At Pandit Girl’s Wedding In Kashmir, Muslim Women Welcome Guests With Wanwun, Kashmiri Wedding Song, Young Girls Showered Flowers
New Age Islam News Bureau
30 June 2022
• Sworn In Holding A Copy Of The Quran: First Egyptian Muslim Woman Sworn In As Youth
Minister In Australia
• Iran ‘Torturing’ Prize-Winning Activist Narges Mohammadi:
Amnesty
• Dubai Launches UAE's First Waqf That Supports Women
And Children
• UAE: Sheikha Shamma Becomes First Woman From GCC To
Join Atlantic Council's Climate Fellowship
• UAE’s First Emirati Female Aviation Engineer
Celebrates INWED At Heriot-Watt University
• Maya Morsi Highlights Importance Of Focusing On
Women Role In Labour Market: Conference
Compiled by New
Age Islam News Bureau
URL: https://newageislam.com/islam-women-feminism/pandit-kashmir-wanwun-muslim/d/127370
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At Pandit Girl’s Wedding In Kashmir, Muslim Women Welcome Guests With Wanwun, Kashmiri Wedding Song, Young Girls Showered Flowers
Wedding in Kashmir
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Irfan Raina
29 Jun, 2022
Ganderbal: Withholding the age-old communal harmony in
Kashmir, local Muslims in Lar village of Ganderbal district participated in the
marriage ceremony of a Kashmiri Pandit girl whose family lives in the village.
Kashmiri Muslims participated in the marriage ceremony
of Meenakshi Kumari, daughter of late Pandit Mohan Lal in Lar, and celebrated
the function like they were the real hosts.
The Pandit family has been living in the Lar village
for years and sharing an emotional bond with local Muslim neighbours.
In a heart-warming gesture at the residence of the
bride, local Muslims helped the family with all the preparations. From
arranging firewood to setting up tents, cleaning the premises to surroundings,
decorating the house to offering tea to guests, the local Muslim community did
everything happily.
While men were busy in preparations, local Kashmiri
women were seen singing local Kashmiri songs and doing the ‘Rouf’ (dance) with
the Pandit women who had come to participate in the marriage ceremony.
Muslim women welcomed the groom and his family with
the traditional Wanwun while young girls showered flower plates over the
guests.
Talking to Greater Kashmir, a former legislator and a
resident of Lar, Sheikh Ishfaq Jabbar said, “We don't feel that Kashmiri
Pandits are a different community. They are our people. We have lived together
for centuries. We will continue to help them as it is our moral duty.”
Sanatham Dharam Sabha District President Ganderbal,
Badrinath Bhat said that the Muslim neighbours including men and women
participated in every ritual during the last four days.
The Pandit guests, some of them displaced community
members, were elated to witness the scenes of brotherhood come alive in Lar.
“I was amazed to see Muslim women sing along to us
while men made most of the arrangements for the guests,” said a Pandit guest
from Jammu.
Source: Greater Kashmir
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Sworn In Holding A Copy Of The Quran: First Egyptian Muslim Woman Sworn In As Youth
Minister In Australia
Azza Mahmoud Fawzi Husseini
Ali al-Serougy
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June 29, 2022
An Egyptian woman was sworn in as Minister of Youth
for the Labour Party in the new Australian government, on Wednesday, holding a
copy of the Quran with a pink cover, before Prime Minister of Australia Anthony
Albanese, Al Arabiya reported.
Albanese stood up from his chair to shake hands and
congratulate her in a scene described by the Australian local media as historic
and distinguished.
Anne Aly is the abbreviation of the name of Azza
Mahmoud Fawzi Husseini Ali al-Serougy who was born in 1967 in Alexandria,
according to her online biography.
Aly is the first Muslim woman to hold a ministerial
position in the history of Australia in which more than 620,000 Muslims reside
including immigrants and descendants, in addition to more than half a million
Arabs, most of whom are Lebanese.
According to her biography, Aly immigrated with her
family since she was two years old to Australia, and regained her Egyptian
citizenship in 2016.
Choosing Aly was based on her experience in combating
extremism and terrorism, although the achievements of her past are different.
In 1990 she graduated with a Bachelor of Arts from the
American University in Cairo.
After returning to Australia, she received in 2008 the
Dean’s Award for Best New Researcher from a university she had previously
graduated from in 1994 in English literature, then a master’s degree in 1996 in
the same subject, and two years later she obtained a doctorate degree in
philosophy, from the Australian Edith Cowan University.
In 2009, she also received the Publication Award from
the Australian Institute of Professional Intelligence Officers (AIPIO).
After her appointment to the Council for
Australian-Arab Relations (CAAR) of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, she
founded what she called the “People against Violent Extremism (PaVE)”.
She is also active with the Curtin University’s Centre
for Culture and Technology (CCAT), in which she led a research program on
countering violent extremism online.
Aly was chosen as “Woman of the Year” when she became
in 2016 the first Muslim woman elected to parliament.
She is also a university professor, and the mother of
two sons from an ex-husband she married in 1988.
Aly said in a memoir she published in 2018 entitled
“Finding My Place: From Cairo to Canberra – the Irresistible Story of an
Irrepressible Woman” that she suffered from her ex-husband’s mistreatment a lot
and after the divorce, she had to take care of her two sons, Adam and Karim
alone, as a single mother, and then found stability with her current husband, a
Canadian named David Allen, who was a police officer, and a famous practitioner
of hockey.
The new Australian cabinet is formed of 23 ministers,
including ten women and a Muslim minister named Ed Nurredin Husic, 52, who is
originally from Bosnia.
His father, Haseeb, was a welder in Australia, while
his mother was a housewife. He is married, has one son, is also a member of the
Labor Party, and is Minister of Industry in the new cabinet.
Source: Egypt Independent
https://www.egyptindependent.com/egyptian-muslim-woman-sworn-in-as-youth-minister-in-australia/
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Iran ‘torturing’ prize-winning activist Narges
Mohammadi: Amnesty
29 June, 2022
Iran is subjecting the prize-winning rights activist
Narges Mohammadi to torture by denying her proper healthcare in a reprisal for
her campaigning, Amnesty International said on Wednesday.
Mohammadi is held in the notorious Qarchak women's
prison southeast of Tehran, whose conditions have long alarmed rights
campaigners.
Her husband Taghi Rahmani, who is based in Paris, had
on social media this week accused the prison authorities of deliberately
withholding medication sent by her family to treat a lung condition.
“Iran's authorities are torturing human rights
defender Narges Mohammadi in prison, including by intentionally denying her
adequate healthcare and refusing to provide her with medication in reprisal for
her human rights work,” the Amnesty International rights group said.
Amnesty added that Mohammadi, who suffers from lung
and heart conditions, had been hospitalised on June 23 after experiencing
shortness of breath and an irregular heartbeat.
Since her return to prison from hospital, prison
authorities “have been denying Narges Mohammadi some of her required
medication.”
Mohammadi is currently serving a prison sentence of 10
years and eight months on charges from two separate cases including spreading
propaganda against the regime, according to Amnesty.
She was sentenced to eight years and over 70 lashes on
national security charges in January and is also serving another sentence of
two-and-a-half years dating back to 2021.
Amnesty also expressed alarm that in recent weeks there
have been reports of “overflowing sewage” at Qarchak, “putting prisoners at
risk of disease”.
A colleague of Nobel Peace Prize-winning campaigner
Shirin Ebadi, who now lives outside Iran, Mohammadi has campaigned for justice
for protesters killed in a crackdown on November 2019 demonstrations.
She has won numerous international prizes in
recognition for her work including in 2011 the annual Per Anger Prize issued by
the Swedish government.
Source: Al Arabiya
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Dubai launches UAE's first waqf that supports women
and children
29 Jun 2022
The Awqaf and Minors Affairs Foundation has launched
the UAE’s first waqf (charity endowment) to support women and children.
The Dh30-million residential waqf, a Sharia-compliant
charitable endowment, aims to generate a sustainable income to contribute to
the care and rehabilitation of women and children and meet their needs by
giving them shelter and protection and direct support in line with
international human rights principles.
A key project of the Dubai Foundation for Women and
Children, the waqf also provides free services to children of different
nationalities across the UAE in accordance with the Foundation’s inclusive
ethos.
It was launched under the directives of His Highness
Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Vice-President and Prime Minister of the
UAE and Ruler of Dubai.
A housing project in Al Warqaa in Dubai that serves as
the centre for the services facilitated by the waqf was opened at an event
attended by a host of senior officials.
Abdullah Mohammed Al Basti, Secretary-General of The
Executive Council of Dubai, said the humanitarian initiative will ensure the
protection and care of vulnerable segments of society.
Essa Abdullah Al Ghurair, Chairman of Awqaf and Minors
Affairs Foundation, said the launch of the new Waqf is in line with Dubai
government's strategies aimed at taking care of women and children. The Awqaf
and Minors Affairs Foundation seeks to strengthen the participation of women in
society and provide support through sustainable investment projects that
enhance the stability and security of the community, he added.
The total number of the foundation’s registered
endowments reached 761 at the end of 2021, representing a total value of Dh7.71
billion.
Source: Khaleej Times
https://www.khaleejtimes.com/uae/dubai-launches-uaes-first-waqf-that-supports-women-and-children
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UAE: Sheikha Shamma becomes first woman from GCC to
join Atlantic Council's climate fellowship
29 Jun 2022
Sheikha Shamma bint Sultan bin Khalifa Al Nahyan has
been selected by the Atlantic Council Global Energy Center to join its Women
Leaders in Energy and Climate Fellowship. She will be the first woman from the
GCC to do so.
The fellowship is a one-year, non-resident programme
for early- to mid-career women leaders in the energy and climate fields, with
an interest in deepening their policy expertise and professional development.
This year’s cohort will be invited to participate at
the Atlantic Council Global Energy Forum in Abu Dhabi in January 2023. The
forum will feature energy and climate leaders from around the world. It
precedes the 2023 UN Climate Change Conference (COP 28) which will be hosted in
the UAE.
The inclusion of Sheikha Shamma, the forum in Abu
Dhabi, and COP 28 all showcase Abu Dhabi’s commitment to achieving its
Environment Vision 2030.
Sheikha Shamma, CEO & Founder of Alliances for
Global Sustainability, said, “It’s an honour to be part of the Atlantic Council
Global Energy Center’s Women Leaders in Energy and Climate Fellowship and
subsequently become the first woman from the GCC to be included in this cohort.
As Abu Dhabi and the world alike continues to enhance its efforts toward
environmental sustainability, climate action and a more circular economy, it’s
imperative that we bring tomorrow’s energy and climate leaders together now, so
we can work in cohesion for a cleaner future.”
“I sincerely look forward to meeting my fellow peers
in Washington, DC and working alongside them to enter dialogue and discourse
which will be a catalyst to global energy and climate solutions. I will also
have the pleasure to welcome them to the UAE for the Atlantic Council Global
Energy Forum and COP 28, two occasions that have the capacity to change the
world for the better,” she added.
“As the fight against climate change intensifies, the
need to accelerate the careers of the best and brightest rising leaders in
climate and energy policy has never been more urgent,” said Frederick Kempe,
Atlantic Council president and CEO. “We are delighted to welcome this year’s
stellar cohort of the Atlantic Council Women Leaders in Energy and Climate
Fellowship, and we know that they will do great things during their time at the
Council and beyond. This year’s cohort joins a growing network of phenomenal
change-makers.”
The Fellowship, which is in its fourth year, gives
young women professionals the opportunity to engage in networking
opportunities, professional development, and skills training. While the 2020
and 2021 fellowships were held entirely virtually due to the pandemic, this
year’s program will incorporate hybrid and in-person events alongside virtual
engagements in order to include participants from beyond the Washington, DC
area.
The 2022 Fellowship formally began in May and will
feature public speaking sessions tailored specifically to the virtual and
hybrid environments; opportunities to publish independent analyses on the
Global Energy Center EnergySource blog; and virtual networking events with
senior industry and government officials.
Fellows will have the opportunity to learn from senior
leaders in the energy sector, strengthen their voices as women experts in a
traditionally male-dominated space, and build a well-rounded understanding of
energy and climate policy beyond their areas of expertise.
Source: Khaleej Times
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UAE’s first Emirati female aviation engineer
celebrates INWED at Heriot-Watt University
29 Jun 2022
Heriot-Watt University Dubai hosted Dr Eng. Suaad Al
Shamsi as part of the celebrations for International Women in Engineering Day
(INWED) to honour and encourage female participation in the field of
engineering. INWED was launched for the first time in the UK on June 23 2014 by
the Women’s Engineering Society (WES) to celebrate its 95th anniversary.
Commenting on her participation, Dr Shamsi, who has
worked on some of the biggest aviation projects in the UAE till date, said: “It
was a pleasure to celebrate the success of young female engineers in the UAE in
collaboration with Heriot-Watt University Dubai. Despite the progress that has
been made in the past few decades, women are still under-represented in STEM
fields. Therefore, I think it is very important to encourage young women
embarking on this journey. I am indebted to the support I was given by the UAE
government and the mentors who guided me along the way. I believe educational
institutions have a critical role to play in empowering young girls and
teaching them that the sky is the limit no matter what sort of career they
choose to pursue.”
Dr Rula Sharqi, assistant professor — school of
engineering and physical sciences at Heriot-Watt University Dubai, added: “It
was an honour to host Dr Eng. Suaad Al Shamsi on this day. Her journey is a
shining example of how much women can achieve when they believe in themselves
and have the right institutional support. As a global University, we have a
responsibility to be cognisant of social disparities and under-representation
and take tangible steps to overcome them. As a result, we today have incredibly
talented and ambitious female students pursuing engineering degrees. It is our
priority to make sure they are equipped with the knowledge and skills to
succeed in the future, empower them to pursue their dreams and play a role in
ensuring equal representation of women in STEM workplaces.”
The INWED programme included networking opportunities,
photobooth and video recording sessions as well as a tour of the engineering
labs. The university also organised various panel discussion tackling topics
including challenges in future industry developments, women’s creativity and
added value, women to men ratio in the engineering industry and why women
should choose engineering as a career.
As the first Emirati female aviation engineer, Dr
Shamsi shared details of her journey including challenges faced, with aspiring
female engineers who were also present. Also present were Dr Shetha Al_Zubaidi,
CEO at Brookson Project Management; Dr Hagir Hakim, associate professor and
senior director of studies in the school of energy geoscience infrastructure
and society at Heriot-Watt University Dubai; Tanishi Mathur - business analyst
— AI and data department at Deloitte; Liliana Calderón Jerez — MSc in renewable
energy engineering student at Heriot-Watt University Dubai.
Right from childhood, Dr Shamsi was fascinated by
airplanes and curious about mechanics and ways to fix things. She earned an MBA
with a double major in aviation management and aeronautical engineering from
Coventry University in the UK. She is also the founder of the Middle East
chapter of Women in Aviation, a non-profit association dedicated to encouraging
women in the Middle East to seek opportunities in the aviation industry.
According to UNESCO, 34-57 per cent of STEM graduates
in Arab countries are women. However, this does not translate to representation
in the workforce as studies show low rates of female participation in these
fields. As such, observance days like INWED aim to counter the
under-representation of women through raising awareness, empowering women, and
facilitating their contribution to the field.
Source: Khaleej Times
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Maya Morsi Highlights Importance Of Focusing On Women
Role In Labour Market: Conference
29 Jun 2022
CAIRO – 29 June 2022: President of the National
Council for Women, Dr. Maya Morsi stressed the importance of focusing on the
role of women in the labor market, during a conference held on Wednesday.
Morsi chaired a session entitled "Women in the
Labor Market", during the activities of the final conference to present
the results of data analysis of the fifth economic census for Egypt for the
year 2017/2018.
During the session, Morsi pointed out that women have
broken barriers in many fields, despite that, there are many obstacles facing
women in the labor market.
She further stressed the importance of introducing
special policies.
The session was attended by Dr. Hanan Nazeer, Advisor
to the National Wages Council, Dr. Yasmine Fouad, Professor of Economics and
Political Science at Cairo University, and Mrs. Heba El Shafei, a
businesswoman.
The conference, organized by the Ministry of Planning
and Economic Development, included several sessions that discussed maximizing
the economic return of economic establishments, presenting policy summaries,
economic activity and public policies, and developing the next economic census
form.
Source: Egypt Today
URL: https://newageislam.com/islam-women-feminism/pandit-kashmir-wanwun-muslim/d/127370