MUSLIM WOMEN

For Muslim Sisters to attend-Be Proactive about the Deen.

UN Makes Religious Defamation a Human Rights Violation

U.N. rights council passes religious defamation resolution

March 26, 2009

WASHINGTON (JTA) -- A U.N. body has passed a resolution condemning "defamation of religion" as a human rights violation.

The resolution, introduced by Pakistan on behalf of a group of Muslim nations in the U.N. Human Rights Council, passed Thursday by a vote of 23-11, with 13 absentions.

Opposition primarily came from Western nations, who say such a resolution would restrict freedom of speech. Proponents said they wanted to prevent such things as the defamation of Islam, as in the case of the cartoons of the prophet Muhammad, which sparked angry Muslims protests in Europe three years ago.

"Defamation of religion is a serious affront to human dignity leading to a restriction on the freedom of their adherents and incitement to religious violence," the adopted text said. "Islam is frequently and wrongly associated with human rights violations and terrorism."

The World Jewish Congress condemned Thursday's vote. "We see it as weakening the rights of individuals to express their views and criticize other religions, and, in the case of this specific resolution, particularly Islam,” WJC President Ronald Lauder said. "This resolution is an attempt to bring to the international body the blasphemy laws prevalent in some Muslim countries." I think its ironic that it was the ability to persecute and defame jewish people which led to the jewish holocaust during world war 2. At first, the Germans used propaganda to demonize Jewish people and Judaism and then came 'Crystal Night', etc.

Language condemning defamation of religion recently was removed from a draft declaration for the Durban II conference on racism in an attempt to get the United States and other Western countries to attend the parley.

-Taken from the Global News Services for Jewish People

Saudi Women Pushing for the Right to Buy Underwear From WOMEN!

Saudi women boycott lingerie shops

JEDDAH – A group of Saudi women launched a campaign Tuesday to boycott lingerie stores until they employ saleswomen.
The boycott was launched by about 50 women who gathered here at the Al-Bidaya Breast-feeding Resource and Women’s Awareness Center, which is run by Modie Batterjee, one of the boycott organizers.
The aim is to push for implementation of a law that has been on the books since 2006 which says only female staff can be employed in women’s apparel stores.
“We are raising awareness and calling for the implementation of the law,” said Reem Asaad, a finance lecturer at Dar Al-Hikma Women’s College in Jeddah, who supports the boycott.
The campaign calls on women to shop at the country’s few women-only lingerie stores. Usually stand-alone boutiques are located in malls that have women-only sections. These shops have no windows to ensure passing men cannot look in – and giving women the freedom to actually try things on.
However, it is unclear how much impact the boycott call will have.
Almost 1,700 people signed an online petition posted by Asaad on the social networking web site Facebook.
Before her wedding last year, Huda Batterjee, Modie’s sister, went abroad to buy her bridal lingerie.
She just couldn’t bear the humiliation of discussing her most intimate apparel with a man. She had little choice: there are almost no saleswomen in Saudi Arabia.
“When I buy underwear in Saudi Arabia, some salesmen say: ‘This is not the right size for you’,” said Batterjee.
“You feel almost taken advantage of. Why is he looking at me in this way?”

Heba Al-Akki, a businesswoman who supports the boycott, said when she shops for underwear, “I go to a store, pick this, this and that and leave quickly. It’s as if I’m buying illegal stuff.”

“Even in such open regions as the US and Europe, men do not sell underwear to women,” said store manager Husam Al-Mutayim, a 27-year-old Egyptian. “I don’t let any of my female relatives buy underwear from men. It’s just too embarrassing.” “I have bras with sizes ranging from 32 to 38 because I can’t get to try them on,” said Modie Batterjee. – AP

New T-Shirts For Israelis

I came across a Newspaper Article (Associated press) that really made me sad. The media is so quick to show images of war from the Palestinian side but the image and story below will never make it on mainstream news forums.

''An Israeli model poses with a T-shirt that reads in Hebrew “Sniper platoon” in Tel Aviv. It shows a pregnant woman in a rifle’s cross-hairs with the slogan “1 Shot 2 Kills.” Another shirt is of a gun-toting child with the words, “The smaller they are, the harder it is.” A third T-shirt design shows a dead Palestinian baby and the words “Better use Durex” (condoms). Haaretz newspaper said the customized shirts are often ordered when troops finish training courses''. – AP

Mauritania: Where Being FAT is Beautiful!!!

When I first heard about a Country that ENCOURAGES its women to be FAT, i thought 'Gee, I wonder if I can move there! And its not just being a bit chubby or having a muffin top. 'To men here, fat is sexy. And in this patriarchal region, many Mauritanian women do everything possible - and have everything possible done to them - to put on pounds'. The men in this country LOVE women with chunks and chunks of fat-its the absolute opposite of the western notion of what is beautiful. Being OBESE is revered in this Country but there is a horrific story of whats expected of Mauritanian women.

Girls as young as 7 years old are force fed ('gavage') (all day) high fat foods (Such as dates, cous cous and camels milk) so they begin the process of being fattened up.There are even 'farms' you can send your children to, like a fat farm-for them to gain weight. A lady that runs a 'farm' said: "I make them do this all morning. Then they have a rest. In the afternoon we start again. We do this three times a day - the morning, the afternoon and the evening." .Girls as young as 5 and as old as 19 have to drink up to five gallons of fat-rich camel’s or cow’s milk daily, aiming for silvery stretch marks on their upper arms. If a girl refused or vomited, the village weight-gain specialist might squeeze her foot between sticks, pull her ear, pinch her inner thigh, bend her finger backward or force her to drink her own vomit'. Drugs are also sold (many of them for animals) for women to gain weight.

There are several factors that influence the cultural construct of what is beautiful. Traditionally, the people lived in the desert so having a plump daughter or wife was a sign of status, wealth and kindness. Also, once a girl starts the fattening up process she will often get her period sooner which means she can be married off.

Although there is a huge push to educate people in the country that force feeding is a form of abuse, its a long and slow road to changing these cultural perceptions of beauty.Many women can now be seen (often with their veils hiding their face for fear that someone would see them....our version of being caught at an all you can eat buffet perhaps????) exercising around the local stadium.

Intro to the Abaya: Fashion & Islam

Saudi Arabia is a land of paradoxes and a land of contradictions!


Before I arrived I was honestly more than a little scared. Every time I researched the country it just confirmed my fears that the whole population were religious extremists who hated the west-the images of the women dressed in black depressed me (even though I was curious about wearing the niquaab/face covering).
And I am not exactly what you would call 'uneducated'!

I now think that Saudi's isolationist mentality and the western stereotypes of saudi do nothing to dispel these misconceptions.

Anyway I have been here a few months and have settled in. Although I still miss my country and at times saudi is just plain WEIRD to me, i am getting used to the difference in culture.

What i didnt expect was how saudi people have introduced concepts of status and class into aspects of the religion. Now what I mean with this is specific to the issue of wearing the hijab and islamic dress for women. I have noticed that the upper class and upper middle class do not wear hijab or they wear the scarf but not as strictly. They don't mind if their hair shows etc. They are also less likely to wear the niquaab. Also, the way a woman wears her scarf and her abaya also reflects the social status/class of that woman.

A great advantage about living in Jeddah is that it is more 'free' than Riyadh (the capital). More women are wearing abayas that show their personality while still adhering to the Islamic standards of dress. They are no longer wearing the plain black abayas. They have crystal designs and beautiful colourful fabric that is under a sheer black cloth. They often are reversible so you can wear the colourful abayas when your with family or with friends at social gatherings. Many young women wear these abayas and you can often see a pair of converse all stars (cons) peaking from under their abayas! Muslim women take A LOT of care in what abaya they wear and items such as shoes and bags are used inject personality and again, status. I was very surprised to find uni students clutching ther louis vuittons etc and it really frustrated me because they hardly ever had anything larger than a small notepad for taking notes for class because they didnt want to either hold their books or risk damaging their bags!