In the past 48 hours, Kenya has again woken to the death of its citizens in various parts of the country. As at now the exact number has not been established but the toll is estimated at 100 people with fear of the figure rising as some of the victims are still hospitalized after consuming the poisonous alcohol. The political Islamic movement Hizb ut Tahrir has pointed the notes below in relation to the incident.

First: This incident reflects to the extent alcoholism has spread in the country resulting to Kenya being called a "drinking nation". The name suiting the nation since alcohol is abused from the slums, clubs, academic institutions, wedding and even funerals. This clearly shows alcohol, regardless of its health hazards causing deaths, there are still a few individuals benefiting from its trade. This also clearly shows the rotten measure of the capitalist system when it comes to good and bad as the system only considers the benefit that it begets. In this regard even if alcohol is a danger to human life but a few individuals are benefiting from its trade hence the capitalist system allows the trade to flourish to the possible extend in the simplest manner. This is completely against Islam's view and measure of human deeds. Islam's measure of human deeds is based on either halal or haram. In this case, if something is haram then it is strictly forbidden regardless of the benefits than can come from it.

Second: It doesn't really come as a surprise when calamities like these befall the Kenyan community since the government has adopted a capitalist system which holds a wrong view of human happiness and success. The capitalist system defines happiness and success as the ability to achieve maximum material leisure and satisfaction. To achieve this, the capitalist system believes it is essential to give humankind personal freedom to do whatever one wishes or find necessary. This is again in contrary to Islam, which has clearly defined real happiness as striving to achieve the pleasure of the Creator and confining oneself to His jurisdiction.

Third: Most of those consuming alcohol among the poor and even the rich claim to do so to relieve stress. Though this reason does not justify a noble human being to indulge in such acts, it is true that the Kenyan citizens are going through tough times economically. This is a clear failure of the government in taking care of the affair of its citizens. This failure by the government is justified by adopting a corrupt capitalist ideology with a faulty economic system that just views production of resources that ends in the hands of a few powerful individuals and leaves the rest of the citizens staggering in poverty. Islam on the other side has forbidden humans from losing hope in life and its economic system ensures proper and equal distribution of resources to all and sundry and not allowing only a few powerful individuals to benefit.

Fourth: The Kenyan government certainly declines to declare alcohol as a vice in the community and that it should be banned. It instead resorts to solutions which actually fuels the problems rather than solving them. How can the government claim that the best solution is to give the alcohol trade a hawk eye, hasn't it been doing that by establishing all the regulatory bodies which themselves end up to be corrupt and incompetent? These solutions portray the rotten facts of democracy. It shows how human life is not valued but instead the main concern is the money obtained through taxes from the alcohol trade and leaving human life to suffer the blow.

Alcoholism wrecks the fibre of human structure and also destroys the base on which human race rests. Looking at the statistics; disasters, alcoholism and drug abuse have been a reason for greater number of deaths than what the government calls "terrorism".

In conclusion, the solution to this vice is in Islam. Islam as ideology forbids the consumption or use of anything that affects the human race be it health-wise or socially. According to Islam, alcoholism is a vice and is considered as one of Satan's deeds that leads to abhorrence in the community not to mention sending humans far away from the righteous path of abiding by the wish and whims of our Creator.

Shabani Mwalimu
Media Representative of Hizb ut Tahrir in East Africa

Hizb ut Tahrir Wilayah Pakistan demonstrations across Pakistan marking two years of the abduction of Naveed Butt, the Official Spokesman of Hizb ut Tahrir in the Wilayah of Pakistan. Demonstrators held banners and placards declaring that "Two years, too much! Free Naveed Butt, Advocate for Khilafah "Caliphate"", "End the Raymond Davis Network, Stop Persecution of Hizb ut Tahrir".

On Sunday 4th May, many Filipino media reported a massive "People's Ratification Rally" which was held simultaneously in key areas in Mindanao to push Congress to pass the Bangsamoro Basic Law (BBL). A report on Luwaran.com, the official information website of the Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF), gave the numbers of rally participants at 200,000 including thousands of Muslim Women in eight cities and four municipalities in Southern Philippines.

After more than 40 years of bloody conflict between MILF and Filipino authorities, the president of Barangay Women Groups - Hazar Muarip Ahmad said they are already "sick and tired of war," since women and children are the very first ones to be affected once war erupts. On the other hand, it also affects the quality of education as also said by Ahmad Al-Amin, the Chairman of Bangsamoro Indigenous Peoples Caucus in a separate interview.

Bangsamoro Basic Law is part of Comprehensive Agreement on Bangsamoro (CAB) between the Philippine government under the Aquino administration, and the Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF), which has been reached after 17 years negotiations and intensively facilitated by international agencies including some major countries like the United States, Australia, Canada, Japan, and Malaysia. This agreement provides a roadmap for the Bangsamoro, the new autonomous political entity that would replace the Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (ARMM) which the Filipino President reiterated to be a "failed experiment." On the other hand, CAB also determines new identity for Muslims Moro as "Bangsa Moro", Bangsa is a Malay word that means ‘nation' which will include not only Muslim ethnic tribes, but also Christian settlers and indigenous peoples in the prospective Bangsamoro territory.

The comprehensive peace agreement -which strived by Philippine secular government and also supported by international institutions- will never create true independence for minorities Muslim Moro in southern Philippines, including Muslim women and children who have been living oppressed for decades over the past 40 years.

This kind of agreement is nothing but a "democracy trap" that is often used by western imperialists specifically to obscure the true identity of Muslims in the southern Philippines, annexing the southern Philippines region which is very rich in natural resources, crippling the movement of Islamic movement groups, and taming Muslim Moro to become more moderate and pragmatic thus believe that democracy is the ideal tools for Islamic struggle.

All these efforts made by the authorities' Kuffar Philippines and western international institutions who do not want Islamic revival in southern Philippines, lead to their main goal i.e. democratic participation of the Muslims and keep them occupied with these activities, so that they will leave every effort for realizing the enforcement of Islamic Shariah in their lands.

Through the bound of CAB, a greater hazard actually awaits Muslims in the southern Philippines. U.S. imperialism and other capitalist countries such as Australia and Japan ready to exploit the economic wealth owned by the island of Mindanao and Sulu in the south. This is not peculiar at all, as almost four centuries of Spanish rule and six decades of U.S tutelage fettered the Philippines to feudal and semi-feudal exploitation. Filipino peasants have been deprived of land; workers, reduced to cheap labour force; and the natural resources and environment plundered and ravaged. The country became a dumping market for overpriced goods, and a forward base for imperialist hegemony in the Asia-Pacific. Even to secure its geopolitical interests in the Asia Pacific region, in particular the United States has deployed troops in Mindanao since a long time ago.

O my dear Moro sisters, be aware! That the Moro Muslims are an integral part of the Muslims entity all over the Islamic world - stretching from Morocco to Merauke!

Muslim women along those regions have suffered exactly the same as you feel, downtrodden and oppressed in their own land. Truly we are one Ummah, our Prophet is one, and our Quran is one! Then leave the secular attribute that will compartmentalize Muslims! Because Islam teaches that the strongest bond for Muslims is the Islamic Aqeedah and is manifested in Islamic Ukhuwah (brotherhood), rejecting the bond of ethnicity, race, or the color of skin. Allah (swt) says:

((إِنَّمَا الْمُؤْمِنُونَ إِخْوَةٌ))

"Indeed the believers are brothers." [TMQ al-Hujurat 49: 10]

Islam also obliges Muslims to live under one political leadership - the Khilafah "Caliphate". It is forbidden for them to be under fragmented political leaderships and different rulers and states as we see today. Prophet Muhammad (saw) once said:

«إِذَا بُويِعَ لِخَلِيفَتَيْنِ فَاقْتُلُوا الْآخَرَ مِنْهُمَا»

"When the oath of allegiance has been taken for two Caliphs, kill the latter of them." (Sahih Muslim).

Therefore the Khilafah "Caliphate" will unite the Southern Philippine archipelago with the huge territory of Indonesia and Malaysia, and all the lands of Muslims all over the world. The Khilafah "Caliphate" will also free the lands of the Muslims in Mindanao, Sulu, Myanmar, Syria, Central Africa and will be a true shield for the honor of the Muslims, including Muslim women and children in all regions of the Khilafah "Caliphate" state.

The Khilafah "Caliphate" with its noble foreign policy vision will never let any region of Muslims to fall into the hands of the Kuffar and will never accept deceiving imperialist treaties. It will mobilize its army for the sake of Islam and the protection of Muslims rather than for the sake of narrow selfish interests. It will end the weak foreign policy of the Muslim countries that are based upon submission to the West, nationalism and the betrayal of the Western puppet rulers. The Khilafah "Caliphate" will replace it with a noble foreign policy to spread the noble da'wah of Islam to the whole world by the method of da'wah and jihad.

O my dearest Moro sisters! Remember, the only way to achieve a true independence is back on the lap of Islam, and be united with all Muslims in the world under the shade of Khilafah "Caliphate"! Be aware! That Muslims could not re-enter the trap enemies for the umpteenth time! The strength of the Muslims should not be stripped by a trap called democracy and nationalism, so be consistent with the straight Dawah method exemplified by Prophet Muhammad (saw). Thus join the struggle for the establishment of the Second Khilafah "Caliphate" Rashidah which will silence those who attack and besmirch the honor of Muslim women around the world through the rule of Islam.

Written for The Central Media Office of Hizb ut Tahrir by
Fika Komara
Member of Central Media Office Hizb ut Tahrir

The two explosions that rocked the cities of Mombasa and Nairobi last weekend that left a total of six people dead and scores injured was a very sad incident. This is almost the 80th from the series of explosions incidents since the KDF (Kenya Defense Forces) engaged the Al-Shabaab in 2011 in Somalia. It is so sad that innocent lives are lost and blood continues to be shed; because of these incidents, the Islamic political movement Hizb ut Tahrir / East Africa would like to note as follows:

Whenever these incidents and their likes occur, fingers are pointed to Muslims even before proper investigations are carried out and what follows after is a series of police raids resulting to lots of Muslims being arrested. What is saddening about the whole exercise is how the Muslims are mishandled and oppressed with no even slight respite. A sad example as reported by nairobinews.nation.co.ke, a baby of six months died because the mother was unavailable to give care as she had been nabbed and locked at Kasarani during the ongoing police operation dubbed "Usalama Watch". These police units including the ATPU (Anti-Terror Police Unit) practice extrajudicial executions with total disregard of both the laws called Kenyan laws and international law. They go to an extent of even ignoring court verdicts claiming that terrorists were left scorch free after bail and surety submission, something even strongly opposed by Judge DK Maraga on April 24th 2009 on his ruling on the Kiambaa Church incident during the post-elections violence when he blasted the police and the prosecution for their shoddy work blaming the judiciary. This clearly shows lack of evidence on the accused and also their hypocritical call for rule of law and independent judiciary.

It is clear that insecurity in Kenya went to greater heights particularly after operation "LINDA NCHI" carried by the KDF in Somalia. After the deployment of the KDF in Somalia, numerous reports went on air claiming that the forces have captured Alshabaab's strong holds. The question is: Why are innocent Kenyans still being killed? We clearly understand to what extend insecurity is in Somalia but it is not true that military excavation will bring permanent peace in Somalia because already foreign forces from the west i.e. America and France and from other nations are in Somalia and still permanent peace has not been attained. The root cause of lack of peace in Somalia is the tussle between the western nations in reaping Somalia's natural resources. It is essential to understand that the nations of the west, America in particular on one side and the Europeans on the other, have turned Somalia into a battle field just to reap Somalia's resources and they can only remain in Somalia under the pretext of fighting terror. These nations clearly understand the burden and costs of war and they cant sustain that at this point and time hence they force inferior nations like Kenya; nations that cant even sustain themselves economically to go into wars leaving calamities falling on their innocent citizens.

It is so sad to see African leaders including Kenya's follow this colonialists ideology; an ideology that has even make it difficult for the leaders to take care of their citizens' problems, making them engage in wars dubbed " war against terror" accusing Islam and the Muslims as if Islam is the cause of their existing dilemmas. The truth is that Africa is the only continent that is still being reaped by the corrupt western ideology. Here in Kenya colonialists oppression is not a strange thing as many Africans were branded terrorist just because they were fighting for their lands against the occupying colonialists.

America and her allies have felt the threat of the reestablishment of the KHILAFAH to control the world that is after the evident failure of the capitalist ideology to solve world problems and in fact itself being part of the problem.

We lastly clearly wish to state that; Among the teaching of Islam is to protect the blood of the innocent, so the sad acts that have transpired during the weekend should not in anyway whatsoever be related to Islam or Muslims. This fact is in history as during the caliphate the non-Muslims were protected and their traditions respected. The Prophet (saw) said,

«مَنْ كَانَ عَلَى يَهُودِيَّتِهِ أَوْ نَصْرَانِيَّتِهِ فَإِنَّهُ لاَ يُفْتَنُ عَنْهَا»

"Verily neither a Christian nor a Jew will be interfered with regards to their faith."

This is how the coming KHILAFAH will manage to protect the safety and peace of its citizens without any discrimination.

Shabani Mwalimu
Media Representative of Hizb ut Tahrir in East Africa