More Saudi Women Seeking Treatment for Drug Abuse
New Age Islam News Bureau
11 Feb 2013
• A Three-Year-Old Girl, the Youngest Qur’an Hafiz Fascinates Nigerians
• Young Girls Testify to Human Rights Abuses in Northern Mali
• Saudi Women Seek Scuba Diving Areas
• Student Afraid She Was About To Be Raped, Jumps To Her Death in Jakarta
• Three Million Girls in Africa at Female Genital Mutilation Risk
• Bogor Police Bust another Online Prostitution Ring
• Egypt Sexual Assaults Politically Motivated: Women’s Rights Panel
• If Separate Polling Stations Set Up: Mohmand Women to Cast Vote In Polls
• Women's Rights Progress in Afghanistan in Danger of Rolling Back
• Australia Must Help Fight For Women's Rights in Afghanistan
• Nigeria: Women in Tech Opens Mobile APPs Challenge for Girls
• Protest against Violence on Women in Bangladesh Urged
• Ensure one-third seats for women in parliament: Bangladesh Mahila Parishad
• Crime, Cost Of Living Top Issues For Malaysian Women Voters
• Jakarta, Bangli Police Arrest Man for Impregnating Minor
• Abu Dhabi Serial Rapist Gets 10 Years in Jail
• Arafat’s Widow Says Marriage Was ‘Big Mistake’
Compiled by New Age Islam News Bureau
Photo: Saudi Women Seek Scuba Diving Areas
URL:
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More Saudi Women Seeking Treatment for Drug Abuse
11 February 2013
Admissions of women addicted to drugs have climbed steadily at Al-Amal Hospital in Jeddah due largely through increased awareness among users and their families.
Dr. Fatima Muhammad Kaaki, a psychiatric consultant at the hospital, said most substance abusers are between 15 and 30 years old and are addicted to hashish and Captagon, which is an amphetamine. Kaaki told Asharq Al-Awsat newspaper that 60 women are admitted for treatment every month.
However, the number of women seeking rehabilitation at Dammam’s Al-Amal Hospital is low according to its director Dr. Muhammad Al-Zahrani.
“One case every two or three months,” Al-Zahrani told Arab News. Women often become addicted to drugs through friendships or because a family member may be addicted, said Kaaki.
Najla, is a chemistry university graduate in her 20s.
“My friend who became an addict to hashish made me an addict too.”
Najla said she was married to a man who is 20 years older than her. “After doing several times it became hard for me to quit.”
Another woman addicted to Captagon tablets said she started with taking it to be able to study for long hours.
At the beginning, she would get the tablets as gifts from her friend, but later she started buying them.
Kaaki said treating addiction does not merely involve the doctor and hospital as other factors are involved, especially the addict’s determination to quit the use of drugs.
The rehabilitation stage depends heavily on parents’ support as well as the hospital. In the past the hospital’s regulations stipulate on receiving only girls who come with their parents. Now girls above 18 years of age are admitted when they come alone with their national identity card. However, the hospital is obliged to notify their parents.
“If the girl is a subject to domestic violence then we work on protecting the girl by notifying the party responsible for domestic violence at the hospital,” she said.
After recovery the woman’s condition must be followed up by psychiatric and social specialists, the rehabilitation guidance committee – which trains rehabilitated girls to be part of the committee’s team – and the religious guidance committee.
“All these parties’ and parents’ efforts must be integrated to treat addiction properly.” Rehabilitation periods differ according to the case, the type of drugs involved and parents’ attitude, she added.
Wafa Al-Shammari, a specialist with the Ministry of Social Affairs, told Arab News family disintegration is the main reason for some girls’ fall into addiction.
“In addition to being marginalized by parents, bad company is also a significant factor, especially in teenagers who usually want to try new experiences,” she said. “Honesty and admitting the existence of the problem is the first thing to do when dealing with addiction. The energy of the young generations must be directed properly.”
Psychiatrist Wafa Al-Jifri stressed the importance of parents’ observing their offspring’s activities and conditions.
“Signs of drug use can include red eyes, sleeping disorders and having a temper fits in addition to erroneous behaviours like stealing,” she said.
Al-Jifri, who works in a private clinic, said in most women seeking rehabilitation are in an advanced stage of addiction, which cause them to suffer withdrawal symptoms. These symptoms include physical ones like sweats, skin irritation and faster heart beats. Psychological ones include depression, anxiety and social thoughts. “Drug addiction can be caused by social pressure and stress,” she added.
http://www.arabnews.com/more-saudi-women-seeking-treatment-drug-abuse
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A Three-Year-Old Girl, the Youngest Qur’an Hafiz Fascinates Nigerians
10 February 2013
CAIRO – A three-year-old girl is amazing Nigeria after memorizing the whole Qur’an, becoming one of the youngest Muslims in the world to learn the Noble Book by heart.
“Honestly, I can’t say much but I am very grateful to Allah for this,” Sayyada Maimunatu Sheikh Dahiru, the girl’s mother, told Sunday Tribune on February 10.
“This is indeed a blessing from Allah. I’m grateful to Allah for this.”
Her daughter, Rukkayatu Fatahu Umar, has completed the memorization of the Noble Qur’an at the age of three year and eight months.
The young Muslim girl began memorizing the Noble Book at an Islamic school founded by prominent Sheikh Dahiru Usman Bauchi.
“We were using a big parlour, which was divided into classes for the learning of the Qur’an,” Maimunatu, who teaches at the school, said.
“At that time, I always carried her on my back while teaching. From there, she started reciting along with the students and before long, she had memorized some verses.
“That was how she started attending memorization class. Right now, she has completed memorizing the whole Qur’an,” the proud mother said.
The Noble Qur’an is consisted of 114 Surah (chapters) of varying lengths.
Going to the school between 7a.m. and 6p.m. daily, the young girl found little time to play with her peers.
“It is not as if she does not play with her mates. She does, especially with those who are memorizing the Qur’an like her,” Maimunatu said.
“This makes it easier for them, as their focus and attention are directed towards achieving the same goal, which is memorizing the Qur’an.”
Education
The Muslim girl does not believe she has completed the memorization of the Qur’an as this young age.
“I thank Allah,” she said.
The young Muslim girl is now preparing to go to school soon, breaking a family tradition of sending girls to study at the age of ten.
“My husband has, however, said that the world is changing now, and that there is civilization all over the place,” the mother, who herself memorized the whole Qur’an at the age of 12, said.
“As such, our daughter will have the opportunity of going to a proper school whenever she reaches the age of six.”
The Muslim mother has paid tribute to her father for offering her child the chance to memorize the Qur’an at this young age.
“I’m also grateful that I have a father like Sheikh Dahiru Bauchi, who planted my feet, like other people, on the path of Islam,” she said.
“May Allah grant him longevity of life so that he will continue to serve Allah and be useful to Islam and humanity in general?”
Teaching children the glorious Qur'an and the Islamic principles is the responsibility of their parents from an early age which is the best period for implanting Islamic ethics.
Memorizing the Holy Qur’an is one of the most important ways to preserve Allah’s message.
The others are to publish and distribute the book or the text on the Internet and to recite the parts that one knows to other people.
Prophet Muhammad (peace and blessing be upon him) said: “The best amongst you is the one who learns the Qur'an and teaches it.”
http://www.onislam.net/english/news/africa/461286-nigerian-girl-memorizes-quran-at-three.html
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Young Girls Testify to Human Rights Abuses in Northern Mali
8 FEBRUARY 2013
World Vision is extremely concerned about the plight of girls and young women in Northern Mali, amid growing reports of young women being beaten, sexually assaulted and forced to become 'brides' for armed opposition groups.
"The stories we are hearing from these girls are truly horrifying," said Chance Briggs, World Vision County Director for Mali. "Those who have escaped with their families have suffered severe traumatic experiences. Some of those who did not flee will have even worse stories to tell."
In recent days, World Vision staff has been hearing from girls and women who have fled Northern Mali. Some of these include:
Sata, 16
Sata's story was told to us by a woman called Namina. In December, Namina escaped from Timbuktu, the world- famous city that fell to armed opposition groups, who imposed their own strict social and religious controls on the populace. Namina left with her three young daughters and six other children from her village. Her neighbors and their 16-year old daughter Sata were left behind after Sata was kidnapped.
"I saw a group (of rebels) come to the house and take Sata by force," Namina reveals. "They gave her parents CFA 10,000 ($20) to 'marry' Sata. But the parents said no. The girl was weeping and tried to tear herself away from her captors. Her mother was weeping. But they came with guns. Sata was taken."
Namina said a few days later Sata managed to get hold of a mobile phone while her captors were away. She was able to call her family and told them that she was placed in a house preparing food for her abductors. Initially they told her that she was the wife of one man but later told her she was to be 'shared'. Sata claimed multiple men had raped her. Sata had been warned not to try to escape or she would be killed and her family targeted. Her parents did not dare go to the camp to try and rescue her but they stayed behind hoping for news.
Fatou, 16
Fatou, 16, also fled Timbuktu with her mother.
"One day, my mother sent me to the market. I knew that girls were supposed to wear a scarf to cover our heads. But that day I was not wearing one and the 'rebellion police' saw me. They said they were going to give me a lesson. They beat me up badly."
Fatou went on to say that before she fled, she saw other girls caught without scarves beaten with a stick and given 100 lashes as punishment.
Boys also a target
People fleeing their homes in northern Mali also gave accounts of young boys who had been forcibly taken and "enrolled' in armed opposition group training camps. We were told boys were bought for a much heftier price than girls - CFA 200,000-400,000 ($400-800).
Namina told World Vision staff of a young boy she knows named Mohammed who was recruited as a child soldier. "These boys are very traumatized because they are taught how to use guns and how to fight. The children also see people whose hands or feet are being cut off [by rebels]."
Urgent measures need to be taken to protect Mali's children from threats like these. In addition, in some past conflicts, the traumatic events of war witnessed by children have been compounded by abuses by the forces meant to protect them. To ensure that the children of Mali do not face additional pain, World Vision is calling on governments to ensure that child protection training is given to and that there are systems of accountability for all military personnel operating in Mali, both the Malian army and outside forces.
"As similar stories of children come to light, more and more of them will need support," added Briggs. "World Vision is working in partnership with UNICEF and other child focused agencies to train UN and NGO staff to provide immediate psycho-social support when they come across such cases. Strengthening the Malian Government's ability to provide support for these children at local levels must also be a key priority."
Chance Briggs, Director World Vision Mali is based in Bamako and is available for interviews. Please contact Lauren Fisher (lafisher@worldvision.org) +1.206.310.5476 for requests.
http://allafrica.com/stories/201302090028.html?viewall=1
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Saudi Women Seek Scuba Diving Areas
11 February 2013
An increasing number of women scuba divers want designated areas to dive in the Red Sea to avoid the obstacles they face when trying to obtain a permit for a diving trip.
The Coast Guard does not permit women to dive without Mahrams (male guardians).
Women-only diving courses are expensive, yet it has not hindered more Saudi women from taking up the sport. A six-day diving course for women costs between SR 1,500 and SR 2,000. The course includes two days of study, two days of diving in a pool and two days of diving in the sea. A trainee must be above 18 years old.
Factors like these keep women from practicing the sport.
In the last 10 years Saudi women divers showed commitment by obtaining diving licenses abroad, said diving coach Fuad Azmerli.
Saudi Tamader Baitallmal is a certified diving coach. She said it is difficult for women to practice diving since they do not have their own areas where they can dive freely, privately and without a Mahram. Most boat trips also require a large number of participants. “These are not always available,” she said, adding that many diving trips were cancelled because of that.
The fees of women coaches are high because they are few and the demand is high. “Nonetheless, an increasing number of women have started taking an interest in the sport,” said Riham Al-Qhadi, another licensed coach. She could not provide the number of women divers in the Kingdom; as such statistics are not available.
Women divers also deal with transportation issues since most coaching centers are in remote areas, Al-Qhadi added. But remote coaching centres that welcome women are the only ones that can provide privacy.
Samar Al-Fatih, a Saudi diving coach who obtained her license abroad, “because the adequate atmosphere in Jeddah is unavailable,” said she wants to compete internationally.
“Nothing is impossible. All I have to do is to keep training,” Al-Fatih said.
Al-Fatih said she would travel to another country to practice the sport without limitations, referring to “marine clubs in the United Arab Emirates or Bahrain that charge subscribers for arranging diving trips.”
She said private pools are a dull alternative to the ocean for any diver.
Diving coach Azmerli said it is important to create clubs and centres specifically for women divers to provide them with the surroundings they require. Implementing regulations for women diving would support the sport in Jeddah, especially since there are many women who beat experienced men in terms of skills. Women are qualified to compete internationally. However, Azmerli said dedicating beaches to women only beach is unpractical and expensive.
http://www.arabnews.com/saudi-women-seek-scuba-diving-areas
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Student Afraid She Was About To Be Raped, Jumps To Her Death in Jakarta
Jakarta Globe | February 11, 2013
A university student, afraid she was about to be raped, jumped from a moving public minibus on Wednesday after the driver refused to stop in North Jakarta.
Annisa Azwar died four days later at Atmajaya Hospital, in Pluit, North Jakarta, from a injuries sustained in her fall.
The vehicle's driver, Jamal, said her death was a tragic case of mistaken intentions. But her family argued that Annisa must've had a good reason to leap from a moving vehicle.
The woman’s family told Indonesian media that the 20-year-old University of Indonesia nursing student boarded a U-10 public minibus (angkot) at Kota Station to visit her aunt in Pademangan, North Jakarta. But she reportedly got into the wrong angkot and ended up in Tanah Pasir, North Jakarta.
Full report at:
http://www.thejakartaglobe.com/home/ui-student-panics-in-jakarta-angkot-jumps-to-her-death/570908
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Three Million Girls in Africa at Female Genital Mutilation Risk
BY KIPLANG'AT KIRUI
8 FEBRUARY 2013
MORE than 3 million girls are likely to undergo Female Genital Mutilation annually in Africa, Grace Uwizeye Programme Officer in charge of FGM at Equality Now has said.
Uwizeye said in 28 countries where FGM is practised, about 92 million women have gone through the rite. She was speaking in Tasaru Rescue centre in Narok yesterday during a ceremony to mark the International Day of Intolerance to FGM.
Uwizeye said the national prevalence rate is estimated to range from between five per cent in the Democratic Congo to about 98 percent in Somalia.
Full report at:
http://allafrica.com/stories/201302081487.html
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Bogor Police Bust Another Online Prostitution Ring
Jakarta Globe | February 11, 2013
A 24-year-old university student was arrested for allegedly running an online prostitution ring specializing in teenage girls in Bogor.
Hemud Farhan Ibnu Hasan, a student at the Bogor Agriculture Institute (IPB), is accused of running “AbeGe High Bogor Kota," a website listing teenage girls, ages 16 to 18, who are available for a “date” with anyone willing to pay Rp 1.5 million ($155).
The crudely made website featured the girls’ photos, their first names and their measurements.
Full report at:
http://www.thejakartaglobe.com/news/bogor-police-bust-another-online-prostitution-ring/570886
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Egypt Sexual Assaults Politically Motivated: Women’s Rights Panel
By Salma El Wardany
Feb 10, 2013
l assaults on Egyptian female protesters have been led by organized gangs, the head of a government-backed women’s rights panel said, in what appears to be the first such acknowledgment by officials relating to crimes that have gained increasing prominence.
“There are organized gangs who commit sexual harassment during protests with the aim of scaring women and orienting them away from political participation,” Mervat Tallawy, head of state-run National Council for Women, said today in a press conference in Cairo. “Some of these cases amount to rape,” she said, referring to reported cases of women protesters being assaulted in Cairo’s Tahrir Square, the focus of anti-government demonstrations.
Full report at:
http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2013-02-10/egypt-sexual-assaults-politically-motivated-council-says.html
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If separate polling stations set up: Mohmand women to cast vote in polls
Fauzee Khan Mohmand
2013-02-11
GHALANAI, Feb 10: The residents of Mohmand tribal region have said that they will allow female members of their families to cast votes in the upcoming general elections if separate polling stations are set up for them.
The tribesmen would allow their women to cast votes if government ensured their security and established separate polling
stations for them, Said Rehman, a resident of the region, told Dawn.
However, in the prevailing situation it was not safe for the women to visit polling stations, he added.
Full report at:
http://dawn.com/2013/02/11/if-separate-polling-stations-set-up-mohmand-women-to-cast-vote-in-polls/
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Women's rights progress in Afghanistan in danger of rolling back
Paul Muir
Feb 9, 2013
Ears and noses chopped off. Adulteresses - real or perceived - publicly stoned to death. Savage street beatings for dress code infractions. Schoolgirls poisoned, teachers shot dead and classrooms firebombed. Acid thrown in faces. Floggings. Gang rape.
Afghanistan might be the worst place in the world to be female, and the situation appears to be getting worse.
As tensions rise ahead of the 2014 departure of most international troops from the insurgency-riven country, attacks on women and girls are becoming more frequent, and many fear they will lose the higher social status and hard-won legal rights they have at least theoretically enjoyed since the 2001 Nato invasion drove the Taliban from power.
Full report at:
http://www.thenational.ae/thenationalconversation/news-comment/womens-rights-
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Australia must help fight for women's rights in Afghanistan
February 8, 2013
Nouria Saleh
As a proud Australian, with strong connections to Afghanistan as the place of my birth, I read Hugh White's recent opinion piece on Afghanistan ("Afghanistan mission a total failure", February 5) with great interest.
Every year since 2002, I have seen firsthand the struggle of ordinary Afghan women and men to rebuild their lives with great resolve. I share Professor White's concerns about the future of Afghanistan after Australian troops and allied/NATO forces leave at the end of this year. I am deeply saddened too by the loss of Australian lives, with countless more Australians injured. These Australians are fighting alongside Afghans eager for a democratic and peaceful Afghanistan.
Full report at:
http://www.smh.com.au/opinion/australia-must-help-fight-for-womens-rights-in-afghanistan-20130208-2e2ci.html#ixzz2KaX0U9Wo
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Nigeria: Women in Tech Opens Mobile APPs Challenge for Girls
BY NAHIMAH AJIKANLE NURUDEEN
11 FEBRUARY 2013
Lagos — As part of the ITU's Girls in ICT project and Tech Needs Girls campaign, Women in Technology in Nigeria (WITIN) has introduced Technovation Challenge to Nigeria tagged 'the Mobile App Challenge' for secondary school girls between the ages of 13 and18.
The girls would work in teams of 5s to develop mobile apps, conduct market research, write business plans, and create a "pitch" for funding.
According to the group, each team will work with both a classroom teacher at their school and a female mentor or role model from the technology industry.
Full report at:
http://allafrica.com/stories/201302111203.html
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Protest Against Violence On Women In Bangladesh Urged
2013-02-11
“Uddomey Uttoroney Shotokoti”, the Bangladesh chapter of a global movement called One Billion Rising (OBR), urged men and women from all walks of life in Bangladesh to rise in protest against violence against women along with the rest of the world on February 14.
Almost 200 countries and states have pledged their solidarity to the movement initiated by an activist organisation called V-Day.
In Bangladesh, the campaign will be carried out in collaboration with different stakeholders including rights-based organisations, government and educational institutions, media and corporate houses, cultural groups, activists and individuals. Around 184 organisations have pledged their support.
Full report at:
http://www.thedailystar.net/newDesign/news-details.php?nid=268641
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Ensure one-third seats for women in parliament: Bangladesh Mahila Parishad
2013-02-11
Members of Bangladesh Mahila Parishad (BMP), a women's rights organisation, yesterday demanded that the government ensure one-third of the parliamentary seats for women through direct elections.
They also demanded for the reallocation of electoral constituencies, wherein women can be elected member of the parliament from the constituency they belong.
Full report at:
http://www.thedailystar.net/newDesign/news-details.php?nid=268650
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Crime, Cost Of Living Top Issues For Malaysian Women Voters
By Boo Su-Lyn
February 11, 2013
KUALA LUMPUR, Feb 11 — Women voters are focused on security and the rising cost of living, even as analysts highlight the demographic as fence-sitters that could determine the results of Election 2013.
The Malaysian Insider conducted a straw poll among 10 female voters recently, most of whom also said that Barisan Nasional (BN) would win the 13th general election, citing various factors like government cash handouts, a disunited opposition pact and electoral fraud.
“Crime nowadays is so high,” housewife Salina Mohd Akhir told The Malaysian Insider recently, echoing the main concern among those living in cities.
Full report at:
http://www.themalaysianinsider.com/malaysia/article/crime-cost-of-living-top-issues-for-women-voters/
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Jakarta, Bangli Police Arrest Man for Impregnating Minor
BY LUH DE SURIYANI ON
2013-02-11
Bangli Police have taken a man into custody and named him a suspect in a statutory rape case involving a 14-year-old girl, who is now seven months pregnant. The suspect was identified as IKY, 48, a married man with two children and a grandson.
This is the second such case to attract major public attention. The first case, which took place in Jehem village, also in Bangli, involved a marriage between a 14-year-old girl, who was seven months pregnant, and a 39-year-old married man with two sons. The marriage sparked nationwide anger, in which the public demanded the police investigate and charge the husband with statutory rape.
Full report at:
http://www.thejakartapost.com/bali-daily/2013-02-11/bangli-police-arrest-man-impregnating-minor.html
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Abu Dhabi Serial Rapist Gets 10 Years in Jail
Staff Reporter / 11 February 2013
A man who stalked women and threatened them at knifepoint before raping them, was sentenced to 10 years in jail by the Abu Dhabi Criminal Court.
The man, who was found guilty and convicted in one of five cases, will be deported after his release.
The Judiciary Department in Abu Dhabi expressed satisfaction over the issue of the deterrent verdict against the man, who did a reprehensible act, rarely witnessed in our society, The Department said in a statement.
Full report at:
http://www.khaleejtimes.com/nation/inside.asp?xfile=/data/courtroundup/2013/February/courtroundup_February20.xml§ion=courtroundup
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Arafat’s widow says marriage was ‘big mistake’
By Harriet Sherwood, Guardian News & Media Ltd
February 11, 2013
Occupied Jerusalem: Yasser Arafat’s widow has said she tried to leave her husband hundreds of times and that had she known what marriage to the Palestinian leader would be like, she would never have gone through with it.
Suha Arafat told the Turkish newspaper Sabah that she had loved her husband, but the marriage “was a big mistake and I regret it”. “I know there were a lot of women that wanted to marry Arafat, but he wanted only me. It was my fate,” she said.
The couple married secretly in Tunisia in 1990, when Suha was 27 and Arafat 61, and their daughter Zahwa was born five years later.
Full report at:
http://gulfnews.com/news/region/palestinian-territories/arafat-s-widow-says-marriage-was-big-mistake-1.1144835
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