News:

Indonesia will host the 2013 Miss World competition in the country's resort island of Bali and the capital, Jakarta, in September.

Miss World organisers have axed the famed bikinis from this year's pageant, replacing them with conservative beach sarongs amid mounting protests from hardline Muslim groups.

Adjie S. Soeratmadjie, one of the local organisers, said on Thursday that all contestants will be required to wear Bali's traditional long sarongs instead of the sexy bikinis that are traditionally part of the competition.

He said the London-based Miss World Organisation has agreed to the request out of respect for the traditional customs and values of Indonesia.

Most Muslims in Indonesia, the world's most populous Islamic country, are moderate, but a small extremist fringe has become more vocal in recent years. [AP, 06 June 2013, Edited for Telegraph.co.uk by Barney Henderson]

Comments:

Indonesian Government should reject the proposal of Miss World Organisation to hold the contest in this country. There is no benefit nor will advantage at all for Indonesia to host this competition, on the contrary it devaluates the position of Indonesia as the most populous Muslim country. At least there are 5 reasons to reject Miss World Competition 2013 in Indonesia:

1. Whatever you call it, a beauty contest has only one objective. To search for the most beautiful woman to be exploited. It has become the ideology of beauty pageants since the first. Moreover the early history of Miss World is to look for a bikini swimsuit model. The '50s, named after Bikini Contest. Even the organizer promised that the contestant will wear traditional sarong instead of bikinis in this year's contest, women's bodies keep becoming its most attraction. Beauty contest is just for the legalization stamp to exploitate women's bodies to make it look elegant. Beauty contests made women as goods offered on the stage, catwalk, magazines, newspapers, and television. Women are considered as a tool of media to promote rating or selling of cosmetics, underwear and fashion industries. So we reject this contest because the contest is based on the view of exploitation and degradation of women
2. 3B concept in a beauty contests, the Brain (intelligence), Beauty (beauty), and Behavior (personality), is a false, deceptive and tricky concept to cover this kind of contest in order to be accepted by society. Everybody should question, how can a few days contest assess intelligence, beauty, and personality of each contestant? The only thing considered is one concept, namely physical beauty. So, supporting this event is perpetuating and supporting the sale of female bodies.
3. The position of Indonesia as the largest Muslim country in the world, also today there is a trend that Indonesia become the 'barometer' of Muslim world. The approval of Miss World contest 2013 in Indonesia will strenghten the opinion that Islam and Muslim accept the existence of beauty contests. This will be a model for other Muslim countries to be more tolerant and open to women exploitation. So, it is a campaign for liberal culture! Indonesia will be the model for cultural liberalisation! Naudzu billah. (Allah Forbid!) The fact shows that the plan to hold this contest in Indonesia has raised the number of participants to 130 participants, while last year there is only 116 participants. Brunei Darussalam which never participated before has committed to participate this year.
4. There are 235 million people in this country which is a lucrative market for the sale of various commodities. MNC media group for example as the Broadcast rights holders of the final night of Miss World in Indonesia will certainly reap dollars from the advertisers waiting for this event. Also the sale of the sponsors' products. Those are the economical motives of this contest
5. Benefits under the pretext of boosting tourism and the nation's image in the international community are petty, ridiculous and nonsensical reasons as well as showing the inability of the government to manage the state with the nation's morality rules based on noble and intelligent principles

It is strange if there are Muslims who support this immoral event. Since, Islam places women in a glorious position, as a family honor even honor for a nation. Women should be respected, not exploited.

People from various backgrounds have showed their rejection to the plan of organizing the contest in Indonesia.   Even Majelis Ulama Indonesia (Indonesia Ulema Council) has released its fatwa to reject this event last month. If the range of rejection does not insist the government to ban the function, it shows the people that the government failed to protect the nation's morality. Also means that the government has 'subjected' under the influence of corporate owners who do not protect people from the dangers of cultural liberalism.

People need the implementation of Islamic law under the shield of Khilafah "Caliphate" state that protected the honor of women and keep people aware of global liberalization as only the Khilafah "Caliphate" state could be independent states and generate leaders having integrity.

The success of Khilafah "Caliphate" Conferences throughout 31 cities in Indonesia involving more than 500 thousand people supporting the struggle in re-establishing the Islamic Khilafah "Caliphate" State is the real proof that Indonesian people realize what exactly their problem is and what is actually their hope and solution. O people of Indonesia... Do not humiliate yourselves and your dignity by hosting Miss World 2013, as your identity is the largest Muslim country in the world struggling for reestablishing new Khilafah "Caliphate" state.

Iffah Ainur Rohmah

Spokeswoman of Hizb ut Tahrir in Indonesia

Hizb ut Tahrir/Austria organized a demonstration before the Iranian Embassy in Vienna to denounce the Iranian regime and its Hizb in Lebanon because it supports the crimes and massacres committed against Muslim children in Syria al-Sham by the Baathist party.

Shaaban 1434 AH - June 2013 AD

Event:

Following the 2013/2014 budget, the government of Tanzania among others has imposed excise duty on all mobile services at 14.5 percent.  Out of the money, 2.5 percent will be used to finance education.

The government said it has widened coverage of excise duty on telecommunication to include landlines and wireless telecom services.

The Finance Minister Dr. William Mgimwa also said that in order to enhance its capacity to rehabilitate road networks, the government has increased fuel levy from 200 per litre to 263 per litre.

The duty on gas oil (diesel) per litre has increased to 217 from 215; excise duty on petrol has increased from 339 to 400 per litre while duty on illuminated kerosene has not changed. [The Citizen, June 15, 2013]

Comment:

Budget day in the Capitalist economic system is revered as though it is an honorable day and a liberator for the masses. Some believe that it is a period for bringing out government strategies so as to uplift the livelihood of people purportedly to better their lives in the coming year in terms of social services, infrastructure and economy. The truth is that this matter is contrary to the reality.

The surprising thing in the cunning Capitalist system budget is that it cunningly gives with the right hand and robs with the left hand. Sometimes even the trickery of giving is not done but they rob straight away. They can allege to raise the salaries of civil servants to better their remuneration. Suddenly, they raise taxes on essential commodities like food. Thus, the salary raise becomes meaningless or increases the hardship already faced. They also allege to better social services and infrastructure so as to ease the lives of the public. However, they cunningly raise taxes from the pockets of the poor public whom they claim to help.

We see the Tanzania budget as it is like other budgets and the way injustice is being committed openly by raising taxes on mobile telephony and petrol on the pretext that these taxes go towards betterment of education and infrastructure. This is a big surprise!!

This situation is brought about because government in a democratic system is meant to collect taxes by milking the public instead of helping them and looking after their affairs justly. Rather, our countries are endowed with many public resources like minerals, forests, big rivers that can sustain public lives and money that makes it possible not to milk the ordinary public. But since these resources are now owned by Western companies through dominance and privatization, the result is the burden even in basic services is carried by the public who are mostly poor.

In Islam under the Khilafah "Caliphate" state, the issue of social service provision to the public is a state responsibility through the use of public property like minerals and others. When there is a shortfall, the Khilafah "Caliphate" state borrows or imposes a small tax on the rich. This is the just system from the Creator which the world thirsts for to liberate it from Capitalist injustice.

Masoud Msellem

Deputy Media Representative

Hizb ut Tahrir / East Africa