All Female Ministers Must Cover Hair, or Female Ministers are Unconstitutional? Or?
I am pretty good at reading the news, but all this is a little too Byzantine, even for me. This is from today’s Al Watan. I think it says that females who do not cover their hair can still be ministers, in spite of some members of parliament saying that females who do not cover their hair are not allowed to be ministers. You read it and tell me what YOU think it says.
Maybe some of the Ministers of Parliament lack so much self contol that they fear the sight of the hair of Nouriya AlـSubaih and/or Moudhi AlـHumoud will impede their performance?
There is an Islamic dress code? Like if you do not wear an abaya and niqab, or hijab, you cannot be Moslem?
Panel brands female ministers” appointment ”unconstitutional”
Court freezes MPs” suspension from Parliament
Al Watan staff
KUWAIT: Parliament”s Committee for Legislative and Legal Affairs, during its meeting on Sunday, signed off on a report stating that the appointment of female Cabinet ministers Nouriya AlـSubaih and Moudhi AlـHumoud is unconstitutional. The decision is said to stem from the fact that both women do not conform to the Islamic dress code because they refuse to cover their hair.
The committee”s convener, Ali AlـHajeri, announced that the report has been unanimously endorsed by the committee”s members, which include, among others, MPs Nasser AlـDuwailah, Mohammed AlـHatlani and Mohammed Hayef, and that it is backed up by Article 82 of the Constitution and Article 1 of the Elections Law that stipulates that women should adhere to the Islamic dress code.
On the eve of the inauguration of the new parliamentary term on Tuesday, the National Assembly is expected to grapple with a wide range of burning issues, including a decision by the Constitutional Court to strip two former MPs of their parliamentary seats.
Sources have reported that there has been a bizarre twist concerning this particular issue with Speaker of Parliament Jassem AlـKharafi announcing that he has received a letter from the Administrative Court informing him about a decision to suspend the Constitutional Court”s verdict that revoked the membership of Mubarak AlـWalaan and Abdullah AlـAjmi. He also revealed that the Administrative Court is due to look into the case today.
AlـKharafi affirmed that he will take measures in accordance with the ruling issued by the Administrative Court.
A constitutional expert affirmed that the newly reinstated MPs should be allowed to take their seats in Parliament unless the Administrative Court issues another verdict ruling in favor of the lawmakers whose membership was revoked.
Reacting to this new development, MP Askar AlـEnezi affirmed that verdicts issued by the Constitutional Court are final and unchallengeable.
He argued that the Administrative Court has no jurisdiction to look into constitutional matters.
Last updated on Monday 20/10/2008
Update 21 October
Female minister reacts to panel decision
Comply with Islamic attire or resign, urges MP
Al Watan staff
KUWAIT: The Chairman of Parliament”s Legislative and Legal Committee Nasser AlـDuwailah has described comments made on Monday by the Minister of Housing and Minister of State for Housing Affairs Moudhi AlـHumoud as “unacceptable”, after she attacked a decision by the committee that considers the appointment of the two female Cabinet ministers as unconstitutional because they do not follow the Islamic dress code.
“The minister”s remarks are irresponsible and unacceptable,” he firmly said, while calling on the minister to tender her resignation immediately.
Noting that the committee has thoroughly looked at the legal aspects of the female ministers” appointment, he pointed out that the members have concluded that the duo have failed to comply with regulations regarding the Islamic dress code that is deemed acceptable inside the Abdullah Salem Chamber (Parliament).
He explained that the ministers are free to wear to whatever they want outside the Parliament, noting that the law which gave women their full political rights stipulates that female candidates or appointees comply with certain set regulations.
Insisting that the law was passed by Parliament rather than the committee, he explained that the committee”s response is consistent with the spirit of the Constitution.
He concluded by expressing hope that the government will express regret over the minister”s remarks.
Last updated on Tuesday 21/10/2008
Sweet October Morning
Goooooood Morning, Kuwait!
It is a sweet morning, a beautiful morning. You can see almost all the way to the horizon, and the lethal layer that hangs over it is somehow thinner this morning:
One of my favorite places, Weather Underground: Kuwait tells us we have five more days below 100°F coming up and here is what it looks like this morning:
The house still smells of cinnamon and clove and Mom’s Fruit Cakes which I spent all day yesterday chopping, pitting, baking, and wrapping in the crisp Kuwait Autumn weather. 😉 I fell into bed last night around eight, and slept almost straight through until 0600 this morning, an exhausted Qatteri Cat snuggled up between AdventureMan and me. No, no, we don’t eat the fruitcakes yet. You make them around the end of October and you store them, heavily wrapped, in the refrigerator until Thanksgiving (4th Thursday in November) when you are allowed to taste the first one. They mellow as they age in the refrigerator.
In other countries, not Kuwait, you wrap them in cheesecloth soaked in brandy, and you can open them now and then and brush on a little more brandy with a pastry brush. Sigh. I am not much for drinking, but I miss the smell of the brandy soaking into the fruitcakes.
Mangaf, Paradise Garden and Beit Ash-Shar
Last week, AdventureMan and I were out looking for the private farm in Mangaf / Abu Halifa that blogger Bu Yousef wrote about. Imagine – fresh produce, locally produced. It is unbelievable that it exists in a burgeoning house-to-house suburb like Mangaf. Once Bu Yousef wrote about it, we couldn’t wait to find it and try it for ourselves. We LOVE local, and I am waiting for Yasmine Farms spinach to re-appear in the Sultan Center.
It is an OASIS!
AdventureMan said “it looks like Paradise!”
We got a little lost trying to find it – thank God! As we were driving around, looking for this farm/garden we spotted this:
In Jordan, these were called Beit (Beyt) ash-Shar, House of Hair. The panels of the tent were woven on small looms by the Bedouin women – the looms were made of sticks that could easily be assembled and disassembled. They had herds of sheep and goats, and the tent panels were woven of hair from their own sheep and goats. In Jordan, the nomads lived in these tents, picking up and moving as it was time to pasture their sheep and goats in the next place.
I can’t tell you how much this thrilled our hearts. Someone is using this tent – we believe – as an outdoor diwaniyya.
It’s a great day in Kuwait.
Hearts, Hands and Hope
Opportunities for you from Operation Hope – Kuwait:
Thank You all baking volunteers:
We at Operation HOPE want to express our thanks to all our baking volunteers for their beautifully packed and labeled donations. We appreciate your extra effort and work of excellence to support our mission. And a special thanks to Jaye Lynn and Emily Lester for manning the sales table!
Thank You all Tent clearance and inventory volunteers:
What a blessing when men, women and children, who represent multiple nations can come together for the good of mankind. Many hands did make for lighter work. As our tent was cleared, inventoried and then restocked. We are able to do what we do because of you.
Volunteers needed:
We are happy to announce our very first packing schedule for winter apparel for this year on Saturday October 18, 2008 from 7am to 10:30 am. At this time our goal is to pack 3000 bags each, with a set of thermal underclothing, pair of socks, pair of gloves and cap. Lend your help packing a few bags or all 3000 bags; but DO lend us your help. Please RSVP your commitment ASAP.
Flea market Saturday October 25, 2008:
Operation HOPE will have a Flea market at the OH head quarters (Rumaithiya, Block 9, Street 92, House 23) at 7am to 12 noon. We will be selling books, small appliances, electronics, gently used household items etc. All proceeds of the sale go to Operation Hope. We encourage you to spread the word around and bring in at least one friend with you.
Volunteers needed: to set up the items for the flea market, Friday, October 24, 2008 at 3 PM. Please RSVP your commitment to help as soon as possible.
Volunteers needed: to help at the Flea Market with sales and clean-up, Saturday, October 25th from 6:30 AM – 12:30 PM. Your RSVP is appreciated as soon as possible.
Laptop Needed:
The Operation HOPE administration has grown considerably and we require a mobile tool to keep on top of our busyness. We appreciate your consideration towards the contribution of a NEW laptop.
Demolish Tariq Rajab Museum?
I am horrified. Blogger Hanan reports that there are rumors that the Tariq Rajab Museum has received a warning to close or be demolished, that they have no permit to run a museum.
This family has two museums, two fine, fabulous museums, and admission to the public is free of charge. It is a bright spot in Kuwaiti Culture. (I thought there was a movement out there to encourage tourism? This is where I take my guests! This is where we tell tourists to go!)
I have no WASTA my friends. First, can you confirm that the museum has indeed been warned? Can you make this go away?
What Poverty Does to US (Blog Action Day 2008)
Today, Blog Action Day 2008, we are to write about poverty.
There are many levels of poverty, and I have seen the worst. I have seen people without the very most basic necessities of life, without enough food, without a safe place to spend the night, people who would sell their baby for another fix, people who live in filth. The very worst thing about poverty is what it does to those who see it, but are not poor – it hardens our hearts.
The overwhelming nature of poverty, the knowledge that we can only do so much, that our efforts are like little drops in a great sea, it can make you turn away from doing anything at all. Afraid to feel to much, we build a wall around our hearts, so we won’t have to feel. We judge, we walk away.
So who is poor? Does not God look at our hearts? He teaches us that the poorest of the poor, who shares one crust of bread with another, is more merciful than the donor who gives generously out of abundance. If we harden our hearts, if we turn away from these problems, who then is poor? Do we not have a deep inner problem, a severe inner poverty, a poverty of spirit?
One of the great God-jokes I see as I live my life is how what we see and what we learn is often the opposite of what God teaches us. He tells us not to put our faith on earthly treasures, our cars, our houses, our material possessions. He tells us the greatest wealth of all is in giving it all away and serving him.
As the financial markets dip and twirl on the roller coaster of doubts and fears and perceptions, as people watch their life savings dwindle, will we learn our lesson? (Can you hear God laughing?)
One of the great secrets of wealth is giving it away – ask Warren Buffet, the richest man in the world, or Bill Gates. They have made fortunes, walked away and given abundantly of their wealth to make the world a better place. God smiles on them. They learned the secret.
When you help the poor, you are blessed.
There is a story we tell volunteers about a little boy along the seashore. Thousands of starfish are stranded on the shore as the tide recedes and a man watches as the little boy picks up starfish and throws them out into the ocean, one at a time. After watching a while, he shouts at the boy “Give it up! There are so many starfish! You can’t save them all!” and the little boy, without pausing, shouts back “But I can save THIS one!”
I worked for a year with homeless families. As I worked with them, I found myself learning from their stories, and from their determination to make a better life for their children. Working with the homeless is like throwing starfish back into the sea. Some might make it and others won’t. There are dark days, days when you feel overwhelmed by the sheer numbers of those who need your help. By focusing on what you CAN do, you hope to make a difference, even in the life of just THIS family, or that child.
We need to ask ourselves, those of us who live in abundance, how can we receive this blessing, the blessing of working with and/or giving to the poor? Is there a food closet that needs your donations and your weekly volunteer effort? Is there a mosque or church that uses volunteers to serve a daily meal to the poorest of the poor? Is there a sandwich delivery to the street poor? Is the Salvation Army active in your area? Are there decent clothes in your closet which you have outgrown? Are there pillows or blankets you could donate to Operation Hope Kuwait? How can you serve the poor? How can you receive this blessing?
Donations of your time, your energy, your vision will not only be a small contribution towards improving the world one small act at a time, it will also lessen the soul-deadening impact of poverty, it will be a blessing to YOU. Working together, people can make a difference. You can make a difference in the life of the poor. You can make a difference, by serving, in your own life.
Millions Lost Trillions
I used to finish my assignements early in grade school. Mostly I always had a book with me to read, but one teacher challenged me to write all the numbers to 1 million.
“Piece of cake” I thought. (Arrogant little brat!)
I learned my lesson. It took me forever. I wouldn’t give up, and I filled sheets and sheets of paper with numbers, all the way to one million.
It’s a lesson I won’t forget.
But a billion? A trillion? Those are numbers that boggle my mind. I can’t think that big.
So far, the losses are mostly on paper – they won’t be real losses until investors go to sell, or cash in.
It’s a huge demographic, the baby-boomers getting ready to retire – or as this article from the Washington Post states – maybe not so fast:
Retirement Savings Lose $2 Trillion in 15 Months
By Nancy Trejos
Washington Post Staff Writer
Wednesday, October 8, 2008; Page A01
The stock market’s prolonged tumble has wiped out about $2 trillion in Americans’ retirement savings in the past 15 months, a blow that could force workers to stay on the job longer than planned, rein in spending and possibly further stall an economy reliant on consumer dollars, Congress’s top budget analyst said yesterday.
For many Americans, pensions and 401(k) plans are their only form of savings. The dwindling of these assets — about a 20 percent decline overall — is another setback just as many people are grappling with higher gas and food prices, more credit card debt, declining home values and less access to loans.
You can read the entire article in the Washington Post, here.
Kuwait Adopts Islamic Jurisprudence?
From today’s Kuwait Times:
KUWAIT: MP Dr. Waleed Al-Tabtabae said that several MPs plan to amend the second Article of the Kuwaiti Constitution and adopt Islamic jurisprudence as the main source of legislation in Kuwait. They will also push for amending other laws in accordance with the Islam as they feel that Islamic laws can effectively ward off crimes, theft, alcohol, drugs, adultery and sexual assaults.
If I Were . . .
I’m talking here about two subjects, a grammar issue and an emotional issue.
My friends think I am even-tempered and happy all the time. Here is the truth – no one is even-tempered and happy all the time. I am even-tempered and happy MOST of the time – but like everyone else, I have moods.
I have noticed that sometimes drinking too much coffee can set me spinning with anxiety, worrying about things for which there is honestly no substantial reason on earth for me to worry. Sometimes I can feel paranoid, and think maybe my phone isn’t ringing because all my friends are out having fun without me. Sometimes I can be tired, or hungry, or jet lagging, or hormonal. . . there are a million factors that have little to do with facts and reality, and everything to do with emotion.
When I catch myself having persistent, irrational, troublesome thoughts, I do a couple things. You know me, you can guess the first. I pray.
The second thing I do is to play a game with myself – “If I Were. . . ”
If I were normal and serene, how would I behave? What would I be thinking? Sometimes just by acting “as if”, I can break the mood. Putting on Christmas music or old Beatles or Rolling Stones is just about sure-fire. Reading a light-weight mystery can take me away. A hot bath with great smelling bubbles – something like Cinnamon Orange (Occitaine used to make it) or Lavender or even something lemony can cheer me up. Acting as if I were serene can bring me to serenity.
(Here is the second part – does anyone use the subjunctive tense any more? I was taught that if you are talking about something that is not-for-certain true, or doubtful, you use the subjunctive. I hear people saying “If I was” all the time and I think maybe it has become acceptable by common usage.
For example, above, I talk about “If I were serene . . .” meaning, I am NOT feeling serene, but can speculate as to how I would behave if I were serene. Is this tense, the subjunctive, still taught in English classes?)
Give to Everyone Who Begs From You
Months ago, I wrote a post about people asking for money in Kuwait, and when should you give and when should you not. It’s a problem that bothers all of us from time to time – when to be generous, and when are you throwing your money away?
Here, the instructions are clear – give to everyone who begs from you.
To me, that means keeping money on hand that I am comfortable will feed someone for a day – half a dinar to a dinar. Bread, beans, water . . .
When we lived in Tunis, my husband had his own beggqr – a man who came by the house from time to time. One time my husband followed him home, and when he came back, he said no matter how much we give this man, it will never be enough, he and his family live in a hovel. When the man came to us with a wound on his arm, my husband took him to the clinic and saw that he was cared for properly. The truth turned out to be that it benefited my husband, and our family, in the long run to be in a relationship with this beggar.
I’ve been taken by cons – the dripping medical bag, the fake leg gash – and I still believe it is better for us to error on the side of compassion.
Luke 6:27-38
27 ‘But I say to you that listen, Love your enemies, do good to those who hate you, 28 bless those who curse you, pray for those who abuse you. 29 If anyone strikes you on the cheek, offer the other also; and from anyone who takes away your coat do not withhold even your shirt. 30 Give to everyone who begs from you; and if anyone takes away your goods, do not ask for them again. 31 Do to others as you would have them do to you.
32 ‘If you love those who love you, what credit is that to you? For even sinners love those who love them. 33 If you do good to those who do good to you, what credit is that to you? For even sinners do the same. 34 If you lend to those from whom you hope to receive, what credit is that to you? Even sinners lend to sinners, to receive as much again.
35 But love your enemies, do good, and lend, expecting nothing in return.* Your reward will be great, and you will be children of the Most High; for he is kind to the ungrateful and the wicked. 36 Be merciful, just as your Father is merciful.
37 ‘Do not judge, and you will not be judged; do not condemn, and you will not be condemned. Forgive, and you will be forgiven; 38 give, and it will be given to you. A good measure, pressed down, shaken together, running over, will be put into your lap; for the measure you give will be the measure you get back.’
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