Readers' corner
Rooted in heart
Sir-- The veneration Sunni Muslims have for the Holy Prophet's family as a whole is deeply rooted in our hearts from the very beginning of the Islamic era, long before the Shia creed was born ('Egypt: Sunni but Shia inclined' Al-Ahram Weekly 25-31 May). Fatimids might have come from North Africa but the whole region was basically Sunni Islamic in its belief from the seventh century BC itself. Moreover, Iran itself was a predominantly Sunni Islamic entity just five centuries ago. All the great thinkers, writers and poets who were born there, like Firdousi, Omar Khayyam, Hafiz, Saad Al-Birouni and Bou Ali Sina were Sunni Islamic in belief. It was a great calamity according to historians that people in Iran were forced to change their creed to Shia by force of arms. It does not mean that Sunni Muslims are anti-Shia but their veneration is for the Holy Prophet's family as a whole without making any distinction.
Ahmed Ibrahim
Bangalore
India
Market reading
Sir-- Having read 'Another Tuesday, another fall' ( Al-Ahram Weekly 25-31 May), the government did not intervene to fight the manipulations in the stock market. Secondly, we have a class of people that bought shares in the bourse without having any experience. Thirdly, the stock's officials must exert more effort to provide awareness to newcomers in the market.
Ahmed Abdel-Tawwab
Cairo
Egypt
Swift fall
Sir-- Right after the freebies for over 1,500 guests, for free food, transportation and accommodation in three of the most expensive deluxe hotels in Sharm El-Sheikh, the bourse in Egypt, and only Egypt, dropped following the end of the Davos Forum. Was that a coincidence?
Hoda Nassef
Cairo
Egypt
Nour's trials
Sir-- I am deeply touched by the distress Mr Ayman Nour is going through ('The punches keep coming' Al-Ahram Weekly 25-31 May). The rejection of his appeal case by the court is proof of how much the judiciary is manipulated by the executive. The government's determination to block Mr Ayman from contesting the 2011 election would if anything fuel abhorrence to its rule.
My advice to the people of Egypt is that you should keep up the struggle because change does not come on a silver platter.
Mohamud Ali
Garissa
Kenya
We all know
Sir-- When the new Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert delivered his speech before a joint session of Congress last week and proceeded to blame the victims of Israel's 39- year-old belligerent occupation and almost 60 years of land assault and took no responsibility for the chaos his government has thrown Palestinian society into with their global boycott of Hamas, I foundmyself correcting some points on his old Israeli propaganda.
We all know who is really being held hostage daily by Israel and who is being half- starved into recognising Israel's right to exist, all the while as Israel ignores theirs and tramples on their land.
We all know it is the Israelis who are failing to act again and include the Palestinians in the negotiations and properly determine which settlements must go, and proper borders.
We all know who can't wait anymore for Israel to be a partner for peace.
We all know it is the Israelis who are the immediate threat to the region and the world with their massive violence towards the Palestinians, and not Iran gaining nuclear capability.
And as the radio and TV hosts replayed Olmert's speech that day and the next they seem to have an apologetic air about them as if to say:
"Sorry folks, bear with us while we replay some of that old Israeli propaganda."
Doris Cadigan
Massachusetts
USA
Butter and guns
Sir-- In response to Khaled Amayreh's commentary 'Managing cruelty' ( Al-Ahram Weekly 18-24 May), Hamas is denouncing the loss of international support, saying that the West is starving the Palestinian people, "punishing" them for exercising their democratic right to vote. So, let me see if I can sum up the Hamas position: they have plenty of money for guns, but none for butter. And they expect the West to keep supplying the Palestinian people with butter, while Hamas uses those guns to continue their goal (clearly spelled out in their charter): the extermination of the nation of Israel. They want to put all their resources into weapons and continue to wage their war against Israel.
Sumayah Habeeb
New York
USA
Listen to Lennon
Sir-- Hamas is not up-to-date with the times. The Hamas way is the old way. The new way is peace. The choice is live in peace or die in violence. As John Lennon said, "All I am saying is give peace a chance."
Steve Baru
Hyderabad
India
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