1. WorldWide Religious News（http://wwrn.org）
(1) Egypt liberals quit assembly drafting constitution
Tamim Elyan (Reuters, November 18, 2012)
Cairo, Egypt - A number of liberal politicians withdrew on Sunday from the Islamist-dominated assembly drafting Egypt's new constitution, saying they were not given the opportunity to discuss articles and their suggestions were being ignored.
The departure of at least 12 liberals from the 100 member assembly follows the resignation of five Christian delegates - as well eight out of 10 members of a advisory committee providing technical assistance - over similar complaints.
The constitution is a cornerstone in Egypt's democratic transition after the uprising that ousted Hosni Mubarak last year. Without it, the country cannot hold elections to replace a parliament that a court declared void in June.
But bickering between Islamists and liberals over subjects such as the role of Islam in politics, civic freedoms and women's rights has delayed voting on articles in the charter.
And analysts have expressed worries that if the constitution does not enjoy broad consensus it will be a short-lived one, especially as it will have to be put to a referendum.
Pressure is mounting on the assembly to finish before a December 12 deadline but members say they will continue on schedule.
"Passing the constitution in its current form is a loss to everyone, we can't be part of this constitution," former Arab League secretary general and assembly member Amr Moussa told reporters, adding that differences were on "basic" articles.
"We were deprived of discussing articles which is the main task of the assembly," the former presidential candidate added, criticizing the assembly's "rush" to finish.
Liberals, who include people behind the uprising that toppled Mubarak as well as figures who worked alongside him, have threatened to quit the assembly several times before.
They say they will work on drafting an alternative constitution.
CRITICISM
The assembly speaker, Hossam El Gheriany, said in a session on Sunday they were welcome to return to the assembly within two days, after which the assembly will continue without them, drawing from a reserve list to make the 83 remaining back up to 100. Moussa said their withdrawal was final.
The withdrawing members say the current document has failed to ensure economic and social rights for citizens and freedoms.
"There is an insistence to give society an authority that allows any group or individuals to assault people in the street under the excuse of protecting morals or religion," a statement by the members said.
Drafts of the constitution drawn up by the assembly so far indicate it will have more Islamic references than the previous one, worrying more liberal-minded Egyptians and Christians, who make up about a 10 percent of the nation of 83 million. They fear the imposition of social restrictions.
An article stating that "the principles of sharia", Islamic law, are the main source of legislation has until now remained unchanged from the old constitution. But a new article seeks to spell out what those principles are in Islamic terms.
In the old constitution, the head of state had wide powers and could rule for an unlimited number of terms. Mubarak had been in power for 30 years when he was deposed. The new document will preserve a change introduced last year that caps the number of terms any president can serve at two.
Future prime ministers would need to win a vote of confidence in parliament - implying the head of state must pick someone acceptable to the parliamentary majority.
・Disclaimer: WWRN does not endorse or adhere to views or opinions expressed in the articles posted. This is purely an information site, to inform interested parties of religious trends.
(2) New pope installed to lead church in Islamist-run Egypt
Yasmine Saleh (Reuters, November 18, 2012)
Cairo, Egypt - The Coptic Orthodox church staged a ceremony rich in ritual on Sunday to install its pope, Tawadros II, who Christians hope will guide them through the new, Islamist-led Egypt.
The 60-year-old pope was picked on November 4 and the ceremony on Sunday filled with incense, elaborate robes and chanting marked his formal ascendance as the 118th leader of the church.
Coptic Christians, whose church predates the arrival of Islam in Egypt, make up a tenth of Egypt's 83 million people.
Many fear their community, the biggest Christian group in the Middle East which has long complained of discrimination, will be squeezed to the sidelines of society under Islamists now ruling the Muslim-majority nation.
"We chose him because he is man who is obedient to God," said Bishop Bakhomious, who was pope in the interim period after Shenouda III died aged 88 in March after four decades in office.
"God had listened to our prayers and did not wish to leave us orphans for long," he added, as priests and bishops prayed for the new pope, dressing him in lavish embroidered vestments.
In the final stages, a red and gold mitre was placed on his head before he sat on a throne. The bearded and bespectacled pope trained as pharmacist before being ordained.
President Mohamed Mursi, propelled to power by the Muslim Brotherhood, did not attend the ceremony in the cathedral in Cairo's Abbasiya district to the dismay of some Christians who said it undermined his claim to be a leader for all Egyptians.
But he sent his prime minister, Hisham Kandil. Other officials and dignitaries also attended.
Tawadros II faces challenges delivering on the hopes of his flock. He told Reuters at a desert monastery west of Cairo a day after his was picked that the church would oppose any new constitution that only met Muslim concerns.
Liberals, moderate Muslims and Islamists are tussling over the shape of the constitution and extent of Islamic references in the document. A group of technical advisers quit the assembly drawing it up on Saturday, saying their voices were not being heard.
That complicates a process that is vital to completing Egypt's transition to democracy since Hosni Mubarak was toppled last year. A constitution must be in place before an election can be held to replace the dissolved parliament.
George Samir, a 32-year-old Copt who helped organize Sunday's service, said he had mixed emotions as he was reminded of the Shenouda's passing during the ceremony.
But he added: "I am happy to have a new pope, a new father and leader for the Christians. Pope Tawadros seems to be a very decent and modest leader. God bless him and bless us all."
Christians have long grumbled that they are sidelined in the workplace and in law, citing rules that make it easier to build a mosque than a church. A spate of attacks on churches since Mubarak's overthrow has further worried them.
・Disclaimer: WWRN does not endorse or adhere to views or opinions expressed in the articles posted. This is purely an information site, to inform interested parties of religious trends.
2. Malaysia Chronicle (http://www.malaysia-chronicle.com)
Who is more DANGEROUS to the non-Muslims - PAS or UMNO?, 22 November 2012
by Victor Lim
AT THE recently concluded PAS annual general assembly, much fuss and concern were evoked by Malaysians and reports from both the print and electronic media.
It was all about PAS members’ call for their president Hadi Awang to be prime minister should the Pakatan Rakyat (PR) win the people’s mandate to govern Malaysia after the next general election.
First, I wish to ask: “Which political party in the world whose members do not want their leader to be made prime minister?”
Give me an honest answer to that and then proceed with reading my two cent’s worth of say.
Realistic or not?
It is normal for members of political parties to express their wish for their leader to rule as their country’s No.1. It’s called political posturing.
No political party that practices democracy and freedom of speech can stop their members from expressing their wishes.
What is important is whether what was expressed is realistic or almost impossible or impossible to come true.
How many seats is PAS contesting? How many seats is DAP contesting? How many seats is PKR contesting?
Can PAS win more seats than DAP and PKR combined?
So, what’s the fuss about? In a democracy, if PAS or Umno can win the required majority to amend the federal constitution, no one can stop whatever the majority wishes to implement.
Emotion over judgment
What I am more worried is that the people stop using their common sense and let emotions to cloud their judgment.
Based on the super corrupt racist Umno-led Barisan Nasional (BN) government’s current actions – using race and religion to create fear and divide Malaysians – should we fear PAS more than Umno?
MCA’s insult of hudud and Islam with Umno remaining quiet is clear evidence of the political insincerity of both parties in their quest to remain in power.
Both will use race and religion to divide the people and win votes to rule. Why is Perkasa allowed to spew racial and religious venom without any fear of committing sedition? Why is the Umno-owned Utusan Malaysia allowed to insult and bash Christians and Christianity without any fear for the law?
Mad Devil Dr M
Do not let petty issues and political posturing cloud your judgment.
We should, instead fear Umno’s supreme warlord Mahathir Mohamad who made the ridiculous and mad statement that the Islamic criminal law, hudud, can only be implemented if it also covered non-Muslims.
The statement is mad but Mahathir and Umno are not mad. The racist and devil worshipper just wants to pressure PAS which has maintained its political ambition to implement hudud.
If you are a law abiding citizen with no intentions to commit crime, why do you fear any law?
Political Madness
We should fear the political madness of Umno and Mahathir who could come up with such a ridiculous stand that the hudud must cover non-Muslims.
This the same man who declared Malaysia as an Islamic state, and supported by all the BN component parties, namely MCA, MIC, Gerakan and all other parties in the coalition.
PAS has repeatedly said hudud is only for Muslims. It is Umno that we should fear for prime minister Najib Abdul Razak’s “win at all cost” general election battle cry, meaning the welfare and interest of Malaysians are not his priority.
Najib is also the same man who said he will bathe his keris (Malay dagger) in Chinese blood.
There are more damning racist and religious slurs uttered by Umno and BN. But the point to remember is to judge accurately and wisely – who is more dangerous?
Reproduced below is even more dangerous:
Wednesday, 21 November 2012 09:25
SCARING THE CHINESE: 'Hudud' must apply even to non-Muslims - Dr M
Written by Moaz Nair, Malaysia Chronicle
Former prime minister Mahathir Mohamad has been busy stirring up controversies in what appears to be a bid to muddy the image of the Pakatan Rakyat led by Opposition Leader Anwar Ibrahim so as to boost the chances of his own Umno party in the coming general election.
Mahathir even went so far as to threaten that “hudud law must apply to non-Muslims as well in order for its implementation to be fair, in accordance with the tenets of Islam”.
This is quite a cynical statement coming from a Muslim statesman. The electorate can sense that this is more a political statement rather than a religious edict.
The least Mahathir could do at his age now is to give the non-Muslims a true and unblemished picture of Islam and the hudud. Instead, politics seems to cloud his rhetoric on Islam.
Practising “backsliding” Islam
Islam bashing is common among those who advocate a hedonistic, permissive and a corrupt lifestyle and this has been fuelled by many Muslims themselves who have not shown through their words and deeds the beauty of Islam.
Of course there are numerous weak and unauthentic Hadith too that appeared more than 150 years after the Muslim Prophet died that have relatively distorted the image of the Prophet and Islam as an apposite religion for all mankind.
Added to these are some obsessive Muslims in some regressive so-called Islamic countries who are practising “backsliding” Islam, such as the wrong treatment of the people through the wrong interpretation of hudud, the Qur’an and the Hadith.
Religion essentially advocates love. No religion on earth advocates discordance among the people but many of those who profess and misinterpret religion do so for their self-interests.
Mahathir should not be part of this crusade
Mahathir should not be part of this crusade against hudud and use Islam for some narrow political interests and in the process putting Islam to be seen in a bad light among non-Muslims. Mahathir by virtue of being a Muslim certainly understands that Islam is a religion of mercy to all people – both Muslims and non-Muslims.
This is what he, as a senior Muslims statesman, should promote to the people – the non-Muslims especially.
Barbaric outbursts, violence, sectarianism and intolerance are not the tenets Islam. This is more political in nature, created and nurtured by the deviants among Muslims. Traditionally, politics of divide-and rule in a way has soiled the religion and has made Islam seen as a religion of violence and no-mercy towards the human kind.
More's the pity, these are the undignified elements practised by those who understand Islam less but their political ego more. Those who resort to any form of compulsion, violence or injustice in the name of Islam have actually distorted the whole message of the Qur’an. This manifestly contradicts with what the Qur’an says:
The Messenger of Islam was described as being a “Mercy” in the Quran due to the message he brought for humanity:
“And, We have not sent you but as a Mercy to all the worlds.” (21:107)
Mercy is what Islam advocates
It’s only when a Muslim or non-Muslim peeks into the laws and rules of Islam with receptiveness, could he see how Islam advocates no-compulsion but compassion, clemency and humanity. Apparently, mercy is what Islam advocates. Islam pacts people of all faiths with mercy.
The tolerant and charitable attitude of Islam towards non-Muslims, whether they are those living in their own countries or within the Muslim manors, can be clearly exemplified through a study of history. This fact has not only been testified by Muslims, but acknowledged by many non-Muslim historians.
For instance, Patriarch Ghaytho (Tritton, Arthur Stanley: ‘The People Of The Covenant In Islam.’ p. 158) wrote:
“The Arabs, to whom the Lord has given control over the world, treat us as you know; they are not the enemies of Christians. Indeed, they praise our community, and treat our priests and saints with dignity, and offer aid to churches and monasteries.”
Will Durant (Durant, Will: ‘The Story Of Civilization.’ vol. 13. p. 131-132) wrote:
“At the time of the Umayyad caliphate, the people of the covenant, Christians, Zoroastrians, Jews, and Sabians, all enjoyed degree of tolerance that we do not find even today in Christian countries. They were free to practice the rituals of their religion and their churches and temples were preserved. They enjoyed autonomy in that they were subject to the religious laws of the scholars and judges.”
These just and cordial relations between Muslims and people of other faiths were not due to sheer politics played by Muslim leaders, but rather they were an unswerving requisite of the teachings of the religion of Islam. Islam overtly preaches that people of other religions be free to practice their own faith, only accepting the guidance offered by Islam if they decide so on their own free will.
The Quran is explicit on “no compulsion” in faith:
“There shall be no compulsion in [acceptance of] the faith. The right course has become clear from the wrong. So whoever disbelieves in Taghut [Idolatry] and believes thy Lord has grasped the most trustworthy handhold with no break in it. And thy Lord is Hearing and Knowing.” (2:256)
The just treatment of all people
Not only does Islam demand non-Muslims freedom to practice their faiths, but also that they be treated justly as any other fellow human. Warning against any abuse of non-Muslims in an Islamic society, the Prophet stated:
“Beware! Whoever is cruel and hard on a non-Muslim minority, curtails their rights, burdens them with more than they can bear, or takes anything from them against their free will; I (Prophet Muhammad) will complain against the person on the Day of Judgment.” (Abu Dawud)
Unfortunately nations have seen the suppression of faiths and people of different ethnic race. History has recorded on how Muslims were being tortured to death in then pagan Mecca, Jews were being persecuted in Christian Europe, and various peoples were being marginalised and denied their rights due to their race, creed or caste in many parts of the world.
Islam, on the other hand, has called to the just treatment of all peoples and religions due to its compassionate divine tenets. If Muslims are not practising this, then they are not following the tenets of Islam. Islam in truth has given humanity the right to their humanness.
Should not play a “marginal” role
Mahathir and UMNO should not play a “marginal” role when it comes to Islam. This will make the electorate brand UMNO as a party of “double-dealers”. The more they play on the hudud issue the more thinking Muslims would brand them as a party that mocks Islam.
Unfortunately, there are also many so-called “religious scholars” and “academicians” under the government’s payroll who prefer to stay on the “fringe” with some fitting together in the bandwagon to “tarnish” the image of Islam. They are not contributing much to elucidate the truth when it comes to hudud or Islam to the non-Muslims.
The non-Muslims and Muslims in general have come to realise that Islam and politics are made used of by UMNO for their political survival. Mahathir for this reason is of no asset to UMNO.
The wise electorate of today are able to discern the hypocrisy of UMNO. After 55 years with UMNO, Malaysians, especially the non-Muslims, are prepared to accept PAS through a democratic process. They have even come to understand Islam better than some Muslims.
22 November 2012
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