In the year 2005 one of the worst disasters struck Pakistan. An earthquake measuring 7 on the richter scale destroyed many cities in the northern parts of the country and some of the neighbourhoods were turned upside down. This disaster was unprecedented, it was the first time in the entire recorded history of the region that a natural disaster of such magnitude was witnessed. People simply couldn't understand why this had happened. Some suggested that this was a punishment from God due to the corruption of the masses, others blamed the rulers (and their corruption) for angering God, and some claimed it was a test. Whatever the cause of the disaster, people did learn that an effective system was needed to cope with such a catastrophe. A system that would ensure that the delivery of aid was carried out justly to all needy who required it. However, this did not happen in the aftermath of the earthquake. The corrupt system abused by corrupt politicians turned out to be the biggest nightmare for victims of the earthquake. Most of the aid never reached its desired destination, and this happened because there was was no effective mechanism in place to account the politicians for their theft and banditry.

In early August 2010, another natural disaster struck Pakistan on an unprecedented scale. Massive floods swept through the northern parts of the country making their way towards the south, destroying every city on the way. Thousands of people lost their lives and more are expected to die. The floods are now at their peak while this comment is being authored, and the aftermath will bring disease and famine, which is an inevitable outcome of mass flooding. The media are doing their best by reporting from different locations so that the unaffected masses can see the impact of this disaster and subsequently help those in need. However, a strange reality has come to light this time: the response from the masses hasn't been as strong and warm as it was in 2005. The cause is, almost unanimously, thought to be the corruption of the government officials, hence a lack of trust in their ability to deliver aid appropriately and justly. People are reportedly sick and tired of hearing stories of money and aid not reaching its required end, so how do we deal with this problem? How can we attain certainty whether the aid, if available, will ever reach the flood victims?

Firstly we cannot have any confidence with the present system, especially if the current corrupt ruling elite are overseeing matters. Secondly, the solution for the whole mess is not appointing trustworthy officers in place, rather the solution lies in replacing the current system altogether with a tested successful code of life. If Sharia law (Islamic law), in the form of the Caliphate, was governing the affairs of Pakistan, we would not have seen what we are witnessing today. Under the Sharia Baitul Maal[1] system, only the most deserving and needy receive aid and support, and this system was considered to be the first form of welfare and disaster recovery ever witnessed in human history.[2] The option of a corrupt selfish politician making away with a large portion of the aid does not exist and cannot exist, and Islamic history is witness to this.

One of the worst famines occurred in the time of the 2^nd Caliph of Islam, Umar bin Khattab (may God be pleased with him). During this famine he was patrolling the streets in person so that everyone was fed from the Baitul Maal adequately. He came across a lady living in the outskirts of the city of Medina with her children. The children were crying and Umar asked what the matter was? The woman complained stating that she and her children were hungry and she exclaimed that she will hold Umar accountable (she was not aware that she was speaking to Umar, the Caliph at the time). Upon hearing this, the 2nd Caliph was shaken and rushed towards the Baitul Maal to fetch the required necessities. His servant insisted that he should carry the luggage, however Umar refused, saying that "you will not carry my luggage on the day of judgment". Such were the Muslim leaders and their thoughts. Umar came to the lady, cooked the food personally, and waited until the children had gone to sleep after they had a fill.[3] Where are such leaders today? Where are those who would walk the streets of Charsadda, Naushera, Sakhkhar and Jaicobabad and ask whether someone is hungry or whether someone is in need of clothes? Rather, we have the likes of Zadari visiting the West during times of need sleeping in his 5 star hotels, living in luxury.

In conclusion, the solutions to the problems of the Muslim should not be getting more and more humiliating aid from those who mock and attack Islam, rather the solution is to be found in the following statement of the Prophet Muhammad (peace and blessing be upon him): "Upon you is my Sunnah (way) and the Sunnah of my rightly guided Caliphs". Thus, once we start taking Islam seriously and implement it individually, socially and politically (which there seems to be a growing desire for in the Muslim world) -  such disasters will be taken care of by effective trustworthy hands, and a divine system.

[1] Baitul Maal is an Arabic term that can translate as the "House of Wealth." The Baitul Maal was a financial mechanism responsible for the administration of taxes in the Islamic state. It served as a treasury for the Caliph, managing his personal finances and government expenditures. Significantly, it administered distributions of Zakah (charity and tax) revenues. As per the Qur’anic injunction, the concepts of welfare and pension were included in the Baitul Maal. The taxes (including Zakat and Jizya) collected in the Baitul Maal were used to provide income for the needy, including the poor, elderly, orphans, widows, and the disabled.

[2] According to the Islamic jurist Al-Ghazali, the government was also expected to stockpile food supplies in every region in case a disaster or famine occurred. The Caliphate can thus be considered the world's first major welfare state. See, Shadi Hamid (August 2003), "An Islamic Alternative? Equality, Redistributive Justice, and the Welfare State in the Caliphate of Umar", Renaissance: Monthly Islamic Journal.

[3] Hayatus-Sahabah, by Kandhalwi

The month of Ramadan is the ninth month of the Islamic calendar. This month is a very special month for Muslims, because it is a month of fasting and spiritual focus. The significance of this month has been highlighted in the Qur’an – “O you who believe! Fasting has been prescribed for you as it was prescribed for those before you, that you may become God-conscious.” 2:183 

As the Qur’an brings to our attention, the main objective of Ramadan is to attain God-consciousness. God-consciousness is central to the life of the believer; its definition includes the constant reference, awareness, fear and mindfulness of God, in addition to ensuring that everything the believer does is in accordance with God’s pleasure. 

This consciousness is not static, it is dynamic. The level of God-consciousness is dependent upon how close the Muslim is with His Lord. This personal relationship is established and strengthened by following a unique program of activities that have been prescribed by God Himself. This ‘spiritual’ program is also an effective means to change the negative traits and habits of the Muslim. Some of these activities include remembrance of God, prayer, giving charity, meditation, reading and reflecting upon the Qur’an, memorising the Qur’an and daily supplications. All of these actions are increased and intensified during the month of Ramadan. 

The Prophet Muhammad (peace and blessing be upon him) emphasised developing a good character by engaging a constant practice of prayer, meditation, remembrance of God and other activities, as these actions change the heart and thereby bring one closer to God. 

“Indeed in the body there is a piece of flesh. If it is sound, the body is all sound. If it is corrupt, the body is all corrupt. Indeed, it is the heart.”

God-consciousness is an essential element in Islamic spiritual practice. Without it, the Muslim’s behaviour and attitude are corrupted. Unlike the secular view, Islam has a unique perspective on spirituality as it encompasses all aspects of the Muslim’s life. In Islam all actions that are referred to God are spiritual, and these actions include the supplications we utter before we go to bed to implementing justice via Islamic governance. God has prescribed certain actions that develop positive characteristics as well as bringing the Muslim closer to God thereby attaining God-consciousness. This state achieves many things including God’s love, closeness and divine assistance. The month of a Ramadan is a platform to launch the believer’s God-consciousness to the next level. 

Fasting in the month of Ramadan constitutes one of the five pillars of Islam. During this month spiritual activities intensify, as mentioned above, however some social actions are recommended such as forgiving people, establishing brotherhood, spreading peace, accounting corrupt and oppressive regimes, and feeding the community. Ramadan conveys an extraordinary sense of emotional enthusiasm and religious eagerness among Muslims of all ages, and it is the month that makes the believer feel alive, and allows him to reconcile his existence with his divinely prescribed purpose – the worship of God.

Last Friday (6th August 2010) marked the 65th anniversary of the slaughter of 220,000 innocent human beings from the first atomic bombs in history. The bombs landed in Japan, destroying the cities of Hiroshima and Nagasaki. This cowardly act has remained symbolic of secular regimes' modus operandi in trying to achieve their foreign policy goals. The outdated political cliché, as expressed by Lord Louis Mountbatten, "if the bomb kills Japanese and saves casualties on our side I am naturally not going to favour the killing our people unnecessarily..." must now stand to scrutiny as it obviously avoids the fact that Japanese soldiers were largely murdering soldiers, while American soldiers were largely murdering Japanese civilians.

This is no different to the massacres in Fallujah where the American army decided to use white phosphorous on the civilian population, and let us not forget the stealth nuclear war in the region due to the depleted uranium bombs which created uranium dust in the atmosphere, subsequently effecting the region's population for decades.

We have all seen the pictures of deformities and the anguish of mothers not knowing where and how to breastfeed their children as they couldn't recognise or find the innocent baby's mouth. In spite of this secular foreign policy, there is another policy of 'desensitising' by using cold abstract words like "collateral damage". So why does this happen? Why do secular regimes have a repeated history of slaughter and murder, cowardly wiping out civilian populations when their military objectives seem distant and unobtainable? The answer lies in the concept of a worldview.

A worldview is a philosophy of living that enables us to make sense of life and our daily experiences. The worldview we adopt affects the way we process ideas, and allows us to understand society and our place in it. A worldview is important especially in our society today - this is because the contemporary world has had a huge effect on human psychology. We seem unable to deal with the unpredictable changes and increased complexity of life - subsequently stress, uncertainty and frustration become common and our minds are overloaded with information. A worldview is the framework that ties all of this together, and allows us to understand life's complexity and unpredictability, it helps us make the critical decisions that will shape our future and our own selves, and it aids us in providing a picture of the whole. Worldviews vary and can range from being shallow to comprehensive.

A shallow worldview is one that just gives us the framework to react to day-to-day experiences, such as work and friendships. This type of worldview is usually formed via our previous experiences in life and it develops by creating templates of understanding the world from our history with it. This type of worldview is problematic as it makes us stuck in the past with no possibility of viewing the world in a positive or different way that will enable our transformation. It is limited in its scope as it becomes only as comprehensive as your experiences, and individually our experiences are every limited.

A comprehensive worldview, as discussed by the philosopher Leo Apostel, encompasses everything in life and it includes various components. For instance, it provides a model for the world by answering the basic question "who are we?" In addition it provides an explanation usually answering "why is the world the way it is?" and "where did we come from?" Another important part of a comprehensive worldview includes extrapolating from the past into the future to answer the question "where are we going?" It should also answer "what is good and what is evil?" In other words, to include morality and ethics, while giving us a sense of purpose, direction and goals for our actions. Additionally, the answer to the question "what for?" may help us to understand the real meaning of life and a comprehensive worldview must answer "how should we act?" thereby helping us to solve practical problems. Lastly a comprehensive worldview should answer the question "what is true and what is false?", this is equivalent to what in philosophy is called "epistemology" or "the theory of knowledge", therefore it would allow us to distinguish between what is correct and what is incorrect.

The slaughter of innocent civilians in Hiroshima and Nagasaki are practical examples of how worldviews affect our outlook on life. The secular worldview views nationalism and self preservation as key values, in addition to the fact that, according the secularist, human beings have no purpose other than the one we make for ourselves. So from this worldview the senseless killing of hundreds can be justified. In contrast to this, the Islamic worldview perceives the fulfilment of our purpose for existence as a key value - which is to worship God and therefore be moral. Therefore someone adopting the Islamic worldview would argue: that if our existence is to worship God and in order to preserve our existence we have to break our purpose for existing, then what is the point of our existence in the first place? In other words the killing of innocent lives en mass could never be justified. As the companion of the Prophet Muhammad (peace and blessings be upon him) said, which can be found in the hadith collection of Imam Malik’s Muwatta in the Book of Jihad,

"I advise you ten things: Do not kill women or children or an aged, infirm person. Do not cut down fruit-bearing trees. Do not destroy an inhabited place. Do not slaughter sheep or camels except for food. Do not burn bees and do not scatter them. Do not steal from the booty, and do not be cowardly."

In light of above it can be seen why the secular regimes destroy humanity in order to ‘preserve’ humanity. Something that deservedly should be called the 'humanity of inhumanity' - in other words the paradox of the secular worldview.

The recent ban on the niqab in the French parliament and the attempt of Conservative MP Philip Hollobone to initiate a ban in the UK, coupled with the subsequent media furore, has exposed some glaring contradictions.

If politicians, the media and social commentators care for women and believe that their world view facilitates the emancipation of women, then why have they focused on a cloth that covers her body rather than focus on the contemporary facade effecting women in the west. In Britain, for example,

Domestic Violence

·         1 in 4 women will be a victim of domestic violence.

·         Two women are murdered every week by a current or a former partner.

·         In any one year, there are 13 million separate incidents of physical violence or threats of violence against women from partners or former partners.

·         1 in 5 young men and 1 in 10 young women think that abuse or violence against women is acceptable.

Empowerment and Self-esteem

·         66 % of women in the UK would consider plastic surgery because of concerns about their looks.

·         63 % of young women aspire to be glamour models or lap dancers.

·         54 % of women became aware of the 'need' to be attractive between 6 - 17 years of age.

Unequal Pay & Employment

·         In 2006, female graduates earned, on average, 15% less than their male counterparts at the age of 24; with this gender pay gap widening with age increasing to 40.5% for women graduates aged 41-45.

Prostitution

·         There are estimated to be around 80,000 people involved in prostitution in the UK. However, many people believe that this figure is an underestimation.

·         A 2002 study found that 74% of women involved in prostitution cited poverty, the need to pay household expenses and support their children, as a primary motivator for entering sex work.

Mental Health

·         The NHS reported in 2009 that more than one in five of the adult female population experiences depression, anxiety or suicidal thoughts.

Poverty

·         Many older people, especially women over 75, experience severe poverty due to institutional failure, as levels of state pensions are determined according to years of employment.

·         One in five single women pensioners live in poverty. In 2004, almost 1.3 million older women lived below the poverty line and suffered significant financial disadvantage - compared with men of the same age.

Safety

·         Research published in 2006 identified that women aged 16 or over are 5 times as likely as men to feel very unsafe walking alone in their area after dark.

Child Abuse

·         An NSPCC prevalence study in 2000 found that around 21% of girls surveyed experienced some form of child sexual abuse. The majority of children who experienced sexual abuse had more than one sexually abusive experience.

We acknowledge that western ideologues have lost the debate concerning women and Islamic values. This is proven by the fact that they have failed to persuade Muslim women to reject manifestations of Islamic values such as the niqab. The insistence on banning these symbols of Islam exhibits their inability to articulate a positive case for their world view and indicates their unwillingness to engage in a productive debate. Therefore we conclude that these commentators and ideologues should start to think about how to fix the miserable situation for many women in the UK. And we suggest that looking at Islam is a viable and positive solution.

“Muslim men and Muslim women, and Believing men and Believing women, and devout obedient men and devout obedient women, and truthful men and truthful women, and patient constant men and patient constant women, and humble men and humble women, and charitable men and charitable women, and men who fast and women who fast, and chaste men and chaste women, and men who remember God much and women who remember God much – God has prepared for them all forgiveness and a great Reward.” The Noble Qur’an 33:35

References

http://www.wrc.org.uk/includes/documents/cm_docs/2010/i/inequality_briefing_final.doc

http://www.womensaid.org.uk/core/core_picker/download.asp?id=1602