Blog Idol

Friends, I had applied for the blog idol contest at Go Smell The Flowers Blog earlier this month & was chosen as one of the 5 finalists. Have a look at this video to get some idea about the contest. This week all the five finalist were asked to submit a single blog entry, which will be used as a criteria for choosing the 3 winners. Here is the link to the post I submitted last night. 

Please do share your opinion, either here or over there :-)

Domestic Help Needs Help

Few days ago, I saw a scene outside the arrival lounge of Dubai airport which really disturbed me alot. I saw a group of women, maybe they numbered 25-30 & most probably they were from Indonesia or some other South East Asian country & had come to the country to work as house maids.

What disturbed me or rather made me angry was the fact that I stayed there for almost 2 hours because the person I went to receive, his flight got delayed. And during this time, this group remained outside & they were still there when I left. Apparently no one had come to receive them. Some of them were even sleeping on the floor because of tiredness.

Observing the faces of the poor women made me thankful to God that I have not been born into a poor household. I could see disappointment on their faces as they waited for their sponsor or maybe the recruitment agency to come & pick them. And once they reach the houses of their sponsors, more hardships await them. Poor people are oppressed and exploited everywhere & more so in our so called "Islamic" countries.

We muslims apparently have forgotten the instruction of our Prophet peace be upon him regarding the treatment of workers:

Your brothers are your responsibility. Allah has made them under your hands. So whosoever has a brother under his hand, let him give him food as he eats and dress as he dresses. Do not give them work that will overburden them and if you give them such task then provide them assistance.

Source

Some of you might be aware of the fact that about 5% of the UAE's population consists of domestic workers & I think they are one of the most oppressed segments of the society. Should the government be blamed for not doing enough or is it the people who need to be reminded about their responsibilities towards people under their hand?

Instant Justice

I want to share an incident I saw today morning. One of my neighbors deflated tyres of the two cars which were parked in front of his house. I think he was kind enough to only show kindness to only one tyre. Why he did that? Because he has reserved four parking spaces for himself in front of his house gate although most of the times he parks his car inside & interestingly he only own a single vehicle.

I would like to point out the fact that only a couple of years ago you could park the car in any angle you want in our neighborhood but now many people who don't have the luxury of indoor parking struggle to find a vacant space.

Why I am posting this here? To highlight the fact that as the population of Dubai is growing, have you noticed any change in the attitude of people towards others? At least I have noticed that people have become more selfish, they lose tempers easily & hearts have become harder unlike before. Is this a price all "developed" countries also had to pay on their path towards economic "growth"?

Was he justified in his action? What would have been your action if you were in the place of the person who deflated the tyres, since I have explained the situation in the above paragraph. And how would you have felt if early in the morning on your way to work, if you were greeted by a deflated tyre?

What is your choice: Islam or Society?

What will the people say? Will they approve of it? Will they laugh at it? It seems that such concerns influence our actions --especially our public conduct-- more than anything else. Social pressure is a powerful force. It works by appealing to our desire not to be insulted, ridiculed, or criticized.

In a righteous society it could also be a force for good, as some people will avoid a bad name more than they would a bad action. But in the real world out there it mostly turns into an evil force, pressuring people into doing things they know are wrong or keeping them from doing what they know are right. The question of right and wrong is changed into a question of acceptable and unacceptable to this evil force.

You can read the rest of the article here.

Why have I posted this? Because I am facing a dilemma. I am sure most of the Muslim youth face it at one or another point in their life. That dilemma is whether you should obey your parents by blindly following the rules of the society or should you obey the teachings of Islam.

Do people think that they will be left alone because they say: "We believe," and will not be tested. And We indeed tested those who were before them. And Allah will certainly make (it) known (the truth of) those who are true, and will certainly make (it) known (the falsehood of) those who are liars, (although Allah knows all that before putting them to test). Or those who do evil deeds think that they can outstrip Us (i.e. escape Our Punishment)? Evil is that which they judge!

Whoever hopes for the Meeting with Allah, then Allah's Term is surely coming. and He is the All-Hearer, the All-Knower. And whosoever strives, he strives only for himself. Verily, Allah is free of all wants from the worlds. Those who believe [in the Oneness of Allah (Monotheism) and in Messenger Muhammad, and do not apostate because of the harm they receive from the polytheists], and do righteous good deeds, surely, We shall remit from them their evil deeds and shall reward them according to the best of that which they used to do.

And We have enjoined on man to be good and dutiful to his parents, but if they strive to make you join with Me (in worship) anything (as a partner) of which you have no knowledge, then obey them not. Unto Me is your return, and I shall tell you what you used to do. (Chapter 29: Verses 2 - 8)

If you were in my place, what would you choose? The rules of the creation or the Creator? And why?

Funny Inflation

The whole world is suffering from inflation at the moment. And I think the main reason behind that is the unusually high oil price. But here in the UAE, we hear so many strange & sometimes funny justifications given by the officials of the public or semi-public companies defending the price increases.

Today morning, I heard on radio an official from DEWA saying that they basically introduced the current slab tariff system because of their concern for the environment. I thought five months is considered a short term but our official said that it is not. Of course he was referring to their assurance last November on the same radio show that there is no chance of raising the prices in the "short term." And the gem, prices in Dubai are still very low when you compare it to those in US or Europe. Yes sir, definitely they are, but then the average wage here is also much lower than those countries. Plus you have access to cheaper fuel, something most of them don't have the luxury of.

Why can't the people simply say it that since they think all of us are "millionaires", therefore they are justified in their demands for price increases. I really admire the "honesty" of an official from Emarat who was grilled last month on Sharjah FM as part of the station's week long drive trying to persuade the fuel distributors to lower their prices. At that time, the gentleman said that since the living standard of people in UAE is higher than our immediate neighbors Oman & Qatar, they are justified in asking the government to further increase the price of petrol. Very convincing logic indeed !

Where is the role of Ministry of Economy? I wish they start showing the same enthusiasm they had showed last year when they forced the cinemas to roll back their price increases. After all, watching movies is more important than fulfilling the basic needs of life for most of us here in the country. God help us :-)