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It is often believed that children are not given any rights in Islam. The fact however contradicts this misconception. Children, according to Islam, have a right to be properly brought up, raised, and educated well in every aspect. It is the responsibility of an adult to make sure that children grow up into a moral and ethical adult. Islam doesn’t allow adults to hit children in the face or hit with anything larger than a pen. They are even allowed to strive for their share if the parent disagrees to feed them.
9. Child Marriage
Many consider Prophet Muhammad (PBUH) to be a pedophile. It is true that he married a girl aged nine but that does not stand as pedophilia. Pedophilia is described as, “a psychiatric disorder in which an adult or older adolescent experiences a primary or exclusive sexual attraction to prepubescent children.” The girl whom Prophet Muhammad (PBUH) married had attained puberty 3 years before marriage. Puberty as a criteria for girl’s marriage was accepted since Biblical times. The marriage thus was never opposed by the society during that time and on the contrary was welcomed by the girl and her family. Islam also discards forceful marriage under any condition.
8. Muslim War Ethics
It is believed that Muslims are barbaric and unethical during a war. The Islamic rules for a Muslim army during a war completely discards this misconception. A Muslim army is supposed to obey the following 10 rules during a war:
1. Never commit treachery 2. Be good to the prisoners 3. Do not mutilate dead bodies 4. Do not kill children or infants
5. Do not kill women 6. Do not kill aged men 7. Do not cut or burn trees 8. Do not destroy buildings
9. Do not destroy an enemy’s flock, unless you use it for your food 10. When you pass people who have devoted their lives to monastic services leave them alone
Saladin, during the crusades, followed the ethics and honored the Frankish army that he defeated. He also sent fruits and gifts to his rival king Richard when he fell sick.
7. Islam Was Spread Peacefully
The number of followers of Islam was almost negligible initially. Thus, expecting a handful of people to force people to convert to Islam just doesn’t make any sense. Also, when the Mongols conquered most of the Islamic empire, they accepted Islam instead of destroying it. Thus, saying or believing that Islam was spread by the sword stands completely unacceptable.
6. Muslims Hate Jesus
It is often believed that Muslims hate Jesus. The fact is Muslims consider Jesus as one of God’s greatest Prophet. Quran too mentions Jesus to symbolize good virtue and character. Every Muslim is supposed to believe in the virgin birth and the many miracles of Jesus Christ. The only difference is that Muslims do not accept Jesus as their God.
5. Intolerance For Other Religions
Many consider the phrase ‘kill the infidel’ to be a teaching of Islam. It is however, a completely incorrect portrayal of Islamic laws. Islam denies killing of a person with other religious belief until they do not trouble a Muslim. Muslims are not supposed to bother the disbelievers who do not challenge or destroy Islam. Killing is instructed for Muslims only to defend their religion that too when other’s attack them and forces them to change their belief. In the Quran it says “God does not forbid you, with regards to those who fight you not for religion nor drive you away out of your homes, from dealing kindly and justly with them, for god loves those who are just.”
4. Women’s Rights
This is one of the major reasons why people consider Islam to be a biased religion. It should be noted though that Islam considers women so high that it states heaven to be lying at the feet of a mother (woman). There are many Muslim countries who restrict women by putting up a few harsh laws which should not be confused with Islamic laws. Before Islam came to Arab, the birth of a daughter was considered to be an insult and female infanticide was too high. It was after the Prophet’s (PBUH) arrival that women got their share of human rights in Arab and actually represented the twin halves of men. A Muslim woman has every right to select or reject any man for marriage and also has equal right to seek a divorce. Islam in no way forbids a woman to leave her house and drive. It only forbids them from practicing professions which are unethical. Islam states it necessary for a woman to seek knowledge and it is a considered a sin if she refuses it.
3. Arab Muslims
This misconception goes both way. Some consider all Muslims to be Arabs and a few other consider all Arabs to be Muslims. In either way, it remains a misconception only. Neither all Muslims are Arabs nor all Arabs are Muslims. Roughly Arabs are only 15% of the world’s total Muslim population. The whole of Middle east combined comes in third after East Asia (69%) and Africa (27%). Also, Muslims form about three quarters of the total Arab population. Almost 25% of the Arabs follow other religions including Christianity and Judaism.
2. Islam Is Against Terrorism
One of the darkest spot on the name of Islam, terrorism has completely dismantled the history of Islam. Almost every single practice of any terrorist group is against Islamic laws then how is it an Islamic terrorism? When Islam forbids its followers and warns them strictly to avoid harm to any innocent then how is terrorism Islamic? Quran clearly states,“fight in the way of Allah those that fight you but do not transgress limits for god does not love transgressors.” This means that Muslims are allowed to fight only in their self defense and cannot harm anyone who doesn’t harm them. Islam teaches to avoid violence even in self defense. It does not allow a Muslim to attack an innocent under any condition.
1. Jihad
By far the biggest misconception about Islam, Jihad has been portrayed as the biggest evil force behind terrorism. The literal meaning of the Arabic word ‘Jihad’ is struggle. With respect to Islamic studies it refers to one’s own struggle in the way of God. Struggle to preach what God wants his humans to do. There are many forms of Jihad but the most important one is the Jihad al-nafs which means struggle against ones self. Giving up your hunger and thirst is Jihad. Taking out time from our worldly life to remember God five times a day is Jihad. Giving out a share of our hard earned money to the needy is Jihad. A suicide to kill others is not Jihad. Killing innocents on the name of Allah is not Jihad. Anyone who kills an innocent for any reason is considered a criminal according to Islamic laws.
Is it right to blame a religion for the misconduct of its followers? Is it right to even call them a follower when they don’t follow what is taught to them? Islam or any other religion never has and never will spread hatred. Religions don’t create a divide, it is the people who do. Every religion was, is and will always remain equally beautiful no matter what its evil followers do.
1.North Korea follows a “three generations of punishment” rule, meaning that if one person violated the law or sent to prison, their children, parentsand grandparents are sent to work with them.
Anyone found guilty of committing a crime (which could be as little as trying to escape North Korea), is sent to the Kaechon internment camp along with their entire family. The subsequent two generations would be born in the camp and must also live their entire lives in servitude and die there.(source)
2. In the 1990s, it was made compulsory for all teachers in North Korea to learn how to play the accordion.
The accordion was often called the ‘people’s instrument’ since it was easy to carry along anywhere. There would be accompanied singing to tunes such as ‘We Have Nothing to Envy in the World,’ which was a rehash of ‘Twinkle, Twinkle Little Star’.(source)
3. A fake propaganda village called Kijong-dong was built in the 1950’s after the Korean war to put up the front of a peaceful, prosperous place and to encourage people from the South to defect.
In the last 60 years, over 23,000 North Koreans have defected to South Korea whereas only two South Koreans have gone to the North. According to the North Korean government’s official story, Kijong-dong is a collection of multistory buildings that house 200 families who spend their days happily engaging in normal, day-to-day activities.
In reality, the buildings’ windows have no glasses in them and the electric lights (a luxury that is unheard of to rural North Koreans) are operated on an automatic timer. The only people in sight are maintenance workers who sweep the roads once in a while to give the impression of ongoing activity.(1,2)
4. Kim Jong-il kidnapped prolific South Korean director Shin Sang-ok and forced him to remake famous Hollywood films in propaganda style.
The kidnap plot was masterminded by Kim Jong-il who was in charge of North Korean film industry before he took up office as the country’s leader. He had Shing Sang-ok and the actress Choi Eun-hee kidnapped and the both were kept separate from each other in prison for five years until the former relented. Kim Jong-il’s aim was to compel them to create movies that would wow the world. They worked together and produced a series of films, the most notable one being Pulgasari, a socialist, propaganda-fueled version of Hollywood’s Godzilla.(source)
5. North Korea’s most popular attraction is visiting Kim Jong-il’s preserved body.
The North Korean dictator’s embalmed body rests in a state mausoleum and is open for visitation even to foreign tourists. The local guides have a comprehensive knowledge of Kim’s life and eagerly point out details about his great achievements and godlike abilities.(source)
6. Elections are held every 5 years in North Korea, but only one name appears on the ballot list. If a voter wishes to choose someone else, they can do so by crossing the name out, but without any anonymity and privacy.
image source: KCNA / Reuters
The candidate has a near-100% turnout and the seats are essentially uncompetitive as all of them are chosen and won by the Democratic Front for the Reunification of the Fatherland. Because of this, North Korean elections are termed as “show elections” since they only double as unofficial censuses.(source)
7. Students in North Korea are required to pay for chairs they sit on, the desks they use and the heating fuel during winters.
Shockingly, some students are even made to work producing goods for the government. Parents often bribe the teachers to exempt their kids from this type of hard labour or just don’t send them to school, even though it’s an act that violates official policy.(source)
8. Human faeces is used instead of fertiliser in North Korea, due to the severe lack of resources. The supply shortage is so extreme that the citizens are forced to provide it.
North Korea has zero to none amounts of chemical fertiliser, so the government ordered every person to produce hundreds of kilogrammes of faeces. The faeces is usually mixed with straw and used as a replacement, but the excrement is harder to procure than expected. Cases of theft of squat toilets have been reported, and people have installed locks on their lavatories to prevent this.(source)
9. Kim Jong-un was once caught with a bondage magazine during his school days in Switzerland.
image source: EPA / Bernie International School
He attended the expensive Liebefeld School near Berne and according to his classmates, was much more interested in football and computer games than his lessons. Also a big fan of Michael Jordan, Kim Jong-un was a good basketball player and was once caught with a bondage magazine in his school bag.(source)
10. It is the year 105 in North Korea, not 2016 because the country marks years from the birth of Kim Il-sung, not Jesus.
North Korea uses the Juche calendar, which was introduced in 1997 and is based on Kim Il-sung’s date of birth: 15 April 1912. The year 1912 is used as Juche 1 and there is no Juche 0. However, the calendar does maintain the Gregorian calendar’s traditional months and the number of days in a month.(source)
11. Distribution, possession and consumption of cannabis is legal in North Korea, and in fact, is recommended as a healthier alternative to tobacco.
image courtesy: Damon Richter
According to Sokeel Park, the director of research and strategy at Liberty In North Korea, cannabis grows wildly in North Korea is even sold abroad by government agencies to earn foreign currency. Marijuana is also as good as legal since there is no stigma attached to it and neither is it fetishized as much as it is in the west.(source)
12. In North Korea, the Internet is limited to a very small circle of the elite (only 1,579 IP addresses exist for a population of 25 million). They also have their own operating system called Red Star and the content is pre-filtered by the state.
Red Star is based on Linux and runs a state-approved search engine. Chats, emails, and forum boards are regularly monitored and Internet access in general is only permitted with special authorization and primarily used for government purposes or by foreigners.(source)
13. North Korea enlists around 2000 attractive women as part of a ‘Pleasure Squad’ who provide entertainment and sexual services for top officials.
image source: Reuters / KCNA
The existence of Kim Jong-il’s harems has been known to the South Korean intelligence community. According to the account of a Pleasure Squad defector Mi Hyang, groups of young, attractive women were enlisted regularly to provide entertainment and sexual services to top-level government officials.(source)
14. Border relations between North and South Korea are so tense that when soldiers from the South open the door to the North in the Demilitarized Zone, they hold hands to avoid being physically pulled into the other side.
If that doesn’t sound crazy enough, here’s something. In 2014, South Korean Christians put up a Christmas tree visible from the North Korean Border. North Korea responded by calling it a “tool for psychological warfare” and threatened to bomb it. Bizarrely, North Korea also uses a fax machine to send threats to South Korea.(1,2,3)
15. The North Korean regime has long enforced strict rules on styling one’s hair; most of the barber shops in Pyongyang advertise photos of government-sanctioned haircuts.
image credit: David Guttenfelder/AP
Since Kim Jong-un took power in 2011, the rules have been relaxed a little. It is still preferred that men and women stick to conservative haircuts. Older women can only wear their hair short, whereas the young ones are allowed to sport loose locks, albeit in a neat and cropped fashion. Long hairstyles are generally frowned upon, especially for men.(source)
16. There are an estimated 34,000 statues of Kim Il Sung in North Korea – one for every 3.5 km, or one for every 750 people. All North Koreans are also required to wear a badge featuring his face as a mark of their loyalty to the founder of the nation.
image credit: AP Photo / Elizabeth Dalziel
Wearing the badge on their lapels is a daily ritual for everyone and in a city where people rarely carry expensive or valuable items and credit cards, they are highly prized by pickpockets and thieves. So much so, that each badge can be exchanged on the black market for several hundred NKW.(source)
17. Public transportation connecting the main towns is nearly non-existent as citizens need permits to go from one place to another even within the country. Because of this, the streets in North Korea are so empty that children use them as playgrounds and soldiers can be seen hitchhiking on the highways.
image credit: Eric Lafforgue
In addition to the massive public transport problem, freedom of movement in North Korea is also extremely limited and citizens are rarely allowed to move around freely inside their own country. Cars are strange, foreign things to children and old people that move around on the deserted streets, and often put their lives in danger while crossing the road without looking for oncoming vehicles.(1,2)
18. A night image of the Korean Peninsula taken by NASA illustrates the sheer isolation and underlying electricity problems in North Korea. Compared to its neighbours South Korea and China, it is completely dark.
Since the defunct Soviet Union stopped supplying power to North Korea in the early 1990’s, the country has become entirely energy-bankrupt. Compared to South Korea, where each person consumes 10,162-kilowatt hours of power, the average North Korean uses just 739. Recently released photos from the International Space Station show how North Korea completely blends into the surrounding blackness, other than a couple of small spots of light.(source)
19. According to data that the government of North Korea provided to the UNESCO, the country’s literacy rate is 100% and it boasts that it is on par with the U.S.
With the supposed 100% literacy rate, North Korea ranks equally with the U.S., U.K., and champions hundreds of other countries on that front. According to Asian scholars like Andrei Lankov, this is accomplished by teaching school children how to write the names of “President for Eternity” Kim, Il-sung and “Dear Leader” Kim, Jong-il before they can write their own name and that of their parents’. Once this is done, the North Korean Government declares the student literate in writing. The authenticity of this information still remains to be proved, however.(1,2)
20. Kim Jong-il was apparently born under a double rainbow and his birth caused a new star to appear in the sky; he learned to walk and talk before 6 months and has the ability to control the weather by his moods, according to the official government-released biography of his life.
An extreme personality cult around the Kims exists in North Korea, which even surpasses that of Stalin or Mao Zedong. As part of its propaganda and brain-washing methods, the government elevates its leaders to a godlike status in the minds of the average citizen. One defector, Kang Chol-hwan writes of his childhood in North Korea:
“To my childish eyes and to those of all my friends, Kim Il-sung and Kim Jong-il were perfect beings, untarnished by any base human function. I was convinced, as we all were, that neither of them urinated or defecated. Who could imagine such things of gods?”
School children are taught fantastic and obviously untrue things about their leaders to keep them in awe and fear of the regime.(source)
21. Wearing jeans is banned in North Korea as it is seen as a sign of American imperialism.
In a whole slew of restrictions, Kim Jong-un recently issued a ban on jeans and piercings. Pyongyang, the country’s elite-infested capital fears that its citizens are being exposed to western clothing, however, the ban will focus primarily on the North Hamgyong province and Yanggang.(source)
22. North Korea is the world’s only necrocracy: a government that still operates under the rules of a former, dead leader.
The incumbent president of North Korea is Kim Il-Sung, even though he’s been dead for 18 years. He assumed the office of the Eternal Presidency on July 8, 1994, and continues to hold onto power.(source)
23. In 1974, Kim Il-sung took 1,000 Volvo sedans worth €300M from Sweden to North Korea and never paid for them. They were never returned and are currently still being used.
Tor Rauden Källstigen, a Swedish photographer and entrepreneur who traveled to North Korea in 2008 says,
“Many of the Volvos were put to serve in the small but very present taxi fleet in Pyongyang.I think I’ve never been inside such an old car even back home in Sweden. This taxi was very well maintained too, close to mint condition it seemed.”
The fact remains that despite the semi-annual reminders of payment by the Swedish risk advisory, North Korea refuses to pay for stealing (rather, scamming) Sweden out of the 1,000 volvos. North Korea now considers Sweden a US pawn that is manipulated by the imperialists.(source)
24. In North Korea, possessing Bibles, watching South Korean movies and distributing pornography may be punishable by death.
image credit: CNS photo / Lee Jae-Won, Reuters
In November of 2013, the government executed 80 people in public for watching South Korean movies and owning Bibles. According to one source, women and children were brought into a sports stadium and forced to watch people being shot dead by machine-gun fire. Despite it being illegal, it is estimated that there are 100,000 Christians living in North Korea.(source)
25. North Koreans don’t celebrate birthdays on July 8 and December 17, since those are the dates that Kim Il-sung and Kim Jong-il died.
Approximately 100,000 North Koreans celebrate displaced birthdays on July 9 or December 18 due to this reason. There is a provision for people born on these dates before 1994, where they can change their birthday with official recognition.(source)
26. The national animal of North Korea is the Chollima; a mythical winged horse that supposedly symbolizes heroism and the country’s indomitable spirit.
image credit : Flickr / Eric Lafforgue
The word Chollima is derived from the Chinese word Qianlima which means talent and ability. This mythical winged horse actually originates from Chinese classics. The national capital Pyongyang hosts a number of Chollima statues, and strangely enough, the North Korean football team is also named the same.(source)
