Just two weeks ago, the authoritarian regime of Hosni Mubarak seemed as firm and immovable as the great timeless pyramids that symbolise his country of Egypt.
Today, the whole world is watching in suspended disbelief as tens of thousands of Egyptians openly defy Mubarak’s security forces – ignoring curfews, braving tear gas shells and water cannons, and tearing down giant posters of the powerful dictator that ruled over them for 30 years.
In parts of Cairo, law enforcement has melted away before the protestors, and the army has been called in to wrest back government control as Mubarak faces the largest public uprising since the Egyptian monarchy was overthrown in 1952.
Meanwhile, a sudden clamour for freedom is also posing serious challenges to despotic regimes elsewhere in the Arab world.
This unlikely revolution began with a humble Tunisian fruit-seller, Muhammad Al Bouazizi who, in desperation after policemen took away his wooden cart, doused himself in petrol and struck a match that would ultimately set the whole Arab world ablaze.
In the ensuing outrage, citizens rose up in revolt in Tunisia leading to an ignominious end to the 23 year old autocratic regime of President Zine Al Abidine Ben Ali.
The Tunisian president fled to Saudi Arabia with his family and close colleagues, where a Royal palace in Jeddah has reportedly been opened up to accommodate them.
A fascinating phenomena observed in this revolution is the manner in which a suppressed nation, long accustomed to arbitrary apprehensions and torture, could suddenly be overwhelmed by a single incident of tragedy – one moment of injustice that sent tremors throughout the population, leaving them seemingly immune to both pain and fear, as they took on a powerful, oppressive machinery.
The story is one that is intensely familiar to Maldivians. In 2003 the beating to death of Evan Naseem, an inmate of the Maafushi prison, sparked the first widespread riots in Male’.
As the unrest spread across the country, President Gayoom imposed a State of Emergency for the first time. However, it did little to bottle the popular grassroots revolution that successfully led to a new democratic constitution being adopted in 2008.
Egypt, on the other hand, has officially been in a State of Emergency since 1967, except for a brief 18-month period in 1980 and 1981; the Emergency was last extended by 2 years in May 2010.
Over 17,000 people are detained under the Emergency law in Egypt, and an estimated 30,000 political prisoners exist in the country. The Islamist Muslim Brotherhood, by far the most popular organised opposition party, has been branded a terrorist organization and remains banned in Egypt.
Surprisingly, even the Muslim Brotherhood appears to be struggling to catch up with the current mass protests that remain largely leaderless, but unabated in strength despite a death toll approaching 90.
For five whole days after the protests first started, no senior state official made a public appearance – an indication that the government was grappling with a response to the quickly unfolding revolution on the streets.
When Mubarak finally addressed the public in a pre-dawn speech aired on National television, it was with an air of hubris that characterises the 82 year old despot – he refused to budge, and sought to shift the blame to his nominal government cabinet, which he promised to replace by Saturday.
These actions are unlikely to satisfy the Egyptian protestors, and there might be more confrontation as Egypt prepares to flex its military muscle.
Another country living in a state of Emergency since 1992 is Tunisia’s giant neighbour, Algeria. In the aftermath of Tunisia’s successful revolution, protests have broken out all over Algeria – the largest uprising in two decades in a country that has witnessed a series of smaller protests in recent years.
Thousands of demonstrators have also poured out onto the streets of Sana’a in Yemen, the poorest of all Arab countries, where half the population lives under $2 a day, that nevertheless spends 40 percent of its state budget on maintaining its military force – the second largest in the Arabian peninsula after Saudi Arabia. President Ali Abdullah Saleh of Yemen has been in power for 32 years; he also controls and heads the powerful military.
Indeed, the military has often been referred to as the backbone of Middle Eastern dictatorships. It has been the final instrument of power for several despots – notably illustrated by the fact that all four Egyptian Presidents since the overthrow of the monarchy have been military figures.
Hosni Mubarak’s grip on power may now depend entirely on the loyalty of the Egyptian military – the tenth largest in the world – of which he is the Commander-in-Chief.
It would be a loyalty well-earned, for Mubarak has spent generously on his armed forces; of the $1.55 billion aid granted by the US in 2010, $1.3 billion was spent on the military. Egypt is the second largest recipient of US military aid after Israel.
A leaked cable from the US Embassy in Cairo, nevertheless, suggests that the Egyptian military has gotten weak and fractious over the years.
While many analysts had deemed it unlikely for the military to side with the protestors, it is noted that the military prevented police from firing on demonstrators on Saturday – and soldiers could be seen publicly fraternising with demonstrators at the Ramses square in Cairo. The decision of the military could indeed decide the course of events in Egypt.
A loyal armed force helped the Iranian government crush the largest mass demonstrations since the Islamic revolution, in 2009. The pro-democracy movement, also known as the Green movement, threw up some vivid images of protestors trampling over posters of Supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei.
Club-wielding basij, a volunteer militia owing allegiance to the Ayatollah and the Revolutionary Guard, raided University campuses and broke up crowds while armed forces shot civilians in the street. Eighteen months later, the Iranian resistance appears to have been overcome.
On the other hand, intervention from the military saved the Tunisian revolution. The military refused to obey President Ben Ali’s orders to fire upon protestors, and reportedly even deployed army helicopters to protect demonstrators from government snipers positioned on rooftops. General Rachid Ammar, the head of the Tunisian military, also declined to occupy the newly vacant seat of power.
Winds of change are already blowing through the streets of a jubilant Tunisia, as the caretaker government has released hundreds of political prisoners, and vowed to lift restrictions on Islamist and Communist parties that were banned under the former regime.
It might be premature to say if this marks the beginning of a domino effect reminiscent of the serial collapse of the Communist regimes in Eastern Europe. Tunisia might very well be the Arabia’s answer to Poland, whose example led to a series of revolutions across Hungary, Czechoslovakia, Bulgaria and Romania, ultimately leading to the collapse of a once mighty Soviet empire.
The shared nature of Arab grievances and their mutual solidarity was strongly visible. Thousands of protestors in Amman, the capital of Jordan, were heard chanting “Egyptian nation, our beloved, your redemption is near!”
Protestors in Cairo carried Tunisian flags, a symbol of hope for a region that has for decades been plagued by corrupt, autocratic and oppressive regimes propped up and armed by rich Western interests; a region where many citizens have never experienced political freedoms.
Speaking to BBC radio, an Egyptian blogger reiterated that “All they’re asking for is for their voices to be heard, for their dignity to be respected and to have a humane life, and to have political freedom.”
Egypt, being the region’s foremost cultural, intellectual and political hub, will likely set an example for people in other countries like neighboring Libya, whose citizens have been living under the dictatorial rule of Muammar Al-Gaddafi for 42 years.
In the words of Victor Hugo, ‘One can resist the invasion of armies, but one cannot withstand an idea who time has arrived’.
Clearly, the time for change has arrived for Tunisia, and hope exists that Egypt, Algeria, Yemen and other Middle Eastern dictatorships will be dismantled and see the power returned to the people.
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Comment: Gayoom and Nasir unlikely to face their Mubarak moment- Comment: The Maldives, Egypt and the revenge of the deep state
- Former President condemns “appalling violence” of crackdown on demonstrators by Egyptian security forces
- Maldives government establishes emergency hotline for expatriate students in Egypt following Cairo violence
- Egyptian coup “different” to Maldives’ 2012 power transfer: President Waheed
- Comment: Through the looking glass
http://www.globalresearch.ca/index.php?context=va&aid=22963
indeed the similarities between Maumoons regime and arab regimes are uncanny. probably they all schooled together.
the injust in our societies are unfathomable. all over the world. but it seems the african, Arab and asian countries suffer most.
Carl sagans Pale blue dot comes to mind
It warms my heart to see such great potential for democratic development in the Arab world. I pray for our first Arab democracy and the liberalization of Islamic views towards democratization in the region.
He lit himself due to humiliation by a female police officer.
We maldivians are lucky that we avoided such a revolution. We still have a long way to go, especially regarding religious freedom. It is only a matter of time people revolt for this basic freedom.
only 2-3 comments and the secularists start blabbering.
maldives is an islamic nation, where the constitution is written in that fashion to save its peoples faith. "maldivain citizenship is for muslims" it says. so anyone wishing religious freedom are free to leave the country... we dont want to see those people demonstrating on our streets. seriously, if they are, how many people will make up such a demonstration? a thousand? i bet they cant make even half of that or even quarter.
on the other hand, see the huge turn out of man, women and children of all backgrounds in the demonstrations led by the religious front against legalization of alcohol, zionists,etc.. Astounding!!
I do congratulate my brothers and sisters bravely demonstrating against these western backed puppet regimes in Egypt, Tunisia, Yemen, jordan, etc..Theses secular dictators in these countries have killed and tortured thousands of their own country men while looting the country of their wealth. These secular puppets are specailly against islam, see the case of Ben Ali who mocked islam, hijab, fasting & shariya. see Mubarak who banned hijab in universities, tortured and killed religious people & went on to make secreat deals with israelis. The whole notion of secularism is frightening because of this!
US & Europe continued to give military and financial support to these dictators to continue their crimes. "made in America" is written in all of the tear gas canisters and bullets currently being fired at the protesters...well so much for these hypocritical westerners support for democracy
Also, i would like to acknowledge the role of media and social networking sites in these protests. I especially note the role being played by Al jazeera channel covering the protests, they are doing a better job than any other western broadcaster.
Egypt should come out of the hands of Mubarak for sure! Wish them all the luck!
Talking of secularism and Maldives as an Islamic Nation, it is hard for me to believe that we are NOT a secular nation!
"Islamic" by word of mouth, would never make a nation an Islamic nation!
Our "Qaanoon", says that we cannot make or pass any Qaanoon or regulation that deviates from the principles of Islam, and yet, here we are making and passing Qaanoon after Qaanoon that do not adhere to fundamentals of ISLAM and its Sharia! And we all believe it!
Islam has a "Qaanoon" for it's self! That we Maldivians do not want to adopt.
Instead we option it to one of the most selfish Qaanoon that is full of loop holes! And yet we believe this Qaanoon that is full of holes! And blabber that we are an ISLAMIC nation!
Are we not mocking ourselves!
Here, there and everywhere, all preachers are trying to do more than that GOD has willed !
Where are we? What are we?
Why not we live and let live?
Maldivians forget that not only Maumoon but also several others who studied in Cairo at the same time with Maumoon together imposed the sophisticated 30-year dictatorship on Maldives.
They used the religion of Islam very much, but their main interest was not Islam itself, but power, power and power, and money, money and money.
Maldives is not an Arab country in its own right, but the events in Egypt in particular, and the Arab world in general must be used for the education of Maldivian people because Egypt and Arabs have played leading roles in Maldivian society and history ever since the forced conversion to Islam.
I use the word 'forced'with reluctance. But force in this case is well proven by our own daily experience in our own life-time.
2012 is truly the end... the end of the age of tyranny.
Oh, and Ainth, I really, REALLY doubt Maldives is a muslim country anymore. Looking at the dismal corruption, mind-breaking injustice and all-scorching poverty in this country and calling it the product of islam just seems wrong to me.
Gayooms options are limited now. His option for fleeing the country if required was Egypt; Mubarak, his mentor and friend who was a dictator himself.
Ainth, your narrow minded comment is the same as those that you accuse of 'blabbering'.
The middle eastern dictators are only as 'secular' as Gayyoom was - which is, not at all. They all use Islam for political control, which is the same thing that Gayyoom did and now Adhaalath is doing.
There are no tens of thousand of people protesting on the streets or begging for rights in actual secular democracies like in Europe and Scandinavia, because there are no dictators who come to power using religion as a political tool there.
I might add that the protesters in Egypt are not revolting against 'secularism', they are fighting for political freedoms and against unemployment and corruption, etc. The protesters are mainly young people, and many reports say that Muslim Brotherhood and Islamist parties are a small minority among them. If you read these reports on Al Jazeera and BBC, you will find there are thousands of secular
Egyptians and opposition figures protesting there.
guys guys lets just stick on to the topic.. lets not make it another crusade vs jihad or secular vs religious thing, shall we?
It amuses me, though.
Why is a system that demands a free and fair judicial system, equality before the law and impartiality is equated to a tyranny of Hosni's level...
I wonder why. What is the purpose?.
It's quite interesting to note that America has been pumping billions of dollars in military aid to Egypt for decades.
It's also quite interesting to note that it's only now that America feels like it ought to put some pressure on the Egyptian dictators.
Typical double standards of the West. All that military aid that's been pouring into Egypt has not really benefited Egyptian society at all. Who is Egypt going to fight with $1.55 billion dollars of military aid? The only country it MAY want to have a fight with, i.e. Israel gets more than double that amount of military aid from American and Egypt is no match for the Israelis.
Hosni Mubarek and other Arab dictators have survived till now ONLY because they are "friends" of the West.
@Ainth
agree with you
this is just great! One of the famous hate preachers in the country are now working for Minivan news. Yamin Rasheed (yaamyn) runs a hate blog and I do not believe he has credibility to write articles in these fields.
these arab regimes are truly secular ones. take the case of Ben Ali from Tunisia for example. He is openly against religion. He has banned the islamic party, jailed its members and tortured and killed them. he has personally mocked hijab multiple times over and over again, girls wearing them are barred from education, he didnt like Arabic and tried to turn the country to french, and the list goes on.. even call to prayer (Azan) is banned from being brodcasted on TV channels during his rule.
thats why we say secularism is a threat for islamic countries... the moment secularist come to power they start oppressing anything and everything religious and any opposition they face is made to look like coming from religion and quickly crushed... well, secularism may have worked in non-islamic countries in Europe or scandenavia, the reason is that the religion they follow is just a faith. "religion is only in the church" as they say. but islam on the other hand is a comprehensive religion, which includes each and everything - from how to take a shower to how to run a country...
another case, Turkey, which is very developed muslim country having a secular system of government. look at their case, where half of the female population is denied higher education simply because they cover their head. I had one Maldivian friend who got a turkish scholarship, she cried a lot because she had to remove her vail just to attend university. sad.
All the more reason why secularism is a threat to islamic countries & we definitely dont want to suffer the same tragedies here in maldives.
offcourse, unemployment and poor living condition is the majour force driving the protest in Egypt and Tunisia. but majority of the protesters are muslims who follow their faith. one classic example is the protesters stop their protest at prayer time and make a jamayah (congregation) and perform prayer. but day before yesterday while the protesters were performing isha prayer, the Mubarak police force fired tear gas at them. It was heart breaking to see the scene!
The main opposition party in Egypt is Ihwaanul Muslimeen (muslim brotherhood) they have won the majority of seats in the egyptian parliment last time. many of their members have been arrested, and inhumanely tourted in prison. their young members are the ones leading the protest which started after friday prayer.
Ainth get your facts correctly. Muslim brotherhood is in no way leading the protests.
And yes the flame of democracy is going to shine in the arab and muslim world and hopefully its going to be a secular and tolerant one.
with more than hundreds of protesters killed, it is worth noting that each bullet which killed each one of them had "made in US" written on it.
The tanks, fighter jets, poisonus gases and other weapons being used by mubarak regime against his people are given/gifted by America and other western countries.
Hi Ainth. Im Zeena. Im a Maldivian. And i am a living proof that Maldives is not a 100% Islamic Nation. Like it or not, i have the Maldivian citizenship. And im not going to leave my country. I may be one today. But i have given birth to two more and a third one is on the way. Thank you.
Hm, I see... the apologists take the meaning of 'secular' to be the one pumped out by Radio Atoll.
But in the defense of Ben Ali from Tunisia... he was a power-crazed psychopath who would crush anyone, including extremists to keep having his way with Tunisia. That does not make him a 'secularist'.
That makes him a tyrant.
BBC Reporter in Egypt: When the lunch plate comes at my hotel, there is no butter!
Around 11am on the 30th of January 2011, and after five hectic and shocking days of the Egyptian revolution against Mubarak’s oppressive regime, the BBC reporter in Sharm ElSheikh tells the central office in London, live on BBC News that the situation is dire in Sharm Elsheikh as their movement is limited and the conditions are unbearable. The BBC reporter gives his London colleague an example of how bad the situation is: “At the hotel”, he says, “When the lunch plate comes, there is no butter”. A moment of uncomfortable silence dominates the screen after this hilariously inappropriate remark. The reporter picks himself up and tries to make his words less idiotic by saying: “I know it’s a small price to pay at the time of an international crisis”!!! Small price to pay???!!!! Has he seen or heard of the dead bodies in the streets and the morgues? Has he learnt anything about the past 30 years of poverty and oppression in Egypt? I was just amazed about the standard of these reporters. May be the recent British austerity measures to cut down the funding of the BBC World Service is not such a bad idea after all!
"Whether you are a Christian, whether you are a Muslim, whether you are an atheist, you will demand your God damned rights." (0:45)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vo5Fn1-2E8o&feature=player_embedded
Muslim brotherhood are allying themselves with the secularists.
http://www.nytimes.com/2011/01/31/world/middleeast/31-egypt.html?ref=global-home
Asthagufirullah! Stupid heretics -trying to hijack this beautiful movement.
Insha'allah, I hope no Maldivian is foolish enough to say such things.
That would be Islamophobic.
Zeena on Sun, 30th Jan 2011 10:14 PM
Abt you and others like you being 'Maldivian citizens', i dnt want to judge abt it. so, why dont you go to a legal court and tell them about it and let them decide. It will be interesting because the law of the land (i.e constitution) has multiple clauses giving reference to muslims only being the citizens of the country.
once again i want to reiterate that pure secularism like that of former tunisia, turkey, etc. is a threat to islamic countries and we shuld steer clear from that.
thanks
since when did that yaamyn became the supreme expert in islam and muslim related issues?
he better stick to writing/directing/producing/acting that Maakanaa show.
by the way, is it me or did anyone else notice how gay the whole dialogue in that show is? hmm... i guess the apple wont fall far from the tree.
Maakanaa Yameen Rasheed is not writing for Minivan News. -Minivan
Hey Ainth, Get educated in Quruan.
Islamic Sharia is NOT Allah's words. It is a manufactured product of certain people.
Islamic Sharia is composed of MEANINGS given to Quruan and Hadith by certain individuals.
Quruan is not for a particular time and a particular place. Its for all times and all societies.
If you think Allah has asked us to think and live like the way people lived in Mecca and Medina in 570-632, you are sadly mistaken.
Hadhith is totally unreliable.
Prophet Mohamed lived from 570-630. Hadhith is transmitted by a single source across each generation.
Hadith was first compiled and written down in 719!
In this modern world even with all the technology available today we are unable to accurately transmit something said by someone to another.
And you expect people to believe what the Prophet said between 610 to 632 is passed across generations accurately?
Islamic Sharia is flawed and outdated. It is a product of human beings who wanted to maintain and sustain their power as experts of Islam through out centuries.
It is because of this power struggle that Muslims communities are in such a sorry state today.
Mecca and Medina and the whole of Arab world during the time of Prophet Mohamed and much later were secular countries.
There were non-muslims living in Muslim societies during the time of prophet to centuries and to this day.
In Quruan Allah has never asked any of us to make our country free from non-musims.
Allah will save His religion. He doesn't need mortals like human beings (like you) to do it for Him.
Why are you so hell bent on doing things that Allah and his Prophet has never done?
Allah will give the harshest punishment for people like you who abuse Islam and twist His words.
subuhaanallah!
the person who commented above as Kanzu on Mon, 31st Jan 2011 11:51 AM has committed the sin of kufr. He has openly denied islamic shariya and hadhith, and hence commited the greatest sin of all. we advise him to revert back to religion.
It is against the constitution of Maldives to express any view contrary to islam. any forum doing this is breaking the law of the country. we kindly advise the people running this minivan news website to take off the comment, or else we, the muslims of maldives will lodge complaints to maldives police service, islamic ministry of maldives, maldives media council and other concerned legal and government authorities. Your scheme of distorting islam and creating division in our country has gone a little too far. and we have been tolerating this for a bit too long.
Muslims are always patient, but our patience also have a limit. we cant just sit back when our faith is been unfairly targeted over and over again by this websites selective nature of news reporting and its publications of opinions and articles by openly anti-islam people like Yaameen Rasheed, Hilath Rasheed, Aishath Ania, and a bunch of others. this websites comment section has also been misused by those and similar kind of people who openly insult islam.
we can understand that this website is run by direct funding from missionary groups from abroad with people who pose themselves as reporters coming from them. we advise a bit of caution from them and to respect our laws - which is not a big deal to ask for.
If you donot, then a repeat of that incident triggered by the publication of the"homosexual letter" can be repeated but this time with worse consequences.
so please respect our laws and our faith.
we will not take any responsibility which may result to your people resulting from the publication of these anti-islamic, unlawful things in your website. please take that also into your consideration,.
@Kanzu
The history of wahhabism shows exactly how power-hungry wahhabees twisted Islam to conquer nations and become powerful in terms of military. This is exactly what they are planning to this day (as seen from Afghanistan, Pakistan, Somalia...maybe Maldives is next). So it is only natural that some people who comment here do so without really not doing ANY research themselves, but just relying on what Seyk Fareed had to say at another sermon. Radio Atoll is a totally wahhabism based station too.
some of the ways to indicate that a person to be a disbeliever include rejection of the authentic sunnah and devine law- shariya.
http://www.ahya.org/amm/modules.php?name=Sections&op=viewarticle&artid=144
The collection of hadith was a meticulous and thorough process that began right at the time of Prophet (peace be upon him). and they have been very well preserved. infact Sahihul Buhari & muslim are the most authentic books for muslims after holy Quran. Hundreds of scholars have worked diligently to establish a scientific methodology of sorting and authenticating the traditions that can be safely attributed to the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him).
Islamic law (shariah) covers all aspects of life, from matters of state, like governance and foreign relations, to issues of daily living. The Qur'an defines hudud as the punishments for five specific crimes: ziney, false accusation of ziney, consumption of alcohol, theft, and highway robbery. The Qur'an and Sunnah also contain laws of inheritance, marriage, and restitution for injuries and murder, as well as rules for fasting, charity, and prayer.. Islamic scholars (known as ulema) have elaborated systems of law on the basis of these rules and their interpretations.
Fiqh, or "jurisprudence", is defined as the knowledge of the practical rules of the religion. The method Islamic jurists use to derive rulings is known as usul al-fiqh ("principles of jurisprudence"). According to Islamic legal theory, law has four fundamental roots, which are given precedence in this order: the Qur'an, the Sunnah, the consensus of the Muslim jurists (ijma), and analogical reasoning (qiyas).
All of these has been thoroughly thought in both O'level and A'level islamic education. it is sad that the person commenting as kanzu who dont have these knowledge/education & being terribly misguided tries to misguide others.
its more sad that minivan news, being a registered newspaper fails to follow the laws of the country by publishing those anti-islamic comments.
Secularists are doing the only thing they know to do. Hide behind a computer screen and write some nonsense or print more nonsense and (when no one is looking) dump them in to streets.
Oh how timid these people are!
Because of your timid, sissy actions, we will not even budge.
Because we are confident about ourselves and our faith. we are confident that we can out number you like 1:10000.
what? thats not true? well.. See the number of people attending religious activities, like the sermons given by Sheikh Fareedh, Sheikh Ilyas, or Jamiyatul Salaf, or the massive turn out in Dr.Zakir Naiks speech or the demonstrations held by Adhaalath.
See, we, the religious are the majority of this country. so why not accept it, and stop all of your nonsense propaganda
Hey Muslims of Maldives. I can see it is Ainth who is talking here.
Why can't you answer the facts that I have put there.
You think that you can simply stop people from raising questions?
Freedom of expression is a right included in Chapter 2 (the 53 rights) in the Constitution. If you want to take it out, it has to be decided by a referendum.
Article 10 is fortunately not.
@ Ainth,
Can U, in short, tell us what U want to convey?
@ Kanzu
yeah i can also see that it is the people running this site who is talking there as kanzu.
shahdha has answered nicely to you. If you are still confused, just get an islamic studies book of grade 12 and theres a long chapter of how hadhith was compiled and to how much extent the scholars went to make it free of any corruptions. again grade 11 islamic studies book one chapter deals with the concept of islamic shariya and how islamic justice works.
while you are at it, just go through grade 9 islamic study book. there is a chapter called "dheenun beyruwun" it might be helpful to you.
while these things are in the national curriculum, i really dont understand how these secularists do not get them, well maybe ignorant from the start!
"Everyone has the right to freedom of thought and the
freedom to communicate opinions and expression in a
manner that is not contrary to any tenet of Islam" says article 27 of constitution.
"Not contrary to any tenets of islam" did you see this..! did you?
well, the boundary is clearly defined and anyone crossing this boundary should be firmly dealt with.
i humbly request those running this site to remove the anti-islam things.
"The Maldives is a sovereign, independent, democratic
Republic based on the principles of Islam, and is a
unitary State, to be known as the Republic of the
Maldives." says article 2 of the constitution.
"based on the principles of islam" it says.. you can see this too..!
no matter how much the rouge elements wish,they will never succeed turning this country secular, insha allah.
"we are here, we are strong, we are muslim and we dont give up" is our slogan to them.
"(a) The religion of the State of the Maldives is Islam.
Islam shall be one of the basis of all the laws
of the Maldives
(b) No law contrary to any tenet of Islam shall be
enacted in the Maldives" says article 10 of the constitution.
Dear secularists, atheists, and others feast your eye on this, will ya?
Why blame "West" for our problems even if some are self created ones? Had there been democracy in Egypt, this problem would not have arisen. This was bound to happen in Egypt & Tunisia. People of any country, irrespective of region & religion, will one day revolt against such long dictatorship.
What happened in Maldives for 30 long years? Nothing. The country was about to plunge into deep crisis but timely intervention by "we people" saved us and the country.
"Despite the provisions of article (a) a non-
Muslim may not become a citizen of the
Maldives." says Article 9 of the Maldivian constitution.
Hey, Zeena on Sun, 30th Jan 2011 10:14 PM.., you see this article? its written there. see! so the verdict is very clear for you, your (??imaginary) children and the rest of you with similar mind set. better start packing, eh? bon voyage!
Forever, Shahuda, Muslims of Maldives. You are all the same person.
Does it surprise you that I have acquired the skills of investigation and know when the same person is writing under different names?
You can talk about Islamic Sharia and Islamic Jurisprudence in great detail - how it was compiled by whom and when. That is something we all know.
What I'm saying are three things:
1. Islamci Sharia and Usul al Fiqh are both human interpretations of Quruan and Hadhith. And Hadhith is transmitted by one person across each generation and therefore is totally unreliable.
2. Islamic Sharia and Usul al Figh are the views or interpretation of certain people who lived in the past at a certain period and their interpretations are subjective to the times they lived.
3. Quruan and Hadhith does NOT provide all the laws required for human life in a modern society.
Tell me, on what basis can you justify a woman cannot be a marriage registrar? Tell me why it matters to a marriage of a couple if they are wedded by a woman? What difference does it make whether its a man or a woman?
You would not have an answer except to say because certain Dhannabeykalun' said a woman cannot be a marriage registrar.
Since you believe Hadhith, I'd like to remind you that when someone once asked the Prophet who is the most honored person to him. The person put the question 4 times to the prophet and for 3 times the prophet replied its your mother and the last time only he said its your father?
So how come the authority of mothers who are women are undermined so much in the Islamic Sharia and Islamic Jurisprudence?
If you believe Hadhith you should know that the Prophet's beloved wife Aisha is said to be the top expert on Islamic Jurisprudence.
And yet, you people say women cannot be Qazis and Judges.
The conditions, the environment and the times has changed to a huge extent between the time of the Prophet and today. The way people think have changed. What has not changed is the mindset of people who acts as Islamic Scholars who are really Barba Papas.
Why can't get a camel and ride on it instead of a bicycle, motorbicyle and car.
Why can you eat dates and goats' milk and cook on gas and electric oven?
Why are you using toothpaste and modern medicine which also has alcohol in it?
Why are you using mobile phones and mega phones and radios and TVs and computers? They were not there during the Prophet's time.
And that's when I say it is there in the Quruan that Quruan is not for a particular time or a particular place.
Why are you distorting something that is very clearly said?
@ Kanzu on Mon, 31st Jan 2011 6:20 PM
If you have so much doubt regarding islam why dont you go and clarify them with a learned person in private instead of writing it all here? Is your motive to misguide people? If so, you are doing an evil thing which you have to answer in the Akhirath.
I strongly condemn minivan news for publishing all these anti-islam things in their website. Maldivian muslims will never accept that. I do hope the authorities take the strongest possible action against it soon.
What is your level of religious education? Didnt your teachers or parents teach you anything? Did you even attend school? If you had, then the Maldivian Islamic studies curriculum would have answered majority if not all of your questions. If for some reason you missed it, just go through the “Dheenee tharubiyathu foy” of grade 9,10,11 & 12.
There are big big chapters written regarding your questions. It is written in a very easy and understandable way & when I studied whenever I had a doubt I just raise my hand and the teachers would come and explain it nicely. That’s why I don’t have any doubt regarding my faith, its rock solid because I was raised with a strong foundation. I am really sad that you missed that opportunity & I’m rather concerned about you. Why? because of the severe punishments which awaits the non-belivers.
There is a hotline in the islamic ministry where people can ask their queries to scholars. Get the number from directory en-query and call and discuses, rather than being left out in dark.
I am not an expert on religion, so I don’t know whether i should attempt to answer you, because it is a risky business.
But i will try my best, i kindly do request that further doubts regarding religion is privately discussed with an expert in the field.
1- Hadhith is not compiled by only one scholar there are multiple sources for one origin. There is a scientific methodology of sorting and authenticating the hadhith. These scholars would travel large distances to meet the source and take the hadith, and using their methodology to verify it. Today also we can see the chain of sequence of scholars who narrated a particular hadith. But mind you, all these scholars are very good people with excellent memory (many of them had learnt Holy Quran at a very young age) and they lived in one of the best generation of time. Attributing a lie to the holy prophet (peace be upon him) is a great sin which no muslim will do. Hadhiths are one of the best preserved words after the holy quran because Allah has promised to safeguard islam of all corruptions till the end of time.
2. Islamic sharia is very vast legal legislature, the rules are taken from the Holy Quran, authentic hadith, Ijma and Qiyas.The fundamental ground rules of shariah are set and fixed. The things which you have written about it are false.
3. It is Quran, Sunnah, consensus of the Muslim jurists (ijma), and analogical reasoning (qiyas) which completes a fully compatible way of life for muslims now and then. All of this together show us the way to live in a modern society.
Women and men are created in a very different manner both biologically and physically.
You can as well ask why beards grow only on men and not in women. and why only women bear children while men dont. because of these differences can you go out and shout about the discrimination of men and women? no.
If you believe that women in western countries as being liberated. You are simply wrong. They are just degraded in most cases.
Women has menstrual periods once a month. something men don’t have. During this time she is excused from daily prayer, fasting, reading Holy Qur'an and doing other religious duties. Do you know that Qazis and judges have to perform their duty after performing Wuldhu. During a court session a Qazi may have to quote from the holy Quran. A women acting as a Qazi, having her menstural period, cannot do either of this, (quote from the Quran, perform Wuldu) effectively failing to deliver justice.
The role of women are never undermined in Islam, infact "paradise is under our moms feet", so how can we undermine her? "The best person among you is the person who treat his wife the best" so how can we undermine our wife? "Paradise is guaranteed to the parent who righteously bought up her daughter" so how can we undermine our daughters? All these things which i have written in inverted commas are what islam tells us to do.
Tell me another religion which deals with women in such gentle ways.
On the other hand, in islam its compulsory for men to fight in wars, financially provide for his family, etc.. While its only mandatory for women to do that. Oh how nice of the religion!
About your other questions about camels, bicycles, etc.. Hey muslims can use all of them. Islam is compatible with modern times the same way it was compatible in the ancient times. And it will surely be compatible in the future also. Because it is Allah's religion and Allah knows past, present and future.
The religion is a beauty for those who truly follow it.
I guess with my limited knowledge I have tried to covey my message to you, may Allah be my witness on the Day of Judgment.
If I have mistakenly written something wrong in a religious point of view, i hope someone better versed in religion can correct me. wallahu aulam.
Pls. Kanzu, & others, if you have further doubts meet a scholar and ask him, instead of trying to misguide others.
When you have a stomachache you go to a doctor because they are experts on that field. Similarly with doubts regarding religion, its best to consult the experts on the field (i.e. scholars) who had studied it for many years
ok.
@ainth,
Regardless whether you judge other or not, or if you are allowed to do so or not, it does really matter, not in the least.nobody cares.
There is little in common with the ways of now and with what was preached by messenger.
And religion is purely ones own belief and faith. I am a Maldivian, and what I believe, where I reside, cannot be dictated by you. And I don't believe a word of what comes out of hypocrites who are calling themselves saviors of religion. That includes fareed, zakir, baari and others. I would not even read comments from you, if you start preaching religion. You can voice your opinion for you and your kids. But don't transcend beyond that.
So, don't start quoting Saudi, Egyptian or some other nation. From where I see it, that is of no relevance, to you or your path to heaven. Nor mine. Nor any one elses.
And I don't care whether you end up in heaven or hell or rot on salty soil forever.
@ khilath
im sorry that u have confused me with some one else. the person who wrote this article or who ever comments under yameen maakana show is not me. I've never ever wrote any articles for minivan news or as a matter of fact, for any blogs or any other websites.
I’m yamin rasheed the producer of maakana show. i dont criticize abt islam or muslims. im not a religious scholar or a philosopher to do that. I’m just an animator and i would like to remain as one. i would criticize abt politics for i run a fake political show and im sorry u find it gay and i dont do voice over for it.I assure u that i would never criticize islam. so pls dont confuse me with who wrote this article. if i want to comment abt any thing than i would proudly do it on my own platform. i have deepest respect to my religion which is islam. if i have any doubts than i meet with scholars to clarify it. but i don’t go public with it.
thanx
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