By Nadrat Siddique
June
1, 2018
Baltimore,
MD – Very nearly half way through Ramadan, supporters of Dr. Aafia Siddiqui held
an iftar in her honor. Close to 30 committed Muslim activists from DC,
Maryland, and Philadelphia discussed her case, made du’ah for her (and for other Muslim political prisoners), performed
maghrib prayers, and shared dates and
a Middle Eastern meal.
Dr. Aafia Siddiqui, a petite Pakistani Muslimah,
is a political prisoner of the U.S. government. By all accounts, she has been
raped, tortured, and separated from her school age children—who were also
detained for years—in the course of her incarceration. Aafia is a neuroscientist
with degrees from Brandeis University and MIT. She is being held as if she is a
dangerous criminal in Carswell, TX, on trumped up charges which include
attacking U.S. servicemen in Afghanistan. But supporters, like the ones
gathered at the Baltimore iftar
tonight, say the charges are preposterous, and that even the U.S. government knows
it erred in its dealings with her, but is too arrogant or stubborn to reverse
its actions.
Dr.
Kaukab Siddique,
an independent Pakistani journalist, who also teaches journalism at Lincoln
University, was at the iftar. He had
been writing about Aafia’s case almost since its inception. In opening remarks
to the iftar, Dr. Siddique referred
to the Muslim organization he helped found decades ago: “Jamaat al-Muslimeen has
always been in the forefront of fighting for Muslim women’s rights under the
rubric of Islam, and women have often been at the helm of the organization.”
He recognized Ashira Na’im, Masjid Jamaat al-Muslimeen administrator; Sr. Chekisha El-Amin, a long-time
Baltimore-based Jamaat al-Muslimeen activist; Nadrat Siddique, a DC-based Jamaat al-Muslimeen activist and
political prisoner advocate; and Sr.
Fatima Abdullah, a founding member of the organization, who, along with her
husband Amin Abdullah, had come to
the iftar from Philadelphia, PA.
“And Jamaat al-Muslimeen has always
supported political prisoners, those who are imprisoned unjustly or because of
their beliefs. So, when we learned of the plight of Dr. Aafia, it was only natural
for us to support her case,” he concluded.
Mauri
Saalakhan,
a long time DC-based human rights activist and head of the Aafia Foundation (formerly known as the Peace and Justice
Foundation) was the guest speaker at the iftar
gathering. He had travelled to several continents to raise awareness of the
Aafia case, and organized rallies for Aafia outside the Carswell, Texas prison
where she is being held—on very hostile turf, as well as at the Department of
Justice, Bureau of Prisons, and other key locations.
Saalakhan said that it was the Islamic
responsibility of Muslims to speak out against injustice, particularly during
Ramadan. The organizer-activist, who is also known as El-Hajj Mauri Saalakhan
because he has completed the Muslim pilgrimage to Mecca, had worked on a litany
of political prisoner cases. But—Aafia’s case, he said, was one of the worst
cases of injustice he had seen. She was alive, he said, negating the recently
circulating rumor that she had passed away. But she was not well. She was held
under sordid conditions, a travesty of justice, he said.
Saalakhan said he was very disappointed
by the lack of action on the part of most Muslims to come forward. Muslims who
could have done something to help Aafia, but didn’t—would be held accountable
for their inaction in the Hereafter, he told iftar attendees. He pointed out the Pakistani government’s
insidious role in first aiding Aafia’s kidnapping, and then subverting efforts
to release her.
Imam
Ali Siddiqui,
a lifelong peace and justice activist currently based in DC, attended the iftar along with his family. His
organization, the Muslim Institute of Interfaith Studies and Understanding, has
effectively dialogued with churches and synagogues in the DC area. Addressing
the iftar gathering briefly, he
mentioned recent work with the DC Poor Peoples Campaign, a rekindling of Dr.
Martin Luther King Jr.’s movement for social justice. Imam Siddiqui has long
protested Aafia’s detention as well as that of other political prisoners, and
participated in rallies and meetings to free her.
This writer, DC-based blogger, runner, and
activist Nadrat Siddique organized
the iftar. Siddique, who has run
three marathons to call attention to Aafia’s case, said that as Muslims were eating
and praying, praying and eating—at many, many iftars throughout Ramadan, they ought also think about the Muslim prisoners
and political prisoners, being held under horrendous conditions in American
prisons and secret prisons. What were the prisoners eating for iftar? Were they even conscious and able to fast? If they were fasting, did they
have access to halal (Islamically
permissible) food with which to open their fast?
“Muslims ought to ask the imams of their respective masajid to
mention the political prisoners in their khutbas.
We should write letters raising concern for the welfare of the political
prisoners to corporate media, and on the social media sites of these corporate
media. Give zakat to the families of
the political prisoners. And make du'ah for them. There is added barakat in doing this during Ramadan,” she
concluded.
Dr. Kaukab Siddique closed out the
evening with a du’ah asking for the
acceptance of the fasts of the iftar
attendees, and remembering all the political prisoners, including Dr. Aafia
Siddiqui.
© 2018 Nadrat Siddique
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