http://www.countercurrents.org/gowani030410.htm
"..About 40% of the World’s Muslims live in three South Asian countries of Bangladesh, Pakistan, and (as a minority in) India. Each of these countries has roughly the same number of Muslims. All three have mixed economy – now geared toward more privatization – and are not self sufficient, particularly Bangladesh and Pakistan. Another 15% Muslims live in Indonesia. Comparatively, Indonesia and Malaysia have strong economy; however, the poverty level is too high in Indonesia. Egypt, one of the largest country in the Middle East, is also one of the very few with which the US has a trade surplus, and is one of the largest US aid recipient. However, it is different with another African country Nigeria (which has 50% Muslims and 48% Christians); that is economically strong but has communal problems and economic disparity, which, of course, most of the Muslim countries have. *Economic system* Barring the oil producing countries, other Muslim nations have mixed economies but are showing inclination towards privatizing more of the government sector due to the IMF, World Bank, and the US pressure. (This encourages the local capitalists, who are always waiting in the wing, to twist the government’s arm to sell off government utilities and industries at throw-away prices.) It is different that the European Community, where the countries therein, have economic ties. Also, it could prove expensive to do this due to transportation costs; unlike Europe, Muslim countries do not form one landmass. Muslim countries do have *economic forums*<http://www.nytimes.com/2007/05/28/world/asia/28iht-forum.1.5894814.html?_r=1>but they are toothless. *And trade among Muslim countries is minimal*<http://www.muslimtrade.net/tradeguideline/> . One important factor that does not play an obvious role on the economic scene is WOMEN. They make up half of the population but a tiny fraction of them are allowed to work outside the home. Those working inside the house are mostly a miserable lot." ** ".. this portrait of menacing Islamic World ready to take over the world is conjured up by the western governments and media to maintain unity and peace among the elite populace within the Western countries to unite against a perceived enemy. On the other hand, the Muslims all over the world are led to believe that there is something called the Islamic World which is not only a powerful force but which can also challenge the western hegemony. This myth is also used by the leaders of the Muslim countries to hide their own shortcomings and weaknesses. This leads some Muslims to join the militant movements hoping to counter the United States. There is no such entity as Islamic World; instead there are countries where Muslims make up a majority and so they can be called Muslim countries..." -- You cannot build anything on the foundations of caste. You cannot build up a nation, you cannot build up a morality. Anything that you will build on the foundations of caste will crack and will never be a whole. -AMBEDKAR http://venukm.blogspot.com http://www.shelfari.com/kmvenuannur http://kmvenuannur.livejournal.com -- You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups "Green Youth Movement" group. To post to this group, send an email to [email protected]. To unsubscribe from this group, send email to [email protected]. For more options, visit this group at http://groups.google.com/group/greenyouth?hl=en-GB.
