Halal bread, not bombs
IWAS billeted at an Ortigas hotel and urged the management to set far apart the food with pork from the non-pork ones. With dozens of Muslims attending various events in the hotel, I felt sorry that our halal advocacy had yet to take strides in the hotel industry here.
Ramadan is coming on March 11. Halal in Ramadan was my major presentation to the Tesda executives I faced so that even bread, a major staple, would be stamped halal.
Food is personal. If we cannot protect consumers, how can we protect an industry such as halal?
The MSU gym blast incident reminded us of the gravity of disgruntlement. I can only feel a sense of urgency that more should be done in these parts, more should be written, and more should be put into action.
The youth is the missing link. The youth could be instigators of violence, as seen in the Abu Sayyaf phenomenon. And the youth could be the solution, something I found inspiring and affirmed in the forums I was privileged to attend in the past decade, a postWorld Economic Forum in Cebu called Ocean and Organization of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) meeting in Singapore, where I spoke on social media and a World Islamic Economic Forum whose Young Fellows workshop was held in Manila.
Indeed, social media has enabled us to be part of something bigger, no longer stuck to our rural realities and concerns. Globalization is not haram (forbidden). Travel is an ancient practice in Islam. One cannot ignore media and social media. And the global norms of justice and human rights are common for all and cannot be ignored by Islam.
Our group, the Young Moro Professionals Network (YMPN), had a membership of thirdgeneration Muslims who did not see conflict upfront. But they were conscious of their identity and responsibility to give back. They protested the all-out war in Mindanao in 2000. The success of EDSA 2 in ousting President Joseph Estrada motivated the YMPN founders to continue peacefully advocating and working for the socioeconomic wellbeing of the Muslim masses.
The founders envisioned a network of young Muslim professionals that promote volunteerism, using their own resources, talents, education and training and working collectively or individually to help other Muslims in unfortunate circumstances.
Since its founding, the YMPN has been active in encouraging young Muslims to adopt peaceful means to uplift themselves. The YMPN has stressed the practice of Islam as a peaceful and modest way of life.
The core members have designed and implemented a leadership training program using an Islamic framework and aimed at the next generation of YMPN members. In most engagements, these core members are the lecturers and readily provide a role model to their audience for their advocacy by peaceful means.
As a social network, YMPN was advised to use the tool of networking for peace-building because of the members’ education, skills and expertise. Their being part of a minority community compels them to engage proactively in their society.
The list of issues we Muslims face is endless; the struggles we face as individuals are limitless. As one who saw government from within as part of the autonomous region, I had high hopes that Daang Matuwid would not succumb to local systems that reek of everything we were against — colonialism, central control, secularism and corruption. The political will to introduce computerization and quality controls is something that is still evolving.
As one “bridger,” I attempted to introduce job fairs in the BARMM islands, the first at the Mindanao State University in Tawi-Tawi. The local talent was inspiring; many could qualify for the elite Philippine Military Academy. And why only one flight to Bongao when this was our gateway to the Brunei Darussalam–Indonesia– Malaysia–Philippines East Asean Growth Area (BIMP-EAGA)?