Anwar Ibrahim Among Key Speakers at World PR Meet

From Khaleej times

Malaysia’s former Deputy Prime Minister, Anwar Ibrahim, will be among a line-up of eminent speakers addressing the 20th biennial Public Relations World Congress (PRWC) in Dubai next month.

Others in the panel of 35 speakers from the worlds of politics, public relations and the media at the event highlighting a core theme “From the Arab Street to Wall Street, Communications in the Age of Dialogue,” include British public relations guru Lord Bell and the former head of Al Jazeera, Wadah Khanfar, said Sunil John, Chairman of the Organising Committee of PRWC Dubai, and Chief Executive Officer of Asda’a Burson-Marsteller, organisers of the congress said at a Press conference on Thursday.

PRWC, being organised by the International Public Relations Association-Gulf Chapter (IPRA-GC) in partnership with the National Media Council of the UAE, will take place at the Grand Hyatt Dubai over three days from March 13 to 15.

John said politics, business and media in the Middle East are undergoing significant upheavals in the wake of the Arab Spring. “As PR professionals, it is up to us to help manage that change. The PRWC offers us the opportunity to hear first hand the ideas, trends and concepts that will form the basis of successful communications strategies in the years ahead.”

Faisal Al Zahrani, President of IPRA-GC, said: “We are delighted that the first Congress to be held in the Middle East can boast not only an impressive list of speakers, but also a hugely exciting programme.

“Given the events of the past year, these themes are especially relevant to those of us who practice public relations in the Middle East, and we are sure that industry professionals will be extremely keen to hear these diverse voices debate the real issues facing PR today.”

Other high profile speakers include Lord Bell, who played a key role in former British Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher’s three successful election campaigns and now the Chairman of Chime Communications; and Wadah Khanfar, Lord Chadlington, Chairman of the Huntsworth group and Mohamed Abu Hamed, Vice President, Free Egyptians Party and Member of Parliament in Egypt.

Abdullah Jum’ah, the former President and CEO of Saudi Aramco, will deliver the welcome keynote for the Congress,.

The PRWC Organising Committee will shortly announce the second line of speakers. At least 500 PR professionals are expected to attend the PRWC, where they will have the opportunity to participate in Master Classes and Training Workshops, creating a compelling platform for information sharing and knowledge transfer.

The last Public Relations World Congress was held in 2010 in Lima, Peru, and attended by industry representatives from 39 countries, while the 2008 Public Relations World Congress was held in Beijing, China. In both instances, the event brought significant media and industry attention to the host country with the world’s foremost communications professionals and media experts attending the sessions. The first ever Congress was held in Brussels, Belgium in 1955.

http://anwaribrahimblog.com/2012/02/17/anwar-ibrahim-among-key-speakers-at-world-pr-meet/

Devotion to the Religion of Islam

From Ka'b ibn Maalik al-Ansaaree (radhiyallahu 'anhu) who said that Allah's Messenger, Muhammad SAW (pbuh) said:

"Two hungry wolves let loose amongst sheep will not cause more harm to them than a person's craving after wealth and status will do to his Religion"

(Hadith reported by Ahmad, al-Bukhari and others and its chain of narration is sahih)

So this is a very greta example struck by the Prophet SAW (pbuh) showing how the Muslim's Religion is destroyed by craving after wealth and worldly status. It shows that the corruption to one's Religion caused by this is no less than the destruction caused if two ravenous wolves were left to spend the night amongst a flock of sheep whose shephers was absent, and they were free to slaughter and feed at will. So as is clear in such a state none of the sheep, except perhaps a few would survive the carnage caused by the two wolves. So Allah's Messenger SAW (pbuh) informed that a person's craving after wealth and status will not cause less damage than the damage caused to the sheep by the two wolves. Rather the damage caused will either be the same, or greater. This shows that when a person craves after wealth and status not much of the Muslim's Religion will remain unharmed, just as only a few of the sheep would escape the destruction caused by the two wolves.

So flee, may Allah have mercy upon you, from this mad craving after this world and its finery, and there is no salvation from that which has been destined for a person.

So he who wishes for salvation then let it be the case that his desire for his Religion is his foundation and guiding principle, if this is so then Allah will protect him and protect his Religion. Then from the comprehensive matters that should be known is How the Muslim Deals with People.