By Almas Akhtar, TMO

Dearborn March 24, 2012. “Pakistan Republic Day” or “Yom e Pakistan” is celebrated every year on 23rd March to commemorate the Lahore Resolution of 1940. It was on that day 72 years back that the idea of a separate state for the Muslims of South Asia was proposed during the Muslim League’s Annual Conference in Lahore. It is a national holiday within the country with a full military and civil parade in Islamabad viewed by the President, Prime Ministers and Joint Chief of Staff. Pride of Performance Awards are awarded in the evening during a State dinner in the fields of Medicine, Science, Arts, Sports, Literature and Media.

[click here to view event photos]

Pakistanis all over the world celebrate this day in their adoptive countries. They pay homage to Mohammed Ali Jinnah…Father of the Nation, and Alama Iqbal the National Poet. Pakistani Embassies and Organizations all across the World plan special events to mark this day. The Pakistan Association of America (Michigan,USA) celebrated this day on 24thMarch 2012 at Dearborn Inn. The event started with a presentation of Pakistani National Anthem by a group of elementary school kids, dressed in traditional Pakistani dresses and waving green Pakistani Flags. It was followed by a performance of the “Star Spangled Banner” by Daniyal Ahmed, he mesmerized the crowd of over 550 people by his beautiful voice. It was followed by a  kids quiz show compromising of two teams; the MC for the evening, Mr Tahir Khan, asked questions about the history and culture of Pakistan. The quiz show was won by the “green team” comprised of Sania Ahmed, Aamna Ali and Billal Shahid. These kids were selected from the community. This was followed by a short video about the participants of Youth Art Competition. The winners of this art competition were Ali Imam, Naail Chaudry and Yumna Jahangir who won in their respective categories. The 16 participating kids were winners and honorable mentions of a previous competition which was sponsored by Pakistan Association. The paintings of these kids were displayed in the foyer for everyone to view, all paintings were created especially for the occasion. Medals were awarded to all participants and trophies to all the winners in these two youth competitions.

The youth program was followed by speeches by Congressmen Mr John Conyers and Mr Hansen Clark, and Congressional Candidate Mr Sabah Taj.  The President of the Pakistan Association of America (MI) Dr Adil Akhtar gave the keynote speech about the history of Pakistan Resolution and his vision for a “bigger and better Pakistan”! He later introduced all the PAA Board Members and thanked all the guests. The guests enjoyed dinner which was followed by a Musical Evening which featured famous singer Farhan Zaidi. Everyone enjoyed beautiful Pakistani national songs, ghazals from the sub continent and popular movie songs by this talented artist and his band.

Dr Asif Baig and his wife Dr Siraj Baig were one of the guests of the evening who thought that the evening was simply beautiful; they thanked the PAA team for providing such an event. Ms Jabeen Bukhari also had praising remarks for the PAA team, she enjoyed the entire evening. Ms Uzma Anjum a teacher from Troy also enjoyed the event and was very happy to see kids recognized during quizzes and art competition. Mr Jameel Arif a local businessman from Canton said he also enjoyed the evening and especially the music performance. Dr Diacnow, chief of Troy Beaumont who was also in attendance appreciated the hard work of the Pakistan Association and its members and volunteers.

The kids who were awarded medals and trophies in the “Quiz” and “Art” competition were happy to show off their medals to friends and families. Fouzan Qureshi a 7 year old from West Bloomfield and 9 year old Yumna Jahangir from Rochester Hills  were very proud of their achievements.

This unique and exquisite event concluded around 1:00am.

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By Wasim Khaliqdad

“Unless we nurture a culture of innovation in  the country and make innovation as part of the DNA  of our nation, it is impossible  to  compete with other countries in the rapidly changing  world.  Developed countries  have  used innovation as a tool to generate wealth for their nations and the  same model is  the  only option  for  the  developing nations.”

These views were expressed by Dr. Khurshid A. Qureshi, the main architect and initiator of  the  Digital  Innovation Competition and  Exhibition (DICE) while talking to News and Views.  Dr. Qureshi was recently visiting Pakistan in connection with the DICE 2011 held  at  University of Engineering and Technology, Peshawar.

A visionary leader and a true patriot, he has been working hard to create a culture of innovation  in Pakistan. Working closely with the Higher  Education Commission  (HEC)  and universities in Pakistan  for over 12 years now, he has been very instrumental in bringing free high-tech software worth millions of dollars to several major universities.

“Creating  a  culture  of innovation is our long-term vision, which requires revolution at all levels including not only universities but also colleges, vocational institutes  and high schools.

This is not something unique we are doing, every developed nation of the world has adopted the same strategy,” says  Dr. Qureshi who is a renowned Systems Engineering Expert based in USA and is currently working for a technology company as a Senior Technical Fellow. Prior to that, he has worked for Ford Motor Company as KBE and Systems specialist for more than 12 years. He has a PhD from University of Michigan, Ann Arbor USA, MBA from Xavier University USA and is a graduate of NED University and IBA Karachi.

Giving the example of USA, Dr. Qureshi emphasized that it is only because of innovation culture that  the country has been ruling the world in almost every field of life.

“Innovations  in  mass production in  automotive industry, like Ford and General Motors, resulted in generation of tons of wealth for the  nation.  Similarly, through  innovation, they brought revolution in aerospace and defense sectors. Then In the mid of 20 century the computer  revolution started and US also took a lead in that area.  Yahoo,  Apple and Google, are just  a few  other examples, which have  been generating tons of wealth for the nation through innovations. But the question is why these innovations don’t come from somewhere else.”

He said  that  the  power  of innovation is such that you make one new product and the nation can become self-sufficient, but that is impossible until a culture of innovation is fostered and that too systematically. “Then we must also remember that this process of innovation needs to be speedy because nations around the world now know its significance and are putting their best efforts to take the lead.  And for that,  use of digital technologies, instead of traditional  techniques, is indispensable.”

Elaborating the history of DICE in Pakistan, Dr. Qureshi said that first time it was held at the College of Electrical and Mechanical Engineering, NUST in 2007.

“Though  we managed  to  attract o nl y a f e w universities and the i n d u s t r y  participation was also limited, still I would say  it  was  a  good event to begin with.
In  2008,  DICE was organized at NED Karachi, where  participation  from universities  improved.

However, 2009 was the pivotal year of DICE success when it was  held  at  COMSATS Institute  of  Information Technology,  Lahore. Over 35 major  universities  from  all over the country participated and 65 projects were exhibited.

Lahore  Chamber of Commerce and Industry came on board and even some of the media  channels  wanted  to become strategic partners. The 2010 DICE at Institute of Space
Technology saw a significant representation of the industry and  several  MoUs  were signed.”

“Last but not the least, 2011 event at UET Peshawar was also a big success in terms of university  and  industry participation. Governor KPK inaugurated  the  event  and appreciated the concept. Even politicians  and  bureaucrats took great interest in the whole activity.  So I  think  that  the inertia has broken and things have really moved on since our humble beginning in 2007.”   

He said that during 2011 event, a separate fund was allocated to support the top projects of the  exhibition  every  year, which will help faculty  and teams  to  develop  their concepts  into  commercial products. “During his visit, Dr. Sohail Naqvi also appreciated the  projects and committed HEC’s funding  for  the  top innovative projects.”

Meanwhile, DICE chapter was also formed at UET Peshawar to  provide  universities  a platform for local events.

“We will have chapter events every year, most probably in April or May and the mega event  will be held around December. We are planning to create more chapters so that academia-industry linkage  is promoted at regional level.” Another exciting initiative of Dr.   Qureshi  is  DICE Innovation Portal, which he will  soon  be  launching  in collaboration with COMSATS (CIIT)  Islamabad,  who have developed the Portal. It will be a virtual match making forum for  industry  and  academia, and  a  directory  of research  projects being undertaken in different universities throughout  the country.

“All  students  and faculty members may become its members.

They will be able to place  their  projects online. Industry from around the  world  will  be  able  to become its members. Initially academia participation will be limited to Pakistan so that the country  benefits  ultimately.

Using  portal,  industry members will be able to send queries, which will be routed to appropriate members from academia, specialized in  that field.  Hence  university researchers  will be able  to know  and  work  on  real industry  needs. So  we  are holding events to  create an innovation culture and then bringing in tools to facilitate its implementation.”

Dr. Qureshi said that the UET Taxila will hold DICE 2012 while the University of Gujrat has reserved its place for the 2013 event. Starting 2012, in addition to engineering, DICE will be open to all domains and disciplines  such  as  social sciences,  physical  sciences, medical  sciences,  arts  and humanities.

“Though we are far from true academia-industry  linkage, still I can say with certainty that we have got on to the right track and things have begun to change.”

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By Parvez Fatteh, Founder of http://sportingummah.com, sports@muslimobserver.com

Louisville University finished the game with a 23-8 run as Gorgui Dieng and the Cardinals defeated the University of Florida 72-68 in the quarterfinals of the Men’s NCAA Basketball Tournament. The victory sent Louisville into the coveted Final Four.

Senegal’s Dieng contributed eight points, six rebounds, and one blocked shot. But his main contribution did not show up in the box score as he remained his usual defensive presence underneath the basket. This was even more evident the game before in which Dieng had seven blocked shots against Michigan State University. Now the Cardinals take on in-state rival University of Kentucky in the Final Four.

Meanwhile, Dieng’s Muslim brother, Scoop Jardine, was not as fortunate in his quarterfinal game. Jardine’s and his Syracuse University Orangemen fell to Ohio State University 77-70. Jardine, for his part, poured in 14 points, 6 assists, and 1 steal in his final college basketball game. Now his focus becomes the NBA Draft in June as he tries to take the difficult step into professional basketball.

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By Laura Fawaz, TMO

Dearborn Heights, MI–In 2006, running as the only Muslim Judge, David Turfe had his work cut out for him, but he lived up to the challenge with an insistent door-to-door campaign to physically get the citizens out to vote.

Many inside and outside of the courtroom know Judge Turfe as being balanced and fair.  His peers in the Michigan Supreme Court agreed by appointing him as a Chief Judge last November.  Their choice mirrors the recognition from the Michigan Supreme Court in the way that he manages his courtroom.

Judge Turfe assures the people that he will not stop there, “I will be out there working hard for every vote, just like I did in the first campaign,” Judge Turfe said.

Judge Turfe is running for his second term in the 20th District Court, in Dearborn Heights, MI.  The population of Muslim Americans, and Arab-Americans in Dearborn Heights is only growing.  Thus many feel as though having a Muslim judge to serve this population will assist the citizens to entrust their government.  Looking beyond religion and race, supporters of Judge Turfe say that their choice to elect him is for his integrity, fairness, and dedication to the community.

Last Thursday, a fundraising event was held to re-elect Judge Turfe.  Supported by his friends and family, Turfe, his wife Fay, and father Mohamed, personally welcomed all attendees as they entered this event.  The gathering began with mingling by all attending city officials, citizens and business leaders. 

One of the first speakers introduced was Attorney General Bill Schuette, who came from Midland, MI to personally give his endorsement for Judge Turfe.  Just before Judge Turfe spoke, his oldest son, Tarek introduced him, and gave a few words on being able to vote this year and trusting his vote for 20th District Court Judge with his father.  Once Judge Turfe took the podium, he first thanked all of his supporters for attending, and mentioned all of his collogues within the 20th District Court by, by name, including the Mayor of Dearborn Heights, Mr. Dan Paletko. 

Judge Turfe and his wife Fay are the proud parents of four sons within the Crestwood School District.  Check out the photo gallery from the fundraising event at www.muslimobserver.com.

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Mosque permission denied in Lake County

CLERMONT,FL–Lake County officials denied a Muslim group permission to build a mosque in Clermont. In the unanimous decision the commissioners cited traffic concerns over the denial. They also clarified that their decision wasn’t based on religious reasons.

The Islamic Center of Clermont hoped to build a  25,000 square feet facility  on its five-acre property. They had also planned to have 199 parking spaces.

One of the applicants wasn’t convinced by the commisioners’ arguments. “I appreciate they said they were not making this a religious thing, but we are getting shut down, and I question that when three churches were allowed to get zoning in that very vicinity,”he told the 13 News Channel.

Teaneck asked to add Muslim holidays

TEANECK,NJ–A Muslim group in Teaneck is asking the township to add the two Muslim holidays to the school board’s calendar. Waheed Khalid, president of the New Jersey Chapter of the American Muslim Union, said he has asked the school board to observe the first day of Eid al Fitr, which marks the end of Ramadan, and Eid al Adha, which marks the Haj pilgrimage to Mecca. He said the confusion over the moonsighting can be corrected by opting for the calculation method.

However, not everyone in the Muslim community is supportive of the idea. Mayor Mohammed Hameeduddin told the local press that most Muslims in the area refuse to abandon the lunar calendar. Muslim students currently are allowed to miss school on the two days as allowed excuses.

Imam Abdul Muqtadir Sikander, of the Nida-ul-Islam mosque, has also written to media opposing the demand.

Event to look at the influence of American Muslims

The American Islamic Congress will present “Faith, Money, Power: Leveraging the Buying Power and Influence of American Muslims” on April 3 in Washington, D.C. This pioneering forum will present information and insights on the buying power, demographics, and civic engagement of American Muslims. The discussion will focus on the trends shaping the American Muslim market, efficacy of targeted marketing and branding strategies, as well as tactics for forging strong relationships with a new generation of young, educated and savvy consumers and voters. 

The event will be held on April 3rd from 8:30 am to 12 pm at the Carnegie Institute of Science in Washington D.C.

Speakers at the event include Sarab Al-Jijakli, Account Director for Ogilvy Noor; Besheer Mohamed, Research Associate for The Pew Research Center Forum on Religion & Public Life;Rafi-uddin Shikoh, Managing Director and Founder of Dinar Standard; and John T. Pinna, Director of Government & International Relations for the American Islamic Congress.

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By Adil James, TMO

This year’s CAIR banquet found generous donations of about $130,000 this past Sunday at the Islamic Center of America.  The banquet showed CAIR’s continuing move towards proactive litigation rather than press interviews as a focus of its efforts, in its description of the work of the past year and in its selection of keynote speaker.  The keynote speaker was attorney Sahar Aziz, who also received CAIR-MI’s “Civil Rights Defender Award.”

CAIR’s choice of a secular Muslim keynote speaker and a non-Muslim MC, shows its underlying strategy of reaching out to non-Muslim communities as a means of serving its civil rights goals of protecting Muslims, and the presence of many lawyers among the audience and speakers showed its new emphasis on litigation as a means of securing the rights of Muslims.

Charismatic speaker Siraj Wahhaj spoke as well, providing entertaining fundraising for the audience.

CAIR-MI’s increasing influence was shown by its selection of a prominent journalist as its MC, namely the prominent journalist Jack Lessenberry, Michigan Radio’s senior political analyst.  Lessenberry was named Journalist of the Year in 2002 by the Metropolitan Detroit Chapter of the Society of Professional Journalists.

Executive Director Dawud Walid spoke on the movement of CAIR towards litigation as a strategy, mentioning CAIR Michigan’s attorney Lena Masry’s filing of a federal lawsuit against the discriminatory barring by Pittsfield Township of an Islamic Academy that had been planned for that area.

Mr. Walid mentioned also the discriminatory practices of customs border agents who have in the past asked intrusive and inappropriate questions about the religious (non-political) practices of Muslims who fall under their influence.

He went on to explain that the vision of CAIR Michigan is to “tear down discrimination, eradicate the disease by attacking the structures” that serve to bully innocent Americans like Trayvon Martin (recently tragically murdered by a man who was not even arrested after following, stalking, and gunning down the unarmed Martin).

Mr. Walid asked for the prayers of those in attendance, saying that was the real weapon of the mu`min, rather than guns or other physical weapons.

Siraj Wahhaj is a powerful speaker.  He speaks very intelligently, with knowledge of Islam, and with an engaging sense of humor.

He explained that he had become so well known on account of his fundraising activities that one day as he began to speak he heard a young girl in the audience say “Daddy, do we have to give money again?”

He argued that prophets are sent when there is something wrong in the world.  Nuh (as), Ibrahim (as), Musa (as), Eissa (as), and Prophet Muhammad (s) were all sent to bring the world from darkness into light.

Analogously, he argued, service organizations within the United States sprang up to defend the oppressed against oppressors.  The NAACP was started over 100 years ao, he said, because of the oppression of black people.  Similarly, CAIR had come into existence to defend Muslim people against the oppression of bigots, ignorance, and intolerance.

He then went into a very effective and entertaining explanation of why it was better to give money before leaving dunya in the name of Allah’s path.

But the keynote speaker at the event was the prominent and accomplished lawyer Sahar Aziz, who joined the faculty of Texas Wesleyan University School of Law in 2011, and who had previously served as an adjunct professor at Georgetown University Law Center where she taught national security and civil rights law.

She previously served as an attorney in a Washington DC law firm, litigating class action lawsuits on gender discrimination.

Ms. Aziz spoke at length on the importance of activism to protect the civil and human rights of Muslims and others in the United States.

She spoke initially about famous people who had stood up against injustice courageously, including such famous people as Derrick Bell, Sojourner Truth, Malcolm X, Martin Luther King, WEB Dubois, and Rosa Parks, emphasizing that during their lives these people were persecuted, not celebrated.

Ms. Aziz spoke about her own journey to the point where she realized she would do what she could to stand up against discrimination, despite the persecution that she expected to suffer as a result.

“Not one of us doesn’t have scars on our backs,” she said.  Nevertheless we insist to be judged on the content of our character and not through guilt by association.

It was through her travels to the outside world that she realized the special power of American cultural diversity, of the “freedom from old traditions that hold you back,” and she learned a newfound commitment to American values.

She emphasized that the bigots who would seek to strip Muslims of their rights and even their citizenship would also do the same to other minorities, and that in fact the true threat to America’s ethics is from those intolerant people.

“We must work across lines to hold the government accountable for breaches of our rights,” she said.

She advised the American Muslim community to embrace the differences within it, to unify under the common goal of common defense.

“The Muslim community must recognize that Muslim women deserve a place at the table,” she also said.

The theme that ran through her speech was that Muslims must stand up against discrimination.

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MARSEILLE, 18 July 2011 (IRIN) – Ali Ghanai arrived in France from Tunisia in March, keen to escape poverty, see a bit of the world and provide for his family in a village in the impoverished south, but the 24-year-old stone mason now wants to return home, heavily disillusioned after weeks of harassment by the French authorities, sleeping rough and living off the kindness of strangers.

“It has not been easy”, Ali told IRIN. “France has not worked out for me.”

Sitting with Tunisian friends at a pavement café in downtown Marseille, Ali explained what had gone wrong over the past four months. Like thousands of other Tunisians, he had booked a passage to Italy, paying 1,000 dinars (US$700) for a place on a boat. “It was a difficult crossing, I saw people drown in front of me,” Ali recalled. “But I am still grateful to the man who got me out.”

On arrival, the Italian authorities gave him a document, entitling him to six months visa-free travel in European Union (EU) countries that are signatories of the Schengen Agreement, including France. Italy had already received thousands of migrants from Tunisia, mainly on the southern Mediterranean island of Lampedusa.

Italian President Silvio Berlusconi had called on Italy’s European neighbours to share the load, but France accused Italy of recklessly sending immigrants across its borders, without formalizing their status.

Like many other Tunisians, Ali boarded a train to France without difficulty, but arrived in the French city of Nice to be greeted by a strong-armed police presence at the railway stations. The police made it clear he was just another `sans papiers’, an immigrant with no legal status. Arrest, detention and summary expulsion followed. Ali tried the journey again, with the same result. He eventually got over to Marseille, but had no real accommodation and no job.

Listening sympathetically to Ghanai, was Monder Harzali, Tunisia-born resident of Marseille for 30 years. Monder is an unambiguous supporter of the “Arab Spring”. He acknowledged there was a lot of uncertainty ahead, with different forces now vying for power and influence, but remained optimistic about Tunisia’s prospects.

“People wanted change and that is normal,” Monder told IRIN. “But a revolution doesn’t come overnight. There is a price you have to pay for liberty. The main thing is: we are free, we are no longer afraid.” Even in Marseille, Monder said, you could feel an atmosphere of control in the old days.

“I was never comfortable walking past the Tunisian consulate here because you knew there were agents of the ruling party around, keeping tabs on people,” he said. “I deliberately took no interest in politics.”

Struggling in Marseille

Monder acknowledged there was still a general wariness about Ben Ali (former president) loyalists at large, spying on their compatriots, but said the changes in Tunisia had given the Tunisian community in Marseille a new sense of focus and solidarity. He said Tunisians of his generation owed much to the young activists who had taken to the streets and he wanted to help those coming to France. But he warned against unrealistic expectations based on ignorance.

“These are young people with a real sense of adventure,” he explained. “But they set off without thinking things through. Where they are coming from, they could count on the support of their families, always find enough to eat. They get here and it is a real disappointment. They can’t believe that they will be treated like criminals.”

The Maghrebian communities are long established in Marseille, particularly Algerians. But unemployment runs at 40 percent in some parts of the city and even long-term immigrants often have little enough to get by. Residents resent the stereotyped image of Marseille as a centre for organized crime and drug trafficking, but concede that crime rates are high and job prospects extremely limited.

For immigrants sleeping out in the open, or in the train station, there are obvious security threats, both from criminals and over-zealous police.

Mhedebi Bechir, an activist with the French Ligue des Droits de l’Homme (Human Rights League – LDH), one of several organizations to lobby for immigrants’ rights, said local authorities had done little when it came to providing food and shelter for newcomers. “Occasionally you will get a promise that a gymnasium will be made available, or something like that, but it’s not much”, Mhedebi told IRIN.
“Then again, you will find someone who cares, like a café owner who will quietly slip out a consignment of sandwiches.”

Marseille has traditionally tolerated squatters, but Mhedebi says there has been a clampdown, with fewer buildings now available. “So you have people sleeping rough and that leads to health problems,” he said. “They get cold, they have headaches. It all gets very stressful. The new arrivals feel lost, shocked, abandoned.”

Immigrants talk of their reluctance to return home with empty pockets, particularly when a family has made many sacrifices to help buy a sea passage and the expectation is that the traveller will provide.

The Sarkozy effect

Immigrant welfare groups say government policy has become increasingly restrictive, particularly when it comes to securing legal documents for the `sans papiers’. France’s recent record on the handling of immigration issues has generated fierce criticism outside the country. There has been particular concern about the Besson Law, named after former Immigration Minister Eric Besson, adopted in May 2011, and the fifth immigration law introduced by France in seven years.

Besson maintained he wanted to regulate and coordinate, not persecute, arguing: “We want to promote legal immigration, particularly for work. We want to fight against the networks of illegal immigration and we also want to harmonize our policies with regards to asylum-seekers, cooperating with the source countries that migrants come from.”

But human rights campaigners warned that France was putting itself at odds with the EU’s own Freedom of Movement directives and warned that France’s right to expel people on public security grounds was in danger of being gravely abused.

Jean-Pierre Chevalié heads the regional branch of the Comité inter-mouvements auprès des évacuées (CIMADE), which began life working for evacuees and refugees in the 1930s. Chevalié says a key part of CIMADE’s work is helping “regularize” the status of immigrants.

“It has become increasingly difficult, particularly in the time of Nicolas Sarkozy, both as minister of interior and then president. The government’s line is now: There are too many immigrants in France, we should send them all away. It is pure electoralism… They think they can blame all France’s problems on immigrants. The reality is that the economy depends heavily on an immigrantworkforce,” he said.

‘’We have to think now, now, not mid-term…The Arab Spring could signal an end to the crony capitalism which was blocking so much economic development in the past’’

In the past, the `sans papiers’ could submit documents to the local administration, or préfecture, knowing their documents would be stamped and their right to stay granted. Chevalié says the system is now much more arbitrary, and préfectures can now decide to refuse the right to stay. “An immigrant without documents can now approach the authorities knowing he or she may be accepted or deported”.

Chevalié deplored the use of violence by police in enforcing deportation orders. He also warned of the police using high profile round-ups, swooping on areas known to house illegal immigrants, looking to boost their own arrest records. But while accusing Sarkozy and others of scare-mongering on immigration, Chevalié says France is not necessarily becoming more xenophobic and insular.

“There is no risk of an `invasion’, that is just not true”, he stressed. “When you talk to people about immigration issues, they voice their fears. But you quickly realize that they have the wrong facts, they are arguing from false premises. Deep down, they are not really racist.”

While CIMADE, the LDH and others take Sarkozy to task for using the immigration card as a pre-elections tactic, the far right Front Nationale (National Front – FN) says both Sarkozy’s Union pour un Mouvement Populaire, (Union for a Popular Movement – UMP) and the main opposition Partie Socialiste (PS) have been dangerously lax in failing to protect French sovereignty and want a much more robust approach on immigration.

Wanting to close the door

Founded in 1972, the FN was seen for years as a fringe movement, crudely racist and opportunistic, incapable of building a serious political base. But in 2002, FN leader Jean-Marie Le Pen saw off PS candidate Lionel Jospin in the first round of the presidential elections and stood against incumbent President Jacques Chirac in the second round. Le Pen’s daughter, Marine, will be standing in 2012 and believes the party will make a strong showing.

Political observers credit Marine with modernizing the party’s image and softening its message. Her focus is rarely on immigrants per se, much more on the threat to French values from Islam. She paid a controversial visit to Lampedusa where Africans fleeing violence in Libya are landing, in March, voicing her support for the “Arab Spring”, but warning against a new wave of immigration.
“We have nothing against immigrants, but our country has a colossal debt which means we can’t allow extra immigrants in”, explained Laurent Comas, the FN’s secretary-general for the southern Bouches-du-Rhône department. “France is inundated and we can’t take in the whole world.”

Speaking in his office in Marseille, just five minutes’ walk from a quartier dominated by communities from North and West Africa, Comas said the FN’s position had been unfairly caricatured by its enemies as racist and divisive when the party was simply trying to defend France’s national identity.

The FN has been heavily criticized locally for using the slogan “Marseille, not Algiers”, but Comas talked angrily of the Algerian national flag being unfurled at local weddings.
He stressed the FN’s support for freedom of worship, but accused local authorities of making too many concessions to Muslim leaders often more radical than their co-believers, notably in their handling of the construction of Marseille’s new mosque, often referred to as the “Cathedral Mosque”, because of its scale.

For Comas, the UMP and PS are interchangeable, lazily supporting a destructive globalization, foisting an unwanted European constitution on the French and failing to stand up to Muslim radicals. “Our civilization is losing its substance,” Comas complained. “Our moral values are disappearing. Immigration compromises our civilization and ruins our economy.”

The case for integration

Mats Karlsson, head of the Marseille-based Centre for Mediterranean Integration (CMI) takes a very different view. The CMI recently hosted a conference on “Responding to the Challenges of the Arab Spring”, looking at issues like trade, investment and employment. Karlsson draws parallels between the “Arab Spring” and the collapse of Communism in the former Eastern bloc, and says developments in North Africa should force the EU to speed up their plans for partnership.

“We have to think now, now, not mid-term,” Karlsson told IRIN, highlighting the importance of cross-Mediterranean ties, particularly in areas like fishing, tourism and disaster risk management. “The Arab Spring could signal an end to the crony capitalism which was blocking so much economic development in the past.”

Calling for a carefully managed integration, dialogue, the involvement of civil society and an end to corruption, he added: “If we are going to succeed after Ben Ali, after Mubarak, we are going to have to have a framework that has to be different. Economic transformation and regional integration are how you create peace, stability and find a way we can all live together in the future.”

cs/eo/cb

Oman, located strategically on the opposite side of the Strait of Hormuz from Iran, said the risk of military conflict between Tehran and the West was rising but there was still plenty of opportunity to negotiate peace.

Iran has repeatedly denied charges by Western nations it is developing the capability to build nuclear weapons, but the US and European Union have recently imposed tougher sanctions in an effort to convince Tehran to curb its nuclear programme.

“It is in the interest of both sides to come to the middle road,” Yousuf bin Alawi bin Abdullah, the sultanate’s minister responsible for foreign affairs, said at the Foreign Ministry in Muscat.
“We can see that the threat of an unfortunate flash of military confrontation is more possible rather than it is remote.”

Oman on several occasions has acted as an intermediary between Iran and the West.

Last year, Oman’s Sultan Qaboos facilitated the release of two US hikers held by Tehran for spying, and three French aid workers held hostage by Yemeni tribesmen were freed in November after Oman negotiated their release.

Speculation has grown in recent months that Israel, with or without US support, may launch some form of pre-emptive military strike against Iranian nuclear installations, which the Jewish state sees as a threat to its existence.

Talks over its nuclear programme have been on and off over the years, but last week Iran said it would welcome a new round of nuclear negotiations with six world powers.
Iran spooked oil markets in late December when it threatened to close the Strait of Hormuz, where a fifth of global oil exports pass, if there were any military strikes against the country or its nuclear facilities.

Asked about the risk of a Western military strike on Iran, Abdullah said: “Still there is time, but not long, to seize opportunities where the six (powers) and Iran can meet at a middle road to find a solution to this conflict.”

He said there was also a risk Western concerns over Iran’s nuclear programme could get out of hand, and called for more focus on establishing facts on the ground.

In office since 1982, Abdullah said Oman was doing its best to secure the Strait of Hormuz, through which an average of 14 crude oil tankers pass each day. The US Fifth Fleet, based in Bahrain, regularly patrols Gulf waters and frequently passes through the strait.

“We are doing our best to keep this waterway open for the benefit of international trade and flow of energy to the rest of the world,” Abdullah said. “But there is no guarantee, once the situation is broken, we cannot offer alternatives.”

Wearing a traditional curved silver dagger in his belt, a white robe and a “massar” (turban) with golden embroidery, Abdullah said Oman would continue to offer its services as a regional broker.

Gulf Times

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Shaima Alawadi was found beaten unconscious next to a note saying: “Go back to your country”

Akbar Ahmed on what it means to be a Muslim in the US The struggle to stop the alienation of US Muslims An Iraqi-American woman who was beaten to death at her home in San Diego is to be flown to Iraq for burial, a Muslim leader who knows the family has said.

Imam Husham al-Husainy told the Detroit Free-Press that the Iraqi government was paying to repatriate her.

Shaima Alawadi, 32, was found unconscious last Wednesday by her 17-year-old daughter on the floor of their dining room in El Cajon.

A note was left next to her saying: “Go back to your country, you terrorist.”

Ms Alawadi, a mother of five who had lived in the US since the 1990s, was taken off a life-support system on Saturday.

Hate crime?

Investigators are looking into the possibility that the attack was racially motivated.

Ms Alawadi’s daughter, Fatima al-Himidi, told US news network CNN that an earlier note had been left at the house saying: “This is our country, not yours, you terrorists.”
Her mother apparently dismissed the note as a child’s prank and did not report it to the authorities.

Ms Alawadi reportedly came from a Shia Muslim background and wore a headscarf.

The family had moved recently to El Cajon, near San Diego, from Michigan. The town has one of America’s largest Iraqi communities.

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By Angus McDowall

RIYADH (Reuters) – More than 1 million Saudi Arabians are now receiving unemployment benefit, the labor ministry said on Wednesday, underlining a source of potential discontent that the rulers of the world’s top oil exporter are keen to contain.

The “Hafiz” program, which pays unemployed Saudis 2,000 riyals ($533) a month for up to one year, was announced by King Abdullah during the Arab uprisings last spring and introduced in late 2011.

“The number of beneficiaries this month rose by 40 percent from last month and by 170 percent from December when the program started to pay the monthly subsidy,” said the official Saudi Press Agency, quoting Khaled al-Ajmi, the Labor Ministry official in charge of Hafiz.

Thanks to a decades-long population boom, the Saudi government can no longer afford to reduce unemployment by creating public sector jobs. Last year’s revolutions in Egypt, Tunisia, Libya, Yemen and Syria were blamed by some on high youth unemployment.

Officially the kingdom’s unemployment rate is 10.5 percent, but that figure does not include the large numbers of working-age Saudis not counted as part of the labor force.

Recent government figures show the labor force participation rate, meaning people who are in jobs or who say they are looking for work, is 36.4 percent, about half the global average, say economists.
Jeddah-based Arab News reported on Wednesday that the head of a parallel unemployment program run by the Labor Ministry said joblessness cost the government 5.5 billion riyals a year.

Around 90 percent of Saudis in work are employed by the government, while 90 percent of jobs in private companies are filled by around 8 million foreigners.

Expatriates tend to fill higher-paying technical roles for which many Saudis lack the experience, and very low-paying jobs that many Saudis see as menial.

In January, Labor Minister Adel al-Fakeih said the conservative Islamic kingdom needed to create 3 million jobs for Saudi nationals by 2015 and 6 million jobs by 2030, partly through the “Saudization” of work now being done by expatriates.

Last year Saudi Arabia’s economy grew by 6.8 percent, buoyed by strong oil revenues and a government spending spree. There are about 18 million Saudi nationals in the country.

JOBLESS WOMEN

More than 80 percent of people receiving unemployment benefit are women, said SPA. Despite opposition from powerful religious conservatives, the government is pushing for more Saudi women to enter the job market.

It has designated women-only working environments including lingerie and cosmetics shops.

Some government critics say the Hafiz program might discourage Saudis from looking for jobs in the private sector, where salaries are sometimes lower than the unemployment benefit.

However, economists say it might also push Saudis currently listed as out of the labor force to register as unemployed, meaning the government will develop a more accurate picture of jobless levels.
Those receiving benefits are added to a new national employment database that lists people seeking work alongside details of their qualifications, education and employment history to help match them with suitable employers.

In addition to the Hafiz program, the government has also introduced a new system of quotas for Saudi versus foreign employees, set according to the size and sector of each company.

However, the official quoted by Arab News said that half of all private companies in the Middle East’s largest economy were in the ministry’s lowest bracket of compliance with Saudisation quotas.

Companies that perform badly in the quota system will be prevented from acquiring visas for new foreign employees.

The Labor Ministry has also sponsored career fairs in the kingdom’s largest cities where it vets job seekers before pairing them with potential employers.

That initiative is aimed at reassuring private companies, which have traditionally seen imported labor as cheaper and more reliable than Saudi workers, that job candidates will be qualified for any positions on offer.

(Reporting By Angus McDowall; Editing by Ruth Pitchford)