Sub-Committee Recruitment

Calling for KENMS student to be part of EMSS family. Come to our booth, near Achik from 8 February to 17 February.. There's a lot of excitement and experience waiting, especially when dealings with programme  =) See you there

2 Weeks Before Exam !!!

Assalamualiakum Brother and Sister,

Just 2 week left for your final, therefore this is the time you should put all your effort in and hope for the best. Remember it does not matter how hard you study but if you dont pray to Allah you will never achieve His statisfaction which is the most important in our life. So dont put your studies ahead of your religion. Allah only help those who help themselves, therefore without effort dont hope for a great result.

Good luck, and may Allah bless us all, with our upcoming examination

.

Introduction To Riba

When the poor are permanently poor, and the rich, permanently rich, that is oppression! All around the world today that economic oppression exists, and is constantly increasing, - the poor grow poorer and the rich, richer. Riba is the cause. A predatory global elite, centered in the West, but also present around the world, is constantly sucking the wealth of mankind and impoverishing the masses through riba. Their ultimate objective is to utterly enslave all of mankind in a new sophisticated slavery. Political, legislative, judicial and legal systems, the media etc., are all created by the oppressor, and all function to preserve the system of economic oppression. Allah, the Most High, has strictly prohibited riba. Yet the world today, including the Muslim world, is saturated with riba. This has confirmed the ominous prophecy of Prophet Muhammad (s) who prophesied, in a hadith received from Abu Hurairah (ra), the following:

There will come a time, he said, when you will not be able to find a single person in the world who will not be consuming riba. And if anyone claims that he is not consuming riba then surely the vapor of riba (In another text the dust of riba) will reach him. (Abu Daud, Mishkat)

What is riba? Why it was prohibited? What is the logic behind that? What types of interest has Islam prohibited? What should we do about this state of affairs?

Dealing with riba (usury or interest) has spread widely among many Muslims today; to the point that many Muslims do not see any problem with it, either because of lack of knowledge or absent-mindedness. Despite the fact that all Muslim scholars agree that dealing with riba (usury or interest) is a major sin because the prophet (S.A.W.) mentioned explicitly in a hadith reported by Imam Bukhari and Muslim, "Avoid the seven destructive sins", then he mentioned one of them as, "and dealing with riba (usury or interest)"

Muslims are very particular about Halal and Haram. The confusion, whether interest is same as usury (Riba) or not, needs a clarification for good. This is a historic fact that usury has been prohibited in all original texts of Torah, Bible and Qur'aan.

However, practically, Usury or interest is same as a guarantied return to the lender regardless the borrower makes a profit or not. The Islamic view is truly just and humanitarian. It requires a lender to participate in the profit as well as loss of the borrower if any. From Shariah point of view, interest is Riba and it is Haram.

http://islamic-world.net/economics/riba_intro.htm

Pre-reg ---- Stress,Happy,Grateful??

Assalamualaikum readers,

Pre-reg for couses have open to all IIUM students today. So hopefully by now you know whether youre taking short sem or not, as the last batch for those "pre-regers' meaning first year student has completed their pre-reg. Dont be disappointed if you did not get the subjects you want, as you must remember there all always people below you, who did not even have the chance to further their studies. Just pray to Allah that everything will be in place as He is the Master of all Planners. May Allah bless us always. Amin

Economic System of Islam

Islam is an entire way of life, and Allah's Guidance extends into all areas of our lives. Islam has given detailed regulations for our economic life, which is balanced and fair. Muslims are to recognize that wealth, earnings, and material goods are the property of God, and that we are merely His trustees. The principles of Islam aim at establishing a just society wherein everyone will behave responsibly and honestly. The fundamental principles of the Islamic economic system are as follows:

• Muslims are not to deal in interest. "Those who devour usury will not stand....Allah has permitted trade and forbidden usury.... Allah will deprive usury of all blessing, but will give increase for deeds of charity..." (Qur'an 2:275-6). "O you who believe! Devour not usury, doubled and multiplied. But fear Allah, that you may really prosper" (Qur'an 3:130) This prohibition is for all interest-based transactions, whether giving or receiving, whether dealing with Muslims or non-Muslims. It is reported that the Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him) cursed those who pay interest, those who receive it, those who write a contract based on it, and those who witness such a contract.
• It is forbidden to gain property or wealth by fraud, deceit, theft, or other falsehoods. "...Give just measure and weight, and do not withhold from people the things that are their due. And do not do mischief on the earth after it has been set in order. That will be best for you, if you have faith" (Qur'an 7:85).
• It is particularly hateful for a guardian to take from an orphan's property. "To orphans restore their property (when they reach their age). Do not substitute your worthless things for their good ones, and do not devour their property by mixing it up with your own. For this is indeed a great sin" (Qur'an 4:2).
• Forbidden are earnings from gambling, lotteries, and the production, sale, and distribution of alcohol. "O you who believe! Intoxicants and gambling, sacrificing to stones, and divination by arrows are an abomination of Satan's handiwork. Eschew such abomination, that you may prosper" (Qur'an 5:90).
• It is unlawful to hoard food and other basic necessities. Everyone should take what they need and no more. "And let those who covetously withhold of the gifts which Allah has given them of His Grace, think that it is good for them. No, it will be the worse for them. Soon it will tied to their necks like a twisted collar, on the Day of Judgment. To Allah belongs the heritage of the heavens and the earth, and Allah is well-acquainted with all that you do" (Qur'an 3:180).
• A Muslim should be responsible in spending money. Extravagance and waste are strongly discouraged. "[The Servants of Allah are] Those who, when they spend, are not extravagant and not stingy, but hold a just balance between those extremes" (Qur'an 25:67). "O Children of Adam! Wear your beautiful apparel at every time and place of prayer. Eat and drink, but waste not by excess, for Allah loves not the wasters" (Qur'an 7:31).
• Muslims must pay Zakat (alms). "And they have been commanded no more than this: to worship Allah, offering Him sincere devotion, being true in faith. To establish regular prayer, and to give zakat. And that is the religion right and straight" (Qur'an 98:5). Every Muslim who owns wealth, more than a certain amount to meet his or her needs, must pay a fixed rate of Zakat to those in need. Zakat is a means of narrowing the gap between the rich and the poor, and to make sure that everyone's needs are met.
• Muslims are encouraged to give constantly in charity. "Your riches and your children may be but a trial. Whereas Allah, with Him is the highest reward. So fear Allah as much as you can, listen and obey, and spend in charity for the benefit of your own souls. And those saved from the selfishness of their own souls, they are the ones that achieve prosperity" (Qur'an 64:15-16). The Prophet Muhammad once said that "nobody's assets are reduced by charity." 

http://islam.about.com/od/business/a/economics.htm

Oil pressure rising

A MONTH ago Brent crude oil stood at around $96 a barrel and Hosni Mubarak was ensconced as Egypt’s ruler. Now he is gone, overthrown by a display of people power that is shaking autocratic leaders across north Africa and the Middle East. And oil has surged above $111. Little wonder. The region provides 35% of the world’s oil. Libya, the scene of growing violence this week, produces 1.7m of the world’s 88m barrels a day (b/d).So far prices have not been pushed up by actual disruptions to supply. Oil hit a peak even before news emerged that some foreign oil companies operating in Libya would stop some production and that the country’s ports had temporarily closed. As Adam Sieminski of Deutsche Bank points out, oil prices are driven both by current conditions and by future expectations.

Oil markets don’t like surprises. The sudden ousting of Mr Mubarak and the unrest in Libya, Bahrain, Yemen, Iran and Algeria (which between them supply a tenth of the world’s oil) have added 16% to oil prices. But the big worry is that spreading unrest will culminate in another shock akin to the oil embargo of 1973, the Iranian revolution or Iraq’s invasion of Kuwait.

Oil is more global than it was during those previous crises. In the 1970s production was concentrated around the Persian Gulf. Since then a gusher of non-OPEC oil has hit markets from fields in Latin America, west Africa and beyond. Russia overtook Saudi Arabia as the world’s biggest crude supplier in 2009; OPEC’s share of production has gone from around 54% in the mid-1970s to just over 40% now. Yet the globalisation of oil supply has not diminished OPEC’s clout as the marginal supplier of crude. Markets are tight at the moment. Bumper inventories, built up during the downturn, are running down as the rich world recovers and Asia puts on a remarkable growth spurt. Demand rose by a blistering 2.7m b/d last year, according to the International Energy Agency, and is set to grow by another 1.7m b/d this year by Deutsche Bank’s reckoning. Many other producers are already running at full capacity; OPEC has its hands on the only spare oil (see chart).

If Libya’s oil stopped flowing importers would look to Saudi Arabia to make up the shortfall. The oil could probably flow to fill the gap in Europe, Libya’s main market, in a matter of weeks. OPEC claims that it has 6m b/d on tap but that looks wishful. Analysts think the true number is nearer 4m-5m b/d, with 3m-3.5m b/d in Saudi hands. That is ample to plug a Libyan gap but would hasten the day when growing world demand sucks up all spare production capacity and sends oil prices rocketing. Analysts at Nomura reckon that it would only take a halt of exports from Algeria as well to absorb all the slack and propel oil to a terrifying $220 a barrel.

Despite rising prices, Saudi Arabia has so far been reluctant to turn its stopcocks. OPEC claims that the world is amply supplied with oil and seems content with a price around $100 a barrel. Traders hope that Saudi Arabia will boost production stealthily or that OPEC will call a special meeting to raise quotas and calm markets.

The worst-case scenario for oil prices would be some kind of disruption to Saudi supply itself. That concern has become livelier given the unrest in neighbouring Bahrain. The tiny island kingdom produces little oil but is of vital strategic importance in the Persian Gulf, a seaway that carries 18% of the world’s oil. America’s 5th Fleet, which polices the Gulf against troublemakers (ie, Iran), uses the country as a base.

The Saudis may also fear that protests by Bahrain’s Shia population could spill over their own borders. Saudi Arabia’s eastern provinces are home to both its oil industry and most of its Shias, who may also have cause for grievance with their Sunni rulers. One crumb of comfort is that oil facilities across the region are generally located far from the population centres, where protests tend to be concentrated, and are well defended against anything but a concerted military assault.

http://www.economist.com/blogs/newsbook/2011/02/arab_worlds_unrest_and_oil_prices