Monthly Archives: December 2013

The Corrupt Should Not Escape The Consequences. Reply

About The Nation, Articles by Others, Good Article, Opinion • Tags: , , , , ,

 

 Saleh Al Shaibany

The Corrupt Should Not Escape The Consequences.

Sunday Beat – Times of Oman – By Saleh Al Shaibany – saleh@timesofoman.com

MUSCAT: Take this example of a man who is paid about OMR2,000 a month, is driving an expensive car and owns a building that has 40 flats, 12 shops and a basement parking. Where did he acquire all this wealth from?

Oh, I almost forgot. He also owns a home at Jumeirah Beach in Dubai and a posh flat somewhere in Malaysia. Corruption seems to be deeply entrenched in our society. It is now like second nature in our lives. Yet, such officials or company employees have escaped detection of corruption for the last 40 years.

They have been amassing millions of rials of ill-gotten funds over the years and now they think getting kickbacks is part of the business deal. They also feel it is their divine right to pick the pockets of the government.

As one western oil executive once told me, “if you want to retire in Acapulco, be an official in the Omani energy sector.”

The question everybody asks is, why only now we see a series of corruption cases going to court? Is it because our oil wealth is starting to decline at the time when we have problems balancing the fiscal budget? Or is it that it is too widespread that ordinary people cannot tolerate anymore?

Investment prospects

Whatever the answer is, if corruption is not rooted out immediately, it will hurt our foreign investment prospects. At this rate, the Sultanate’s credibility as an investment destination will fare no better than the so-called banana republics.  The only way to stem it, is to punish the culprits by handing them long sentences. In the past, offenders of corruption in the isolated cases — we had seen — got away with lighter prison terms.

The well connected even escaped convictions. It is time they face the consequences of their greed. For justice to be served, perhaps, it is also time to make sure the corrupt are not probing the fellow corrupt. There is a club in our midst that protects each other.

The government also needs to make sure that companies, not just their officials, offering bribes do not get away with it. Such companies should be struck off from bidding future contracts, no matter how well connected they are.

If the court finds them excuses and they are allowed to bid again, the message will be out that it is alright to ‘reward’ government officials. Then we are not going anyway and these corruption court cases are just a lip service.

The second message, perhaps more devastating, will be to young people and future leaders that plundering the national wealth is part of the Omani way. They will learn that if you cannot have one hand in the government’s cash register then ‘you are not the man.’

It is happening this way. When you get 10 per cent from a bidding company, it does not come from their bank. They just make the government pay 10 per cent more so it can end up in your pocket. Corrupt officials have either been clever all these years or the probing team has been looking elsewhere when it comes to hiding the bribe money. It is stashed away in the accounts of their spouses, siblings or children. Sometimes even with closed friends. They are not foolish enough to do it here but in overseas accounts.

Then they move back to Oman to clean the money tainted with filth by buying that block of flats. Hang on; not in their names but in  names of their children. And here one wonders if our anti-money laundering laws have any teeth at all. Without any doubt we are in a danger of being embroiled in the whims and desires of crooked officials who know that they can find a safety net when they fall.

We are also living in a business environment of contracting companies, both local and international, which can tempt officials with a bag of cash without fear of being punished because their directors belong in the same fraternity club as the probing team.

The members of the public are waiting anxiously to see whether the current court cases of corruption can find anybody guilty, whether a bribing company or the receiving individuals.

And for that matter, if the probers could go deep enough to uncover more cases that stretch back for a number of years. We all know the current cases are just a tip of the iceberg of the scale of corruption the country is in.

Saddam Remained Strong Until The End! Reply

Reproduced Articles, Reproduced Opinion Articles, Sensitive Critical Topics • Tags: , ,
Source AFP
Friday, Dec 27, 2013
Saddam 1 Saddam 2
Bust of Saddam and The Hanging Rope! Defiant Saddam in Court! Images for Demonstration Purposes only!

BAGHDAD – Mowaffak al-Rubaie sits in his office with a statue of Saddam Hussein behind him, the rope used to hang the dictator around its neck, recalling his final minutes.

The former national security advisor, who oversaw Saddam’s 2006 execution, said he remained strong until the end, and never expressed any regret. “A criminal? True. A killer? True. A butcher? True. But he was strong until the end.

“I received him (Saddam) at the door. No one entered with us – no foreigners, and no Americans,” Rubaie said in an interview with AFP at his office in the Kadhimiyah area of north Baghdad, near the prison where the execution took place seven years ago.

“He was wearing a jacket and a white shirt, normal and relaxed, and I didn’t see any signs of fear.

“Of course, some people want me to say that he collapsed or that he was drugged, but these facts are for history,” Rubaie said.

“I didn’t hear any regret from him, I didn’t hear any request for mercy from God from him, or request for pardon.

“A person who is about to die usually says, ‘God, forgive my sins – I am coming to you.’ But he never said any of that,” Rubaie told AFP.

Saddam Hussein, who ruled Iraq for more than two decades marked by brutal repression, disastrous wars and punishing international sanctions, was hanged after being found guilty of crimes against humanity for the 1982 killing of 148 Shiite villagers in Dujail.

He was president from July 1979 until the March 2003 US-led invasion of Iraq, and was found by American forces hiding in a hole on a farm in December of that year.

Saddam was executed three years later on December 30, 2006 after a summary trial.

Hanging Saddam Hussein

Saddam Hussein being hanged! Images for Demonstration Purposes only!

Some Iraqis, particularly Sunni Arabs, look back fondly on the time of Saddam’s rule, especially the periods of internal stability that stand in stark contrast to the brutal violence that has plagued the country since his overthrow.

Saddam is also held in high regard by some Arabs for his 1980-88 war with Iran, his confrontations with the United States, his strikes against Israel, and his composure during his execution, which was recorded on mobile phone videos.

‘This is for men’

“When I brought him, he was handcuffed and holding a Quran,” said Rubaie, ignoring the statue of Saddam behind him, which depicts the dictator dressed in a uniform bearing the insignia of his exclusive military rank.

“I took him to the judge’s room, where he read the list of indictments, as Saddam repeated: ‘Death to America! Death to Israel! Long live Palestine! Death to the Persian magi!”

Rubaie then took Saddam to the room in which he was to die.

“He stopped, looked at the gallows, then he looked me up and down… and said: ‘Doctor, this is for men’.”

When it was time for Saddam to mount the gallows, his legs were still bound, so Rubaie and others had to drag him up the steps.

Just before he was hanged, witnesses taunted him with shouts of “Long live Imam Mohammed Baqr al-Sadr!” and “Moqtada! Moqtada!” – references to an opponent of Saddam who was killed during his rule, and the dead man’s relative, who rose to command a powerful militia after 2003.

Saddam replied: “Is this manhood?”

Rubaie said he pulled the lever to hang Saddam, but it did not work.

Another person he did not name then pulled it a second time, killing him. Just before he was hanged, Saddam began to recite the Muslim testament of faith.

“I testify that there is no god but God, and Mohammed…,” he began, but he was hanged before he could say the final words, “is the messenger of God.”

Rubaie went under the gallows to retrieve the body, which he said was put in a white bag and placed on a stretcher.

The body was then transported in an American helicopter from the prison where he was hanged to Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki’s residence in the heavily-fortified Green Zone.

The helicopter was crowded with people, Rubaie said, so the body had to be put on the floor, and the doors of the helicopter were left open during the flight, as the stretcher was too long to fit otherwise.

“I remember clearly that the sun was starting to rise” as the helicopter flew over Baghdad, Rubaie said.

‘The room was full of death’

At his residence, “the prime minister took our hands and said: ‘God bless you.’ I told him, ‘Go ahead and look at him.’ So he uncovered his face, and saw Saddam Hussein,” said Rubaie, who is still a close ally of the premier.

“I have never had such a very strange feeling,” Rubaie, who was thrice imprisoned during Saddam’s rule, said of participating in the execution.

“He committed countless crimes, and he deserved to be hanged a thousand times, live again, and be hanged again. But the feeling, that feeling is a strange feeling,” he said. “The room was full of death.”

Rubaie said Saddam’s execution was set in motion after a video conference between Maliki and then US president George Bush, who asked the Iraqi prime minister: “What are you going to do with this criminal?”

Maliki replied: “We hang him.”

Bush gave him a thumbs up, signalling his approval.

Source – AFP

From The Man of The Year to being hanged by the very same! Will we Arabs wake up from this deep slumber we are in?

Local Press Books Reviews – Being The Safe Driver! Reply

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PP Native Cover.4097374.indd

USA Published Version

1 - Behind The Wheel Cover

India Published Version

Muscat Daily Coverage

Being The Safe Driver! Oman Press Coverage!

From Muscat Daily First and Second – Open Link Below!

Author plans novel on real life stories of road accident victims

From The Oman Daily Observer! – Later On!

Book Release Oman Observer

More Details and Information here and at www.bethesafedriver.com

The book is in English! Arabic Translation under finalization stages!

Books available here – www.createspace.com/4097374 or from me at OMR 12/= Twelve

INTERNATIONAL COVERAGES

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majid@mymajidwrite.com – majidalsuleimanybooks@gmail.com

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Also Go Here –

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Lawrence of Arabia – Peter O’Toole – Dies! Reply

Breaking News, From The Press • Tags: , ,

Stage and Screen. Personalities. pic: circa 1962. Irish born actor Peter O'Toole as he appeared in the film "Lawrence of Arabia".

Actor Peter O’Toole, who found stardom in 1962 playing T. E. Lawrence in “Lawrence of Arabia” has died, BBC News reports. He was 81.

O’Toole, who overcame a severe stomach sickness in the 1970s, died on Saturday (Dec. 14) at the Wellington hospital in London following a long illness, his agent Steve Kenis confirmed to The Guardian.

The Irish-born leading man of the stage and screen announced last year he was leaving acting behind,  saying, “I bid the profession a dry-eyed and profoundly grateful farewell.”

O’Toole was nominated for eight Academy Awards for his roles in “Lawrence of Arabia,” “Becket” (1964), “The Lion In Winter” (1968), “Goodbye, Mr. Chips” (1969), “The Ruling Class” (1972), “The Stunt Man” (1980), “My Favorite Year” (1982) and “Venus” (2006). He allegedly holds the record for the most Academy Award acting nominations without a win. O’Toole won four Golden Globes, a BAFTA and an Emmy, and was the recipient of an Honorary Academy Award in 2003.

“[He was] one of a kind in the very best sense and a giant in his field,” Kenis told BBC News.

“His family are very appreciative and completely overwhelmed by the outpouring of real love and affection being expressed towards him, and to us, during this unhappy time,” his daughter Kate O’Toole tells Deadline. “Thank you all, from the bottom of our hearts. In due course there will be a memorial filled with song and good cheer, as he would have wished. We will be happy to speak to you all then but in the meantime if you could give Peter O’Toole the respect he deserves and allow us to grieve privately we’d appreciate it. Thank you all again for your beautiful tributes – keep them coming.”

O’Toole is survived by daughters, Kate and Patricia, and son, Lorcan.

Source : HuffPost:

O’Toole is believed to have been born in Connemara in County Galway in Ireland, and lived in London. He shot to stardom in the 1962 film of TE Lawrence’s life story and went on to take leading roles in Goodbye Mr Chips, The Ruling Class, The Stunt Man and My Favourite Year. He received an honorary Oscar in 2003 after receiving  eight nominations and no wins – an unassailed record. He considered turning it down and asking the Academy to hold off until he was 80, on the basis that “I am still in the game and might win the bugger outright.”

He finally accepted, saying: “Always a bridesmaid, never a bride, my foot”.

He is survived by his two daughters, Pat and Kate O’Toole, from his marriage to actress Siân Phillips, and his son, Lorcan O’Toole, by Karen Brown.

O’Toole is believed to have been born in Connemara in County Galway in Ireland, and lived in London. He shot to stardom in the 1962 film of TE Lawrence’s life story and went on to take leading roles in Goodbye Mr Chips, The Ruling Class, The Stunt Man and My Favourite Year. He received an honorary Oscar in 2003 after receiving eight nominations and no wins – an unassailed record. He considered turning it down and asking the Academy to hold off until he was 80, on the basis that “I am still in the game and might win the bugger outright.”

He finally accepted, saying: “Always a bridesmaid, never a bride, my foot”.

He is survived by his two daughters, Pat and Kate O’Toole, from his marriage to actress Siân Phillips, and his son, Lorcan O’Toole, by Karen Brown.

The Guardian

Say Goodbye to Between Us Only! Columns! Reply

A Personal Note!, Announcements, Between Us Only! Column Articles, Breaking News, Deep Soul Searching Article, Difficult and Complex Article To Write, From The Press, How To Live In This World!, My Last Oman Observer Article, Sensitive and Critical Viewpoint, Sensitive Critical Topics, Why I am so sad!, Wipe My Tears! • Tags: , , , , , ,

One Minute Silence For Between Us Only! Column

Goodbye; Between Us Only!

One Minute Silence – Please!

For those who have been closely following events, you may have noticed that the column has not been published for the last two weeks now. All the explanations are here in the website.

Somebody does not need to insult your intelligence to make you feel that you are no longer welcome – or wanted!

The East Africans also say – you do not need to choose your words rightly (ethically) if you have planned to insult someone in life! That is true, really!

They also say – do not cry if someone has refused you beans (mbaazi) – it just has reduced your gas (mishuuzi)  outtake!

Please offer a minute of silence for its death! If people like Mandela have died, what is Between Us Only?

Born on March 2001 and died December 2013 – 12 years later!

Wishing you all the very best! Take Care!

Citizen – Majid bin Said bin Nasser Al Suleimany

Muscat – Oman – December 12th 2013

All The Between Us Only! Books.

To Order Go Here – www.myownmajid.com

Please Read Also This – https://majidsn.com/2013/12/08/learning-from-mandela/ – More at www.majidsn.com

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This is Goodbye! Bye!

  • I came to you with good advice – but you like not Good Advisors! – Prophet Salah (Methu Salah) RA
  • Life cannot defeat a Writer who is in love with writing,  for life itself is a Writer’s love until death – Edna Ferber
  • If you would not be forgotten, as soon as you are dead, either write things worth reading or do things worth the writing – Benjamin Franklin
  • No need for revenge. just sit back and wait. Those who hurt you will eventually screw up themselves and if you are lucky, God will let you watch – Good Karma

This is Goodbye! Bye! One day people will remember me – and people will search out and look out for my books – This I am very sure of! Many

Thanks!

Best Wishes and Regards – Majid Al Suleimany

Please Read Also This – https://majidsn.com/2013/12/08/learning-from-mandela/ – More at www.majidsn.com

Cinder Fires – Burning Quietly! Reply

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Cry 1A - A Cry For Help!

People Are Still Complaining! Quietly .. and Unseen!!

After Compliments;

Yesterday I attended a wedding celebration for two of my ‘grandchildren boys’ at the same function. It was fully attended and with some people having to sit outside the hall. It is understandable – because of the two girls’ families – and from the groom side of the two marrying boys. I personally think it was a good idea to marry off the brothers on the same day – though Muscat halls are still not equipped to handle more than one function at a time.

As usual that we are – and washing our hands after the nice meal – of biriyani rice and morsels of meat and boiled eggs – we like to complain – instead of offering grace and thanks to The Lord! What else is new?

But I was really taken back to see so many people approaching me with their ‘burning issues’ – ‘write about ..’ – ‘no one cares about us in …’ – ‘we need our rights in …`. These are all educated peoples and in good jobs too – many in the Oil and Gas sector!! The last part is shocking .. as there are grievances procedures – and Company Information Communication Systems between Management and Staff.

But people are still afraid to be seen and to be identified – and they prefer to complain quietly to people they can trust – quietly and unseen! I wonder aloud to myself – what else has changed? They have seen what have happened to people that complain openly .. or being outspoken and being vocal. Especially to their careers and future job prospects – when you are marked out!! So they prefer the ‘protective  meek and timid’ way of things – but the issues are still there – cinder fire burning underneath – and unseen from prying eyes. Till it unexpected erupts – as it usually does! It is really traumatic sad!

charcoal-fire-flames[1]

Image Cinder Fire Burning – deeply, heatedly and quietly! – For Demonstration Purposes Only!

Unfortunately, I did not have the nerve to tell them – my columns have ended – and I am no longer in a position to write my columns – now anymore. It is a pity anyway – with such situations – of so many people still not happy – but complaining on the sides ..quietly and unseen.

May The Good Lord Guide us all to the Right Path and Ways – Amin.

With Best Wishes and Regards,

Majid Al Suleimany – Saturday December 7th 2013

My Books Website – www.myownmajid.com and other writing website – www.majidall.com

Nelson Mandela Dies! Reply

Breaking News, From The Press • Tags: , , ,

Breaking News! – Nelson Mandela Dies.Nelson Mandela

South Africa’s first black president and anti-apartheid icon dies after battling lung infection for month

  • He was a Unifier from the moment he walked out of prison. He taught us how to come together and believe in ourselves – Bishop Desmond Tutu
  • A Giant For Peace! He showed what was possible for our world – Ban Ki Moon – UN Secretary General
  • Death is something inevitable. When a man has done what he considers to be his duty to his people and his country, he can rest in peace – Late Nelson Mandela – PBUH
  • The world has lost one of its greatest citizens. A voice of courage, a source of inspiration and a beloved leader to us all – Jakaya Kikwete – President of Tanzania
  • A man who took history in his hands and bent the arc of the moral universe towards justice – Barack Obama – USA President
  • South Africa has lost its greatest son – Jacob Zuma – South Africa President
  • A people’s person – who never forgot his roots in helping others – Mourning South African
  • He inspired us in the Arab Spring demonstrations – Ex Arab Demonstrator
  • He had courage to do what is right – Mourning South African
  • And so many others – globally!

Former South African President Nelson Mandela died peacefully at his Johannesburg home on Thursday after a prolonged lung infection. He was 95.

Mandela, the country’s first black president and anti-apartheid icon, emerged from 27 years in apartheid prisons to help guide South Africa out of bloodshed and turmoil to democracy.

“Fellow South Africans, our beloved Nelson Rohlihlahla Mandela, the founding president of our democratic nation, has departed,” President Jacob Zuma said in a nationally televised address.

“Our people have lost a father. Although we knew this day was going to come, nothing can diminish our sense of a profound and enduring loss. His tireless struggle for freedom earned him the respect of the world. His humility, passion and humanity, earned him their love,” he added.

Mandela would receive a full state funeral, Zuma said, ordering flags to be flown at half mast.

Al Jazeera’s Tania Page, reporting from outside Mandela’s home in Johannesburg, said that there was a real sense of celebration in tribute to Mandela there, while world leaders were also delivering their tributes.

Speaking to Al Jazeera from outside Nelson Mandela’s house, where people of various races were singing songs dedicated to the former leader, local journalist Kenichi Serino said that there were around a thousand people gathered there.

“There is a total mix of people. There are Indian people, black people, guys with dreadlocks…  anyone with a car is here. It’s a cross-section groups. There are lots of South African flags.”

“Many people are in their bathrobes and appear to have just come out of their homes.”

He said that the atmosphere was a mixture of sombre and festive mood.

“People are also taking pictures of themselves here, so as to capture the moment of them being here as well.”

Al Jazeera’s Haru Mutasa, reporting from Soweto, where Mandela once lived, said radio stations were telling people that “once you wake up go to Vilakazi street”, famous for its place in the struggle against apartheid.

“The mood is basically one of celebrations … I think people know that he achieved a lot for his country. Yes, he was not perfect. He was, afterall, human but he was the man of the people,” she said.

Respected figure

Mandela rose from rural obscurity to challenge the might of white minority apartheid government – a struggle that gave the twentieth century one of its most respected and loved figures.

He was among the first to advocate armed resistance to apartheid in 1960, but was quick to preach reconciliation and forgiveness when the country’s white minority began easing its grip on power 30 years later.

Mandela was elected president in landmark all-race elections in 1994 and retired in 1999.

He was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize in 1993, an honour he shared with FW de Klerk, the white Afrikaner leader who released from jail arguably the world’s most famous political prisoner.

“A great light has gone out in the world. Nelson Mandela was a hero of our time,” de Klerk told CNN. “He was a great unifier and a very, very special man in this regard beyond everything else he did. This emphasis on reconciliation was his biggest legacy.”

As president, Mandela faced the monumental task of forging a new nation from the deep racial injustices left over from the apartheid era, making reconciliation the theme of his time in office.

The hallmark of Mandela’s mission was the Truth and Reconciliation Commission which probed apartheid crimes on both sides of the struggle and tried to heal the country’s wounds. It also provided a model for other countries torn by civil strife.

In 1999, Mandela handed over power to younger leaders better equipped to manage a modern economy – a rare voluntary departure from power cited as an example to African

n retirement, he shifted his energies to battling South Africa’s AIDS crisis and the struggle became personal when he lost his only surviving son to the disease in 2005.

Mandela’s last major appearance on the global stage came in 2010 when he attended the championship match of the soccer World Cup, where he received a thunderous ovation from the 90,000 at the stadium in Soweto, the neighbourhood in which he cut his teeth as a resistance leader.

Charged with capital offences in the infamous 1963 Rivonia Trial, his statement from the dock was his political testimony.

“During my lifetime I have dedicated myself to this struggle of the African people. I have fought against white domination, and I have fought against black domination.”

Mandela’s passing comes ahead of the country’s fifth election, and at a time when the country is battling numerous challenges, both political and economic.

Political analyst Ayesha Kajee told Al Jazeera that as South Africa and the world grieves “we need to recognise that, in order to truly honour [Mandela’s] legacy, and that of the countless unnamed heroes who sacrificed so much for our freedoms, we must take great care to not trample on the rights of our fellows, nor to squander our own rights in pursuit of the ephemeral.”

Source – Extracted From Al Jazeera TV Website

Related Topics in My Websites – 

http://www.betweenusonly.com/?s=playing+with+the+enemy

http://majidwrite.com/2013/01/20/tutus-children/

http://majidwrite.com/2012/09/30/meeting-of-the-mind-by-majid-al-suleimany/

More at www.myownmajid.com – My Books Website

End of My Column – Between Us Only! Reply

About Me!, Announcements, At My Workplace! Column The Observer, Breaking News, Deep Soul Searching Article, Difficult and Complex Article To Write, My Last Oman Observer Article, Sensitive and Critical Viewpoint, Sensitive Critical Topics, The Weekly Columns Writings in The Oman Daily Observer, Why I am so sad! • Tags: , , , ,

Between Us Only Column Ends!

For those of my Readers and Fans – and following my columns.

Please see Letter to The CEO – The Oman Daily Observer – as sent yesterday Tuesday December 3rd 2013.

Many thanks for your support and wishing you all the very best.

Take Care!

Majid Al Suleimany

****

After Compliments;

This refers to the various correspondences via email concerning delays of due payments to me since May 2013 – and partial payments to date as also email by T. Reference also is made to the various discussions with your  TTJ and prior that with Mr. AAS at The Oman Daily Observer offices – a few months back – on the same topics.

This is to formally inform you of my immediate now withdrawal of continuing to be a Columnist with The Oman Daily Observer – as the contractual agreements have not been met from your side.

Thanking you for allowing me to be your Columnist for the past 13 years.

Please note that my decision is final and irrevocable.

Please accept my best wishes and regards – and wishing you all the very best.

Sincerely, 

Citizen – Majid bin Said bin Nasser Al Suleimany

Domestic Violence! – What Women Do Not Say! Reply

Between Us Only! Column Articles, Deep Soul Searching Article, Difficult and Complex Article To Write, Good Article, How To Live In This World!, Religious Article, Sensitive Critical Topics, The Weekly Columns Writings in The Oman Daily Observer, Wipe My Tears! • Tags: , , , , , , ,

The Oman Daily Observer – December 1st 2013 –

http://main.omanobserver.om/?p=34895

Please Note – Posted Also At: –

My New Website – www.majidwrite.com

And also at – www.majidall.com

For Sunday – December 1st 2013.

Cry 1 The lonely girl

Images – Domestic Violence – For Demonstration Purposes Only!

Between Us Only!

What Women Do Not Say! 

Domestic Violence!

  • Violence is the last refuge of the incompetent! – Isaac Asimov
  • Never let a man put his hands on you without your permission! – Melda Beatty 

In my role as a Human Resources Professional – I have met many cases of victims of domestic violence – to an extent that if I were planning for a 11th book to be authored by me in this my line of books – it could be a topic by itself! Though frankly speaking my last book – Wipe My Tears! – has many articles of battered wives and on domestic violence. Even the front cover has a photo of a very pretty girl – but still yet crying!

Front Wipe My Tears

www.myownmajid.com

The most tragic and sad part out of it all trying to justify why she had become the victim – for example he lost his job – his business is not doing well – or other such things! Yet still she will pretend that she is wearing the big sunglasses because ‘she banged her face on a car door’ etc – but does not want to show her scaled and wounded face – and body by heavy clothing!

People always ask me ‘why you do not drink?’ – is it because of the Religion? And I always strive to answer not to offend anyone from both camps – those who do – to be social! – and those who do not! The last group do not want to sit with anyone who drinks – but for I – there are no issues to sit with those that do – whilst I drink my own poison of sodas – or if possible fresh juices! That is until the abusive jokes start to fly – and I quit gracefully – before things get any more out of place and control in insults and affronts!

DV 3DV 2

Images – Domestic Violence – For Demonstration Purposes Only!

The real reason I do not drink ever in my life is as a young boy getting this beating of my life from a relative who was so drunk and out of his mind – very abusive and aggressive after a few drinks – that he mistakenly thought I was his son – because we were playing together in football! His wives used to run away from home as soon as the call went out that he was now returning home from the bars!

Like we Arabs like to say – from the stomach of evil came good tidings – or the silver lining in the storm clouds! I made a vow to myself that I will never ever drink in my life – promotion or not – or asked to leave the company in my new job – because it started with my refusing to hold up in cheers a glass of wine – though I was ready to do so – if my favourite Sprite soda was in the glass – thus going half-way up to be modern and social!

Far later in my career life in HR – I came to realise which female staff to avoid for the day who came to the office as victim. Being victim did not necessarily mean being beaten and battered – but some husbands and fathers were equally good in using cruel hurting painful words as their tools – instead of the hands. The mouth was equally hurtful – if not more in some cases! But what if it is the husband – with the children – instead are the victims? Points to ponder in real life!

DV 1DV ADV B

Images – Domestic Violence – For Demonstration Purposes Only!

A few days back I watched this television melodrama – Soapbox Mexico – Vicky’s Story.  Emotions run high as a sexually abused woman who freed herself thanks to the soap opera has her story turned into an episode. Planning a special programme for the upcoming 13 anniversary of the soap, executive producer Alicia asks scriptwriter Araceli to find a case of a woman who has suffered abuse, and recovered, thanks to the programme’s message. Vicky comes forward, and Araceli adapts her story for the programme. In a deeply emotional demonstration of the back-and-forth between reality and fiction,

Vicky’s real story is played out on set. Her years of sexual abuse at the hands of a violent husband form the central theme of the episode and arguably reflect real life in Mexico where two out of every three women suffer abuse. Vicky saved herself because she called a helpline advertised at the end of What Women Don’t Say. The theme of speaking out and of breaking silence is very clearly and powerfully real ised, as Vicky makes an emotional visit to the set to watch the last scenes of her story being filmed. Another famous series is the Turkish one titled Kismet produced from Turkish women writers’ contributions from real life true stories and incidents.

Yet another series that I really liked to watch is Desperate Housewives! It is an American television comedy-drama-mystery series. The show followed the lives of a group of women as seen through the eyes of a dead neighbour who committed suicide in the very first episode. The storyline covers thirteen years of the women’s lives over eight seasons, set between the years 2004–2008, and later 2013–2017 (the story arc included a 5 year passage of time). They worked through domestic struggles and family life, while facing the secrets, crimes and mysteries hidden behind the doors of their — at the surface — beautiful and seemingly perfect suburban neighborhood.

As a Writer, Author and Columnist – I get many emails from my lady fans about their family issues – and many border actual physical abuse – let alone of verbal words – which are more common. There is a famous East Africa expression that goes like this – The real man comes out when he (suddenly!) becomes rich – and the woman when her husband has become poor, needy and dispossessed!

Some of the cases are so unbelievable – that the other day in a social occasion a prominent and famous person was asking me why I was looking intensely and staring at him – in slipping up in my thoughts! It is really shocking some of the cases – but as I had pledged confidence – sorry I am not telling – at least for now!

Some More Sayings –

  • There are wounds that never show on the body that are deeper and more hurtful than anything that bleeds! – Laurel Hamilton
  • One thing that you cannot hide is when you are crippled inside! – John Lennon
  • If anyone hits me, they can expect to be hit back, and harder. I never turn the other cheek, because in my experience that doesn’t work – Alice Bag

Take Care!

By  Majid Al Suleimany

November 27th 2013