The film that is changing Kurdistan

"A film made over 10 years with the stories of girls and women affected by female genital mutilation is tackling a taboo subject"


http://www.theguardian.com/society/2013/oct/24/female-genital-mutilation-film-changing-kurdistan-law 

Apologetic Modernists may please stop confronting those who criticize superstitious practices. They are requested to exert all their efforts to stop this practice wherever found to exist.

If the link does not work on clicking, please copy and paste it on the browser.

Proclaim your solidarity for Saudi Liberal Raef Badawi

Saudi Liberal Raef Badawi Sentenced To 7 Years In Prison and 600 Lashes Raise Your Voice For Raef Badawi http://brightskerala.blogspot.in/2013/07/raise-your-voice-for-raef-badawi.html Please sign the petition and spread the word: http://www.avaaz.org/en/petition/Amnesty_for_Saudi_journalist_Raif_Badawi_1/ TweetStorm: https://twitter.com/search?q=%23freeraif&src=hash View or comment on this post » Google+ makes sharing on the web more like sharing in real life. Learn more. Join Google+

You have received this message because Abdul Majeed shared it with majeedbinmohamed.radicalhumanist@blogger.com. Unsubscribe from these emails. You can't reply to this email. View the post to add a comment. Google Inc., 1600 Amphitheatre Pkwy, Mountain View, CA 94043 USA

A Stepping Stone To Secularism In BanglaDesh

Bangladesh High Court Strikes Down Jamaat-e-Islami's Electoral Registration 

We applaud the landmark ruling by the three member 

high court panel. August 1, 2013 has become  a very 

important day to remember for all activists in BanglaDesh 

who yearn for a Secular BanglaDesh. Not knowing the 

real nature (1.a,b) of this Islamo-fascist dragon, the people 

of BanglaDesh have suffered much. 

This is only a stepping stone. This particular Islamist party 

(Jama at e Islami) is adept at playing all types of political 

gimmicks and fraudulent strategies and tactics. One 

probable step is their infiltration in to other Salafist 

organizations which are not under ban. There is a potential 

danger of these virile elements succeeding in heating up 

extremist Jihadi enthusiasm among the devout youth 

creating theological bridges. Perhaps JI's literary arsenal 

already has enough of such popular guide books which are 

actually exercises in misguiding and criminal 

misinterpretations. It is up to the executives in the Police 

Department to confiscate such stuff and prevent 

propagation of Jihadi incitement materials in 

the country. We hope that the secular activists in Bangla 

Desh will be cautious and realize the fact that Islamic holy 

books including the Qur'aan have inflammable contents. 

While Rationalists, Humanists and Atheists point out such 

bitter truths some people are seen labeling us with 

Islamophobia crying out loud pointing accusing fingers 

unnecessarily as if they are hurt. It is of no use accusing 

critics of Islam. If these apologists want peace and 

harmony,they are to confront the Jehadi extremists and not 

Secular Humanists. We would like to forewarn the ruling 

parties in BanglaDesh against persecuting the genuine 

secularists. It is their bounden duty to assure that freedoms 

of conscience and expression are safe guarded in the case 

of Rationalists, Humanists and Atheists. No amount 

of misinterpretation by political ignoramuses,whose eyes are 

on vote banks only, can alter the fact that these secular 

activists are the lighthouses in the grim darkness of cultural 

dogmatism  bound to prevail in a country dominated 

by blind faith and superstitions.

We congratulate the peace loving people of BanglaDesh in 

having been granted the opportunity of legal support in their 

march to freedom and prosperity. Cheers!!

(1)

  a. http://brightskerala.blogspot.in/2013/03/what-they-mean-by-jihad.html

  b. http://brightskerala.blogspot.in/2013/04/jama-at-e-islami-unmasked-2_6347.html

(2) http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424127887323681904578641530401992180.html

(3) http://www.tehelka.com/bangladesh-hc-cancels-registration-of-jamaat-e-islami/

(4) http://dulmajd.blogspot.in/2013/03/please-join-this-campaign-ban-jamaat-e.html

Join The International Movement For Freedom Of Expression

Religious believers and Atheists, Freedom of Expression is a Fundamental Human Right wp.me/p1zVK2-4I 02:24 AM - 20 Apr 13

Please join this campaign: Ban Jamaat-e-Islami...

Abdul Majeed Please join this campaign: Ban Jamaat-e-Islami from Bangladeshi Politics https://www.causes.com/actions/1730991-ban-jamaat-e-islami-from-bangladeshi-politics Ban Jamaat-e-Islami from Bangladeshi Politics For their shameful work during war time, people renamed them as Razakar, which means collaborators in english. Their chief leaders, e.g. Golam Azam, Abbas Uddin Khan, Matiur Rahman Nizami, Delwar Hoss... View or comment on Abdul Majeed's post » Google+ makes sharing on the web more like sharing in real life. Learn more. Join Google+

Google Inc., 1600 Amphitheatre Pkwy, Mountain View, CA 94043 USA

Malala attends school in Birmingham

Pacifying fears and anxieties of humanists and well wishers all over the world, media report Malala Yousafzai's first day at Edgbaston High School in Birmingham:

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-birmingham-21846817


http://www.npr.org/blogs/thetwo-way/2013/03/19/174749963/malala-pakistani-teen-shot-for-demanding-an-education-attends-school-in-u-k


http://www.thenews.com.pk/article-93008-Malala-attends-school-for-first-time-after-shooting

Help Saudi Arabian Enlightenment IV

It is known to the whole world that Hamza Kashgari, the Arabian writer,  has been detained in Saudi prison illegally. His friends, relatives and the whole world have been sending entreaties, petitions and requests to the authorities for getting him released. Even after one year, the authorities seem not to heed. It is high time all the  lovers of freedom of speech and conscience rise up against dark age superstitions and speak for the liberty of an individual to hold his own opinion regarding faith and to let other people know his thoughts.

Kindly sign the petition below:

   http://www.avaaz.org/en/petition/Free_Hamza_Kashgari_lHry_lHmz_kshGry/ 

(If mouse click doesn't take you to the site, kindly copy the link and paste it in your browser)


 Please spread the word....................


 For earlier posts on the topic:

'1. A letter to the Attorney General' 

  
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dm4z6Sy-BCA&lr=1


To see the text and more about him ,his writings etc.in Arabic ,


see

الحرية أولا

 below


http://messagesa.wordpress.com/

*********************************
P.S.  Hamza Kashgari released

A Hearty thank you to all who supported him!
We are happy Hamza, Congratulations!!

**********************************

Help the campaigns for freedom of expression in Muslim communities I

1. Ben Baz, Egyptian atheist, arrested for blasphemy in Kuwait

Abd el Azeez Muhammad Al Baz is a 27 year old Egyptian blogger
 arrested in Kuwait .
http://www.michaelnugent.com/

 2.  Petitioning Government of Kuwait :

Government of Kuwait:

 Free humanist/atheist activist Abdel Aziz Mohamed Albaz

 http://www.change.org/petitions/government-of-kuwait-free-humanist-atheist-activist-abdel-aziz-mohamed-albaz?utm_source=share_petition&utm_medium=url_share&utm_campaign=url_share_after_sign#share

Help Saudi Arabian Enlightenment III

3.

  Saudi Girl ,15, Flees Arranged 'Marriage' to avoid octogenarian 

The social media boils with anger as more and more 

cases of  child marriage draw attention to the need 

for arriving at a minimum age for marriage in Saudi 

Arabia. 
http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/world/mad-mad-world/Saudi-teen-hides-on-wedding-night-

to-avoid-90-year-old-husband/articleshow/17929316.cms


http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-middle-east-20936800 

http://english.alarabiya.net/articles/2013/01/07/259048.html

4. 
  Saudi Arabia's Human Rights Commission says they 

believe he is 86                 

    http://edition.cnn.com/2013/01/09/world/meast/saudi-teen-divorce/index.html

       http://edition.cnn.com/2013/01/09/world/meast/saudi-teen-divorce/index.html

2.    
   47 year old weds 8 year old


http://edition.cnn.com/2009/WORLD/meast/04/30/saudi.child/index.html


1.

Help Human Rights activists in their efforts
 to put an end to Child Marriages

Help Saudi Arabian Enlightenment II

 8.  Saudi King Introduces Reforms…………

Small step, but a historic one!

We welcome the decision by His Majesty, the benevolent King Abdullah bin Abdul Aziz of Saudi Arabia empowering women

Twenty per cent quota has been set apart for women in the shura, the top consultative body.

As per the first amendment (Article 3), women will constitute twenty per cent out of the 150 Shura council members.

 As per the second amendment (Article 22), women will have all the membership rights in accordance with the tasks entrusted to them.

We recognize that the King is under heavy conservative – theological constraints.

Conforming to the tradition, Hijab(Veil) and separate places for office, equipments and prayer are insisted. This amply shows that real reform under Allaah’s scriptural guidance and Shariah is impossible. Another glaring fact is that even enlightened and benevolent rulers cannot bring about satisfactory changes in an Islamic regime where the majority of population is fanatic believers. Though this part of his decision does not come up to the modern humanistic standards and sophistication, we would like to temporarily ignore ‘unrealistic and extreme’ views.

We hope that the women nominated would do their utmost to utilize this opportunity opened before them for the benefit of  all women in the kingdom. 

We hope that their work will make it possible to re-interpret Islamic concepts so as to make them compatible with the 21^st century world order. We also hope that His Majesty the king will exert his good grace to bring in an atmosphere of fair chance for free thought and humanistic expressions which will prove beneficial to the welfare and satisfaction of the progressive sections of society.

We extend our best wishes to the King and the people of Saudi Arabia. We call upon the progressive section of the Saudi society to take upon themselves the task of educating the comparatively less fortunate among their people so as to herald a New Enlightenment.

It is up to the Humanist activists, Human Rights agencies and intellectuals with scientific outlook to create ways and means for educating the masses taking in to account the limitations of existing constitutional – legal situation.

Humanist individuals have the potential to create ever widening and increasing ripples. Let us be positive and optimistic.

 ................................................................................................................................

 We salute Saudi intellectuals,
 Turki al-Hamad, Raef Badawi, 
 Hamza Kashgari, Sultan Assalal ...
 Our brothers in the march for

 freedom  of expression

7. Defend Raif Badawy, a liberal Saudi ,

 accused of "Apostasy"

Saudi rights activist faces apostasy charge

http://uk.news.yahoo.com/saudi-rights-activist-faces-apostasy-charge-154957146.html

Send Appeals to authorities to drop all charges and release

him unconditionally:


 http://www.amnestyusa.org/sites/default/files/uaa00313.pdf

or

Sign the petition:

 http://www.change.org/petitions/free-and-safeguard-raif-badawy-a-liberal-saudi-accused-of-apostasy#

Spread the word..................................

Support the campaign for free expression

Watch the video:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GcvLJ3esGgc

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6. Women and Saudi Arabia

Saudi Arabia implements electronic tracking system for women

http://www.rawstory.com/rs/2012/11/22/saudi-arabia-implements-electronic-tracking-

system-for-women/

&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&

1. A letter to the Attorney General

 ( Hamza Kashgari )

By Anood AlQahtani, Clara A Connolly and Morag Fulton

 in

Free Hamza Kashgari 

https://www.facebook.com/groups/217865731642049/doc/224546050974017/

If all mankind minus one, were of one opinion, and only one person were of the contrary opinion, mankind would be no more justified in silencing that one person, than he, if he had the power, would be justified in silencing mankind.”

 –John Stuart Mill

What does it mean to feel one’s historical responsibility? It is that, after finishing reading this statement and this message, and posting your name at the end, you are reassured that the dream that captured Martin Luther King’s imagination, and Mahatma Gandhi’s, and Dorothy Irene Height’s, and all the free people of the world and in history, who have died without it. For the rights to freedom and justice and equality of their people have been achieved. Therefore we write this statement and this message to the “general prosecutor”, phrased in a manner in which he understands and that is understood by the next generation of our people, so thenext generation can understand the amount of damage and destruction that was caused by those that lived before them. Either they learn well from that lesson, or they can suffer the consequences. On the 12th of February 2012, the Saudi government returned our beloved friend Hamza Kashgari from Malaysia,overwhelmed, on a private jet after he ran from the oppression of the death threats he had received. The world never looked so grim for him. The reason why? Because he wrote what was on his mind, and said of the Prophet (pbuh), “I loved things about you and hated others,” and they became angry with him. How dare he say, “I hated things about you,” and expressed what’s in his soul? Then he said to the Prophet: “I will not pray for you and I will not bow to you and I will shake your hand as your equal,” and voices attacked him, many calls were made to kill him, his addresses were published and the majority of people went with it. Then the King issued an order to arrest him and subject him to the general prosecution and interrogation. Despite leaving the country mere hours before the fact, seeking refuge, it was still of no use as Malaysia deported and delivered him. At the same time as we write this statement and this message, our beloved friend Hamza Kashgari sits behind bars awaiting his unknown fate. The angry voices have not subsided to any extent, until the “general prosecutor” of Jeddah stated to a local paper that a court case is being made against Hamza and all those who encouraged, agreed, and otherwise supported him on Twitter. Then suddenly lists were established and peoples’ investigative courts were initiated; either you reject what he said and demand his execution, thus saving yourself but losing your soul, or go with the other way that many friends have gone, and focus on the fact that Hamza repented and retracted all that he said. In other words, through forgiveness, and you don’t win your soul here, you’d just be lying and deceiving yourself- for this way, you’re with the first group of people, but you accept his repentance and they don’t. So what stands behind the two aforementioned paths? It’s that no one else talks, that people become silent about what is inside them, and they agree with the others on matters that they don’t really agree with them on. That way they lose themselves and their individuality and assimilate with the masses and become hypocritical with them, even if they don’t approve and it’s out of their hands.

So in this message and this statement to the “general prosecutor”, who made the aforementioned statement, we say to him that we, who have written our names at the bottom of the message and in the comments, refuse Hamza’s trial and his being forced to repent and we demand he be released at once and protected. To make matters easier for you in trying to search and investigate and prosecute, we with our names encourage fighting an idea with another using embedded convictions that are strong, not frail. Not using arrests and punishment. We support all of those who would like to speak their minds and express what is in their souls ,and write and speak and raise their voices high with what they want to say. Not with what we want, and not with what the angry mob wants, and with all those international declarations signed to preserve human rights and freedoms, which were signed by the Saudigovernment but were worked against and deviated away from. We make sure to acknowledge that we often disagree with each other and criticize, to the extent that we tell you, the “general prosecutor”, that these names you see and read are ready to sacrifice their lives so any citizen can state and otherwise express their opinion.

 We believe that we are being tested now and either be or not be. We are either true to ourselves and our principles and values that we believe in, for our nation and its future, in calling for its rights and freedoms both in conscience and creed, for every citizen living around us, and standing up to the deviation of the government away from the international accords that it signed, guaranteeing human rights and freedoms.

Or else we are just posers with no principles or values, speaking what we don’t believe, and having no hope that the next generation would be able to resist this governmental deviation. Of freedom and justice and equality, terms thatpass by the awareness of many at this time, and of many others who have not felt the historical responsibility they have towards their nation.

we are :

Ebthal Al-Mubarak , Ahmad Osama Jambi , Anwar Ali Al-Sumaikhy, Albra’a Sameer Falodah, Anoud Bader Al-Qahtani, Alhumaidi Al-Obaisan, Jehad Mahmoud Al-amasy , Hagar Mahdy Hussain, Majid Dohan Al-yammy, Mohannad Adel Najjar, Nada Alqatar mohammad Al-Shehry, Nouf Hadi Al-Harbi, Salem Fawzi bejneed, Sara Bader Al-Qahtani,Sahel Mansour Alruwaily, Sultan Makki Al-sawwaf ,Abdullah Sulaiman Al-Harbi, Abdulrahman Ayman bajawdah , Abdullrahman musa Al-faqeeh , Abdulrahman Salman Al-ali, Abdulrahman harakaty , Essa Salman Al-feefy, Omer Al-tamimy, saleh hameed matar al-anezy, raya Muhammad al-shareef , thumar mahmoud al-marzougi, khobaib zuhair Osailan

* The video version of the letter :

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lRf9I07Lvgk&feature=youtu.be

Links to Petitions

2.

One of the first petition captions on this cause is:

Saudi government, Interpol and Malaysian government: Freedom for Hamza Kashgari

And the link to it :

http://www.change.org/petitions/saudi-government-interpol-and-malaysian-government-freedom-for-hamza-kashgari

Another one is:

3.

End Death Calls for

Saudi Poet and Blogger

And the link to it:

http://www.thepetitionsite.com/1/death-calls-for-saudi-poet-and-blogger/

All the friends are requested to furnish these links also
along with their requests for support to the cause. A smart 

activist can encourage 10 friends a day. Let us make our 

endeavor a historic success!

4.

Your attention is invited to a related event:

International Day of Action to Defend Blasphemers and Apostates

Kindly go to the link:

http://freethoughtblogs.com/maryamnamazie/2012/03/02/14-march-2012-international-day-of-action-to-defend-blasphemers-and-apostates/>
by Maryam Namazie

 <http://freethoughtblogs.com/maryamnamazie/?author=3676>

The following ten cases are highlighted:

Hamza Kashgari<http://freethoughtblogs.com/maryamnamazie/2012/02/13/freedom-for-hamza-kashgari/>,
Saudi Arabia: 23 year old Muslim, charged with blasphemy for tweeting about
Mohammad and women’s status
Alex Aan <http://ex-muslim.org.uk/2012/01/in-defence-of-alex-aan/>,
Indonesia: 30 year old atheist, charged with blasphemy for saying there is
no god on Facebook
Asia Bibi <http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-south-asia-11930849>, Pakistan:
45 year old mother of five, sentenced to death for blasphemy for ‘insulting
Mohammad’
Yousef Nadarkhani<http://communities.washingtontimes.com/neighborhood/middle-class-guy/2012/feb/26/iran-lynch-pastor-yousef-nadarkhani-say-nothing-do/>,
Iran: 34 year old sentenced to death for apostasy for converting to
Christianity
Nabil Karoui<http://amnesty.org/en/news/tunisia-must-drop-charges-against-tv-boss-over-persepolis-screening-2012-01-20>,
Tunisia: charged with ‘violating sacred values’ for showing the film
Persepolis
Saeed Malekpour<http://www.thestar.com/news/world/article/1132483--saeed-malekpour-a-canadian-on-iran-s-death-row>,
Iran: sentenced to death for ‘insulting and desecrating Islam’
Muhammad Samiullah<http://www.hrw.org/news/2011/02/02/pakistan-drop-blasphemy-charges-against-17-year-old>,
Pakistan: 17 year old, charged with blasphemy, for ‘derogatory remarks’
about Mohammad on his exams
Adel Imam<http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2012/feb/02/egyptian-comic-adel-imam-jailed-islam>,
Egypt: comic actor jailed for three months for ‘insulting Islam’Sarwar Penjweni<http://www.mesop.de/2012/02/01/protect-the-life-of-sarwar-penjweni/>,
Iraqi Kurdistan: threatened for researching Islam and Quranic texts.
Lanja Abdulla <http://www.warvin.org/english.aspx>, Iraqi Kurdistan:
Director of Warvin Foundation for Women Issues threatened at a public
meeting for challenging religious authority

The following are the initial signatories:

Houzan Mahmoud, Spokesperson of Organisation of Women’s Freedom in Iraq-UK Maryam Namazie, Spokesperson, One Law for All and Equal Rights Now – Organisation against Women’s Discrimination in Iran, UK Evelyne Accad, Professor Emeritus University of Illinois and Lebanese American University, USA Mina Ahadi, International Committee against Stoning, Germany Mahin Alipour, Director, Equal Rights Now – Organisation against Women’s Discrimination in Iran, Sweden Evan Darraji, Writer and Artist, Iraq Patty Debonitas, Iran Solidarity, UK Deeyah, Music Producer, Norway/USA Jani Diylan, Journalist, USA Tarek Fatah, Muslim Canadian Council, Canada Tahir Gora, Editor and Publisher, Canada Laura Guidetti, Feminist Activist (Marea), Italy Maria Hagberg, Chairperson of the Network against Honour Related Violence, Sweden/Iraq Asos Hardi, Director of Awene newspaper, Kurdistan-Iraq Farzaneh Hassan, Writer, Canada Marieme Helie Lucas, Secularism is a Women’s Issue, France Sundas Hoorain, Pakistani Human Rights Lawyer, UK Monica Lanfranco, Journalist (Marea), Italy Nahla Mahmoud, Director, Sudan: Non-Religious out loud, Sudanese Humanists Group, UK against Women’s Discrimination in Iran, UK Hassan Radwan, Management Committee, Council of Ex-Muslims of Britain, UK Nina Sankari, European Feminist Initiative, Poland Sohaila Sharifi, Women’s Rights Campaigner, UK Issam Shukri, Defence of Secularism and Civil Rights in Iraq, Canada Sargul Ahmad, Women Organization in Iraq, Canada Abbas Kamil, Unity Against Unemployment in Iraq, Iraq

*****************************************************************

5.

You are invited to watch a related video:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Vv7VdQNC8Yc

************************************************