Subject: On Wahhabism (1 of 3) - msg#00123

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Tillari Project Irrigation Project Dam (Maharashtra Goa region)

Trouble times have not erased the creases on the minds of over 1490 villagers of 725 households in four Village Panchayats of Patiye, Sargave & Ainodem, Pal & Kendrem,  and Shirange, of  Bedshi Zilla Panchayat  District Sindhudurga Maharashtra. ever since the Tillari Irrigation Project  estimated to cost above 952 crores of which 670 crores ought to be borne by Goa and the rest Maharashtra ,was conceptualised in 1977 during the erstwhile Maharashtrawadi Gomantak Party followed by the Congress and now the BJP led coalition government in power. What was initially meant to usher a green revolution in the villages of Ibrampur, Colvale and other regions or Bardez and Bicholim Talukas is now posing a uncertainty and fund constraints.  First the cost overruns and no one can deny it was a milking cow for for the Irrigation Department and now the renamed Water Resources Department both of the Goa & Maharashtra governments and now whether with the concretisation era in Goa where non remunerative farmland is being usurped for rapid urbannisation leaving farmers to abandon their tradition and seek other employments in the organised sector. But  " what are we to do if the Government is uncertain and cries for funds? according to  senior villagers who hesitated to identify their names .  "look" said another in Marathised Konkani accent this being a border village though they share commonalitiy in folklore  and religious deities that preside over the regions in the footholds of Sahayadri ranges of the then Sattari region, now forming part of Goa & Maharashtra, "we have been served notices to shift to Zarimbor, Khaniyali, Sasolim. in Maharashtra and Sal in Bicholim Taluka in Goa as a rehabilitation package but with land provided for housing we have not been provided water and tanker water is expensive"  Yet another lamented that the distance is about 22 kms and they have to carry the timber tiles and other accessories but the border checkposts have been an obstacles and their vehicles detained" Not satisfied with this others expressed in unison " we are determined not to allow the project to recommence."  said Rajaram who shied to disclose his details .It is expected so on 17th November, 2002 when officials of both sides will be converging at the dam site for talks with the villagers and the elected representatives who are strongly one with the villagers.  "Our boys are not educated as higher schools are not in the proximity the only school teaches upto VII and the villages have no power supply no pipeline water supply TV is unheard of and the villagers most eke out aliving on cultivation of rice millets. Being away from the seat of power in Maharashtra these villages are neglected and the local MP the erstwhile Union Power Minister has done petty little to afford lighting to these villagers. The villagers therefore unanimously demand'  " give us land for cultivation and we are willing to shift "  but this is the crux of the problem and they are adamant not to shift.  In July 2002 they were spare the vagaries of monsoons.  Continuous rain breached the part of the dam construction and the Patiye village would have been submerged fortunately the rains stopped or else the only post office in an old dilapidated structure and the school would be submerged. Yet another tragedy had befallen these villagers two years ago when elephants believed to have run amock from Dandeli to Sattari entered their villages and ruined their crops forcing them to run helter skelter. A brief intrusion into the wooded path of the region brought important revelations.  Three temples,Gajalaximi temple, Brahmani temple and Mahishasuramrindini temple with motifs of the Kadamba era and some excellent carvings thereon discovered by Verodiana Award Winner 2001 and environmentalist and nare foot  researcher familiar with folklore in entire Goa also a lecturer and Mahadei river activist Rajendra Kerkar of Keri Sattari will be submerged if the Dept of Archaeology and Museums or Archaelogical Survey of India does not step in to  relocate these temples, now visited by the locals all year round. The villagers are caught between the devil and the deep sea while for all practical purposes administratively and geographical conmtiguity wise they are closer to Goa government, those who matter on the Mharashtra side are miles away. One feature of the villagers which caught the imagination of the investigating team constituting  Rajendra Kerkar and journalist Paul Fernandes and nature lover free lance writer Godfrey J. I. Gonsalves all of Goa were that they were cheerful even in thier primitive lifestyles and had a gleam of joy when told that the national and international awareness would be created to uphold their just and genuine demand for better compensation by providing adequate farmland with irrigation facilities so that the kith and kin would continue the voacations. Will the Governments of Goa and Maharashtra awake to the ground realities soon? The photographs attached give an insight into the ground realities. godfrey j.i. gonsalves B-F-4 Hillside Apartments Borda Margao Goa Post your ad on Yahoo! India Autos. Check out the used Maruti, Fiat and Ford models on sale now.

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Re: On Wahhabism (1 of 3)

======================================================================== Goa's phone numbers change from Nov 10, 2002. Prefix old number with a 2. New numbers will be seven-digit 2XXXXXX (where XXXXXX is the old number). ======================================================================== Mohammed Ali is currently in Kabul making waves. He is much liked by those he is meedting as UN Ambassador who travels along. I wonder if he will go to Khandahar or anywhere up in the North. I would wish that he would have travelled to Kashmir to settle the dispute with Pakistan. Reporting should be done by a Goan correspondent. I wonder if he has four wives. I am appaled by the Swazi King's promiscuity and he is collecting young girls as wives and in fact presented his brother with one. He thinks that he is collecting stamps and coins. He has already got 10 stamps (wives) and there was controversy about the last kid he 'abducted'. He is not a Muslim though and I hope he does not try and break the Prophet's record of 14 wives. His last wife Aiysha was only nine and the daughter of Aby Bakr his right hand man. No one seerms to condemn such practices. They are all chicken. A layman in Iran, a friend of Khatami has been condemned to death for stating like Taslima Nasreem that the Holy book ought to be revised (not the Thorah or Bible). They only use the first edition published much after the death of the Prophet. I better not go further of there will be a Fatwa on my head from a Kashmiri. Khamenei has asked that his sentence be reviewed after protests from liberal minded Iranians. I have chosen to convert to Chrismus. A new religion which makes me a Christian above the belt and below the belt adhere to another religion. Then, I could marry many times. Very good to know about Wahabism. A degenerate form of Saudi expression of Islam. Women are not allowed to drive a car. No Christian Church may be built in that country though Saudi money is building many mosques like one in Rome and Goa. Their logic is not my logic. I am glad I live in a country where the freedom of expression is guaranteed. And Bush is looking after me, checking my postings and laughing loud. Edgar Martins ---------------------------------------------------------- What's On In Goa (WOIG): Nov 06 Children's book exhibn opens, Walkabout, Anjuna... (all weekdays) Nov 06 ArtHouse, Calangute: Chaitali's acrylics on canvas till 19.11 Nov 07 Revision of electoral rolls (till Nov 30) See schedule. Dec 01 Two day conference, Goa Agenda. IT For Society. (Ends 2.12) Every Sunday: Music therapy sessions at Moira, 5 pm. 278, N.Portugal ----------------------------------------------------------

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Tillari Project Irrigation Project Dam (Maharashtra Goa region)

Trouble times have not erased the creases on the minds of over 1490 villagers of 725 households in four Village Panchayats of Patiye, Sargave & Ainodem, Pal & Kendrem,  and Shirange, of  Bedshi Zilla Panchayat  District Sindhudurga Maharashtra. ever since the Tillari Irrigation Project  estimated to cost above 952 crores of which 670 crores ought to be borne by Goa and the rest Maharashtra ,was conceptualised in 1977 during the erstwhile Maharashtrawadi Gomantak Party followed by the Congress and now the BJP led coalition government in power. What was initially meant to usher a green revolution in the villages of Ibrampur, Colvale and other regions or Bardez and Bicholim Talukas is now posing a uncertainty and fund constraints.  First the cost overruns and no one can deny it was a milking cow for for the Irrigation Department and now the renamed Water Resources Department both of the Goa & Maharashtra governments and now whether with the concretisation era in Goa where non remunerative farmland is being usurped for rapid urbannisation leaving farmers to abandon their tradition and seek other employments in the organised sector. But  " what are we to do if the Government is uncertain and cries for funds? according to  senior villagers who hesitated to identify their names .  "look" said another in Marathised Konkani accent this being a border village though they share commonalitiy in folklore  and religious deities that preside over the regions in the footholds of Sahayadri ranges of the then Sattari region, now forming part of Goa & Maharashtra, "we have been served notices to shift to Zarimbor, Khaniyali, Sasolim. in Maharashtra and Sal in Bicholim Taluka in Goa as a rehabilitation package but with land provided for housing we have not been provided water and tanker water is expensive"  Yet another lamented that the distance is about 22 kms and they have to carry the timber tiles and other accessories but the border checkposts have been an obstacles and their vehicles detained" Not satisfied with this others expressed in unison " we are determined not to allow the project to recommence."  said Rajaram who shied to disclose his details .It is expected so on 17th November, 2002 when officials of both sides will be converging at the dam site for talks with the villagers and the elected representatives who are strongly one with the villagers.  "Our boys are not educated as higher schools are not in the proximity the only school teaches upto VII and the villages have no power supply no pipeline water supply TV is unheard of and the villagers most eke out aliving on cultivation of rice millets. Being away from the seat of power in Maharashtra these villages are neglected and the local MP the erstwhile Union Power Minister has done petty little to afford lighting to these villagers. The villagers therefore unanimously demand'  " give us land for cultivation and we are willing to shift "  but this is the crux of the problem and they are adamant not to shift.  In July 2002 they were spare the vagaries of monsoons.  Continuous rain breached the part of the dam construction and the Patiye village would have been submerged fortunately the rains stopped or else the only post office in an old dilapidated structure and the school would be submerged. Yet another tragedy had befallen these villagers two years ago when elephants believed to have run amock from Dandeli to Sattari entered their villages and ruined their crops forcing them to run helter skelter. A brief intrusion into the wooded path of the region brought important revelations.  Three temples,Gajalaximi temple, Brahmani temple and Mahishasuramrindini temple with motifs of the Kadamba era and some excellent carvings thereon discovered by Verodiana Award Winner 2001 and environmentalist and nare foot  researcher familiar with folklore in entire Goa also a lecturer and Mahadei river activist Rajendra Kerkar of Keri Sattari will be submerged if the Dept of Archaeology and Museums or Archaelogical Survey of India does not step in to  relocate these temples, now visited by the locals all year round. The villagers are caught between the devil and the deep sea while for all practical purposes administratively and geographical conmtiguity wise they are closer to Goa government, those who matter on the Mharashtra side are miles away. One feature of the villagers which caught the imagination of the investigating team constituting  Rajendra Kerkar and journalist Paul Fernandes and nature lover free lance writer Godfrey J. I. Gonsalves all of Goa were that they were cheerful even in thier primitive lifestyles and had a gleam of joy when told that the national and international awareness would be created to uphold their just and genuine demand for better compensation by providing adequate farmland with irrigation facilities so that the kith and kin would continue the voacations. Will the Governments of Goa and Maharashtra awake to the ground realities soon? The photographs attached give an insight into the ground realities. godfrey j.i. gonsalves B-F-4 Hillside Apartments Borda Margao Goa Post your ad on Yahoo! India Autos. Check out the used Maruti, Fiat and Ford models on sale now.

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Re: On Wahhabism (1 of 3)

======================================================================== Goa's phone numbers change from Nov 10, 2002. Prefix old number with a 2. New numbers will be seven-digit 2XXXXXX (where XXXXXX is the old number). ======================================================================== James, In order to better understand the topic at hand, there must be added a few other qualifiers. Stephen Schwartz himself is a convert to Islam. He has chosen to align himself with the Naqshabandi brand of Sufism. During the period from the thirteenth century to the latter half of the eighteenth century, the Naqshabandis were the main influence within the Muslim world and the Muslim empires that ruled much of this world. These included the Mughals, the Ottomans and the various Khanates of Central Asia and Eastern Europe. Since the eighteenth century, there were various Muslim revivalist movements that dotted the globe. In India, there were the revivalist movements of Shah Waliullah and Shaikh Syed Sirhindi while in the Nejd areas of Arabia, Muhammad Ibn Abdul Wahhab led his campaign. While the campaigns of Shah Waliullah and his counterparts in Egypt and Syria were essentially revolts against the European colonizers, the campaign of Muhammad Ibn Abdul Wahhab was directed mostly against the Arabs and Bedouins who indulged in animist and pagan practices and practices such as grave worship and witchcraft. In the last two hundred years or so, the puratanical (or Salafi) brand of Islam has gained popularity within the Muslim world. That has lead the Naqshabandis (and other movements such as the Barelvi and other Sufi orders) on a campaign to discredit the Salafi movement, by branding it foremost, as a Saudi invention (hence the Wahhabi nomenclature). Therefore, I view Stephen Schwartz writings as the latest in the Naqshabandi campaign to discredit the "Wahhabis". Don't get me wrong, there exists a similar campaign within the Salafi ranks to discredit all Sufi practices and orders. A casual search on the web on these topics will help you understand what I mean. The error that Schwartz makes, and so do many other who oppose this ideology is that they view the Saudi monarchy and its actions as representative of a certain ideology. The Saudi monarchy is out to protect itself, its interests and ensure its survival. If a certain ideology helps it maintain power, it will adopt that, and when it suits them, it ditches that part and justifies it under certain religious edicts. Muhammad Ibn Abdul Wahhab used the writings of Ibn Taimiyya and Ahmed Ibn Hambal (both were scholars who lived in the early centuries of Islam) to justify and model his campaign. However, both of these scholars have firmly held the position that there should be no armed struggle against an unjust ruler, and opined that patience was the best option. This part was obviously ignored when Ibn Abdul Wahhab and the founder of the Saud dynasty (whose name I forget) began an armed struggle against the Ottomans and their vassals in Mecca. However, these very teachings are today taught with great importance by the clerics of the Royal family. Another fallacy that makes the rounds and promoted by Schwartz as well, is that Saudi oil money is promoting this ideology called Wahhabi'ism. If we look at the history of any religion or ideology, its success has always lied in its thoughts and ideals and not some endorsement or patronage. The success of the various communist/socialist movements lied in its message of social reform rather than the rubles of the USSR. As a Christian, you would recognize that much of the conversion of Hindus to Christianity in recent years is not based on monetary power as claimed by the VHP and its followers. The Wahhabi thought survived because it merged itself within the larger puritanical or Salafi movements that cropped up all across the Muslim world from India to Morocco. None of these movements puport to be monolithic and differ from each other in many ways. To classify all these movements as Wahhabis is, in my opinion, an uneducated attempt to identify those that are "different". It is very easy to see the world the way the socialist movements were viewed in the past. Moscow was the epicenter and it exported this violent ideology called communism. The fact that much of the socialist movements were indigenous and in response to certain conditions was glossed over. In the same way, the increase in the popularity of the Salafi thought within the Muslim world can be attributed to a variety of reasons. They can vary from the lingering response to colonialism to lack of democracy to a response to declining morality. That, in itself, is a subject to examine. Best regards, Tariq On Mon, 18 Nov 2002, James Almeida wrote: > Presented without comment. The publications mentioned are typically deemed > conservative publications in the US. > > James > > > 18 November 2002 > The Good & the Bad > Stephen Schwartz on Islam and Wahhabism. > > > It was founded by Ibn Abd al-Wahhab, who formed an alliance with the > house of Saud, in which religious authority is maintained by the > descendants of al-Wahhab and political power is held by the descendants > of al-Saud: This is the Wahhabi-Saudi axis, which continues to rule > today. From its beginning, Wahhabism declared the entirety of existing > Islam to be unbelief, and traditional Muslims to be unbelievers subject > to robbery, murder, and sexual violation. Wahhabism has always viewed > Shia Muslims genocidally, as non-Muslims worthy of annihilation. > Wahhabism has always attacked the traditional, spiritual Islam or > Sufism that dominates Islam in the Balkans, Turkey, Central Asia, > India, Malaysia, and Indonesia. Wahhabism and neo-Wahhabism (the latter > being the doctrines of the Egyptian Muslim Brotherhood and the > Pakistani Islamists) are the main source of Islamic extremist violence > in the world today. Wahhabism represents a distinct, ultraradical form > of Islamism. Wahhabism is completely subsidized by the Saudi regime, > using oil income. > > Wahhabism has always maintained a two-faced policy regarding the West. > It has always depended on the armed forces of the Christian nations ? > Britain, the U.S., and France ? to secure its domination in the Arabian > peninsula, while it violently attacks Jews, Christians, Hindus, Sikhs, > and Buddhists, as well as traditional Sunnis, Sufis, and Shias, > throughout the rest of the world. Thus, the presence of U.S. troops > guarding the Saudis did not begin with the Gulf War in 1991. From 1946 > to 1962 the U.S. maintained an airbase in Saudi Arabia, and before that > the British assisted the Wahhabi-Saudi alliance against the Ottomans. > When the Saudis needed to clear the Grand Mosque in Mecca of protestors > in 1979, they employed French paratroops to kill Muslims within the > walls of the mosque. > > Lopez: How widespread is it? > > Schwartz: Wahhabism is official in Saudi Arabia. It is influential in > Qatar, Kuwait, and the United Arab Emirates. It has a substantial > following in Yemen, which also has many Shia Muslims. It is unpopular > in Bahrain and irrelevant in Oman. > > Outside the Peninsula, Wahhabism is generally unpopular. But where > trouble is found, Wahhabism may thrive. Hamas in Israel represents pure > Wahhabism. Forms of neo-Wahhabi or Wahhabized ideology have been > powerful in Egypt (the Muslim Brotherhood) and in Pakistan ? in both > countries neo-Wahhabis lead attacks on other Muslims and other faiths. > But in both countries mainstream Muslim scholars continue to struggle > against Wahhabism. Wahhabi aggression was defeated in Algeria and > Tajikistan. > > Wahhabi infiltration continues in Chechnya, to the detriment of the > just struggle of the Chechens against Russian imperialism, and in > Kashmir, where it is an obstacle to resolution of the conflict. Wahhabi > extremism and terrorism continue to plague Nigeria, Uzbekistan, > Indonesia, and the Philippines, although its real supporters in these > countries are few in number. > > But Wahhabi infiltration failed in Bosnia-Hercegovina and suffered a > smashing repudiation in Kosovo. Albanian Muslims in Macedonia and > Albania dislike Wahhabism, more intensely in the former than in the > latter. Wahhabism and its surrogate, the Deobandi ideology of the > Taliban, has been defeated in Afghanistan. Wahhabism has no real > following in among the Muslim masses in Francophone West Africa, > Morocco, Libya, the rest of Central Asia, India, or Malaysia. > > As to other Middle Eastern regions and states: Saddam Hussein has used > Wahhabism to give his regime an Islamic cover, but Wahhabism is deeply > unpopular in Iraq. > > Kurdistan is mainly Sufi in its Islam and aside from a handful of > mercenary extremists, Kurds reject Wahhabism. > > Syria, although a radical Arab state, is Islamically pluralist and > rejects Wahhabism completely. > > Jordan is ruled by Hashemites, who are traditional enemies of Wahhabism. > > Turkish Muslims loathe Wahhabism because of its role in subverting the > Ottoman caliphate. > > Iran loathes Wahhabism as much or more, because of its massacres of > Shias and wholesale destruction of Islamic holy sites, among other > issues. > > And other trouble spots: Sudan is a case unto itself, although Wahhabi > influence has been present in the Khartoum regime. > > Wahhabi infiltration is a serious problem in East Africa. > > In the Western European immigrant Muslim communities, Wahhabism has a > presence in France but has been weakened by the atrocities in Algeria. > Britain has a loud Wahhabi, neo-Wahhabi, and Wahhabi-wannabe element > but little real support for it among local Muslims. Wahhabism and > Islamic extremism in general are weak in Germany, where most Muslims > are Turkish and Kurdish. > > > > > _________________________________________________________________ > The new MSN 8: smart spam protection and 2 months FREE* > http://join.msn.com/?page=features/junkmail > > ---------------------------------------------------------- > What's On In Goa (WOIG): > Nov 06 Children's book exhibn opens, Walkabout, Anjuna... (all weekdays) > Nov 06 ArtHouse, Calangute: Chaitali's acrylics on canvas till 19.11 > Nov 07 Revision of electoral rolls (till Nov 30) See schedule. > Dec 01 Two day conference, Goa Agenda. IT For Society. (Ends 2.12) > Every Sunday: Music therapy sessions at Moira, 5 pm. 278, N.Portugal > > ---------------------------------------------------------- > -- Tariq Siddiqui tariq-w7o8QSjbB3j2fBVCVOL8/A@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx ******************************************************************************* Rockets Lover! Laker Hater !!! ******************************************************************************* ---------------------------------------------------------- What's On In Goa (WOIG): Nov 06 Children's book exhibn opens, Walkabout, Anjuna... (all weekdays) Nov 06 ArtHouse, Calangute: Chaitali's acrylics on canvas till 19.11 Nov 07 Revision of electoral rolls (till Nov 30) See schedule. Dec 01 Two day conference, Goa Agenda. IT For Society. (Ends 2.12) Every Sunday: Music therapy sessions at Moira, 5 pm. 278, N.Portugal ----------------------------------------------------------