Muslim social worker & philanthropist Abdul Sattar Edhi wins top UN prize for tolerance and non-violence

UNITED NATIONS: Abdul Sattar Edhi of Pakistan and a Belgian human rights defender were Tuesday awarded a prestigious United Nations prize for their work in promoting tolerance and non-violence.

Edhi, the philanthropist, and Franois Houtart of Belgium were awarded the UN Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO)-Madanjeet Singh Prize on the unanimous recommendation of an international jury to UNESCO Director-General Koochiro Matsuura, according to an announcement in Paris.

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Dedicated to advancing tolerance in the arts, education, culture, science and communications, the prize was created in 1995 on the 125th anniversary of the birth of Mahatma Gandhi, with the help of Indian writer and diplomat Madanjeet Singh, who is also a UNESCO Goodwill Ambassador. It is awarded every two years to individuals or institutions for outstanding contributions towards its goals.

Edhi, one of the most active philanthropists in Pakistan through his Edhi Foundation, a non-profit social welfare programme with over 300 centres, received the accolade for life-long efforts to improve the conditions of the most disadvantaged groups in Pakistan and South Asia, and promote human dignity, human rights, mutual respect and tolerance, according to UNESCO press release.

Read the whole article at:
http://www.dawn.com/wps/wcm/connect/dawn-content-library/dawn/news/art-culture/09-edhi-wins-top-un-prize-for-non-violence---szh-04

Bangladesh's Madrassas bring empowerment, education to girls

Al Jazeera's Nicolas Haque reports from Dhaka, the capital, where over the past few years the government has been implementing a series of reforms to include more secular subjects in the curriculum and increase the numbers of female students.

The authorities have been offering incentives - providing cash to cover 80 per cent of scholastic costs - to see their reforms through.

This is proving to be hugely successful, bringing most madrassas under state supervision; religious schools that are largely funded by the government now follow both the state and religious curricula.

Zainul Abedine, the headmaster of the country's largest Islamic school, says: "In order to access government funds, many madrassas have opened their syllabus to other subjects like teaching languages such as English or Bengali. The number of madrassas have multiplied and so have the [numbers of] students".

With more then six million students currently enrolled, the madrassa system in Bangladesh is the second-largest in the world and is likely to get even larger as religious institutions open their doors to female students for the first time.

Read the whole article at:
http://english.aljazeera.net/focus/2009/10/20091017828296410.html

Muslim students give back by serving the homeless monthly

Every other Friday during the school year for the past four years, a group of Muslim students have gathered in a small mosque gymnasium to give back to the community.

The goal is to uphold the teachings of Islam, but its most recent meeting held even more significance.

Project Downtown, hosted by the MSU Muslim Students’ Association, or MSA, is a biweekly gathering where participants make lunches for the homeless in Lansing shelters, complete with bologna sandwiches, grapes and cookies for desert.

The group chose Sept. 11 — the 8th anniversary of the World Trade Center attacks — to begin the year’s round of visits to local shelters as part of a nationwide effort to demonstrate that Muslims shouldn’t be held to the stereotype established by a few extremists, said Authra Khreis, MSA’s community service head.

“What happened on Sept. 11, that wasn’t Islam, that’s not what it’s about,” said Khreis, a medical technology junior. “Serving God is serving others in need.”

Read the whole article at:
http://www.statenews.com/index.php/article/2009/09/muslim_students_give_back_at_homeless_shelter

Muslim effort helps homeless on Humanitarian Day

ONTARIO - The increased homeless population in the past couple of years has prompted organizers of Humanitarian Day to bring their event to the Inland Empire for the first time.

Today's event will be hosted by the 2009 Coalition to Preserve Human Dignity, a social network of people, organizations and sponsors.

Humanitarian Day is from 11 to 1 p.m. at Mercy House, 905 E. Holt Blvd. in Ontario

"We chose Ontario because of the growing population of homeless in the area. The location of our event, Mercy House, is but a couple of blocks from the 'Tent City' where so many homeless live," said Fuad M. Dadabhoy co-founder and member of the Board of Directors of UPLIFT Charity, Inc.

Naim Shah Jr, executive director of the Intellect, Love, Mercy Foundation, said, "Our goal is give hope and fulfill a divine obligation to assist the homeless and humanity."

The coalition plans to serve lunch to about 200 homeless people as well as hand out gift bags with water bottles, snack packs, new T-shirts, hygiene kits, toys as well as free health screenings.

Organizers have been planning the event for the past few months, Shah said.

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Humanitarian Day was established 10 years ago to serve the homeless population with a goal to "convert one day into a life's mission," he said.

ILM Foundation founder Imam Saadiq Saafir was asked by hundreds of Muslims after the terrorist attacks on Sept. 11, what they could do to counter the negative image being portrayed in the media about Muslims, Shah said.

It was then that Saadiq told the Muslim community that they don't have to say anything, rather they need to do something, Shah said.

That something became Humanitarian Day, which has served more than 60,000 people since 2001, he said.

"The essence of Humanitarian Day is not what we serve, but the spirit of dignity and respect in how it is served," Shah said. "Those who are poor have the right to receive the best of our charity and Humanitarian Day is one way it is expressed during Muslims most scared month of Ramadan."

Read the whole article at:
http://www.dailybulletin.com/ci_13270535

Muslim and Christian women participate in peace seminar

MONROVIA – As part of ongoing efforts to sustain peace and stability in the country, more than 150 Christian and Muslim women have participated in a three-day reconciliation and peace-building seminar in Monrovia.

Held at the Sinkor headquarters of the Young Women Christian Association (YWCA), the seminar was also aimed at promoting good governance, justice and the rule of law in the country.

The weekend program was part of a series of similar peace-building and reconciliation programs being held nationwide.

Participants discussed a wide range of issues, including the need for networking and collaboration among them as it related to sustainable women’s contributions to peace-building and development in Liberia.

They also discussed the need for all Liberians to get involved in the rebuilding of the country regardless of their tribal, religious, ethnic, sectarian or other persuasions.

The seminar was held under the auspices of the Christian and Muslim Women of Liberia for Peace, established in 2003.

The group is largely credited for its outstanding engagement and work with other women in the areas of Peace-building, Counseling and Reconciliation throughout the country.

Read the whole article at:
http://www.liberianobserver.com/node/1175

Muslims in European 'peace drive'

A groundbreaking conference for young Muslims from across Europe is taking place in Switzerland.

Delegates from seven countries have been brought together by the organisation Initiatives of Change, which has a long history of promoting peace on the continent.

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One of the visiting scholars, Shaykh Ibrahim Mogra, says the event provides an important opportunity for European Muslims to recognise their own diversity.

The participants come from a range of African, Middle Eastern and Asian family backgrounds.

Many are students; others are in full-time work, often with charities or voluntary organisations.

All here agree that Islam is a religion of peace - and Shaykh Mogra expresses irritation at any suggestion that such events are strong on rhetoric but short on practical outcomes.

"Sadly the situation for Muslims is: you're damned if you do, and you're damned if you don't. I would rather Muslims talk about peace, and try and become peacemakers, than listen to all the nonsense about Muslims being terrorists and violent extremists.

"We are truly, we believe, duty-bound to make sure that peace prevails on this planet."

Read the whole article at:
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/europe/8195574.stm

13-year-old Conneticut Muslim headed to college in the fall

A 13-year-old young Muslim from New Haven, Connecticut will be heading to college this fall. She teaches Arabic at her local mosque:
http://www.youtube. com/watch? v=zpZcoRMnYeA