assalamualaikum.

These are the photo of the flyers that are being distributed around campus and residential halls (I got mine from the Gemini takeaway next door when I went to get some apple pies).

There are also posters on stop-the-war demonstration in London, on the 8th of October.

It is interesting to see that in countries like the UK and the USA (much as some people would like to condemn these places as devil’s dens), freedom of speech is very much respected. Students (and anyone else for that matter) can be expressive, can demand for their rights, can protest and agree on issues independent of concerns like being chucked off university, can be as artistic and literary as they wish to be without anyone censoring them or telling them off for being too controversial. (Of course there’s cons on this as well, DO NOT say that “but freedom of speech has its drawbacks, people are immoral, bla bla bla blah”) And street protesters (as far as I often observed) made ‘peaceful rally’ a materialized concept. They don’t throw out a ruckus, so to speak. It’s a civilised civil-to-authorities relationship. I don’t imply that it’s uncivilised anywhere, mind you.

A senior discouraged me from going to London, though, although she (albeit a bit reluctantly) agreed for attending the rally earlier in Manchester. Logical reasons she gave as well, centering around my safety. It’s not the authorities that she’s concerned, but the demonstrating crowd. It’s a hot issue (people wouldn’t organize nationwide demos for non-hot issues, obviously), and people are bound to get over-excited, to put it mildly. Add to that the factor of large Muslim communities in London, composed by a lot of the passionate (to be politically-correct and reduce chances of being accused of stereotyping) Arabs and Pakistans, she’s practically warning me that I could be trampled to a rag should a stampede occur. Crowds might become violent, and the authorities will take it as a justification (or excuse?) to get violent as well. And little me might not stand a very big chance of survival. I think I won’t attend the demo in London, much as I wished to be part of it, not as a fascinated observing photo-taking tourist, but a socially-aware and socially-responsible people of the world. Apart from the safety reasons, I think my mom might kill me if she found out. I stand to the potential of a loss bigger than probable gain. Activism needs strategizing.

Why not us - OK, perhaps not me, I’m not good or virtuous enough to consider myself part of the ‘pejuang-pejuang’ - I’ll rephrase it. Why not the intelligent, socially-responsible students in the UK pay more attention to the affairs of the society and the world? Apart from whining that the Government - of which country, I shudder to state, I might be lynched and thrown stones at - is cruel, I mean. Caring about Palestine is good, excellent, but it is not all that we need to do to be a world-aware person. Of course I’m not hallucinating that any one of us can actually change the world, but let’s remind us of the cliched adage, let each do his/her bit, sands gathered can make an island.

The world and its issues - climate change, economic disparity, animal extinction, wars and terrorism, as well as all the Islamic-related issues - are OUR issues. If you’re a Muslim, I’d like to remind you that a Muslim is supposed to be a Khalifah, which does not only mean you have to do da’wah (those who follow a certain usrah - a LEGAL one, MSD-approved - will understand this. I don’t know anything of anything that is ILLEGAL. I’m a law-abiding student plagued with eternal fears about allowances and increments and cancellations of 60-40 arrangements). A Khalifah means one who would bring the whole world under PEACE. Submission to God. And that includes fixing material problems like poverty and dying polar bears due to melting ice-caps. Showing how syumul Islam is, is also a form of da’wah right? I might have to expound on this in another article, it’s very close to Sahur time. And readers might be wearied already reading my self-proclaimed intellectual and socially-astute ramblings.

I wish to mention specifically a sister, a Fourth-Year Medic who, in her own way, does her bit in conserving energy. Telling everyone to “save the polar bears” she would turn off electrical appliances when not needed (and badger me for leaving the laptop on when I’m asleep - gotta change the habit =|) and use the “Blackle” instead of “Google”. She TELLS people to do it and DOES it on her own. A perhaps-overlooked example, but still, to me, she’s inspiring.

OK, it’s halfway through Ramadhan here. To practising Muslims: How much had we actually done? To non-practising Muslims: When are you going to start practising? This month of rahmah and forgiveness and extra bonus on good deeds don’t come every day. Next time it comes we might be already gone with the wind. To me: I’ll keep my spiritual reprimands to myself. I don’t chastise myself in public. As some people would really agree, public writing is simply to chastise others, never one’s own self.

Peace be upon everyone.

May we meet and bask in the glory and bounty of Lailatul Qadr.

meow~