Muslim Views, March 2014

Vol. 28 No. 3

JAMAD-UL-AWWAL 1435 l MARCH 2014

Israeli Apartheid Week on track HE tenth international Israeli Apartheid Week (IAW) campaign will take place in South Africa between the 10th and 16th of March. The IAW campaign is organised in South Africa by IAW South Africa and has been endorsed by over 65 organisations across the country.

IAW is an annual international series of events that seek to raise awareness of Israel’s apartheid policies against the indigenous Palestinians, and garner support for the Boycott, Divestment, and Sanctions against Israel (BDS) campaign, which is aimed at bringing an end to Israel’s apartheid policies and violations of international law.

In 2012, the United Nations Committee for the Elimination of Racial Discrimination found Israeli policies ‘tantamount to Apartheid’.

Prior to that, in November 2011, similar findings were made by the Russell Tribunal in Cape Town.

In 2010, Human Rights Watch published a report titled ‘Separate and Unequal’, which details Israel’s discriminatory practices against the indigenous Palestinians.

In 2009, in a study commissioned by the South African government, the SA Human Sciences Research Council also found Israel guilty of practising apartheid.

In South Africa, many activities have been planned for the IAW. Among these is the boycott of SodaStream.

This boycott is supported by the South African chapter of the international Boycott Divestment and Sanctions (BDS) movement.

SodaStream is an international company that manufactures and sells drink-making machines, syrups, bottles and carbonators.

Its main production site in Israel is in Mishor Edomim, an Israeli settlement industrial park located in the West Bank.

The land where the SodaStream factory is located was illegally confiscated by the Israeli military occupation authorities from Palestinian owners.

Israeli settlements are an impediment to peace, and violate international law.

Since 1968, the US government has called on Israel to stop building and expanding settlements in the West Bank.

Although many Palestinians work in the plant, a study by Who Profits, an organisation that tracks Israel’s economic practices in the occupied Palestinian territories, found that 82% of Palestinians working in Israeli settlements would quit those jobs if viable alternatives were available.

Omar Barghouti, a Palestinian activist, said the fact that ‘tens of thousands’ of Palestinians work in settlements is the direct result of Israeli policy.

Barghouti says Israel has been ‘systematically destroying Palestinian industry and agriculture, confiscating our most fertile lands and richest water reserves, and imposing extreme restrictions of movement preventing many from reaching their workplaces’.

Under these conditions, the Palestinian economy can scarcely produce job opportunities capable of competing with Israeli settlement industries.

Consumer boycotts are an important means of generating public awareness about Israeli apartheid and occupation as well as building international support for the boycott.

It is also a means of applying economic pressure for change.

This kind of pressure has forced retailers to stop selling Israeli produce and produce from illegal settlements in particular.

The consumer boycott has resulted in a 20% decline of Israeli exports in the wake of the Gaza massacre from 2008 to 2009.

In South Africa, SodaStream is stocked by many of the major outlets namely PicknPay, Spar and Shoprite Checkers.

According to Safoudien Bester, spokesperson for Runners for the Freedom of Palestine, many unsuspecting Muslims are using this product even though there is a label indicating the origin on it.

Runners for the Freedom of Palestine calls on the public to support the boycott of SodaStream, contribute to building awareness of the illegal Israeli occupation, and building economic pressure on companies with plants on illegal Israeli settlements.

T

A group of United States military veterans and their families joined the villagers of Bil’in in the West Bank, Palestine, in the weekly protest against the Israeli Apartheid Wall, which is less than four kilometres from the village. The Israeli Apartheid Week offers an opportunity for solidarity such as this to be harnessed in a global campaign for justice in Palestine, and to raise awareness about Israel’s apartheid policies.

Photo POPULAR STRUGGLE COORDINATION COMMITTEE

IAW events in South Africa

ISRAELI Apartheid Week (IAW) offers ordinary people around the world an opportunity to take part in an extraordinary and truly global campaign.

There are IAW representatives responsible for organising events in most major South African cities, towns and universities. For details send an email to: iawsouthafrica@apartheidweek.org or telephone 011 492 2414 and the organisers will put you in contact with the IAW representative in your city/ community/ university.

Confirmed events include a national book tour by international author, Miko Peled. An Israeli peace activist, author and karate instructor, Peled has written the best-selling book, The General’s Son: Journey of an Israeli in Palestine.

For details of his itinerary in the various centres, contact the IAW South Africa team or visit their Facebook page: https://www.facebook.com/iawsouthafrica.

• In Cape Town, BDS South Africa and the ANC Youth League Western Cape will hold an IAW mass rally at Rocklands Civic Centre, in Mitchells Plain, on Saturday, March 15, at 11:00 a.m.

The keynote speaker will be the Minister of Public Enterprises, Malusi Gigaba.

Public accountability vital for Muslim NGOs page 4

2

Muslim Views

Muslim Views . March 2014

W

ITH the battle well underway to win the hearts of voters who go to the polls on May 7, political parties are dominating the news.

Some political leaders are even given editorial space – or take up columns in the print and electronic newsletters of their political parties – to project their personal stance on issues that have little or no bearing on the daily struggles of the poor.

This election, like those in the past, is more about the political parties and politicians than about the people.

The election season is an opportunity for communities to switch the agenda to ‘people first’.

As we have seen with the service delivery protests across the country, communities will not hesitate to rise up against politicians and bureaucrats who fail the people.

But the politicians are often absent during these uprisings.

The election campaign, however, forces politicians to come to the communities, and here is a chance to dictate the agenda; the opportunistic politicians provide people with an opportunity to exercise their power well before the polls.

As politicians go on their roadshows and visit potential areas of support, people must mobilise and confront them with the daily realities of life that face the poor: hunger, unemployment, dysfuntional – and in some cases non-existent – health care facilities, housing, education,

crime…

Recently, a politician went on a door-to-door campaign in Soweto and was enthusiastically met by people in the area, many wearing t-shirts of the political party that the politician represents.

However, one member of the community took the opportunity to bluntly ask the politician: ‘Why don’t you visit us when our children are killed? Why do you only visit us now?’

This was broadcast on national television.

By mobilising at grassroots level, communities can speak with one voice, irrespective of their political allegiances.

This voice must be forthright so that politicians – and the media – cannot pretend not to have heard the message.

A mobilised community would be able to use the election campaign as a vehicle not only for articulating its grievances but as a launch pad for progressive action.

Sociologist Trevor Ngwane, in research conducted at University of Johannesburg on protests between 2004 and 2013, found that while service delivery was the number one grievance, followed by housing, water and sanitation, representation featured high on the list of grievances.

This demonstrated, as Ngwane pointed out, that people were unhappy with the way their public representatives were putting forward their case.

Going to the polls and making your cross against the name of the party of your choice is just one aspect of democracy. A democratic system should deliver substantively. One should be able to see an improvement in one’s life, that of the community and the country.

Over the past 20 years, the equality gap has widened in spite of people being given the opportunity to choose their public representatives.

When those who seek to represent us canvass our votes, we must mobilise so that we can speak with one voice and remind them of this frightening fact.

Our editorial comment represents the composite viewpoint of the Editorial Team of Muslim Views, and is the institutional voice of the newspaper. Correspondence can be sent to editor@mviews.co.za

Publishers: BRISKTRADE 175 (Pty) Ltd P O Box 442 Athlone 7760 South Africa Tel: 021 696 5404 • Fax Admin: 021 696 9301 Advertising adverts@mviews.co.za Admin info@mviews.co.za Editor Farid Sayed E-mail editor@mviews.co.za Fax Editor 086 516 4772 DISTRIBUTION Your Advertiser 021 638 7491 Views and opinions expressed by contributors and advertisers in this publication do not necessarily reflect those of the editorial team or the publishers.

Muslim Views . March 2014

3

The massacre of March 21. Why Sharpeville?

ESISTANCE to the pass laws intensified during the 1950s, and various protests took place. Yet, it was Sharpeville and the events of March 21 that came to represent the struggle of Black people against the unjust system of apartheid.

R

Why Sharpeville?

The Sharpeville massacre itself is well documented. However, little of the literature focuses on background explanations as to how developments within Sharpeville led to the confrontation between police and anti-pass demonstrators on that fateful day.

The critical question, often ignored in the literature on the event is, ‘why was it in Sharpeville as opposed to anywhere else in the Union that the PAC’s campaign received its strongest response, a question that can only be answered by examining the local history that led up to the shootings’. (Chaskalson, M. 1986.

‘The Road to Sharpeville’, African Studies Seminar Series paper, Wits University) Role of local industries Iscor and Sasol were and continue to be the two key role players in the provision of employment in the Sharpeville region.

These two industries experienced rapid growth in the immediate aftermath of World War II and continued growing into the 1950s and 1960s.

In response to this growth and increased employment opportunities, thousands of ‘African’ families from the immediate rural hinterland, dominated by ‘white’ commercial agriculture, inevitably found their way into Vereeniging.

These families settled in the only accommodation in the area offered to ‘Africans’, Top Location, and later, Sharpeville.

This movement had a significant bearing on the NP government’s designs for all urban areas across South Africa.

These designs are reflected in the government’s most elaborate piece of legislation intended to regulate the numbers of ‘Africans’ entering urban areas, the Native Laws Amendment Act of 1952.

The role of the Vereeniging Town Council The Native Laws Amendment Act of 1952 was used as a mechanism to distribute ‘African’ labour in such a way that ‘white’ commercial agriculture was guaranteed adequate supplies of labour despite increasing levels of impoverishment in the countryside.

Sections 10 (1) (a), (b), (c), and (d) of the Act were enforced in such a way that only ‘Africans’ in long-term, regular and somewhat permanent employment were allowed to reside in urban areas.

In his examination of the circumstances leading to the massacre that takes into account local developments during the 1950s, Chaskalson argues that ‘throughout the 1950s Sharpeville was recognised across the country as the model African township, and the Council was able to censor almost all local African political activity’. (Chaskalson, 1986) Therefore, the social and economic development of Vereeniging towards the end of the 1950s, particularly the administration of its ‘African’ township, is significant in the Vereeniging Town Council’s role in the events of March 21, 1960.

In the early 1950s, Vereeniging’s only ‘Black’ township, Top Location, was modelled along the same lines as Sophiatown, and was also notoriously difficult to police.

The Vereeniging Town Council decided to apply the ‘Sophiatown solution’ to Top Location.

By the end of 1959, all residents of Top Location had been relocated to Sharpeville, where they were subjected to stricter controls.

Even more important than strict policing, Sharpeville, like all other townships created by the NP government, was made to pay for the cost of its upkeep. This was done through charging rentals considered exorbitant when taking into account the families’ incomes.

Finally, the ejection of the unemployed considered in excess of the requirements of the town’s labour needs had the potential to create dissent against the town council.

The lives of residents of ‘African’ townships elsewhere in the Union were regulated through the application of the provisions of Section 10 (1) of the Native Laws Amendment Act of 1952.

Sharpeville was no different.

Transgressors of location regulations, i.e. those found to be in Vereeniging illegally because they were not in formal employment, risked being forced back to the rural areas.

In the context of the 1950s, when the homeland system was only evolving, this could have entailed repatriation of these ‘Africans’ to areas closer to ‘white’ commercial farms where they could be easily available as seasonal labour when they were needed.

These were the circumstances that many residents of Sharpeville were faced with when the march against passes was proposed in 1959.

Courtesy: www.sahistory.org.za This newspaper carries Allah’s names, the names of the Prophets and sacred verses of the Holy Qur’an.

Please treat it with the respect it deserves.

Either keep, circulate or recycle.

Please do not discard.

Muslim Views

4

Muslim Views . March 2014

Accountability and media relations vital for Muslim NGOs MAHMOOD SANGLAY

THE reaction to the publication of the article on charities last month elicited an unprecedented reaction from the public and charity organisations.

The response was mainly positive, with a range of voices from the public as well as in civil society organisations welcoming the survey.

Many expressed disappointment and concern that only two out of the six charities had responded to the survey.

Muslim Views is engaging all the charities in a follow-up on the survey with a view to study the possible submission of outstanding information and the inclusion of the charities who may have reconsidered their positions and decided to participate in the survey. This report will be published in a forthcoming edition.

Conducting the survey itself was an enlightening exercise in a number of ways. The information-gathering process revealed a diversity of responses, from an enthusiastic willingness to participate to an almost fearful reluctance and an evasiveness to do so.

This may be an indication of levels of transparency, accountability and compliance. However, one remains convinced that most of our leading Muslim charities do commendable work and they should continue to enjoy the support of donors.

Nevertheless, it is vital that we raise questions about governance, accountability and compliance, no matter what organisation it is.

A code of governance for nongovernmental organisations is a serious matter. NGOs are known to have faced legal action or have

Muslim Views

been shut down for non-compliance or breach of operating conditions.

It is no different for Muslim organisations, especially in respect of the management of public funds, assets and resources. Public interest is the key motive for seeking accountability from any public organisation, especially charities.

While Muslim charities are obviously not exempted from this kind of scrutiny, it appears that there is some resistance and obfuscation in this respect for a reason peculiar to faith-based organisations.

Public accountability Some members of the editorial team of Muslim Views recall a classic response some time ago by the leader of a prominent local Muslim organisation when asked to produce its financial statements for a newspaper report in the public interest.

The Muslim leader responded, ‘Did the Sahabah of the Prophet (SAW) ask him to produce financial statements?’

This response is quintessential of the flawed notion of accountability among some Muslims. The flawed logic goes: If we are ultimately accountable to Allah, why should we account to fellow humans?

This presumes that anyone in a position of trust and power in a Muslim organisation is not only beyond reproach but also above questioning; we simply have to accept that because they fear Allah they will, therefore, always act ethically and in the public interest.

Is this presumption further entrenched if the person in power

Public interest is the key motive for seeking accountability from any public organisation, especially charities. happens to be a well-known religious leader?

Are people expected to treat such a leader with the kind of respect that precludes accountability for conduct in a position of trust, especially if it is in the management and administration of public funds and important decision-making?

The Prophet (SAW) was commanded in the Quran by Allah: ‘Take counsel with them in all matters of public concern then, when you have decided upon a course of action, place your trust in Allah for, verily, Allah loves those who place their trust in Him.’ (3:159) This notion of consultation recurs in surah 42, verse 38.

According to Muhammad Asad, in his commentary on Quran 3:159, a hadith on the authority of Ali ibn Abi Talib clarifies that ‘deciding upon a course of action’ means, according to the Prophet (SAW), to consult with knowledgeable people and to follow their advice. Asad relies on Ibn Kathir for this inter-

pretation.

This endorses governance by consent and council, which is consistent with governance that is accountable and transparent.

Many scholars consider this Quranic principle fundamental to Islamic legislation relating to governance.

The term amruhum shura baynahum, in Quran 42:38, according to Asad, refers to the whole community of believers and it denotes all affairs of public concern.

This precedent set by the Prophet (SAW), who is our model, is therefore applicable and binding on all Muslims for all times.

Sahih Bukhari records a hadith narrated by Abdullah. Allah’s Apostle said: ‘Everyone of you is a guardian and is accountable to his charges.

‘The ruler who has authority over people is a guardian and is accountable to them… so all of you are guardians and are accountable to your charges.’

(Vol 3, Bk 46, No 730) Public accountability is a core concept in Islam and, therefore, any Muslim NGO should fully embrace it without question.

Communication and media relations Generally, Muslim organisations do not take media, communications and public relations seriously, and do not appreciate their role in the integrity of the organisation. This was also the case with most of the charities in the survey, and their responses to the report published last month.

Among the main aims of media, including newspapers, are to report news, act as the

guardian and as the mirror of society, and help in developing public opinion.

Newspapers increasingly play an important role in local news and reporting on matters relevant to communities of interest, such as religious communities.

These are all important for a vibrant democracy and in the public interest. Therefore, the independence of media as the guardian or ‘watchdog’ of society should be respected.

Media have a responsibility to investigate and report on matters that affect their readers in any way. Such reporting may be critical if need be but it may also be favourable and complimentary.

The charities survey is in the public interest, and the charities that collect public money can and should benefit from such a survey if they are true to their mandate and meet the appropriate governance requirements.

Media provide an important means for public organisations to communicate with the public and, therefore, should be effectively used for this purpose, both through paid-for-advertising and through good newsworthy editorial coverage.

Media may not be your friend but they need not be your enemy.

NGOs need to allocate dedicated resources to media and public relations. This includes training staff to deal with media ordinarily as well as in a crisis situation.

Good use of the media and public relations are part of a broader communications plan.

Poor communications management may in fact precipitate a crisis, causing harm to the image of the organisation.

Muslim Views . March 2014

5

Muslim Views

6

Muslim Views . March 2014

Never a burden greater than I can bear MAHMOOD SANGLAY

‘…[T]he brutality of the arrests and the manner in which the kidnappings took place, people’s clothes ripped off with knives, hooded, goggled, suppositories, nappies, nobody is going talk about that to anybody’s wife, are they? Ever?’

Victoria Brittain is a demure woman but her words lacked no passion.

Her visit to South Africa last month to promote her new book Shadow Lives is part of a deeply personal journey of outrage against the war on terror. She shared some of that outrage in her time at Muslim Views.

This extraordinary journey emerges from Victoria’s contact with the women behind the men targeted in America’s war on terror. The work was not premeditated in the developing friendships with Sabah, Zinnira, Josephine, Dina and the others.

They are of Arab and Asian descent and their husbands are labelled ‘terrorist’. The friendships and close bonds came first then came the story. It was first in the form of a drama produced for stage performances in 2010.

Now the narrative has been developed and published in book form, mainly as portraits of the women.

Often pain and suffering are understandably personal and private, especially when part of the suffering is social isolation by not only the other but also by those sharing one’s own faith and culture.

Muslims avoided them because they were tainted with the terror-

Muslim Views

Victoria Brittain, the author of Shadow Lives visited South Africa last month to promote her new book.

Photo SUPPLIED

ist label.

In this case, rejection and judgment erected the barriers of isolation, compounding the pain and suffering of the women’s fears for their husbands in prison.

Victoria appeared on the scene.

Deep trust and friendship mediated her shared experience of the women’s terror as a private hell.

Not only was she of the empire but she also faced barriers of language, culture and religion. She transcended these with compassion and humanity.

Being a woman offered her a way to transcend the barriers sep-

arating gender in religion and culture. She says had she not been a woman, her subjects would simply not have opened the door for her. Being a writer with a conscience offered a vehicle to take their personal suffering in order to publicly expose the injustice and human rights violations.

Victoria’s intervention was uncontrived and authentic, in the way intimate shared grief is made public.

Victoria says almost all the women in the book are her friends and there are over half a dozen of them. Hence there are

very few interviews but portraits instead.

Hers is an extraordinary act of compassion by reaching across the gulf of language, culture and religion to touch their utter isolation, fear and despair.

The impact of state terror is devastating on the lives of people unjustly persecuted. Children are traumatised and confused.

The adults deal with paranoia, alienation, attempts at suicide, hunger strikes and heavy medication. And then there is the haunting question of torture and the scars that remain. Victoria explores this landscape of their shadowed lives.

In this way, it is arguably an unprecedented work of narrative journalism. According to some old schools of journalism, such relationships do not lend themselves to proper objective reporting. Not so says Victoria.

Objectivity in journalism is a fallacy. Her journalism is an intimate narrative that dispenses with the barriers but accentuates the truth. And the truth is conveyed with scrupulous reporting of the facts and as part of a compelling narrative.

She adds that she is quite confident her narrative is of women whose husbands have been unjustly incarcerated in the US and in the UK and that, had she been less scrupulous, other, less credible subjects may have been part of the narrative.

A recurring theme of the narra-

tive is the waiting hence the title of Victoria’s play The Meaning of Waiting.

It is incomprehensible, Victoria says, to westerners how these women cope with the stress and pain. Sabah’s consolation is drawn from the Quran when she responds. ‘Allah will never give me more pain than I can bear.’

Victoria usually explains to incredulous others astonished by the women’s capacity to cope, ‘It’s their faith.’

But Sabah’s husband, Jamil, is back from Guantanamo. Zinnira’s husband, Shaker, had been cleared as a security risk in 2007 but is still held in Guantanamo.

Victoria’s consolation to Zinnira is to remind her that her role is to prepare for the day Shaker returns.

On the one hand, Zinnira tortures herself about Shaker’s torture. On the other hand, the Americans trash the Geneva Convention. Victoria says their lawyers argue that it is not torture unless the prisoner reaches the point of pain equivalent to organ failure.

Of the 176 men still imprisoned in Guantanamo Bay, 86 have long since been cleared by the Americans.

However, there is no information made available about how many of them are still being held in cages, how many of them are on hunger strike and how many are being force-fed.

Shadow Lives adds a new dimension to the voices of outrage against imperial injustice.

The book is published locally

by Jacana and available from bookstores for R180.

Muslim Views . March 2014

7

Cape imam serves on international committee DR SALIM PARKER

SHAIKH Serag Makkie Johaar, the Imam at Nurul Islam Masjid, in Bo-Kaap, has been elected to serve on the World Imam Committee.

Shaikh Serag attended the first World of Mosque Imam Conference, which was held in the Indonesian city of Pekanbaru from December 2 to 6, 2013, and so impressed the delegates that they elected him to the committee.

More than 120 imams attended from all over the world, and 12 formal papers were delivered, one of them by Shaikh Johaar, entitled ‘The revitalisation of the role of the Mosque Imam in building the Ummah Civilisation’.

His contribution was received with enthusiasm, and he interact-

Shaikh Serag Johaar is pictured at his desk at the Nurul Islam Masjid in the Bo-Kaap, Cape Town.

Photo SALIM PARKER

ed intensively with his fellow delegates. Though it was evident that the challenges in Muslim minority countries differed at times with those of predominantly Muslim countries, many similar issues were identified.

The delegates were fascinated

by Shaikh Johaar’s elaboration of the peaceful co-existence and religious tolerance of our rainbow nation, and specifically how nonMuslim expertise was utilised when his community was faced with the possibility of the opening of a liquor-serving establishment adjacent to the masjid.

The need for inter-faith dialogue was recognised and religious tolerance was debated.

Differences of opinion amongst Muslims were also explored. Among the topics that were addressed was the intolerance of certain Salafi sectors in Indonesia towards those who practised dhikr and traditional Islamic practices.

More modern problems, such as how to address the scourge of tattoos amongst young Muslims

in Singapore, were also discussed.

Some more mundane, but no less important topics, such as the qualifications of imams, their personalities and attributes, their roles in society, the difficulty of maintaining the distance between the private and the public, and their professional development were also debated.

A six-man committee was set up at the end of the conference. It is headed by Shaikh Whalled bin Mohammad Al Ali of Kuwait, with Professor Dahril of Indonesia as its secretary-general.

Shaikh Abdul Gabeer Azaad, from Pakistan, Shaikh Sidiqque, from France, Shaikh Ambye, from Senegal, and Shaikh Johaar are the other four members.

South Africa, despite being a Muslim minority country, has impressed the delegates, through Shaikh Johaar’s superb presentation and active involvement, to such an extent that they honoured him by electing him to the World Imam Committee.

The next meeting is scheduled for later this year in Kuwait.

Muslim Views

8

Muslim Views . March 2014

The modern-day Khawarij: out of the fold of Islam SHAFIQ MORTON

THE kidnapping of South African schoolteacher, Pierre Korkie and his wife, Yolande, in Yemen, has thrown into sharp relief a bleak socio-political Islamic landscape, one that needs to be urgently addressed by a public serious about the ethics and image of Islam.

The ethos of Islam – as opposed to its theology of Creational Oneness – is mercy, compassion and a love of knowledge; a love of knowledge underlined by a humility that tolerates differences of opinion and respects the sanctity of human life.

However, we have to admit that there are instances when differences of opinion go beyond these guidelines.

Fools unaware that they are ignorant, and dogmatic extremists – who think they’re right and you are irredeemably wrong – are very difficult to deal with.

Of course, the above problem – while not just confined to Islam – needs to be dealt with.

What I’m referring to here is the despotic, law-breaking and often violent fringes of the faith being freely allowed to make claims on its Sunni centre, and to hide behind the silence.

The question is: how can a discredited 200-year-old sect (which is Wahhabism) assert that it has the only solution to the social, Symbol of resistance: The weapon which has become the iconic symbol of resistance against colonial imperialism, the AK-47, has now been usurped by those who, under the pretext of rejecting dictatorial oppression, use it to impose their narrow interpretation of their beliefs. Photo SHAFIQ MORTON

Muslim Views

intellectual and political future of Islam?

How can it blithely declare unbelief on those who disagree with it, and then shed blood without censure?

Is it not obvious that this sect has taken on the maxim that the ends will always justify the means, no matter what? Whither the Islamic ethos?

Whether it be Al-Shabab in Somalia, Boko Haram in Nigeria, Ansar al-Dine in Mali, ISIS (Islamic State of Iraq and Syria) in Syria or Ansar al-Shariah in Yemen, voices are much too soft in condemning their criminality; a criminality camouflaged by declarations of friendship with AlQaeda, a dilapidated media phenomenon that has only delivered suffering and stereotype.

Super-imposing a castrated version of Islam over serious socio-economic problems in the Muslim world by exploiting its hapless youth as foot soldiers, is certainly not going to solve any of its pressing problems. And this is exactly what the Al-Qaeda phenomenon has done.

In March 2010, the Organisation of Islamic Conference did, to its credit, issue an urgent fatwa via the renowned Shaikh Abdullah Bin Bayah of Mauritania, condemning Al-Shabab’s tactics in Somalia. The fatwa was ignored in a blaze of suicide bombings in Mogadishu and the Westgate Shopping Mall siege in Nairobi.

What further evidence, then, does the community need that in our midst are elements that need serious redress?

CONTINUED ON PAGE 9

Muslim Views . March 2014 CONTINUED FROM PAGE 8

Closer to home, the kidnapping of the Korkies, allegedly by the Al-Qaeda affiliated Ansar alShariah, is yet another travesty of the Islamic ethos that human life is sacred. What holy book can ever justify the cruelty of demanding money for an innocent human life?

How can this ever be done in the name of Islam?

Obviously, the silence needs to be broken. New ground has to be turned in dealing with the spectre of extremism within the Islamic community. Whatever has gone before, has failed. The extremists still rule with fear and loathing.

In my view, the answer lies in the history of the Wahhabi sect centred in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, that has spawned so much misery in the 21st century.

This is because they are, historically, the genetic offspring of the Khawarij, a literalist sect that accused Imam Ali (RA), the Prophet’s (SAW) cousin, of weakness when he indulged in human arbitration.

Renowned for their austerity but boorish manners, the Prophet

9

The silence has to break, and those who act wrongly in our name need to be fingered.

For this, our scholars have to step up and be counted in real numbers. Those in the learned fraternity who have already had the courage to speak up and lead by example, need to be supported in their untiring efforts to bring true human values to the table.

(SAW) predicted that their understanding of faith would not descend beyond their collarbones, suggesting that their hearts would be hard and ignorant. The Khawarij ended up assassinating Sayyidina Ali. The significance and ultimate fate of the modern-day extremist lies in the lexical meaning of the word ‘Khawarij’, which means to secede or go out – in this case, to go out of mainstream Sunni Islam.

Sayyidina Ali (RA), a merciful man, was always hopeful that the Khawarij would regain their senses.

History records that he was successful in convincing almost half their number to return to classical Islam.

Compassionate, almost to a fault, he did not declare them unbelievers or push them away.

What is important is that there was no harshness in his approach as opposed to the Khawarij, who even pronounced unbelief – and sometimes death – on those who committed sin or disagreed with them.

Today, there are illustrative parallels. Modern Islam sits under siege, the media telescoping negative events perpetrated by the modern-day Khawarij and creating the impression that mainstream Islam is a maelstrom of hate, prejudice and hard-heartedness.

However, the truth is far from this. Recent research by the Royal Strategic Centre in Jordan indi-

cates that only 3% of the Muslim community falls into the extremist or Khawarij camp.

This is a small minority, which indicates the potential power of the middle to move decisively on its troublesome fringes. The silence has to break, and those who act wrongly in our name need to be fingered.

For this, our scholars have to step up and be counted in real numbers. Those in the learned fraternity who have already had the courage to speak up and lead by example, need to be supported in their untiring efforts to bring true human values to the table.

The Khawarij, therefore, need to be identified for what they are: people who have exited the fold of mainstream Sunni Islam, as

those who, because of their behaviour, have no right to belong to it whatsoever.

In the Catholic sense they need to be publically excommunicated.

Of course, the declaration upon them is not reflected in the idea of kufr – or takfir – as they would do to us at the drop of a hat. There is a subtle but critical distinction here.

Nobody is being declared an unbeliever.

The Khawarij are not unbelievers because they do still believe in something.

They are, however, out of the embrace of Islam until they recant on notions of beheadings, suicide bombings, grave desecrations, hostage-taking and naked violence against non-Muslims.

Muslim Views

10

Muslim Views . March 2014

The extraordinary lives and times of the Adamses MAHMOOD SANGLAY

ONE would think that a couple married for 35 years is not quite out of the ordinary. But Hajji Ebrahim and Haja Gadija Adams’ lives together offer something uncommon for our time.

Hajji Ebrahim is 81 and Haja Gadija is 69. They have been living in a retirement village in Steenberg for over 13 years and they enjoy their independence.

The village is home to about eighty residents, of whom twelve are Muslims.

A short narrative of their life together, and that of Ebrahim’s early life, was penned by Gadija in letters to Muslim Views.

It is unusual, nowadays, to find someone making a special effort to write by hand the salient details of a personal, romantic tale. Her story is as charming and quaint as her assertion that Hajji Ebrahim’s month is not complete without Muslim Views.

Her tale opens with her husband’s life as an orphan, before he turned ten. His parents, Abdoela and Umrah, were survived by his maternal grandmother who took care of him.

Gadija writes that he ‘used to broke from door to door with a horse and cart, selling veggies and household goods’ with his granny’s driver. The driver, in this case, was of your old-fashioned horse-and-cart variety. He probably wielded a home-made whip and exclaimed ‘Ait, ait!’ as they went along.

The demands of this responsibility impacted on his schooling.

Therefore, Hajji Ebrahim, unfortunately, did not have a formal

Muslim Views

Hajji Ebrahim and Haja Gadija are pictured at a ‘grand lunch’ for the benefit of Palm Tree Mosque, Cape Town, on June 5, 2011.

education. However, he learned to read and write while in the employ of the provincial government of the day.

Today he is an avid reader, particularly of the local community newspapers.

Haja Gadija’s formal education ended as a young child in standard six.

She was one of twelve children and took an opportunity in 1969, at the age of 24, to complete a

secretarial course.

His granny passed away when he was in his late teens so his aunt took him in. He assisted with the household chores and did ‘odd jobs’ to earn his keep. In 1954, at the age of 22, he commenced service as a messenger at Groote Schuur Hospital, in Observatory.

Gadija relates that this is where he met his first wife. “They worked hard, had little earnings but they saved and bought a

house in Addison Road, Salt River and, in 1972, they went to Makkah and Madinah for their Fard Hajj.”

Hajji Ebrahim was widowed in 1978, at the age of 46, after his wife fell ill. He personally attended to his ailing wife. They had no children.

‘He even took off three months unpaid leave before she passed away,’ writes Haja Gadija.

About three months later, after

Photo SUPPLIED

his first wife’s 100 days’ commemoration prayers, he met Haja Gadija at the latter’s aunt’s house in Hazendal, Athlone.

The meeting was quite fortuitous as Haja Gadija and her parents, Ismail and Rachmat Baderoen, were visiting from the Strand.

CONTINUED ON PAGE 11

Muslim Views . March 2014 CONTINUED FROM PAGE 10

‘We just saw each other for five minutes,’ writes Gadija. It was a brief introduction by her aunt and then Hajji Ebrahim left.

However, the young lady had made a deep impression on him, so deep that he returned to Hazendal regularly thereafter with the hope of meeting Gadija again.

His hopes were not realised but he remained undeterred. He asked Gadija’s aunt for her phone number and called her at work.

She was employed as a secretary and receptionist in Bellville at the time. That was about three months after they first met, as “in the Dutch song ‘Rosa’,” Haja Gadija recalls.

They spoke on the phone five to six times a day for three days.

On the fourth day she received a letter from Hajji Ebrahim by ‘speedpost’. It was a letter of proposal for marriage.

The next day, Hajja Gadija told her parents that she would be marrying her suitor. ‘It just felt right!’ she says. Haja Gadija was a 33-year-old maiden who was ‘popular, with lots of proposals,

11

Indeed, the remarkable aspect of their life together is their extensive travels. She says they have been able to visit Makkah five times from the sale of their home and possessions. played table tennis and tennis, was good at it too’.

Her talent at table tennis earned her victory in 1978 as Western Cape Table Tennis Federation champion at the Western Province Country Union Open Championship. She beat Iris Barry who was the South African table tennis champion known as ‘The Queen of Table Tennis’ for more than a quarter of a century.

Hajji Ebrahim and Haja Gadija were engaged in December, 1978, and were married on February 18, 1979. Haji Ebrahim sealed the marriage contract with a dowry of one gold pound.

They purchased their first home eight months later and performed Hajj together in 1984.

It was a five-month trip by sea on a passenger liner, and included a tour of England and Masjidul Aqsa. In 1987, 1990 and 1992 they performed Umrah in Ramadaan.

Hajji Ebrahim retired from Groote Schuur Hospital in 1992.

Haja Gadija included, with her story, copies of letters from the Chief Medical Superintendent, the Director General and the Administrator of the Provincial Administration of the Cape of Good Hope.

In these letters, Hajji Ebrahim is commended for his valued service of 38 years.

It is noteworthy that he received no pension or any other benefit after this period of service

because his entire career at the hospital was as a temporary employee.

His last position at the hospital was that of gatekeeper at the hospital stores.

In 1994, the couple sold their Athlone home and most of their belongings, and went to live with her family in the Strand after Haja Gadija’s father passed away.

She says ‘it didn’t work out in the Strand’ after three years but it did signify the importance of their bond as soul mates. Haja Gadija reminisces that they have had their share of ‘trials and tests, but mostly good endings’.

Indeed, the remarkable aspect of their life together is their extensive travels.

She says they have been able to visit Makkah five times from the sale of their home and possessions.

In 2007, they travelled to Malaysia and, subsequently, they have been to Turkey, London and Cairo as well. Their last trip to Makkah and Madinah was in May, 2013.

‘We have always paid for our own travels and we have never been sponsored at all,’ she adds.

Haja Gadija says her husband is getting ‘frail and old’ and that she has her ‘aches and pains’ but they are content that they have had a fulfilling life together.

As ordinary pensioners they can look back with gratitude on an extraordinary life together.

Muslim Views

12

Muslim Views . March 2014

Madina Institute ‘Class of 2014’ inaugurated NABEWEYA MALICK

MADINA Institute (MI) opened its doors and welcomed more than 100 local, national and international students at its inaugural opening and orientation for the One Year Intensive Usul-al-Din programme for 2014/ 1435.

The auspicious day, January 20, 2014/ Rabi-ul-Awwal 19, 1435, was the culmination and fruition of an idea for a programme which would complement Islamic education through an intensive ‘gap year’. The programme has attracted aspiring scholars from every sphere of society.

MI reached its target market and realised its intention, which was to encourage every Muslim whether newly matriculated, graduates or from the corporate sector to embrace the opportunity to study the authentic Islamic sciences so that wherever they find themselves, they would have a foundational understanding of their deen.

A diverse range of students were welcomed into MI in Cape Town, South Africa, by a range of local and international shuyukh, amongst them the dean of the faculty, Shaikh Siraj Hendricks, and the founder of Madina Institute International, Shaikh Muhammad bin Yahya Al-Ninowy.

The institute, which is part of Madina International, is the sixth educational institute internationally established, the other branches being in the USA, Canada, Malaysia, Singapore and the UK. The inaugural lecture of the Cape Town institute was presented on January 22, 2014.

Muslim Views

Madina Institue opening... (from left): Founder, Shaikh Muhammad bin Yahya Al-Ninowy; Dean of the Faculty, Shaikh Siraj Hendricks; guest, Shaikh Ahmad Tijani; and visiting lecturer, Shaikh Isa bin Yahya Al-Ninowy.

Photo SALEEMAH JAFFER

Objectives of Madina Institute

The auspicious occasion was attended by the newly elected 1st Deputy President of the Muslim Judicial Council (MJC), Shaikh Riad Fataar, who expressed his gratitude to the structures of the institute for the sterling work performed towards the establishment of an institution that would contribute greatly towards the educational development of our community.

Haroon Kalla, a philanthropist and board member of the institute, inspired scholars with a motivational talk on the importance of laying an Islamic foundation for optimal and holistic leadership.

The programme is offered under the guidance of Shaikh Ninowy who has international experience on how Islamic teachings should lead humanity by giving hope through education, compassion and illumination.

MI attracted more than 100 local, national and international students who registered and arrived in South Africa from across the globe, some coming from Indonesia, Malaysia, Costa Rica, Switzerland, West Indies, Mauritius, Bangladesh, Canada and the United States to attend the one year intensive programme.

The board members, faculty

and administration of MI expressed their appreciation that a special dinner was hosted by Masjidul Quds to welcome the students and to offer them an opportunity to meet each other and to appreciate how far students of deen are prepared to travel to access Islamic knowledge.

The representation of diverse nationalities has added a beautiful and vibrant educational component where scholars could share their unique cultures and experiences with their peers, making Madina Institute a truly international institute based in Cape Town.

The objective of the One Year Intensive Programme is the renewal of the call to go ‘back to basics’, the Quran and Sunnah along with their authentic traditional sources, as it foregrounds the universals of Islam.

These authentic basics of Islam, the religion of peace, address not only the discursive and rational faculties of an individual but also the requirements of the heart.

Thus, the institute will, through the use of an education (tarbiyyah) which is holistic in its approach, present the spiritual, moral and ethical dimensions of the deen as they closely associate with the condition of the heart.

MI is headed by its Dean, Shaikh Seraj Hendricks, and offers Arabic, Ulum al-Quran, Tafsir, Fiqh, Usul al-Fiqh, Tazkiyah, Ulum al-Hadith, Sirah and Aqidah, taught by an array of lecturers, which include Shaikhs Mukhtar Ahmed, Seraj Hendricks, Sadullah Khan, Fakhruddin Owaisi, Abd Al-Rasheed Brown, Ganief Kamaar and Ebrahim Moos.

The faculty will further be supported by international lecturers like Shaikh Muhammad Yahya Al-Ninowy (Founding Director), Shaikh Sa’ad Al-Azhari and Shaikh Aminullah Abduraouf.

Muslim Views . March 2014

13

A weekend of illumination SALEEMAH JAFFER

MADINA Institute Weekend Intensive Seminars, as the name suggests, take place on a weekend, over either one or two days and are intensive, with the day starting at 9.30 in the morning.

With a motto like ‘Illumination through education and compassion’, students would expect to be enlightened; they are not disappointed.

The topics of the seminars vary, from leadership skills to the Seerah of our beloved Prophet (Peace be upon him and his family), the common thread being that the topics deal with religious and social issues.

The seminars are based on Quran and authentic Sunnah.

Everyone is welcome to attend – young, old, Muslim or nonMuslim – the main target audience being our youth, particularly university students.

Many students do not have time to attend regular classes or are unable to commit to many weeks of attendance.

Madina Institute allows students to take just one or two days from their busy schedules, and walk away feeling empowered and informed.

The weekend-intensives are hosted in association with the MSA (Muslim Student Association) of the university where the seminar is held.

This facilitates the building of relationships with, and networking of, like-minded young people.

The approach of the seminars

Mr Edris Khamissa (left) presenting a marriage seminar to young people at UCT on Saturday 22 February, 2014.

Photo SUPPLIED

is academic and fits in well with university surroundings. The reasoning behind the choice of venue is twofold: it is accessible to students and it is neutral, and not aligned to any sect, madhhab or religion.

This provides a suitable platform for both Muslim and nonMuslim youth to engage with the Quran and authentic Sunnah in an unthreatening, unbiased environment, right in their comfort zone.

When asked ‘what makes Madina Institute different’, Shaikh Muhammad bin Yahya an-Ninowy replied, ‘Nothing.

The Quran and authentic Sunnah are the golden standard for everyone who utters “La illaha ilallah”. This is not something new.

‘The classical texts used as references have stood the test of time, and have been studied by hundreds of scholars for centuries.

‘It is not modern or contemporary.

‘That youth are involved in acquiring knowledge, spreading the message, engaging in dawah and are passionate enough to volunteer many hours of their free time is nothing new either. It is just part of the legacy of Islam.

‘It is the very tradition of Ali ibn Talib (RA), Bilal (RA), Zaid (RA) and many other young Sahabah – whom we can only wish to begin to emulate. How can something that is the norm, the standard and an age-old tradition be different?’

The presenters are representative of a diverse spectrum of experts and scholars – from the faculty of the Usul-ud-Din programme at Madina Institute to local, national and international scholars, speakers and leaders.

Looking at past events, one can see this diversity displayed: from Mr Edris Khamissa (Durban) who presented a marriage seminar at UCT to Shaikh Riyaad Walls and Moulana Abdurragmaan Khan, who delivered talks at the “Who is Muhammad?

PBUH” seminar earlier this year.

Shaikh Sa’ad al-Azhari, currently residing in Eqypt, has become a household name in Cape Town since he captivated his audience at a two-day seminar in December last year, and is due

to present another on March 8, 2014, at UWC. The organisers of these seminars are under the direct leadership of Shaikh Abd al-Rasheed Brown.

From poster design and distribution to the sound, logistics and marketing, everything – from start to finish – is run by young people who are passionate about the Deen and Madina Institute.

Whether it’s brainstorming ideas for seminar topics or putting together a course synopsis or deciding which guest speakers to invite – everything is done by youth under the watchful eye and guidance of Shaikh Brown.

The group of youth is diverse but the love of Islam and our Beloved Prophet Muhammad (SAW) connects them, binding them to form a dynamic team.

Currently, seminars are mainly held on Saturdays and are only being hosted at Western Cape universities. The plan is to make these offerings available in Gauteng and KwaZulu-Natal in the near future, and then, hopefully, expanding to the other provinces as well.

To find out more about the latest seminars visit the website www.madinainstitute.org.za, like Madina Institute South Africa on Facbook or follow them on Twitter (@MadinaInstZA) The writer, Saleemah Jaffer, recently signed up as a volunteer for Madina Institute.

Muslim Views

14

Muslim Views . March 2014

Perpetuating the cycle of abuse This is an abridged version of a pre-Khutbah talk delivered by NAFISA PATEL at Claremont Main Road Mosque on Friday, February 14, to mark the launch of the Mosque’s acceptance of an invitation to join civil society organisations and thousands of South Africans in the One Billion Rising Campaign to end violence against women and children.

IN chapter 81 of the Holy Quran, surah At-Takwir or ‘the Darkening’, Allah SWT draws our attention to certain signs that help characterise a slow yet violent decay of this present world.

Muslim Views

The opening verses of the surah mention a darkening sky, where stars no longer illuminate, and they speak of mountains that no longer stabilise the earth.

Verses 7-8 call to attention and rhetorically ask: ‘When the female child is buried alive – and man is questioned, for what sin was she killed?’

Here, Allah SWT reminds us that one the most potent signs of social abnormality and destruction is when human life is valued or devalued solely on the basis of gender and social vulnerability.

In his commentary of surah AtTakwir, Egyptian scholar Sayyid Qutb suggests that the violent rhythm in the opening verses of

the surah, where everything that is known or familiar is thrown, smashed or scattered, is intended to illustrate the effects of the human heart that is being pulled from everything that it associates with safety, security and protection.

The surah, therefore, compellingly describes the devastating effects and social consequences of gender-injustice as humanity being uprooted from its moral core and spiritual centre.

In reflecting on this surah in relation to the current scourge of rape and other forms of genderviolence that is presently gripping and crippling our communities, I am also calling into consciousness

and asking us to collectively reflect upon the conditions of our hearts as a society.

We live in a society where the threat and fear of sexual violence have become almost normalised experiences of being gendered persons in this world; where many women live with an implicit and default level of anxiety of sexual danger and where, sadly, not even our 90-year-old grandmothers nor our infant children and toddlers are safe, secure or protected.

Clearly, the societal pandemic of devaluing the lives of females and young children is not merely a jahili or a pre-Islamic practice mentioned in the Quran for its

historical interest, it is very much a part of our present-day reality.

This reality suggests that as a society, we, as humans, have not only become abnormalised but we are a deeply wounded and a profoundly fractured one.

As we reflect upon the current conditions of our hearts, let us also ask ourselves, how are we as a community of faith attending to the wounds and fractures in our society?

To what extent are we part of those that wound or are being wounded?

CONTINUED ON PAGE 15

15

Muslim Views . March 2014 CONTINUED FROM PAGE 14

What types of conversations are we engaging in about the issue of gender-violence, and what are the types of conversations we avoid having?

It is not uncommon to find that many within our community tend to engage the issue of rape and gender-violence as if it is a scourge that exists outside of the Muslim community or as if Muslims are somehow immune or protected from it.

Understandably, many of us consider rape and gender-violence a very deeply challenging topic to confront.

Therefore, our default positioning is very often one of silence or distancing.

However, have we considered how our silences about and our failure to act against all forms of gender-violence are contributing to the wounding and fracturing of our society?

A survey conducted over a one-year period in 2011 by the Institute of Security Studies revealed that, on average, seven women are murdered every day in South Africa.

Almost 250 cases of assault are reported daily and over 150 females are raped every day.

In most cases, these types of crimes, if and when reported, are experienced by women at the hands of their intimate partners.

Disturbingly, another survey conducted in SA schools in 2001

by Human Rights Watch revealed that eight out every ten young boys interviewed believed that women are ‘responsible’ for or are ‘the cause’ of sexual violence.

Also, three out of every ten boys questioned considered women who are raped to be ‘asking for it’.

It is not uncommon to find that many within our community tend to engage the issue of rape and gender-violence as if it is a scourge that exists outside of the Muslim community or as if Muslims are somehow immune or protected from it.

Understandably, many of us consider rape and gender-violence a very deeply challenging topic to confront. Therefore, our default positioning is very often one of silence or distancing.

These statistics raise serious concerns about the types of gendered understandings that we as South Africans are nurturing, and demand that we pay closer attention to our own parenting attitudes, to our own teaching and nurturing values and to our own inter-personal relationships.

Do we question the ways in which we might contribute to fostering unequal and unhealthy relationships within our own families and community structures?

Do our attitudes help to perpetuate certain stereotypes such as females being weak, incompetent or fragile and males as strong and domineering; stereotypes which not only rob both men and women from realising the fullness of their being but also encourage a distorted use of our physical bodies?

Do we uncritically apply certain standards of modesty, shame

and honour to Muslim women’s bodies only but then fail to speak about the types of toxic masculinities that these same standards create?

Do we teach our daughters how to avoid being sexually molested and unwittingly create the impression that sexual violations are somehow related to how they dress and where they go?

At the same time, do we fail to also teach our sons how not to be violators and how not to wound, how not to use their voices, bodies and physical strength to intimidate and harass others?

Do we teach them that entitlement to a female’s body is not in any way related to her dressing choices?

Are we critical about how certain assumptions of male-privilege and notions of marital hierarchy in Islam mask or are used as an excuse for marital rape and other forms of domestic abuse?

Very often, women are forced to endure unhealthy and violent relationships because of financial dependence, lack of safe alternatives and fear of stigmatisation.

Sadly, many women are also encouraged to stay in toxic marriages by unsympathetic religious leaders or family members – based on a warped view that her patience in suffering marital abuse is somehow a reflection of piety or should be accepted as part of a natural social ordering, an ordering that privileges males and defines their rights over women.

Do we conflate our understandings of qiwama or a husband’s responsibility to financially and emotionally protect and maintain his wife with male authority, control and sexual entitlement?

This conflation not only serves to religiously indemnify male abuse but it also makes it difficult

to recognise abuse when it does occur in our homes.

This non-recognition and failure to identify abuse or to gloss over it renders it difficult for both the abused and the abuser to repair and help to end the cycles of violence.

Thus, the wounding and fracturing of our collective hearts are allowed to persist and continue, silently and unabatedly.

Nafisa Patel is a graduate of IPSA and has worked as an Islamic educator for a number of years. She holds a Masters’ degree in Religious Studies from University of Cape Town; her research interests include exploring gender praxis in Islamic Childhood Education and developing gender-sensitive curricula in SA madaris.

An unabridged version of the talk is available on the Claremont Main Road Mosque’s website: http://www.cmrm.co.za

Muslim Views

16

Muslim Views . March 2014

Battle of the Trench: Victory

‘O you who believe, remember Allah’s favour unto you when hosts came at you and We sent against them a wind and hosts you saw not.’ After the Confederates had been laying siege on the Muslims for more than two weeks, and the Muslims were starting to lose hope, it became exceptionally cold for a few days. An icy wind came in from the east, accompanied by torrential rain. The numbing, freezing wind reached hurricane strength, ripping the Confederates’ tents out of the ground and extinguishing the fires providing them with warmth. The Arabs, not being used to such weather conditions, running low on rations and not being able to successfully attack across the trench, decided to give up and return to Makkah, not having achieved their goal of obliterating the Muslims.

Illustration SAAID RAHBEENI

SALIM PARKER

URING the entire month that the Battle of the Trench lasted, the Muslims were fearful, facing the prospect of being completely wiped off the face of the earth.

The Muslims, who were facing emaciation due to famine, felt that calamitous events were befalling them when the enemy appeared to attack like a black cloud. When the enemy army retreated to their camps in the evenings, the Muslims felt relieved.

However, there was always the niggling fear that a sudden overwhelming attack across the trench would be the end of the

D

Muslim Views

Muslims.

The hypocrites aggravated the situation by their persistent negative insinuations such as: ‘Muhammad promised you the treasures of the Kaiser and Chosroes! However, we are trapped in this trench now. We cannot even answer the call of nature due to our fear!

‘What he promised is completely different from what we have now. God and His Messenger promise us deception only.’

But the tide was turning in favour of the Muslims. Nuaym had succeeded in dividing the enemy, sowing distrust and enmity amongst them. From the start, the Quraish and the other tribes were merely tolerant partners, and the mistrust that was sown fur-

ther aggravated existing tensions.

After more than two weeks of being unable to cross the trench, the morale of the Confederates was low. Some of the tribes took part more in the hope of plunder and making off with the booty than out of real animosity towards Islam.

The provisions of the enemy armies were running out, a number of their horses died, and even their hardy camels were famished and were starting to die. They were inexperienced in military strategies, and the excruciatingly long siege further severely dampened their spirits.

Then nature conjured up even more hostilities towards them.

The Muslims regularly supplicated to Allah to assist them. The Prophet (SAW) had pleaded: ‘O Allah, Revealer of the Book, Swift Caller to account, turn the Confederates to flight, turn them to flight and cause them to quake.’

One day, there was a continuous exchange of arrows and hostilities. When it got dark, both parties withdrew to their respective camps. That night, Angel Jibreel appeared to the Prophet (SAW) and gave him the good news that the enemy army would be scattered by a wind.

When the Messenger of Allah received the good news, he sat on his knees, opened his hands and thanked Allah Almighty: ‘Thanks

Muslim Views . March 2014

17

The Prophet (SAW) had pleaded, ‘O Allah, Revealer of the Book, Swift Caller to account, turn the Confederates to flight, turn them to flight and cause them to quake.’ Though both sides were severely affected by the severe cold, hurricane wind and torrential rain, the Muslims were not as badly affected by the extreme forces of nature. They lost none of their tents, were able to get warm food and besides, they were not far from home. When Hudhayfah returned to the Muslim camp after going to spy on how the weather was affecting the Confederates, he reported that they had given up, had deserted their camps and were returning to Makkah.

This is recorded in the Quran: ‘And Allah turned back the unbelievers for (all) their fury: no advantage did they gain, and enough is Allah for the Believers in their fight. And Allah is Almghty, able to enforce His Will.’

Illustration SAAID RAHBEENI (33:25)

and praise be to Allah for His Mercy to me and my Companions!’

Allah’s favour and Mercy is noted in the Quran: ‘O you who believe, remember Allah’s favour unto you when hosts came at you and We sent against them a wind and hosts you saw not.’ (33:9) The weather was exceptionally cold for a few days, and rain compounded the adverse conditions. An icy wind came from the east, accompanied by torrential rain.

The Arabs were not used to such weather conditions. The numbing, freezing wind reached hurricane strength. Though both sides were severely affected, the Muslims were somewhat sheltered against the extreme forces of nature. They lost none of their tents, besides, they were not far from home.

This was in sharp contrast to the Confederates, who witnessed their tents being blown away, their fires providing them warmth all extinguished, and their cooking utensils made useless.

What was not destroyed by nature was dealt with by unseen forces. The enemy were soon crouching on the ground, huddling together for warmth, their eyes so filled with dust and dirt that they could not see each other.

The Prophet (SAW) prayed till late into the night, the bitter cold not stopping him. He then went to the men closest to his tent and is

reported by Hudhayfah to have asked: ‘Who of you will rise and go to see what the enemy are about and then return, and I will ask Allah to make him my companion in Paradise?’

The men were so cold and famished that none responded to the request. The Prophet (SAW) then called upon Hudhayfah in person who readily obliged. He went to the camp of the Quraish and made his way to where their commander, Abu Sufyan, was seated.

The Quraish were, by now, numb with cold and Hudhayfah reported that Abu Sufyan exclaimed: ‘Men of Quraish, our horses and camels are dying, the Bani Quraizah have failed us, and we have been informed that they intend betraying us; and now we have suffered from the wind what your eyes behold. Therefore, begone from this place for I am leaving.’

Abu Sufyan mounted his camel but in his haste forgot to untie it. Some of the notables of the Quraish castigated him for hastening to leave and leaving his men behind. He then meekly waited for the troops to assemble.

There were frantic but futile attempts by some who did not want to accept defeat to persuade the army to stay.

Some, like Khalid, realised that Nabi Muhammad (SAW) did not lie about his message. Abu Sufyan then allowed his troops to set off towards Makkah, and he followed a

while later. Ikrimah stayed a while with a cavalry of about 200 men, in case the Muslims mounted a sudden attack on the fleeing Quraish.

Hudhayfah waited for the enemy army to start marching and then made his way to the Ghatafan camp but he found it completely deserted. The bitterly cold wind had completely broken their spirits and they were already on their way east, to Nadj.

Hudhayfah then made his way back to the Prophet (SAW) who was performing salaah, a cloth wrapper of one of his wives shielding him from the cold. Nabi Muhammad (SAW) gestured to Hudhayfah to sit at his feet and to get under the wrapper that covered him.

The Prophet (SAW) finished his prayer prostrations and greeting and was then given the news that the enemy was retreating.

After praising and thanking Allah, who had sent help, by smiling, the Messenger of Allah uttered the following: ‘There is no god but Allah; He is the unique one. Allah made His army victorious and helped His slave. He defeated Ahzab (Arab tribes) alone!’

The Quran states that the army of the polytheists returned empty-handed without obtaining anything: ‘And Allah turned back the unbelievers for (all) their fury: no advantage did they gain, and enough is Allah for the Believers in their fight. And Allah is Almghty, able to enforce His Will.’ (33:25)

The time of the early morning prayers approached and Bilal recited the athaan. Just after the prayers, as the first hue of light touched the plains that the Confederates had occupied the day before, a vast desolation greeted the Muslims.

The camps of the enemy was as empty as the trench that separated them from the faithful Muslims. The Prophet (SAW) then gave permission to the soldiers to return home, and virtually all sped off.

It then dawned on the leaders that the Confederates might have left some spies behind. If the trench was left unguarded, the massive army of the enemy might return, storm the trench and invade Madinah.

Nabi Muhammad (SAW) then sent Jabir and Abd Allah after the departed Muslims to ask them to return.

They attempted this but it was all in vain.

The two returned to the Prophet (SAW) and informed him that they had failed to get them to return.

However, by that time, it was evident that the enemy would not return.

The Prophet (SAW) laughed and reassured them that all was in order. He then set out with the remaining Muslims back to Madinah. Faith and determination had succeeded in overcoming the onslaught of the infidels.

Stories from the Hijaz is sponsored by Al-Anwar Hajj and Umrah.

Muslim Views

18

Muslim Views . March 2014

Blind leading the blind SALIM PARKER

FELT a tap on my shoulder from behind me, and then felt a hand firmly placed on it.

‘Salaam. Can you help me?’ he said in immaculate English.

‘Not another one with a hardluck story about being robbed in the Holy Mosque again!’ I thought.

I was on the first floor of the Haram in Makkah and had just completed a tawaaf after the Esha prayers. The first floor was completed just a day before, after massive renovations, and very few people were aware that it was open for tawaaf.

There were ten days to go before Hajj commenced. There were not too many people there and I really felt immensely spiritually uplifted as I could finish the seven circumambulations with ease, unlike the previous days where there was massive congestion on the ground floor.

I turned around and saw a thin gentleman, all by himself. ‘I am from Pakistan and I am blind,’ he said. I braced myself for a sad story and a probable appeal for funds.

Initially, my plan had been to perform the prayer and head off for a meeting with a medical colleague at a hotel nearby. This doctor had called me to say that he would be late, and that had given me some time to tawaaf; a ritual that, for me, combined devotion, reflection and a bit of physical activity!

I had about twenty minutes to go before my scheduled meeting. I was looking at the Kaabah when the blind man approached me.

‘I am here all alone,’ he continued. ‘Normally, a friend of mine comes with me but he was not feeling too well so I came with some members of my group, and they are going to get me here at this spot, close to the beginning line of the tawaaf, a bit later. Can you help me?’ he added.

‘He did not ask for money,’ I thought to myself. ‘Sure,’ I replied.

‘Will you help me perform a tawaaf here, please? It is impossible for a blind man to perform it on the ground floor.’ I looked down and saw absolute congestion, and seeming chaos.

It had taken me two hours the night before at about the same time, plus the loss of two litres of sweat and a couple of bruises, to complete it, while I was done within forty minutes of peaceful strolling this evening.

‘It would be my pleasure,’ I smiled. I offered the sagely man with the flowing white beard and walking stick my hand, and we started walking towards the starting area of the tawaaf.

I told him about my meeting that I had to attend and it was clearly not a problem for him; all he would do was to ask someone else to assist him once I left.

We walked at a leisurely pace, and by the time we got to the starting line we had already gone though the formalities of sketching our backgrounds. He had an assured gait, his walking stick providing him the same information of the floor in front of him as my subconscious gaze was informing me.

We made our intention for the ritual that can be performed nowhere else in the world, the virtue of which was even more rewarding than the sunnah prayers.

Our pace was naturally slower than the one I was accustomed to.

I found myself having more time to recite certain prayers, more time to internalise the amazing spirit that perpetually embraces all the visitors to the Haram.

It took about ten minutes for us to complete the first round. I informed him that I would assist him with the second round but then would have to take my leave.

‘No problem,’ he said, as we set off for our second round. His pace was slightly slower now and I was worried that he might be tiring.

‘Shall I get you a wheelchair?’ I offered.

I

Sometimes, we are so blinded by our ambition that we are oblivious of the many interesting travellers we meet along life’s journey – travellers who are put there as tests and assistants by a Higher Power. [The picture was taken by an anonymous fellow pilgrim who, seeing Doctor Parker struggling to take the photograph, offered his assistance, perhaps to ensure that the poignant message is preserved for posterity.]

Muslim Views

If he were in a wheelchair, it would have allowed us access to the wheelchair ramp and we would have been able to complete the tawaaf within fifteen minutes with ease.

Without a wheelchair, they would not even allow a blind or disabled person on this new structure.

He apologised for walking slowly and said that he was engaged in supplication and was not aware of his pace. He really enjoyed walking and felt that each physical footstep was another closer towards his Creator.

My phone rang but reception was poor and I could not receive the call. Even worse was the poor network which did not identify the caller. I assumed it was my colleague and hurried to complete the second round, virtually dragging the old man along.

I greeted and he thanked me profusely. ‘Don’t worry about me; I found you to help me and I am sure I’ll find someone else to assist me,’ he said.

As I turned away from him, my phone rang again. It was my colleague; he was trying to reach me in order to postpone the meeting as an emergency had cropped up. As we talked, I immediately turned around looking for the blind man; He was nowhere to be seen.

Less than a minute had passed since the time I had left him till I started looking for him again. A blind man can only walk a certain distance within one minute but there was no trace of him!

Before I knew it, I had completed another round while looking for him, and then reversed direction in case I had missed him; still no sign of him.

I started to question myself. Was it necessary to pay so much attention to a meeting that I could have easily postponed for an hour? In Saudi, it is almost traditional for a meeting to start late, and I could have phoned my friend to ask if it was in order for me to arrive late.

Was I being tested when there was no reception at one stage and poor network at another?

I should really have been making the utmost effort to spend another fifty minutes in serving one of Allah’s servants and, hopefully, reaping the rewards for doing it.

I stood there blinded by my desire to attend a now postponed meeting and no blind man to assist.

I recalled my Great Shaikh friend telling me of the auliyah who are amongst us at all times. They are here to test us into doing good, inspiring us to greater deeds.

Whether it is an old man struggling to put on his shoes, a lady looking for her Quran, an exhausted pilgrim desperately trying to get some precious Zam-zam at impossibly long queues or simply a stranger sitting at the end of a long day, starving after having fasted the whole day with only a date and a bit of water in front of him, they are all there.

They do not ask for riches or money. They appeal to our humanity and our kindness. They ask very little and, in return, we can reap immeasurable rewards. A slice of a bread here, a few minutes there, a simple, outstretched hand somewhere else, helps those in need.

I had failed in fulfilling a simple request. I have been honoured with many Arafats, and still some of life’s simpler messages have eluded me at times.

As I completed the five rounds of the tawaaf that were still outstanding, I realised that Arafat was beckoning. Sometimes, we are so blinded by our ambition that we become oblivious of the road taking us there; our fellow travellers and those who crowd and, at the same time, observe us from the sidelines.

Most of us are going to travel that road only once in our lifetime; may our eyes open way, way before we get there.

Comments to salimparker@yahoo.com

LETTERS TO THE EDITOR

MV’s quick survey ‘flawed’

IN response to the front-page article in the February, 2014 issue of Muslim Views (Vol. 28 No. 2), ‘Major SA Muslim charities fail to disclose information in the public interest’, I think that it is important to make the following clarifications.

Firstly, as Country Director of Islamic Relief SA, I welcome and fully support the need for ensuring good governance, accountability, transparency and full disclosure in all types of charitable/ humanitarian organisations (not just Muslimbased).

Although I was not contacted personally to offer a response to the enquiry (as seemed to be the case with the other five charities surveyed) our media department was happy to co-operate and therefore responded to the questionnaire without hesitation or question.

However, despite the noble intentions of ‘public interest’ as purported by journalist Mr Sanglay, the ‘quick survey’ methodology that he employed was, in my opinion, not only over-reaching in its aims but also fundamentally flawed.

Let it be known that the type of questions posed in the survey, and the ‘quick’ short answers it required meant that such information, without giving any corresponding context, could be interpreted in a totally inaccurate and potentially misleading way.

For example, the article states that IRSA receives 47% of its funding from government, with no further qualification that this funding was only a once-off project done in 2012 in association with the SA government in Chad and our Islamic Relief Chad office.

The varied nature of the work we do and the different partnerships we form on various projects makes it difficult to capture these kinds of operational nuances in a quick survey.

Also, the article claims that Islamic Relief did not provide its constitution and founding documents.

However, it failed to also note the fact that the reporter did not actually follow up this request with the person he was directed to, as any good investigative journalist ought to have done. So a simple matter of oversight is presented in the article as a failure to disclose this information.

The article, unfortunately, was not well-thought out or was perhaps premature and potentially damaging as it offers no supporting evidence for the claims it makes other than the fact that four of the six charities were less than enthusiastic in participating in the ‘quick survey’.

An enquiry of this nature necessitates a far more sophisticated level of analysis than what was actually offered. I am, therefore, cautious about the inferences made and the conclusions drawn in the article.

I do agree that the Muslim public needs to have full confidence in the charities they support, and that we should never become complacent in the view that accountability to Allah somehow absolves us from close operational scrutiny.

In fact, we rely on the continued support and generosity of our donors; this support is built on a mutual confidence and a shared vision of social impact – a confidence I assure you we do not take lightly.

However, just as we as Muslims should demand a high level of professionalism and accountability from the charities we support, I think we can similarly expect the same level of responsible reporting and quality investigative journalism from our media partners.

Yusuf Patel Country Director Islamic Relief South Africa

Mahmood Sanglay replies: Dear Mr Patel Thank you for your response to the article. The first matter that needs clarification is your inference on communication when the charities were asked to respond to the survey.

I contacted the charities by email and telephonically through the available contact details in our office database. In every case, including that of Islamic Relief, the person receiving the first email or answering the phone referred the media enquiry to the appropriate manager.

If this media enquiry was not forwarded to you as Country Director it was due to an internal communications failure at Islamic Relief, not Muslim Views.

It is further disingenuous of you to suggest that I should have followed up when your office failed to forward Islamic Relief’s founding documents after a single request. If the norm of Islamic Relief is to be asked twice by the media for cooperation, should we assume this is the norm in your dealings with your donors and beneficiaries?

Nothing alters the fact that your founding documents were not forwarded upon request by either one of two people at Islamic Relief.

The ‘simple matter of oversight’ was reported as ‘Islamic Relief’s constitution and founding documents were not forwarded’. It was not ‘presented as a failure to disclose information’.

The quick survey method (also referred to as a snap survey) is a reliable tool frequently used in academic institutions, the public sector and the private sector. Its merits are widely recognised especially for the kinds of research involving the compilation of basic data for reliable results with a high degree of confidence.

Discrediting this survey method does not do Islamic Relief any credit.

The charities survey specifically was neither overreaching nor flawed because the questions do not preclude context or qualification.

The onus is on the respondent to provide the context and to qualify any data where appropriate.

Indeed, a follow-up email from me to Islamic Relief specified a request for financials for the years 2010, 2011 and 2012 so that a data range could provide context and variation.

Islamic Relief chose to provide the data for 2012 only. Were we provided the data for all three years, we would have reflected the ‘varied nature’ and the ‘nuance’ you seek. Once again, this is a commu-

nications failure on the part of Islamic Relief, not Muslim Views.

You state that the article offers no supporting evidence of the claims it makes but you fail to identify a single unsubstantiated claim.

The more sophisticated analysis you refer to is possible in a much longer report, typically found in academic research papers. Since editorial space in a newspaper is limited, most newspapers rely on snap surveys or summaries.

The article explains that the survey is very basic and that it is a small step towards a more detailed analysis of charities in South Africa.

Depending on the co-operation of the charities in future enquiries, such an analysis is indeed possible.

We expect our readers to be cautious about inferences drawn from the article in which only two out of six charities responded to the survey questions. Hence we urged all the charities to participate, and we are at liberty to revisit the matter of the survey with them.

Clearly, the survey is incomplete.

However, the lack of participation by four charities is a significant finding worthy of reporting to the public.

Any inferences drawn from reporting these facts may be queried by the charities concerned, just as it may be queried as to why they have not responded to the survey questions.

Letting the left hand know what the right does MY thanks to Mahmood Sanglay for his investigative piece on ‘Muslim Charities’ (MV, February, 2014).

Congratulations too, to Sanzaf, for remembering that, with much public money, comes a no lesser accountability toward that public.

Also, I would add my voice to those of others too, who are convinced that such an appeal for greater transparency on the part of these organisations is long overdue.

Contrast that, on the other hand, with the thoroughly Islamic-style of philanthropy that characterised the work of the late Imam Ahmed Karjiker of Victoria Road, Grassy Park.

Here was a man whose sadaqah gave off the perfume of a genuine barakah, steeped as he was in the sunnah of keeping one’s left hand in ignorance of what the right is doing.

M K Gamieldien Ottery East, Cape Town

‘Doesn’t charity begin at home?’

WITH reference to Mahmood Sanglay’s article on Muslim charity organisations [MV, February, 2014].

He had the courage to explore some of the salient features, which left many people informed about the functions of some of the major Muslim organisations that prefer to lend a hand in foreign countries instead of to the indigenous local communities that are in dire straits.

Donations received locally and internationally are supposed to be

Muslim Views . March 2014 utilised for the betterment of people of the land; doesn’t charity begin at home?

The general activities of Muslim organisations are supposed to include social welfare, relief work, provisions of bursaries and scholarships, arrangements of seminars, symposiums and conferences, dissemination of the message of Islam, establishment of libraries, sale and distribution of Islamic literature, essay and speech contests, poetry recitals, youth camps and others.

Donations given to Muslim organisations should cater for the general needs of the local Muslim community. The remainder can be rendered to other communities elsewhere.

We hope that Mahmood Sanglay’s work will shed light and enlighten us about what the truth really is once his enquiry is completed.

We wish him all the best in his endeavours.

Abdurrahman Madidi Cravenby

19

mend further treatment.

I had this overwhelming desire to see her and sent her a very tentative text, to which she replied, ‘Please come.’ I will always be grateful that Allah guided me to make the visit because when she died I was in Port Elizabeth.

I sat in her company, amazed that she was still wondering what else she could do for her community; she could not possibly just give up.

I salute you Munadia, a true Muslimah, a woman with strong imaan. You lived your life constantly striving to emulate our beloved Rasul (SAW).

I salute her parents, Moulana Yusuf Karaaan and sister Zuleiga, and the entire Karaan family. You raised someone who proved to be a gift to the community, and you shared her unselfishly; Jazak Allah Ghairun.

May Allah reward you and grant you sabr and contentment in your hearts. Ameen.

Jasmine Khan Cape Town

Support Palestine Saudis’ true I WOULD like to vent my anger towards Islamic countries as they colours ignore the plight of Palestinians.

Masjid-ul-Aqsa is in the hands of Israel and all they are busy doing is fighting each other.

May Allah have mercy on Palestine and its people. I will dedicate my life to the Palestinian cause as soon as I come out of prison, Insha Allah.

Ibrahim Rafiq Matlou

A tribute to Munadia Karaan YOU either hated her or you loved her but you could certainly not ignore her.

I knew Munadia Karaan since 1996 when she wrote a column for the Boorhaanol Islam magazine but I met her for the first time in 2007 at the Voice of the Cape studios.

I cannot lay claim to have been a friend or even a colleague yet the bond between us was very real. She would often ask me for topics that she could feature on her show, and whenever I had a burning issue the emails between us would fly.

I admired her for the fact that she not only went where angels feared to tread but even where devils would not dream of venturing.

She was the bravest, most fearless journalist it has been my privilege to know. Yet, her fearlessness in exposing what was not right in our community was not done with malice or for salacious motives.

Her driving force was her passion and absolute love for the Muslim community, and her firm belief that we could do better.

Her bravery extended to her personal life. Always a very private person, she astounded us all with her openness about her illness.

Her unflinching descriptions of what she was experiencing served as an example and an inspiration to all those who were going through illnesses, and struck awe in those who were perfectly healthy.

Towards the end, she no longer went to the studio but made use of the wonders of technology by working from her bed. The last time I was a guest on her show, she interviewed me in a restaurant where she had taken me for lunch.

The last time I asked for her help she had just been told by the doctors that they would not recom-

THE self-proclaimed custodians of the two [Holy] mosques are now showing their true colours; they are aligning with Israel to destroy Iran and Syria.

The Saudis suppressed the news concerning their collusion with Israel after realising that it will bring about adverse publicity to the house of Saud.

Israel possesses nuclear armaments and has a bloody history of killing Palestinians, and is still doing so by employing hired killers.

The Saudi-financed mosques are their embassies from where they promote the Wahhabi cult.

Now there are allegations that they are busy coercing the local ulama to bring about havoc among the Shia/ Sunni communities, like they did in countries such as Syria, Iraq and Pakistan.

Muslims have been supporting the oppressive despotic rule by performing numerous hajj and umrahs in the land which is under the tutelage of foreign powers.

Hajj under these circumstances becomes shirk; hajj that strengthens the hands of the shayateen is worse than idol-worship. It’s got to be suspended until Arabia is ruled by true believers.

It must be noted that all this bloodshed in Muslim lands is not for preserving the purity of Islam.

Islam is just used as a cover. It is to preserve the hegemony of the Saudi monarchy.

Smiley (pseudonym) Johannesburg MORE LETTERS PAGE 21

Write to: The Editor e-mail: editor@mviews.co.za IPSA 5th Annual Wasatiyah Symposium series Due to space constraints, Aslam Farouk-Ali’s paper, ‘Sectarianism in contemporary Syria – towards an understanding’, will be published in our April 2014 edition.

Muslim Views

20

Muslim Views

Muslim Views . March 2014

LETTERS TO THE EDITOR

Educate the children, boys and girls

ON a regular basis I assist women whose husbands have died or who have divorced them. They visit my office because their water or electricity has been cut or the municipality has sent intimidating final notices, and these women do not know what to do.

After a decade in the Social Welfare Department of the Muslim Judicial Council, and 15 years in local government, I consider the under-education of females as one of the greatest threats to the future well-being of the Muslim ummah in Cape Town.

I consider those who discourage the holistic education of womenfolk as a nemesis of this community.

Recently, a woman approached my office with a substantial (R100 000) municipal debt. Her husband died a few years earlier.

While the husband was in the process of dying, his wife was assured by his family that they would financially care for her and the children as her husband was beloved by them.

After a few years, the wife, because of witlessness, kept on passing the municipal accounts to members of the late husband’s family. Unknown to her, the accounts were never paid. When the municipality eventually cut the water, the mother with four children realised her dilemma.

At my office, the woman was tearful as she never had a formal job and her only son, who was supporting the family, wanted to marry

and move on to live his life.

While the woman praised her late husband, she could not explain why his family had made deceitful assurances.

Since the woman had no qualification or work experience, I was left wondering who is responsible for maintaining this family, financially.

Although I was able to help her with an arrangement or the deletion of the account through the installation of a water meter, that was truly the least of her problems.

Perhaps the words of the author Martha Beck reflect this woman’s situation best: ‘Emotional discomfort, when accepted, rises, crests and falls in a series of waves. Each wave washes a part of us away and deposits treasures we never imagined. Out goes naiveté, in comes wisdom; out goes anger, in comes discernment; out goes despair, in comes kindness. No one would call it easy, but the rhythm of emotional pain that we learn to tolerate is natural, constructive and expansive. The pain leaves you healthier than it found you.’

After 30 years of marriage, this fifty-something woman with children was financially on her own.

Her only son was anxious to move on but could not as he was his mother’s only financial support.

Those of us who have daughters must think carefully. Those who discourage the holistic education of females must bear the consequences of their words.

By providing our children, male and females, with skills or qualifications, life may be easier. In the end, Allah knows best.

Cllr Yagyah Adams Cape Muslim Congress

Good manners lacking

I AM a man who is, God willing, striving to cling to the Creator who made me and, by the way, who made the Creation as well.

Anyway, I feel I was guided to say that.

Whether it is the Shariah law you follow, the Christian Gospels or the Law of Moses, keep striving to have good manners and etiquette because this seems to be lacking in society.

If you follow the scriptures of different religions then you will see that humility also plays a part, and God Almighty does not have time for arrogant, haughty, ‘nose in the air’ people.

Yes, He is Merciful but He resists the proud and gives Grace to the humble.

Follow the prophets and be like them: humble. They weren’t pushovers but asserted themselves against all those that came up against them.

Christians, Muslims and Jews: stop thinking that you are sometimes better than other people and faiths.

What’s the use you are in flowing robes like the Pharisees in Jesus’ time and you preach the finer points of the Law or Shariah yet we are hypocrites and arrogant with outward ostentation, pulling the wool over people’s eyes.

Also, there are those who greet their Muslim brother with ‘salaam’ and not his Christian friend standing next to him. Not even a ‘hello’.

Bad manners. I have also experienced where I greeted people three or four times in total and they just

Muslim Views . March 2014 don’t greet back.

I’m sure in Islam there is courtesy.

People, let’s pray for humility and good manners in our lives, and may we ask God to help us strive in the image of the prophets, peace be upon them all.

God bless you all to success.

Salaam. Shalom. Peace.

Kenneth Sellar Cape Town

Let the poor inherit the earth THE latest international cricket saga should make it obvious to any thinking person what the root cause of social ills are in developed and developing countries globally – the general public, all over the world, has been turned into ‘Entertainment Junkies’ (EJ) by the media, and corporations.

In the latest episode, India, England and Australia have managed to secure themselves ‘top dog’ status in international cricket, thereby ensuring that the largest share of revenue derived from the game will be channelled to them, especially India, with the highest number of fanatical cricket followers.

This autocratic move is made possible because the general public is so gullible for entertainment, and is in line with trends in football, baseball, basketball – in fact all major spectator sports codes.

How does this impact on the social fabric?

The insane amounts of money involved in remunerating sport ‘superstars’ boggle the mind, and they generally live lives of indulgence and extravagance.

Multinational corporations fork out sinful amounts in sponsorship to these ‘celebrities’ in return for media exposure and advertising mileage.

‘So what? It’s their money, and they can do whatever they want

21

with it’, is the usual reaction from EJs. And because of this mindset, the proletarians will forever be protesting for living wages, better living conditions, basic services.

Until an organisation is born, brave enough to confront this global curse, the rest of the world will be barking up wrong trees.

Sulaiman Martheze Mitchells Plain

Not Muslim so not a terrorist IT had all the makings of an act of terrorism: the hijacking of a plane by a lone (non-Muslim) dissident from the troubled Ukraine during the Winter Olympics in Sochi!

His apprehension by Turkish Muslim soldiers almost ‘nullified’ the act as one of terror; an article in that country’s papers does not refer to him as a ‘terrorist’ even though threatening to blow up a plane in order to make a political statement is clearly terrorism by most definitions of the word.

Now it is being said that he was very drunk. Next? The Ukrainian hijacker is mentally unbalanced.

But Muslims who act in this crazy way are never viewed as troubled loners even when it seems pretty obvious!

That the Turks are among the heroes of this story won’t be mentioned explicitly either. After all, the country is a predominantly Muslim state!

If the hijacker had been a Muslim, the press would certainly have declared him a terrorist and the fact that he threatened to bomb the plane would not have been taken lightly!

The definition of terrorism is now dependent on who is culpable; its delineation, by Western yardsticks, obviously clear!

AR Modak Johannesburg

Muslim Views

22

Muslim Views . March 2014

10km Big Walk marks 15th anniversary The 15th anniversary of the Big Walk took place on Sunday, March 2, 2014. The event started at Cape Town Stadium, and a special feature of this year’s walk was the tribute to the legacy of Nelson Mandela.

Trevor Manuel, the Minister in the Presidency in charge of the National Planning Commission, attended the Big Walk and gave the walkers at the start an enthusiastic send-off. Photo LUCAS

Afieya Mohamed, Moerida Abrahams and Rufeeka Mohamed were jubilant as they were doing the ten kilometre walk along the Sea Point beachfront.

Photo SHARIEF JAFFER

Walkers pass the 9km mark on their return to Green Point Track for the festivities of entertainment and lucky draw prizes after the event.

Photo LUCAS

Muslim Views

Muslim Views . March 2014

23

Towards a radical economics DR AUWAIS RAFUDEEN

IN the midst of the current capitalist crisis, how do we think about economics from an Islamic point of view?

For Malaysian thinker, Professor Adi Setia, this would require us to radically overhaul the whole notion of economics as it now stands.

In contrast to the profit-driven, individualist ethos of neo-liberalism, Setia proposes an ‘Islamic gift economy’ where the focus is on mutual giving and receiving for the purpose of material and spiritual well-being.

The notion of an Islamic Gift Economy (IGE) is grounded in Islam’s understanding of reality and its view of human nature.

In the Islamic understanding of reality, the world’s physical and cultural resources are abundant and unending as Allah is the constant Giver and the One Who renews His creation.

As for human nature, Islam believes that human needs and desires are limited and should be limited in order to bring out and nurture the spiritual self in the human being.

And so, IGE fundamentally contrasts with two assumptions of modern economics. The first assumption is that the world’s resources are scarce and limited.

Underlying this assumption is the belief that God is absent from the world.

The second assumption of contemporary economics is that the human being seeks to fulfil his desires, and this search for fulfilment leads to the creation of ever-

new wants.

At the bottom of this assumption is the belief that the human being is a purely physical entity.

There is no spiritual core that needs to be cultivated by putting restraints on desires.

It is difficult to over-emphasise the importance of these fundamental divergences between IGE and contemporary economics.

IGE is calling to a whole different worldview, one that requires us to spiritualise economics.

It is more radical than Marxism because, despite their different economic models, Marxism still shares the same assumptions about reality and human nature that inform capitalism.

In this spiritual economics, because the human knows that the world’s resources are abundant, he or she takes in accordance only with their need.

In addition, they know that if they show thankfulness to Allah for fulfilling their needs, He grants them even more out of His Abundance. In contemporary economics, on the other hand, anxiety over assumed scarcity and limited resources feeds the sins of greed and accumulation.

For Setia, Muslims need to profoundly and creatively reflect on Islam’s view of reality and its view of human nature when entering the economic domain.

It is only in this way that it can prosper on its own principles while still maintaining a constructive engagement with Western economic thought.

In the absence of such reflection, it will be merely co-opted, whether it knows it or not, into

… Islamic banking is market-driven and so is out of step with traditional Islamic economics which has, by nature, been voluntary, communal and devotional the current neo-liberal mainstream which Setia believes has largely happened with today’s Islamic banking and finance sectors.

Setia’s criticisms of Islamic banking and finance veer towards the technical, and are best left to experts in that field to evaluate.

Briefly, he sees Islamic banking and finance as tied to the broader international practice of fractional reserve banking, and so it is still fundamentally interest-based and driven by high profit margins.

He also believes that Islamic banking is market-driven and so is out of step with traditional Islamic economics which has, by nature, been voluntary, communal and devotional.

Whatever specialists in these fields may think of Setia’s criticisms, his broader point is well taken: Islamic banking and finance has not emerged to challenge neo-liberalism, and almost appears complicit with it.

For this reason alone the industry should do some serious self-introspection about its underlying goals and motives.

The elements of an alternative So much for the underlying principles of the Islamic Gift

Economy. But what are its elements?

As indicated earlier, Setia defines IGE as ‘the sharing, mutual giving and receiving, of natural and cultural abundance to promote material and spiritual wellbeing’.

This definition locates its roots in the way Islam has traditionally talked about economic activity.

In the traditional perspective there is an emphasis on the notion of giving – or, better still, ‘gifting’ – rather than taking as shown in a range of concepts such as waqf (endowment), wasiyyah (bequest), sadaqah, hibah and hadiyah (‘gift’).

And so the traditional purpose of economic activity in Islam was to serve the communal/ public rather than individual/ private interests. And even legitimate private interests were subject to broader public interest; in the shariah, communal interests take precedence over private interests.

An Islamic Gift Economy would revive and reinvigorate the application of these concepts in society. They wouldn’t just be an interesting, grudging aside to economic activity in Muslim society as is now the case.

On the contrary, they would constitute the very forefront of such economic activity. And, in so doing, their communally driven focus would challenge the foundational individual-centredness of neo-liberalism.

Waqf, for example, is by its very nature a ‘pouring-out’ of wealth in contrast to ‘trickle down’ neo-liberalism – which, as Setia notes, really means cream

for the rich and crumbs for the poor.

It is also a firm Islamic belief that ‘giving’ or ‘gifting’ never deprives the giver. On the contrary, he or she stands to receive both materially and spiritually for this act of giving.

If giving and gifting without ulterior motives become part and parcel of Muslim consciousness then no one will be left out of this mutual giving and receiving.

Reciprocity becomes the hallmark of Muslim social life. As the Quran says, ‘And whatsoever good thing you spend, it will be repaid to you in full, and you will not be wronged.’ (2:272) Setia points to the fact that we find many examples of a gift economy in traditional societies, in general.

And even in the West, in American frontier life for example, we can find outstanding examples of such community-based reciprocity.

More tellingly, though, is the fact that a number of economists in the West are radically rethinking the paradigm on which modern economics rest.

Frightening global inequality, the spiralling costs of even basic necessities and large-scale environmental devastation means that they are calling to more sustainable, more local and more communal ways of doing economics.

For Setia, Muslims would do well to engage in a constructive dialogue with such perspectives.

Dr Rafudeen is senior lecturer in the Department of Religious Studies and Arabic at University of South Africa (UNISA).

Muslim Views

24

Focus on Finance Muslim Views . March 2014

Employment Tax Incentive encourages jobs for young people HASSEN KAJIE, CA (SA), a director of NEXIA SAB&T, based in the Cape Town office, and WALIED HEYNES, CA (SA), Technical Manager at NEXIA SAB&T, explain how the recently enacted Employment Tax Incentive Bill offers rewards to employers for hiring young job seekers.

THE high unemployment rate amongst South Africans paints a bleak picture for the youth of today.

Employers are reluctant to hire untrained and unskilled candidates due to the risks attached. These include substantial costs in respect of training and induction programmes.

The employer also runs the risks that employees will have a poor work ethic and not be suitable for the relevant job.

Government attempts to address this problem by providing young and inexperienced job seekers the opportunity to equip themselves with the necessary skills to actively participate in economic activity with the implementation of the Employment Tax Incentive Bill, which became effective on January 1, 2014.

The Employment Tax Incentive was designed to encourage employers to hire young and less experienced job seekers by reducing the cost to employers through a cost-sharing mechanism with government.

The aim of this incentive is to develop young employees in order for them to contribute meaningfully to drive the economy forward.

The employer and the employee need to meet certain criteria in order to qualify for the incentive.

An employer is eligible to receive the Employment Tax Incentive if the employer: l is registered for the purposes of withholding and payment of employees’ tax (PAYE); l is not in the national, provincial or local sphere of government; l is not a public entity listed in schedule 2 or 3 of the Public Finance Management Act, other than those public entities that the Minister of Finance may designate by notice in the Gazette; l is not a municipal entity; l is not disqualified by the Minister of Finance due to displacement of an employee or by not meeting such conditions as prescribed by the Minister.

An employee is a qualifying employee if the employee: l has a valid South African ID or asylum seeker permit; l is between the ages of 18 and 29; l works for an employer in a special economic zone as indicated by the finance minister in the Government Gazette or works in an industry which has been indicated by the finance minister in consultation with the Ministers of Labour, and Trade and Industry (the age limit is not applicable in these instances); l is not a domestic worker; l was employed by the employer or an associated person to the employer on or after October 1, 2013 and l is not an employee in respect of whom an employer is ineligible to receive the incentive as the employee is remunerated below the minimum wage or paid a wage below R2 000 per month where minimum wage is not applicable.

The Employment Tax Incentive can be claimed from January 1, 2014, and there is no limit on the number of qualifying employees that an employer can claim the incentive for.

Employers registered for employees’ tax purposes will be able to utilise the incentive by reducing the employees’ tax payable in that month by the incentive amount.

If the incentive exceeds the employees’ tax otherwise due in a particular month, an employer will be allowed to carry the excess amount forward to the next month within certain limits.

The amount claimable by the employer would have to be calculated on a monthly basis, based on the table below:

The following example illustrates the effect of the above on an employer’s monthly PAYE liability:

Hassen Kajie is a Director of the Cape Town office of Nexia SAB&T.

Company A appoints three staff members from January 1, 2014, with a monthly remuneration of R3 500 and two staff members with a monthly remuneration of R5 500 each.

All employees are South African residents and are qualifying employees in respect of the Employment Incentive Tax. The employees’ tax payable for the month of January, for the entire staff complement of the company, amounts to R17 500.

This incentive is available to qualifying employers until December 31, 2016, where its effectiveness will be reviewed to determine whether to continue with this incentive.

This article is intended for information purposes only and should not be considered as a legal document. If you are in doubt about any information in this article or require any advice on Provisional tax payments, please do not hesitate to contact Nexia SAB&T Tax department at 021 596 5400.

Advertising Booking Deadlines

Muslim Views

Walied Heynes is Technical Manager in the Cape Town office of Nexia SAB&T.

Publication Date 11 April 2014

Booking Date 24 March 2014

16 May 2014

29 April 2014

Ramadaan edition: 20 June 2014

2 June 2014

Eid-ul-Fitr edition: 25 July 2014

7 July 2014

Muslim Views . March 2014

AWQAF - promoting self-reliance and sustainability

25

The cash waqf: from Ottoman era origins to modern day application MAJDI RYKLIEF

QURANIC injunctions and a perfect prophetic example dictate every aspect of a Muslim’s life, and these include all economic interactions he or she undertakes as well.

Whether it is the social responsibility of zakaah or sadaqah, the encouragement of entrepreneurial spirit through fair trade, the outlawing of usury (interest), the execution of the law of inheritance, the rules of accepting and granting a loan or other matters, Muslims are encouraged (and expected) to conduct all these within the best framework possible, within the confines of the shariah.

Waqf is another economic behaviour encouraged by this moral and religious law.

As explained in previous editions, a waqf – from the root waqafa meaning ‘to cause a thing to stop’ or ‘be confined’ – may be defined as holding an asset and preventing its disposal, for the purpose of repeatedly extracting its usufruct for the benefit of humanity.

In other words, waqf means to prevent the usage and discarding of any asset from which one can derive some charitable benefit or can use its proceeds for wider societal needs.

For many South African Muslims, the notion of waqf is confined to everyday examples like the establishment and management of masajid, madaris, muslim schools, libraries, hospitals, fountains and roads. All these, by their nature, are immovable properties.

Cash waqfs in the Ottoman Empire One type of waqf rarely mentioned is the Cash Waqf or Awqaf al Nuqud and, as the name implies, its corpus consists entirely of cash.

This type of waqf was unique to the Ottoman Empire as it was deemed permissible by the Hanafi scholars of that era even though many initially objected as they felt that the endowment should be immovable.

Research trio Cengiz Toraman, Sinan Yilmaz and Professor Bedriye Tuncsiper write that the Ottoman courts ‘approved this form of endowment as from the beginning of the 15th century and by the end of the following century, they had reportedly become extremely popular all over Anatolia and the European provinces of the Empire’.

In a society where education, health, security and food production were financed by endowments, the Cash Waqfs, writes Dr Murat Çizakca, carried serious implications for the very survival of the Ottoman social structure.

‘Moreover, they were instrumental in the emergence of a legally sanctioned and widespread money market,’ he wrote.

Modern day Cash Waqf models A revival of the Cash Waqf or Waqf al Nuqud model has been witnessed in the 21st century as many Muslim and Muslimminority countries have launched new and innovative ways to invest in social empowerment

projects.

Different Cash Waqf models have been introduced, of which the more popular ones are the Waqf Shared Model, the Corporate Cash Waqf and the Deposit Product Model.

According to Waqf expert Dr Magda Mohsin, in the case of the Waqf Shares model, founders (people intending to make a waqf) would buy shares in a fund from a religious institution at prices that are specific to that country and will then receive a waqf share certificate.

The institution to which the endowment is entrusted will then act as mutawalli (overseer of affairs) to manage the collected fund.

Finally, writes Mohsin, ‘The collected fund will then be distributed to charitable purposes as specified by the institution itself e.g. building mosques, schools, training centres, etc.’

This model has proven to be popular in Kuwait, the United Kingdom, Sudan, Malaysia, South Africa and Indonesia.

The Corporate Cash Waqf is another example of a modern day Waqf al Nuqud, one of the models that the Awqaf Foundation of South Africa (AWQAFSA) uses.

In the case of the corporate fund, the founder could either be an individual or corporate entity looking to invest in social causes.

Dividends on investment are donated to a waqf institution in a Cash Waqf.

The institution the corporate chooses assumes the role of the mutawalli to manage the fund.

After deducting operational costs and expenses, revenues will then be forwarded to charitable causes.

The Deposit Product model differs from the other two in that founders are able to directly deposit into a Cash Waqf account at a bank and thereafter choose from a list of beneficiaries to whom he or she wishes to donate.

Here, the bank takes the responsibility of the mutawalli and will invest the capital through Mudaraba Contract and revenues will only be channeled to beneficiaries that the founder chose.

Make a Cash Waqf today Waqf al Nuqud or the Cash Waqf is considered the easiest form of waqf in which to participate as cash may be donated directly to organisations involved or it may be deducted from savings accounts.

Whether you are an individual or corporate, affluent or struggling to make ends meet, you too can participate in this public waqf scheme.

AWQAFSA affords you the opportunity to donate cash, property, shares or any other asset towards a project of your liking.

All these forms of waqf, including cash waqf or Waqf al Nuqud can play an important role in the social upliftment of South Africa’s indigent masses and the ummah.

By contributing these forms of waqf to a vital cause, you will ensure that our collective aims for an economically and spiritually prosperous society could be

attained, Insha Allah.

Majdi Ryklief is a member of AWQAFSA.

IN keeping with AwqafSA’s educative and developmental function, a new Leadership workshop will be held on Saturday, March 8, 2014, from 9am to 12.30, at the Executive Suites, Kromboom Road, Rondebosch East, Cape Town.

With its primary focus on financial management and responsible spending, this workshop is geared towards the youth who find themselves in an increasingly materialistic and capitalist world.

All interested parties are welcome to contact the offices at (021) 697 3556 or email us at awqafcape@awqafsa.org.za for more details.

Muslim Views

26

Muslim Views . March 2014

- ADVERTISEMENT FEATURE -

Muslim Hands Community Development Programme SHAMEEM BRAY

THE National Police Aid Convoys (NPAC), a UK-based relief organisation, has contributed a consignment of development aid, which Muslim Hands received on January 28, this year.

The items received included school equipment, blankets, office, medical and sport equipment, and toys for children. The goods were intended for schools and the needy in South Africa, with the aim of assisting with education and alleviating poverty.

Muslim Hands did a needs assessment to ascertain which schools and organisations are in need of the goods received.

We were not able to include all the organisations that are in need in the Western Cape due to the amount of items that were received; we do, however, hope to reach out to the other organisations with our next consignment, Insha Allah.

The goods were distributed to the following schools and organisations: l Oranje Kloof Primary School, in Hout Bay, were given 78 school desks, 62 chairs, 17 tables, 6 book shelves, educational books, two bags of sport equipment, notice boards, white boards and A4 white paper. l Oranje Kloof Primary, a nonfees school, is situated in the outskirts of Cape Town and is dependent on donations to fulfil their day-to-day requirements.

Muslim Views

Staff at Rylands High School, in Athlone, making an inventory of the chairs received for the staffroom. Muslim Hands also handed over printing paper on behalf of National Police Aid Convoys, a UK-based relief organisation.

Photo AMEER SAMSODIEN

l St John Ambulance received first-aid bags, zimmer frames (walking aids), A4 paper and stationery to assist them with their training courses. l Beitul Ansaar, in Mitchells Plain, was given toys and educational games for the children’s cognitive and social development. l Goodhope Educare received tables, chairs, toys and educational games for children. l Rylands High School, in Gatesville, received boxes of A4 paper and chairs for the staffroom. l Kensington Home for the Aged, in Kensington, Cape Town, received chairs for the elderly. l Mary Harding, in Athlone, received boxes of A4 paper and stationery for the classrooms.

l Eros School, in Bridgetown, received boxes of A4 paper and stationery for their students. l Johnson Road Kabrstan (maqbara), in Rylands, received filing cabinets for administration use, and gazebo coverings to provide shelter from the rain or sun during burial services. The items were received by the manager of the Muslim cemetery. l Saartjie Baartman Centre, in Athlone, received toys, sport equipment and blankets for their shelter for abused women and children. l Help the Rural Child, in Mowbray, received educational books for the children.

The schools and all recipients expressed immense gratitude and appreciation to Muslim Hands SA and UK for the items that they

Staff of St John’s Ambulance Services with some of the material that was handed over by Muslim Hands on behalf of the UK-based relief organisation, Photo AMEER SAMSODIEN National Police Aid Convoys.

received, and conveyed that the items would facilitate them to provide better education.

The principal of Rylands High School, Mr Pillay, expressed his gratitude in an email to Muslim Hands saying, ‘We feel truly humbled and simultaneously special that we have been chosen to be the fortunate recipients of your cherished gesture.’

All organisations, old-age homes, shelters, schools, orphanages and ambulances that were assisted by Muslim Hands were in dire need of these goods and equipment as they are not subsidised by government and are always in need of new equipment.

The recipients were grateful for the donations from Muslim Hands and NPAC, and expressed that they would be utilising the items to enhance their facilities and build their capacity.

Muslim Hands SA and all the

recipients of this aid programme would like to express their sincere gratitude to NPAC and would like to appreciate their efforts for the immense contribution towards improving education and reducing poverty in and around Cape Town.

We hope that National Police Aid Convoys (NPAC) from the UK will continue assisting us with our community development programme.

Muslim Hands SA would also like to place on record our sincere gratitude and thanks to Mr Nazeem Fritz and staff of the Cool Chain Group for their kind assistance with the clearance of the container received from the United Kingdom.

Contact Muslim Hands today on 021 633 6413 or visit: www.muslimhands.org.za Facebook: muslimhandsSA Twitter: muslimhandsSA

Muslim Views . March 2014

27

Muslim Views

FROM THE MIMBAR

28

Muslim Views . March 2014

Advice from one close to the Nabi (SAW) The onus is on us to lift ourselves from the dark abyss of spiritual bankruptcy and immorality, advises SHAIKH ABDURAGMAAN ALEXANDER.

A

LL praise and glory are due to Almighty Allah, the Sovereign of the entire uni-

verse.

There is no other being who can create the majestic mountains, the vast oceans, the varied colours of flowers, plants and trees.

He sent His beloved Messenger, Nabi Muhammad (SAW) as His ambassador to establish tauhid, justice and world peace.

The world today is bleeding and in global turmoil. We witness pain, suffering and mass conflict because of the godless state in which humanity finds itself today.

Our youth are trapped in the rut of gangsterism, drugs and Satanism. The world is crying out for healing.

Allah says in His Glorious Quran: ‘O you who believe! Save yourselves and your families from a fire whose fuel are men and stone…’

O Muslims, the onus is on us to lift ourselves from the dark abyss of spiritual bankruptcy and immorality. We have the supreme guidance of the Glorious Quran and the noble teachings and sunnah of our illustrious master, Nabi Muhammad (SAW).

What better mentors can we have than those who were shaped and moulded by the university of Muhammadu Rasool-Allah?

One such mentor is Hazrat Abdullah Ibn Abbas (RA). He was the second son of a wealthy merchant, Abbas ibn Abdul-Muttalib, thus he was called ‘Ibn Abbas’ – the son of Abbas.

The mother of Ibn Abbas was Umm al-Fadl Lubaba, who prided herself on being the second woman who converted to Islam on the same day as her close friend, Khadijah bint Khuwaylid, Nabi Muhammad’s (SAW) first wife.

Ibn Abbas was born three years before the Hijrah and his mother took him to Nabi Muhammad (SAW) before he had begun to suckle. Prophet Muhammad (SAW) put some of his blessed saliva on the newborn’s tongue, and that was the beginning of the close relationship between them.

While growing up, he was by the Prophet’s side doing different services like fetching water for ablution. He would follow him on his assemblies, journeys and expeditions. Nabi Muhammad (SAW) would often draw him close, pat him on the shoulder and pray, ‘O Allah, teach him (the knowledge of) Al-Quran.’

Ibn Abbas devoted his life to the pursuit of learning and knowledge. He thus became one of the greatest ulama whom Islam produced. He is also known as

Ra-eesul-Mufassireen (The Most learned interpreter of the Quran).

The advice of Hazrat Abdullah Ibn Abbas (RA) A man came to Ibn Abbas and asked, ‘Kindly give me the best advice.’

Ibn Abbas replied, ‘Adhere to eight things and you will be on the right path.

1. ‘Imbibe those good actions in your life which will draw the divine grace and protection of Allah on you.’ A life of good deeds brings blessings, while evil actions incur misery.

2. ‘Always ponder on the approach of the Akhirah.’ The after-life is rapidly approaching.

Every move of the hands of the clock is a tick closer to the end of this worldly life.

3. ‘Fulfil the obligatory worship of Allah on its appointed time.’

This is based on the Prophetic teaching that the best action is to perform salaah in its appointed time.

4. ‘Always keep your tongue wet with the dhikr (remembrance) of Allah. Allah declares in His Holy Book that the dhikr of Allah is the greatest.

Those who remember Allah, Allah will mention them in the august gatherings of the angels.

The Prophet (SAW) also taught us that everything has a polish to cleanse it, and the polish of the heart is the dhikr of Allah.

5. ‘Never befriend Shaitaan as he is the envious enemy of

Photo OSMAN KHAN

humankind. We need to realise that the evil Satan does not have goodwill for humanity. Allah warns us in the Quran not to worship the Devil nor care for his evil whispering as he is our devout enemy.

6. ‘Do not become attached to this dunya as it will destroy your achievement of success in the Akhirah.’

Hazrat Luqman (AS) warned his son while advising him, ‘My son, this world is a deep ocean and many people have drowned and perished in its pursuit. Allah tells us that this world is nothing but futile game and deceit. Pray to Allah to grant us only the good of this world in order to achieve the ultimate good of the hereafter.’

7. ‘Always be merciful and give

Light from the Qur’an

good counsel to fellow Muslims.’

Prophet Muhammad (SAW) taught that a Muslim is a brother/ sister to another Muslim. Muslims are not sincere in faith unless they mutually love each other. Be merciful to each other and the Creator will show mercy to you.

8. ‘Always be mindful of death.’

There is no assurance of anything except that every soul will taste death. None will escape the icy grip of Malakul-Maut. We come from Allah and unto Him is our ultimate return.

We pray that Allah will grant us the ability to construct our lives on the path of righteousness and His divine obedience and we pray for world peace, love, mercy and justice, ameen.

Jumuah mubarak!

The glorification and praise of the earth IBRAHIM OKSAS and NAZEEMA AHMED HIS article forms part of a series in which we will focus on understanding the meaning of the following ayahs in Surah Al-Isra and Surah Al-Hajj as eloquently expounded

by Bediuzzaman Said Nursi in his contemporary Qur’anic tafsir Risale-i Nur. ‘The seven heavens and the earth, and everyone in them glorify Him with praise but you do not understand their glorification,’ and ‘Do you not see that everyone in the heavens and everyone on the earth prostrate to Allah, and the sun and the moon and stars and the mountains, trees and beasts and many of humankind?’

Since the aforementioned ayah starts with the heavens, in the previous article, we looked at the way in which the heavens and everything it contains glorify Allah Almighty.

Bediuzzaman states that from these ayahs we can see that the All-Wise Quran states directly that everything, from the heavens to the earth, from angels to fishes, prostrate, worship, praise and glorify Almighty Allah. But the ibadah of the different forms of creation differs.

When considering the earth and its glorification, Bediuzzaman brings the matter closer to our understanding by drawing our attention to the creation and deployment of animate beings in

T

Muslim Views

spring.

During spring, hundreds of thousands of species emerge, and they are then nurtured in the most merciful fashion; wings are given to some of the seeds, they take flight and are thus dispersed.

They are distributed, and most carefully fed and nurtured.

Thus, countless tasty and delicious fruit and vegetables are brought forth in the most merciful fashion, from clay and from roots, seeds and drops of liquid that differ little from one another.

The sending of nutritious milk to the animal young and to infants, is but one instance of mercy and wisdom that immediately establishes itself as a tender manifestation of the mercy and generosity of the Merciful and Compassionate One. So, from Allah Almighty’s creation in spring we can observe a hundred thousand examples of the Supreme Gathering, and it is a tangible demonstration of the ayah in Surah Ar-Rum: ‘So look to the signs of Allah’s Mercy: how He gives life to the earth after its death for verily it is He who gives life to the dead, and He has power over all things.’

Bediuzzaman conveys that this ayah may be said to express the meaning of the events in spring.

Furthermore, he says that from this we can understand that the earth together with all the creation that it contains proclaims through all those creations: ‘There is no god but He.’

He next draws our attention to the seas which are constantly surging, merging and pouring forth. They surround the earth and, together with the earth, revolve, extremely swiftly, in a circle of twenty-five thousand years in a single year.

Yet, the seas do not disperse nor do they overflow or encroach on the land contiguous to them.

They move and stand still, and they are protected by the Command and Power of Allah Almighty in a most powerful and magnificent fashion. The actions of the seas are their particular form of glorification to Allah Almighty.

When we look to the depths of the sea, we observe that there are thousands of different kinds of animals, sustained and ordered, brought to life and caused to die, in such a disciplined fashion, and their provision coming from sand and salt water, that it unquestionably establishes the existence of a Powerful and Glorious, a Merciful Being administering and giving them life and sustenance.

Bediuzzaman says that in looking at the rivers we see that the benefits inherent in them, the functions they perform and their continual replenishment are inspired by such wisdom and mercy to prove that all rivers, springs, streams and great waterways flow forth from the treasury of mercy of the Compassionate One, the Lord of Glory and Generosity.

The river Nile, that turns the sandy land of Egypt into a paradise, flows from the Mountains of the Moon in the south without ever being exhausted, as if it were a small sea.

If the water that flowed down that river in six months were gathered together and frozen in the form of a mountain, it would be larger than those mountains.

But the place in the mountains where the water is stored is less than a sixth of their mass.

The rain that enters the reservoir of the river is very sparse in that region and is quickly swallowed up by the thirsty soil so it is incapable of maintaining the equilibrium of the river.

Bediuzzaman shares with us that a tradition has thus become established that the blessed Nile emerges, in miraculous fashion, from an unseen Paradise.

Bediuzzaman further says that the seas proclaim unanimously, ‘There is no god but He,’ and produce as witnesses to their testimony all the creatures that inhabit the seas. Bediuzzaman then focuses on the mountains and the plains and comments that the universal function and duty of mountains is of such grandeur and wisdom as to stupefy our intelligence. The mountains emerge from the earth by the command of their Sustainer, thereby calming the turmoil that arises from disturbances within the earth.

As the mountains surge upward, the earth begins to

breathe; it is delivered from harmful tremors and upheavals, and its tranquillity is no longer disturbed as it pursues its duty of rotation.

In the same way that masts are placed on ships to protect them from turbulence and to preserve their balance, so too mountains are set up on the earth as masts, as indicated by ayahs of the Quran such as these in Surahs An-Naba, Qaf and An-Naziat, respectively: ‘And the mountains as pegs’, ‘And We have cast down anchors’, ‘And the mountains He anchored them’.

Furthermore, there are stored up and preserved in the mountains all kinds of springs, waters, minerals and other materials needed by animate beings, in such a wise, generous and foreseeing fashion that they prove that they are the storehouses and warehouses and servants of One possessing infinite Power, One possessing infinite Wisdom.

Bediuzzaman concludes by saying that from this example the other duties and instances of wisdom of the mountains and plains show that they give testimony to Divine Unity and they declare, ‘There is no god but He’ – a declaration as powerful and firm as the mountains, and as vast and expansive as the plains. And so we, too, should say, ‘I believe in Allah.’

Insha-Allah, in the next article we will discuss the glorification of trees and plants as well as animals and birds.

Muslim Views . March 2014

From Consciousness to Contentment

29

Education: behind the staffroom door JASMINE KHAN

HE teaching profession used to be one of the noblest professions; to undertake the responsibility of educating a child and enabling that child to develop into a responsible adult was the aspiration of everyone who chose to become a teacher.

Sadly, that is seldom the case today. Our education system is in such a state that teachers are vilified and blamed for not doing their job.

In addition, we are faced with the state’s insistence on lowering the pass requirepushing ments, learners to the next grade despite them not meeting the lower requirements, and even doctoring examination results to give a more appealing picture.

Every year, more and more learners are let loose on the labour market to earn a living.

Those who opt for further education find that most colleges and universities no longer accept a Matric certificate.

What is happening in our schools? Education is a triad, between learner, parent and educator. Should one of these fall short in their contribution, everything breaks down.

In seeking answers, I spoke to teachers at both private (independent schools) and public schools.

A principal at one of the private schools explained that when a teacher does not complete a prescribed work for the year it is by choice.

He says that Grades 10-12 is a phase and most teachers spread the work to be covered over two years and then revise in the last year.

This does not make sense; besides, in the case mentioned, the class does not have the same English teacher for grade 11.

T

The question parents should be asking is: does the new teacher know that the learners did not complete the previous year’s prescribed work?

And what is being done about it?

The principal further explained the difficulties facing high schools when learners enter Grade 10, when the ball game changes drastically. Up to that point, learners are assessed on assignments during the school year, which counts for 75% of their overall mark, and only 25% is assessed in examinations.

From grade 10, examinations

lem coping with the work, the teacher has to put an intervention in place to assist; if this is not done, the child has to progress to the next grade. In view of the extra burden placed on the teacher who now has additional work after hours as well as the numerous training workshops he has to attend, most teachers just pass the learner along to the next grade without intervention or assistance.

In the public schools, I found that the teachers try as far as possible to allow learners to do homework in class so that the

is that you cannot educate a child if you do not know who he is.

With the influx of children of different cultures into the schools, this causes a problem as most of the names are difficult to pronounce, added to which these learners struggle with both English and Afrikaans.

The solution, according to the principal of the private school, is that these learners must write their final examinations in their mother tongue. He gave an example of a very bright boy at his school who was struggling with English and he suggested that the

In the public schools, I found that the

educator inspires and motivates the learner to move forward, to work with initiative.

The purpose is to guide the learner in his development and growth into a responsible adult; one who will be an asset to his family and to society. This, he affirms, is what education is all about; not feeding information which will be regurgitated during an examination.

Regarding intervention, he believes that learners should be monitored on an ongoing basis; it has to be part of the teaching process, not a separate issue. He uses the example of purchasing a car, one man buys a Mercedes and another buys a used Toyota.

He says you cannot expect the same performance from the Toyota as you would from the new Mercedes.

The one will give you a smooth ride; the other will need a lot of maintenance to perform. If we take this analogy to schools then the private or independent school is the Mercedes and the used Toyota is the public schools.

However, contrary to expectations, it would seem that the Toyota is by far the better ride, maybe because it has an excellent team of maintenance workers.

The Mercedes, on the other hand does not go so smoothly. This could be because it is expected to give top notch performance and therefore no monitoring and maintenance is done. The private school’s principal is not in favour of private tuition, he feels that parents should leave the work to the teachers; at his school they do offer extra tuition for struggling learners. How effective this will be is for parents to decide.

This series will conclude with input from parents and the views of an independent education consultant.

teachers try as far as possible to allow learners to do homework in class so that the teacher

can monitor how the learners cope. This may

not be the norm but from what I found in my interviews, it seems that teachers in public

schools are far more interested in ensuring that learners understand the work. count 75% of the mark, and classroom assignments only 25%.

He states that at his school they start the examination ratio from grade 7 so that learners are competent to write examinations.

When I asked him what happens when a learner enters the school at grade 10, his answer was that the learner is then inducted into the examinations by receiving assistance in coping skills. Parents need to be aware of this so that they can ensure that the necessary induction is done.

According to the Department (WCED), if a learner has a prob-

teacher can monitor how the learners cope. This may not be the norm but from what I found in my interviews, it seems that teachers in public schools are far more interested in ensuring that learners understand the work.

I know of one teacher at a private school who rolls her eyes when a learner asks her to explain a concept again or she exclaims, ‘For God’s sake!’

At another public school, a teacher told me that at the start of the school year the principal insists that the teachers know every child’s name; his contention

learner write his Matric in his mother tongue. In fact, the school board paid for him to be tutored with this in mind. The boy’s mother insisted that he write in English, and he failed.

The principal of a public school, with over thirty years in the field of education, says that he empathises with the challenges faced by the teachers but feel that, at the end of the day, it comes down to how committed you are as a teacher. According to him, there is a difference between a teacher and an educator. A teacher imparts knowledge; an

Muslim Views

30

Muslim Views . March 2014

Positive and Effective Parenting

The parents’ role in the child’s schoolwork

Part 2: Intermediate phase, Grades 4 –7 FOUZIA RYKLIEF

ANY parents, in their attempts to ensure that their children perform well at school, often go too far when assisting their children. To ensure that this is not the case, here are some general principles:

M

Recognise that schoolwork is the child’s responsibility

l Don’t take over: provide hands-on assistance during the early phase, gradually let go and express confidence in the child’s ability to take responsibility. l Provide resources and a pleasant environment for the child to study and do homework. l Don’t overload the child with chores.

Join the team – this is a sure way to show you are interested in your child

l Make time to attend school meetings; write a letter or phone if you can’t make meetings. l Attend school events and get involved.

Homework and projects If children are given clear messages about homework from the beginning, homework will become a habit.

If homework is not taken seriously, children will learn to believe that this will always be the case.

It is best to establish a clear homework routine from the first time your child starts getting homework.

How much help should be given?

This will depend on your child.

If you know that your child understands the work and is capable of doing it alone, leave him to work alone.

Always check the work once your child is finished and help out with concepts that he has not grasped.

If he needs you to be with him all the time, work towards getting him to work independently with just your company and occasional help.

What is important is to not overly involve yourself in the homework and certainly not to do the homework for your child.

Homework should never be new work – it is meant as a reinforce-

Muslim Views

If he needs you to be with him all the time, work towards getting him to work independently with just your company and occasional help.

What is important is to not overly involve yourself in the homework and certainly not to do the homework for your child. Homework should never be new work – it is meant as a reinforcement of work covered in class. ment of work covered in class.

For school projects, it is best to get some guidelines from the school as to how much they expect you to help. l Expect to help less rather than more. Help should be given in the form of support rather than it being of an active nature. l Helping to read what is expected, questioning your child’s understanding of the project and helping with the planning should be about all you need to do. Don’t take over the whole planning since this is probably part of the skill set the teacher is trying to test. l It is preferable that your child hands in the worst project that he did all by himself, than the best project that the parents did! Teachers will be able to tell from previous work whether or not your child has done the project alone. l When helping, ask yourself this question: ‘By helping in this way, am I teaching my child some useful skills for future projects or am I teach-

ing him that he is not good enough to do a project alone?’

Studying Apart from spelling tests and numeracy tests, the main studying will begin in Grade 4 with the first of the formal tests.

There are a number of things you can do to help your child with studying. l Planning and organisation is the first step. Children writing their first formal tests do not have any idea how to go about studying or planning how to fit in all the subjects. l Help your child set up a workspace. Equip it with studying tools like highlighters, colour pens/ pencils, paper etc. l Look at the test timetable and help set up a study timetable with your child. Put it up on the wall so the whole family can see it, and support your child in sticking to it. Remember to schedule in down-time and exercise. l Test your child – either verbally or set a written test.

l Initially, the help you give your child will be quite a lot. However, the time taken to explain study techniques early on pays dividends later on. l Be sensitive to the studying child. Keep her work area quiet and help her to stick to her study timetable.

When there is a problem When you notice from homework, the report or test results that your child is struggling with something, discuss it with your child. Don’t nag and pressurise but state your concerns.

Balance your expectations and, most important, don’t compare your child, either negatively or positively to other children in the family. Don’t wait, reach out to the teacher.

When you receive a report that there is a problem with the child’s behaviour try not to be defensive; recognise that your child may not be right.

To teachers: first share positives about the child then state your concerns; ask parents, ‘Does this also happen at home, and

how do you deal with it?’

To parents: first listen to the teacher; don’t jump to conclusions, blame or excuse; state your concerns respectfully.

See the meeting with the teacher as a process of sharing information about the child and jointly finding solutions.

In conclusion, remember the words of encouragement that focus on effort and improvement covered in an earlier article: ‘It looks as if you really worked hard on that.’

‘It looks as if you spent a lot of time thinking that through.’

‘I see that you’re moving along.’

‘Look at the progress you’ve made!’ (be specific; say how) ‘You’re improving in …’ (Be specific) ‘You may not feel that you’ve reached your goal but look how far you’ve come.’

If a child performs poorly, your emotional support is necessary because they need to feel that you are on their side.

Fouzia Ryklief is a departmental manager at the Parent Centre, in Wynberg, Cape Town.

FOR ALL

Sailing the seas on canvas On a small stool at the base of the extensive canvas sat a smartly dressed woman of indefinable age, writes Doctor M C D’ARCY. AILING-SHIPS in full, billowing splendour have an inimitable mystique that fascinates even those who have never gone down to the sea in ships.

With carved wooden prows and tall masts that reach to clear blue skies, they tickle the cockles of all who have tasted the piquant salt of the sea.

When full white sails sing, and spirited bows slice emerald waters, these ships exude majesty beyond the charm of all modern ocean-going craft.

Achmat and Shaheen Soni’s art gallery in Soni Avenue, Crawford, is a veritable Aladdin’s cave of bright and brilliant calligraphy artworks that stun with their luminosity and polished creativi-

S

ty. My visit there found students hard at work; brush and paint splashed canvases with geometric calligraphy.

Incongruously ensconced between the easels and canvases loomed a huge canvas adorned with an unfinished seascape of a cluster of eighteenth-century sailing vessels raging in a gunpowder battle.

It was a vista of death, guts and glory.

Cannons boomed. Masts creaked and crumbled.

Men screamed in agony, their blood painting decks and waves red. Here before me was the Battle of Trafalgar, October 21, 1812, in which one-armed Admiral Horatio Nelson of the English fleet defeated both the Napoleonic French navy and their allied Spanish fleet.

At Cape Trafalgar, just southwest of Spain, the Franco-Spanish navies lost twenty-two ships. The British lost none.

Horatio Nelson was killed on his ship, HMS Victory, by a French sniper. It is said that his body was preserved in a barrel of distilled brandy during a stormy voyage of two and a half weeks back to Britain and subsequent burial in London’s St Paul’s

Cathedral.

Of local interest, Admiral Horatio Nelson once visited and rousted in Simonstown. A small hotel and bar in Simonstown main road still bears his name.

On a small stool at the base of the extensive canvas sat a smartly dressed woman of indefinable age, a tiny brush and paintsmeared artist’s palette in hand.

‘This is Ms Zainulghoess’n Abrahams, and this canvas is the third or fourth large canvas that she’s busy on,’ Achmat Soni introduced me to the diminutive artist.

‘She loves painting these seascapes.’

The in-progress painting of the Battle of Trafalgar by Ms Abrahams was inspired by a magnificent rendering of the naval battle of Trafalgar by Irishman Clarkson Stanfield (1793-1867).

Like Cape Town’s Vladimir Tretchikoff, Stanfield was once a painter of theatre backdrops.

Tretchikoff specialised in greenfaced ladies, Stanfield specialised in sea-related art. His epic painting of the Battle of Trafalgar can only be described in one word: a masterpiece.

Salt River born, 58-year-old Ms Abrahams matriculated at Trafalgar High School and

Muslim Views . March 2014

obtained her Honours Degree in Librarianship at University of Cape Town. For many years she worked mainly in the Architecture Library of her alma mater, UCT. In 2004, she saw a painting by Achmat Soni in Johannesburg, wanted to buy it but it was sold before she could put in her bid.

A friend advised that she see should more of Achmat’s work in Cape Town.

Eight years ago she did just that, and got hooked on painting as a hobby.

‘But, I couldn’t even hold a pencil, never mind a paint-brush,’ Ms Abrahams confessed to me. ‘Well, I just said to myself, say Biesmillah and do it. I finished my first calligraphy painting, Allah-Hu, on my 50th birthday, and the rest, as they say, is history.’

Her passion for maritime paintings is clear, and asked why, she explained, ‘I was inspired by a puzzle my sons assembled at our home in Robertson. It was a picture of a marine battle scene.

‘My sons egged me on to paint something like the picture they were assembling.

That was my very first shippainting, and it took me one year

31

and eight months to complete.

‘When I took home the painting my two sons wanted to know who would inherit the painting!

So, I just had to start another one.’

Under the mentorship of Achmat Soni, she has completed more than 18 other paintings, particularly of the orchids that she collects. Landscapes and floart still ral allures her but seascapes rule her art passions.

And what instinctive force dictates this love of the sea and its ships?

Cape Town is virtually surrounded by the sea.

It runs in our blood. We come from the coasts of India and the Indonesian Isles; we are of the Orang laut, men of the sea.

Many of the old paintings of Cape Town show Muslims sailing out in little sail-skiffs to passing threemasted galleons and to peddle their wares.

Umpteen sketches testify that the Muslims of yesteryear were ardent fishermen who knew the sea. trekThey netted fish and sold their catch to hungry locals.

And they fearlessly harvested behemoth whales for the oil of their blubber to light the lamps of the town, and for their delectable meat to feed many stomachs.

This they did with hand-held harpoons in fragile little rowing boats.

I frequent Adiel’s Mermaid Fisheries in Belgravia Road. He gets the freshest fish every day, weather permitting, and the best are snapped up largely by those whose ancestors come from distant Indian and Indonesian shores.

The wise early birds leave the leftovers for latecomers like me.

But Ms Abrahams has hands not only for sea-water; she also fashions clay and porcelain into fancy vessels and ornaments. She has an eye for contour and a touch for texture. ‘I do not like glazing,’ said Ms Abrahams.

‘Shape is important to me, colour is secondary.’

A large collection of art books helps Ms Abrahams to focus her art but she enjoys just reading about ‘anything’ for that expands her vision of the world and mankind beyond the large canvases and the skies.

Ms Abrahams is fortunate to have patient mentors in Achmat Soni and his son, Shaheen.

Painting on such a huge scale requires not only technique but fortitude and determination to complete the challenge when, all around, other artists and students pore over your every stroke, and loud comments can stall and demoralise sterling efforts.

In this endeavour one has to be vigilant, eagle-eyed for detail but deaf to destructive criticism. In the end, the art-canvas will billow in the winds of one’s mind and the ships will move on in the seas of one’s soul.

‘I was

inspired by a puzzle my sons

assembled at our home in

Robertson. It

was a picture of a marine

battle scene.’

Ms Zainulghoess’n Abrahams painting the Battle of Trafalgar.

Photo M C D’ARCY Muslim Views

SPORTS-TALK

32

Muslim Views . March 2014

Moegammad Ally Hassen (22-12-1926 – 15-01-2014)

Another eventful innings ended ENVER HASSEN

OEGAMMAD Ally Hassen was born in Fietas on December 22, 1926, and passed away on January 15, 2014, after a short battle with cancer.

Cricket was always close to his heart and even through his illness, he remained interested in the happenings around the cricket world, always asking for an update of ‘scores’.

He grew up in the very bad days of South African apartheid and his cricket was hugely influenced by his brother, Dout (Dawood) Hassen.

At a time when ‘non-White’ schools were under resourced, when ‘non-White’ parents were forced to eke out an existence that occupied most of their energy, Ally and his brother Dout learned to play cricket on their own.

In the school of many knocks and mistakes, Ally developed the

M

technique that made him an outstanding left-handed opening batsman, and right-arm leg-break bowler.

Ally was born and bred in ‘Fietas’ or ‘Vrededorp’ (now Pageview), a thriving community that stretched from 1st street to 30th street.

His loving wife, Zubeida, coincidentally, also grew up in this area, even though they met and married in Ottasdal, in 1960, when he was principal of the primary school in Schweizer Reneke.

In 1965, he moved to Standerton.

Cricket, in those days, was played on matting wickets with unpredictable bounce and some of the bowlers they faced were quite quick and the batting conditions were often difficult, with atrocious ground conditions.

Ally played representative cricket for Transvaal (now Gauteng) ‘Coloureds’; he was the representative team’s opening batsman and was noted for his dogged resistance.

(Right) Moegammad Ally Hassen, whose teaching career and love of cricket took him to all corners of South Africa.

Photo SUPPLIED

In addition to opening the batting, Ally excelled with the ball as a leg- and off-break bowler, ‘snakes and snails’ is what the wicket-keeper, Ami Sant, called his bowling.

Ally Hassen was the youngest in the family of nine and the one who chose education as the vehicle of his escape.

He was well respected as an English teacher and educationist, and obtained a degree in English and History from UNISA. He also served as an English examiner in the education department of the House of Representatives.

A teacher for 45 years, he retired in Standerton and moved to Cape Town in 1986.

He taught thousands of young people, many of whom still acknowledge the huge difference he made in their lives, not just

teaching the curriculum but also passing on life’s important lessons.

Ally played for many teams, most notably the ‘great’ Rangers team.

He also represented Transvaal ‘Coloureds’ in many ‘inter-race’ matches and was part of the winning Barnato Trophy team at the Golden Jubilee tournament in 1947/48.

He served as ‘union’ secretary as a young committed player and, later on, was involved with the Eastern Transvaal Cricket Board while in Standerton.

He played cricket for various teams in Fietas, Rustenberg, Standerton and Schweizer Reneke, and would have represented Griquas if it was not for family commitments.

He played with and against many of the ‘greats’ of his generation and often recounted this era with great fondness – Ballie Davids, Mac Anthony, Doolie Rubdige, the Abed brothers, his brother Dout Hassen, Ben Malamba, Frank Roro, the list goes on and on.

He had also been on numerous annual cricket tours to Cape Town and developed many friendships there. He developed a love for Cape Town and it was no

surprise when he relocated there after his ‘formal’ retirement from Stanwest School, in Standerton, at the end of 1986.

He officially retired from cricket in the late 1960s but played the occasional school game for the ‘teachers against students’, his wicket being the most prized, most notably contributing in a century stand with one of his sons, at the age of 63!

After officially retiring as a vice principal from Standwest High School and moving to Cape Town, he taught Matric English at Islamia College for another half-a-dozen years. He considered this the best time of his ‘teaching’ life.

In his retirement, he spent much time mastering the computer and writing short stories, poetry and novels.

He read very widely and was a passionate student of English literature; he could quote Shakespeare at will: neither age nor illness dimmed his abilities.

Ally was a devoted husband, loving father and grandfather who passed on his love for cricket and literature to all.

Moegammad Ally Hassen is survived by his wife Zubeida, children Enver, Amina, Zane, Nazier, and 12 grandchildren.

Moegammad Ally Hassen is flanked by several of his grandchildren, on whom he doted.

Photo SUPPLIED

Muslim Views