The gardens of peace
June 12, 2009
© Greeks Rethink
Today is Friday the 12th June 2009.
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| In the Name of Allah, the Most Beneficent, the Most Merciful | |
| “Truly! To Allah we belong and truly, to Him we shall return” (Sura 2: 156) |
As I opened my eyes to the new day and started planning my busy day ahead, thoughts of death, dying and burial started coming in to my mind. “ Life is short” is a common saying. Everybody seems to be using this expression at the slip of the tongue. How many times one stops and thinks what it means is another matter.
“Every soul shall taste death” says an ayaah in the Holy Qur’an. “If you reach the evening do not expect to live by the morning, and if you reach morning do not expect to live by evening” is a hadith of our holy prophet (peace be upon him). So on my way to work I stopped at our local Muslim cemetery. I do not do so often but today the need to visit and reflect was overpowering. As I was driving along the little country road speed limit 40 miles per hour and keeping to it, I was thinking that the chances are that this is the route that my own funeral procession will take and I better pray a few words of forgiveness and my declaration of faith to my Creator while I still can. Also words of thanks for having another day to be with my family came to my mind and lips. And as I renewed my declaration of faith and blessings on our Holy Prophet (peace be upon him), I had reached the gates of our local Muslim cemetery the Gardens of peace. Gardens of peace is a registered charitable trust. At 21.5 acres it is the largest Muslim Cemetery in the UK, with enough space for over 10,000 graves. Facilities include parking for 76 cars and provision for making wudhu and salaah.
The landscape architects used to design the Cemetery won the top Award in the internationally recognised Stonegard Phoenix Competition for their work. The Cemetery has also won a Special Award from the British Association of Landscape Industries for groundbreaking work in urban renewal.
Additionally in 2006 the Cemetery was recognised by London in Bloom for the quality of its landscaping.
“This is such a short trip” I thought. “It does not take long at all,” to get to destination.” It does not take long at all to leave everything behind and finally be in the box (grave) where no possessions or relatives can help me and the only thing I can take with me is my own deeds.
As I parked the car I looked at the Gardens of peace and I marvelled at how much thought and consideration had gone in this tranquill final place of rest. I never stop to marvel every time I come here, as I remember times gone by when I had attended funerals when the Gardens of Peace was not here. For them there were graves in a sectioned off place of the Christian cemeteries. Still thankful though as they were also burials of dignity. As the Muslim population in the local area was growing and the older generation was passing away, their children wanted the best for them in death as well as in life. Thus the dream was born which with the effort of dedicated brothers and sisters became reality. Everything was thought of. As I am now speaking to the brother in charge of the cemetery I discussed the following issues with him. He was more than willing to answer my questions. We spoke about:
Islamic Death rites
§ When a Muslim person dies, it is important that he or she is
buried as soon as possible after death and on the same day.
This practice can only be delayed if the death Is reported to the coroner and post-mortem examination is necessary. Burial is that one person is buried per grave with the face of the deceased when buried, facing Makkah. The grave itself should be raised by a minimum of six inches.
Dignity in death
The Human Rights Act 1988 (HRA) came into force on 2nd October 2000 and incorporates into UK legislation many of the provisions of the European Convention of Human Rights (ECHR). The ECHR is a binding international agreement that the UK was involved in drafting and has sought to comply with since 1951. The Convention enshrines fundamental civil and political rights that, for many years, were not part of our own legal system. Using the Convention usually meant exhausting the domestic appeal system before taking a case to the European Court of Human Rights in Strasbourg. This was often time-consuming and costly. Since coming into force, the HRA has made the Convention rights enforceable in our domestic courts.
The Act makes it unlawful for a ‘public authority’, such as a government department or local authority (including a parish or community council) to act in a way that is incompatible with Convention rights, unless it is bound to do so in order to ‘give effect to legislation.’
Human Rights and the Disposal of the Dead
(1) Everyone has the right for his private and family life, his home and his correspondence.
(2) There shall be no interference by a public authority with the exercise of this right except such as is in accordance with the law and is necessary in a democratic society in the interests of national security, public safety or the economic well-being of the country, for the prevention of disorder or crime, for the protection of health or morals, or for the protection of the rights and freedoms of others.
Article 9: Freedom of conscience
(1) Everyone has the right to freedom of thought, conscience and religion; this right includes freedom to change his religion or belief and freedom, either alone or in community with others and in public or private, to manifest his religion or belief, in worship, teaching, practice and observance.
(2) Freedom to manifest one’s religion or beliefs shall be subject only to such limitations as are prescribed by law and are necessary in a democratic society in the interests of public safety, for the protection of public order, health or morals, or for the protection of the rights and freedom of others.
He was telling me the procedures they had to go through to aquire the land depending totally on Sadaqah and loans from Muslims which still pay back and of course all the stringent procedures with the Planning Permissions Department of the local authority. In the end the result is here for all of us to see. I was told that the cemetery has an average of 2-3 burials per week and that the land they have aquired is sufficient for single graves for the next 200 years. We also discussed the recycling of the graves, and I was told that in app 200 years they would possibly have to start reusing the same graves by buring on top of the existing.
What moves me the most here is that all the graves are the same, no rich and no poor distinctions, we are all the same in death. I love the canal that runs along the cemetery as a symbolic separation of the land of the dead and the living, with the dua of greeting the dead on the bridge. We recite the dua just as we enter the area of the graves.
As I am contemplating and feeling grateful my thoughts turn to Greece. I am thinking of the urgent need of our brothers and sisters for a place to worship and a cemetery. “ In a hadith narrated by Anas the Holy Prophet (peace be upon him) said: “None of you will have faith, unless he wishes for his brother what he wishes for himself.” They have been waiting too long.” I say. “Please see that nothing is impossible.” Just look at the ” Gardens of Peace.”
Photo gallery 1 : http://www.gardens-of-peace.org.uk/album2/index.html
Photo galelry 2: http://www.gardens-of-peace.org.uk/album1/index.html
Xenia UK
Special report: Greek Parliament member pushes religious freedom for Muslims
March 30, 2009
Parliament member Mr. Periklis Korovesis from the Syriza party lodged a formal question [about religious freedom] to the Greek Parliament, in particular the Ministers of Internal Affairs, Foreign Affairs, Education and Religions, National Defence. (Please view the seven questions at the end of this report.)
Subject: Muslim Cemetery and Mosque in Attica
In Athens, where 700 000 Muslims of all nationalities live, there is neither a mosque nor a Muslim cemetery, making Greece the only country in Europe that has not taken care of this. This practice opposes Article 13 of the Constitution and Article 9 of the European Convention for the Human Rights that clearly state “the freedom of religious conscience is unhindered”.
Understandably, the Muslims in Athens feel the sense of rejection as they have no ability to pray, get married, and have a funeral service with dignity. As a result, this brought the existence of over 50 unofficial praying places in the region, often located in undergrounds and garages.
Just recently, the Prefecture of Athens fined the owner of an underground building at Nea Ionia 60 000 euro and 30 000 euro because he used it as an unofficial mosque without special permission of a “bethel”, allowing Muslims of the area to pray there.
There were significant local protests from the immigrants who opposed the prefecture as well as Greek inhabitants and authorities, demonstrating on Saturday February 7th at a massive movement in this small area (more than 1000 people) asking for a proper place to conduct religious tasks, which is a right registered by the constitution.
However, the decision of the prefecture and the reactions on behalf of the immigrants is not new. Thirty years have passed since the first claim in 1976 was lodged for building a mosque in Athens from the Arabic embassies, when all Greek governments projected several barriers in order not to proceed to its fulfillment.
Meanwhile, in other countries like Sweden, there are five mosques, 150 praying places and 10 Muslim cemeteries; in France there are 2000 praying places and 12 mosques when the cemeteries (except for one Muslim cemetery established in 1930) where it is obliged to have place of burying Muslims; in Norway (Oslo) the mosque was established in 1980, in Poland (Gtansk) in 1989, in Russia (Moscow) in 1912, in Scotland (Glascow) in 1983, in Portugal (Lisbon) in 1988, in Malta in 1978, in Ireland (Dublin) in 1978, in the UK there is the biggest Muslim cemetery in Europe and many mosques.
In 1983 the Greek state was committed to construct a mosque in Marousi, but this did not work due to the reactions of the local authorities. In 2000 the law 2833 was including the establishment if an Islamic Cultural Centre and Mosque in Peania with expenses that the Saudi Arabian Government would cover. This project was cancelled and in the very same place they realized that was already been built an orthodox church!
In October 2006 the Ministry of Education presented a draft law for building a mosque at Eleonas, a feasible project in harmony with the protected green of the area. The decision remained inapplicable because at the area that was given for the mosque is located navy base and the transfer of that means that 5 000 000 euro should be found. Although the Muslim Community was willing to offer that amount, this offer was not accepted, for it is the obligation of the Ministry of Defense to provide the funds to the Navy.
The Muslim Association of Greece sent a recent letter (27.01.09) to the Minister of Education and Religions asking to fulfil the governmental commitments and accusing the ministry’s palinodes twice for losing the necessary documents for the realization of this project.
Similar luck seems to have the permanent claim of the Muslims for the establishment of the Muslim cemetery in Athens, for which we have lodged a question (number of lodgment 1334/15.7.2009).
Despite of the bestowal of the field at the area of Schisto for the establishment, and the commitments of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs that was authorized as a coordinator of the engaged authorities, no procedure has proceeded. Hence, since the Muslims of Attica have no official mosque, nor a cemetery, nor a religious scholar who will be under a law to practice their religious rituals, they are forced to move their dead to Thrace or abroad with a huge economic cost for the family, that rates even 5000 euro (for Pakistan).
For the construction of the Muslim cemetery in Schisto, the Muslim Association of Greece has sent a letter again to the Minister of Internal Affairs on 27.01.2009, asking for intervention, as far as the bureaucratic procedures of the local authorities are concerned for the following reasons:
- All these are unprecedented for an elemental democratic country and equals to “Islamophobia” and discrimination if the Islamic civilization;
- The pertinacious non-immigration policy of the governments has created a suffocating place of living for Muslim immigrants and refuges that are in Greece, insulting fundamental and obvious human rights of every civilised country;
- The immigration stream of the last decade has definitively changed the face and composition of the Greek society affecting even its deeper structures, transforming it to multicultural and religious differentiation, which in fact compels changes in point of vision, criteria and methods.
The ministers are asked:
- What is the status of the procedures for the construction of the Eleonas mosque and what are the obstacles of moving the navy base, the cost of the moving etc.
- Have the funds been found by the Ministry of National Defense for the move of the navy base from the area of Eleonas?
- In which point are the procedures for the establishment of the Muslim cemetery in Shisto? Is the topographic survey of the area that was expected to be completed within a two months period starting from July 2008, according to the response that was given to us by the Deputy Minister of foreign affairs Theodoros Kassimis?
- Has the transfer of the proprietary title of the area been made by the Church of Greece to the local authority in charge of the Muslim cemetery?
- Are the procedures of the Ministry of Zoning and Public Works finished as concerning the zoning of the cemetery area?
- How do they think to improve the conditions of religious freedom and equity, having in mind the condition that has prevailed in Greece and in Europe, in order to reduce the distance that separates our country from the rest of Europe?
- Which constitutional preconditions they think to create will allow all religious communities to enjoy the internationally acknowledged equity of rights and parity for the religious rights?
Athens, March 26, 2009
Member of Parliament
Periklis Korovesis
Greece: “More and strenuous efforts are needed to protect minority rights” says Commissioner Hammarberg
February 19, 2009
Source: Council of Europe
Strasbourg, 19.02.2009 – “Effective protection of minority rights is a fundamental pillar of pluralist societies. Greece still needs to make more and strenuous efforts to ensure that these rights are fully respected and protected”. With these words Thomas Hammarberg, the Council of Europe Commissioner for Human Rights, published today a report on human rights of minorities in Greece, focusing on issues relating to the right to freedom of association, statelessness and application of the Sharia Law.
While commending certain efforts made by the authorities in particular in the field of minority education in Thrace, the Commissioner remains deeply worried about the persistent denial of recognition of minorities other than the tripartite ‘Muslim’ one in western Thrace. The Commissioner also expresses his serious concerns by the over-restrictive practice of Greek courts that has led to non-registration of certain minority associations. “The authorities should urgently make possible the effective enjoyment by minority members of their right to freedom of association” said Thomas Hammarberg. “A consultative mechanism should also be created to ensure a continuous dialogue at all levels with minority groups, in accordance with the Council of Europe standards.”
The Commissioner also urges the authorities to complete promptly their efforts aimed at restoring the Greek nationality of those minority members who were deprived of it unlawfully by virtue of the former nationality code. “Particular care should be provided to those remained in Greece and who have limited financial resources to cover welfare and medical services” said the Commissioner. “As for the denationalised persons who are abroad, the authorities should consider the possibility of providing them, or their descendants, with satisfaction.”
Furthermore, Commissioner Hammarberg expresses serious concerns about the application of the Sharia Law concerning family and inheritance matters to Muslim Greek citizens in Thrace, by Muftis appointed by the Greek state. “Given the issues of incompatibility of this practice with European and international human rights standards, it is necessary to overhaul this practice and strengthen the substantive review and control by domestic courts of the Muftis’ judicial decisions.”
Finally, the Commissioner calls upon the Greek authorities to proceed promptly to the ratification of or accession to certain major Council of Europe treaties, such as the Framework Convention for the Protection of National Minorities, the European Convention on Nationality and the Fourth Protocol to the European Convention on Human Rights.
The report is based on the Commissioner’s visit to Greece on 8-10 December 2008. It is available, together with the Greek authorities’ comments, on the Commissioner’s website.
Media contact in the Commissioner’s Office: Stefano Montanari, +33 6 61 14 70 37; stefano.montanari@coe.int
Office of the Commissioner for Human Rights
Communication Unit
Tel: +33 (0)3 88 41 35 38
Fax:+33 (0)3 90 21 50 53
www.commissioner.coe.int
press.commissioner@coe.int
Behead the headless!
January 8, 2009
If I weren’t a Muslim, I would be scared of Islam. I mean, bombing innocent people and stoning women to death, it just seems like a barbaric religion that takes us back into ancient times that I would be mind-boggled as to why anyone would want to convert to Islam, let alone the tens of thousands that do so every year.
I would be scared too. But the fact is that none of that is true. Except for the part about the converts to Islam. That’s true.
Muslim haters have twisted the facts so much, that I don’t know what religion their words represent anymore. Maybe their own. The Islam that I know (and have proof of) says that killing a human being is like killing all of humanity.
“…whosoever kills a human being without (any reason like) man slaughter, or corruption on earth, it is as though he had killed all mankind and whoever saves a life it is as though he had saved the lives of all mankind.” (Quran 5:32)
I don’t care if that human being is white, black, red or yellow. Muslim, Christian, Jew or Atheist. Old, young, child or baby. A human is a human and it does not deserve to be slaughtered. That’s Islam. And that’s what it means to protect human sacredness.
Muslims stand up to any oppressor that breaks this sanctity and that’s what I like about the Greek spirit. We will always fight for freedom. That’s why we defend Gaza and the world leaders need to stop being scared of bullies who have the audacity to terrorize and then label the oppressed as terrorists. They need to come together and stand up with us against the real bully who beheads the headless.
The Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him) said, “Help your brother, whether he is an oppressor or he is oppressed.” The Prophet was asked: “It is right to help him if he is oppressed, but how should we help him if he is an oppressor?” He replied: “By preventing him from oppressing others.” (Sahih Bukhari)
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Notes:
1) Muslims believe in human rights like the right to life, justice, equality, freedom, safety and much more. You can find out more in the online book, Human Rights In Islam by ‘Allamah Abu al-’A'la Mawdudi
2) The Prophet has said: “If any one of you comes across an evil, he should try to stop it with his hand, if he is not in a position to stop it with his hand then he should try to stop it by means of his tongue (meaning he should speak against it). If he is not even able to use his tongue then he should at least condemn it in his heart. This is the weakest degree of faith.” (Muslim)
Are Christians Muslims? And those who think so
December 22, 2008
As ridiculous as that sounds, many Muslims want to include Christians, or People of the Book, as believers because they feel that the term, kafir, or disbeliever, is too harsh of a label.
So, they end up saying things like, People of the Book are believers because God gave them special status.
At first, I was confused too as many other Muslims. But if you ask a Christian, Are you a Muslim? They will say, heck no! In fact, they think we are disbelievers and they have no quams about telling us that, so why do we hesitate to say that they are not Muslims?
A believer is someone who believes in the saying, La illaha illah Allah, Muhammad ar-rasuluAllah (there is no object worthy of worship except Allah [God] and Muhammad is His messenger).
The truth is that God has told us in the Quran that most People of the Book are disbelievers but there is a party amongst them that are true believers,
“Not all of them are alike; a party of the people of the Scripture stand for the right, they recite the verses of Allah during the hours of the night, prostrating themselves in prayer. They believe in Allah and the Last Day; they enjoin what is right and forbid evil and they hasten in good works; and they are among the righteous. And whatever good they do, nothing will be rejected of them; for Allah knows well those who are the pious”. (Quran: 3:113-115)
This is why we can’t go up to a single Christian or Jew and say, hey you are a disbeliever (like they do to us), unless they explicitly profess their beliefs.
Some Muslims are uncomfortable with this because the media has painted an ugly picture that Muslims terrorize or spit at disbelievers, but that couldn’t be farther than the truth.
As Muslims, we must treat everyone with respect and give specific rights to all of humanity and even animals. And the People of the Book have special rights that must be preserved. But that doesn’t make them believers.
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