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173 prisoners honoured for memorising Quran

DUBIA — Ibrahim Bu Melha, Chairman of the Organising Committee of Dubai International Holy Quran Award (Dihqa), and Brigadier Mohammed Humaid Al Swaidi, Director of Dubai Punitive and Corrective Establishment, attended yesterday a ceremony to honour 173 inmates at the Dubai Punitive and Corrective Establishment of Dubai Police who memorised the Holy Quran either in parts or fully.

Among the honoured, three memorised the entire Holy Quran, while seven completed 20 parts, 15 completed 15 parts and 32 completed 10 parts. It is relevant to mention here that the Holy Quran is divided into thirty parts of nearly equal size for readers' convenience.

In a statement issued on the occasion, Bu Melha praised His Highness Shaikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Vice-President and Prime Minister of the UAE and Ruler of Dubai, for his selfless encouragement of Muslims to adhere to their Islamic traditions and to the Holy Quran through the institution of the Holy Quran Award. Shaikh Mohammed's instruction to reduce prison terms for those who learnt the Holy Quran by heart has helped many start a new life, he added.

He said that after the Dubai International Holy Quran Award had established its branch in the prison in the year 2002, 1,702 male-inmates and 163 women inmates joined the programme, nine of whom memorised 30 parts, 19 memorised 20 parts, 15 memorised 15 parts, 123 memorised 10 parts and 221 memorised 5 parts. The inmates who have been benefited from the deduction in prison terms reached 665 by the end of the year 2005, he announced.

Brigadier Al Swaidi confirmed that Punitive and Corrective Establishment Department would release all inmates who completed memorisation of the entire Quran as soon as the required procedures are over. Those who are sentenced to death or to pay blood-money will not be able to benefit from the scheme, until they settle the payment of the blood-money. A total of 35 inmates will be released after they memorised the Holy Quran, he revealed.

Khaleej Times spoke to three of the prisoners who memorised the Quran and learnt that the 22-year-old UAE national, Abdullah Sood, who was sentenced to life-imprisonment on charges of drug-trafficking and spent four years in jail, had memorised the Holy Quran in full and is expecting to be released soon.

He said that he had gotten into jail thanks to bad influence from friends who asked him to sell drugs to people in prison. He did a computer course in prison and hoped that the UAE official who helped him in prison would help him start a new life and would offer him a job.

The 35-year-old Sri Lankan national Mohammed Qasim has memorised 18 parts of the Quran. He said that he had spent four years in prison after he was sentenced to life term for drug-trafficking. He hopes that he would be released.

The 28-year-old Abdullah Soad, a Saudi national, said that he had memorised 10 parts. He has spent 5 yeas in prison after he was sentenced to life term on charges of drug trafficking. He said he would memorise 10 parts within one year and a half.

He said the Quran had helped him a good deal. When he is under stress, he would recite the Quran and feel much better. He will continue to memorise the Quran and will be released soon, he hoped.

The 25-year-old Rana Safker, who was sentenced to life term for drug trafficking, has spent seven yeas in jail. He said that he had memorised 15 parts.

Programme achievements

Among the honoured three memorised the entire Holy Quran; seven completed 20 parts; 15 completed 15 parts; and 32 completed 10 parts.

Around 1,900 prisoners have so far joined the Quran memorisation programme.

So far 665 have benefited from the deduction in prison terms.