Of Nobel Laureate for Peace and Muslim men

If I had been quiet, it's because I had been busy.Last week was another exciting week.
First there was the 'Contemporary Muslim Women' conference at Renaissance (in which there were more men than women).I guess it's because in Islam, we don't believe in the gender divide but I have my reservations of what happened at the conference (or what DIDN'T happen).There's nothing wrong with the men flooding a women's conference but I thought just becos' it was a conference on Muslim women, there was no reason for the guys NOT to talk about men's role in assisting women achieve their fullest potential.Instead we still heard from some (I said SOME cos' there were so many supportive and nice men at the conference who bombarded other men who were of other 'odd' persuasions) men who believed women could not lead and be leaders (even some women were saying this as well.I almost fainted.Isn't this 2007?I thought the ummah had gone past this issue?)

Anyway, I loved making contacts with fellow women academics from Africa, the Gulf and Australia and Europe.That's the best of any conference.We women will get together and think of an action-oriented event soon.I hope.

But I still can't get over meeting in person 2006 Nobel Laureate for Peace, Prof Yunus of Grameen Bank fame.Oh wow..he had this very kind look and was always smiling.I shook hands with him when I got to be in the welcoming line along with the rest of the IIUM team.I felt like NOT wanting to wash my hand after that .Ha ha.

Whatever criticisms his critics have of him and the Grameen Bank, they would have done them out of jealousy cos' they could not do what he did/does.Here's a saint who could have chosen to teach in ivy league unis of the world but chooses to live among the poor to improve the conditions of his people.Not only is he kind to women, but he is also kind to the environment (using solar energy to supply electricity and recycling animal waste to produce gas for cooking) Oh wow, he should be cloned!

For so much excitement,my video cam failed on me.Satu gambar pun takda with Prof Yunus!

On dangers of globalisation:
http://www.commondreams.org/headlines06/1211-06.

Norwegian Nobel Committee Chairman Ole Danbolt Mjoes called microcredit “a liberating force” for women and Muslims, many of whom have traditionally shunned interest-charging institutions.

“All too often, we speak one-sidedly about how much the Muslim part of the world has to learn from the West,” said Prof. Danbolt Mjoes. “Where microcredit is concerned, the opposite is true: the West has learned from Yunus, from Bangladesh, and from the Muslim part of the world.”
Copyright 2006 The New York Times Company