I would be surprised if the troops do turn up

Pakistan delays rape reform plans Pakistan's government has delayed presenting a bill in parliament which would have reformed rape laws. The bill would for the first time have allowed rapists to be tried under civil law as well as Islamic law. But following complaints from Islamic and secular parties the government says it will now re-draft its proposals to create more of a consensus. Rape is currently dealt with under the Hudood Ordinance, an Islamic law strongly criticised by women's groups. The BBC's Barbara Plett in Islamabad says that the government's attempt to reform rape laws have suffered a setback amid growing controversy. Our correspondent says those political parties which supported the original bill are furious and the Islamic parties are now demanding even more changes. The government had already revised its original draft to satisfy strong opposition from Islamic parties, and critics accused it of rolling back the reforms to make it even harder for women to take action in rape cases. The Hudood Ordinance criminalises all sex outside marriage, so if a rape victim fails to present four male witnesses to the crime she herself could face punishment and prosecuted for adultery. The Hudood Ordinance criminalises all sex outside marriage, so if a rape victim fails to present four male witnesses to the crime she herself could face punishment and prosecuted for adultery. bbc.co.uk

Tone Using London as an example, its big and expensive with different living standards. I don’t think its right to gauge these standards by what you saw within the Somali Community during your stay there. Yes the properties are smaller and somewhat older but the rise in ‘salaries earned’ has led to the sharp rises in house prices since the late nineties due to the good economic standing of the Labour party’s policies. The days of boom and bust under the Tories are over, confidence in barrowing and spending has increased, the banks are only too willing to lend etc etc. After a quick google search and finding this site - http://www.bls.gov/cew/state2002.txt, the average annual salary in the US in 2002 was $36,724 (approx GBP 19,500 - http://www.xe.com . After another search for UK salaries here - http://www.recruitermagazine.co.uk/assets/getAsset.aspx?liAssetID=18647 , the average salary per annum is GBP 25,895 (approx $ 48,500). Reduce by say 10% as I think these are 2005/2006 figures and you have GBP 23,300 and $43,730 respectively. This is all gross mind you. Now we get into tax. I’m not aware of US tax percentages but UK tax is 22% pa on the above figure thus reducing it to GBP 18,174 pa which works out at GBP 1,514 per month which is a healthy return in London. I think the tax is less in the US so say a 15% take on $36,724 leaves one with $31,215pa leaving $2,601 per month which is approx GBP 1,386 (GBP 128.00 less per month). The price of things such as transport and rent is cheaper in the US but you then you need health insurance whereas its already been covered for in the UK by paying the higher tax. Val Hackney is a typical inner city London, you will find wealthy individuals living with not so wealthy practically within a stones throw. I’m not sure whether it will receive any Olympics money though as it already gets the New Deal for Inner Cities Fund. Newham and Ilford will be the main benefactors of the Olympics but they could also be charged an arm and a leg in council tax rises pretty soon (take a note NG).

^^does that make you self employed? Tax difference? NG, been avoiding a few The cash fare for a single Tube journey in central London is to rise from £3 to £4 next year, prompting criticism from passenger watchdogs. Cash fares for bus journeys in zone one will also rise from £1.50 to £2 as part of the mayor's 2007 fares package. looks like the mayor is taking the biscuit(again)

How about these plush apartments in Hackney, only 145K GBP

Contractual? Not perm? NG, not considering re-patriation to the UAE?

Madrid fashion week, one of Spain's most prestigious shows, is banning underweight models on the basis of their body mass index (BMI). UN health experts recommend a BMI of between 18.5 and about 25, and some models may fall well below the minimum. The Spanish Association of Fashion Designers has decided to ban models who have a BMI of less than 18. Unhealthily skinny models at last year's fashion shows led to protests from doctors and women's rights groups. The association agreed to use the BMI - a calculation based on height and weight - in response to local government pressure. It suggests that 30% of would-be participants fail this test and this year's fashion week, which begins on 18 September, will offer medical treatment to excessively thin models. Outrage "The restrictions could be quite a shock to the fashion world at the beginning but I'm sure it's important as far as health is concerned," Leonor Perez Pita, director of the Madrid fashion show, was quoted as saying by Reuters news agency. Madrid's local government says it wants to set a more positive, healthy image of beauty for teenagers to follow. You cannot ban skinny women in the same way you cannot ban fuller bodied women Terry Killeavy UK Send us your comments "Fashion is a mirror and many teenagers imitate what they see on the catwalk," said regional official Concha Guerra. Spain's Anorexia and Bulimia Association says if designers refuse to follow these voluntary restrictions the government should legislate to ban thin models. However, some sections of the fashion world have expressed outrage at the idea of weight restrictions. Cathy Gould, of New York's Elite modelling agency, said the fashion industry was being used as a scapegoat for weight-related illnesses. "I understand they want to set this tone of healthy beautiful women but what about discrimination against the model and what about the freedom of the designer?" she asked, adding that the careers of naturally "gazelle-like" models could be damaged. bbc.co.uk

^^what is your field?

come on people, lets not guess/predict such things

congrats Serenity, send me some Mr Kipling Lemon Slices (cant find them here) although i did a get a few boxes brought over last week NG, , its unbelievable how the hooter is used. As I left a petrol station with my sandwich and copy of Gulf News, I was getting into the car, a guy behind me hoots scaring the heck out of me. He couldn’t wait until I got into the car and closed the door so he could park. I let him know what I though of him (in English). There is a drive now to enforce a qualification for driving instructors as anyone can be an instructor right now.

You better believe it, well I did live next to a very reliable line (Piccadilly) and only changed once onto another fast line (victory) with a journey time of 35min and 46 secs! NG. The desire is there saxib, just the time to practice is not. I’m not mingling with arabs so to speak. I hardly see any! The Friday/Sat weekend has always been available to whoever wanted it. I used to take the Thurs/Fri wknd as I could always watch the CL games at midnight on a Wed. Still getting used to the new weekend. The advantage is that nearly all businesses are still open on sat so going to the bank etc is now made easier. Ps, how do you say drive carefully you *&^%$?

Canary Warf is too close to Newham :rolleyes:

^^Saaxib, the work environment is an English speaking one thus progress is very slow, the shops are kept by English speakers and so are the petrol pumps. When do i get the chance to speak it? I have signed up for a course starting in Oct though. ps easy for you to say though init?

^^and your not happy? Driving to work is not my cup of tea, i would rather be on a cold and damp platform jogging on the spot waiting for a delayed train! Got caught using the hard shoulder as an express way yesterday :rolleyes: some broken arabic and UK license goes along way in these parts. No fine :cool:

I get a 6 hour day during ramadan then a week off for eid :cool: Hows the tube these days? i actually miss public transport

I think Edgware road is the best option as by the time you get home the smell would have gone, leaving you in the clear

^^she obviously hasnt had the pleasure of being in London. St Johns Wood or Maida Vale will soon change her tone.

lol, had an idea who would be first to reply, i was proven right (on both counts) struggling along, 1 more day until the wknd

Where have the trolls gone?

BOB I think Dhino was a class act for Barca last year. The Brazil system does not suit him alas Theiry Henry for France. Viking As ever a very good selection. I’m surprised Deco has been left out by everyone. Another class act.

lol Excuse me? Weren't you the one you went to meet (against Premier League regulations) rival club officials (their manager and their CEO at that!) behind Arsenal's back in an attempt to garner a transfer to Stamford Bridge? It was nothing new saxib. He just happened to get caught. But complaining about Arsenal not showing him respect is a little low.

Like much of Saudi society, they are too afriad to face true nemesis(The Wahhabi + Saud family combo), so they settle for the next best thing by unleashing their anger onto these poor girls. Ahh, i think the cat it out of the bag now, i see where this is heading. But why would these guys grope girls when angry? :confused:

The bitter legacy of 9/11 Published: 11 September 2006 2,973 Total number of people killed (excluding the 19 hijackers) in the September 11, 2001 attacks 72,000 Estimated number of civilians killed worldwide since September 11, 2001 as a result of the war on terror 2 Number of years since US intelligence had any credible lead to Osama bin Laden's whereabouts 2,932 Total number of US servicemen and women killed in Afghanistan and Iraq since September 2001 1,248 Number of published books relating to the September 11 attacks $119m Ticket sales for anti-Bush documentary Fahrenheit 9/11 $40bn Airline industry losses since September 2001 2009 Date when the official memorial will open at the World Trade Centre site 0 Hours of intelligence training provided to new FBI agents before 9/11. Now they get 24. 91 per cent Terror cases from FBI and others that US Justice Dept declined to prosecute in first eight months of 2006 11 Weeks the 9/11 commission's final report was top of New York Times' non-fiction best-seller list 117 Number of UK service personnel killed in Iraq since invasion 40 Number of UK personnel killed in Afghanistan since invasion 7 per cent People in UK who think US-led war on terror is being won, according to YouGov 1 Those charged in US with a crime in connection with 9/11 455 Number of detainees at Guantanamo Bay 77 per cent Percentage of people in the UK who believe Tony Blair's Middle East policy has made Britain a terrorist target (YouGov) 4,000 Number of UK troops left in Iraq after British-controlled provinceshanded back to Baghdad 18 The number of times that undercover investigators with fake IDs have breezed through US border checkpoints in a test by the Government Accountability Office $8bn The amount the US will spend this year on hunting Bin Laden and other terrorists

Ziauddin Sardar is a prominent London-based writer specialising in the future of Islam September 11 really shook the Muslim community. As a result, Muslims have been looking at their faith much more critically and asking which tenets of Islam are axiomatic, and which can be changed or reformed. In particular, issues such as the meaning and significance of the Sharia in the 21st century are now being seriously examined. Also the desirability of a theocratic "Islamic state" - the dominant idea of the late 20th century - is being questioned. Another issue that is being hotly debated concerns the power of the religious scholars: should the authority for reinterpretation of the Koran for contemporary times be limited to a handful of scholars or should it be democratised? In other words, should ordinary Muslims have the agency to rethink and reinterpret their faith? Before 9/11, these kinds of questions were largely avoided. But now we are seeing them openly discussed and debated. This is not just happening in Britain, but all over the Muslim world from Indonesia and Malaysia to Pakistan and Bangladesh to Morocco and Turkey. There has been an increase in radicalisation but radicalisation itself isn't new - it really emerged in Britain in the early 1990s. But before the attacks, few Muslims paid attention to the radicalisation of Islam. Since 9/11, it has definitely become more entrenched and widespread. But the general trend now is to focus on the radicals, to question what they are doing in the name of Islam and to ask what can be done about rescuing Islam from their clutches. The silent majority is silent no more. Another consequence of 9/11 is that Muslims are now very aware of globalisation and the fact that they don't live in isolation. They realise that what happens in Pakistan, for example, impacts on the community in, say, Bradford. More opinions here

It was in the late 90s-2001, too expensive now.