Interesting News

So I occasionally read The Arab Times newspaper bc it just oozes of this mysterious culture that fascinates me. And I thought I would post copies of some short news reports of things that happen, that are not necessarily the norm in the West. I mean, rapes, adultery, alcohol use is common in the West, but we react to it differently.

Some Excerpts from 'The Arab Times:'


KUWAIT CITY, Oct 29:
Asian Woman Raped In Front Of Physically Handicapped Daughter
The Farwaniya police men have arrested an unidentified man for raping an Asian woman in front of her physically handicapped daughter, reports Al-Rai daily.
According to a security source the victim in her complaint to the Jleeb Al-Shuyoukh police said the culprit claimed to be a military man working for the Interior Ministry and he stripped her naked and raped her in front of her daughter and also robbed KD 350 and three cell phones.
Police managed to nab the suspect in a short time and police investigations show the man works at the Kuwait International Airport and that he is not a military man.
The woman also said she had a relationship with the man earlier and when she cut that relationship he broke into her apartment and raped her.

Baby’s mother sought: Police are looking for an Asian woman for giving birth to an illegitimate baby boy, reports Al-Rai daily.
According to security sources the woman went to the Jahra Hospital when she got into labor pain and she delivered a baby boy.
Hours after giving birth to the baby, the infant’s cries alerted the hospital staff who realized the mother had escaped leaving the baby behind.

Maid burns herself to death : An Asian housemaid burnt herself to death in her sponsor’s house in Thaher area on Thursday. Her remains have been referred to Forensics and police are trying to find out why she committed suicide.
Sources say the sponsor and his son suffered minor injuries while trying to put out the fire.

 Woman Among Three Chinese Held For Selling Pork & Alcohol.
75 Cartons Of Foreign Liquor, 20 Boxes Of Meat Seized
Personnel from the Mubarak Al-Kabir Investigation Department Thursday have arrested three Chinese - one of them a woman — for possessing and selling pork and liquor, reports Al-Watan Arabic daily.
According to reports the liquor and pork was smuggled into the country in containers carrying other material. Acting on information police raided the men’s apartment in Salwa and seized 75 cartons of foreign liquor and 20 boxes of all types of frozen pig meat.
The Interior Ministry sources said police acting on a tip-off that a Chinese woman was selling liquor, CID men put the woman under surveillance and once the department was convinced the woman was bootlegging, a police agent was sent to buy a bottle of liquor and she was caught red-handed.
During interrogation she admitted to the charge and led police to her apartment in Salwa where the contraband was seized.
She told interrogators pork was imported from her country in a container and the product did not get the attention of the customs officers because the labels on the product are in Chinese.
She also gave the police details of two male compatriots who helped her to sell the meat.
The meat and the suspects have been referred to the authorities.

Kuwaiti Husband Beats Wife For Refusing ‘Sip’
KUWAIT CITY, Aug 3: A case has been filed against a Kuwaiti man at the Al-Naeem Police Station in Jahra for beating his wife because she refused to drink alcohol with him, reports Al-Rai daily.

According to reports the husband came home drunk after visiting a friend carrying with him a bottle of foreign booze. Not satisfied, he wanted to drink more and invited his wife to share a drink with him.
When the wife refused the man lost his temper and began verbally abusing his wife. When he began to beat her, she ran to a neighbor’s house and called her brothers.

The brothers rushed to her rescue, took her to the Jahra Hospital and got a medical report showing injuries on her body and then filed a complaint with the police station.

Light Shed On Domestic Worker Issues
GUST Welcomes Researcher In HRW
KUWAIT CITY, Oct 27: On Oct 25, 2010 Gulf University for Science and Technology (GUST) welcomed Ms Priyanka Motaparthy, a researcher in the Human Rights Watch organization to shed light on the importance of domestic workers rights in Kuwait and the Middle East. 

Human Rights Watch (HRW) is an organization that monitors human rights in all aspects of life worldwide. They have offices in over 90 countries worldwide and are funded by private individuals and companies for its research and applications.

In this particular lecture, Ms Motaparthy explained that she works in both the Women and Middle East HRW divisions and her latest project has been that of women domestic workers leaving their homes in the Philippines, Indonesia, Sri Lanka and other countries to places in the Middle East such as Kuwait. Domestic work at HRW is categorized as “vulnerable work” where people who work in this area have the least amount of pay and are more susceptible to human rights violations. In Kuwait alone, they represent a 1/3 of the workforce.

The HRW recently launched a campaign in Lebanon and now in Kuwait titled “Put yourself in her shoes.” The campaign focuses on some of the issues that domestic workers face. At first glance, you notice that there are women dressed as workers but with jewelry and style and then you realize that those women represent employers and asking them to put themselves in the workers shoes.

GUST as a prominent institution in the country tries to stay aware of the issues being discussed in the nation. This matter is amongst one of the most debated this year. It has been said that domestic workers are suffering from delay in payments of their salaries, are sometimes denied food or verbally and physically abused for not doing a good enough job. They are locked up in their rooms or not allowed to have a day off in case they might stray or make friends or have relations. “This is not to say that all domestic workers are treated like that, there are some which are acknowledged who are treated well and are happy where they are working, but this campaign we have been working on is directed for the workers who weren’t as lucky,” Ms Motaparthy explains. And students vouched for that indicating that in their own homes, they base their relationships with domestic workers with respect.

Wow.... Freedom in Christ INDEED!!!

So I purchased several Arab magazines, mainly bc I'm curious About their fashion. But I also bought an English-Arab magazine and aside from giggling at the stickers they pasted on each page to cover up Kim Kardashian's cleavage, I was getting insight into this mysterious Muslim culture when I came across an article entitled

'Forced to Divorce': "Imagine if your father & brothers had the power to not only choose your husband, but take him away? A new phenomenon in forced divorces in Saudi Arabia is driving women to fight back."

Let me quote a small paragraph:

From VIVA MAGAZINE October 2010 edition

"It is a general misconception that a Saudi woman is under the guardianship of her father until the moment she is married, whereupon she becomes her husband's property.
According to Suad Abu-Dayyeh, Middle East consultant of Equality Now, a human rights organization, this is far from true.
"Even after marriage, the father & the brother have closer control of the woman, " she says. "It's father, brother, then husband." So the woman is under the control of her closest blood relative for life, allowing them
To do with her as they please..."

Wow! For us Westeners this seems SO archaic, so barbaric, so unreal...but it's so true. The differences between the Eastern & Western culture- plus throw in the tribal cultures of islanders, Aboriginals- and the definition for what is RIGHT & WRONG & NORMAL gets blurred. I'm not suggesting I'm losing my moral gauge, but for one who has no truth, no sense of intrinsic value or a sturdy world view.... Oh boy will they be drowning in the sea of....life.... as they search for 'truth.' Makes me think of Pontius Pilate when he asked Jesus "what IS truth?" For those well-versed Christians, we remember what Jesus told him, "everyone who is of the truth hears my voice." If you would like to read the scene, go here:

http://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=John+18&version=NIV

But anyways, back to my point about the forced divorces.... Islam has many similarities to Judeo-Christianity.... In truth, I consider it a form of a Christian Cult, no different than The LDS church. Both believe in ONE God- LDS believe in the God of The Jews, as do Christians, as do Muslims. Both LDS & Islam have use of prophets that come centuries after Jesus & Their own twisted version of the Bible. Now, how is it that I'm so certain that Christianity is the truth will be saved for another blog entry bc I already know this will be a lengthy entry as it is. I would also like to add that I in no way intend to insult both LDS or Islam, I'm just stating my opinion on the differences of a culture and the Eastern culture happens to be run by their religion, so to separate religion from culture is impossible & ignorant.

The Torah & Old Testament (Bible) both declare that the same God "we all" SEEM to share, HATES divorce. Despite culture, God created marriage as a sacred institution. The question nobody seems to be asking, is WHY did he make it sacred- as opposed to asking WHAT is so sacred about the covenant. We want to get to the heart & God's intended purpose of a marriage covenant. And again, God doesn't consider what is polite or appropriate- he simply states he hates divorce.

Jesus reinforced this and EXPLAINED why Divorce was even ALLOWED by God. If you didn't already know, Moses went to God because the people were
Wanting to end their marriages. So God gave Moses the permission to grant decrees of divorce- then people started getting divorced for stupid things, like if their wife made one bad meal- bam, divorce.


 3 Some Pharisees came to Jesus and tried to trick him. They asked, "Is it right for a man to divorce his wife for any reason he chooses?"
 4 Jesus answered, "Surely you have read in the Scriptures: When God made the world, 'he made them male and female.'[a] 5 And God said, 'So a man will leave his father and mother and be united with his wife, and the two will become one body.'[b] 6 So there are not two, but one. God has joined the two together, so no one should separate them."

 7 The Pharisees asked, "Why then did Moses give a command for a man to divorce his wife by giving her divorce papers?"
8 Jesus answered, "Moses allowed you to divorce your wives because you refused to accept God's teaching, but divorce was not allowed in the beginning. 9 I tell you that anyone who divorces his wife and marries another woman is guilty of adultery.[c] The only reason for a man to divorce his wife is if his wife has sexual relations with another man."
10 The followers said to him, "If that is the only reason a man can divorce his wife, it is better not to marry."
11 Jesus answered, "Not everyone can accept this teaching, but God has made some able to accept it. 12 There are different reasons why some men cannot marry. Some men were born without the ability to become fathers. Others were made that way later in life by other people. And some men have given up marriage because of the kingdom of heaven. But the person who can marry should accept this teaching about marriage" (Matthew 19:4-12,NCV).

That pretty much says it all!

How can a DEEPLY religious & ZEALOUS people, who believe in the God of Abraham, who also consider Moses & Jesus as major prophets- get it wrong? DISCLAIMER: I'm fully aware that not all Muslims adhere to the exact same teachings as there are conflicts between Sunni & Shi'ite, furthermore, there is a possibility that not all Muslim countries enforce or practice forced divorces.

But do you kinda get where I'm
Coming from? God, Moses, Jesus.... Where did the message go wrong? "PROPHETS" who came later.... 6 centuries PLUS, later, that decided to create their own truths by hijacking what was already written. Mohammed's first wife was a Christian & I believe his mother was too, so it is common to see Biblical passages in the Koran.

My friends, what came first- the Koran or Bible? The Bible did! The Torah, the famous Dead Sea Scrolls that confirm the Torah/ Old Testament's accuracy & thousands of Greek manuscripts that when put together, reproduce nearly the entire New Testament. What else would a logical person favor in this case? Even the Koran instructs it's followers to seek guidance from "the people of the Book." what book do you think it's referring to??? The Bible.

My precious God, who is the definition of LOVE, recognized a need for companionship, relationship, created sex- intends these characteristics, plus a lot more not mentioned- to create marriage. Marriage is a covenant, a binding agreement. God had many covenants with his people & with the fulfilling/keeping of each covenant came blessings that God PROMISED as well as the CURSES that came with breaking a covenant, as he gave his conditions when forming these covenants.

Those who believe that breaking a marriage is ok, is WRONG. and to see a culture so deeply 'committed' to 'God,' they completely miss God's heart about COVENANTS.

Jesus set women free, gave them equality whereas the Eastern culture STILL does not treat or view them as equals.

Much has been said today... Bottom line, the more I learn about the Eastern Islamic culture, the more thankful I am for my Jesus. His compassion, grace, patience, salvation, forgiveness, restoration.... are that much sweeter- even when I am away from my "Christian bubble."

Update

It's been a while since I've last written!!!

Ok, well the temp is REALLY cooling down now! It's in the high 90's. In the desert, it's starting to get chilly at night. Started wearing layers & sweaters.

So I had some things to write about.... But now that I learned I can blog from my iPhone and I'm sitting here @ work ready to go..... I don't remember all I was going to say!

Well, for one thing, here at work we have been laboring by putting together a big haunted house for the soldiers. At the same time the tour through the haunted house takes place, there will also be a Halloween party & costume contest that I have to host. It's going to be a lot of fun!

Regarding leading worship, I have been fortunate enough to have been able to lead worship on Sunday nights for the first 20 mins of the service, during my break. Then I rush back to my facility & run the evening's event. Last week though, 2 of our Eastern staff called in so I was unable to leave my facility unattended- which meant I was unable to lead worship.

I finally went to the movie theater out here in the city. They have VIP seating which I most definitely took part of. I saw the movie 'Devil' while reclining on a leather seat and having a waiter bring me my concessions. It wasn't crowded, but comfortable.... Until the Kuwaiti men behind me started
Flatulating! Although I don't like scary movies, this movie had me all tense & scared.... And confused. Confused because Kuwait actually cuts out parts or scenes that are not appropriate for their culture. You know the movie, 'Eat Pray Love' with Julia Roberts? It was banned here but some people were asking
The cinema giants to reconsider the ban. I think they now allow it since
Last night I saw the advertising for it when I passed
A theater.

I was told that late October/early November kuwaitis go out into the desert and camp there for a few weeks. I'm already starting to see mobile bakalas, or convenient stores in back of trucks. I can't wait to see how packed it will get. I wonder if that means there will be traffic on the desert roads
On our way to work?

Speaking of driving....it looks like pretty soon- in a matter of days- I'm going to have to start driving. It didn't help that during orientation driving they informed us of all the deaths of our fellow contractors & kuwaiti's bc of the reckless driving. I'm kind of excited to drive but also REALLY nervous. Here, they hardly abide by traffic laws. Most cities don't have traffic lights, stop signs, or yield signs. They have roundabouts and it's a mad housesitting through those circles. But my REAL
Concern is......well....let me confess an embarrassing phobia that
I developed in the year 2007. I don't know how or why this happened, all I know is that it's crippled me psychologically & getting over this fear is frightening.
I developed anxiety/panic attacks while driving on the highways. I feel trapped if I'm surrounded by a sea of cars. I hyperventilate, get dizzy, shaky, my heart pounds, and feel like I need to pull over. Cars that drive slow in front of me make me panic & cars driving at the same speed as me next to me freak me out bc I feel
Trapped. It has gotten worse since 2007. I am able to drive if other people are w/ me.... But alone.....God help me lol. So whenever I'm designated to drive for work, I may have to pick up some co-workers who live in the next city over, Jabriya, and would have to take the highway.
Gosh I sound like a pathetic little chicken.... Lol. I know that the only way to get over it is to just do it.... But even THINKING of getting on the highway raises
My heart beat, gives me butterflies, and my breathing gets shorter. It's a mind thing and I wish I could be hypnotized to not be afraid.

As paranoid as this will sound... Sometimes, in my insanity of course,
I think that maybe I came here to die- since I've always had this notion that I would die in a car accident.

But the opposite also runs through my mind- maybe I came here to be healed
From this ridiculous,crippling, phobia? And this thought is the reason that I actually
Look forward to driving- that & also bc I may be able to keep the car
Between shifts which means if I wanted to go out I wouldn't have to take a cab.

Anyway, enough with my drama. So far, I'm enjoying the weather and I'm still enjoying my time here in Kuwait.

Next week I will spending a day in Failaka Island! I'm really excited about that. I do plan on going to Dubai & Bahrain as weekend trips, but I still haven't gotten my passport back. But I already went through the medical evaluation
For the Ministry and supposedly I got an extension on my temporary Visa. I'm still waiting for my residency Visa & swear-in.