Quoting A Verse From The Quran, PAS Muslimat Chief Said Beauty Is A Gift From God That Must Not Turn Into Items In A Contest - Miss, Mrs plus World Malaysia Pageant
New
Age Islam News Bureau
21
December 2020
• Iranian ‘Zombie Angelina Jolie’ Released On Bail, Shows Real Face In TV Appearance
•
Women Make Up Majority of 800m Unbanked Muslim Population
•
New Yemeni Government Excludes Women for 1st Time in 20 Years
•
1,500 Saudi Women Serving Pilgrims At Two Holy Mosques
•
Leading Saudi Women’s Rights Activist’s Family Condemns Potential 20-Year Jail
Sentence
Compiled
by New Age Islam News Bureau
URL: https://www.newageislam.com/islam-women-feminism/quoting-verse-quran-pas-muslimat/d/123833
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Quoting
A Verse From The Quran, PAS Muslimat Chief Said Beauty Is A Gift From God That
Must Not Turn Into Items In A Contest - Miss, Mrs plus World Malaysia Pageant
21
Dec 2020
By
Radzi Razak
PAS
Muslimat (Women) chief Nuridah Mohd Salleh
— Picture by Miera Zulyana
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KUALA
LUMPUR, Dec 21 — The women’s wing of PAS today joined the chorus of protest
against the Miss/Mrs Plus World Malaysia 2020 pageant, saying it is contrary to
the moral values of Islam and Malaysia.
Its
chief Senator Nuridah Mohd Salleh also accused the pageant of exploiting and
objectifying women.
“This
is because beauty pageants exploit women’s beauty in order to attract public
attention. In an indirect way, if this event is allowed to proceed, it would
mean we condone Malaysian women being used as stage decorations.
“Of
course, this goes against the government’s efforts of building a society that’s
admired for its principles and conduct,” she said in a statement today.
Quoting
a verse from the Quran on how women’s beauty should not be put on display and
compared, Nuridah said beauty is a gift from God that must be nurtured and
protected, and not turned into something that is subject to a contest.
“Furthermore,
in light of the current Covid-19 situation, which has yet to recede, a
programme that gathers people together should be avoided even if the organisers
promise to abide by the SOP.
“Therefore,
Dewan Muslimat PAS Malaysia hopes that the government will consider cancelling
the beauty queen competition in order to send a signal to society that such
competitions should stop,” she said.
Yesterday,
the organiser of the Miss/Mrs Plus World Malaysia 2020 hit back at accusations
claiming its pageants were hedonistic and exploitative, stressing that its
objectives of creating awareness and women empowerment could not have been more
misconstrued.
The
organiser, in its defence, said its pageants intentionally disregarded
“trivial” pageant activities like requiring participants to don swimwear, and
instead focused on celebrating, promoting and elevating plus-size women’s
beauty, intelligence and confidence.
In
a statement posted by the organisers on its Facebook page yesterday, they
outlined how its pageants are held with objectives like creating a stronger
awareness against body shaming and bullying, and promoting and participating in
humanitarian and education-driven modules, in mind.
“We
teach our participants and queens’ world’s diplomacy, humanitarian work,
respect of cultures and diversity, and how to be role models of peace and love.
“Even
our theme is ‘Queens with Causes’, which serves a noble purpose. Is that not a
great academy for training and transformation?” read their statement.
This
came after Putrajaya-linked Muslim evangelical foundation Yayasan Dakwah
Islamiah Malaysia (Yadim) said it would be urging the government to cancel the
pageant after labelling it “hedonistic” and alleging that it was “exploiting
women”.
Yadim’s
chairman, PAS’ Nasruddin Hassan, alleged such programmes have never been
endorsed by any religion, likened it to the hedonistic culture of civilisations
that have long been extinct, and claimed that authorities worldwide would have
discouraged the running of such programmes amid a pandemic and urged Malaysia
do the same.
Miss/Mrs
Plus World Malaysia also had stressed how its team had made the necessary
arrangements to adhere to the Covid-19 standard operating procedures for events
with audiences.
https://www.malaymail.com/news/malaysia/2020/12/21/now-pas-womens-wing-joins-chorus-of-protest-against-miss-mrs-plus-world-mal/1933886
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Iranian
‘Zombie Angelina Jolie’ Released On Bail, Shows Real Face In TV Appearance
Ismaeel
Naar
December
21, 2020
The Rokna news agency posted clips of Khishvand’s interview with state television but did not release what she said during her appearance. (Image on left from Rokna/right image AFP)
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Sahar
Tabar, an Iranian who received a 10-year jail term for posting distorted
pictures of herself to resemble a zombie-like Angelina Jolie, has reportedly
been freed on bail and revealed her real face after giving a television
interview.
Tabar,
whose real name is Fatemeh Khishvand, received a 10-year jail sentence by an
Iranian court more than a week ago which her lawyers said she intended to
appeal.
Khishvand
was released on bail sometime on Thursday and appeared in a television
interview with the Rokna news agency, revealing her real face for the first
time on live television.
“Today
Iranian teenager who posted heavily distorted images of herself online and was
jailed for 10 years has been freed after massive media pressure,” Iranian
activist Masih Alinejad tweeted on Thursday.
The
Rokna news agency posted clips of Khishvand’s interview with state television
but did not release what she said during her appearance.
Khishvand
was arrested in October 2019 alongside three other female social media influencers.
The Instagram star had initially caught worldwide attention in 2017 when she
began sharing several selfies of her highly distorted face on her Instagram.
Her account had amassed more than 486,000 followers before it was shut down.
https://english.alarabiya.net/en/News/middle-east/2020/12/20/Iranian-zombie-Angelina-Jolie-released-on-bail-shows-real-face-for-the-first-time
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Women
Make Up Majority of 800m Unbanked Muslim Population
December
21, 2020
DUBAI:
Women make up the majority of the 800 million global Muslim population who are
unbanked (people without a bank account), according to a digital banking firm,
leaving them without basic financial services, and putting their social rights
at risk.
Zeiad
Idris, the CEO of UK-based digital banking platform Algbra, told Arab News that
it is common in Muslim communities for men to take charge of the household’s
finances. “In our (Muslim) communities it’s not uncommon for the male member of
the family to hold the bank account in their name and control the family’s
finances,” he said, adding that empowering women by giving them ease of access
to financial services would lead to enhanced economic development.
Research
published by the World Economic Forum has found that gender inequality is
higher in countries that have low GDPs. According to Algbra, 29 percent more
women are unbanked in Bangladesh compared to men, while in Egypt the difference
is 11 percentage points.
Abbas
Basrai, partner and head of financial services in the lower Gulf for finance
giant KPMG, also says that financial independence is vital for women.
“Discriminatory
inheritance legislation in many countries, as well as women’s vulnerability to
abuse, makes it particularly critical that they can access their own finances
to safeguard their independence, safety and quality of life,” Basrai said.
The
misinterpretation of Islamic law and a lack of knowledge about inheritance
rights are major hurdles to improving women’s independence, experts said.
Co-author
of a report on women and land in the Muslim world, Rafic Khouri, said that
“inheritance rights are often misinterpreted,” leading to women being excluded
from inheritance.
In
Islamic law, a woman’s inheritance share is generally half that of a man,
although in some rare cases they might get an equal or larger share than a male
relative, the report said.
Daisy
Khan, the founder of Women’s Islamic Initiative in Spirituality and Equality
(WISE), a global network of Muslim women committed to peacebuilding and gender
equality, argued that discouraging women from having an equal say in the
finances is a denial of their human rights.
“If
a woman is completely dependent on others for her financial future, her life is
regulated, preventing her from leading a life of fulfilment,” the award-winning
speaker, author and activist said.
The
World Bank claims that the Middle East and North Africa – which has Muslim
majority populations – has the widest gender gap in bank account ownership with
only 35 percent of women having bank accounts compared with 52 percent of men.
Having
more women incorporated into the economy would also have an impact of GDP,
according to research by the International Finance Corporation. The research
quoted findings by McKinsey that “if women participated in the economy on the same
basis as men, it would add $12 trillion, or 11 percent, to the 2025 annual
global GDP.”
The
World Bank also states that basic financial services and a strengthening
women’s role in finance is one of the keys to boosting economic growth.
Khan
claimed that robbing women of their financial independence “does grave
disservice to Muslim nations for no nation can truly be built without the
participation of all its citizens, both men and women.”
When
it comes to figures regarding the unbanked population in the world, it is not
just Muslim women who are at a disadvantage, it is Muslims in general as they
are the biggest group globally left without banking services. This is despite
the growth in Islamic finance, which has been forecast to be worth $3.8
trillion by 2022.
Muslims
account for 47 percent of the world’s 1.7 billion adult unbanked population.
According to Algbra, 12 of the 15 most underbanked countries in the world are
either Muslim-majority or have a significant Muslim population.
In
the Arab world in 2018, 52 percent of men had a bank account and only 35
percent of women, according to the World Bank.
With
the widespread use of smartphones, the fintech wave could help bring Islamic
finance to a larger market, including women.
“In
an increasingly digitalized world, banks allow for greater accessibility and
enhanced operational efficiencies, with account holders benefiting from the
ability to make different forms of payment and move towards a cashless
society,” Gulf KPMG head Basrai said.
However,
many Muslims limit their use of financial services due to the market’s failure
to provide services that comply with the “faith-based requirements of those
consumers,” the co-founders of Algbra said.
Around
34 percent of adults in Afghanistan and 27 percent in Iraq and Tunisia said
religious concerns have prevented them from accessing financial services, a
2018 Thomson Reuters study found. A World Bank report published in 2017 said
that 13 percent of those in Pakistan cited religious reasons, while in Turkey
it was 19 percent.
Offering
Shariah-compliant loans helped to boost application rates from 18 to 22 percent
in Muslim majority countries such as Jordan, US think-tank Brookings said in
2017, citing a study by Dean Karlan, professor of economics at Yale University.
“Ensuring
the population is banked enables economies to quickly process the unimaginably
large volume of transactions that transpire in goods, labor, and capital
markets,” Basrai said.
https://www.arabnews.com/node/1780506/business-economy
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New
Yemeni Government Excludes Women for 1st Time in 20 Years
DEC
19, 2020
Feminists
in war-devastated Yemen have condemned the exclusion of women from a new
government formed under a power-sharing deal between the
internationally-recognized government and separatists.
The
24-strong government announced late Friday includes members of the separatist
Southern Transitional Council (STC) as part of a Saudi-brokered bid to end a
power struggle between the sides.
The
deal was signed in the Saudi capital Riyadh in November of last year.
The
new government is the first without female members in 20 years, the Yemeni
Women Movement, a grouping of pro-women alliances in the country, said.
"This
is unfair discrimination against women's right to political participation,"
the group said in a statement.
"While
we appreciate the formation of the government as a fruit of consensus among
Yemeni political powers in the Riyadh agreement, we denounce women's exclusion
from the government," it added.
The
new government equally represents Yemen's northern and southern areas.
President
Abd Rabu Mansour Hadi issued a decree for forming the government, reappointing
Maeen Abdulmalik as prime minister, Yemen's state news agency Saba reported.
The
United Nations envoy for Yemen, Martin Griffiths, hailed the formation of the
new government as an "important step" towards resolving the country's
years-long conflict.
"This
is an important step for enhanced stability, improvement of state institutions
and increased political partnership," Griffiths said.
"It
is also a pivotal step towards a lasting political resolution to the conflict
in Yemen," he added in an online statement.
The
southern separatists and the government are both part of a Saudi-led coalition
waging war against Houthi rebels in Yemen but they started fighting each other
last year.
In
April this year, the STC, which is seeking independence for southern Yemen from
the north, announced that it would form an autonomous administration and
declared a state of emergency in southern areas, including Aden, the seat of
the internationally-recognized government.
Formed
in 2017, the STC is backed by the United Arab Emirates, while Hadi is backed by
Saudi Arabia.
Yemen
has been locked in a devastating conflict between the Hadi government and the
Iran-linked Houthi rebels, who overran the capital Sanaa and other cities in
northern Yemen in 2014.
The
feud has pushed the impoverished Arab country to the brink of famine and
wrecked its health facilities.
https://www.dailysabah.com/world/mid-east/new-yemeni-government-excludes-women-for-1st-time-in-20-years
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1,500
Saudi Women Serving Pilgrims At Two Holy Mosques
December
20, 2020
MAKKAH
— Around 1,500 Saudi women are assigned to perform various duties related to
serving Umrah performers and visitors to the Grand Mosque in Makkah and the
Prophet’s Mosque in Madinah.
About
600 of them are involved in duties at the Agency for Technical and Service
Affairs under the General Presidency for the Affairs of the Two Holy Mosques,
while 50 are managing electric carts.
There
are 850 women in the Presidential Agency for Women’s Development Affairs who
are distributed among the Agency for Women’s Development Affairs; Supporting
Agency for Administrative and Service Affairs, and the Supporting Agency for
the Guidance and Scientific Affairs.
According
to a statement of the presidency, 50 percent of women who work in the General
Department of Service Affairs are assigned to serve at the Department of Doors;
Courtyards and Mobility Services; Cleaning and Carpets; the Zamzam Watering
Unit, and the rest are distributed in various administrative works in the
departments of the Presidency.
For
her part, Dr. Al-Anoud Al-Aboud, deputy head of the presidency for women’s
development affairs, affirmed that the participation of women members comes
within the presidency’s future plan for the Transformational Initiatives 2024,
which aims to improve the level of services provided at the Two Holy Mosques to
the highest levels of quality in line with the aspirations of the wise
leadership.
This
also aims to achieve empowerment of women and their services to female pilgrims
and visitors of the Grand Mosque in line with the goals of Vision 2030, she
added.
https://saudigazette.com.sa/article/601635/SAUDI-ARABIA/1500-Saudi-women-serving-pilgrims-at-Two-Holy-Mosques
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Leading
Saudi Women’s Rights Activist’s Family Condemns Potential 20-Year Jail Sentence
Maya
Oppenheim
December
19, 2020
The
family of a leading Saudi women’s rights activist have condemned the state
prosecutor office’s decision to seek the maximum possible jail sentence of 20
years for the imprisoned campaigner.
Loujain
al-Hathloul, who successfully campaigned to win Saudi women the right to drive,
has allegedly been tortured in prison and recently launched a hunger strike
over her jail conditions.
Lina
al-Hathloul, her younger sister, told The Independent during Thursday’s court
hearing Loujain and their father were briefed on a secret report on her torture
despite the public prosecution having denied torture charges.
She
added: “My sister must be released. She should be lauded as a hero, instead,
she is imprisoned and tortured. In the two and a half years since her arrest,
she has endured beatings, sexual assault, hunger strikes and solitary confinement.
“All
my sister has done is ask for women to be treated with the dignity and freedom
that should be their right. For that, the Saudi authorities are seeking the
maximum sentence available under the law – 20 years in prison.”
According
to the Nobel prize-nominated activist’s family, on Wednesday the judge in the
terrorism court said the verdict on Loujain’s case would be delivered on
Monday.
However,
they say they were then sent a text message an hour later calling them to the
criminal court on Thursday, but are still unsure of what this development
means.
Campaigners
were left shocked after Loujain’s case was transferred from the criminal court
to the terrorism court last month.
Human
rights organisations say Loujain, a University of British Columbia graduate,
has been forced to endure abuse including electric shocks, flogging and sexual
harassment while in jail.
She
was arrested alongside 10 other women’s rights activists in Saudi Arabia in May
2018 – weeks before the kingdom reversed the driving ban.
Heba
Morayef, Amnesty International's regional director for the Middle East and
North Africa region, told The Independent the decision to seek the maximum
sentence for Loujain shines a light on the “relentless cruelty of the Saudi
authorities”.
She
added: “Loujain al-Hathloul is a brave defender of women’s rights who should
not have spent a single day in detention. Her peaceful activism has driven
momentous social change in Saudi Arabia.”
Kate
Allen, the director of the UK branch of the leading human rights organisation,
said they were highly concerned Saudi prosecutors are seeking the maximum
prison sentence as she called for all charges against the 31-year-old activist
to be dropped.
She
added: “The only just outcome for this trial would be her immediate and
unconditional release.”
Loujain
is awaiting trial on charges of communicating with foreign bodies hostile to
Saudi, recruiting government employees to collect confidential information, and
delivering financial support to entities overseas who are hostile to the
kingdom. Saudi officials have denied the torture allegations and said they were
investigating claims of maltreatment.
Lucy
Rae, a spokesperson for Grant Liberty, a human rights charity, said: “A regime
that sees women’s activism as terrorism is deeply broken.
“This
trial is a sham, her continued imprisonment a stain on the conscience of the
world. And through this ludicrous charade, the murderers of Jamal Khashoggi are
forcing Loujain’s health to ebb away.
A
recent report claimed jailed women’s rights activists and political prisoners
have been sexually assaulted, tortured and died in Saudi prisons. Grant
Liberty, which conducted the report shared exclusively with The Independent
last month, alleges 309 political prisoners have suffered human rights abuses
since Mohammed bin Salman became crown prince of the kingdom in 2017.
https://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/middle-east/loujain-alhathloul-saudi-arabia-prison-b1776287.html
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