Readers, please note that FFI url is now: www.faithfreedom.org.

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About ten years ago, while surfing the internet, I chanced upon a web site named Rational Thinking. The name was not so attractive, that I would indulge plenty of time reading its content. Nevertheless, I read the preface, a few essays, and spent several hours searching other information. It was unbelievable that the site was dedicated to expose Islam. For many years, I had fragmented ideas that Islam has its dark side. I was not sure, however, because I dared not ask such questions to anyone, lest I offend a Muslim. Born a Muslim, I knew such questions are blasphemous, and might be fatal. At that time, I thought, I was perhaps the only Muslim who had doubts about Islam’s teachings. When I read those essays, all authored by Dr Ali Sina, I was completely astounded. I could not believe there are people who also have similar ideas about Islam that I have, and who are intrepid enough to confront Islam head on. At that time, apart from another site, www.secularislam.org, I did not find any other Website that dared to criticize Islam.

I was hooked on Rational Thinking web site, read all the essays, mostly written by Dr Ali Sina. Those articles were engaging, incisive, thoughtful and convincing. I verified many of the Qur’anic verses, and found them to be exactly what Dr Sina had quoted. I wrote to Dr Sina, and to my surprise, received a prompt reply. He requested me for my testimony, which I wrote in not-so-good English. But it was my first attempt in exposing what I had deeply harbored in my mind for many years. Later, I wrote few other essays that questioned the claims of Islam. Dr Sina published them in his web site.

A couple of years down—Rational Thinking web site encountered problems with its hosting agent (Tripod), and had to be closed down. The spirit of Dr Sina did not die. He designed another web site named Golshan. At that time a few other ex-Muslims came forward and joined hands with Dr Sina to form an organization that will launch a movement to confront Islam, because, from the experience of Iran, they felt that Islam is a menace to current civilization. Unless Islam is subdued, Islamist terrorism will engulf the entire world resulting in the loss of hundreds and thousands, or perhaps millions of lives.

So, an organization was formed, its name selected through online ballot. Several names were proposed; among them was Faith Freedom, which won the ballot.

Sadly, the organization did not survive. It died before it could even walk. The Islamists had a good laugh witnessing the demise of Islam critics. However, the name Faith Freedom did not die. Through consensus among the surviving members, the word ‘International’ was added and it was decided to create a new web site (FFI). Again, it was Dr Sina who took the full responsibility of the creation and maintenance of this new web site. I consider myself very lucky to be a part of this historic decision.

I remember an Indonesian reader, a professional web designer, volunteered to design FFI as a state of the art web site. It was his painstaking work of countless hours that resulted in the FFI of what it is to day. Later, many other readers who were computer professionals voluntarily worked for FFI to enhance it and up date the technology. Amongst them readily comes into mind the name ‘Doubting Thomas’ (DT) who is instrumental in restoring FFI website when Islamic vandals hijacked it and jammed it. Every time FFI has been hacked and vandalized, DT has worked diligently to restore FFI’s priceless database, and re-launch FFI with full gusto. Besides these technical volunteers, many erudite readers have also volunteered to be editors and moderators. Now FFI is practically run by volunteers.

I really admire these dedicated people who have silently contributed so much for the day-to-day operation of this web site.

The events of 9/11 changed everything. Whatever predictions Dr Sina and the small number of ex-Muslims were making, it appeared, were about to be fulfilled. The readership of FFI went up by leaps and bounds. From a humble beginning, with perhaps a couple of hundred visitors per day, FFI, today, is visited by between five and ten thousand visitors daily. Its readership has skyrocketed, judging from the e-mails I receive from every nook and corner of the world. Its membership has jumped from a mere one hundred, during its first few months of operation to more than ten thousands currently. Since July 2004 FFI has been visited by more than twelve million people. Alexa ranks it among the 24000 most popular web sites in the world.

These are great achievements for FFI, for which its readers, authors, contributors, and its voluntary workers should justifiably be proud of.

Today, FFI is no more the site of Dr Sina. FFI belongs to the entire humanity, who wants a world free of Islamist terror and bloodshed, who wants to release the vast number of innocent Muslims, who are the victims of Islam, from the dangerous doctrine. Islam is barbaric, false, and imperialistic—this is the message of FFI to the world.

I have learnt a lot from FFI. It has taught me that Islam can be defeated. It has taught me that with precise knowledge of Islam we can confront Islam at its very base. It has educated me to the fact that the most potent weapons we have to fight Islam are: the Qur’an, ahadith, sunna, sharia, and sirah. Personally, FFI has benefited me: It has motivated me to meticulously study the Qur’an, hadith, sharia and sirah. If I did not discover FFI, I doubt I would have ever bothered to look into these holy scriptures of Islam.

FFI has been instrumental in developing and fostering so many fantastic talented authors who dare to criticize Islam. I have learnt so much from these new breed of courageous, knowledgeable, and dedicated writers. These brilliant writers deserve a huge accolade from the readers. History will record these intrepid authors as the harbingers of a new era that will be free of Islam.

Perhaps the greatest strength of FFI is that it has launched a grassroot movement to demystify Islam, and to subdue Islam so that the civilization will be spared from the barbarism of Islamic incursion.

FFI is unstoppable, very soon FFI will be a household name.

Please note: the historical evolution of FFI is based on author’s memory. It may not be absolutely precise.