Rilek1Corner

Tag: religion

  • Osman Sulaiman: Open-Minded Approach To Sensitive Issues Required To Build Social Trust And Resilience Between Different Communities In Singapore

    Osman Sulaiman: Open-Minded Approach To Sensitive Issues Required To Build Social Trust And Resilience Between Different Communities In Singapore

    The recent terror attack in Paris unfolded a few incidents around the world victimizing innocent Muslims.

    – A girl being harassed by a bunch on men. They pulled her headscarf trying to dislodge it from her head. They continue to bully her.

    – A man shoved a Muslim woman into oncoming train at London underground.

    – Closer to home, a Singaporean woman has alleged that she was shouted at with anti-Islam comments at Tanah Merah MRT station.

    This beg a few questions. IF terror attacks were to happen in Singapore, how would the non-Muslim community react towards the Muslims in Singapore?

    1. Are we as cohesive as we would like to think as a community?

    2. Would the terror attack instil fear amongst Singaporeans to view the Muslims in Singapore with a stroke of the pen?

    3. Will we see more frequent hate speech against Islam here in Singapore? The hate speeches are already happening even now among my Fb friends.

    4. Will the gov indiscriminately target the Muslim population here for ‘extra’ vigilance?

    5. There are among Muslims, women who wear the Burqa. The one that covers their entire face except their eyes. How will the terror attack affect them?

    Our racial integration is somewhat successful although there are still deep fault lines not addressed and discussed openly.

    A terror attack in Singapore can either open a can of worms or it may just unite Singaporeans together in Solidarity.

    Of cause the latter will be the most ideal. But for that to happen, Singaporeans need to be prepared and take an open minded approach to sensitive issues

     

    Source: Osman Sulaiman

  • Student Care Centre Rejects Muslimah Because She Wears Hijab

    Student Care Centre Rejects Muslimah Because She Wears Hijab

    So Today I got rejected in a interview , simply because I was wearing the HIJAB.

    This was what happened .

    I went in and had an interview with the manager/boss . So she asked for my certs and since I didn’t bring it , I told her I’ll email it to her. Then suddenly she started off by saying why didn’t you go to ite after your N levels . I then told her that if I went to ITE, I will have to remove my scarf, she just say , “then take out your scarf lo” . Was shocked to hear that , but I smiled . Then she went on saying , “this job(student care teacher) got no future” so she was just talking and I was just listening to everything she had to say. And then at one point she said , ” don’t think I don’t like you (which obviously she doesn’t like me) , I think you have a bright future (I felt the insincerity) . So I said ok, since you feel this job has no future and that this job is suitable for the elderly,housewives, I asked her, ” If that’s the case, can my mom come and work here?” She immediately asked , “is your mom a Muslim?” Like even a monkey would know that my mom is obviously a Muslim. I told her “ya.” She then said ,”oh, your mom wears the hijab right? I don’t want this place to have muslim people , later they will think this is a Muslim student care and that won’t look good for our centre.” And she mentioned after that, that they’re finding for a Chinese teacher. Racist. Racist. Racist. After that, she called her Miss Angela( who claimed shes a counsellor) came in and said that they have few kids who are ADHD and that I can’t control them . This was all EXCUSES . They wasted my time travelling from yishun to bukit Timah . The centre name is OUT OF THE BOX KID’S CLUB.

     

    Source: Ismeth Haseena

     

  • Appeal Of IS Goes Beyond Religious Persuasion

    Appeal Of IS Goes Beyond Religious Persuasion

    It is preposterous for the writer of the letter “Muslim-S’porean leaders must be proactive in reaching out to youth” (Nov 18) to suggest there has been a “self-imposed gag among Muslim Singaporeans on talking about jihad” since 9/11.

    His view that Daesh, or the Islamic State (ISIS), has become the vanguard of jihad in Islam is simplistic and does not reflect the views of experts and scholars analysing trends in global terrorism.

    Muslim scholars, leaders and groups here have made a concerted effort to define jihad within the parameters of the Syariah, or Islamic legal code. This is manifest in the Religious Rehabilitation Group initiative.

    The Islamic Religious Council of Singapore, Pergas, Darul Arqam, SimplyIslam, Sout Ilaahi and other organisations have also made a concerted effort to organise talks to combat the hateful message of Daesh and its ideological precursors such as Al Qaeda. The writer would do well to acquaint himself with what these organisations have done in this regard before making such generalisations.

    I am also concerned about his naive effort to legitimise and bring credibility to Saudi Arabia in matters relating to Islam. While Arabia may be the “cradle of Islam”, modern Saudi Arabia, with the puritanical, intolerant version of Islam her scholars espouse, is probably the main source of global terrorism.

    Condemnation of Daesh from any quarter is welcome. Such a condemnation by Saudi scholars, however, is akin to pinching the baby and rocking the cradle. We should not forget that 15 of the 19 hijackers in the 9/11 attacks were Saudi citizens.

    It is necessary to view current events with a historical lens that goes back to the 20th century, though in this age of 24-hour news cycles, hoping for such an effort may be wishful thinking. It is worth noting that the appeal of Daesh and other radical groups goes beyond religious persuasions.

    RAND Corporation’s Brian Michael Jenkins writes: “Young men may be equally seduced by visions of adventure or they may want to escape the frustrations of life in the West. ISIS recruitment increasingly takes in impressionable young women and teenage girls attracted to jihadist bad boys, boasting about their bloody deeds.”

    To paraphrase a researcher, most of Daesh’s young recruits have binding traits: They do not get along with their parents and have social issues; many have been in trouble with the police, have criminal backgrounds and have passed through the prison system. In short, they have little understanding of Islam. Also, their radicalisation happens away from their community, mosques and madrasahs.

    It would be a mistake to simplify the appeal of Daesh for our youth.

    Mohamed Idris Kamal

     

    Source: www.todayonline.com/voices

  • Damanhuri Abas: Normalise, Celebrate Cultural And Religious Diversity

    Damanhuri Abas: Normalise, Celebrate Cultural And Religious Diversity

    There is a viral post going around about a particular lady that seems to have posted a racially disparaging remark about the Malay language on her FB. I was also informed that this was the same lady that labeled me early in the election campaign as Taliban or ISIS for some strange reason.

    I choose to ignore her posting but wishes to highlight the following.

    I am convinced that Singaporeans mostly are not racist. There will always be that 10% and I hope lesser in any racial community that has this strange concept of racial superiority, which in essence goes against the grain, and teaching of all religion and cultures.

    I believe in the maturity of most Singaporeans that have lived 50 years together, and mixed very well too in the region, which similarly is made up of people of many races, cultures and religion.

    On this conviction, I decided to run as a candidate to allow me the opportunity to also engage the mainstream majority Chinese community on issues that are close to the heart of my Malay community.

    I am heartened by the many more occasions when my Chinese brothers and sisters proudly declare their support for what I explained as discriminatory practices that still exists in Singapore that must be stopped. All the while reasoning that by championing issues of my community in no way mean that I am undermining other communities. These open and dignified dialogues strangely don’t happen often enough, which could have resolved many so-called sensitive issues much earlier.

    I am glad that the things I openly said during rallies and in engagements with many people of all races have assured me of the ingrained value of universal brotherhood that is in all our hearts.

    Let us strive to normalize the diversity that exists in our country into a true celebration of cultural and religious openness with mutual respect and goodwill that will breed genuine tolerance between us. It is unnatural policies driven by suspicion and distrust that hinders such progress towards unity. Nature and its wondrous diversity displays unparalleled beauty as a Sign and lesson for mankind from the Creator on unity in diversity.

    For the lady in question, I do hope we forgive her, as clearly she doesn’t represent the majority of us and probably needed some form of help.

     

    Source: Damanhuri Abas

  • Workers’ Party: Set Up Committee To Address Persistent Perceptions Of Racial Discrimination

    Workers’ Party: Set Up Committee To Address Persistent Perceptions Of Racial Discrimination

    The Workers’ Party welcomes the signing of the International Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Racial Discrimination (ICERD) on October 19, 2015 and its expected ratification in 2017. The Workers’ Party strongly believes in the aspirations laid out in the National Pledge, and Singaporeans should continually better the realisation that we are “one united people, regardless of race, language, or religion.” Acceding to and ratifying ICERD is an important step towards our national vision.

    All societies have room to improve on the treatment of racial minorities. Singapore is no different. Even as we celebrate the achievements of our multiracialism, Singaporeans should be mindful of areas where we can do more. It is important for a multiracial society like Singapore to ensure that racial minorities recognise that they can always be confident of a safe, inclusive environment where they are accorded the human dignity each and every person rightly deserves.

    A specific area that Singapore can work on as a society is to examine structural factors and institutional practices that may reinforce persistent perceptions of discrimination among racial minorities in Singapore. We are mindful that conditions fuelling such perceptions might not have been purposefully established or maintained. This makes it all the more important for Singaporeans to examine what we can all do to live up to the spirit of our National Pledge and the ICERD in eliminating all forms of racial discrimination and preserving our national pillar of multiracialism.

    The Suara Musyawarah Committee Report on the concerns and aspirations of Malay-Muslim Singaporeans, published in July 2013, highlighted persistent perceptions of discrimination that would be, in the long run, unhealthy for our racial harmony. In May 2014, Member of Parliament for Aljunied GRC Muhamad Faisal Abdul Manap proposed the formation of a committee made up of government representatives, Members of Parliament and community leaders to address these perceptions of discrimination among Malay-Muslims.

    In light of the signing of the ICERD, the Workers’ Party believes the formation and functioning of a multiracial committee is the best way forward to study and address persistent perceptions of discrimination among all minority communities. If the committee finds these perceptions to have some basis in institutional practices, then the findings will inform the Government to take the necessary action to rectify these practices. If these perceptions are found to have no basis, then the findings will allow the Government to work with affected communities to correct the perceptions. The committee will also serve as a useful national platform for inter-cultural conversations to promote mutual understanding and respect.

    Singapore has made significant strides in multiracial integration and countering racial discrimination over the decades. Such steps are especially important for a highly diverse and multiracial society where physical space is limited and population density is rising. These conditions also mean that Singaporeans should constantly look to work on success in addressing racial discrimination and perceptions of discrimination, while conscientiously seeking to address shortcomings to strengthen our multiracialism.

    Links:
    The International Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Racial Discrimination
    The Suara Musyawarah Committee’s Report
    Transcript of Mr Muhamad Faisal’s speech and debate in Parliament on 26 May 2014

    Dr Daniel Goh 
    Chair, Media Team
    The Workers’ Party

    27 October 2015

     

    Source: www.wp.sg