A leader of the predominantly Muslim Seleka on 17 August declared an independent state in the north-eastern region of the Central African Republic (CAR). “A free, independent secular state has been established in the north-eastern region of CAR,” Noureddine Adam, the deputy head of the militia, said in a statement.
He added that the new “state” would be based in the Birao region, some 800 kilometres north of CAR capital Bangui, and that it would be led by former CAR president Michel Djotodia, a Muslim. Adam also announced the creation of an interim government under Djotodia in which he would serve as minister of state for defence and national security. He said the secession move came in response to what he described as “planned genocide” and “hostage-taking” of Muslims; the destruction of mosques; and the desecration of the Qur’ān by Christian militias, including the anti-balaka.
PHILIPPINES PRESIDENT RECEIVES DRAFT LAW ON MUSLIM SOUTH
Nearly five months after its initial drafting, a proposed law aimed at ending decades of fighting in the Philippines’ south by creating a Muslim autonomous region has finally been submitted to President Benigno Aquino III. In the cover letter of the document addressed to Executive Secretary Paquito Ochoa Jr., MILF chief negotiator and Bangsamoro Transition Committee chair Mohagher Iqbal said: “We are respectfully submitting the draft Bangsamoro Basic Law (BBL) … and we are ready to adhere to our understanding to work on the final text of the proposed BBL after its review by the President.”
Presidential spokesman Herminio Coloma said Aquino will prioritize the bill so it can be passed by Congress as soon as possible in accordance with the roadmap and timetable. Coloma expressed their desire for the law’s passage into law and implementation before the end of Aquino’s term in mid-2016 so that leaders for the Muslim autonomous area could be elected alongside the national elections.
TURKISH NGOS CONDEMN CHINA’S OPPRESSION OF UIGHURS
At least 20 million Muslim Uighur’s in China are forbidden to practise their religion and are exposed to oppression and violence, the Confederation of Turkish Tradesmen and Craftsmen (TESK) President said in Ankara on 20 August. Some Turkish civil society organisations, including Hak-Is Confederation, The Association of Independent Industrialists and Businessmen (MUSIAD), and The Union of Chambers and Commodity Exchanges of Turkey (TOBB) have issued a joint press statement regarding the latest violence incident against Uighur Muslims in China.
Bendevi Palandoken, the president of the TESK, said that the latest eruption of violence on the first day of Ramadan resulted in the deaths of more than 30. The Chinese government had banned government employees and children from fasting.
SCANDINAVIA OPENS FIRST ISLAMIC THEOLOGY SCHOOL
The northern European region of Scandinavia has officially opened its first Islamic Theology boarding school, known as Imam Khatib School, in the Danish city of Slagelse. The school is due to take on students from Denmark, Norway and Sweden and will teach the national curriculum along with Turkish and Islamic lessons in the fields of Qur’ān, Hadith and Islamic creed.
Boarding school head Ahmet Deniz was reported on 18 August as saying that Mina Hindholm will be Denmark’s first official Islamic school for students aged 18 and up. The school, which is Europe’s second Imam Khatib School after the one in Belgium, already has 52 students.
RUSSIAN MUSLIM LEADER WARNS OF WAR IN CENTRAL ASIA
The head of the Islamic Committee of Russia, Geydar Dzhemal, met with Central Asian opposition leaders and journalists in the Kyrgyzstan capital Bishkek, in which he warned that soon the region will witness a number of important developments, backtrack on progress and even wars, a report said on 19 August. Saying that relations between Uzbekistan and Tajikistan are particularly heading in a bad direction, Dzhemal also added that Russia’s occupation of Crimea was a trap that they had fallen into which would consequently lead to weakening Russian influence in Central Asia.
INDONESIA COURT UPHOLDS WIDODO’S PRESIDENTIAL VICTORY
Indonesia’s highest court on 21 August unanimously upheld last month’s presidential election result, paving the way for Joko Widodo to take over as leader of the world’s third largest democracy. The Constitutional Court, as expected, rejected a last-ditch attempt by losing presidential candidate Prabowo Subianto to overturn the election result that he believed was tainted by widespread cheating. The verdict cannot be appealed.
With the legal hurdles out of the way, president-elect Widodo will be able to speed up his preparations ahead of taking office on 20 October. He is expected to soon resign as Jakarta governor to focus on the transition. The administration of outgoing President Yudhoyono had delayed meeting with Widodo’s transition team about pressing economic issues, such as ballooning fuel subsidy costs and a widening current account deficit, until after the verdict.
JEMILEV APPOINTED UKRAINE’S HEAD OF CRIMEAN TATAR AFFAIRS
Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko has appointed Crimean Tatar leader and Ukrainian MP Mustafa Jemilev as his representative on Crimean Tatar affairs. Under a decree, the position of the Commissioner was established to preserve and develop ethnic, cultural, linguistic and religious identity of the Crimean Tatar people within Ukraine, a report said on 21 August citing Qirim News Agency.
Moreover, it has been agreed that textbooks on Ukrainian history will include more exact facts about Crimean Tatar deportation of 1944, as the war-torn nation’s school curriculum is being discussed. The textbooks’ new edition will replace the term ‘the Great Patriotic War’ to World War II, as well as include “more detailed information about Crimean deportation and activity of OUN-UPA and Ukrainian dissidents.”
IRANIAN PROFESSOR FIRST WOMAN TO WIN TOP MATHS PRIZE
Iranian mathematician Maryam Mirzakhani on 13 August became the first woman to be awarded the Fields Medal, mathematics’ equivalent to the Nobel Prize. The professor at Stanford University in California was among four Fields Medal recipients at the International Congress of Mathematicians held in Seoul, and the first female among the 56 winners since the prize was established in 1936. The prizes are awarded every four years. Wednesday’s prizes were presented by South Korean President Park Geun-hye, the first woman to hold that post.
Mirzakhani, 37, was born in Tehran and lived there until she began her doctorate work at Harvard University. She said she had dreamed of becoming a writer when she was young, but she pursued her enthusiasm for solving mathematical problems.
AN ISLAMIC PRAYER APP FOR SMARTPHONES
A new smartphone application called The Imam App has been developed to make Islamic prayers for Muslims easier to perform, providing them simple instructions, a prayer time table and Qibla compass functions. S. Matthias Mende, a German entrepreneur who reverted to Islam in 2008, created the app with the help of Shaikh Mohammed bin Majid Al Maktoum and Abdul Khaliq in the United Arab Emirates.
The app also includes a “PRAY TRAINER or “LEARN how to PRAY” feature in addition to a calander of upcoming Islamic events to help beginners learn how to pray and seek knowledge. Mende is now working to make an Android version available in the Apple store.