Attack on the Other Half

A quick update on the Shahbag vs Longmarch/BanglaSpring situation. The Hifajat-Islam men have attacked female journalists and have attempted to bar women from entering rallies. Even female garbage collectors were not spared from harassment by Hifajat and were pushed out of rally sites.

Nadia Sharmin told bdnews24.com that she was attacked around 3pm when she went to cover the rally.  

“Some Hifazat activists came to me and told me that admission of women to the rally is not allowed. They said, ‘You resort to falsehood. You’re the agents of Ganajagaran Mancha.’ At one point of the conversation they assaulted me. I took shelter in a car nearby and then they even tried to vandalise the car,” she said.  

  

Later, several journalists tried to take Nadia to Bijoynagar where she was attacked again. 

“Fifty-sixty activists hurled brickbats and water bottles at me at Bijoynagar. They snatched my mobile phone and handbag having several thousand takas. Then they threw me on the ground and beat me up,” she said.  

Injured in the head, left side of the neck and leg, Nadia was sent to the Dhaka Medical College Hospital for treatment.  

She said she was attacked only for being a woman.  

Financial Express Reporter Arafat Ara said she was obstructed by the Hifazat men around 4pm at the Paltan intersection when she was going to office.  

“Several activists stopped my CNG (auto-rickshaw). Then they said ‘You’re not wearing scarf, so you can’t go this way’,” she told bdnews24.com.  

“I asked why I can’t go just because I am not wearing scarf? It’s my personal business whether I wear scarf or not. Who’re you to talk about this? Then they got locked in argument with me. At one stage I started for my office again ignoring their obstruction.”  

She said it is beyond anyone’s imagination that women would face such obstruction while going to office. “Females of our country attained progress in education and employment. Now moves are trying to take it (progress) back.

A poor old woman collecting water bottles at Paltan at noon was driven away from the area on the pretext that ‘it is not a place for females’. 

Full Article: http://bdnews24.com/bangladesh/2013/04/06/women-denied-entry-to-hifazat-rally-area

Take a look at this picture. This is the image of hundreds of thousands, not a mere few, crying out for atheists to be hanged in the name of freedom to practice their own faith. It may not be apparent from the photograph, but there isn't a single female in this rally. Is this their impression of freedom? Then why are their women-folk not allowed to "freely" march alongside them on their rightful path? Oh, that's right, because freedom only applies to the male half of the population.

Source: http://gdb.voanews.com/

I also found a wonderful quote by blogger Futile Democracy which aptly describes my stance on freedom of expression, and as he/she has a greater command over English than myself, instead of paraphrasing it I will provide the direct quote here. He/she says:

“It is my belief, that the freedom to satirise, mock, laugh at, criticise, as well as question all authoritative ideas, including all religions that themselves are openly critical of how those outside the faith live their lives, is the cornerstone of a progressive, and reasonable society. These ideas include the freedom to satirise and criticise and question deeply held political ideals, including my own. We must not allow religions to be free from satire, nor criticism, simply because it is cloaked in ‘faith’. To close them to criticism/satirism by using State controls and violence, means that the protected ‘idea’ becomes an ‘idea’ we are forced to respect; not an ‘idea’ that earns our respect, we are forced to bow to its apparent wonder, not of our own volition, and so humanity cannot progress the idea, dismantle the idea, or strengthen the idea, and move forward. It thus gives the ‘idea’ an authority above what it is reasonably justified in having, over the lives of not just its followers, but those who don’t wish to adhere to its principles. This is dangerous.”

The only part of this above quote I will comment on are the words "mock" and "laugh at". I understand that nobody deserves to be suppressed/hurt for expressing their opinions, but our bloggers must realise that as literary activists, their words have power to move as well as invoke deep anger within people, given that real, insightful intellectuals in a country like Bangladesh are rare. Bloggers should be careful about using obscene language and propagating hateful/untrue messages through their writing so that they don't unnecessarily provoke widespread violence towards themselves and others. But I repeat, use of obscene language does not provide a warrant for Islamists to behave in the way they do.

Source: http://futiledemocracy.wordpress.com/2013/04/06/solidarity-with-the-bangladesh-bloggers/

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Another beautiful article I found on The Daily Ittefaq demonstrates how freethinkers who use logic to demonstrate their outlook are unfairly misunderstood by the blinded fanatics. 

Read it here: http://www.clickittefaq.com/editorial-oped/bloggers-are-criminals/

Save Bangladesh!

"Radical Islamists yesterday kept marching towards Dhaka from different parts of the country, defying blockades and hartal amid a tense situation. 

Infuriated by what they say is obstructions by the government, Hefajat-e Islam, organiser of today’s long march, is set to announce the next course of action to realise its 13-point demand"

The thirteen demands are:

1. Reinstate the phrase “Absolute trust and faith in the Almighty Allah” in the constitution as one of the fundamental principles of state policy 

2. Pass a law providing for capital punishment for maligning Allah, Islam and Prophet Muhammad (pbuh) and smearing campaigns against Muslims 

3. Stop all propaganda and “derogatory comments” about Prophet Muhammad (pbuh) by the “atheist leaders” of the Shahbagh movement, bloggers and other anti-Islamists; arrest them and ensure stern punishment to them 

4. Stop attacking, shooting, killing and persecuting the Prophet-loving Islamic scholars, madrasa students and people united by belief in Allah 

5. Release all the arrested Islamic scholars and madrasa students 

6. Lift restrictions on mosques and remove obstacles to holding religious programmes 

7. Declare “Qadianis” (Ahmadiyyas) non-Muslim and stop their publicity and conspiracies 

8. Stop foreign cultural intrusions including free-mixing of men and women and candlelit vigils, and put an end to adultery, injustice, shamelessness, etc in the name of freedom of expression and individuality.

9. Stop turning Dhaka, the city of mosques, into a city of idols, and stop setting up sculptures at intersections, colleges and universities 

10. Scrap anti-Islam women policy and education policy and make Islamic education mandatory from primary to higher secondary levels 

11. Stop threatening and intimidating teachers and students of Qawmi madrasas, Islamic scholars, imams and khatibs 

12. Stop creating hatred among young generations against the Muslims by misrepresentation of Islamic culture in the media 

13. Stop anti-Islam activities by NGOs, evil attempts by Qadianis and conversion by Christian missionaries at Chittagong Hill Tracts and elsewhere in the country

Source: http://www.thedailystar.net/beta2/news/hefajats-demands/

This all sounds like a joke to me. Bangladesh is a country of 158 million people, of which 10.3% consist of minority groups of Hindus, Buddhists and Christians. The percentage may sound insignificant, but this represents a whopping 1.6 MILLION people in Bangladesh. Religious fundamentalists vandalised nine idols in three different Hindu temples yesterday. But violence will only beget violence, and tolerance begets tolerance. How dare they want to impose Islamic education and jurisprudence in our country where generations of people from different religions and different ideologies have lived side by side in tolerance and cultural diversity. And Khaleda Zia should know that an Islamic government would never let her run for prime minister-ship for being a woman. The hypocrisy is blatantly obvious. 

"Activists of the 23 organisations who have been enforcing the 24-hour hartal since last evening kept their presence at 20 points in the city." 

"Ruling Awami League men were also instructed to remain vigilant at different parts to assist the law enforcers to thwart any attempt of subversive activitiesMany activists of BNP-Jamaat-led 18-party alliance that has already extended support to the long march to cash in on people’s religious sentiments may join Hefajat’s rally."

And cashing in they are. The hartal has blocked transport networks, and yet the Islamists have been able to hire vehicles to reach their destination. Clearly the opposition BNP and Jamaat are paying these youngsters off. Imran H Sarkar, the convener of Gonojagoron Mancha, has requested for a peaceful meeting to settle differences between the groups but the Islamists have said they will not negotiate with an atheist. This, in my opinion, has reached the pinnacle of bigotry, and I blame the government for stirring emotions and not handling the situation responsibly!

Full Article: http://www.thedailystar.net/beta2/news/dhaka-tense-over-long-march/

Mother Land

I am absolutely appalled by what is happening in Bangladesh with regards to the Shahbagh Movement. For those who are unfamiliar with this movement, I can briefly explain what I understand of it, but you have to bear with me as I am not particularly well acquainted with the Bangladeshi political scene.

On the February 5, 2013, protests began in Bangladesh in which people demanded for the capital punishment of notorious razakars Abdul Quader Mollah and others who they believed had committed atrocities against people of Bangladesh during the Liberation War in 1971. Razakar is the word used by Bangladeshis to refer to pro-Pakistani nationals of Bangladesh who allied with the Pakistani army during the war and perpetrated brutality against their own race. For details of this brutality, see the Wikipedia entry: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/1971_Bangladesh_atrocities

A key group known as the "bloggers" or online activists, mostly comprised of the younger and more tech savvy generation of Bangladesh, also protested in favour of the capital punishment of razakars for carrying out or orchestrating mass murder and rape of minors during the war. Abdul Quader Mollah for example had been charged with the shooting of 344 people, a beheading and the rape of an 11 year old child. A few of these bloggers are self-proclaimed atheists, and are openly critical of Islam and the Prophet Muhammad. The razakars on the other hand are generally associated with the Jamaat-e-Islami party of Bangladesh. The government in the beginning had supported the Shahbaghers, trialed Mollah in an International War Crimes Tribunal and have found him guilty of the charges. He and 2 others have been sentenced to life imprisonment.

From here starts the long-imminent battle between the two sides. Violence from both sides have been recorded, and 60 people have died so far. The death of Rajib Haider is one that comes to mind, an atheist blogger brutally hacked to death by supporters of Jamaat for insulting Muhammad on his blog in what I believe was a tragic attack against freedom of expression in a secular country.

Recently the government has turned their backs on the Shahbager's in fear of the Islamist  group Hefazate Islam and alike, by arresting several bloggers for blasphemy. The Daily Star reports:

"The blogger community, Shahbagh activists and ordinary citizens yesterday strongly condemned the arrest of three bloggers on charges of defaming Islam... 

The government has targeted the bloggers instead of taking action against the Jamaat-e-Islami and its allies, who are killing people, resorting to yellow journalism, spreading communal hatred and instigating violence, they added.... 

Imran H Sarker, the Gonojagoron Mancha spokesperson, said it saddened the nation that a government, which came to power pledging a “digital Bangladesh”, had shut down a whole blog based on a few entries... 

The detained bloggers are Subrata Adhikari Shuvo, 24, Russel Parvez, 36, and Mashiur Rahman Biplob, 42... 

Yesterday, representatives of the blogging community organised another press conference at Madhur Canteen in Dhaka University... 

Baki Billah, online activist and blogger, addressing the news conference said, “The government is increasingly surrendering to the demands and wishes of Hefazate Islam.”... 

The protesters said if the bloggers had committed crimes, they could have been tried under existing laws of the country. But harassing, defaming and treating them as wanted criminals cannot be accepted... 

Facebook and other social media sites were also abuzz with criticism of the anti-progressive stance of the government..."

Full Article: http://www.thedailystar.net/beta2/news/bloggers-baffled/

Since that report the government has further arrested another blogger named Asif Mohiuddin on blasphemy charges. Asif Mohiuddin has already received stab wounds from Islamists in January this year. The opposition-backed Islamists have announced that they will organise a non-stop march starting from April 7. "A series of hartals, road blockades and sit-ins like those by the Shahbagh protesters are under consideration of the BNP-led alliance, insiders say". The country is in grave strife, and is moving towards the creation of a more intolerant culture. I am worried that my nation will plummet into a state of civil war because of a government with no backbone, with no consistency in its approach. It had attempted to use the Shahbag movement to fulfil its own political agenda against the opposition but couldn't carry through the ideology the Shahbager's are fighting to uphold. This all makes me very very sad.

A secular nation will cater to the needs of everyone, not just a few. Why anyone would be opposed to such an idea to the point where they are instigating violence and tension is incomprehensible to me. I should note, however, that I am generally against capital punishment (though the war criminals seem to deserve it). I believe those remorseless murderers should be made to live life in suffering, away from the comfort of their families and friends, to be reminded every day of their unjust slaughtering of innocent lives.

Bloggers form a human chain before Raju memorial on Dhaka University campus yesterday demanding an immediate release of arrested
Source: http://www.thedailystar.net/ 

Amina

Many of you may have heard about Amina, the girl from Tunisia being threatened with stoning by Islamists in her country for posting two topless photographs of herself on Facebook. In both photos she had scribbled across her chest powerful messages in favour of women's rights, such as "my body belongs to me, and is not the source of the honor of anyone" (in Arabic) and "Fuck your morals". For further details on the event refer to the article at the end of this post.

Renowned activist Maryam Namazie is petitioning and campaigning for Amina to be released, and I am fully supportive of her cause. On 4 April 2013, she has called for an International Day to Defend Amina. Maryam's blog can be viewed here: http://freethoughtblogs.com/maryamnamazie/ - **this page contains uncensored photos of Amina**

A petition for the cause can be found at: http://www.change.org/petitions/petitioning-tunisian-government-amina-must-be-safe  I encourage anyone concerned to sign this ASAP!!

Amina
Source: http://www.huffingtonpost.co.uk/2013/03/26/topless-tunisian-femen-protester-amina-tyler-home-well-lawyer_n_2954864.html

The incident is a grave violation of human rights. Nobody should be able get away with condemning, suppressing  persecuting or harming any individual and stripping them of their rights to express themselves in whatever way they wish. Amina did not hurt anybody, only rightly and boldly demanded her freedom. Her safety is our utmost concern for the moment.

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However, safety and rights aside, I do have some objections to the method of protest chosen by Amina - or FEMEN - the Ukrainian activist group with whom Amina is affiliated. For groups like FEMEN and activists located in Europe or America or Australasia, it is easy to coordinate radical protests and encourage young girls to participate in nude activism. But they should be conscious of the fact that Islamic governments can take drastic actions against these young girls and ruin their lives and their families. This is not a small price to pay. Amina is a teenager, so I am not convinced that she was fully aware of the possible repercussions of this campaign.

People like Maryam Namazie and myself can sit safely behind our computer screens and write blogs about equality because we reside in secular nations, but ultimately the people who suffer are the girls living in Tunisia, Iran, Afghanistan, Saudi and alike.

Very few in this vastly uneducated world of ours can be enlightened overnight by looking at Amina's photograph. Only the educated or secular- minded will understand her profound symbolism. That is:

• I alone can define what my body represents and how I should use it. 

• Nobody, including my family, has the right to accuse me of being dishonorable by the way I choose to treat my body. They cannot blame my lifestyle for offending them, or bringing dishonor to them. 

• My body is not an object of gaze, sexual desire or a commodity that can be bought and sold. 

• My body is natural and nothing to be ashamed of. I should not have to hide it to keep men and their lustful advances at bay. Controlling themselves is their responsibility, not mine.

When explained, these demands are clear. But when conveyed through nude photography the message is confusing, somewhat contradictory, intangible and not something the majority in Islamic/conservative countries can relate with. The open display of nudity, particularly female nudity, is a concept so far removed from their culture and what they are accustomed to that such activism will only result in girls like Amina to be labelled as perverted, derailed and characterless. Topless activism can merely generate an immediate hype or shock, but not win mass support of Muslims. We need to understand the demographics of a country or a society before propelling new and confronting ideas in their realm. With nude photographs, we can only anger the extremists, embarrass/confuse/entertain the common people, and put those involved in danger. This is not an effective strategy, as this is not an ideal world. 

I believe that the No. 1 weapon against the propagation of degrading moral systems like misogyny, is education and awareness. I cannot stress enough the importance of education for the progress of any nation. And I'm not referring to university degrees or higher school certificates, I'm talking about the kind of education that makes you capable of making a distinction between good and bad morality. Change can only occur if new ideas are introduced slowly while maintaining respectful attitudes towards those we are fighting against, and by keeping with the standards of discourse expected in this day and age. People will listen to us if we are cordial, and appear trustworthy.

In my opinion, re-claiming of my body would be better achieved by:

• Drawing focus to my intelligence rather than my body, and the contributions I make to my surroundings, my community and my family.

• Ensuring that I speak assertively but firmly – using references - to invalidate any harmful/extremist ideas I come across.

• Organising seminars, free thought groups on university campuses, peaceful rallies. Distribute fliers and open stalls.

• Share information with friends/family on networking sites to raise awareness. Create vlogs/blogs/articles/letters to the officials. Street art! Draw tasteful caricatures, cartoons.

If it is in your capacity, then open libraries and encourage reading. Reach out to remote areas of the world and teach women how to become literate, give them access to information through the internet/television/radio/mobile phones. Teach them how to attain the knowledge and resources needed for financial independence and empowerment.

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The reasons why I believe the topless protest is counterproductive is because we are trying to resolve hypersexualisation/commercialisation of the female body by using the body itself. It's artistic, it's abstract, but it's confusing. FEMEN have started a Facebook page where girls can post their topless photos to show solidarity with Amina. The comments by men on these posts speak for themselves, reflecting how blurry their understanding of the matter is, and the photos are just feeding men's eyes like always. Some comments on the photos include: 

"What better way to objectify women than to scrawl on their bodies ...derp!"

 "Post this on Tunisian sites, this is is just reaching USA and Europe, nothing more than that....."
"Yummy!" 

"Amina doesn't need nipples, she needs men with balls to get her back"
"Beautiful"

"Get her out now!"
 "I don't see anything sexual about Femen's protests, I see angry women. I think people must already be thinking of women as sex objects in order to see sex objects!"

"The breasts are for feeding babies and sexually attract potential mates, none of these functions can be denied, therefore Femen's protests with bare breasts are undoubtedly of a sexual nature for most healthy men in reproductive age. If that's right or wrong deserves a separate discussion."
"I agree that Amina should be freed. She should do herself a favor though and cut off all ties with Femen who have proven time and time again to be nothing but a bunch of male-hating airheads with breasts. That said, I admire REAL feminists, not violent nutters like Femen. After all, my mother was one."

Among other mixed feedback. Some are extremely positive, some nonchalant, some men are just happy to see "free nipples" on FB.

Remember when Malala Yousafzai was shot by the Taliban? The amount of respect and support she received throughout the world was overwhelming. This is because her message was clear, not mirky. She didn't resort to scandalous means to convey her thoughts. She frankly wrote about everything her little heart wanted. Our teenagers should be assertive, vocal, but not repellent or self-destructive.

I know, our bodies are natural nothing to be ashamed of. And the extremists deserve to be shaken up and shocked. Their views should be turned upside down ASAP. But most societies are still not prepared for a radical cultural reformation. And most importantly, where do we draw the line between anarchy and freedom of expression? Just like our breasts, sex is natural and not shameful. Islam requires men to cover parts of their body between the navel and the knee. But a man's penis, buttocks, pelvic area and thighs are all natural and have important non-sexual functions as well. Can we then arrange for public orgies, or a public display of penises/buttocks as well? 

To be frank, I don't want to live in a world where men are desensitised/not excited by women's bodies and vice versa. We would be lying to ourselves if we claimed our breasts are NOT inherently sexual. I believe that we are all a dichotomy of our carnal desires and intellectual rationality. We need to embrace this, and organise our thoughts/actions keeping our fundamental nature in mind. 

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Full Article: http://www.dailylife.com.au/news-and-views/dl-opinion/is-this-photo-grounds-for-death-20130325-2gpi2.html

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