EU-DIGEST

They toasted to progress in Europe’s capitals last week. On Tuesday, the Treaty of Lisbon went into effect, bringing the nations of the European Union one step closer to the unity the Continent’s elite has been working toward for over 50 years. But the treaty’s implementation fell just days after a milestone of a different sort: a referendum in Switzerland, long famous for religious tolerance, in which 57.5 percent of voters chose to ban the nation’s Muslims from building minarets. Switzerland isn’t an E.U. member state, but the minaret moment could have happened almost anywhere in Europe nowadays — in France, where officials have floated the possibility of banning the burka; in Britain, which elected two representatives of the fascistic, anti-Islamic British National Party to the European Parliament last spring; in Italy, where a bill introduced this year would ban mosque construction and restrict the Islamic call to prayer.

Note EU-Digest: Fortunately this is only one opinion. What needs to be addressed in the EU, howeve, is that freedom of religion, in the case of its Muslims citizens, does not mean liberty to use their places of worship to promote activities favorable to Shari Law - a law which does not fit in any modern secular society, and more so a law which is degenerating to women. The sanctity of the Mosques can also not be allowed to plan terrorist acts or to promote aggressive behavior against any other country. European governments must legislate zero tolerance laws on this issue and categorically not accept these kind of activities by any religion. The referendum in Switzerland showed that the European voter will take action in their own hands when Governments show weakness by not daring to stop what can only be described as provocative religious behavior in a secular environment.

Labels: EU, Islam, Sharia law

A Sudanese woman who challenged authorities after being sentenced to 40 lashes for wearing trousers has defied a travel ban to visit France. Lubna Hussein has vowed to continue her fight from outside Sudan to stop women from being prosecuted for what they wear. She defied the ban on international travel by leaving Sudan dressed from head to toe in an Islamic niqab. Dressed in trousers and a jacket, she appeared in a press conference at the French Foreign Ministry on Monday. Welcoming Hussein to Paris, the French foreign minister Bernard Kouchner said she had displayed "the courage to be steadfast in her revolt so that women will not be arrested and flogged.The Paris welcome came as France debates measures to prohibit women from wearing the full Islamic veil, which President Nicholas Sarkozy calls a symbol of female subservience.

Labels: Sharia law

While other faiths are also often oppressive, sharia law is especially oppressive. Its interpretations stipulate the execution of Muslims who commit adultery, renounce their faith (apostates) or have same-sex relationships. Sharia methods of execution, such as stoning, are particularly brutal and cruel – witness the stoning to death this week in Somalia of a 20-year-old woman divorcee who was accused of adultery. This is the fourth stoning of an adulterer in Somalia in the last year. We cannot accept the way many Islamic states, including western allies like Saudi Arabia, restrict women's freedom of movement, make women subject to the control of male guardians, deny women access to certain jobs and positions in government and enforce the compulsory veiling of women (the hijab, niqab, jilbab or burqa).

Note EU-Digest: One of the major problems in Sharia Law is the position attributed to women in this context. Women against Fundamentalism who are challenging the rise of fundamentalism in all religions notes: all fundamentalists see women's role as crucial in representing and transmitting the supposedly unchanging morals and traditions of the whole community. Women who fail to conform to so-called "traditional family values" are portrayed as placing the well being and future of the whole society or community at risk. The control of women’s minds and bodies is, therefore, at the heart of fundamentalist agendas everywhere.

Labels: China, EU, Sharia law

Swiss citizens are called to the polls today November 29 to vote on the popular initiative «Against the Construction of Minarets». Launched by the right-wing People’s Party and the small ultra-conservative Federal Democratic Union, the initiative has sparked controversy and a heated debate on Islam in Switzerland, human rights and integration. An online poll by Jungfrauzeitung.ch in the week ending November 22 has shown 43 percent of readers against and 55 percent in favour of a ban. The Federal Council and parliament oppose the initiative, saying that it restricts freedom of religion as anchored in the constitution, goes against the grain of Switzerland’s tradition of tolerance, endangers integration and violates the European Convention on Human Rights. The main Swiss churches and non-governmental organisations such as Amnesty International Switzerland also reject a ban on the construction of minarets.

In other nationwide ballots on Sunday, a committee of centre-left parties and pacifist groups are proposing a ban on the export of weapons and other materials used in warfare. Voters are also being asked to decide on a constitutional amendment to allow the use of fuel tax from domestic flights for aviation safety and the environment rather than road projects.

According to the constitution, the Swiss people are sovereign and therefore the highest political authority. A people’s or popular initiative allows citizens to propose legislation that, if passed, is written into the constitution. A valid initiative requires 100,000 signatures, to be gathered within an eighteen-month period. Parliament can either directly accept the initiative, reject it or put forward its own - usually more moderate - counterproposal. In all cases, a nationwide vote is held. Popular initiatives require a double majority to pass, i.e. an electoral majority as well as the backing from a majority of the cantons.

Labels: Sharia law, Switzerland

Perhaps the press has forgotten just how influential al-Muhajiroun is in shaping homegrown hard-liners. It was deemed influential enough that it disbanded itself (before the government could outlaw it) in 2004, only to re-form this summer. On whether his group inspired the 7/7 bombings, Mr. Choudary offers but faint denial: "I challenge you to name one member of al-Muhajiroun who was ever—while a member of al-Muhajiroun—ever convicted of any kind of military or criminal offense." The group broadcasts lectures by founder Omar Bakri Mohammed, giving him a platform in Britain despite his being banned from entering the U.K.

It's tempting to laugh off the abandoned march through the heart of London, and to note that among Britain's Muslims, al-Muhajiroun is a fringe group. But does that prove Mr. Choudary's dog-and-pony show a failure? The police were out in force in Westminster to keep order, but paid no attention, for all this observer could tell, to the re-formed demonstration on the periphery. Sharia seemed a distant prospect in Trafalgar Square last Saturday. But out in Waltham Forest, with the authorities nowhere to be seen and Britons hurrying past and keeping their heads down, Mr. Choudary's agenda seemed less fanciful. There is reassurance in that, but also danger.

Labels: EU, Sharia law, UK

Top ten reasons why sharia is bad for all societies - by James Arlandson

Traditional Muslims who understand the Quran and the hadith believe that sharia (Islamic law) expresses the highest and best goals for all societies. It is the will of Allah. But is Islam just in its laws that Muhammad himself practiced and invented? The article in the American Thinker by James Arlandson says no for ten verifiable reasons.

No one should be fooled into believing that these harsh and excessive laws were invented in the fevered imagination of extremists who came long after Muhammad. These harsh and excessive laws come directly from the founder of Islam in his Quran and in his example in the hadith.

James Arlandson concludes in his article in the American Thinker: "The purpose of these links is not to condemn Islamic countries or to assert that the West is better than they are. Facts say that the West has many problems. Rather, the purpose is to demonstrate that Islamic countries have their share of problems as well. This means that Islamic countries are also decadent. This means that Islamic punishments do not work entirely (except by scare tactics), but they can drive the sin or crime underground."

Labels: Islam, Sharia law

Recep Tayyip Erdogan - does he believe in Sharia Law?

For the complete report from HUMANEVENTS.com click on this link

Obama in Turkey: Another Missed Opportunity? - or will he speak out for Secularism) - by Robert Spencer

President Obama’s coming trip to Turkey will not feature his first “major speech” in a Muslim nation. But, as Secretary of State Clinton explained, the trip was “a reflection of the value we place on our friendship with Turkey.” She spelled out the substantive reasons for that friendship: “We share a commitment to democracy, a secular constitution, respect for religious freedom and belief and in free market and a sense of global responsibility.” For Obama to stand for those things in the Islamic world would be good. But does Turkey?

According to the Middle East Media Research Institute (MEMRI), while Mayor of Istanbul in the 1990s, Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan denounced Turkish secularism: “If the people want it,” he declared, “of course secularism will go away. You cannot rule this people by force; you don’t have the power to do that. This [i.e. secularism] cannot work in spite of the people.” And the people, he suggested, wanted Islamic law: “But the fact is that 99% of the people of this country are Muslims. You cannot be both secular and a Muslim! You will either be a Muslim, or secular!...For them to exist together is not a possibility! Therefore, it is not possible for a person who says ‘I am a Muslim’ to go on and say ‘I am secular too.’ And why is that? Because Allah, the creator of the Muslim, has absolute power and rule!” Erdogan was imprisoned for four months in 1998 for his agitation for the restoration of Islamic law in Turkey: he had declared that “mosques are our barracks, domes our helmets, minarets our bayonets, believers our soldiers. This holy army guards my religion. Almighty our journey is our destiny, the end is martyrdom.”

Islam has historically always been a political and social system as well as an individual religious faith. Islamic law, Sharia, is a comprehensive system governing every aspect of individual behavior. It also contains laws for the governance of the state and the ordering of society. If it is imposed in Turkey, women and non-Muslims would be subjugated under a system of institutionalized discrimination; the freedom of conscience and of speech would be restricted; and the relatively Westernized aspects of Turkish society would wither away. In light of all this, and especially given Clinton’s statement, Obama in Turkey could deliver a ringing defense of secular government -- that is, of the First Amendment principle of non-establishment of religion as being the only workable basis for any genuinely pluralistic society.

Labels: Barack Obama, Britain. EU, Recep Tayyip Erdogan, Secularism, Sharia law, The US economic meltdown, Turkey

Women's Rights - Raped Saudi Arabian woman faces 100 lashes and a year in prison - by Sonia Randhwa

In November last year, a 13-year-old Somalian girl was stoned to death, after her father reported that she had been gang-raped. In Saudi Arabia, a woman who was gang-raped and became pregnant after her ordeal faces 100 lashes and a year in prison. The problem is that these women, or girls, are viewed as having given their consent to the rape by being in a situation where men could force themselves upon them. Rape becomes adultery – though neither woman was married – and the women punished for crimes committed against them.

Note EU-Digest: Amazing that this seems to be going on with little or no protest from anyone.

Labels: Muslims, Saudi Arabia, Sharia law, Somalia, Women's Rights

Britain: Campaign against Sharia law in Britain to be launched at the House of Lords

Britain - Campaign against Sharia law in Britain to be launched at the House of Lords

According to campaign organiser, Maryam Namazie, “Even in civil matters, Sharia law is discriminatory, unfair and unjust, particularly against women and children. Moreover, its voluntary nature is a sham; many women will be pressured into going to these courts and abiding by their decisions. These courts are a quick and cheap route to injustice and do nothing to promote minority rights and social cohesion. Public interest, particularly with regard to women and children, requires an end to Sharia and all other faith-based courts and tribunals.”

The campaign has already received widespread support including from AC Grayling; Terry Sanderson, Keith Porteous Wood, Ayaan Hirsi Ali; Bahram Soroush; Baroness (Caroline) Cox; Caspar Melville; Deeyah; Fariborz Pooya; Gina Khan; Houzan Mahmoud; Homa Arjomand; Ibn Warraq; Joan Smith; Johann Hari; Mina Ahadi; Naser Khader; Nick Cohen; Richard Dawkins; Shakeb Isaar; Sonja Eggerickx; Stephen Law; Tarek Fatah; Tauriq Moosa; Taslima Nasrin and others. It has also received the support of organisations such as the National Secular Society; Children First Now; Council of Ex-Muslims of Britain; Equal Rights Now – Organization against Women’s Discrimination in Iran; European Humanist Federation; International Committee against Stoning; International Humanist and Ethical Union; Iranian Secular Society; Lawyers Secular Society; and the Revolutionary Association of the Women of Afghanistan.

The campaign calls on the UK government to recognize that Sharia law is arbitrary and discriminatory and for an end to Sharia courts and all religious tribunals on the basis that they work against and not for equality and human rights.

Labels: Britain, EU, Sharia law

Britain - Court rules Islamic Sharia law discriminatory - by Robert Verkaik

Britain's highest court has criticised Islamic law for discriminating against women after a case in which a mother was forced to flee the Middle East for Britain to protect her son from his abusive father. In a 5-0 ruling, the law lords said that there was no place in sharia for the equal treatment of the sexes. It would be a "flagrant breach" of the European Convention on Human Rights for the Government to remove a woman to Lebanon, where she would lose custody of her son because of sharia-inspired family law.

Sharia was the product of a much-observed religious and cultural tradition, "but by our standards the system is arbitrary because the law permits of no exceptions to its application... It is discriminatory too because it denies women custody of their children after they have reached the age of custodial transfer simply because they are women." Yesterday's decision reversed rulings by the Court of Appeal, the Asylum and Immigration Tribunal and the Home Secretary that returning EM to Lebanon with her son would not violate her right to family life.

Labels: Britain, EU, Sharia law

"The Vast Power of the Saudi Lobby"- by John R. MacArthur

The long and corrupt history of American-Saudi relations centers around the kingdom's vast reserves of easily extractable oil, of course. Ever since President Franklin D. Roosevelt met aboard ship in 1945 with King Ibn Saud, the special relationship with the desert kingdom has only grown stronger. The House of Saud is usually happy to sell the US oil at a consistent and reasonable price and then increase production if unseemly market forces drive the world price of a barrel too high for U.S. consumers.

In exchange the US arms the Saudis to the teeth and turns a blind eye to their medieval approach to crime and punishment. Comment EU-Digest - and let us not forget their non excistent democracy and rule by Sharia law

Labels: Saudi Arabia, Sharia law

Europe's Sharia law: "How to Break the stranglehold of archaic religious laws and abuses"

"Europeans are learning that just defining 'moderate' Muslims as those who do not want to blow things up is not enough. 'Non-violent' Muslim extremists who want to replace Western laws with Islamic sharia law, and democracy (rule by man-made law) with theocracy (rule by God's law, as interpreted by Islamic clergy and jurists) may actually pose a more serious threat to Europe. A poll last year in Britain showed that four out of 10 British Muslims want sharia law introduced into parts of the country.

Sharia law conflicts with Western law in several key areas. First, it considers blasphemy -- saying or writing negative things about Islam -- as a crime punishable by death. A second area is apostasy, the 'crime' of abandoning a religion. A direct challenge to the very concept of freedom of religion, apostasy too is punishable by death under sharia law. Muslims are enjoined to do their best to spread Islam, but it is a one-way street -- no one can opt out. The impact of this is to stifle free speech and action among Muslims. Women's rights are a third and most important area of conflict.Muslim women in Europe often pay with their lives in so-called honor killings carried out by other family members. Their crime: adopting a modern lifestyle or showing interest in a non-Muslim man. In many parts of the world women are harassed and assaulted if they do not cover themselves. There are now places, even in Europe, where non-Muslim women have begun to cover their head to avoid being molested.

The majority of Europeans including European Muslims want sharia law to be outlawed in the secular EU. The fact that it is being tolerated so far has nothing to do with freedom of religion, but rather by political expediency. There should be no misunderstanding possible. Sharia law is a religious dictate which stifles democracy, freedom of speech and freedom of action. Instead, European advocacy groups should embrace, protect and encourage Muslims who want to modernize their religion. Muslim Reformers can do the same for their religion what Martin Luther's Reformation movement did in the 1500's on behalf of the Christian faith, break the stranglehold of archaic religious laws and abuses."

Labels: EU, Muslims, Religion, Sharia law