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Weekly Comment |
Press Freedom
Strange
things have bee happening and
it's difficult to make head or
tail of what the real politics
behind these episodes are:
• The whole furore over the
appointments at SABC and the
manner in which these were
proposed, together with the
differences it brought to the
fore within the ANC and between
the ANC and other parties from
within and out of the Alliance.
• The withdrawal of the SABC
editorial personnel from the
South African National Editors
Forum.
• The Pikoli and the Selebi
issues, the possible links
between the two and the
subsequent developments that
evolved from the discussions
surrounding the issues or issue.
• The Sunday Times and Manto
issue and the subsequent furore
regarding the editorial staff of
the Sunday Times.
• Tokyo Sexwale's open
statements of 'concern' last
night regarding how these issues
have been handled, in terms of
the current situation in the
country.
• The Transvaal Bar's statement
urging the government to issue
public statements about their
commitment not to interfere with
the judiciary.
These are strange developments
for a country that has evolved
out of a culture of oppression
and injustice into a country
that has become a beacon light
for democracy and peace, not
only in Southern Africa and
Africa, but the World.
Strange developments indeed, but
also developments which must
raise not just eyebrows but also
ring alarm bells … or shouldn't
we be concerned?
When Bush Speaks, ask
what Israel has said…
US President George Bush
yesterday made strong remarks
against Iran in an effort, say
analysts, to attempt to draw
more support for his design
against Iran. He went as far as
to say that Iran's possession of
nuclear weapons could result in
World War 3. Why is Bush pushing
so consistently and so hard
against Iran, one may ask.
The Israeli Haaretz Newspaper
reports:
"Israel is set to launch a new
diplomatic effort to lobby
United Nations Security Council
members for tougher sanctions on
Iran.
As part of the effort, Prime
Minister Ehud Olmert will depart
Thursday for a surprise visit to
Moscow for talks with President
Vladimir Putin. … On Sunday
Olmert is to travel to Paris,
where he will talk with
President Nicolas Sarkozy about
ways of halting the Iranian
nuclear program…. Olmert will
continue to London on Tuesday
and talk to British Prime
Minister Gordon Brown about Iran
… Foreign Minister Tzipi Livni
will make a lightning visit to
China…
Livni on Wednesday called for a
new Security Council resolution
on Iran, aimed at preventing it
from acquiring nuclear weapons.
Olmert's visit comes days after
the Russian president met with
Iranian leaders, discussing
Russian support for the Iranian
uranium enrichment program …
Olmert's visit follows the delay
in a Security Council move to
impose new sanctions on Iran.
Israel believes the delay stems
from Russia and China's
objection to imposing more
sanctions. Putin, who visited
Tehran on Tuesday, said he
supported Iran's right to
develop nuclear technology.
Visiting U.S. Secretary of State
Condoleezza Rice said at a news
conference with Livni in
Jerusalem on Wednesday that at
her meeting with Putin a few
days ago, "she understood that
he was still interested in
preventing Iran from possessing
nuclear weapons".
Legacy amidst Political
Bankruptcy
Issues of
legacy are dogging leaders on
their exit. Clinton scampered
for a Mid-East deal in the final
hours of his White House tenure;
Blair imposed himself on the
‘Quartet’ after leaving Downing
Street with his image heavily
dented and worried on how
posterity will judge his
premiership (on the back of Iraq
and the ‘poodle’ tag). Today,
Bush is now going to ‘focus on
Mid-East peace.’
Why didn’t he push for a
solution when he was gloating:
“I’ve earned political capital;
and I’m going to spend it…”? His
indifference towards the plight
of Palestinians has been
well-known from the time he
ascended into office.
As he tries to ‘prioritise’
Palestine, he has two
strategies: go it alone or via
the Quartet. As for the first
option, we now know that Bush is
politically bankrupt. How will
he find answers for the
Palestinian question? (Clinton
scenario) As for the Quartet, UN
special rapporteur John Dugard
has few words: “[the UN] does
itself little good by remaining
a member of the Quartet… Every
time I visit, the situation
seems to have worsened… This
time, I was very struck by the
sense of hopelessness among the
Palestinian people.” Dugard then
also adds about the weak
response of the Quartet which he
attributes to its being “heavily
influenced” by the US.
Either way, Palestinians want
tangible issues spelt out on how
peace will be brought, as
opposed to the Apartheid
Israel’s preferred ‘fuzzy’ and
‘loose’ principles which are
often exploited for Zionist
interests. |
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C O N
T E N T S |
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Summarised
Jumuah Bayaan |
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Question and
Answer |
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Update |
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Message from the Ameer |
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I N F
O R M A T I O N |
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Min. Mahr |
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Mahr Faatimi |
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Zakaat Nisaab |
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Words of Wisdom |
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Hadith of the Week |
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Multiple
Haj |
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Narrated by
Aqra' ibn Habib:
Ibn Abbas Radhiallahu anhu
said: Aqra' ibn Habis
Radhiallahu anhu asked the
Prophet Sallallahu ‘alayhi
wasallam saying: Apostle of
Allah, Haj is to be
performed annually or only
once? He replied: Only once,
and if anyone performs it
more often, he performs a
supererogatory act.
(Muslim)
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Quotation for the Week |
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Passion
and Perfection |
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“Let
the beauty of what you love
be what you do.”
(Jalal
ad-Din Rumi)
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Point of Reflection |
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Fortitude |
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He who cannot bear
misfortune is truly
unfortunate.
(Greek Saying)
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Q and A |
Question: What should a
person do if he did not give
Zakaah for many years?
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Answer: First he should
repent
for his sin of not
fulfilling his Zakaah. Then
he should
ascertain when he fell back
on
his Zakaah. Then he should
estimate the value of his
Zakaatable assets at that
time, as well as on that
date during
the subsequent years till
the present time. He should
calculate 2.5% of those
amounts and contribute the
total amount for Zakaah. He
should also endeavour never
to fall back
with his Zakaah again.
AND ALLAH TA’AALA KNOWS BEST.
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Hajj Seminar |
Jamiatul Ulama South
Africa’s Dawad wal Irshaad
Department will host a Haj
Seminar in
Lenasia on Saturday 27
October 2007 at Masjidus
Saliheen in
Ext. 13 starting from
2:00pm.
The programme will include:
Virtues of Haj, Visiting
Madina, Haj and Umrah as
well as a
virtual tour of Haj through
slides. Separate ladies’
facilities will be provided
insha-Allah.
Refreshments will also be
served.
Tel: 011 852 4631 for more
information. |
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U P D A T E |
Jâmi‘ah al-‘Ulûm al-Islâmiyyah
The Jâmi‘ah al-‘Ulûm al-Islâmiyyah
was established by the Jamiatul
Ulama with the aim of providing
quality Islamic education within
a social context; such a social
context which challenges the
notion of practicing Islam in
its unadulterated form. The
formation of the Jaami`ah is
driven by the desire to rekindle
scholarship within the Ummah and
provide sound leadership so as
to elevate the Ummah to its
former glory.
The institute currently offers
the ‘Aalim Fâdhil which is a
six-year direct-contact and
full-time course which will be
taught through the Arabic,
English and Urdu languages.
The institute also motivates
students and facilitates their
registration and study at
tertiary institutes in
accordance with their academic
aptitudes.
Great concentration is also
placed upon the developing
skills necessary for Ulama to
interact effectively with the
community and in the workplace.
Speaking, reading and writing
skills, as well as research
methodology are studied and
developed.
Students are exposed to current
challenges facing the ummah and
the Islamic perspectives of
these issues.
The aspect of tarbiyyah is
considered to be of paramount
importance and is thus allocated
special time daily.
News and Current Affairs with
it's analysis in terms of its
significance to the worldwide
and local Muslim community is
also dealt with daily.
Learners will be awarded a
certificate upon completion of
the course.
No boarding and lodging is
provided to students.
Admission Requirements:
Aspiring learners must be mature
persons, of upright character,
have a basic Islamic education,
be in possession of a
matriculation certificate,
versatile in English and any
other official language of the
country and be dedicated to
self-study.
Learners will be accepted only
after an interview. Applications
for 2008 close on the 23rd
November 20078 The academic year
begins in January and ends in
December.
For more information, contact:
Jâmi‘ah al-‘Ulûm al-Islâmiyyah
Tel: 011 373 8040, Fax: 011 373
8022
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Summarised Jumu’ah
Bayaan:
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The Harvest of
the Tongue
Allah says: “No good is
there in much of their
private conversation,
except for those who
enjoin charity or that
which is right or
conciliation between
people. And whoever does
that seeking the means
to the approval of Allah
– then We are going to
give them a great
reward.” (An-Nisaa':
114)
Ibn ‘Abbaas Radhi-Allâhu
‘anhu said: “Achieving
the following five
matters is more
beneficial than owning
the best types of
horses: (1) Not
involving yourselves in
conversations that do
not concern you, as
there is no guarantee
that you would not sin
therein; (2) Not talking
about things that do
concern you, until you
find the proper time; as
a person may talk about
a matter that does
concern them but at the
wrong time and therefore
produce a bad
consequence; (3) Not
arguing with a wise or a
foolish person, as the
wise person would desert
you and the foolish
person would humiliate
you; (4) Mentioning your
brother, in his absence,
with things with which
you would wish him to
mention you with in your
absence - and forgiving
him for that which you
would wish him to
forgive you for; (5)
Performing the actions
of one who is certain
that he would be
rewarded for the good
and punished for the bad
that he does”.
• The tongue is a gift
from Allah. This is
certainly not why Allah
has gifted us with
tongues and this is
definitely not how gifts
are appreciated.
• Nowadays, our
gatherings are filled
with unrestrained
conversations that
comprise of useless or
even harmful talk.
• Speech reflects our
thoughts and mentality,
as well as how morality,
or its opposite, is
spread through society.
• A person must ask
himself before saying
anything: ‘Is there any
need for me to talk?' If
there is a need, then it
is fine to talk.
Otherwise, silence is
better because
refraining from
unnecessary speech is a
form of worship.
Abdullaah Ibn Mas'ood
Radhi-Allâhu ‘anhu said:
“I swear by the One
besides Whom there is
nothing worthy of
worship: one's need to
imprison their tongue is
greater than anything
else.”
• It is a fact that the
majority of those who
take the lead in vain
talk during sinful
gatherings talk so much
that one who listens to
them comes to realise
that they themselves are
not aware of what they
are saying and that
there is no
thought-process behind
their words.
• Rasulullah Sallallâhu 'alayhi
wasallam said:
“No servants of Allah's
belief will be correct
until his heart is
corrected, and his heart
will never be corrected
until his tongue is” The
first phase of achieving
this correctness is for
a person to give up that
which does not concern
them and not to involve
themselves in things
that they were not asked
about.
• Islam has dispraised
frivolities and idle
talk as they are
immaterial and evil. In
fact, the more a person
stays away from them,
the higher their rank
becomes with Allah.
Conversely, the more a
person indulges in them,
the more their
punishment will be with
Allah, this is why
Rasulullah Sallallâhu 'alayhi
wasallam said: “A
servant (of Allah) will
utter a word for no
other reason but to make
people laugh, and it
would cause him to go
down into Hell as far as
the distance between the
Heavens and the earth;
and a person will slip
with his tongue more
often than he will
stumble off his feet”.
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Message from the Ameer of
the Jamiatul Ulama |
Haj 1428
Ramadan has come and gone.
Alhamdulillah most people
took full advantage of the
blessings and virtues of
this auspicious month.
Members of the community are
now preparing to make the
necessary arrangements for
Hajj.
Last year the chaos and
confusion over the Hajj
visas continued till a very
late stage. This year,
arrangements were very
different. The online
registration process was put
into place. It was looked
upon skeptically by many and
various concerns were
raised. It did have problems
and raised certain issues.
However, the overall
registration process does
seem to have improved
significantly and SAHUC must
be commended in this regard.
Insha'Allah, next year will
be even better and it is
hoped that there is a
progression of continuous
improvement.
The visa allocation issue
was also an issue this year
with an initial allocation
of only 2500 visas to South
African Hujaaj. The figure
was later, through the
efforts of the new
leadership at SAHUC,
increased by another 2500.
Even though, the late
increase made it difficult
for both agents and
prospective Hujaaj, in
various avenues, it is a
definite improvement on last
year.
May Allah accept the service
of all those serving the
community in whichever way
they, and May Allah increase
them in their ability.
Aameen.
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