Nussrah Magazine in Pakistan Issue 8 Sept/ Oct 2012
Hizb ut-Tahrir Netherlands: On Sunday, the 14th of Dhul Qiddah 1433 H, September 30, 2012, Hizb ut-Tahrir activists successfully organized a protest, Victory to Rasool Allah (saw), in the heart of The Hague in front of the American and French Embassies. Three powerful speeches were given in various languages. The protest opened with the recitation of the Quran. The first talk was in French, and the second in Dutch. The final speech was given by Hizb ut-Tahrir media representative, Brother Abo Zain, in English. The protest concluded with a moving duaa. Throughout the protest, chants and Takbeer soared to the skies from men, women, and children in The Hague. The Activists reminded the participants of the Beloved Prophet's virtues and the continuous Western attacks against Islam and on its values and sanctities. The speakers also pointed out the duties of their fellow Muslims. Alhamdulilah the protest was a success.
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Hizb ut-Tahrir America held a rally at Michigan Avenue in downtown Chicago on Saturday, September 22, 2012. Hundreds participated in the rally and held signs in support of the honor of Prophet Mohammad (PBUH). HT-America delivered a message to the producers of the movie stating that the slanders against Islam and Prophet Mohammad (PBUH) will not in any way or means impede the progress of Islam in the world or in the West. The speakers at the rally invited people to learn the facts about the lifestyle and the civilization introduced by Prophet Mohammad (PBUH). The speakers asserted the fact that a man like Prophet Mohammad (PBUH) and his guidance are capable of pulling the world in general and the West in particular from the financial crisis and political dilemmas they are plunged in.
HT-America accused the rulers in the Muslim countries of being anti-Prophet for their negative positions regarding the slanders committed against Prophet Mohammad (PBUH) and for alienating his teachings and civilization from the countries they are ruling. Chants in support of Prophet Mohammad (PBUH) were loudly heard throughout the rally.
Talk 1
Talk 2
Obama's speech at United Nations is a slap in the faces of those people who are giving a pathetic and useless advice to use United Nations' forum in order to resolve the issue of slandering of our beloved Prophet (s.a.w). Obama in his speech made it very clear that according to American constitution protection of freedom of speech is very sacred and important for him and he can not ban this slandering movie.
After abducting the senior member of Hizb-ut Tahrir Professor Dr. Syed Golam Mawla from the jail gate on 19 September 2012 and keeping him in an unknown location for 6 days, the government produced him before the court on 25 of September claiming that he was arrested the day before from Gulshan, Dhaka. The lying government claimed that Dr. Golam Mawla planned the demonstration held by Hizb-ut Tahrir outside the US embassy on 24 September against the US film insulting the Prophet (saw). Dr. Golam Mawla was produced before the court with this false case on the same day the US Ambassador Dan Mozena met with the Home Minister conveying instructions to the government to punish the Muslims and members of Hizb-ut Tahrir for demonstrating against America for insulting the Prophet (saw). This is another example of the lies and double standards of America who claimed that they condemn the film and have nothing against peaceful protests. As for the Hasina government its behaviour is as Muhammad (saw) said, "إِذَا لَمْ تَسْتَحي فَاصْنَعْ مَا شِئْتَ" “If you have no shame, then do as you like.” They flouted the rule of law which they claim to believe in and uphold, when they did not release Dr Golam Mawla in accordance with the Supreme Court’s verdict. They flouted all standards of human rights which they claim to believe in and uphold, when they abducted Dr. Golam Mawla and kept him in an unknown location without informing his family and producing him before a court within 24 hours. And now after all this, without displaying an iota of shame, this government which is immersed up to its neck in sins, commits this grave sin of lying by framing this false case against an honest, talented university teacher who is suffering from diabetes and spinal injury.
Hizb-ut Tahrir/ Wilayah Bangladesh wants the government to know that harassing Dr. Golam Mawla by assuming that he is the leader of Hizb-ut Tahrir without whom the party will be deterred from its struggle is a pipe dream. This has not happened so far and it will not happen. Hizb-ut Tahrir is not a one man party like the Awami League. It is an ideological party where there is no shortage of leaders. Moreover the party’s strength does not emanate from leadership of personalities, rather it emanates from the intellectual leadership of the Islamic ideology and the Help and Support of Allah (swt), the Almighty. So release Dr. Golam Mawla before the Almighty seizes you. "إِنَّ اللَّهَ لَيُمْلِي لِلظَّالِمِ حَتَّى إِذَا أَخَذَهُ لَمْ يُفْلِتْهُ" “Verily, Allah gives respite to a wrongdoer until He seizes him and he cannot escape.” [Bukhari and Muslim]
[وَلاَ تَحْسَبَنَّ اللَّهَ غَافِلاً عَمَّا يَعْمَلُ الظَّالِمُونَ إِنَّمَا يُؤَخِّرُهُمْ لِيَوْمٍ تَشْخَصُ فِيهِ الأَبْصَارُ)) [إبراهيم:42 ))
"Consider not that Allah is unaware of that which the Zalimun do, but He gives them respite up to a day when the eyes will stare in horror." [Surah Ibrahim: 42].
Media Office of Hizb-ut Tahrir Wilayah Bangladesh
Mohammed Morsi, President of Egypt, spent his 100th day as president of Egypt in the United States of America at the United Nations General Assembly. Mohammed Morsi was sworn in as president of Egypt on the Saturday 30th June 2012 with much pomp and fanfare.
His electoral victory was a unique moment in the recent history of Egypt. Mohammed Morsi was elected by the people, something none of his predecessors can claim. He is also the first civilian leader in the country's recent history. His party the Muslim Brotherhood (MB) has been working for change for over eight decades, Mohammed Morsi took the premier seat in arguably one of the most influential and powerful countries in the region if not the Muslim world.
Both Mohammed Morsi and the MB have now come face-to-face with the real-world challenges faced by any head of state. Many took to the streets to oust Mubarak, many also lost their lives in the process. After 100 days of ruling we are in a position to asses Morsi's rule and judge if the people's demands have been fulfilled.
Constitution
As Morsi and the MB took the reins of power the electoral victory in reality took place in an environment, where the powers of the president were not defined and the nation's constitution had also not been written. After 100 days in power much of the old system remains intact. Morsi and the MB have not presented any grand vision for the country. It has used slogans such as ‘Islam is the solution,' which it has now dropped, however what has been notably absent is where they plan to take the people and exactly how they plan to enrich the nation. All great powers and strong leaders historically had grand visions which they used to unify the people behind them and also got the nation to contribute towards their vision of the future.
Since the election victory the MB has gone to great lengths to demonstrate its moderation to the West. Indeed in it rush to placate so called international opinion, they abandoned all pretence to Islamic politics. In doing so, they think they are being pragmatic, smart and politically savvy. When it comes to applying Islamic politics they cite constitutional barriers and the need to keep minorities onside. When it comes to applying Islamic economics, they cite the need to avoid scaring international investors and tourists. When it comes to applying the Islamic foreign policy, they cite the need to show a moderate image and to appease the West.
Economy
The biggest challenge that Mosri faced was the economy. Today Egypt has an economy worth $168 billion, almost entirely driven by agriculture, media, petroleum exports and tourism. Its services industry constitutes 49% of the economy.
One of The problems with the Egyptian economy is the fact that an elite few control it. When elites control an economy, they use their power to create monopolies and block the entry of new people and firms. This is how Egypt worked for three decades under Hosni Mubarak. The government and military own vast swaths of the economy -- by some estimates, as much as 40%. Even when they did "liberalize," they privatized large parts of the economy right into the hands of Mubarak's friends and those of his son Gamal. Big businessmen close to the regime, such as Ahmed Ezz (iron and steel), the Sawiris family (multimedia, beverages, and telecommunications), and Mohamed Nosseir (beverages and telecommunications) received not only protection from the state but also government contracts and large bank loans. Together, these big businessmen their stranglehold on the economy created astronomical profits for regime insiders, but blocked opportunities for the vast mass of Egyptians to move out of poverty. Meanwhile, the Mubarak family accumulated a vast fortune estimated as high as $70 billion.
Morsi's strategy for solving this was to officially beg the IMF for a $4.9 billion loan. Egypt's Prime Minister, Hesham Qandil described the 5 year loan to be paid back with 1.1% rate as a good deal for the country.
The Prime Minister appeared live on Egypt's state television in a desperate bid to justify the loan by explaining its benefits to the people. However, he was unable to conceal the truth and in his subsequent statement, he contradicted himself and exposed one of IMF's stipulated conditions, which is to force Morsi's government to cut spending related to looking after the affairs of the Egyptian people. He said, "It is an Egyptian programme that will work on cutting and spending and adopting certain other measures."
Fearing backlash, Qandil intentionally chose not to elaborate on the other draconian measures. It is well known that such measures include: increase in taxes, price hikes on essential items, and further loans from other institutions. All of which will make the people suffer immensely and add to their misery. In fact the Financial Times confirmed these measures. On August 22 2012, the paper stated: "The IMF wants Egypt to outline plans to reduce its budget deficit by bolstering revenues and trimming the costly public sector, including fuel and food subsidies. Egypt must also secure financing from other lending institutions as part of the loan terms."
Zionist state "Israel"
Morsi made clear in his victory speech that he would honor all of Egypt's international treaties. No sooner had the dust settled on him assuming power it came to light Morsi had sent a communiqué confirming Egypt's commitment to peaceful ties with the Zionist state "Israel" . In the letter sent to Shimon Peres, President of the Zionist state "Israel", Morsi said: "I am looking forward to exerting our best efforts to get the Middle East Peace Process back to its right track in order to achieve security and stability for all peoples of the region, including that Israeli people." Despite vociferous denials by Morsi's representatives, the letter has turned out to be genuine. The UK's Guardian reported that Peres's office said the president's aides received the official communiqué on July 31st 2012 from the Egyptian ambassador to the Jewish state, both by registered mail and by fax from the Egyptian embassy in Tel Aviv. Furthermore, the paper stated that the fax number which appeared on the faxed letter was registered to the Egyptian embassy in Tel Aviv.
On the back of this in August 2012 the Morsi government decided to send the military to track and eliminate threats of militancy in Sinai. This was after accusing militants of killing 16 border patrol troops on a checkpoint in Sinai near the border with Israel. The killing of Egyptian troops was used as a basis to depose the head of intelligence, the head of military police and the governor of North Sinai. A few weeks later the heads of the SCAF, Tantawi and Sami Annan were also retired.
The removal of these senior generals was proven to not have been an independent affair when the US state department confirmed it knew about the changes within the military establishment before they happened as was reported by a US spokeswoman: "Hilary Clinton knew of ongoing discussions about a new defense team and was told during talks with President Morsi in Cairo last month that the change would be made 'at an appropriate moment." Commenting on the new appointed personnel for the defense ministry and army, the US administration said that, "Egypt's new top military officer is a known commodity in Washington."
The Morsi government's extremely heavy handed tactics raised a number of questions. The tactics and heavy weaponry was completely disproportionate to the incident. It was reported by the Associated Press that "Egyptian troops, light tanks, armored vehicles and attack helicopters are pouring into the Sinai desert." Based on the Camp David Accords between Egypt and Jewish entitysigned in 1979, Sinaiis a demilitarized zone and Egypt is not allowed to bring in military forces and heavy weaponry.
The complete silence by Jewish entityover this affair is very telling. Jewish entityhas always made a great fuss about any additions to any forces in Sinai. This is because General Lieutenant Ahmed Ali of the Egyptian forces confirmed in a briefing that "there is co-ordination over the presence of the armed forces in the Sinai territories," he continued: "I think that there is the understanding that the military operation in Sinai is in the interest of all." An Israeli government official, speaking on condition of anonymity because of the matter's sensitivity, said there are ongoing communications between the two sides.
Conclusions
Egypt in Morsi and the MB time is no different from Egypt in Mubarak's time, Morsi's ruling shows clearly that the slogan ‘Islam is the solution.' Was buried as soon as he became in power. Saad al-Husseini, a member of Egypt's Freedom and Justice Party executive bureau said in an interview, that tourism is very important for Egypt and stressed that drinking and selling alcohol are forbidden in Islam. However, he then added, "Yet Islamic laws also prohibit spying on private places and this applies to beaches as well...I wish 50 million tourists would travel to Egypt even if they come nude."
All pretence to Islam has been conveniently removed from the statements of MB and Morsi. On the economic front it is plainly clear both Morsi and MB have no programme. In the wider region Morsi has no plans to change the status quo, but maintain what his predecessors constructed. The current reality is that the Islamic groups that languished in the torture cells of the likes of Mubarak touting ‘Islam is the solution,' are now actually holding the Ummah back from Islamic rule.
Mohammad Morsi and the MB should remember when Mubarak protected Western interests rather than his peoples, the Ummah eventually rose up against him and when he didn't relinquish his position the Ummah came onto the streets and challenged him, eventually leading to his demise. If the MB fail to deliver a similar fate may await them.
Adnan Khan
Reaction to my BBC interview
As I stepped out of the BBC studio interview and checked my phone, I noticed that my twitter feed (@tajimustafa) had exploded with countless reactions to the interview I had just done covering Muslim reaction to the film insulting Prophet Muhammad (saw) and ‘free speech'. Listeners to the program were tweeting me their responses; some agreeing with points I made, some disagreeing, and some raising further questions. One of the categories of responses was that Muslim reaction is violent and disproportionate to the original provocation i.e. insults of the Prophet Muhammad (saw). For many Westerners who nowadays hold very little as sacred or worthy of respect, it is not surprising that they think that insulting a Prophet of Allah (swt) - a figure hugely loved and respected by over a billion of the world's population - is an overreaction.
Many also fail to appreciate the wider context; that Muslims see these latest attacks as the latest in a long line of attacks on Islam and Muslims be that occupation of Iraq and Afghanistan, the Danish cartoons, desecration of Qur'an in Afghanistan e.t.c.
Dominant Western narrative - ‘Muslim rage'
Another reason for this misunderstanding is the narrative promoted by Western governments and media. When the Muslim world erupted as it did, there are a variety of issues to explain to a non-Muslim audience in order for them to appreciate why the reaction was such; how Muslims view the Prophet (saw), how Muslims feel under attack especially over the last ten years, the role of America in the Muslim world, the failure of Muslim rulers to react appropriately leaving people to feel that they have to stand up and demonstrate in defend of the honour of the Prophet (saw). Instead of tackling such complex questions, the issue is reduced to a simplistic explanation. In this case, the simplistic explanation (narrative) put out by many media outlets and Western governments was ‘Muslim rage'. Indeed, Newsweek, the once respected international news magazine, had this as its front cover headline - with a suitable picture to match! The narrative was basically that Muslims are over sensitive, that they do not understand free speech, and that they are prone to violent and irrational reactions. So, much of the subsequent reporting, discussion and debate - including my BBC interview - revolved around these themes. Largely forgotten was the original provocative insults, the US governments insistence that it could not ban it as that would be counter to its belief in ‘free speech', the fact that insults do sometimes provoke a reaction or that it is uncivilised behaviour to go round insulting people especially when you claim you want to live in peace with them.
The vast majority of protests in the Muslim world were peaceful and whilst we do not condone the violence that took place at some protests, one understands the deep sense of anger and hurt that Muslims feel at such gratuitous insults on our guide, mentor and Allah's Prophet (saw). It is important that Muslims in the West also voice their upset by raising their voices at peaceful protests that we take these opportunities to engage with non0Muslim neighbours and colleagues explaining the wider context and why we hold the Prophet (saw) in such high esteem. It is also an opportunity to challenge the dominant narrative and to get them to think about the non-existent of ‘free speech' in any absolute term and the uncivilised behaviour and problems that it has lead to even in Western societies where some now complain of a growing culture of rudeness, insults and anti-social behaviour.
Unfortunately, a few Muslims in the West have been so affected by the dominant narrative - that Muslim reaction is just irrational and violent rage - that some started to claim that the Prophet (saw) never reacted to insults so Muslims should remain silent about such insults, or that Muslims should not even demonstrate peacefully - something even non-Muslims do not say. Their selective reading of the seerah of the Prophet (saw) means that they ignore incidents in the seerah where the sahabah reacted to some of those who vilified the Prophet (saw), and where the Prophet (saw) consented to their response. Rather than examine and question the dominant narrative of western governments and some of the Western media, they have become apologetic. The irony is that some of these people would protest vehemently if members of their family were insulted, yet they expect Muslims not to protest when the best of Creation is insulted!
The Prophet (saw) said, ‘None can be a (complete) believer till I become dearer to him than his father, son and the entire mankind.' (Muslim)
Taji Mustafa
Media Representative of Hizb ut-Tahrir in Britain
