Tag: halal

The Halal Food Hunter: 5 Reasons Why Geylang Bazaar Is Not “Too Westernised”
IT’S ALMOST NOT RAMADAN WITHOUT SOME SORT OF DEBATE WHERE A PURIST WAVES AN AYAM PERCIK FOR EMPHASIS AND SOMEBODY CRIES. THIS YEAR, THE GEYLANG BAZAAR TAKES THE HIT.

Last week, Rilek1Corner served up some controversial fodder for the iftar table — the author opined that Geylang Serai Bazaar is too westernized, becoming more like pasar malam.
- He said it’s hard to find traditional kuih at the bazaar for buka
- He tried to make the case that since the bazaar is in Geylang Serai, a hub for Malays, vendors should be selling traditional kuih, and not foreign snacks like churros and kebab.
- He expressed his concern of the cultural erosion amongst Malay youths, forewarning the day when the spirit of Hari Raya will be forgotten.
- Netizens immediately weighed in their two cents, both in support and opposition to the article.
- The author agreed that everyone has their opinion. Here’s mine:
SMALL LOCAL BUSINESSES, NOT JUST SHOPS SELLING KUIH, ARE ALL STRUGGLING TO SURVIVE

It is not a secret–running a business in Singapore is no easy task. There are many pressing factors that determine whether a business thrive or fail, but none is more of a headache than the cost of rental. Having a physical space can easily eat into at least half of a shop’s earnings, which probably explains why some of the vendors we see in bazaars or pasar malams don’t have one. Instead, they sustain themselves by setting up shop in more transient spaces like bazaars, pasar malams, corporate events, trade shows, and weddings. The more successful pasar malam veterans eventually go on to have permanent homes, but even then, they do not fold their kiosks and continue to set up shop where the crowds gather.

To lessen the burden of costly overheads, businesses are increasingly sharing spaces instead of renting one all to themselves. This trend of a sharing economy, while unique and enterprising, also puts light on the severity of the underlying rent-seeking behaviour of the organizations behind these bazaars. Understandably, traditional kuih shops may not want to bear these very high costs which is why they are nowhere to be seen in the bazaar.

KUIH VENDORS ARE NOT MARGINALIZED

The Rilek1Corner article, in my opinion, would have held more weight than an Overdose drink if it showed that the bazaar organisers had refused food vendors traditionally found there (Ramly burger, vadai, deng deng) to make way for these so called westernised food vendors. That’s definitely something to cry foul about. I would even go so far as to call it a violation of tradition.

Yet, this wasn’t the case at all. In fact, take up rate for the stalls in bazaar has been dismal for years now. I’m sure the organisers would gladly offer an entire tentage to house a mountain of kuih lapis…if someone had laid down the cash for it. Yes, while it may seem that Geylang Bazaar is just a huge food market for hipsters this year (damn you social media), the reality on the ground is that the old school vendors that I grow up with are still there! They just don’t make for viral content.

PASAR MALAM IS NOT A WESTERN THING

Sure, you can argue that it is based after the model of street food markets or night markets of (insert western country here) but our local pasar malam definitely has its own unique flavours and charms. I grew up begging my parents to bring me to the pasar malam downstairs every night, even to just see the sights. Before social media and my travels exposed me to the food/night markets of New York, Bangkok, Seoul and Melbourne, I regard our pasar malam as the original. In fact, I still do and I see no point in debating on its origins. So if someone were to say that the Geylang Bazaar is the mother of allpasar malams, they couldn’t be more further than the truth. It’s a marketplace of sorts. It opens primarily at night. It’s earned that pasar malam badge. If anything, I think the normal pasar malams in our neighbourhoods have a lot to learn from this year’s Geylang Pasar Malam, I mean, Bazaar.

GEYLANG BAZAAR IS NOT JUST FOR THE MALAYS

One of the points raised in the article was the crazy idea that the bazaar was situated in a Malay hub, hence the food items for sale should reflect that. Historically, Geylang may be a community centre for Malays, just like how Little India is for the Indians and Chinatown is for the Chinese. But the lines are blurred now. There are no boundaries as to where people of all races in Singapore dine and shop at. One of my favourite chapati stalls is along Norris Road, right in the middle of Little India. I think Chinatown in the lead up to Chinese New Year looks the best from the rooftop of People’s Park Complex. If the bazaar draws crowds of all races, isn’t that a good thing?

For every Malay that complains about Geylang Bazaar being too crowded, there’ll be someone else who enjoys going there to bask in the vibrant, if stifling, atmosphere. Singaporeans are known to be ultimate foodies, so I say give them what they want. I’ve went to the bazaar with non-Malay friends. I also know of people who bring foreign visitors. There are also non-Malay vendors who are always present year after year. Where do you think I get a bottle of H20 or can of Coke from? All I’m saying is, let’s be more inclusive to all and sundry. The Geylang Bazaar is as much a contribution to the colourful urban fabric of Singapore as it is an iconic Ramadan event for us Malay-Muslims.

If anything, the rainbow bagels and the churros and the sotong kings of Geylang Bazaar all reflect one underrated quality of the modern Malay–that we are an enterprising people!

EVERYBODY WINS WHEN WE SUPPORT ~~MALAY~~ LOCAL BUSINESSES

A big motivation of starting this blog was to support the wave of halal food options that has emerged recently, and by extension the businesses that provide them. The businesses that offer these halal food have, by and large, been owned by Malay-Muslims. Then there are also businesses that are not necessarily Muslim-owned but go to great lengths to ensure they get the halal certification by MUIS. All these great efforts benefit us, the consumers. However, to say that I only support Malay businesses is only selling the thriving local halal food industry short.

In a virtual sea of “same old”, I appreciate something truly unique and delightful. I need not look further than our local small businesses. Whether they’re designing clothes or are on a mission to disrupt an entire industry, small businesses bring new ideas and innovation to our communities. Then, as they grow, they attract like-minded talent who invest even more to the business and the community, bringing the cycle full circle. The next time you want to bring down our local businesses trying to make a change, spare a thought for the community, focus on the good, and discard the bad.

Source: http://thehalalfoodhunter.com
June 15, 2016
Benny Se Teo: Give Ex-Convicts And Addicts A Chance

All 10 EighteenChefs outlet in Singapore are Halal certified by MUIS .

Umi Hannah (a single mum with 4kids) started as a service crew and she work her way up and now she is my manager at EighteenChefs … we don’t just provide job opportunities … we carve out career paths for all our employees .

There are many similar stories like Umi , we have a large section of ex drug addicts , ex convicts one example is Salim Salimuddin my manager overall in charge of Simei outlet … seeing his positive attitude we STRAIGHT AWAY NEVER THINK TWICE give him an asst manager post when he was released from prison and he slowly and steadily rise up to a Restaurant Manager post .

We don’t just sell Halal food … we take care of fellow Singaporean and give them a “leg up” so that they can move on in life … because I was once a drug addict too

Source: Benny Se Teo

May 17, 2016
Ulamas Divided Over The Celebrating Of Mother’s Day, But Stresses Importance Of The Mother In The Quran and Sunnah

In the Name of Allah, Most Gracious, Most Merciful.

All praise and thanks are due to Allah, and peace and blessings be upon His Messenger.

First of all, it goes without saying that every committed Muslim is supposed to pay his parents, especially his mother, due respect. One should try to show dutifulness to one’s parents, even if they happened to be non-Muslims, let alone being Muslims. What Islam goes against is to imitate non-Muslims by marking a special occasion such as celebrating the Mother’s Day in a way that shows that mothers do not deserve due respect and care save on this very day. If we are going to make the whole year a Mother’s Day, then Islam welcomes celebrating the occasion with open arms.

Indeed, Muslim scholars have maintained various opinions regarding the issue. Here below we will attempt to furnish you with Juristic views as regard this issue:

First of all, Sheikh Faysal Mawlawi, deputy chairman of the European Council for Fatwa and Research, states:

Dutifulness to parents, especially the mother, and treating them kindly is an act of worship enjoined in both the Qur’an and the Sunnah of the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him). Being dutiful to parents is not confined to a specific time. It is an obligation that should be observed every time, as all people commonly know.

Yet, the Mother’s Day, as it’s known nowadays is a Western habit. The Westerners specified a day and called it the Mother’s Day. On that day sons and daughters show gratefulness to their mothers and offer them presents. It has become part of important feasts in the West, whereas we Muslims have no other festivals except the Lesser and the Greater Bairams. Any other celebrations are deemed mere occasions or anniversaries; and this is applied to the Mother’s Day.

The Mother’s Day implies paying more attention and exerting more effort in expressing gratitude to mothers. So there is nothing wrong in that.

However, there are two reservations worth mentioning; first, considering the Mother’s Day a feast; second, confining the task of showing dutifulness to mothers to that specific day, giving implication that throughout the whole year, just only one day is for showing love to parents. If such two anomalous points are addressed, then there is nothing wrong in considering the Mother’s Day a chance to give more care to mothers.

Thus, we may take the Mother’s Day as a chance to lay more emphasis on our duty towards our mothers, as Islam enjoins us, because dutifulness to parents is a genuine Islamic teaching. But Muslims, in doing that, should never deviate from the Islamic teachings, they should do things in Islamic manners, not in Western manners. Hence, they would not be imitating the non-Islamic habits of the West.

Hence, viewed in juristic perspective, we can say that celebrating the Mother’s day is controversial among the contemporary scholars. While a group of them consider it haram (unlawful) as a kind of blind imitation of the Western non-Islamic habits, which have no benefit for Muslims, another group see it halal(lawful) on condition that showing gratitude and dutifulness to parents should not be confined to that day only.

Moreover, the well-known erudite scholar Sheikh Yusuf al-Qaradawi states:

The Arabs tend to blindly follow the Western in their celebration of the Mother’s Day, without trying to understand the wisdom behind inventing such an occasion.

When the European found that children do not deal properly towards their parents nor give them their due right, they resorted to specifying an annual occasion for children to remedy the situation. But in Islam, mothers are to be given due respect and love every time, not only one day a year. For example, when one goes out, he kisses one’s mother’s hand seeking her pleasure and blessing.

A Muslim must not allow any gap between him and his mother, he must offer her presents every time. This indicates that Muslims can dispense with such an occasion, the Mother’s Day. Unlike the case in the West, where it’s a vogue for some children to show indifference to their mothers’ feelings, and, what’s more, it is so common to see some parents being dragged to infirmaries (as their kids have no time for them), dutifulness to parents in Islam, alongside with worshipping Allah, is a sacred duty.

In this concern, Almighty Allah says: (And We have commended unto man kindness toward parents. His mother beareth him with reluctance, and bringeth him forth with reluctance, and the bearing of him and the weaning of him is thirty months, till, when he attaineth full strength and reacheth forty years, he saith: My Lord! Arouse me that I may give thanks for the favor wherewith Thou hast favored me and my parents, and that I may do right acceptable unto Thee. And be gracious unto me In the matter of my seed. Lo! I have turned unto Thee repentant, and lo! I am of those who surrender (unto Thee).) (Al-Ahqaf 46:15)

Reflecting on the aforementioned Qur’anic verse, we find it stressing both parents’ right, but reviewing the following verses we find them paying special care to the mother and tackling the hardships she suffers in pregnancy, fosterage and rearing children.

In this verse, Almighty Allah informs man of the debt he owes his mother since he was a fetus, passing by the process of childbirth, infancy, childhood until he comes of age. A child normally forgets the hardship which his mother underwent during pregnancy. Hence Almighty Allah draws his attention to such hardships, laying emphasis on her great status in Islam.

Finally, Dr. `Abdul Fattah `Ashoor, professor of Qur’an Exegisis at Al-Azhar University, concludes,

Holding celebrations in honoring others and commemorating anniversaries are neither feasts nor Islamic. But one may seize any chance to express gratitude to those who deserve it. This is how we should consider the Mother’s Day. The mother has a special place in the Islamic culture, and all other civilized cultures. So it is something good to do anything to please her and show gratefulness to her.

So dedicating a day to showing good feelings towards parents, especially the mother, is by no means blameworthy as it does not contradict the Islamic teachings, nor can it be merely considered a form of joining the Western vogue of making celebrations. Conversely, it is a kind of devotion to Allah’s orders that we should be dutiful to our parents.

Allah Almighty knows best.

Source: www.onislam.net

May 8, 2016
Muslimah Baker: Unfair That Company Discriminated Against Me Just Because I Wasn’t Chinese

So this past Monday, 2 days ago, I went for a job interview at a well-known halal bakery for the position of a cake decorator. As some of you may know, I’ve been baking for the past couple of years, doing wedding cakes and deserts. I thought that this interview was a really great opportunity for me to continue pursuing what I love.

The interview with HR went well. We had a great chat, talked about the baking industry, and discussed the role that was being offered so on and so forth. After looking at my portfolio she was keen to move things forward, and so was I. She shuffled up and down the office, making phone calls to coordinate a last minute meeting with the head of the baking department, who was 5 floors above the HR office. I waited for about 15 minutes for the head of the department, and at that point was really looking forward to meeting him. The HR rep then sat me down in a another meeting room next to the waiting room. These two rooms were separated by a glass panel, so you could clearly see what was going on outside.

So the head of the department arrived with one of his colleagues. I introduced myself to the both of them and we sat down to talk.
He looked through my portfolio, flipping through the pages very haphazardly. After a few moments, he proceeded to asked me, “Can you coat a cake?”, to which I answered “Yes I can.”.

Silence… Then he then said we could go up to the bakery so that I could do a demonstration. We stood to got up to proceed upstairs, but then he turned to me, gesturing his hands at me from head to toe and said,

“From what I see, and the way you look, and not trying to be racist ah, but you Malay, I think you cannot la”

I was stunned and I just froze. I felt my ears getting a little hot, but I didn’t want to lose my cool. I was taken aback and didn’t quite know how to respond anyway. I just kept quiet because I was shocked. He continued,

“You know ah, Malays ah they over promise, promise I can do this I can do that, in the end, cannot make it, after 2 days disappear.”

I answered him,

“Sir, I haven’t promised you anything. I think you should give me a chance”

By this point, I was extremely disgusted, angry and in total disbelief. He laughed again and said,

“Ya ok ok, we will head upstairs and proceed, then we see where we can go from there? Anyways you speak Chinese not? Cos mostly all my worker speak Chinese”

I answered that I didn’t speak the language but I could understand bits and pieces.

‘What the heck,’ I told myself. I had already come this far, I might as well finish this off and do this well for myself. We proceeded to the baking room where I was handed a bowl of frosting, a pallet knife, frosting bag, 4 layers of cake, and a scraper.

The department head left and sent in another colleague to watch me. He couldn’t speak English well, so we had a hard time communicating.

I asked him how he wanted the cake to be coated, to try to get a better sense of the technique required, to which he answered “Yes you coat, you coat”.

So I coated the cake, clean with standard edges and finish. He motioned for me to scrape the edges with a zig zag scraper, so I did. It turned out fine, the edges were clean and I did the best that I could. Not a single crumb in sight, neatly combed.

The department head returned, walking into the room, laughed while saying, “Aiyo cannot Llah”

He started talking to his colleague in mandarin, thinking I would not understand him. From what he said I understood that I was actually supposed to be shown a sample cake that I was meant to recreate. “Ni mei you gei da kan sample ah?” Nope, he did not let me see a sample.

At this point, I grabbed my bag, thanked them both for their time, took back the copies of my portfolio, and left.

I have no intention of naming or shaming this organisation and its people, but I would like to highlight that racial discrimination in the job market is more real than we think. I’m making a stand and sharing my story because I believe in equal rights and equal opportunity for everyone. How can anyone judge another based on general racial stereotypes? In Singapore, of all places, a supposedly racially harmonious and fair country? Particularly in my case, what I thought was ironic as hell, was that this company actually prides itself on catering to the Muslim community.

Are we going to start making this right or are we going to sweep it under the rug and just suck it up as “the way things are?”

The point I’m trying to make is that nobody wants to be generalised or defined by racial stereotypes. Racial profiling is unfair and unjust. We are more than our skin. We are actions. We are people. We are human beings with original thought and different experiences that have shaped us to become unique individuals with so much potential to offer society and the world. And yet I find myself, for the first time, discriminated against and not given a real chance for something I’m confident at, for something that I know sets me apart. Nobody should ever be told that they can’t do something based on the colour of their skin, but the sad reality is that this is real, and this is really happening.

Needless to say , I probably will never buy flour, cakes, pastes or anything from these people ever again. But I do wish them the best of luck maintaining their halal certification, and I do wonder how they will maintain their minimum Muslim employment quota.

Source: Sarah Carmariah

April 29, 2016
China Businesses Taps Onto Global Halal Market, But Confused Over What Halal Really Means

QINGTONGXIA — The wine-swilling co-founder of Sai Wai Xiang Halal Foodstuff Co enjoys his pork and does not follow Islam, but still sells more than US$50 million (S$67.4 million) worth of food to Muslims across Asia and the Middle East.

The company is at the forefront of a Chinese drive into the global halal food and beverage market, exporting as far away as Saudi Arabia.

Businessman Deng Zhijun bills his wares as “products with Muslim ethnic flavour”, but has difficulty recalling some of Islam’s basic dietary tenets.

“Muslims definitely don’t smoke and don’t drink alcohol,’ he said over a lunch at the company, in a garden lined with caged peacocks, macaws and chickens. “There’s also some kind of meat they don’t eat, but I forgot.”

His half-knowledge is typical of China’s complicated relationship with Islam, which officially has more than 23 million adherents in the country. Some independent estimates put it as high as 50 million — which would put China among the world’s top 10 Muslim nations.

Beijing’s officially atheist Communist authorities oscillate between tight restrictions and more liberal policies that are enforced unevenly.

Mr Deng’s company is based in Ningxia, a western region a third of whose six million population are Hui. The group are a separate minority under Beijing’s classification policies even though most are essentially from the Han ethnic majority, differentiated only by being Muslims.

Violence in Xinjiang, the homeland of the other main Muslim minority, the Uighurs, has killed hundreds, with Beijing attributing it to Islamic extremism and foreign influence, while activists blame draconian restrictions on religion and culture.

In a promotional video playing at Sai Wai Xiang’s factory — set up 14 years ago — a table of happy Chinese diners clink glasses of beer before tucking into their meal.

“Drinking red wine is very good for the body and has health benefits, just like eating halal food,” said Mr Deng, who recalled a recent trip to Bordeaux and said he often finishes a bottle of the local Ningxia vintages with dinner.

PORK SAUSAGES

The global halal food and beverage market is projected to grow to US$1.6 trillion by 2018, according to a report from the Dubai Chamber of Commerce and Industry, up from US$1.1 trillion in 2013.

Mr Deng and other company executives pointed to President Xi Jinping’s “One Belt, One Road” initiative that aims to boost trade with a host of countries across South Asia and the Middle East, and he expects a windfall of incentives for halal food.

But there are concerns over how strictly halal standards are followed in China.

Last year, hundred of Muslims took to the streets in Xi’an to protest the sale of alcohol in halal restaurants. In Qinghai province a crowd destroyed a bakery after pork sausages and ham were found in its delivery trucks.

Such fears have an impact in potential export markets, and food safety scares are common in China, from gutter oil to milk powder.

The integrity of Chinese halal food was “questionable”, Dr Miriam Abdul Latif, a professor of food science and a halal expert at the Malaysian University of Sabah, told AFP, citing examples of “fake halal documents or certificates”.

To build consumer trust, Dr Latif said, Chinese companies should have their products inspected by certification bodies from Muslim countries.

SECURITY STRATEGY

But the issue goes to the heart — or perhaps the stomach — of the relationship between religion and the state.

China’s current halal certification system is a patchwork of local regulations, with varying strictness. Mosques technically have the right to inspect nearby facilities, but ultimate power rests with local government Ethnic and Religious Affairs Bureaux.

At a high-level national political meeting in Beijing last month, Mr Ma Guoquan, a delegate from Ningxia, called for a single national standard for halal food, and improved enforcement.

“There are many problems regarding halal food management that can’t be ignored,” Mr Ma said, according to the Ningxia Daily newspaper.

But some say national laws would be anathema to the ruling party’s official atheism.

“This kind of legislation would be contrary to the principle of secularism,” Mr Xi Wuyi, a Marxism expert at the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences wrote on China’s Twitter-like Weibo in March. “It could threaten China’s national security strategy.”

At the same time some Muslims complain over too much government interference in their religion.

Away from the high-level politics of policing halal food, many of the faithful in Ningxia rely on personal relationships to guarantee quality.

“I know the meat I buy is halal because I know the butcher, I see him frequently at the mosque for prayer,” said rural resident Na Liang. “I know the baker, I know the family that runs the noodle shop and I know all the food I eat is halal.”

Source: www.todayonline.com

April 29, 2016