The burqa ban passed by the cabinet today is drawing mostly negative reactions, both among Muslim organisations and political parties. A large Turkish interest group, IOT, says the government hasn’t considered the ban’s consequences. “Women who currently only venture outside, or are allowed to go outside, wearing a burqa, will […]
The Jakarta Post Rights activists and religious leaders have urged President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono to dismiss Religious Affairs Minister Suryadharma Ali for his frequent statements that could fuel persecution against minority groups in the country. “Suryadharma doesn’t deserve the post because he has encouraged discrimination against Shiite by saying that […]
Atheism does not violate Pancasila. All Indonesians may consciously and rationally choose their own beliefs. The country’s very foundation protects their right to do so.’ Alexander Aan, a civil servant […]
Press TV: The Saturday protest, organized by the leftist New Nationalist Alliance (Bayan), was staged to denounce the ongoing negotiations between Manila and Washington to deploy more US troops and […]
In Arab countries around the Middle East, the Christian population is decreasing. In Pakistan, Shiites and Sunni engage in bloody battles, and the Ahmadiyya are not even allowed to call themselves Muslims. The one country in which members of religious minorities enjoy respect of their rights and care for their […]
Credit: Washington Post Religious leaders have been in the forefront of the movement for abortion rights for more than fifty years, advocating for women to be able to make their own moral decisions. Leaders of all faiths should offer their counsel compassionately, competently, and justly to individuals and to families. […]
Cret: Newyork Times: IN New York and a growing number of American cities, diners are encountering sanitary grades in restaurants’ windows — A, B or C. That system is an example of helpful disclosure, researchers say: information that is simple and comprehensible, important to recipients and easily acted upon. I […]
Source: Asia Times. A report by a Washington think-tank focuses on the pros and cons of a “long game” between the United States and Iran, centered on sanctions, arms control and regime change. The authors argue – not necessarily on a sound basis – that time will give Tehran the […]
Credit: Asia Times By Pepe Escobar If the sorry parade of European poodles – or what analyst Chris Floyd delightfully dubbed Europuppies – had any understanding of Persian culture, they would have known that blowback for their declaration of economic war in the form of an Iranian oil embargo would […]
A newly elected Islamist deputy was scolded on Monday for adding a religious reference to the swearing-in oath at the opening session of Egypt’s first post-revolution parliament. The deputies started to be sworn in one by one, pledging to “preserve the safety of the nation and the interests of people […]
By HASHEM KALANTARI AND ROBIN POMEROY | REUTERS on ARABNEWS TEHRAN: A law to be debated in Iran’s parliament on Sunday may halt oil exports to the European Union as early as next week, foiling an EU plan to phase in an oil embargo gradually to help its struggling economies […]
By ARAB NEWS LONDON: Prince Charles, Prince of Wales and heir apparent to the British throne, opened the exhibition of “Haj: Journey to the Heart of Islam” in London’s British […]
By REUTERS ARABBEWS DAVOS: Leaders of the Arab Spring sought to assure the world’s elite in Davos that the rise of political Islam is not a threat to democracy, and pleaded for help creating jobs and satisfying the hunger of their people for a better life. Politicians, activists and entrepreneurs […]
Sorry Bank of America, but this is just so funny. Funny or Die made a video poking fun at Bank of America for flip-flopping on their $5 debit card fee. Basically, the video collects a bunch of “personal stories” from “BofA customers” about how the bank treated them. Read more:
While in a Karachi park a frenzied, self-righteous TV show host chased couples out on a date filming them without their consent last week, in Lahore the Punjab assembly passed a resolution seeking a blanket ban on music concerts in educational institutions. Both are despicable acts of moral policing in a country which […]
Banners and posters containing hate content and threats against Ahmadi Muslims are being displayed at many significant places in Satellite Town area of Rawalpindi city adjacent to the Pakistani capital […]
ScienceDaily (Jan. 26, 2012) — Discoveries made in some underwater caves by Texas &M University at Galveston researchers in the Bahamas could provide clues about how ocean life formed on Earth millions of years ago, and perhaps give hints of what types of marine life could be found on distant planets […]
ScienceDaily (Jan. 26, 2012) — A new study, using genetic analysis to look for clues about human migration over sixty thousand years ago, suggests that the first modern humans settled in Arabia on their way from the Horn of Africa to the rest of the world. Led by the University of […]
Source: NASA. NASA’s Kepler mission has discovered 11 new planetary systems hosting 26 confirmed planets. These discoveries nearly double the number of verified Kepler planets and triple the number of stars known to have more than one planet that transits, or passes in front of, its host star. Such […]
TOKYO — Your daily life changes when the environment around you changes. Many people who go abroad find their daily routine changing to adapt to the environment, sometimes without being aware of the change. The website MADAME RiRi, which covers offbeat and interesting topics in Japan and around the world, […]