There’s an old saying that most of us will have invoked at terrible times, that if you don’t laugh then all you can do is cry.
But this Ramadan there has been nothing to laugh about. Even if we invoke the darkest of black humour, for me, this Ramadan will be remembered as one of devastation, heartbreak and destruction.
In May, ISIL vowed to inflict terror during the Muslim month of fasting, to make Ramadan, “with God’s permission, a month of pain for infidels everywhere”. The month was nothing short of a bloodbath.
Istanbul, Dhaka, Qaa, Baghdad, Taif, Medina – as well as reports from Qatif and Malaysia too. Hundreds dead. Hundreds more injured.
These locations have one factor in common that is rarely highlighted in the global narrative about the death and destruction that lies at the heart of ISIL’s ideology: the targets and the victims are mostly Muslim.
Muslim countries, Muslim victims, most likely fasting, in the holiest of Islamic months. ISIL had clearly labelled them “infidels” and pitilessly murdered them.
Islam teaches that for someone who kills one person, it is as though they killed all of humanity.
It is beyond comprehension how we might describe the mass murder committed by ISIL. There are no words that can capture their evil.
Their beliefs and their acts are a transgression of every single boundary of Islam and humanity. They kill innocent victims and this Ramadan their evil has culminated in waging war at the very doorstep of the Prophet Mohammad’s mosque in Medina.
Buried in the raw revulsion that makes vomit rise in my mouth and tears stream from my eyes each time I read of these horrors, is the smallest of hopes: that we begin to be clear and united in our understanding that ISIL is not an Islamic phenomenon. These acts of ISIL are far outside the boundaries of Islam. No ifs or buts.
Do not be confused by talk of “jihad”, and oppressive regimes, of reclaiming lost glory or fighting infidels.
If you think that there is something about establishing a “caliphate” that appeals, that there is a utopia in conducting what ISIL call a jihad then be clear: unilaterally declaring Muslims as infidels, killing them in the month of Ramadan and spilling blood in Medina, the city of the Prophet and one of the holiest places for all Muslims, are not Islamic acts. They are not human acts.
Some scholars have been careful to argue that we should not pronounce takfir on ISIL, referring to the declaration that they are not Muslims. Because it is ISIL itself that have decided to unilaterally label any Muslim opposed to their views as an infidels. And then they use this as their justification to easily, heartlessly and without any remorse kill Muslims, even in the month of Ramadan.
It is clear to me, as to any human being, that this is a barbaric, heartless and twisted organisation.
Let there be no doubt. Mass murder is not inspired by Islam. Rejection of such acts in heart, word and action is the duty of every human being. Brussels or Baghdad, Paris or Medina we must absolutely be united in our opposition to the evil that is ISIL.
Shelina Zahra Janmohamed is the author of Love in a Headscarf and blogs at www.spirit21.co.uk
Leap of Faith
Michael J Mazarr
Public Affairs
Dh67
Mercer, the investment consulting arm of US services company Marsh & McLennan, expects its wealth division to at least double its assets under management (AUM) in the Middle East as wealth in the region continues to grow despite economic headwinds, a company official said.
Mercer Wealth, which globally has $160 billion in AUM, plans to boost its AUM in the region to $2-$3bn in the next 2-3 years from the present $1bn, said Yasir AbuShaban, a Dubai-based principal with Mercer Wealth.
“Within the next two to three years, we are looking at reaching $2 to $3 billion as a conservative estimate and we do see an opportunity to do so,” said Mr AbuShaban.
Mercer does not directly make investments, but allocates clients’ money they have discretion to, to professional asset managers. They also provide advice to clients.
“We have buying power. We can negotiate on their (client’s) behalf with asset managers to provide them lower fees than they otherwise would have to get on their own,” he added.
Mercer Wealth’s clients include sovereign wealth funds, family offices, and insurance companies among others.
From its office in Dubai, Mercer also looks after Africa, India and Turkey, where they also see opportunity for growth.
Wealth creation in Middle East and Africa (MEA) grew 8.5 per cent to $8.1 trillion last year from $7.5tn in 2015, higher than last year’s global average of 6 per cent and the second-highest growth in a region after Asia-Pacific which grew 9.9 per cent, according to consultancy Boston Consulting Group (BCG). In the region, where wealth grew just 1.9 per cent in 2015 compared with 2014, a pickup in oil prices has helped in wealth generation.
BCG is forecasting MEA wealth will rise to $12tn by 2021, growing at an annual average of 8 per cent.
Drivers of wealth generation in the region will be split evenly between new wealth creation and growth of performance of existing assets, according to BCG.
Another general trend in the region is clients’ looking for a comprehensive approach to investing, according to Mr AbuShaban.
“Institutional investors or some of the families are seeing a slowdown in the available capital they have to invest and in that sense they are looking at optimizing the way they manage their portfolios and making sure they are not investing haphazardly and different parts of their investment are working together,” said Mr AbuShaban.
Some clients also have a higher appetite for risk, given the low interest-rate environment that does not provide enough yield for some institutional investors. These clients are keen to invest in illiquid assets, such as private equity and infrastructure.
“What we have seen is a desire for higher returns in what has been a low-return environment specifically in various fixed income or bonds,” he said.
“In this environment, we have seen a de facto increase in the risk that clients are taking in things like illiquid investments, private equity investments, infrastructure and private debt, those kind of investments were higher illiquidity results in incrementally higher returns.”
The Abu Dhabi Investment Authority, one of the largest sovereign wealth funds, said in its 2016 report that has gradually increased its exposure in direct private equity and private credit transactions, mainly in Asian markets and especially in China and India. The authority’s private equity department focused on structured equities owing to “their defensive characteristics.”
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Sarfraz (c), Zaman, Imam, Masood, Azam, Malik, Asif, Sohail, Shadab, Nawaz, Ashraf, Hasan, Amir, Junaid, Shinwari and Afridi
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