Interior Minister of Sindh Zulfiqar Mirza at the Karachi Chamber of Commerce and Industry (KCCI) accused the MQM of target killings in Karachi. Let’s look at a couple of statements Mirza made in his speech. He said:
“Imran Farooq was killed or martyred in London markets and shops were closed down in Karachi. Buses belonging to Pathans are abducted and torched in Karachi. Pathans are killed in Karachi. I ask you, did Asfandyar Wali commit the murder [of Imran Farooq]?”
When the MQM “want to kill any Pathan, Sindhi, Punjabi or Baloch in Karachi, they go about executing their plan methodically.”
“The day these nations (i.e., Pathan, Sindhi, Balochi and Punjabi) decided on tit-for-tat all they have to do is to open their gates and fire a burst of an automatic rifle on the street. Then most of the people killed would be innocent Urdu-speakers.”
Pakistan Penal Code (PPC) 153 A (a), states that whoever “by words, either spoken or written, or by signs, or by visible representations or otherwise, promotes or incites, or attempts to promote or incite, on grounds of religion, race, place of birth, residence, language, caste or community or any other ground whatsoever, disharmony or feelings of enmity, hatred or ill-will between different religious, racial, language or regional groups or castes or communities” shall be imprisoned, fined or both.
The punishment for such violation of the PPC is imprisonment of six months if the provocation did not lead to riots. The imprisonment increases to one year if the provocation resulted in riots. There is a fat chance that Mirza will ever be subjected to such details of the Penal Code, which history tells us primarily exists in the land of the pure to victimse the weak by the powerful. So let’s quickly forget about such possibility.
All of the statements above by Mirza are loaded. It seems that uttering loaded statements is nothing new to Mirza. This is the same PPP Jiyala who, after the unfortunate death of Benazir Bhutto in December 2007 had claimed that he wanted to break Pakistan.
Let’s study Mirza’s statements to decipher his thought process. First, he could not make up his mind whether to call Farooq’s death a murder or martyrdom. Contrary to Mirza’s confusion, Altaf Hussain the founder and leader of the MQM was very clear when he was the first person to call Benazir Bhutto a martyr (or shaheed in Urdu) right after her murder by the killers who have not been arrested or even identified yet.
Second, the life of anyone belonging to any religion, race, place of birth, residence, language, caste or ethnicity is as valuable as anyone else’s. If riots broke out in Karachi following Farooq’s passing away, it was Mirza’s responsibility as the Interior Minister of Sindh to apprehend the criminals and bring them to justice.
It appears that implying that Pathans were specifically targeted by the MQM or MQM’s supporters as a reaction to Forooq’s death is nothing more than the PPP’s decades-long practice of creating and flaring ethnic tensions in Sindh, especially Karachi.
Third, by using the name of Peshawar-based Asfandyar Wali of the Awami National Party (ANP) who has nothing to do with Karachi implies that Wali is the leader of all Pathans in Pakistan. For the sake of argument, if God forbid Wali were indeed involved in Farooq’s murder would that justify killing of Pathans in Karachi? The tribal mindset of these “political” leaders prevents Pakistan from becoming a modern republic; Islamic or otherwise.
Fourth, it may politically serve the ANP of Sindh to claim the representation of all Pathans in Karachi. But it is for the ANP to decide if it is an ethnic party representing only the Pathans or is it a democratic party based on the teachings of Bacha Khan, the grandfather of Asfandyar Wali. Mirza as the Interior Minister of Sindh and the Senior Vice President of the PPP is not the right person to make that determination.
Fifth, for Mirza there seems to be no Pakistani “nation.” He sees Karachiites as Pathans, Sindhis, Balochis, Punjabis, Urdu-speakers, etc.
Sixth, for him the above-mentioned “nations” are mutually exclusive and for him Urdu-speakers and others are not Sindhis even though they are born in Sindh, die in Sindh and are buried in Sindh.
Seventh, by differentiating Urdu-speakers from the other "nations" he is acknowledging Urdu-speakers as a nation. By expanding its political canvass all over Pakistan, even the MQM has lost interest in such undertaking but the PPP seems to be hell-bent in kindling the flame of ethnic divisions going.
Eighth, when he claims that members of these "nations" may open fire, he is not speculating. He is encouraging them to do so. That is to make the whole Karachi a killing zone. According to this video (1:20 - 1:30) Mirza has acknowledged that he has issued innumerable licenses of weapons most likely to MQM’s opponents. So on one hand he is issuing weapon licenses and on the other hand he is inciting violence against the Urdu-Speakers by making wild allegations against the MQM and then expecting the Urdu-Speakers to pay the price even if those Urdu-Speakers have nothing to do with the MQM.
Ninth, when he suggests that most of the people killed would be Urdu-speakers, that means he is acknowledging that most of the population in Karachi is that of Urdu-speakers.
Tenth, by suggesting that members of these "nations" will open their gates and fire a burst, he is acknowledging that those members of other "nations" are maintaining households among Urdu-speakers. That is a good thing. That demonstrates the homogeneous nature of the Karachi demographics.
Eleventh, if the MQM were indeed involved in target killing then the only way those members of the other “nations” would remain alive after firing a burst of an automatic rifle from their own houses is when the PPP provides total protection to them and/or the MQM is not able to act against them.
Apparently, it is not the MQM or the Urdu-Speakers who are at fault here. If there were any other “nation” as strong as the Urdu-Speakers in Sindh in terms of numbers, then PPP would do the same to that group what it is doing to the Urdu-Speakers for the past 30 years.
Liaquat Ali is a real estate investor in Fairfield, CT. He is an MBA in management and strategy, and a graduate of Connecticut School of Broadcasting.
Wednesday, December 22, 2010
Monday, November 8, 2010
Death of a People's Leader
The body of one of the top MQM leaders Dr. Imran Farooq, who has been named the Martyr of Revolution, was finally laid to rest in Karachi, the city he was born in.
What a journey for a man who helped found the MQM, developed its organizational structure and then had to stay in hiding for seven years during the illegal Operation Cleanup. He then continued his struggle from exile for eleven more years before being stabbed and bludgeoned to death by unknown assailants. Stayed in morgue for more than 40 days and then flown back to the city of birth for a funeral procession comparable only to the founder of the nation, Muhammad Ali Jinnah, and his right hand man, Liaquat Ali Khan.
The pictures and videos of the funeral reveal what makes the MQM what it is. It is a highly organized and disciplined political machine that operates as a unit where leaders and workers are one and the same. You can see the Governor of Sindh shouldering his deceased colleague and see the ex-Mayor of Karachi waiting for his turn to shoulder the coffin just like regular people.
You see an unassuming family sharing its sorrow with the rest of the extended family, that is, the MQM.
Inna lillahe wa inna ilehe rajioon.
What a journey for a man who helped found the MQM, developed its organizational structure and then had to stay in hiding for seven years during the illegal Operation Cleanup. He then continued his struggle from exile for eleven more years before being stabbed and bludgeoned to death by unknown assailants. Stayed in morgue for more than 40 days and then flown back to the city of birth for a funeral procession comparable only to the founder of the nation, Muhammad Ali Jinnah, and his right hand man, Liaquat Ali Khan.
The pictures and videos of the funeral reveal what makes the MQM what it is. It is a highly organized and disciplined political machine that operates as a unit where leaders and workers are one and the same. You can see the Governor of Sindh shouldering his deceased colleague and see the ex-Mayor of Karachi waiting for his turn to shoulder the coffin just like regular people.
You see an unassuming family sharing its sorrow with the rest of the extended family, that is, the MQM.
Inna lillahe wa inna ilehe rajioon.
Sunday, October 17, 2010
The Hakeem Saeed Murder Case Fraud
A fellow writer at Pakspectator.com blog, Mr. Salman Magsi, accused that current Governor Sindh Dr. Ishrat ul Ebad who belongs to the MQM was guilty of Hakeem Saeed Murder. I initially wrote my response in the comments section of his post but then decided to write an independent short article.
Here is how it goes...
Dr. Ishrat ul Ebad was never implicated in the Hakeem Saeed case. The nine accused as per the Dawn newspaper were:
“Shaikh Mohammed Aamirullah,
Mohammed Shakir alias Shakir Langra,
Mohammed Nadeem alias Nadeem Mota,
Mohammed Faisal,
Mohammed Zubair,
Abu Imran Pasha,
Nazar alias Muqarrib,
Mohammad Zubair and
Ezazul Hasan.”
http://web.archive.org/web/20010621211223/www.dawn.com/2001/06/01/top6.htm
Here is how the police and others concocted the whole thing. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=H_jo_5Tfus0
All accused were honorably acquitted by the Sindh High Court on August 18, 2001 on the basis of the following grounds, verbatim:
i) The confessional statements of the accused were recorded after considerable delay and were neither voluntary nor corroborated by independent witnesses;
ii) The identification parade of the accused was delayed and defective in that the accused were not only exposed to the general public through media but were also shown to the witnesses prior to the actual parade;
iii) The recovery of the weapons of crime made from the nullah adjacent to the Sindh Secretariat were belated and evidenced only by the Police officials and if private witnesses were not available, the exercise should have been carried out in the presence of a Magistrate;
iv) The testimony of the approvers was not helpful to the prosecution as pardon was extended to them under Sections 337 / 338 Cr. P.C. without obtaining the consent of the injured, legal heirs of deceased Hakim Abdul Qadir and Wali Muhammad and all the legal heirs of t deceased-Hakim Muhammad Said;
v) The motive set up by the prosecution was immaterial.
vi) The ocular evidence was not confidence inspiring.”
I am not sure where you are based, but if you are based in Pakistan, then you stand not only accused of libel against Dr. Ishrat ul Ebad, but also in contempt of the Sindh High Court.
The only way the Federation of Pakistan or the Province of Sindh can bring the real accused back to trial is if the current government appeals the SHC’s decision to the Supreme Court.
I hope that the government does just that, as you have naively suggested in your piece as well.
If they chose to bring the Hakeem Saeed murder case fraud back to the Supreme Court, then I would suggest all of the victims of the illegal Operation Cleanup of 1992-1998 to plead to the Sindh High Court as well as the Supreme Court to make them whole. Read here about the illegality of the operation http://www.thearynews.com/english/newsdetail.asp?nid=32682
Corruption is the biggest challenge the Pakistani nation faces. The MQM is the only major political party in Pakistan that does not have any of its members--from Governor all the way down to the members Sindh Assembly--involved in corruption. They are also the only political party that challenges the corrupt ruling elite's plunder of the otherwise very talented and resourceful nation; both in natural as well as natural resources.
That is why the MQM is implicated in criminal cases that are easy to concoct--through one of the most corrupt police forces in the world--but very difficult to prove as indicated in above verbatim text from the Sindh High Court ruling. Hence, a never-ending media trial of the party, based on fake cases, is maintained through paid and naive media personalities. This is done by the Pakistani elite class to continue their hold on the wealth of the nation by stalling the MQM's growth.
I respectfully urge anti-MQM writers to check their facts and figures before writing their next piece.
Towards a peaceful and prosperous nation…
Yours Sincerely,
Liaquat Ali
Here is how it goes...
Dr. Ishrat ul Ebad was never implicated in the Hakeem Saeed case. The nine accused as per the Dawn newspaper were:
“Shaikh Mohammed Aamirullah,
Mohammed Shakir alias Shakir Langra,
Mohammed Nadeem alias Nadeem Mota,
Mohammed Faisal,
Mohammed Zubair,
Abu Imran Pasha,
Nazar alias Muqarrib,
Mohammad Zubair and
Ezazul Hasan.”
http://web.archive.org/web/20010621211223/www.dawn.com/2001/06/01/top6.htm
Here is how the police and others concocted the whole thing. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=H_jo_5Tfus0
All accused were honorably acquitted by the Sindh High Court on August 18, 2001 on the basis of the following grounds, verbatim:
i) The confessional statements of the accused were recorded after considerable delay and were neither voluntary nor corroborated by independent witnesses;
ii) The identification parade of the accused was delayed and defective in that the accused were not only exposed to the general public through media but were also shown to the witnesses prior to the actual parade;
iii) The recovery of the weapons of crime made from the nullah adjacent to the Sindh Secretariat were belated and evidenced only by the Police officials and if private witnesses were not available, the exercise should have been carried out in the presence of a Magistrate;
iv) The testimony of the approvers was not helpful to the prosecution as pardon was extended to them under Sections 337 / 338 Cr. P.C. without obtaining the consent of the injured, legal heirs of deceased Hakim Abdul Qadir and Wali Muhammad and all the legal heirs of t deceased-Hakim Muhammad Said;
v) The motive set up by the prosecution was immaterial.
vi) The ocular evidence was not confidence inspiring.”
I am not sure where you are based, but if you are based in Pakistan, then you stand not only accused of libel against Dr. Ishrat ul Ebad, but also in contempt of the Sindh High Court.
The only way the Federation of Pakistan or the Province of Sindh can bring the real accused back to trial is if the current government appeals the SHC’s decision to the Supreme Court.
I hope that the government does just that, as you have naively suggested in your piece as well.
If they chose to bring the Hakeem Saeed murder case fraud back to the Supreme Court, then I would suggest all of the victims of the illegal Operation Cleanup of 1992-1998 to plead to the Sindh High Court as well as the Supreme Court to make them whole. Read here about the illegality of the operation http://www.thearynews.com/english/newsdetail.asp?nid=32682
Corruption is the biggest challenge the Pakistani nation faces. The MQM is the only major political party in Pakistan that does not have any of its members--from Governor all the way down to the members Sindh Assembly--involved in corruption. They are also the only political party that challenges the corrupt ruling elite's plunder of the otherwise very talented and resourceful nation; both in natural as well as natural resources.
That is why the MQM is implicated in criminal cases that are easy to concoct--through one of the most corrupt police forces in the world--but very difficult to prove as indicated in above verbatim text from the Sindh High Court ruling. Hence, a never-ending media trial of the party, based on fake cases, is maintained through paid and naive media personalities. This is done by the Pakistani elite class to continue their hold on the wealth of the nation by stalling the MQM's growth.
I respectfully urge anti-MQM writers to check their facts and figures before writing their next piece.
Towards a peaceful and prosperous nation…
Yours Sincerely,
Liaquat Ali
Thursday, October 14, 2010
Story: What is it Good for?
The media, especially the western kind looks for "human" or individual's stories. I guess that human stories sell advertisements better than organizational or non-human stories. Otherwise, the western media would not do it.
My unscientific research leads me to believe that human beings are more interested in stories than they are in food. Food is a finite need. Stories seem to be an infinite need. From religion to marketing to education to law and many other fields, the more compelling the story, the more successful the outcome. The need of the truthfulness of the story varies from discipline to discipline.
People want to be part of good, wholesome stories. If they don't have a good story in their lives they either gossip, buy or borrow fictional text, or go watch movies. People need stories...
Study any movement. It "moves" people through stories. If the story is persuasive, the movement would be stronger and sustainable. If the story is less than compelling, the movement would be weak and unsustainable; and will eventually wither away. A good storyteller need not worry about the delivery of tangible results. Emotional benefits are good enough.
Please note that the truth of the story has nothing to do with its effectiveness. Human beings are very much able to wear fiction on themselves to turn the falsehood into truth. This is why Hollywood has been able to blur and sometimes eliminate the line between fact and fiction.
Personally, for a large part I am not a story kind of guy. My mind works on facts and logic. Stories generally bore me. Therefore it is very difficult for me to sit down and read stories to my children. However, I am not immune to stories. When a story is convincing from the factual point of view, from the delivery point of view, or both, the immunity melts away. This is what happens when Wall Street and Madison Avenue get together and weave great sequence of stories that can bamboozle the best of us.
From the story of Adam to Abel/Cain to Noah to Abraham to Aad to Thamood to David to Soloman to Jacob to Joseph to Moses to Jesus to many others without specific names, the Qur'an uses this powerful medium of storytelling to inform, educate and move people.
That is the very reason the religious and political mafias have been able to feed stories to their listeners instead of providing concrete solutions.
Tell a good story...the world is yearning for yet another one.
My unscientific research leads me to believe that human beings are more interested in stories than they are in food. Food is a finite need. Stories seem to be an infinite need. From religion to marketing to education to law and many other fields, the more compelling the story, the more successful the outcome. The need of the truthfulness of the story varies from discipline to discipline.
People want to be part of good, wholesome stories. If they don't have a good story in their lives they either gossip, buy or borrow fictional text, or go watch movies. People need stories...
Study any movement. It "moves" people through stories. If the story is persuasive, the movement would be stronger and sustainable. If the story is less than compelling, the movement would be weak and unsustainable; and will eventually wither away. A good storyteller need not worry about the delivery of tangible results. Emotional benefits are good enough.
Please note that the truth of the story has nothing to do with its effectiveness. Human beings are very much able to wear fiction on themselves to turn the falsehood into truth. This is why Hollywood has been able to blur and sometimes eliminate the line between fact and fiction.
Personally, for a large part I am not a story kind of guy. My mind works on facts and logic. Stories generally bore me. Therefore it is very difficult for me to sit down and read stories to my children. However, I am not immune to stories. When a story is convincing from the factual point of view, from the delivery point of view, or both, the immunity melts away. This is what happens when Wall Street and Madison Avenue get together and weave great sequence of stories that can bamboozle the best of us.
From the story of Adam to Abel/Cain to Noah to Abraham to Aad to Thamood to David to Soloman to Jacob to Joseph to Moses to Jesus to many others without specific names, the Qur'an uses this powerful medium of storytelling to inform, educate and move people.
That is the very reason the religious and political mafias have been able to feed stories to their listeners instead of providing concrete solutions.
Tell a good story...the world is yearning for yet another one.
MQM's More Sensible Media Moves.
Check this out...
NOW the MQM is taking the semi-serious route of confronting the culprits instead of whining in the wrong channels and barking up the wrong trees.
However, as any racist Brit would dutifully do, while printing the letter the Guardian managed to stiff it to the MQM. At the end of the letter they wrote "Dr Farooq Sattar MQM deputy convener and four others," as if they couldn’t care less who Dr. Sattar were, and his opinion was as good as four others'.
The fully serious route is to write an opinion piece and get it published in the Guardian or another newspaper if Guardian refused to print it. That is instead of wasting their time with the Pakistani TV channels. Yapping away in front of moronic Pakistani TV anchors who ask four questions in one breath, have no courtesy to listen to any of the answers anyway, is not a replacement for the carefully crafted written word.
This is what I wrote about Guardian’s journalistic slight of hand on September 27, 2010.
There is an unwritten rule of the media to use the violent language when it comes to the MQM. Note the language of Faisal Raza Abdi at 4:50 onwards in this video. THIS is the reality of the Pakistani politics and especially that of PPP, which I have noticed since 1977.
The fish rots from its head. Most political parties in Pakistan are rotted at the head. Even with all of the talk of the MQM bullying, I have never seen any high level MQM spokesperson to talk like this in my life.
Any political party wishing to operate in Pakistan needs to be able to defend its leaders and members. In the case of the MQM that defense is promoted as offense, and the offense by the Jamaat-e-Islami, ANP, PPP, etc. is presented as defense. Case in point, the coverage of May 12, 2007. If the MQM men were seen firing with guns, who were responding to their fires? What were the other people doing with their ammunition?
It is about time the MQM started acting in the media offensively, instead of forever being on the defensive in front of the moronic TV anchors who are playing around with politicians to get salary boosts. From ARY to Geo to Samaa to Express back to ARY. That's their economic game.
From the MQM’s side, Haider Abbas Rizvi is the one to watch. He speaks with knowledge, authority and confidence. THAT is what is needed from the MQM in the machismo political culture of Pakistan. And last but not the least, stop reading those Urdu poetry. 98% of Pakistanis including the Urdu speakers don't understand most of them.
NOW the MQM is taking the semi-serious route of confronting the culprits instead of whining in the wrong channels and barking up the wrong trees.
However, as any racist Brit would dutifully do, while printing the letter the Guardian managed to stiff it to the MQM. At the end of the letter they wrote "Dr Farooq Sattar MQM deputy convener and four others," as if they couldn’t care less who Dr. Sattar were, and his opinion was as good as four others'.
The fully serious route is to write an opinion piece and get it published in the Guardian or another newspaper if Guardian refused to print it. That is instead of wasting their time with the Pakistani TV channels. Yapping away in front of moronic Pakistani TV anchors who ask four questions in one breath, have no courtesy to listen to any of the answers anyway, is not a replacement for the carefully crafted written word.
This is what I wrote about Guardian’s journalistic slight of hand on September 27, 2010.
There is an unwritten rule of the media to use the violent language when it comes to the MQM. Note the language of Faisal Raza Abdi at 4:50 onwards in this video. THIS is the reality of the Pakistani politics and especially that of PPP, which I have noticed since 1977.
The fish rots from its head. Most political parties in Pakistan are rotted at the head. Even with all of the talk of the MQM bullying, I have never seen any high level MQM spokesperson to talk like this in my life.
Any political party wishing to operate in Pakistan needs to be able to defend its leaders and members. In the case of the MQM that defense is promoted as offense, and the offense by the Jamaat-e-Islami, ANP, PPP, etc. is presented as defense. Case in point, the coverage of May 12, 2007. If the MQM men were seen firing with guns, who were responding to their fires? What were the other people doing with their ammunition?
It is about time the MQM started acting in the media offensively, instead of forever being on the defensive in front of the moronic TV anchors who are playing around with politicians to get salary boosts. From ARY to Geo to Samaa to Express back to ARY. That's their economic game.
From the MQM’s side, Haider Abbas Rizvi is the one to watch. He speaks with knowledge, authority and confidence. THAT is what is needed from the MQM in the machismo political culture of Pakistan. And last but not the least, stop reading those Urdu poetry. 98% of Pakistanis including the Urdu speakers don't understand most of them.
Monday, September 27, 2010
Guardian's Journalistic Slight of Hand
Please be watchful of the journalistic slight of hand by Guardian.
The very first sentence of the news report clearly shows Guardian’s journalistic slight of hand. It is NOT the conclusion of the Scotland Yard investigation. It is what is being told to Scotland Yard. Again, read the very first sentence carefully.
“The Scotland Yard investigation into the murder in London of the leading Pakistani politician Dr Imran Farooq has been told that rows within his own party may have led to his assassination.”
Everything is still the continuation of the speculation that was started in Islamabad minutes after the murder.
The Daily Mirror claims that “Within minutes of the death of Dr Farooq – a leading member of the Muttahida Qaumi Movement which means United National Movement – websites in Islamabad were awash with claims he had been assassinated or killed by his own bodyguard”
Where did these people in Islamabad get the detailed lowdown on the murder in minutes? They didn’t and they still don’t. It is a knee-jerk reaction against the MQM that is ingrained in some minds.
The very first sentence of the news report clearly shows Guardian’s journalistic slight of hand. It is NOT the conclusion of the Scotland Yard investigation. It is what is being told to Scotland Yard. Again, read the very first sentence carefully.
“The Scotland Yard investigation into the murder in London of the leading Pakistani politician Dr Imran Farooq has been told that rows within his own party may have led to his assassination.”
Everything is still the continuation of the speculation that was started in Islamabad minutes after the murder.
The Daily Mirror claims that “Within minutes of the death of Dr Farooq – a leading member of the Muttahida Qaumi Movement which means United National Movement – websites in Islamabad were awash with claims he had been assassinated or killed by his own bodyguard”
Where did these people in Islamabad get the detailed lowdown on the murder in minutes? They didn’t and they still don’t. It is a knee-jerk reaction against the MQM that is ingrained in some minds.
Monday, May 25, 2009
Whining Muslim Websites
I just read this article on altmuslim which does not even bother to respond to emails.
----------
This is what Zaid Shakir of Zaytuna has to say in his book, "Scattered Pictures: Reflections of An American Muslim":
"Many of our youth are also blocked from any effective involvement in the affairs of the Masjid, even if they are highly motivated religiously. They gain the impression that they have to wait for the “uncles” to die before they can have any say in the running of the
Masjid. Others, who may not be as religiously committed, drift away from the Masjid because there are no viable classes or programs to keep their interest."
It is interesting that Mr. Afeef requires Zaytuna institute to provide scholars. Unfortunately, most if not all Islamic institutions continue to be high-jacked by foreign-born ideologue "uncles" who are not dying soon to open up leadership space for the American-born (or at least American-educated) youngsters to play an important role in terms of interfaith understanding. Then the "uncles" wonder, "What Went Wrong?"
The insult to injury is that these "uncles" continue to import imams from overseas. Read any job placement requirements for any mosque. Arabic speaking requirement is higher than English speaking requirement. Some also require that the imam must have memorized certain percentage of the Qur'an already. A well-rounded, educated person cannot even fill those job positions because they are slanted to certain types of people
Even this website which published Mr. Afeef's article is a one-way street of talking down. You send articles to them. They don't even respond. So much for "dialogue". LOL!
----------
This is what Zaid Shakir of Zaytuna has to say in his book, "Scattered Pictures: Reflections of An American Muslim":
"Many of our youth are also blocked from any effective involvement in the affairs of the Masjid, even if they are highly motivated religiously. They gain the impression that they have to wait for the “uncles” to die before they can have any say in the running of the
Masjid. Others, who may not be as religiously committed, drift away from the Masjid because there are no viable classes or programs to keep their interest."
It is interesting that Mr. Afeef requires Zaytuna institute to provide scholars. Unfortunately, most if not all Islamic institutions continue to be high-jacked by foreign-born ideologue "uncles" who are not dying soon to open up leadership space for the American-born (or at least American-educated) youngsters to play an important role in terms of interfaith understanding. Then the "uncles" wonder, "What Went Wrong?"
The insult to injury is that these "uncles" continue to import imams from overseas. Read any job placement requirements for any mosque. Arabic speaking requirement is higher than English speaking requirement. Some also require that the imam must have memorized certain percentage of the Qur'an already. A well-rounded, educated person cannot even fill those job positions because they are slanted to certain types of people
Even this website which published Mr. Afeef's article is a one-way street of talking down. You send articles to them. They don't even respond. So much for "dialogue". LOL!
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