Date/Time
Sun. 6 Apr 2014
1:30 pm - 4:00 pm

Location
Islamisches Friedenszentrum

Swiss Muslim Events are pleased to announce a half-day seminar on the topic of Islamic Finance to be delivered by our two guest speakers Dr. Umar Ibrahim Vadillo (Spain) and Dr. Humaira Awais Shahid (Pakistan).

Beide englischsprachigen Referate über die zinsfreie goldbasierte Geldwirtschaft werden isA simultan auf Deutsch übersetzt.

Language: English (with German Translation)
Free Entrance

Programme

This event covers two lectures on Islamic Finance with a focus on the
Gold Dinar and non-Riba (interest free) monetarian system:

• “Islamic Money – Introduction on a Gold based Financial System”
  1.30pm – 2.30pm by Prof. Dr. Umar Ibrahim Vadillo
• “Non-Riba Monetarian Systems – Case Study Pakistan”
  3.00pm – 3.45pm by Dr. Humaira Awais Shahid

Registration 

Registration for this event is not mandatory, but please bear in mind that a simultaneous translation in German will be provided through headsets which will be given out on a first-come first-served basis.

About the speakers

Dr. Umar Ibrahim Vadillo

 Brother Umar Ibrahim Vadillo was born in Spain in 1964 and embraced Islam in 1985. Thereafter, he spent a long period  in the city of Madina al Munawwara,

In 1991 Umar Vadillo produces Fatwa on Paper money, first proper Islamic critique in the last 100 years on the modern monetary system, in which he declares that paper money is instrument of Riba, and Zakat cannot be paid with it. Then, in 1992, in the Spanish city of Granada, Vadillo with his community minted the first Gold Dinar coins in accordance with the standard of KhaIif Umar ibn al-Khattab, first of the kind since the demise of the Ottoman Caliphate.

There follows a tremendous journey: he writes and lectures prolifically in the best tradition of Islamic Flqh on the subject of Muamalat and its application In modern age; his books, articles and speeches have become neo-classic point of reference in the field of Islamic economy. At the same time Vadillo puts into practice his knowledge: he founds World Islamic Trade Organization (WITO), World Islamic Mint (WIM) and online gold payment system “E-DINAR” thus making HalaI money and trade possible again.

His ideas on the return of the Islamic real wealth currency — Gold Dinar and Silver Dirham — were adopted by Dr. Erbakan, Turkish Prime Minister, as well as the late King Hassan II of Morocco who undertook to restore Zakat to its correct legal position. Vadillo’s study on Dinar-based finance was used as a working paper by Dr. Mahathir. the former Prime Minister of Malaysia.

Today Umar lbrahim Vadillos towering scholarship is recognized all over the world, from Russia to Indonesia, from Mexico to Nigeria; he is the leading thinker and voice on restoraton of Muamalat.

Professor Umar Ibrahim Vadillo is the former Dean of Dallas College in Cape Town, South Africa. He is currently engaged in implementing the Islamic Currency in Malaysia where he has been appointed as the economic advisor of Kelantan State Administration.

Dr. Humaira Awais Shahid

 Sister Humaira Awais Shahid is a working journalist, human rights activist and a two term Provincial legislator. She focuses primarily on human rights issues, and has been advocating, writing, and legislating against human rights abuses. Shahid is the first parliamentarian of the Provincial Assembly of the Punjab to pass a law (and repeal a former one) as a private member. This achievement took more than four years in parliament, with opposition from government benches, administrative departments, and the cabinet. Her legislation, the Punjab Prohibition of Private Money Lending Act, 2007, prohibited interest-based private money lending in Punjab, Pakistan, and her law was replicated and adopted by the Provincial Assembly of the North-West Frontier Province. She also passed many resolutions against acid Crimes, forced marriages customary practice Vani, fundamental rights of women in Islam, legal measures for the Punchayat system (village councils). She has campaigned and advocated for issues: Economic system of Islam, Agricultural Economy, Food Security, Acid Attack Crimes, Traditional and Exploitive customary practices including Vani, Honor Killing, Forced Marriages; Rape, Dowry, Stove Burning Killings, Beggary, Street and Child Prostitution, Police Reforms, Budget Development, Women Development and Policy, Islamic Micro Investment and Trading, Women Empowerment, Local Government.

The Bowdoin College, Maine at its 207^th Commencement 2012 awarded her with an honorary doctorate: “Degree of Doctor of Humane Letters” in recognition of her work for women and downtrodden both in Pakistan and USA. She has a Masters in English Literature and has completed the course work on English MPhil and currently working on her MPhil thesis. She also taught literature to Post graduate students in Fatima Jinnah University for women, Rawalpindi.

Her current projects include her pcoming book a memoir “Devotion and Defiance” to be published by W.W. Norton & Company in March 2014. Before, she has also been involved in public speaking and journalistic writing for creating awareness and advocacy to create motivation, influence and persuasion. She has worked on analyzing policies, outlying development projects, drafting legislative proposals and implementation mechanisms.

Working as an editor of the English daily newspaper The Post and also being editor of weekly magazines, special editions and newspaper supplementsand, she has a rich and diverse understanding of media and news management in Pakistan. As a 2009-10 Fellow at Radcliffe Institute for Advanced Study, Harvard University, Shahid was exploring the subject of violence and women in the socio-cultural context of the Muslim world, particularly Pakistan. Her focus was on the cultural and religious roots of this violence, in which tribal practices and political Islam become tools for violence against women. A complex and contrived relationship between Islamic law and political Islam needs to be defined in order to measure its impact on the subjugation of women. Shahid is also exploring the evolution of women’s roles in policy and legislative reforms that counter violence against women. She is also working on recommendations for legislative measures that may help curb violence.

Sister Humaira is also the lead advocate of International Violence against Women Act (IVAWA) legislation moved in US Senate and US Congress, by a coalition of 200 women organizations world wide. As a lead advocate from the developing world she reintroduced and testified for International Violence against Women Act (IVAWA) in the US Congress and US Senate. She participated in the reintroduction of IVAWA in the House of Representatives and Senate on February 4, 2010 and testified in Tom Lantos Human Rights Commission in the US House of Representatives on April 15, 2010. She also advocated for the bill by writing newspaper articles in Huffington Post and Boston Globe. Dr. Humaira Awais Shahid recent activities of giving talks at various Universities and Forums include beside many others:

• Islamic World Trade Expo 2012 at Kelantan, Malaysia
• Asian Forum of Parliamentarians on Population and Development
• World Affairs Council, Seattle
• Radcliffe Public Lecture, Harvard University
• MIT (Massachusetts Institute of Technology)
• Rutgers University, New Jersey
• Center for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS)
• United Institute of International Peace (USIP)
• American Muslim Congress
  

Thanks

We would like to thank Afzal Khan for his assistance in making this event possible as well as the ‘Islamisches Zentrum’ for hosting this event.