Aafia Siddiqui - A modern day horror story

I am not here to discuss Aafia Siddiquis innocence or guilt. I'm simply highlighting the tragic and horrific truth of her story.

Aafia Siddiqui and her three children were abducted around March 2003, because a man who was water boarded mentioned her name. Now lets just think about this, 2003 was a horrible time to be in Pakistan / Afghanistan, everyone had heard the horrific tales of abuse in captivity. As a women, can you just imagine her fear not only for herself but for her children. Throughout history, those in a position of power over alleged criminals have violated it - Zimbardo et al proved that! Now not only is she captive so are her young children, one is still a baby. (I refuse to comment on the fact that she was hunted down because a man mentioned her name while being drowned almost to death!)

No one actually knows where she was held, but Moazzam Begg has many times mentioned a lady he was forced to hear screaming in Bagram Prison, there was a female prisoner held there - prisoner 650 also known as the Grey Lady of Bagram. Many believe that female prisoner was Aafia Siddiqui. In that prison we have proof that mens dignity and honour was violated, what they did to women there doesn't bare thinking about. A picture tells a thousand stories, so I show you below a picture of Aafia before and after captivity - no one can deny it shows a broken women.

Don't make stupid comments like 'well she's come out of prison how do you expect her to look!' - when I see men / women come out of the prisons in the UK they're usually fatter than when they went in! They don't come out looking dehydrated, disheveled, underweight and have broken noses!

I'd like to highlight that Aafia Siddiquis' CHILDREN were abducted also. Where were the worlds chid protection laws for them? Was it because they were muslim the laws were no longer valid?? I'm not trying to insight hate, but this is how racial tensions arise because one universal rule is abandoned for certain types of people (this was also done to Omar Khadr, who is now carrying out a sentence in Guantanamo even though he was a child when taken captive). The true tragedy of this case is that FIVE years later Aafia Siddiquis son re-emerged, he has never spoken out about where he was or what happened. Aafias' daughter re-emerged SEVEN years later, she too has never spoken about where she was or what happened during those seven years. This may be selfish but I'm glad i have not been told...Aafias youngest child is still unaccounted for - presumed dead. Yet no one bats an eye lid...

From 2003 - 2008 what happened to Aafia Siddiqui? Her family claim that she was held in Bagram prison, routinely tortured and raped. If this is the case then a rational person can admit that this would have an effect on an individuals mental health. When her mental health was assessed, not ONE but TWO professionals came to the conclusion that she was unfit to stand trial. Another 'professional' was brought in and deemed her fit - the judge sided with this individual. Since Aafias story is entwined with injustice I doubt she was surprised by this verdict. In her own words "there's too many injustices", this just reinforced it. Eventually the trial came to an end, with its fair share of drama and outbursts  - outbursts of an individual who had been through things we cant even imagine and lost all hope in justice. In Sept 2010 she was sentenced to 86 years. As she was sentenced she made an appeal urging forgiveness and asked the public not to take any action in retaliation - Are these really the words a terrorist?? If anything, now was her chance to insight hate and make the most of it since in the eyes of her supporters (and rational thinkers) this was a MASSIVE injustice.

Sadly her story does not end here, she is carrying out her sentence at the Federal Medical Center, Carswell. At this establishment, over a seven year period, seven members of staff have been convicted of sexual abuse. A 2007 government report in England says "Estimates from research suggest that between 75 and 95 percent of rape crimes are never reported to the police', so yes seven were convicted but how many are still there?

I hope that Aafia finds some comfort in the knowledge that people are aware of her, they know her name and her story. I hope and pray she finds peace in her faith.

"I appeal to God and He hears me" - Aafia Siddiqui.

Indeed He does and I too pray for her, her children and her forgiveness because we should never have let it get this far....

Kindness

We seriously under rate kindness.

If only we could display the awesomeness of kindness for the whole world to see, we'd all be trying to out do each other in it! It is kindness that gets us through the day, it is kindness that gives us hope and it is kindness that is the foundation of a happy home.

When your feeling down in the dumps and your parent/sibling/friend says not to worry its all going to be okay, you want to believe them but deep down you think 'Well obviously they're going to say that'. I don't do that. If someone i know is in a pretty bad situation I'm not going to sugar coat it. The truth is they are in a tough place. But what I am going to do is listen to every single word that comes out their mouth. Honestly, listening is one of the toughest skills to acquire - but once you do, you realise the true value of it! Kindness isn't just about smiling to strangers and making others feel good about themselves, it's about taking the time to get to know the individual that stands before you. It's about learning to adapt to the needs of other people. I know that I cannot behave with my co-workers the way i can with my friends. I know that sarcasm is not appreciated by some friends so do not use it, whereas with others it's an ongoing thing! I know, even through texts, when a friend is feeling down in the dumps and I know how to approach the issue too.

We live in a society that tells us we shouldn't have to change for anyone. We should not change our ways to suit others because that means we aren't doing what makes us happy! What a load of cods wallops! Its shit like that that's let yobs get away with so much! Those who are unwilling to adapt to different people and situations are the ones who are left behind.
When i talk about adapting I'm not talking about changing YOUR personality i'm talking about the way you address people, how you talk to one person differs to another. I, as a Muslim, have to pray 5 times a day. Even if I'm at work or in a shopping center. But how I go about it differs depending on where I am and who I'm with.When a women / man looks at me either trying to be intimidating or looking rather uncomfortable, I smile. A smile is a doorway to conversation, If the person is curious then he/she knows now is their chance to start a conversation, if not then they see that I am neither a threat nor am I easily intimidated!

I remember walking around town and an elderly man gave me way, so I smiled and thanked him. He said something that I will probably never forget : 'What a beautiful smile, you should show it off more often', not only did he make my day hopefully I too made him happy. How often do we under value something as simple as a smile - how stingy have we become!

And for those muslims out there reading this then here's something that should encourage you even more so :
Prophet Muhammad, upon whom be peace, once said: "Charity is prescribed for each descendant of Adam every day the sun rises."
He was then asked: "From what do we give charity every day?"

The Prophet answered: "The doors of goodness are many...enjoining good, forbidding evil, removing harm from the road, listening to the deaf, leading the blind, guiding one to the object of his need, hurrying with the strength of one's legs to one in sorrow who is asking for help, and supporting the feeble with the strength of one's arms--all of these are charity prescribed for you."

He then said: "Even your smile for your brother is a charity."

So in all seriousness - LETS GET SMILING!! :) 

Consequences

This new bill is a whole load of cods wallop!!

Never has and never will indefinite detention on home soil or abroad been a reasonable or effective solution. The idea of it is preposterous!

All indefinite detention (without trial) does is incite more hatred and animosity between the two parties.
Since when has actually standing by the principles that your nation was founded upon been a weakness? Since when has been fair and just been a weakness? Since when has such obvious stupidity and oppression been acceptable!! Oh I could go on forever!!!!

This doesn't just affect US citizens it affects any one from any country - why can the US decide my fate! If you want to find out more details about the bill then feel free to google it - I am not going to copy and paste facts so that you either assume I am bias or that I have pasted snippets that suit me.

All these types of laws do is encourage stereotyping and discrimination. They also give radicals' material and motive to continue saying what they say. The government only has itself to thank when a young boy is torn away from his father and later goes on to exact his revenge. If anything the government should spend the money they intend to waste on keeping people locked up forever on rehabilitation. Does it really cost that much more to sit and talk things through...this method only has benefits.
If you are arrested and face the prospect of indefinite detention then you are willing to do anything to get out of it - FACT! But once you start attending group circles that actually face the issues rather than bury them it catches your attention, and you begin to listen. Eventually you start interacting,  then start voicing your opinion which leads to counter arguments. These counter arguments may go against your opinion but the logic behind them trumps yours - resulting in a change in your beliefs and attitude. If the people who hold you treat you with respect or at the very least treat you right then you cannot complain...but if they are first class tossers to you then you believe you have every right to hate them and to tell your family how awful they are which spreads and leads to further hatred towards the system in place. Kindness has never and will never be a weakness. Ignorance and fear is, these new laws in place just show us how afraid the US is...surely a nation with confidence in their abilities would not stoop to such low levels.

Yes my method may be way too simple to be effective, but usually the simplest and most obvious method is!!

Next time Iran does something to its own citizens & the US releases some pathetic statement then I wholeheartedly hope Iran tells them to F*** off! The US has lost the right to be known as the "land of the free...", well done Obama!

Tis the season to be jolly...

Not to put a downer on things - but is it really?

I'm sitting in my warm house knowing my dads sounds asleep in good health, while there is a child out there who has never seen / met his father because my government won't bring him back from Guantanamo Bay.

Shaker Aamer, has been held for almost 10 years - for 10 years old his children have been unable to see him or hear his voice! He was unofficially cleared for released in 2007 and officially for 2 years, so why does the government still insist on using up valuable tax payer money on keeping him holed up there??!

Why are we blind and deaf to this injustice!! When you sit around your table on Christmas eve and all wake up to open your gifts on the 25th, think about those who are waking up holed in cells they DO NOT belong in. Think about those children who are unjustly being punished by being separated from their fathers. To bring the man back to this country is the just thing to do, even if he goes to another prison cell atleast he's a step closer to home than he is now. Recently, Clive Stafford Smith wrote an open letter on how he believes if he is not released soon Shaker Aamer will die there. Imagine you were his son / daughter reading that, you know according to the law he SHOULD be a free man...but yet he's not.

What kind of justice is this? Have we totally lost our sense of righteousness that we can stand by and let this happen?

What can we do to help? How are we going to bring him back - what authority do I have?

Your probably thinking all the above - write to your local MP, heck write to the PM! Or at the very least bring awareness to the issue because although you might not be able to make the change someone out there may be able to and how are they going to do so if they aren't aware...

So this Christmas Day when you open your gifts, just remember how fortunate you are. And if you are a person who prays, I ask that you pray that justice is served and Shaker Aamer and his family are granted freedom from the shackles of tyranny and blatant injustice.