit the dinner hosted for the barati if it is borne by the groom’s family but in the countries in the South Asia, it was the other way round, putting the maximum burden of the marriage on the parents of the bride. They have to spend a large sum to marry their daughters off. It is promoting the notion that daughters are a liability. It is unacceptable.

Highlighting the gravity of the issue, he further said that due to the lavish expenses for the pomp and show in marriages, parents of the brides landed in deep financial crisis and it also gave birth to a number of social problems like talaq, dowry killings, suicide by the bride etc.

According to the Sharia, the brides have a right to inheritance and they are entitled to get the ‘mohr’ at the time of nikah. But in the South Asian countries, the Muslims give importance to dowry and ignore the rights of the bride.

The custom of dowry has violated the law of inheritance in Islam. Because of the dowry custom, parents spend a large chunk of their wealth on marriages. As a result, sons and daughters are deprived of the legal rights of inheritance. He said that the expenses of baraat and dowry came under the definition of bribery and it was done for pomp and show and was against the teachings of the Quran as the Quran says that it is the man who spends on women but thanks to the custom of dowry, women have become men as they spend in order to buy men. It is a social blackmail and tantamounts to male prostitution because the price of the groom is decided on the qualities, income and family background. The same happens to the girl if she is less educated or a widow or divorced. So, dowry is haram”, he said.

The ulema unanimously agreed to the resolution. Maulana Muhammad bin Yamin said that the custom of dowry had become the cancer of the society and so only denouncing it or issuing advises would not suffice but constant campaigning  and boycott was needed. Quoting the holy Prophet Muhammad (PBUH) he said, “Make the process of marriage so easy that adultery becomes difficult. But unfortunately, people have made marriages so difficult that adultery has become easy.”

Maulana Fazlur Rehman of Pakistan’s Jamat Ahl-e-Hadith said that that the holy Prophet (PBUH)  had instructed us to prefer the girl’s piety and righteousness instead of her wealth, beauty and family status to prevent mischief(fitna).

A Shia scholar Sheikh Hidayat said that people accepting dowry cited the example of the holy Prophet (PBUH) saying that he gave his daughter ‘gifts’. He said that it was a big lie. All the articles of essential domestic use were bought with the money paid by Hadhrat Ali as ‘mohr’.

Jamia Nizamia’s Maulana Abdul Qadir Tahir Qadri said that accepting dowry and eating from the money of the bride’s parents was actually as good as seeking alms, and that begging was haram in Islam.

Religious scholar Arshad Bashir Madani supported the resolution and said that the custom was affecting our society badly. It was promoting people’s urge to increase their income by hook or crook. Many of the rites and customs observed during the marriages had nothing to do with Islam. He said that the government of India had formulated strict laws to root out the custom but people violated the laws. “How can you expect people to obey the law of the land when they do not pay heed to the instructions of the Prophet (PBUH), he quipped.

URL: http://www.newageislam.com/NewAgeIslamIslamicSociety_1.aspx?ArticleID=5181

(The Ceylon Moor Ladies’ Union founded in 1936 and incorporated by ACT No. 27 of the Parliament of Ceylon in June 1968 as an Approved Charity)

5^th July 2011

Dear brothers & sisters in Islam

Assalamu Alaikum Wa Rahmatullahe Wa Barakatuhu,

Take a look down memory lane and see the achievements which were hallmarks of history by CMLU. Don’t you feel contented being a part of CMLU and your assistance has been a pillar of strength in these 75 years to courageously forge ahead with the projects undertaken by CMLU up to now. Every brick in the pillar contains every rupee you have contributed and every member of your family is blessed with your virtuous deed.

The main focus of CMLU will be In sha Allah the:

“Service In The Name Of Allah” is in the heart of every member of the CMLU

1.       Home for Girls – 38 children under residential care Alhamdulillah

2    75^th YEAR ANNIVERSARY PROJECT  

In significance to the 75^th year CMLU envisages a dynamic effort to launch a fund raising project to extend our services to the most vulnerable Muslim women and girls in the society.  It is a halfway home for abused women and young girls. There are several who come seeking our assistance, some even mothers of the girls in our ‘Home for Girls’ and we are unable to cope due to lack of facilities and resources, neither is there a Muslim institution in Colombo that caters to this need. The CMLU, that is including all of you hopes to open a centre with the assistance of professionals in this field to Care and Rehabilitate abused women and girls. The Juvenile court officials, who encounter most of these cases are sending them to non Muslim institutions, have offered their fullest support if we are to initiate such a project.

This valuable information will inspire you to strengthen the pillars that will benefit the vulnerable Muslim women and girls in society.         

A golden opportunity to earn Almighty Allah’s Blessings during the Month of Ramazan,  Ameen.

Insha Allah all funds collected over the last few years to set up the Community Center in Galle will be diverted  towards the Transit Center in Colombo. 

Pleased to send herewith a CHEQUE / CASH for Rs………………. as my Zakat / Sadaqa contribution towards the above projects of CMLU.  (tick the activity you are funding)            

Name: …………………………………… ………………………                      Telephone No. ………………..

Address: ………………………………………………………………………………………………………

(All cheques should be drawn in favour “The Ceylon Moor Ladies’ Union” or   Bank Transfer to A/c No.  1200467401  Commercial Bank, Kirullapone Branch, Colombo 6, SWIFT CODE :   C C E Y L K L X

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Strangers walk up, point to her hijab – the headscarf some Muslim women wear – and tell her she’s in America now, has rights and can’t be forced to wear the covering.

She thanks them. Then she tells them that she’s American-born, Kentucky-raised and understands her rights quite well since she’s an attorney.

And she assures them she wears the hijab out of choice, not coercion.

“It’s the last thing I put on before I cross the threshold of my home,” says Allouch, who is president of the Cincinnati chapter of the Council on American-Islamic Relations.

“Once it’s on my head, it’s a symbol of my commitment to my faith – my own individual commitment, not what someone else told me it should be. When I walk out that door, I choose to represent being an American-born, Muslim woman.”

But the headscarf that is seen by Allouch as a personal symbol of faith has become a matter of controversy, even penalty, for some Muslim women.

The Iranian women’s soccer team was banned from Olympic qualifying rounds last month because players wear a head covering. A California woman is suing retailer Abercrombie & Fitch after being fired for wearing a hijab – which, she points out, she also wore at her job interview.

The cases, along with recent news specials about Saudi Arabian women driving – which is forbidden – have intensified interest in the beliefs and practices of Muslim women.

And shown, many of them would say, that non-Muslims not only have a poor understanding of what goes on a Muslim woman’s head, but what goes on inside it.

The hijab is an obvious example. Westerners often view it as an accessory, as easily left off as an earring.

Muslims see it is an act of personal obedience, following verses in the Quran that exhort both men and women to modesty.

Rather than being an object of oppression, the hijab is viewed as “liberating” by women like Allouch.

Instead of leaving their identity to fashion designers and retailers, Muslim women make choices about how their body will be viewed and how they will physically express who they are, she says.

“Some people see the hijab as a requirement on women,” she says. “I see it as just the reverse. I get to control it. I get to decide what people’s perception of me is.”

Only in a handful of countries, including Saudi Arabia and Iran, are women required to wear the hijab. American Muslim women decide the matter for themselves.

Many are particularly irritated by the thought that males dictate that decision, or any other.

“Of all the things that frustrate us, one is the thought that other people need to speak on our behalf when we’re very capable of speaking for ourselves,” says Allouch, who practices law in Kentucky and Ohio.

To the perception they need to be freed from oppression, some wonder if the statement isn’t more fitting for females pressured to wear revealing clothing or to aspire to unachievable standards of beauty.

In contrast, Allouch says the hijab isn’t part of her wardrobe, it is part of herself.

Growing up, she sometimes saw it as a complexity. Now she sees it as clarifying.

“It’s another benefit of wearing the hijab,” she says. “Not only is it about me showing who I am, but it also gives me insight into who other people are. It shows me the truth of people.”