Assalaamu'alaikum I don't agree with the Australia's Mufti statement. It was rather blunt and offensive. I personally think he should have done it with cautious and more diplomatically. Majority of non Muslim Aussie are not like the American or the British, they are very understanding and tolerant. Even we had heard of some Australian abused the Muslims and mosque but these are isolated cases.
As Allah mentioned in surah An Nahl ayat 125:
" Invite (all) to the Way of thy Lord with wisdom and beautiful preaching; and
argue with them in ways that are best and most gracious: for thy Lord knoweth
best, who have strayed from His Path, and who receive guidance."
Did Sheik Al Hilali forgotten about this ayah ? Allah knows best.
Laa Tansaa Dzikrallaah
Unzhur Maa Qiila Walaa Tanzhur Man Qaala
Al Haqiir Wal Faqiir Ilaa Rabbihi, Akhuukum Fil Islaam
Syaikh Abdu Manaf Al Ansari
----- Original Message -----
From: Jamiah Suseno
To: Undisclosed-Recipient:;
Sent: Saturday, October 28, 2006 11:42
Subject: Hilali Message Lost in Translation
p/s: Is there anthing wrong with his statement?, only those who are
ignorance don't understand the meaning of “uncovered meat”..................or
maybe you just don't want to admit the truth!!!!!
Hilali Message Lost in Translation
Siraj Wahab & P.K. Abdul Ghafour, Arab News
The mufti of Australia Sheikh Taj Al-Din Al-Hilali,
JEDDAH, 28 October 2006 — Australian Muslims yesterday rallied behind
the country’s mufti who said women who did not wear a veil were “uncovered
meat” and attract unnecessary attention. According to news agencies, the
country’s Muslims have pledged that the imam would keep his job as their
spiritual leader.
Sheikh Taj Al-Din Al-Hilali, the Egyptian-born imam at the center of
the raging controversy, was confirmed as the mufti of Australia yesterday after
the governing body of Sydney’s largest mosque rallied behind him.
“The board is satisfied with the notion that certain statements made by
the mufti were misinterpreted,” Tom Zreika, head of the Lebanese Muslim
Association, told a radio station in Sydney. Zreika said, however, that
Al-Hilali would not be preaching until after he has returned from the Haj
pilgrimage in six weeks time.
Australian Prime Minister John Howard said the imam’s remarks in Arabic
during Ramadan to 500 worshippers that compared unveiled women to food left for
stray cats were “appalling and reprehensible.” In his statements that have now
become controversial, Al-Hilali had criticized women who sway suggestively,
wear make-up and no hijab. “If you take out uncovered meat and place it outside
on the street, or in the garden or in the park, or in the backyard without a
cover, and the cats come and eat it ... whose fault is it? The cats’ or the
uncovered meat?” he asked. “The uncovered meat is the problem.”
Howard warned Muslims they risked a backlash from other Australians if
they continued to back Al-Hilali against mainstream opinion. “If it is not
resolved, then unfortunately people will run around saying ‘Well, the reason
they didn’t get rid of him is because secretly some of them support his
views,’” Howard said.
Although, the imam has tendered an apology for his comments, saying he
had “only intended to protect women’s honor,” opinion in the Muslim world
remained completely divided. Some were outraged while others said the message
of the imam had been lost in translation.
Young Muslim adviser Iktimal Hage-Ali, who does not wear a hijab, said
the Islamic headdress was not a tool worn to prevent rape and sexual
harassment. “It’s a symbol that readily identifies you as being Muslim, but
just because you don’t wear the head scarf doesn’t mean that you’re considered
fresh meat for sale…The onus should not be on the female not to attract
attention, it should be on males to learn how to control themselves.”
Australia’s most prominent female Muslim leader, Aziza Abdel-Halim,
said the hijab did not “detract or add to a person’s moral standards,” while
Islamic Council of Victoria spokesman Waleed Ali said it was “ignorant and
naive” for anyone to believe that a hijab could stop sexual assault.
Mansour Al-Hejla, a Saudi Shariah consultant, said Al-Hilali’s
statement describing women who do not wear Islamic dress as “uncovered meat”
left to be eaten by cats was an unsuitable comparison.
“Islam addresses nonbelievers in a humanitarian and suitable manner and
does not abuse them. So how can a mufti issue such a statement?” he asked. It
should be pointed here, however, that the imam was addressing an exclusively
Muslim audience.
He also emphasized that Muslims must avoid statements that would be
used by the enemies of Islam to label them and their religion as extremist and
racist.
“The present delicate situation demands from Muslims to be extra
cautious. We should not become a burden to Islam and Muslims,” he said.
Dr. Ahmed Omar Hashim, head of the religious committee at the Egyptian
Parliament, said Al-Hilali’s statement came at a wrong time, adding it would
lead to further disfiguring the picture of Islam. “An Islamic preacher should
understand his surroundings and should not lose his cool and balance while
making statements,” he said.
In Canada, Sheikh Ahmad Kutty, a senior lecturer at the Islamic
Institute of Toronto, said: “It is indeed regrettable for an imam not to
exercise sensitivity toward others with ideological differences. His comments
are unduly provocative and go against the teachings of the Qur’an, which also
cautions Muslims against offending the sensibilities of others.”
Dr. Muhammad Al-Misteeri, an Islamic scholar in France, also objected
to Al-Hilali’s statement, saying Islam does not allow comparing men with
animals.
“Rape has nothing to do with the dress worn by a woman. It is caused by
factors such as immorality, deviation, psychological problems and unemployment.
Rape is done by men and how can we blame women for that?” he asked.
The defenders of the imam, and their numbers are legion, say he should
not be persecuted for something taken out of context.
“We’re certainly not going to pass judgment on the basis of one comment
in which we know his intentions were completely different,” said Keysar Trad,
the president of the Islamic Friendship Association of Australia.
Long-time Jeddah resident Zaheer Iqbal said, “Only yesterday, a Danish
court rejected the plea of Muslims to punish a newspaper that offended Muslims
by lampooning the holy Prophet (peace be upon him) in a series of caricatures.”
“The court decided that the purpose of the drawings was not to belittle
Muslims. While the Danish court was delivering a license to offend Muslims, in
another culturally Western country an imam, who was simply trying to preach to
his congregation the virtues of decency, was being forced to apologize for
something taken completely out of context,” he said.
“The example was in Arabic and in the Orient such examples definitely
do not seem as outlandish as they do in the West. The Western media need to
understand that its perception and understanding of speech is not the status
quo. Certain actions and ways of saying things in the West can equally be
misunderstood in an Eastern context. The difference is people in the East never
make an issue out of such things,” Iqbal added.
***************************************************************************
{Invite (mankind, O Muhammad ) to the Way of your Lord (i.e. Islam) with wisdom
(i.e. with the Divine Inspiration and the Qur'an) and fair preaching, and argue
with them in a way that is better. Truly, your Lord knows best who has gone
astray from His Path, and He is the Best Aware of those who are guided.} (Holy
Quran-16:125)
{And who is better in speech than he who [says: "My Lord is Allah (believes in
His Oneness)," and then stands straight (acts upon His Order), and] invites
(men) to Allah's (Islamic Monotheism), and does righteous deeds, and says: "I
am one of the Muslims."} (Holy Quran-41:33)
The prophet (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) said: "By Allah, if
Allah guides one person by you, it is better for you than the best types of
camels." [al-Bukhaaree, Muslim]
The prophet (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) also said, "Whoever
calls to guidance will have a reward similar to the reward of the one who
follows him, without the reward of either of them being lessened at all."
[Muslim, Ahmad, Aboo Daawood, an-Nasaa'ee, at-Tirmidhee, Ibn Maajah]
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