Issue 109

MUSLIM

AUSTRALASIAN

Multimedia News & Views

ISSN: 1039-2300

Issue # 109

Print edition published Monthly on first Friday with Website updates

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Arabic Made in China

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Anti-Halal Hysteria

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December 2014;

PM Modi in Australia

LIFESTYLE PAGE 11

AUSTRALIA PAGE 12

Penrith says NO to Islamophobia Zia Ahmad Penrith, an outer suburb in Sydney’s west has rejected a racist and anti-Muslim campaign by accepting the building of a community centre in the area.

After a two hour debate Penrith Council last week voted to approve the development application by the Mohammadi Welfare Association for an Islamic Centre in Kemps Creek. The vote was split seven councillors voting for including the mayor Mr Fowler, and five councillors voting against.

The meeting was interrupted several times to calm the rowdy audience and a member of the public was ejected for calling the mayor, a liar.

Demonstrators for and against the application gathered in front of the Penrith Civic Centre before the approval meeting with a heavy police presence.

There were ugly scenes outside the building where an Asian protester was targeted with racist slurs while an African woman was told she had Ebola.

The vicious campaign against the Centre was spearheaded by far right organisation Australia First, neo-nazis and local racist elements.

However a large number of local community members in addition to Muslims demonstrated in support of the Centre with slogans “Muslims are welcome, racists are not” and outnumbered those who were against the Centre.

Muhammadi Welfare Association Incorporated, had applied to build a community centre and place of worship in Clifton Avenue, Kemps Creek within the greater Penrith area.

The secretary of the association Mr Abbas Alvi, a poet-musician and a widely respected community leader said, “ We are mainly an Urdu speaking community from the Indian subcontinent whose members now belonging to... continued on page 2

MUSLIM

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UMMAH PAGES 14 & 20 News .................................1 - 2 • White Ribbon Day • Mufti Position Renewed Boomerang ..................... 3 - 5 • Editorial: Egypt - Business as usual • Remembrance Day: ANZAC Community ................... 6 - 10 • Schools Inspire 2014 • 25th AMMA Awards Lifestyle ............................. 11 • Mobydayze: Language in Cabra Australia ..................... 12 - 13 • Finance: An Industry Body?

• UPF Interfaith Conference Ummah ........................ 14 - 16 • Indian bank Shariah Compliant • Violence, War and Terrorism

Keynote speaker Imam Zaid Shakir addressing the Sydney Muslim Conference: The Muslim Mosaic.

Story & more photos Page 7

Education .......................... 17 • Attributes of Allah - Part 4 Business ............................ 18 • Going Big: The iPhone 6 Plus Social .................................. 19 • Social Networking for Businesses

Charges dropped against Mubarak Abu Anees The former Egyptian dictator had charges dropped against him by an Egyptian court for the killing of 239 protesters during the 2011 uprising against his regime.

Husni Mubarak and his officials were previously convicted and sentenced to life in June 2012 for the killing of civilians and the gross human rights abuses during his autocratic reign lasting 30 years.

There have been demonstrations in several cities against the verdict on Egyptian

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streets and in universities with clashes with the security forces. The regime has forbidden unauthorised gatherings warning of harsh punishments for protesters. A number of people have been killed and scores injured since the verdict was announced last Friday 30 November.

The court decision is widely viewed being influenced by the current dictator Abdul Fattah el-Sisi who ousted the democratically elected President Dr Mohammad Mursi and has surrounded himself with officials from the Mubarak regime.

Dr Mursi, frustrated by the failure of pros-

ecutors and judges appointed by Mr. Mubarak to hold him accountable, he had appointed a special committee to investigate the killings of protesters and installed a new prosecutor to pursue claims against Mr. Mubarak and his as- Husni Mubarak sociates. continued on page 2

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Real men walk the talk for White Ribbon Day Mufti position Mobinah Ahmad The Canterbury City Council and the Campsie Police got the local community involved for a march to raise awareness of violence against Women on 25 November, White Ribbon Day. The initiative was a great success receiving enthusiastic support from the community with 1500 people marching from Lakemba to Punchbowl. The Participants marched from Gilles St, Lakemba to Parry Park, Punchbowl and took part in an oath ceremony.

The Oath: I swear never to commit violence against women, never to excuse violence against women, and never to remain silent about violence against women. This is my oath.

The event had the police band leading the procession playing music Superintendent Michael McLean, Campsie Local Area Commander spoke, encouraging the local community to join the march and say no to violence against women.

“White Ribbon Day aims to bring the issue of violence against women out from behind closed doors so we can challenge and change disrespectful attitudes and behaviours.” Superintendent McLean said.

NSW Police Commissioner Andrew Scipione called on the community to take the White Ribbon pledge to not commit, condone or remain silent about violence against women.

“Domestic and family violence affects

people in all parts of our society – it is not exclusive to any socioeconomic group, gender, age or culture,” Commissioner Scipione said.

“Domestic violence occupies more police time than any other crime type – last year, officers responded to around 120,000 domestic incidents, which is about 330 each day”, he said.

White Ribbon is an International male-led campaign to end violence against women, which originated in Canada in 1991, and is now active in more than 60 countries.

The White Ribbon Day initiative’s objective is to acknowledge the positive role men play in preventing violence against women saying: good men cannot and will not sit on the sidelines while the women they love are at risk of harm.

White Ribbon Day is the start of 16 Days of Activism – an international campaign calling for an end to violence against women, concluding on World Human Rights Day on Wednesday 10 December 2014.

Charges dropped against Mubarak Abu Anees Continued from page 1 However since Dr Mursi’s removal by General el-Sisi, the Egyptian courts, still dominated by judges from the Mubarak era have toed the line by the current regime that is a continuation of the Egyptian military dictatorship that has dominated the country for more than half a century.

Although Egyptian official media, generally toes the government’s line, an Egyptian journalist, Mr Khair has been brave enough to question the court verdict.

“Tamer Salah Abd El Fattah and Ramy

Abd El Aziz were martyrs that died last night protesting against the acquittal of those who killed our sons and brothers in front of our eyes,” Mr Khair said in the broadcast, naming the two demonstrators killed last Saturday night and referring those killed in the Arab Spring revolt against Mubarak.

He stated that the revolution’s demands for “social justice” and “human dignity” had gone unfulfilled. “The voices and anger of those suffering will not be stopped by broadcasts that ignore them and instead open their doors to the treacherous and the corrupt.” Mr Khair said.

Penrith says NO to Islamophobia Zia Ahmad Continued from page 1 four generations who have been living in the surrounding area for more than 30 years”.

“We serve a multicultural ethnic community diaspora of Western Sydney and our members belong to professions like community services, medicine, engineering, IT, security, education, agriculture, trade and many other fields”, he said.

Mr Alvi assured that the centre will welcome all community members for interfaith dialogues, networking and appreciation of our diverse cultural background in order to promote peace and harmony in our society.

The President of the association, Mr Athar Zaidi said he would be more than willing to talk to the protesters and tell them there was nothing to fear.

“I think people are scared of the unknown.

If we have a chance to explain to them who

we are, they would see that we are just normal people’, he said.

Mr Alvi announced that when the Centre was completed he would love the whole Penrith community join and celebrate its opening.

Mr Abbas Alvi (left) with Mr Athar Zaidi

Sketch of the proposed Islamic Centre

renewed for three years

AMUST Media Council and the renewal of the term of the Grand Mufti of Australia.

The 8th General Assembly of the Australian National Imams Council was held from Friday,14 November to Sunday 16 November in Sydney under the auspices of the Council of Imams, New South Wales.

The AGM was convened in conjunction with a national Islamic Conference that lasted three days.

The AGM was attended by the chairmen and members of the Councils of Imams representing the states of New South Wales, Victoria, Queensland, South Australia and Western Australia.

During the session, the Australian National Imams Council unanimously decided to renew the term of Dr Ibrahim Abu Mohamed as the Grand Mufti of Australia for an additional three years starting from the date of the AGM. In addition, the Australian National Imams Council commended, Dr Ibrahim Abu Mohamed for his outstanding performance and many achievements during his first term.

The Imams invoked Allah, the Most Merciful, to bestow upon the Grand Mufti his divine support, guidance and blessings and they expect from the Mufti greater success and great accomplishments.

The General Assembly of the Australian National Imams Council discussed and studied numerous topics and affairs that concern the Muslims at home and abroad.

Dr. Sheikh Abdel-Aziem Afifi, President of the Australian National Imams Council thanked all the imams who attended and participated in the AGM and the conference for their invaluable opinions and fruitful contributions that benefit all Australians in general and Muslim Australians in particular.

Canberra’s community leaders gather for the 2014 ACT Multicultural Summit Manarul Islam Canberra’s diverse community leaders gathered last week for the 2014 ACT Multicultural Summit.

Held to collect the views of the participants to inform the ACT Government’s roadmap for enhancing the national capital’s multicultural way of life, the summit focussed on three key themes: • Accessible and responsive services; • Citizenship, participation and social cohesion; and • Capitalising on the benefits of Canberra’s cultural diversity.

The second theme on social cohesion was already covered in the earlier One Canberra Symposium. Its co-chair, Azra Khan, presented the implementation plan for social cohesion and asked for feedback. The symposium meets again in April 2015 before the

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plan is implemented in the second half of next year.

The discussion on the first and third themes was held in the form of workshops.

Key messages coming out of the discussions were: • Provide better support to the more transient members of the ACT community, including 457 visa holders, international students and fly-in, fly-out workers.

• Continue, improve and extend community and neighbourhood engagement activities and include multicultural and diverse themes into these activities.

• Provide a one-stop portal for residents and visitors to Canberra seeking cultural support groups, services and events.

These themes are part of the Capital Cultural Discussion Paper - the purpose of which is to lay the foundation for the ACT Multicultural Framework 2015-2018.

Australasian Muslim Times

The ACT Multicultural Summit facilitators line up to commence the workshop discussions.

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AUSTRALIA 12 - 13

UMMAH 14 - 16

EDUCATION 17

BUSINESS 18

SOCIAL 19

An avalanche of Counter terrorism laws passed Lydia Shelly In the last few months, Australia has had an avalanche of draconian counter-terrorism bills introduced into the Australian parliament. With each bill that was introduced, very limited time was permitted to debate the need of the proposed new laws and the deficiency of the current state and federal counter terrorism laws, as well as the significant encroachment the proposed laws would have on civil liberties and human rights.

The avalanche of counter terrorism laws includes the bills that have now become law; including the National Security Legislation Amendment Act (No.1) 2014, the Counter-Terrorism legislation Amendment (Foreign Fighters) Act 2014, and the proposed laws such as the Counter-Terrorism Legislation Amendment Bill (No 1) 2014 and the Telecommunications (Interception and Access) Amendment (Data Retention) Bill 2014.

These laws have been introduced largely with bipartisan support i.e. the Australian Labor Party supported these laws being introduced. The only opposition to these laws inside the Australian Parliament was the Greens Party and a handful of independents.

The Muslim Legal Network (MLN) appeared at the Joint Parliamentary Committee on Intelligence and Security regarding the Counter-Terrorism Legislation Amendment Bill (No 1) 2014. MLN presented joint submissions with the New South Wales Council for Civil Liberties at the inquiry and articulated their grave concerns regarding this Bill.

Essentially, the proposed laws will substantially lower the threshold for the Australian Federal Police to obtain control orders over people who have not been convicted or even charged with a criminal offence.

It could also result in intelligence gathered on Australian citizens by the Australian Secret Intelligence Service (ISIS) being shared with the Australian Defence Force, resulting in this intelligence being used to facilitate “targeted killings” of these Australians overseas. Publicly, the Australian Government has denied that this Bill could allow, “targeted killings”; however MLN position is that if it is not to facilitate targeted killings then a prohibition should be included in the law. The Australian Government has refused to include this prohibition.

It is likely that this “intelligence sharing” will be used to target Australian citizens fighting in declared areas overseas (the “no go zones” have not yet been declared, but

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Egypt: Business as usual

Full circle around to Military dictatorship

it is understood that this will occur “very soon”). Again, the Australian Labor Party is supporting this Bill. Recently, the Attorney General refused to answer questions or provide further explanation regarding the Bill when asked by Greens Senator Wright in the Senate.

Liberal Senator Nikolic also unleashed a vitriolic attack against Greens Senator Peter Whish-Wilson when he called for a stop to the current rhetoric regarding issues or national security and terrorism.

The Muslim Legal Network issued an urgent press release on 13 November 2014 urging parliamentarians to reject the Bill.

Again, Labor supported the proposed laws and it was passed by the Senate and is back before the House of Representatives where it is expected to pass.

To add to this already overwhelming suite of laws, on 21 November 2104, the Attorney General introduced the Telecommunications (Interception and Access) Amendment (Data Retention) Bill 2014 (“the Data Retention Bill”). The Muslim Legal Network will be preparing submissions on this Bill and will provide further information to the community in the near future.

On a separate issue, the Muslim Legal Network recently wrote to several senators urging them to reject the Migration and Maritime Powers Legislation Amendment (Resolving the Asylum Legacy Caseload) Bill 2014 which is due to be debated this week.

With the dropping of the charges against take over by the Egyptian military. the former dictator Husni Mubarak for It has become clear that generally Musthe killing of demonstrators in 2011, lims want to live by Islam. They aspire for Egypt has gone a full circle around and an Islamic state, elected representatives, its domination by the military dictator- rule of law based on a dynamic Shariah and ship is back on track. a government that will ensure freedom, Any idea of accountability for his human peace and harmony and dignity for all its rights abuses, suppression of opposicitizens irrespective of religious, tion and corruption during his 30 ethnic and cultural differences. years rule has evaporated. The EDITORIAL Sometimes this aspiration is sacrifice of almost a thousand unechoed as the establishment of Assalamu armed civilians killed during the Khilafah that would safeguard Alaikum Arab Spring protests in 2011 has the safety, security and unity of Greetings been all in vain. the Muslim Ummah.

The current dictator, Abdul The Islamic movements in of Peace Fattah el-Sisi has surrounded himmany Muslim countries includself with Mubarak-era figures in his ing the Ikhwanul Muslimoon have government as well as the judiciary and been working peacefully in non-vipolice and is strictly following in Mabarak’s olent ways to put these aspirations into footsteps. reality. But they have been oppressed and After the Arab Spring of 2011, the free persecuted violently by the authoritarian and fair elections brought Ikhwanul Mus- regimes within their own countries and limoon, the Muslim Brotherhood to form a conveniently ignored by the West. democratic government in Egypt that would This has led to breakaway off-shoots of uphold human rights, democracy and rule these Islamic movements as a direct result of law. Its nominated candidate Dr Moham- of oppression in their countries who have mad Mursi was elected in a fair and free in many instances turned violent and exelection and set about to restore represent- tremist such as Al-Qaida and others. ative government in Egypt and bring those Now the ISIL has usurped the right and who had abused power during the last few legitimate concepts of Islamic State, Shadecades to account for their actions. riah, Khilafah and Jihad, distorted their Conspiracy or not, the powers that be did understanding and have used it as emonot want to see Egypt, the most populous tional slogans to recruit naïve and young Arab nation, to succeed in its democratic people for their narrow minded and brutal aspirations. This would be against the in- pursuits. terests of Israel, the authoritarian regimes For the sake of global peace and harin the Middle East and possibly most of the mony, the international community has to Western powers. Hence the speedy removal take a stand against injustice. of democratically elected government and Egypt is one place to start from.

Australia Pre 1788

Lydia Shelly is a Lawyer from Osborne Howell Lawyers, community activist and a member of the Muslim Legal Network.

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Aboriginal Tribes and Regions across Australia from The Encyclopaedia of Aboriginal Australia

Australia Pre 1788 according to Tony Abboo

"The marines and the convicts and the sailors that straggled off those 12 ships, just a few hundred yards from where we are now, must have thought they had come almost to the moon.” - Tony Abboo

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NEWS 1-2

Letters to the editor

Be careful who you associate Party concerned and would publish an independent release instead. The situation could with I have been involved in the Inter-faith activities for a long time. I find it quite fulfilling to discuss related issues with people of other beliefs. People of other faiths tend to bring varying perspectives into the discussions. My involvement has gradually developed into joining with others to petition parliaments and governments when some issues of concern were brought to the public arena. Issues related mainly to social justice, families, homosexuality and the like were portrayed in the light of religious teachings.

I was and still am mostly involved with Christian and Jewish groups and found out that our three faith groups seem to have the same attitude towards these issues.

A few weeks ago I was contacted by an associate whom I worked with on some of these issues in the past. He presented me with a statement related to his attitude towards the laws that should deal with family affairs. He made it clear that the statement would be used to lobby Victorian Parties before the State elections this year.

I found the statement quite reasonable and agreed to affiliate with it. Unknown to me that the statement would eventually be adopted by the Rise Australia Party headed by a dreadful Islamophobe.

When I discovered the association of that Islamophobe, I asked for my name to be removed from a proposed Press Conference and any further action in that regard. With the Grace of Almighty God the group decided to withdraw their endorsement of the

have developed in a way that may show that some Muslims lend their support to an Islamophobic organisation!

I implore any Muslim contemplating involvement in such issues to be very careful and to examine very closely all related issues and materials before consenting to be part of the process. It would also be helpful if advice is sought from ICV and other respectable Muslims before allowing their names to be used in the public arena.

May Almighty keep our Ummah safe and protect our families from the abundant evil surrounding us.

Riad Galil, OAM Imam, West Heidelberg Mosque Melbourne, Victoria.

Modi’s visit to Australia

I read the article by Zahid Jamil about Narendra Modi (AMUST issue #108, October 2014). It’s an opportunity missed that it wasn’t more critical of him. Narendra Modi is a full-on neoliberal attacking the rights of the poor and subsidising the wealthy elite in India. In order to achieve this, he promotes the most vicious attacks on minorities, just like our governments in Australia.

Sue Bolton Councillor, Moreland City Council Melbourne, Victoria.

I appreciate Cr Sue Bolton’s stand and concerns for Muslims of India. I was requested to spend more time in covering Aus-

Website comments Judaism is not Zionism This makes no sense

12 November, 2014 You make no sense at all, How many Muslims live in Israel who are free to work and live in safety?

Did you mention that?

When does Israel make a move on its Muslim neighbours?

Did you mention that?

As to forcing the young Israelites to participate in the army… Did you mention how many people live in Israel compared to its Muslim neighbours?

Without Israel’s army do you think she would stand a chance?

Did you mention that?

I think your article is bias and understudied…

tralia-India relationship as another article by Dr Javed Jamil that had covered Modi’s role in details.

As a Muslim Australian of Indian background, I believe that while there should be protests against Modi for his role in 2002 riots, Muslims and other minorities also need to approach him to convince him for a positive role while he is the Prime Minister of India for next few years at least.

Confrontation vs Wisdom: It is a difficult choice. If you are weak, confrontation does not lead you anywhere, generally.

Zahid Jamil Sydney.

Cr Sue Bolton’s consistent stand against injustice has been noticed by many people.

As to Modi, I am aware of his role in the support of Muslim massacres in his home state when he was in authority there. I regard him as an Indian Nazi along with his extremist party.

Bilal Cleland Melbourne, Victoria.

HAVE YOUR SAY

COMMUNITY 6 - 10

LIFESTYLE 11

AMUST Team

Managing Editor: Zia Ahmad Graphic Designer: Rubinah Ahmad Chief Adviser: Dr Qazi Ashfaq Ahmad Journalist: Mobinah Ahmad Columnist: Dr Abul Jalaluddin (Finance) Columnist: Bilal Cleland (Victoria) Columnist: Manarul Islam (ACT) Columnist: Lydia Shelly (Sydney) Columnist: Anne Fairbairn (Sydney) Promotion: Dr Wali Bokhari Web Developer: Shadow Approved Multimedia: iMoby Productions Printers: MPD printing the news everyday Distributers: Wrapaway Transport Pty Ltd Distributers: Abul Fateh Siddiqui, Shujaat Siddiqui, Usaid Khalil, Aamir Ahmad, Ibrahim Khalil, Usman Siddiqui, Zahid Alam

Contact AMUST PO Box 111, Bonnyrigg (Sydney), NSW 2177 Australia.

Email: info@amust.com.au Ph: 9823 2063; Fax: 9823 3626

Send us your thoughts about news or current events to be published in the next issue of AMUST

Email us at info@amust.com.au Brandis comes to town Gazza

Here’s a quick recap of how Australian Muslims have been treated like complete garbage last week Fairandjust

7 November, 2014 Point to concentrate from this article is ” Instead of asking Muslims to “prove” their loyalty and give up their religion, maybe we should be focusing on why that is……” is WHY THAT IS?????? WHY ISLAM and MUSLIM???

Is it jealousy? or is it their greed for oil that they are always finding ways to attack Muslim world?????? For justifying their attacks they are creating hatred against Muslims so people don’t question their wars in already WAR-TORN countries..

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AMUST Memory Lane Fri 7 Jan 1994

6 November, 2014 Brandis explained that when he talks to his Cabinet he refers to them as his “Team”.

That is his “Team Australia” a small unrepresentative group that meets behind closed doors to decide on the futures of all Australians. A team that excludes most Australians from that discussion. It is not my Team Australia because my team has morals ethics and principles. All of which are left at he door when you enter Tony’s Cabinet.

CONTRIBUTE TO AMUST

JH

7 November, 2014 Not everyone in the audience was invited, but certainly anyone who was considered a bit radical was excluded. They let me in when I applied on line but made my friend who came with me sit outside for the whole session, even though there were plenty of vacant seats up the back. The discussion was very controlled and questions had to be submitted in advance. The usual questions were asked and largely not addressed

by Brandis. I think the whole thing was a government inspired PR exercise so Brandis could claim he had ‘consulted’ with the Muslim community.

WRITE • SHARE • DISCUSS AMUST is building a network of correspondents in Australia and overseas in order to share the good news, positive developments and achievements in their community. Your contribution will be published on the AMUST website and will be included into the following print edition of AMUST, which is circulated throughout Australia.

To sign up, visit www.amust.com.au/contributers

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AUSTRALIA 12 - 13

UMMAH 14 - 16

EDUCATION 17

BUSINESS 18

BOOMERANG

SOCIAL 19

AMUST

Anti-Halal hysteria: extremist threat to a major Australian industry Bilal Cleland Jon Condon in Beef Central news briefs 23 September 2014 wrote:” Global halal food market worth $1.6 trillion by 2018.” Dubai is a major centre of that trade and Australia only manages to supply 9% of its imports. Brazil is the major supplier.[ http://www.beefcentral.com/news/beefcentral-news-briefs-23-september-2014/] This trade could be under threat from extremists.

The “aggressive social media campaign” which was undertaken against the South Australian Fleurieu Milk and Yoghurt Company in early November has been successful. That company has terminated its $50,000 contract to supply halal yoghurt to Emirate Airlines. One of the major charges in this campaign was that fees from halal certification are being used to fund terrorism.

The attacks were quite harsh and social media was apparently followed up by vicious phone calls to the business. The sales and marketing manager pointed out; “The social media laws are quite hard to police.”

“You can get on there and say whatever you like in fake accounts, but what we are trying to put across is these business that you are approaching, in our case, our farmers, they are just trying to be viable. They don’t deserve this hate mail, and neither do a lot of the other businesses that are getting it.”

While the company may be able to save its business and the jobs of its employees, this campaign is not an isolated one. Hatred

of Islam, fuelled by police raids and foolish political commentary, has led to an intensification of Islamophobia. Whenever there is some association of the Muslim community with either terrorism or gang related crime, the whole community suffers. Mosques are attacked, hijab wearing women are assaulted, Muslims are abused in the street.

One form this Islamophobia is taking is the waging of anti-halal certification campaigns.

The main argument used for Scriptural opposition to the consumption of halal meat by the fundamentalist Islamophobes relies upon the assertion that Allah, the God of Islam, is a false god, an idol. Paul of Tarsus, the founder of what became Christianity, is quoted in his First Letter to the Corinthians, as stating verses 20-21 “…when pagans sacrifice, what is sacrificed by them is sacrificed to demons who are not God. I do not want you to share with demons.”

While this is associated clearly with sacrifice upon the altar in a religious rite, Paul goes on in verses 25-29 to state: “Eat anything that is sold in butcher’s shops: there is no need to ask questions for conscience sake since To the Lord belong the earth and all it contains. If an unbeliever invites you to a meal, go if you want to, and eat whatever is put before you; you need not ask questions of conscience first. But if someone says to you, ‘This food has been offered in sacrifice,’ do not eat it, out of consideration for the person that told you, for conscience’s sake-not your own conscience.”

However this was not the policy of the followers of the Gospel in Jerusalem. Presumably while Paul was in Jerusalem visiting the disciples and the Head of the Ecclesia, James the brother of Jesus, what became known later as the First Council of

Jerusalem made a decision about food. The only record we have is from the partisan of Paul, who wrote the Acts of the Apostles, but even this is remarkable. Acts verses 2829 records: “It has been decided by the Holy Spirit and by ourselves not to impose on you any burden beyond these essentials: you are to abstain from food sacrificed to idols, from blood, from the meat of strangled animals and from illicit marriages.” This was of course based upon the assumption that the basics of the Torah were known and understood, with the avoidance of the forbidden animals including pork and the maintenance of the method of kosher slaughter, which ensured that the animal was free from blood.

Today this decree of the First Council of Jerusalem is largely ignored, except by

those who want to use it in propaganda against halal food.

Notwithstanding the extremist Christian slander that Islam is a form of paganism, we should be aware of the stand of the main Christian body, the Catholic Church.

Pope John Paul II when in Nigeria in February 1982, stated quite clearly to Muslim religious leaders: “ We both believe in one God who is the Creator of Man. We acclaim God’s sovereignty and we defend man’s dignity as God’s servant. We adore God and profess total submission to him. Thus, in a true sense, we can call one another brothers and sisters in faith in the one God. And we are grateful for this faith, since without God the life of man would be like the heavens without the sun.”

Remembrance Day: The ANZAC tradition Anne Fairbairn

On 11 November 2014, one hundred years after the outbreak of hostilities many Australians gathered to honour the memory of World War I and how Australia had reacted to the outbreak of conflict.

By mid-1914 Australians were aware through their newspapers of the rising tensions and dangers of war in Europe. The response to the outbreak of war was generally one of joint patriotic exuberance for the nation and for the British Empire.

Before the war began, well known Australian poet Henry Lawson prophetically wrote the following lines: We boast no more of our bloodless flag that rose from a nation’s slime; Better a shred of a deep-dyed rag from the storms of the olden time.

From grander clouds in our ‘peaceful skies’ than ever were there before, I tell you the Star of the South shall rise in the lurid clouds of war.

It ever must be while blood is warm and the sons of men increase; For ever the nations rose in storm, to rot in a deadly peace.

There comes a point that we will not yield, no matter if right or wrong, And man will fight on the battle-field while passion and pride are strong.

My forebear Sir George Houston Reid, PC, GCB, GCMG, who had served as Premier of New South Wales and Prime Minister of Australia was appointed Australia’s first Australian High Commissioner in London on September 9, 1913.

In 1914 he soon became aware that Austria-Hungary had delivered a list of ultimatums to Serbia following the assassination of Franz Ferdinand, heir to the throne of

Friday 5 December 2014

Austria-Hungary, by Yugoslav nationalist Gavrilo Princip in Sarajevo on June 28, 1914. When Serbia failed to comply, Austria-Hungary declared war on July 28, 1914.

Germany, in support of Austria-Hungary, invaded neutral Belgium and Luxembourg and advanced on France, prompting Britain to declare war against the Germans on August 4, 1914. Reid was aware that whatever happened, Australia was part of the Empire, so if the Empire was at war Australia was at war.

Australian Prime Minister at the time, Joseph Cook in a speech in Horsham, Victoria on August 1, 1914 said as far as the defences go here and now in Australia, I want to make it quite clear that all our resources in Australia are in the Empire and for the Empire and for the preservation and security of the Empire. So as part of the British Empire, Australia sent a message to the British government on August 4, 1914, offering 20,000 men of any suggested composition Reid made clear that he believed it would indeed be better for the Australian troops to be trained in Egypt. He travelled to Egypt by boat to make sure everything was all right and in his many diaries he makes clear how much he liked the people he met in Egypt and the many Muslims he met. So the ANZAC forces, under the command of Lieutenant General William Birdwood, were based in Egypt largely due to of a lack of training and accommodation facilities in England.

Later, these forces helped protect the Suez Canal following Turkey’s entry into war in October 1914.

While still training in the Egyptian desert in late 1914, the 1st Australian Division and the New Zealand Australian Division, which later included the 1st Light Horse Brigade, were re-formed into the Australian and New Zealand Army Corps – the ANZACs. As fighting on the Western Front in France in late 1914 deteriorated into a stalemate, the British War Council suggested that Germany could best be defeated by attacks on her allies, Austria, Hungary and Turkey.

Initially, the attack on Turkey was planned

as a naval operation.

However, following several abortive attempts to force the Dardanelles in February and March, the British Cabinet agreed that land forces could be used. A combined international force (the Mediterranean Expeditionary Force) was assembled under the command of British General Sir Ian Hamilton, and a three-pronged landing was planned to clear the Turkish defenders from the straits. Once the straits were clear, the allied fleet would steam into Constantinople where, it was believed, the threat of the fleet’s guns would cause mass panic and force Turkey to surrender.

At dawn on 25 April 1915, the ANZACs landed north of Gaba Tepe (the landing area later named Anzac Cove) while the British forces landed at Cape Helles on the Gallipoli Peninsula. The aim of these two landings was to capture the Turkish forts commanding the narrow straits. French forces attacked the Turkish positions on the Asia Minor side of the Dardanelles as a diversion and later landed and took over part of the Helles frontline alongside the British.

Later reinforcements included the dismounted Australian and New Zealand Mounted Brigades at Anzac Cove. In August, a new British corps landed at Suvla Bay, to the north of Anzac Cove, in support of an attempt by allies to break out of the

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Anzac beachhead.

The campaign was a heroic but costly failure and by December plans were drawn up to evacuate the entire force from Gallipoli.

On 19 and 20 December, the evacuation of Anzac and Suvla was completed with the last British troops leaving Cape Helles by 8 January 1916. The entire operation evacuated 142 000 men with negligible casualties. Australian casualties for the Gallipoli campaign amounted to 26 111, comprising of 1007 officers and 25 104 other ranks.

Of these, 362 officers and 7 779 men were killed in action, died of wounds or succumbed to disease.

Nine Victoria Crosses were awarded to soldiers in Australian units. While the campaign is considered a military failure, Gallipoli became a household name in Australia and with it the ANZAC tradition was created. Gallipoli became the common tie forged in adversity that bound the colonies and people of Australia into a nation.

George Reid’s wife was Dame Florence Anne Reid,for her work in assisting Australian soldiers recuperating in London during World War I, was appointed a Dame Grand Cross of the Order of the British Empire (GBE) in August 1917, being in the first list of appointments to the order, which had been created only in June 1917.

I am named Anne after her.

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BOOMERANG 3-5

COMMUNITY 6 - 10

LIFESTYLE 11

Local Muslim Leaders join IFEW Dinner Najia Khalil The 6th IFEW Presentation dinner was held on Sunday 23 November at Dar-ulIslam, Bonnyrigg joined by representatives from local areas Muslim leaders in addition to members of the Islamic Foundation for Education & Welfare (IFEW).

The invitees included families of IFEW members and leaders of the Australian Islamic Society of Bosnia Herzegovina, as well as Sheikh Syed Kandil, renowned for his contribution to the community in Sydney, and Mrs Kandil.

This was the sixth event in a series of ‘IFEW Presentation Dinners’ which were introduced to develop mutual understanding between Islamic Foundation for Education and Welfare (IFEW), Australian MEFF Consortium, organisers of the Multicultural

Imam Jasmin addressing attendees

IFEW Presentation Dinner attendees Eid Festival and Fair, with other sister organisations in Sydney. The presentation dinners are held in a family atmosphere during Australian Integrated Family’s (AIF) Usrah session that have continued for more than 30 years.

Held twice a year, short presentations are given by IFEW and Australian MEFF Consortium followed by presentations from invitees to relate about their organisations and personal history, and then finish off with dinner in a casual family atmosphere.

IFEW has been one of the pioneers in establishing daawah, education and welfare activities for more than 32 years in Sydney.

One of their offshoots is the MEFF Eid Festival being organised for the past 30 years. A number of IFEW members, parts of a large extended family have been associated with Islamic activities in Australia in general and

Sydney in particular for more than 43 years having founded many community organisations and working in fields of education, daawah, publications, family organisation, student, youth and women’s activities.

Imam Jasmin of Smithfield mosque, together with President Damir Hodzic and Br Huska Kazic shed light on the Australian Islamic Society of Bosnia Herzegovina (AIBH). Imam Jasmin gave a short but interesting glimpse of history of Bosnians in Australia and their contribution to building a stronger community. He and other members at this session reminisced about several of the well-known figures in the Bosnian community and activities at Bosnian mosques in Penshurst and Smithfield and the support that Bosnians have given to the community.

Sheikh Syed Kandil, who performs various tasks such as giving khutbahs, acting as chaplain, and performing various community services was joined by his wife and through them, members at the session came to know more of their personal history and the challenges he and his family faced during the years of living in Australia. Sheikh Syed Kandil, a lifelong student recently graduated with a Masters degree in Islamic Studies from The Islamic Sciences and Research Academy of Australia (ISRA) and Charles Sturt University.

Previous IFEW Presentation Dinner invitees include leaders of a number of Sydney based organisations and their families.

Islamic Foundation for Education & Welfare These include Bashar Al-Jamal from Human Appeal, Mehmet Ozalp from ISRA, Ahmet Keskin from Affinity, Mehmet Seral from Galaxy Foundation, Siddiq Buckley from Australian Islamic Mission (AIM), Hadi Shehata from MCCA, Muaz Alhajj from Islamic Relief Australia, Silma Ihram from Australian Women’s Association, and key individuals in the community such as Dr Salim Farrar from the University of Sydney, Dr Jan Ali from UWS, Dr Abul Jalaluddin.

Student bodies have also attended the presentation dinners. These include Presidents or their representatives from Muslim student bodies of various universities including Mahmoud Jame from ISOC, Hisham Krayem, MUMSA, Hajar Rafiq, SUMSA, Souha Alameddine, UTSMS and Hamzah Qureshi, MSAUWS (Parramatta).

Najia Khalil is the President of IFEW and Assistant Secretary of MEFF.

MEFF AGM elects a new team AMUST Media The Annual General Meeting of the Australian MEFF Consortium, organisers of the Multicultural Eid Festival & Fair was held on Sunday 30 November at Bossley Park Community Centre, Sydney with the presentation of the Annual Report and election of new Management and Executive committees.

Mrs Mehar Ahmad who led MEFF for the last three years as President gave a detailed report of MEFF’s achievements and advice for future improvements.

“We definitely have come so far in being the pioneers establishing the first, largest and the longest running festival in Australia.

I look back and am amazed at all the challenges we have overcome and all that we have achieved during these three years”, Mehar said.

Mehar personally thanked all the individual committee members for their dedication to their role and taking initiative in completing their responsibilities. She highlighted all the achievements that have been reached, notably MEFF being a finalist for the Australian Multicultural Marketing Awards.

She said “It has been an honour and privilege leading the celebration of the Multicultural Eid Festival & Fair into its 30th year.

This year was a great challenge for MEFF as a number of Eid festivals were being held in surrounding suburbs es- Mehar Ahmad pecially in Liverpool. Former President MEFF came up with innovative ideas to promote MEFF through regular e-newsletter to thousands of people, bill boards, flyers and newspaper advertisements in order to maintain its large number of attendees.

As a major attraction the roaring dinosaur was introduced and it was a big success.

MEFF is the only festival that has the Dinosaur. The Dinosaur was named as Tarek the T-Rex. Elections were held with nomination for various positions in the Management Committee as well as for the membership of the Executive Committee.

The new committee will now be headed

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by the newly elected President of MEFF, Manar Ahmad based in Canberra. MEFF will be using cutting edge communication technologies to manage the distance gap between the President and the rest of the committee members and MEFF office in Manar Ahmad Sydney.

New President The newly elected President, Manar Ahmad spoke about the idea of collaboration and a strong integration between executive and management committee members. He spoke on improving efficiency and sharing the burden of work.

“I would like to acknowledge the work of past Presidents, especially that of Mehar Ahmad, taking us to where we are now”.

Election Results Management Committee Manar Ahmad President Ali Alsalami Vice President 1 Shujaat Siddiqui Vice President 2 Hanif Bismi Vice President 3 Aamir Ahmad Secretary Najia Khalil Assistant Secretary Saminah Ahmad Treasurer Ibrahim Khalil Assistant Treasurer

Executive Committee Jazib Farid Fousiya Bismi Sakinah Ahmad Naveen Krishnasamy Abrar Al Saleh Shafqat Ali Usman Siddiqui Waliullah Bokhari The trustees and patrons of MEFF remain as follows for the time being: Patrons: Dr Q Ashfaq Ahmad, Dr Mohammad Taha Alsalami, Mr Zia Ahmad Trustees: Dr Q Ashfaq Ahmad, Mr Aziz Akbar, Mr Zia Ahmad

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Isabel Doyle Grad. Cert. Mig. Law MARN 1461161

MEFF Patrons (left to right): Mr Zia Ahmad, Dr Q Ashfaq Ahmad and Dr Mohammad Taha Alsalami with other members at the AGM

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Friday 5 December 2014

AUSTRALIA 12 - 13

UMMAH 14 - 16

EDUCATION 17

BUSINESS 18

COMMUNITY

SOCIAL 19

We are all cousins: MEFF Interfaith Forum Philip Feinstein

On Sunday 12 October the MEFF Eid-ul-Adha Festival was held at Fairfield Showground, Sydney. Included in the festivities was an interfaith forum where three eminent speakers discussed the qualities of our forefather, Abraham/Ibrahim. The measure of this man’s wisdom and belief system was interestingly displayed by the three speakers who are followers of Jewish, Christian and Islamic Faiths.

Jeremy Jones: At the outset Jeremy points out that a lot of the Hebrew Torah (Jewish bible) begins when Abraham is 75 years old. And within his family he showed vision, principle and leadership which culminated in the overall growth of his community. In the Torah it is recorded how welcoming he and his wife Sara were to the world leading by example, vision and principle. Abraham demonstrated that dialogue, with respect for others, can show positive ways to lead better lives all round. He displayed a strength that encouraged people to maintain faith in their belief system without denigrating others.

And so Jeremy epitomises the qualities of Abraham, our father and patriarch, with these words: “Here we have somebody who said ‘if you see something which is wrong, don’t just be quiet. If people are living lives that you think can be made better, give them an indication of a way to do it, not by threatening them with force, but by your own positive example’”. He concluded by saying that all people are very much part of God’s creation and humanity, and through dialogue we can grow as an individuals. “All these lessons we learn from the life of Abraham.”

Father Brian Vale: In his comments, Father Brian points out

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that faith must have grown within Abraham’s family and says “we see Abraham as the father of faith and a man who was drawn to God. He found God to be very generous who called him forth and who blessed him.”

Father Vale professed that Abraham’s life was totally dedicated to God whom he found to be very generous. And he related how Abraham was tested as God invited him to leave his homeland to go to an unknown land, so it was a tremendous journey of faith. And that the Christian bible relates how, although human sacrifices were common, God directed Abraham to sacrifice an animal instead of his son, to which Abraham obeyed. And thus Abraham also accepted God’s direction of ‘Behold, my covenant is with you, and you shall be the father of a multitude of nations.’

Maha Abdo: In looking at Australia as one nation of many people, Maha questioned “How are we going to be drawn in some lessons from our Prophet and the father of all traditions and all faiths?” But she then remarked how Abraham spoke to all nations with a sense of submission “with trust, hope and fear, and a sense of balance.” And she emphasised that we should have respect for our parents and our elders, as well as having patience in these difficult times. And talking about having faith, perhaps we should be reminded that we regard Abraham as the father of faith, as distinguished in the Quran with the title of khalil-ul-Allah (the intimate friend of Allah). And Maha points out that we must be responsible for the consequences of our actions “as each action has a reaction”. And she rhetorically asks: “How will my actions affect my children?”

Maha claimed that Allah’s power and love encompasses all humankind, including Muslims, Christians and Jews. “Abraham and his household have been guiding mankind throughout all the ages, with the help of his sons, Prophets Ismail and Isaac, then Jacob and Joseph, and then others, including Moses, Aaron, David and Solomon, John

Father Brian Vale, Maha Abdo and Jeremy Jones at the Interfaith Forum the Baptist, Jesus and finally Mohammed.”

It is clear to understand that Abraham himself is embodied in the Jewish, Christian and Muslim traditions. And furthermore that he is the founding member of these religions. So, that being the case, it is clear that all Jews, Christians and Muslims are related by history. Surely that therefore makes us all cousins.

And believing that we are all good and

caring spirits, it is no wonder that I have personally experienced this relationship in working for my project on ‘Music for Refugees’ of getting our mixed Australian public to donate music instruments to the unfortunate human beings locked up in detention centres throughout the country. It is wonderful to see Jews, Christians and Muslims all making sacrifices to help improve the lives of these unfortunate people. I hope that this cooperation continues in many more projects that mutually benefit us all.

Sydney Muslim Conference: The Muslim Mosaic Mobinah Ahmad The Sydney Muslim Conference was held on Sunday 16 November at Rosehill Garden, Sydney organised by the Lakemba based Lebanese Muslim Association, LMA. The day long conference was first of its kind held to celebrate the multi-ethnic Australian Muslim identity and diversity by pooling together a wide spectrum of talented speakers from all walks of life.

The purpose of the event was to bring young Australian Muslims from different backgrounds together in a mega event to highlight how Islam plays a positive role in a harmonious society.

Prominent local speakers included Hass Dellal, SBS acting chairman and Australian Muslim Foundation executive director, MasterChef finalist Amina El Shafei spoke earlier about what it meant to be young, Australian and Muslim, Dr Ghena Krayem, University of Sydney law academic, Saara Sabbagh, Dr Zachariah Matthews, Shaykh Hassan El Setohy, Shaykh Abdul Moez nafti, Shaykh Soner Corohlu, Imam Afroz Ali, Alia Gabres, Shaykh Ibrahim Abdullah, Sheikh Wesam Charkawi, Yasmin Abdel-Magied, and Peter Gould.

The highlight and most anticipated aspect of the event was the main speaker, Imam Zaid Shakir, one of the leading Muslim scholar from US. Imam Zaid Shakir, co-founder of Zaytuna College in Berkley gave the keynote speech, speaking on the topic of IS. He moved the audience, saying “We Muslims need to be people who call people to sanity. Not to violence. Allah will take care of His business. He always has, He always

Friday 5 December 2014

will. You take care of yours. Keep smiling; keep your head up. Focus on Allah. Be confident that everything will be alright.”

Conference attendees lined up to get an autographed copy of the Imam’s book “The treatise for the Seekers of Guidance and Scattered Pictures”.

The event was a huge success, with hundreds attending and topics such as Muslim Women and Social Change and Islamic History, Tradition & Spirituality spoken about.

The conference had speeches on the upper level and showcased Australian Muslim Businesses, Projects and Organisations in a festive market stalls on the ground floor.

The event was well received by attendees and stall holders alike.

The conference showcased common themes of migratory family experiences, communities, and the challenges and opportunities of settlement in a new country.

It inspired, motivated and encouraged the sharing of these narratives.

Aftab Malik, the event organiser mentioned that the number of attendees was double the expectation. In his speech, he said “to receive mercy, you must give mercy and mercy should always be our default position” inspiring and engaging attendees of the conference.

Labor Candidate for Lakemba for the next state elections, Jihad Dib said “Let’s stop looking at the things that are wrong and start looking at the things that are right and work-

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ing... We all contribute to Australia, we all contribute to what makes Australia great.”

This conference was part of the LMA Engage Challenge Grow initiative and is supported by the Australian Government Department of Social Services through the Empowering Local Communities Program.

It aims to reach across the entire spectrum of young Australian Muslims in NSW, their parents and national and international speakers. In addition, this conference aimed to engage local businesses, community services and organisations and to foster ties via social networking and to cultivate understanding, improve community resilience and individual empathy despite apparent differences.

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Event Calendar

FRI 05 DECEMBER

ised by the Indigenous Social Justice Association.

The Bryan Brown Theatre, 80 Rickard Rd, Bankstown, NSW Friday 5 December, 6:30pm The spectacular not for profit event will showcase the dedication and hard work of young stage performers that they have put in to UNITE THE AUSTRALIAN COMMUNITY of all faiths, race and backgrounds.

Tickets: www.blakc.com.au/#!brownbrown-theatre-whats-on/czs5 Contact: 0416136133, info@schoolsinspire.org.au www.schoolsinspire.org.au

Affinity Lecture Series: Understanding the Impacts of Terrorism and Religion on Peace

School’s Inspire: Performing and Creative Arts Australia

SAT 06 DECEMBER The Immense Ocean – With Imam Afroz Ali

The Al Ghazzali Centre for Islamic Science and Human Development, 299 Belmore Rd, Riverwood NSW Saturday 6 Dec, 9:30am - 12:30pm Free. Donations are welcome.

Join us at 8:30am for Breakfast, 9:30am for class.

Register: sydney.seekershub.org/ event/immense-ocean-2014 This program, taught by Imam Afroz Ali, focuses on understanding and reflecting on the verses of the Qur’an through the Science of Tafsir and based on the great commentaries on the Holy Qur’an.

SAT 06 DECEMBER iDeb8 - Are the problems Australian Muslims facing mostly external or internal?

Bryan Brown Theatre, Bankstown NSW Saturday 6 December, 6:30pm Free. Speakers: Zachariah Matthews, Ahmed Kilani, Aisha C. Meguid Versus Hanan Dover, Amro Said, Yassir Morsi.

Australian Muslims have gone through alot in the last couple of months, in particular with islamophobia and radicalization. What are the causes of these problems? There are those who call for an internal examination and reform of ourselves while there are those who focus on the external factors. There is an element of truth in both of the external and internal factors but which one should Muslims focus MORE on and address?

SAT 06 DECEMBER

Stop Deaths in Custody Sydney Forum The Settlements, 17 Edwards St, Darlington NSW Saturday 6 December, 2pm Come and meet the families of some of those who have died in custody.

While the cops getting away with racist murder in Ferguson are in the spotlight, it’s time for a reminder that no cops in Australia have ever been found guilty of a single Aboriginal death in custody. An outrage! Organ-

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TUE 09 DECEMBER Suite 502, Level 5, 51-57 Pitt St, Sydney NSW Tuesday 9 Dec, 12pm - 1:30pm Steve Killelea is an accomplished entrepreneur in high technology business development and at the forefront of philanthropic activities focused on sustainable development and peace. After successfully building two international software companies, Steve decided to dedicate most of his time and fortune to sustainable development and peace.

BOOMERANG 3-5

COMMUNITY 6 - 10

LIFESTYLE 11

Canberra students explore Wee Jasper caves Manarul Islam Students, teachers and parents of the weekend Canberra Islamic School (CIS) went out of their comfort zone on Sat 22 November for a day trip to the Careys Caves as part of their annual excursion. The caves are part of a heritage area and are located near the township of Wee Jasper just northwest of Canberra.

It was an early start to the trip with everyone arriving at the Canberra Masjid between 6 and 7am to start the long journey. After a brief break near Yass, the coach travelled past the town of Wee Jasper and arrived at the caves at 9:30am.

The tour of the caves was in two groups, with the second group relaxing in the shaded area, enjoying the view whilst the first group went in. The tours took about an hour and a half each but the time went fast as

there were so many wonderful sights to see.

The caves are made out of water eroding through limestone rocks over millions of years. It was a very educational and entertaining tour, with Geoff, the tour guide providing most of the entertainment with jokes and anecdotes and also keeping the troublesome parents in line!

The group then went to the Wee Jasper reserve for lunch and prayer whilst the kids (and some adults) got their feet and more wet in the Murrumbidgee River before the seemingly long and sleepy ride home.

It was a successful day with a lot of enjoyment. The CIS, which was established in 1974 having 175 students, are now gearing up for the end of year prize giving and parent teacher discussions on Sunday 14 December.

For more information visit the CIS website on www.canberraislamicschool.com.au

TUE 09 DECEMBER

Launch of Fight Against Hate 22 Yuron St, East Sydney NSW Tuesday 9 December, 6pm - 8pm The Online Hate Prevention invites you to a public event to launch “FIGHT AGAINST HATE” a new online hate reporting and monitoring tool. The Hon Paul Fletcher MP, Parliamentary Secretary Minister for Communications, will launch a new tool which will dramatically change the game in the fight against online hate and bigotry in social media.

More Details & Tickets: www.ohpi. org.au/launch

THU 11 DECEMBER Special Gala Screening of “Love Is A Verb” Documentary

Dendy Opera Quays, 9/2 East Circular Quay, Sydney NSW Thursday 11 December, 6pm Register: www.affinity.org.au/?p=6957 Love Is A Verb is an examination of a social movement of Sufi inspired Sunni Muslims that began in Turkey in the 1960s and now reaches across the globe. The group is called Hizmet (the Turkish word for service) or the Gulen Movement after its inspiration, leader and beloved teacher Fethullah Gulen, a man that Time Magazine named as one of the most influential leaders in the world in 2013

FRI 12 DECEMBER

Kashmir Floods Fundraising Dinner

Thornleigh Community Centre, Cnr Phyllis St & Central Ave, Thornleigh NSW Friday 12 December, 7pm The devastating floods that engulfed the picturesque valley of Kashmir in Sep 2014 have left thousands of people homeless and many more with no avenue of earning their livelihood.

This is our initiative to help in the best possible way we can to provide help and support to our brothers and sisters who are suffering at the moment. They have never needed us

Australasian Muslim Times

more and this is our time to step up and help them in any way we can.

Tickets: www.kashmir.org.au

FRI 12 DECEMBER

Made of Honour – MUMSA Sister’s Dinner (Masquerade) Emporium Function Centre, Level 1, 258 South Terrace, Bankstown NSW Friday 12 Dec, 5:30pm - 10pm Sisters Only. We request your presence to celebrate another year of this beautiful sisterhood! It will not be your typical dinner. Instead a night filled with many surprises, laughter and inspiration inshaAllah. And this is our way of saying JaazakuAllah kheiran for being amazing sisters.

Ticket Price: $55 (no tickets at the door) Registration: www.bit.ly/MOHMSD

SAT 13 DECEMBER

A-Z of Love and Mercy – Fiqh of Marriage and Divorce Sheikh Bilal Ismail AlKauthar Sydney, 2 Bullecourt Avenue, Milperra NSW Sat 13 – Sun 14 December The quest to spend our life with a special someone is a journey every one of us aspires to embark on. It is precisely for this reason that the Sharīʿah has clarified to us so many of its principles and mannerisms, that we may lead a blessed, happy life with our true soul mate. Without this

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knowledge, marriage is devoid of the blessings of Islam. Similarly, to ensure that the Islamic brotherhood and sisterhood is preserved, the Sharīʿah has set down clear guidelines on the Prophetic etiquettes and rulings of divorce. Despite divorce being so rampant these days, most people hardly know anything about it.

More Info & Tickets: www.alkauthar.org Contact: 0404 093 649,

SAT 13 DECEMBER Bushwalking on the Lindfield Park and Little Digger Track Loop Mizaan Ecosophy and Wellbeing

Soldiers Memorial Park, Tryon road, East Lindfield, NSW Saturday 13 December, 9:15am Join us for this pleasant walk, which starts from Lindfield Park and heads through the bushland to the Two Creeks Track, that follows through the National Park to, and along, Middle Harbour Creek. The walk returns to Lindfield Park via the picturesque Little Digger Track, and through a few shortcut alley ways in East Lindfield.

This walk should take approximately 3.5 hrs including a short break for morning tea. Please bring some snacks to share. This track is suitable for those with little bushwalking experience and is open to all ages!

More Information: http://sydney.seekershub.org/event/lindfieldwalk/

Friday 5 December 2014

AUSTRALIA 12 - 13

UMMAH 14 - 16

EDUCATION 17

BUSINESS 18

COMMUNITY

SOCIAL 19

Sounds of Light 2014 in support of orphans: A Great Success across 4 Cities in Australia Mohammed Hassan Sounds of light 2014, came back with a bang! Running through 4 cities Sydney, Melbourne, Adelaide and Perth over 4 days, this entertainment spectacular gathered a crowd of over 7,000 people Australia wide and brought life changing sponsorship to over 2300 orphans from around the world.

Sound of Light is an annual mega event organised by Human Appeal International in Australia as well as many countries in Europe.

The highly skilled entertainers, who came together from around the world for this noble cause included the popular Nasheed singer Maher Zain, Imam Siraj Wahhaj, Preacher Moss and Raef. There were also local entertainers including Kamal Saleh

(Sydney concert) and Farid Sanullah (Sydney and Perth concert).

The entertainers set the night alight with their spectacular voices, humour and reminders of doing good. The heart felt messages struck a chord with the audience as they pledged and donated generously for the orphans of the world.

The crowds across loved the atmosphere and all came out with a smile and a happy heart.

Most importantly, the orphans sponsored through this event benefit the most and now, from generous donations made by Australians, have hope for a better education, a better life and a better future.

For those that didn’t get a chance to attend the event, you can still help and sponsor needy orphans around the world by calling Human Appeal 1300 760 155 or by visiting www.hai.org.au.

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Nasheed entertainers: Raef (left) with Maher Zain.

“Schools Inspire 2014” - the biggest Sydney event lead by Muslim schools AMUST Media The unique annual production, the “Schools Inspire 2014” will be held on Friday 5 December at Bankstown’s Bryan Brown Theatre, Sydney starting at 6.30 pm.

This will be the biggest event in Australia lead by Australian Muslim schools and the community to celebrate diversity together with other other schools in a 3 hour show on a professional stage.

This spectacular event is presented by INSPIRE Inc a non for profit organisation in collaboration with the Australian Nasheed & Arts Academy focused on presenting this annual event to showcase the dedication and hard work of young stage performers, with the theme Unite the Australian Community of all faiths, races and backgrounds through dance, public speaking, drama, martial arts, singing, and other forms of creative and performing arts in a supportive, inclusive environment. Participating children gain self-confidence from performing in front of audiences, a skill required for life.

INSPIRE aims to introduce a new generation of Muslim children to the wider Australian Community and vice versa to create a future of tolerance and understanding through the most universal method; creative expression! And at the same time showing them that a career in the field of creative and performing arts without sacrificing their faith and beliefs is a possibility.

“I’m so proud that these students want to perform, they have a message to send and they deserve to be heard” said INSPIRE founder Alsu Kurlow.

“We have performers from all different backgrounds and we want to provide oppor-

Friday 5 December 2014

tunities to those who often miss out”. “For example we found that some Muslim girls were not comfortable performing in front of males for modesty reasons and so chose to opt out. Instead of leaving them behind or questioning their reasons we simply provided the girls with the unique opportunity to perform through a female only part of the event. Since then these girls have not only joined but have developed into our best performers and we’ve learnt a lot from them and their cultural beliefs”. “Their performances are exceptionally moving and we almost missed out on the experience just because of logistics” said Alsu.

“It’s a project I’ve always believed in and performance is a language anyone can understand. The primary mission of the ‘Schools Inspire’ is to encourage young people to aspire, to dream and to exercise their right to express themselves creatively through arts no matter what their religion, race or background. That’s the purpose of INSPIRE and I look forward to a long future of performing children.”

The event is different, offering: Female students are provided with the unique opportunity to perform ballet, contemporary dance, singing and martial arts through a female only part of the event.

The event showcases: public speaking, drama, poetry, martial arts, singing, dancing and other forms of creative and performing arts with the running theme of UNITY. Students participating will be recognised and awarded with a sense of community contribution and achievement and other wonderful rewards Amazing guest performers to inspire the younger performers Voice only music, percussion instruments and synthetic computer generated sounds

used during auditions and performances.

Yearly event to continually build on the acceptance and understanding of our children with each other One of the largest Muslim schools in Sydney “Malek Fahd Islamic School” was one of the first schools to sign up this year and has its students practicing for this end of year event for an entire term. It’s the first opportunity their students have had to participate in such a grand stage performance and their excitement is building A student from the Australian Nasheed & Arts Academy said “Our dance is about everyone being able to enjoy to dance, and anyone can do it”. A ballet student also said ‘Without this, I would never dance and sing in public, as I can do it only in front of a female audience. I’m so excited to be able to dance because that’s my favourite part, I

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don’t think I would ever dance or sing on stage otherwise.’.

The Schools Inspire 2014 event is proudly sponsored and supported by the following generous organisations: Bryan Brown Theatre, Baraka Women, Crescent Wealth and Al Firdaus Qur’an College.

The Schools Inspire 2014 event is an open event for the entire community.

Admission is FREE for performing students and $22 for parents and the general public.

Tickets are available through the Bryan Brown Theatre box office http://www.blakc. com.au/#!brown-brown-theatre-whats-on/ czs5 For more information, please call 0416 136 133 Web http://www.schoolsinspire.org.au/ Email: info@schoolsinspire.org.au

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BOOMERANG 3-5

COMMUNITY 6 - 10

25th AMMA Awards: ICPA wins SBS Award Zia Ahmad The 25th Australian Multicultural Marketing Awards were announced on Tuesday 25 November at a gala reception at the Sydney Opera House.

The awards, conducted

by Multicultural NSW, recognise the achievements of government agencies, businesses and community groups which successfully implement marketing strategies tailored for culturally diverse communities.

The Fifth Bankstown Islamic Charity Projects Association (ICPA) Scout Group was chosen from 18 other AMMA finalists to take out the SBS People’s Choice.

The Scout group promotes social cohesion through education activities and services for Muslim youth.

The Chinese Precinct of Commerce was named winner of the Communities Category of the Awards for a campaign to motivate and enthuse members of the Chinese Australian community to embrace commemorations for Centenary of Anzac.

The Australian MEFF Consortium, organisers of the Multicultural Eid Festival & Fair was one of three finalists in this category and

Winners of the 25th AMMA Awards on the stage at the end of the reception

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MEFF 2014 promo together with an interview by MEFF CEO, Mobinah Ahmad was screened at the Opera House.

Greater Western Sydney Giants Football Club was named as the winner of the Big Business Award at the Australian Multicultural Marketing Awards, a NSW Government initiative, for its success in promoting the Aussie Rules Football to migrant communities.

CEO of Multicultural NSW, Mr Hakan Harman said he was delighted with the response to the new format adopted for the 25th edition of the annual Awards.

“Since culturally diverse is Mr Ziad El Daoud, Dr Ghayath Al-Shelh of ICPA who we are as Australians, with Mr Michael Ebeid, Chief executive officer SBS messaging and programs that speak to all the people of Australia are es- Communication: Cultural Perspectives – sential elements of any marketing campaign.

Digital Switchover Campaign The Australasian Muslim Times AMUST Arts and Culture: 4A Centre for Contemwon the Australian Marketing Award in the porary Asian Art – Vertical Villages small business category back in 1992.

Communities: Chinese Precinct Chamber of Commerce – Chinese Community CelCATEGORY WINNERS ebrating the ANZAC Centenary Business Innovation: eTranslate – Em- Youth: Cultural Infusion – Cultural Harploying an App to Measure the Mood of mony and Inclusion Education Programs; our Cultural Communities Islamic Charity Projects Association – 5th Big Business: GWS Giants Football Club Bankstown Scout Group (Certificate of – Many Cultures Game, Multicultural Encouragement) Round Education: TAFE NSW- Hunter TAFE; Small Business: Elegant Swallow Pty Ltd – Beyond ESOL: A Vocational Pathways Employing Cultural Foods as a Marketing Approach (Certificate of Encouragement) Tool SBS People’s Choice Award: Islamic CharPublic Sector: Auburn City Council – Refity Projects Association – 5th Bankstown ugee Camp In My Neighbourhood Scout Group

Infinite Light Symposium: Radio 2MFM Annual The Mercy of the Prophet Muhammad Mobinah Ahmad The Islamic Sciences & Research Academy ISRA held the annual ‘Infinite Light Symposium’ on Friday 28 November at Bryan Brown Theatre, Bankstown, Sydney.

Every year at this time, ISRA focuses on a different aspect of the Prophet’s personality. The 2014 theme was to look at Prophet Muhammad (s) being a mercy to humanity.

The main speaker for this event was Sheikh Ahmad Abdo, who spoke on ‘Mercy to the worlds, not just Muslims: How merciful was Prophet Muhammad (s)?

He said “Today, we need to live the Sunnah and not just know about it. Knowing Sunnah and living Sunnah are two very different things”.

The second speaker Zuleyha Keskin spoke on difference between love and mercy: the significance of the Prophet’s mercy for Islam and Muslims in the modern world.

“Let your heart ache for all people, let

your compassion drive you to act in your circle of influence to make a positive difference. Let compassion urge you to make dua for those in your circle of concern and by doing so, caring about others’ eternal well-being” She said.

Performances on the night were a poetry reading from Hameed Attai and nasheed performances from Al Bashir Annashad Group as well as by Muhammad Cengic and Musa Hodzic.

The event was particularly special because the winners of the Everyone’s Reading Competition were announced, a competition which attracted more than 1000 registrations.

Winners for the Primary School Category were Omar Al Zeidat, Ilyas Baqaie and Hadeer Khan, for High School Category were Ayash Rafaat, Samet Durmoz, Mohammed Altahir and for the Open Cateogory were Mohammad Rana, Mohammad Omar Wardak and Ekrem Ozdemir.

Great cash prizes were given to all winners and an Umrah Trip worth $4000.

Sheikh Ahmad Abdo and Maha Abdo with guests

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Corporate Dinner Zia Ahmad Sydney Radio 2MFM Annual Corporate Dinner was held on 30 October in Punchbowl, Sydney with the theme “The voice of diversity” The event saw a host of Muslim leaders and imams, political and community leaders, police officers, academics, media representatives and broadcasting members celebrate the achievements of the Muslim Community Radio, 2MFM. “Our work at 2MFM is geared towards social cohesion, integration and using radio as a medium to serve the Muslim community” said 2MFM president Mr Muhammad Mehio.

The event included a powerful, multilingual performance in English, Arabic, French and German with catching rhythm and impassioned lyrics that evoked an enthusiastic response from the audience.

Deputy leader of the opposition and Shadow Minister for Family and Community Services and representing NSW leader of the opposition, Ms Linda Burney spoke

about the significance of eliminating the ignorance that is stemming some of the racism in this nation about the Muslim Community.

“Can I just deliver the message, as well from myself, the Labor party in NSW that our role within the parliaments of this country is to provide leadership, and it is leadership you will get. Leadership in blowing up the ignorance that is pedalling some of the racism in this nation about your communities, about your faith”, she said.

Congratulating the ten participants who completed the certificate III in Media, 2MFM’s program Manager Mrs. Faten El Dana OAM said: “2MFM has consistently been praised for its effort in training and teaching programs, especially for ensuring that its staff and volunteers are equipped with the essential skills needed to satisfy the needs of the community. Congratulations on behalf of 2MFM and I hope that the knowledge our graduates have been equipped with will help you to better serve your community through 2MFM- the voice of diversity.”

The event ended with 2MFM Awards presentation to a number of community leaders and activists.

Award winners at the 2MFM corporate dinner event

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Friday 5 December 2014

AUSTRALIA 12 - 13

UMMAH 14 - 16

EDUCATION 17

BUSINESS 18

SOCIAL 19

Language in Cabra MOBYDAYZE Mobinah Ahmad I decided to check out my local suburb of Cabramatta the other day. Cabra (as the cool kids say) is a melting pot of diverse cultures and has a very rich history as its formation was based upon historical migration patterns and events such as the Vietnam War. It is a successfully thriving community built upon authentic South-East Asian culture where the culture, language and many other aspects are preserved and maintained.

As I was walking through the suburb, I saw signs in Vietnamese, Chinese and Khmer. I observed signs of shops and posters around the Cabramatta area and I would say that my experience presented three key themes: exclusion, branding and language valorisation. There is a correlation between the dominant language spoken and the number of signs that had Vietnamese and/or Chinese and/or Khmer. It presents an interesting insight into the Australian multilingual landscape in Cabramatta.

In the nineteenth century, the Chinese arrived in Australia flocking to NSW in the 1850s-60s for the gold rush. After the White Australia policy was abolished in the 1960s, migrants from China, Singapore, Malaysia and Papua New Guinea started arriving.

Throughout the 80s after the Vietnam War, there was a large wave of migration from

Southeast Asia. This made a significant impact on the cultural formation of Cabramatta, as it became a thriving Asian community.

Cabramatta city centre was transformed into the streets of Vietnam, and due to the large number of Vietnamese migrants, the term “Vietnamatta” was coined. Throughout the 90s, Cabramatta had formed to be a thriving and strong community – attractive Sydney siders to the suburb as being an authentic Asian suburb.

There was a Vietnamese restaurant that had no English, Chinese or Khmer text, only Vietnamese. Having a sign in only Vietnamese excludes not only English speakers, but is directed towards people only from that

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one particular culture. Although majority of signs in Cabramatta did have English on them, there was a small few that was only in Thai or Vietnamese. These kinds of signs are direct exclusion from the non-Thai and non-Vietnamese speakers.

It was also interesting to see how the name of the brand or company was not translated.

Companies and prominent businesses probably do this so that the maintenance of the brand name is upheld even for non-English speakers. Not translating a brand name of a well-known company is maintained in order to protect and advertise the brand name more. It is not necessarily exclusion, but rather advertising and marketing technique.

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Language valorisation has been transformed as a result of intercultural communication where the greater the communication was, the more people valorised their second language. The attribution of particular positive values to language can facilitate communicative and cognitive functioning that suggests a language valorisation process.

All of the shop signs in Cabramatta had English on it, which illustrates that there is an important value held to the English language even in a suburb that is predominantly Asian. It is very evident that the Fairfield City Council is trying to promote and encourage English as the majority of their signs were in English only. The fact that the Fairfield City Council have emphasised a focus on English and not on any other language displays a strong push for members of the community learning English and encourage they be able to read English.

Interestingly, the council also put up a ‘Friendship Arch’ in Freedom Plaza that strongly resembles a Chinese style gate and has a strong focus of the Chinese language, there is also English, Vietnamese and Khmer. The gateway symbolises the South-East Asian community in Cabramatta as it welcomes people and celebrates freedom. Although the council has focused on encouraging English, they have done this without removing any value given to the dominant cultural languages in Cabramatta, recognising the importance of migrant language valorisation.

These reasons reflect a great example of how much of an impact a specific culture has upon Australia’s multicultural society. It is for this, Cabramatta is such a successfully thriving suburb balancing between the preservation of migrant language and culture as well as encouraging the utilisation of English and other languages.

Arabic Made in China Mobinah Ahmad Arabic Made in China is a series of different online courses on the Arabic language.

The course, founded by Dr Imran Lum, is an online learning course teaching Arabic in a lifestyle format.

The goal of Arabic Made in China is to get people to love learning Arabic rather than having fear of learning it.

Dr Lum’s method is simple, learn Arabic by speaking with people and teach others what you learn. He says “I believe that learning Arabic should be fun and enjoyable.”

Frustrated that many people had a negative association with learning the Arabic language, he started teaching Arabic to friends in the same relaxed lifestyle way that he was taught Arabic.

The aim of Arabic Made In China is to change the perception about learning Arabic to show the learners that learning the language can be a positive experience.

Dr Imran Lum comes from a Chinese and

Malay background and as a non-Arab growing up in Australia, he initially had no interest in learning Arabic.

However he was dragged to learn Arabic at Sunday school and found it to be incredibly boring. “I remember a private Arabic tutor coming to my house to teach me one-onone and I would fall asleep during the class.

I couldn’t help it, the way Arabic was taught was just so boring.”

Later on in life, he took a trip to the Middle East. “I vividly remember this old Turkistani guy. He told me Arabic was not just for Arabs, it was for everyone. His words stuck with me ever since.” Dr Lum said.

Coming back to Australia, Dr Lum was fortunate enough to study with a shaikh at a local Masjid for six years. He was taught to learn Arabic in the way a child learns languages. The shaikh emphasised losing all inhibitions, embrace making mistakes and just start speaking.

For Arabic Made in China Each course comes with video tutorials showing interesting people that have different connections with the language. There is also an accom-

panying worksheet with questions and activities that have new phrases and vocabulary.

“Learning should be experiential and students shouldn’t be too worried about grammar, because that comes later” He said.

Dr Lum has taught people across Australia, Malaysia, Singapore, the Middle East and Europe.

He has taught university students, young professionals, Islamic bank executives, unemployed people, expats and students stud-

ying religion. People studied for all reasons like understanding religious texts, for relationships, for business, for travel and some just for fun.

“Arabic Made in China is the brainchild of one of my students who encouraged me to take this style of teaching Arabic to a wider audience in an online format”, He said.

If a Chinese Malay guy who was born and raised in Australia can learn basic Arabic, it might encourage others to try” said Dr Lum.

Support for sick student AMUST Media Illness: Shoebur Rahman is an Indian (originally from Kanpur) Muslim International student studying Podiatry at La Trobe University. He is around 21years old has been hospitalised because of a severe case of a stroke.

He is lonely in this country and he needs financial help as well as community support.

He has had some financial support from Islamic Council of Victoria (ICV).

He is much better now, but stuttering still from the effect of his illness. Again the health insurance are covering his hospital bills, they are not responsible for his physio and rehabilitation costs, let alone his rent.

Due to the strong reference from the hospital, his parents did manage to come to Australia. His father, Mr Hifzur Rahman is

Friday 5 December 2014

an Old Boy of Aligarh Muslim University who graduated in Mechanical Engineering in early ‘70s. He has been diagnosed with leukaemia and had to leave Australia and is now hospitalised in India.

Shoeb’s mother is confused whether to remain with her son or to join her husband in India. Both need constant attention. For the time being she is with her son.

Financial position: Since Shoeb’s father is hospitalised, his financial situation is pretty dire. Although the hospital bill was covered by health insurance and rent by ICV, he needs help in order to cover his day to day expenses, physiotherapy and rehabilitation expenses.

Contact: Shoebur Rehman Ph: 0452289182 Email: shoeburrehman810@hotmail.com Banking Details: Commonwealth Bank Account name: SHOEBUR REHMAN BSB No. 063575; Account No: 10428252

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AUSTRALIA

NEWS 1-2

BOOMERANG 3-5

COMMUNITY 6 - 10

PM Modi in Australia: Australians of Indian

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Muslim background deliver a positive submission Zahid Jamil A delegation representing Australians of Indian Muslim background attended and presented a submission to PM Modi at the reception and public gathering at Sydney Olympic Park organised in honour of Narendra Modi, PM of India during his short visit to Sydney on 17 November.

Unlike their counterparts in the US, the delegation decided to avoid the negative protest politics and engage the Prime Minister by delivering a positive submission in moving forwards towards a brighter future for India and promotion of peace and harmony in South Asia in general and within the Indian society in particular. The submission on several points addressed the concerns of the Muslim minority in India for its safety, security and empowerment.

Indian Muslims are not only the second largest community in the country but also the second largest Muslim population amongst the countries of the world, Indone-

sia being the first.

Mr Modi is the first Indian Prime Minister to visit Australia in 28 years. He left Australia in high spirits as he was not only cheered by 15000 strong crowd of Indians living in Sydney at a stadium usually played by rock stars but he also received very warm official welcome. He met leaders of the world’s major economies, became the first Indian

Prime Minister to address the Australian Parliament and met various business leaders and other officials. He signed several bilateral agreements as both sides made many more promises for future business relations between the two countries.

There were a few protesters at the Olympic Park where Indian Prime Minister attended the grand reception organised by

Indian Australian Community Forum headed by Dr Nihal Agar of Hindu Council of Australia.

PM Modi made an extempore speech for one and a half hour in Sydney that was highly engaging, positive, inclusive, intelligent with a great sense of humour. He talked about India moving forward, the initiatives he has taken and evidence of their implementation in his short track record as PM and what Australians of Indian origins can do for India and vice versa.

He spoke in English at the Australian Parliament House in Canberra on 18 November and managed to capture repeated applause from MPs and a few hundred Indians in the gallery.

Many BJP activists among Australian Indians worked tirelessly over previous three weeks for putting up the grand show for their leader and the nation’s Prime Minister. Indian Australian Community forum brought together many small and major Indian associations who staged several cultural shows to make it a memorable event.

On the other hand, the protesters blamed Modi for hurting the cause of minorities in India including his failure to prevent riots in Gujarat in 2002.

Text of submission to Indian Prime Minister AMUST Media

Dear Hon Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi Ji We are highly honoured for this opportunity to share our views with you during your visit to Australia.

Although we call Australia our home now, we wish to see India, our country of origin for which we have great love, progressing on all fronts. We also appreciate your governance potential in leading India to new heights of progress, peace and harmony.

However we, at times, get concerned about marginalisation of minority communities including Muslims in India. In the spirit of strong bond with our motherland, we wish to bring to your kind attention a number of issues that are of concern to us as Australians of Indian Muslim background.

1. Great initiatives: We highly appreciate a number of innovative initiatives that you have taken since your assuming office for the betterment of the country. Your efforts in opening the Indian economy including “Make in India” campaign, “Your Bank Accounts Program” and “Cleanliness Drive” are efforts that are being appreciated by all.

2. Australia-India relations: We are keen to see India-Australia relationships develop further which brings benefit to both nations. We are pleased to see close cooperation between the two governments ever since you became the Prime Minister. Grant of dual citizenship to Australians of Indian origin will further allow Indian diaspora to be able to better contribute to India-Australia relationship facilitating improved investment opportunities and better say in national affairs.

Visa on arrival, as being considered for US citizens, should be extended to Australians as well.

3. Indian perception of Australia: Indian media groups should be encouraged to send well qualified journalists to Australia so that incidents related to Indians in Australia are not unnecessarily given a racial tone and magnified for no reason. It is important to learn that Australia is a multicultural society and people from all parts of the world come here to live. Indians are only one of the hundreds of nationalities living in Australia and in general there is no racial bias against them or against any other people.

We believe it is important that for mutual relationship to enhance, Australia is not seen as a racist country in India which

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seems to be the case even today.

4. Engagement of Muslims: It is important that all segments of Indian society share benefits from national development and we are particularly keen to see Indian Muslims not being left out in any manner. We find them lagging behind in all spheres of life including the political, social and economic fronts. We find it particularly disconcerting that your ruling coalition has just one Muslim representative in Lok Sabha. We urge you to rectify the problem by nominating at least 25 Muslims in Rajya Sabha from your party. This step alone can open a new vista of relationship between Indian Muslims and your party under your leadership. Adequate representation of Muslims in nation’s parliament has to be ensured if their political empowerment is to be achieved.

5. Representation of Muslims: We also feel deeply perturbed about inadequate representation of Muslims in public service sector in particular administrative services, police, military, foreign services as well as in businesses including the corporate sector. It is important that Muslims have adequate representation in these important sectors of the country.

6. Affirmative action: Indian Muslims seriously lag behind in education. Special efforts are needed to ensure that literacy amongst Muslims, including Muslim women, are at par with national average.

Their representation in institutions of higher education has to rise in proportion to their population. As India has adopted a policy of reservation on the ground of backwardness, there is no reason why underprivileged sections of

Muslim community should not be allocated reservation. Affirmative action by your government will go a long way in improving the condition of this second largest but most disadvantaged community in India.

7. Safety and security: We are deeply concerned about safety and security of Muslim Indians. Communal tensions have risen in recent past in many parts of India. While you talk of an inclusive development and have spoken about your concern for Muslims, your party cadres particularly at the state and district levels have been spreading communal tension by raising non-issues like “Love Jihad”, “Forced Conversions” and “:Appeasement of Muslims”. As a leader of all Indians, we wish you take appropriate steps in order to counter divisive politics so that peace and harmony prevails between all sections of Indian society.

8. Justice: We urge the current government to take appropriate action to bring justice to victims of communal riots in Gujrat and elsewhere. Adequate compensation should be granted for their physical, emotional and material losses.

9. Sachar Committee recommendations: Congress government had failed miserably in implementing Sachar Committee recommendations, although it had constituted this committee. It is an extremely well researched report which has touched all aspects of issues relating to Muslims of India. If its recommendations are implemented in full, it will provide an ideal solution to bring Muslims at par with other communities in India.

10. Empowerment: Sachar Committee report was published in 2006. More works have since been done by a few intellectuals which may also help in developing guidelines for an all-round empowerment of Muslims within India’s secular fabric.

11. Cordial relationships: It is significantly important that India maintains cordial relations with all Muslim countries in general and Pakistan and Bangladesh in particular. Family visits, tourism, exchange of cultural and sporting teams may greatly help in strengthening ties between the three neighbours that share history, culture and language. We urge you to continue with India’s The Muslim delegation who met PM Modi

Australasian Muslim Times

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long term policy of support for the genuine rights and aspirations of Palestinian people and peace building in the Middle East.

12. Removal of visa restrictions: Visit restrictions between the neighbourly nations should be eased. In particular, we find ourselves in a difficult situation when an Australian national of Indian origin marries an Australian national of Pakistani origin. In such cases, Pakistani origin spouses find it hard to visit India due to difficult visa formalities and vice versa. We urge both Indian and Pakistani governments to remove restrictions on travel for such spouses so that they can visit their families with freedom.

13. Urdu: The language of Urdu, fine arts and great monuments of the Moghul period have provided India with its rich heritage. These need to be preserved. We urge your government to restore respect to the great monuments and revive Urdu language and associated fine arts.

14. Access to Indian media in Australia: It is important that India’s national television and radio become accessible to the audience worldwide generally and to Australians in particular.

15. India House: To bring Australians of Indian origins together, we propose the establishment of India House (Bharat Bhavan) in Sydney. This will consist of various halls to exhibit paintings and portraits, art objects, busts of national heroes as well as a library and facilities to hold regular Indian arts and cultural shows.

16. Promotion of harmony, peace and prosperity for all: You hail from Gujarat, the land of Mahatma Gandhi and Sardar Patel, the pillars of Indian secularism.

We urge you to help create conducive environment for Muslims and other minorities to prosper and contribute to the growth and development of India as a land of peace, harmony and prosperity for all.

We wish to thank you for you kind consideration of this submission and anticipated action in this regard.

With best wishes Representatives of Australians of Indian Muslim background: Mr Zia Ahmad, Mr Zahid Jamil, Mr Fazal Fariwala, Mrs Saba Zaidi Abdi, Mr Abbas Raza Alvi , Mr Fasihuddin Khan, Dr Zakir Akhunji, Mr Yunus Mansuri

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AUSTRALIA 12 - 13

UMMAH 14 - 16

EDUCATION 17

BUSINESS 18

AUSTRALIA

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An Industry Body for Islamic Financial Services in Australia FINANCE Dr. Abul Jalaluddin It is a high time for Australian Shariah compliant financial service providers to establish an industry association to champion Islamic finance and add value to consumers. A suggested handle could be “Islamic Financial Services Council of Australia” (IFSCA).

The players in the Islamic financial services industry in Australia are sizeable and hence, it will be commercially beneficial to establish an association to provide advocacy and contribute to policy development. As participants in the industry, all organisations involved in Islamic finance would benefit from this proposed industry body.

The Australian Shariah compliant financial services industry has achieved a level of maturity with a wide range of products. Currently, the industry offers products in almost all segments of the financial services market in Australia such as Shariah compliant home

finance, wealth management including fund management, equities, unit trust, superannuation, leasing/hire purchase, property trust and so on. These financial services will form a formidable basis for an industry group.

This industry group will provide a platform for marketing and education of Shariah compliant financial services in Australia.

It will improve the perception of the market towards the providers of the Islamic financial services and create confidence in the available product suite. Organising marketing and public relations activities would be much cheaper and more effective as a group.

There will be eligibility criteria for membership of this industry group. This will take care of unscrupulous players without proper licensing and compliance program. At the moment, everyone is a provider of Islamic finance and this will put a brake on this phenomenon.

The establishment of this body will be a vehicle for the voice of the Shariah compliant providers of financial services in Australia. The regulators will take better recognition of these providers which will facilitate their compliance and reduce costs. If

they had a voice, they could have demanded actions on the taxation report on Islamic finance which was prepared and submitted to the government by the Board of Taxation but went into abyss.

An industry body would be able to perform a number of roles such as making representations to various forums, providing training to industry participants, promoting best practices, coordinating seminars & public forums for information sharing and providing continuous professional development to the industry.

Conducting financial services business in Australia involves various federal and state regulatory authorities including the Australian Securities and Investment Commission

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(ASIC), Australian Prudential Regulation Authority (APRA), Reserve Bank of Australia (RBA), Australian Competition and Consumer Commission (ACCC) and state fair trading departments. An association of Islamic finance may effectively represent industry position to these regulators for better compliance and reporting.

There are industry groups in the country such as Australian Bankers’ Association (ABA), Financial Services Council (FSC), Financiers Association of Australia (FAA), Association of Superannuation Funds of Australia (ASFA) and so on. It will be good to have one to represent Islamic finance in Australia.

Interfaith Conference: Religion as Peace Builders AMUST Media On November 11, 2014, the Universal Peace Federation Australia held a oneday interfaith conference entitled “Religions as Peace Builders” at the Oceania Peace Embassy in Sydney.

This event was co-sponsored by the Human Rights Global Conscience Incorporated, which is headed by an Ambassador for Peace. More than 90 participants and staff, including religious, society and media leaders, attended the conference.

The event opened with a musical offering by Korean and Japanese missionaries dressed in their beautiful national costumes, which set a great atmosphere for the day.

This was followed by welcoming remarks from UPF Oceania Chairman Rev. In Soung Kwun. Rev. Greg Stone, the UPF Australia president, then gave an overall perspective of the meaning and purpose of the event, emphasising the principles of peace and interfaith that UPF promotes. A UPF introductory video was also shown to the audience.

Over the following three sessions, six religious leaders addressed the topic of “How my religion can do more to help prevent or resolve conflict and promote reconciliation and peace at the local, national and global levels.” The first two speakers, chosen in alphabetical order according to the name of their religion, were the Buddhist Dr Venerable U Dhammacara and the Christian speaker Rev. Dr. Patrick McInerney.

The first speaker emphasised the need of mindfulness and outlined a list of ethical

approaches which will develop peace in our society. He used the example of business deals, which should be formed as a “winwin” situation for all parties.

Dr. McInerney stressed the need of a “new” Christian approach rather than doing more of the same. He re-interpreted the meaning of the Trinity and other concepts that are usually associated with Christianity,

Peace Ambassadors with UPF President Greg Stone

Friday 5 December 2014

and revealed their relevance to other faith traditions.

In the next session, Mr Sharat Arora, who represented Hinduism, spoke of the universality and tolerance of the teachings, and the speaker for Islam and co-sponsor of the conference, Sheikh Dr. Mostafa Rashed, advocated his vision of a more just society based on education, respect and tolerance.

He suggested setting up sub-committees to deal with different areas of concern.

After the lunch break, Rabbi Shimon Cowen, director of the Institute for Judaism and Civilization, explained the root of the major civilisations based on the 7 Noahide Laws, which are universal and common to all. He especially stressed the need for political change in Australia. The last primary speaker was Rishama Salah Chohili representing Mandaeism.

After all the religious leaders presented their views and interacted with the audience in Q&A sessions, UPF presented some of their on-the-ground activities that promote interfaith in the final session. Ken Schmittat introduced the RYS and plans for an upcoming project early next year in Sydney, and Natascha Schellen shared the UPF vision for soccer and peace, reporting about the recent Soccer for Peace tournament organised

by UPF Australia. The final speaker was John Bellavance, president of UPF in the

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state of Victoria, who argued for the idea of an interfaith council and the positive impact that people of faith could and should have on their society.

Following the speeches and discussion, four Ambassadors for Peace were appointed

by UPF including Rabbi Shimon Cowen, director of the Institute for Judaism and Civilization, Mr Ziaul Islam Ahmad from the Islamic Foundation for Education & Welfare, With the conference resolution and reflection at the end, there was a feeling that the time for change had come, and that religious people have the means to work together and turn the tide of extremism that is now facing the world.

Visit our website www.amust.com.au

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BOOMERANG 3-5

COMMUNITY 6 - 10

LIFESTYLE 11

Kashmir under floods: An eye witness report Anjum Rafiqui For me, conflict notwithstanding, flying into Srinagar, over the saffron fields in full bloom with the snow capped Himalayas in the background, has never failed to rejuvenate me.

This trip was different, it all started with a phone call on the 5th of September - Kashmir was on the verge of being flooded. That’s OK I thought, we have flood channels and relief strategies that have worked for years and this would be no different – WRONG! The next few days exposed years of environmental mismanagement and the underlying political vacuum in the state. The effects were exacted as the wrath of nature ensued Kashmir, bearing testimony to the scale of wide spread dev-

astation that was about to fall upon the land and her people.

The State of Jammu and Kashmir, on both sides of the Line of Control, was hit by unprecedented floods between 5 to 8 September 2014. The estimated 27 Cloud bursts and torrential rainfall resulted in major rivers banks breaking, including the River Jhelum. The streets in the capital city, Srinagar, remained under up to 20 feet (7 meters) of water for nearly a month and by 24 September, six out of the seven major hospitals in Srinagar were submerged leaving one referral hospital to cater to the needs of the entire population (estimated at 4 million). Thousands of villages were inundated; tens of thousands of homes damaged or destroyed, more than a million people displaced or homeless. The psychological toll on the people is immeasurable, surpassing that of the physical effects.

With the already fragile infrastruc-

ture destroyed, hospitals, schools, shops, crops, business establishments and local administrative units have all been badly damaged and thousands have lost everything.

The toll it has taken on the economy is estimated as $16 billion which, when compared to the state’s Gross Domestic Product of $12 billion, makes for a staggering loss.

With winter fast approaching, thousands are still in desperate need of food, shelter and rehabilitation of their livelihood. According to an independent estimate, immediate humanitarian aid of $350 million is required to cater for the devastation that is only predicted to continue to grow in severity. The international relief efforts are mainly the work of the Kashmiri diaspora and social media fundraising. No major international NGOs are currently conducting relief operations on the ground and there is a desperate need for relief reaching the affected people, as soon as possible.

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Australasian Muslim Times

Anjum Rafiqui is an Australian of Kashmiri background

Trend of wearing Hijab growing In Kashmir Zulfikar Majid

More photos on page 20

In response to this, the Australian Kashmiri Association Inc. (AKA) is seeking to foster and advocate partnerships between International charity and non-government organisations in Australia and local non-government organisations (NGOs) on the ground in Kashmir. The Australians for Revive Kashmir (ARK) project, an initiative of AKA, is focused on providing immediate relief and long-term assistance in rehabilitation and rebuilding of Kashmir. Given the magnitude of the disaster, ARK aims to organise relief efforts for the devastated region and raise awareness about the humanitarian disaster. The harsh winter starting in December 2014 is of particular concern as the survivors are not equipped well enough to cope with the severe winter conditions.

For further information, or to donate to this cause, please visit www.kashmir.org.au.

The trend of wearing Hijab (veil) is growing in Kashmir, especially among working women and students, over the last few years.

The trend is in a more modern and happening way as women adopt to Hijab purely out of choice with slight add-ons.

This is in contrast to the Kashmir of nineties and last decade when militant outfits would ask women to adhere to Islamic dress code and use force to impo­se their diktats.

In 1999, two girls had to be hospitalised after they were fired by militants for wearing jeans. In early nineties, Aasia Andrabi chief of radical women organisation Dukhtaran-eMillat had launched a campaign in Kashmir, forcing women to wear “Burqa” (veil).

However, this time around women are opting for Hijab on their own will. Ufaaq, a university pass out, who wears bright blue coloured headscarf and dons a Pakistani Kurta with floral designs over chic jeans says she opted for Hijab out of her own choice. “The trend of wearing Hijab with jeans is fashion and within the limits of religion. Most of my friends prefer to wear the combination of jeans and colourful scarves.

It looks cool,” she told Deccan Herald.

Asked what has prompted her and her friends to wear Hijab, she said: “Several girls find Hijab trendy. Some admire it as it frames their faces and others are simply relieved that they don’t have to worry about how their hair looks all the time.

“When I joined University, in my class six out of 13 would wear Hijab. While I and three others had been wearing it since college days, the rest started it in the university. But once we passed out, almost all girls started wearing fashionable Hijab,” she added.

While Purdah (veil) is considered as a fundamental part of Islam and it ought to be as simple as it could be, Kashmiri women can be seen making a style statement out of it in the Valley.

The Hijab wearing girls defend blending both western and Muslim cultures. “What is wrong if you look fashionable? If you wear fashionable attire within the limits of religion, there is no harm,” says Shazia, who teaches in a government school.

“The attire has to undergo a change so that we can keep pace with the fast modernising society. I started wearing Hijab out of my own choice during college days. But, I wear it only over jeans as otherwise it looks very medieval,” she says.

The rising inclination of Kashmiri women towards Hijab in a modern way is seen as following in the footsteps of women in the Middle East. “I have been to Sharjah, Dubai and other Gulf countries several times where most women wear Hijab over jeans.

The same trend is fast catching up here as

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more and more young girls in Kashmir are combining Hijab with western outfits to look fashionable,” Shazia adds.

A survey carried out by Kashmir University’s Sociology Department reveals that 66 per cent of women in the Valley have voluntarily adopted Hijab while 31 per cent did it after being persu­aded and a mere three per cent did it after being forced. The survey done in 10 districts of Kashmir in 2013-14.

It reveals that 69 per cent of women who practise Hijab were employees in government and non-governmental sector while 27 per cent were students. “As many as 92 per cent of women interviewed during the survey revealed that they practise Hijab due to religious reasons while 3.75 per cent said they wear Hijab due to cultural reasons,” the survey reveals.

Kashmir’s leading sociologist Prof Bashir Ahmad Dabla says that general impression had been created in the country that Muslim women who practise Hijab are usually illiterate, dogmatic, irrational and backward.

“Same impression had been created among Kashmir women. But Hijab practice in Kashmir has created no serious hurdle in the functioning of day-to-day normal social life. There seems to be no co-relation between Hijab and backwardness and illiteracy. Rather there is a correlation between Hijab and education and progress,” he told Deccan Herald.

Dabla says that Hijab was prevalent in Kashmiri society from earlier times after conversion to Islam in 14th century. “But it has increased tremendously in the past few years and this new trend can be explained in terms of exogenous and indigenous developments,” he says.

Elaborating it, he said, while the indi­ genous refer to educational, economic and political developments in the state, exogenous refer to political, religious and other developments in the Muslim world, particularly in Iran. “This trend represents a self-initiated effort and was not imposed by force,” he added.

Dabla says that prevailing political and religious conditions in Kashmir have supported the practice of Hijab. “While this practice in continuity has influenced the entire way of life, it involved women of all classes, groups and communities in Kashmir,” he added.

Asked to comment on Kashmiri women blending both western and Muslim cultures, by wearing both Hijab and jeans, Dabla said: “Jeans and Hijab don’t go in contradiction to each other. It is just like driving and Hijab. Modern Hijab styles provide them a freedom to look different in accordance with the religious obligations.”

(Courtesy NewAgeIslam)

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India’s largest state-owned bank to launch Shariah Equity Fund Mumtaz Alam With State Bank of India (SBI), country’s largest public sector bank, set to launch Shariah Equity Fund next month, India will become the second country outside the Muslim world to have a government-run bank making a Shariah-compliant mutual fund offering. In June, the United Kingdom had issued sovereign Islamic bonds.

SBI is rolling out an Islamic financial instrument to tap the country’s estimated 170-million Muslim population. As Islam prohibits interest, a huge part of the community, it is said, is out of banking stream, particularly investment. This is clear before the SBI and that’s why it has listed items in which the Shariah Equity Fund will not invest.

“The sector based screening excludes the following sectors: Advertising & Media, Alcohol, Cloning, Financials, Gambling, Pork, Pornography, Tobacco,” reads a presentation from SBI Funds Management Private Limited. About Financials sector, the 28-page paper, however, clarifies that the SBI Shariah Equity Fund “will invest in money market instruments only if they are approved by the Shariah Board.”

The presentation paper carries a scan copy of the supportive fatwa from Khalid Saifullah Rehmani, General Secretary, Islamic Fiqh Academy, and Founder Member and Member Executive Council, All India

Muhammad most popular boy’s name in UK

A survey conducted by a parenting website has declared the name Muhammad to be the most popular name for baby boys in Britain.

Muhammad jumped 27 spots from last year to claim the top spot on the list of the 100 most popular baby boy names for 2014.

The Arabic names Omar, Ali and Ibrahim also made it onto the list for the first time this year.

Muhammad, means “the praised one” and “praised” from Arabic. First seen in the top 100 boys’ names in the 1950s, Muhammad has taken the lead in 2014. The name can be spelled 10 different ways, so when they’re all added together, it jumps up to first place.

For girls, Nur, a new name on the list, ranked as the 29th most popular name. Maryam surged 59 spots to the 35th spot.

Meanwhile, the popularity of British royal names waned. Charlie and Harry fell three places each to numbers six and seven on the list, and William fell to the 12th spot. The name George fell five spots to no. 18.

China, US team up to weed out extremist content from internet

Shedding their differences, China and the US are coordinating to weed out extremist materials on the internet even as Beijing continues to battle violence in the Muslim-majority Xinjiang region where the al-Qaeda backed militant groups have been active in the recent years.

Counter-terrorism work between China and the US has helped authorities in tracking down and deleting a number of violent, extremist propaganda video and audio programmes stored on the US servers, a senior official from the Ministry of Public Security said here.

“We have agreed on enhancing judicial cooperation on fighting terrorism, especially cracking down on violent and terrorist audio and video files released online in the US,” Yang Shaowen, deputy director of the ministry’s International Cooperation Bureau was quoted by the state-run China Daily today.

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Muslim Personal Law Board. Another fatwa featuring the paper is from Maulana Mufti Muhammad Shuaibullah Khan, Founder and rector of Jamia Islamia Maseehul Uloom and Member of Islamic Investment Finance Board (IIFB).

The Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI), country’s banking regulator, has released a 60-page scheme information document about the SBI Shariah Equity Fund. Among others, SEBI defines the role of Shariah Board in the document paper.

“The scheme will be advised by a Shariah board. The functions of the Shariah board are as given below: Shariah structuring, Procurement of Fatwa, Shariah review of legal documents.”

The investment objective of the scheme is to provide medium to long term capital gains by investing in Shariah Compliant Equity & Equity related instruments. The fund will invest in money market instruments only if they are approved by the Shariah Board. The Scheme shall not invest in ADR/ GDR/ foreign securities. The Scheme shall not invest in derivatives, says SEBI. “The fund manager will consult the Shariah board to ensure adherence to Shariah laws in the portfolio. The Shariah board shall be appointed by the AMC (Asset Management Companies) and further, the AMC may at its discretion replace/ change the Shariah advisory board as deemed fit,” explains SEBI.

Iran calls for Muslim unity

According to consultants Ernst and Young, global Islamic banking assets, tapped by major international bankers from HSBC to Standard Chartered Bank, were estimated at $1.8 trillion (about Rs. 112 lakh crore) in 2013.

Another factor that might have pushed SBI to give a nod to Shariah-compliant mutual fund is the fact that Islamic banks were not affected by the 2008 global financial crisis.

“Islamic banks generally escaped the worst effects of the 2008 financial crisis because they were not exposed to subprime and toxic assets,” World Bank managing director Mahmoud Mohieldin said in a research note last month.

The Bombay Stock Exchange launched India’s first Shariah index — S&P BSE 500

Shariah — in May 2013. Over the past year, it has given a return of a robust 46%, greater than the 30-share BSE Sensex’s annualised return of 41%, says Hindustan Times.

The first indication that the government of India was considering about a Shariah-compliant mutual fund came as early as in January 2014 when then Minority Affairs Minister K Rahman Khan had asked the SBI to prepare a feasibility report about it.

The Muslim community had welcomed the move.

“It is a welcome step towards introducing an alternate interest free finance in the banking sector of the country,” said H Abdur Raqeeb, General Secretary, Indian Centre for Islamic Finance (ICIF) while welcoming the move of the Government of India to float a Shariah-compliant mutual fund to attract investments from the Muslim community.

For his part, his host, President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, used the occasion to express his disillusionment about the international response to the massacres in Syria and the coup in Egypt. Pope Francis hosted Egyptian President Abdel Fattah el-Sisi just four days ago at the Vatican.

Erdogan particularly cited the policies of the Syrian regime as well as the “terrorist activities” of the outlawed Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK), describing international actions as “double-standards.”

“Military coups, massacres, rights violations and bloodshed in some countries are not reacted to appropriately by the world. In fact, they are almost encouraged,” Erdoğan said.

However, Douglas Murray, author and associate editor of The Spectator, disagreed saying: “A lot of people will think this is an example of Anglican leaders not having faith in their own faith.”

Media Scan

Iranian Parliament Vice-Speaker Mohammad Hassan Aboutorabi Fard called on all the world Muslims, Shiites and Sunnis, to grow more united against the divisive plots hatched by the enemies to wreak havoc on them.

Aboutorabi Fard said the arrogant system, led by the US, has been behind creation of disputes among different ethnic groups, religions and cultures in most African, Southeastern Asian and even European countries to guarantee security of the Zionist regime of Israel.

He further said that enhancement of solidarity and unity among Islamic nations can serve as the most important strategy to refrain from sectarian disputes.

Late in October, Supreme Leader of the Islamic Revolution Ayatollah Seyed Ali Khamenei stressed that strengthening unity among the Muslim states is the prioritized policy of the Islamic Republic of Iran.

“Islamic unity which is the basic slogan of the Islamic Republic means that the Islamic Ummah shouldn’t practice hostility towards each other, but should support each other in (dealing with) important global issues,” Ayatollah Khamenei said.

He described unity and brotherhood among Muslims as one of the pillars of Islam, and emphasized that the Islamic Republic of Iran would never compromise this issue.

Ainullah

Pope warns against fundamentalism, as Erdogan slams ‘Double-Standards’

Pope Francis chose Turkey as a venue to call for an end to all forms of fundamentalism, noting that fighting hunger and poverty, rather than military intervention alone, were key to stopping fundamentalist militants carrying out “grave persecutions” in Syria and Iraq.

‘Quran should be read at Coronation of Prince Charles’: Former Bishop of Oxford

The former Bishop of Oxford, Lord Harries of Pentregarth, has said readings from the Quran, central religious text of Islam, should feature in the next Coronation, when Prince Charles succeeds to the Throne.

In a debate on the role of religion in British public life, Lord Harries, now an independent peer praised what he called “the hospitality” shown in a service last year at Bristol Cathedral.

“The relationship of the Church of England to the state has changed, is changing, and could change further,” he said in the House of Lords.

He said that at a civic service in Bristol Cathedral last year authorities had agreed to a reading of the opening passage of the Koran before the beginning of the Christian ritual. He said: “It was a brilliant creative act of accommodation that made the Muslim high sheriff feel,” as she said, warmly embraced but did not alienate the core congregation.

“That principle of hospitality can and should be reflected in many public ceremonies, including the next coronation service.”

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Jordanians protest Israel ‘Jewish State law’

Hundreds of Jordanians joined a rally Friday organised by the Muslim Brotherhood to denounce Israeli plans to enshrine in law the country’s status as the national Jewish homeland.

An estimated 1,500 protesters set off from the Husseini mosque in downtown Amman holding up signs saying “Al-Aqsa is in danger.”

“There is a greater danger today, and that is the Jewish state draft law,” Hamzeh Mansur, the former head of the Brotherhood’s Islamic Action Front party, told the protesters.

“Where is Jordan’s custodianship over Jerusalem and where is the promised Palestinian state,” he asked.

Jordan has custodianship over the Al-Aqsa mosque compound in Jerusalem -- which is holy to both Jews and Muslims -- and other Muslim holy sites in annexed Arab east Jerusalem, which the Palestinians want as the capital of their future state.

Arabs should be paid to leave Israel

Israeli Foreign Minister Avigdor Lieberman proposed that Arab citizens of Israel be offered financial incentives to leave the country and relocate to a future Palestinian state.

Lieberman, whose ultra-nationalist party is a core part of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s coalition, has previously spoken about redrawing borders but not about using sweeteners to encourage Arabs to uproot to a Palestinian state.

Lieberman has in the past called on Israeli Arabs, who make up about 20 per cent of Israel’s 8 million population, to take a loyalty oath if they want to remain in Israel, a measure that Netanyahu denounced at the time.

But Netanyahu is now backing a contentious bill that would define Israel as the Jewish nation state and enshrine certain rights for Jews. Critics say it would discriminate against Arab-Israelis and put religion and ethnicity above democracy.

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UMMAH Violence, War and Terrorism: An Islamic world View NEWS 1-2

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own sin and become one of the owners of the fire. That is the reward of evil-doers. (5: 29) But (the other’s) mind imposed on him the What role does violence killing of his brother, so he slew him and beplay in human life? In came one of the losers. (5: 30) what conditions Islam Then Allah sent a raven scratching up the permits violence to take ground, to show him how to hide his broththe form of a full-fledged er’s naked corpse. He said: Woe unto me! war? In that case, what Am I not able to be as this raven and so hide norms has Islam set for my brother’s naked corpse? And he became war? When is violence repentant. (5: 31) considered terrorism?

For that cause We decreed for the Children Does Islam permit terrorism in any spe- of Israel that whosoever killeth a human cific conditions? being for other than manslaughter or corIn many places Muslims are being made ruption in the earth, it shall be as if he had the target of violence and terrorism and killed all mankind, and whoso saveth the life many other places even Muslims are adopt- of one, it shall be as if he had saved the life ing the ways of violence and terrorism. Is of all mankind. Our messengers came unto it permissible for Muslims to indulge in all them of old with clear proofs (of Allah’s Sovthis? Have they achieved any good by doing ereignty), but afterwards lo! many of them so? Will the counter violence by the Mus- became prodigals in the earth” (5:32). lims be able to stop the violence being perIn these verses, it has been stated that the petrated against them? noble son of Adam could have raised his Violence and Ethics hands for murder in self defence but he did In principle, violence is an unethical act. not; and that when it is permissible to kill Violence can be permitted in a civilized someone as punishment. They also say what society only as a punishment for crime (so a grave crime it is killing someone who is that crime is rooted out) and for defence (so not guilty of the crime of murder and causthat one can protect oneself against the vi- ing mischief on earth. The verse is immediolence of others). Barring this, violence is ately followed by the verse in which severe not fair under any circumstances. The way punishment has been prescribed for those to achieve any objective is discourse, pros- who cause mischief on earth and violate elytisation and encouragement rather than the laws and wage war against God and his violence. The use of violence for religious Prophet (s). purposes is altogether inappropriate because Permission for physical war violence is a tool for repression whereas in It has become evident that violence that Deen (faith), there is no scope for compul- causes the loss of life is permissible only sion or repression. in circumstances that have been specified.

“There is no compulsion in religion; tru- Now we will try to know when and under ly the right way has become clearly distinct what circumstances Quran has permitted from error; therefore, whoever disbelieves such violence that claims human life. in Satan and believes in Allah he indeed has As long as Muslims remained in Makkah, laid hold on the firmest handle, which shall they were not permitted to use such violence not break off, and Allah is Hearing, Know- though they were constantly being tortured. ing”. (Surah Baqra 2: 256) In some conditions, the violence perpetrated Islam is based on compassion, affection, against them had taken very inhuman forms, tolerance and forgiveness. Strife, vandal- even causing the loss of lives as happened ism, rudeness and rigidity do not conform to with Sumaiyah. It can be opined that durits spirit. Allah says: ing the initial years, the number of Muslims “Keep to forgiveness (O Muhammad), was small and they were weak. How could and enjoin kindness, and turn away from the they reply to violence with violence? But ignorant”. (Al Araf: 199) in about the 6th year of Prophethood when The Prophet (s) stressed on soft hearted- powerful and influential people like Umar ness and also said that effrontery and ex- Farooq and Hamzah bin Abdul Muttalib tremism do not produce results. had professed faith and were seeking per“Aisha (r) narrates that the holy Prophet mission to confront the oppressors, Muslims (s) said, ‘Allah is gracious and likes gra- did not get the permission to use violence ciousness. He gives what he does not give in retaliation of violence. On the contrary, on harshness nor does He give on any other they were advised to migrate to Habsha to method.’ This Hadith has been narrated by escape growing violence and torture. ThereMuslim. He has also narrated another hadith fore, more than hundred Muslims migrated that says, “Aisha (r) said, Observe compas- to Habsha. sion and abstain from violence and vulgar Muslims got the permission to use vioacts. Compassion makes a place magnifi- lence and kill the attackers after they came cent while a place devoid of care becomes to Madinah when a state had come into exdisgraced.” istence under the leadership of the Prophet This is why counter violence has also been (s) which was governed by the directives of discouraged along with prohibiting violent Allah and His Prophet (s). When even there ways as an offensive as Quran has stated: they were not allowed to live in peace and “The good deed and the evil deed are not were attacked and the Muslims who could alike. Repel the evil deed with one which is not migrate from Makkah due to some combetter, then lo! he, between whom and thee pulsion or weakness were constantly torthere was enmity, (will become) as though tured, Allah permitted them to kill those who he was a bosom friend” (Ha Meem Sajdah: were killing them in the following words: 34-35) “Sanction (to fight) is given unto those There is no denying the fact that in reli- who fight because they have been wronged; gion, violence also has a place as is in the and Allah is indeed Able to give them victocase of defence and punishment but we ry. Those who have been driven from their should try to use violence as less as possible homes unjustly only because they said: Our and the real picture of Islam which is based Lord is Allah” (22:39-40). on love, compassion, grace and forgiveness, “Fight in the way of Allah against those is presented before the humanity. That is who fight against you, but begin not hoswhy, the holy Quran has presented before tilities. Lo! Allah loveth not aggressors” us precedents when counter violence could (2:190). have been resorted to but was not.

The war the Muslims were permitted was “But recite unto them with truth the tale not an offensive one, only to attack other terof the two sons of Adam, how they offered ritories to annex them in their own state. It each a sacrifice, and it was accepted from was a defensive war started with the purpose the one of them and it was not accepted from of defeating the aggressors and deterring the other. (The one) said: I will surely kill them against further attacks. The aggressors thee. (The other) answered: Allah accepteth had not only besieged the safe sanctuary of only from those who ward off (evil). (5: 27) Muslims, the Islamic state of Madina, but Even if thou stretch out thy hand against were also hell-bent on depriving people of me to kill me, I shall not stretch out my hand their fundamental human rights of acceptagainst thee to kill thee, lo! I fear Allah, the ing the invitation to embrace Islam by using Lord of the Worlds. (5: 28) force and violence. That’s why, one objecLo! I would rather thou shouldst bear the tive of the war of the Muslims was also to punishment of the sin against me and thine Dr. Mohammad Nejatullah Siddiqi

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root out the mischief (fitnah) and the obedience of God becomes possible for whoever wanted to accept the Deen of God. “And fight them until persecution is no more, and religion is for Allah. But if they desist, then let there be no hostility except against wrong-doers” (2:193) “How should ye not fight for the cause of Allah and of the feeble among men and of the women and the children who are crying: Our Lord! Bring us forth from out of this town of which the people are oppressors!

Oh, give us from thy presence some protecting friend! Oh, give us from Thy presence some defender!” (4:75) As has been explained in the Quran, by unleashing the chain of life and death, Allah wanted to put human beings on trial to see who adopted the noble ways and who adopted the evil ways. “[He] who created death and life to test you [as to] which of you is best in deed - and He is the Exalted in Might, the Forgiving” - (Al Mulk: 2) ‘Mischief’ alters this atmosphere in which this trial takes place as some oppressors start preventing people from adopting their chosen ways forcefully. On the one hand the purpose of the Islamic jihad is to protect the life and property of the Muslims and to protect the areas under their rule, on the other, it is to remove the use of force from above the people who have been deprived of their fundamental rights mentioned in the verse quoted above. One objective of Islamic jihad is the restoration of the freedom of choice of the human beings.

The use of violence whether it is for punishment for crime, for the survival and protection of Islam and Muslims or for the restoration of the human right for freedom of choice, violence and fighting is permitted only to the extent it is necessary for a task otherwise it will come under the category of transgression and atrocity which has been strictly prohibited.

The use of violence, especially the violence that claims life is not permissible except the defensive war and punishment for crime which includes the harshest punishment for the harshest crime of Mahariba (rebellion).

“And do not kill the soul which Allah has forbidden [to be killed] except by [legal] right. This has He instructed you that you may use reason.” (Al Anam: 151) “And do not wrongfully kill any living being which Allah has forbidden; and for whoever is slain wrongfully, We have given the authority to his heir, so he should not cross limits in slaying; he will surely be helped” (17:33).

The last verse quoted above has opened the doors for violence in retaliation to violence, but it has neither been made mandatory nor has anyone been authorized to take the law into his own hands as can be ascertained from the ordainments of qisas (revenge) and which the verse (Bani Israel:33) hints at. In the case of intentional murder, it is the duty of the Islamic government to administer punishment to the killer as Qisas.

The heir or the guardians of the victim cannot take the offensive. As a general principle, it is not the way of Islam to encourage violence in retaliation to violence. Rather Islam considers it a better alternative to find ways to root out violence and adopt a policy of forgiveness towards what has happened.

“And the retribution for an evil act is an evil one like it, but whoever pardons and makes reconciliation - his reward is [due] from Allah. Indeed, He does not like wrongdoers. And whoever avenges himself after having been wronged - those have not upon them any cause [for blame]. The cause is only against the ones who wrong the people and tyrannize upon the earth without right.

Those will have a painful punishment. And whoever is patient and forgives - indeed, that is of the matters [requiring] determination. “(Ash-Shura: 40:43) Here the attitude of the virtuous son of Adam ought to be kept in mind which has come before us through the verses 28 to 34 of Surah Baqarah.

Though the pious, God-fearing believers

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(momineen) are permitted to use violence in retaliation to violence, Islam also has some lofty objectives in sight which have some other expectations. This is the point that needs to be pondered over. The issue is not that it is permissible for Muslims to use violence in retaliation to the violence perpetrated against them, we should also keep in mind whether doing so will promote the work of propagating Islam or will cause a setback to the mission of being witness to humanity.

Violence and Terrorism When some people or some group that is not in power and lives under the rule of a powerful entity resorts to retaliatory violence, the violence will sooner or later assume the form that we call terrorism today.

Killing opponents without distinguishing between combatants and non-combatants, not sparing even women, children, the old people, destroying property, resorting to inhuman methods of killing like burning, slashing organs etc has been summarily prohibited by Islam as we will discuss later.

Now take a look at the present situation.

On the one hand, there are nation states that have big armies thanks to the national resources, are equipped with the latest weapons for warfare and possess all the resources for causing large scale violence and bloodshed. On the other hand, there are individuals or groups that do not have the authority without the permission of their governments to keep even ordinary arms, leave aside acquiring latest weapons of warfare. It is not possible for these individuals and groups to keep an army. They cannot even organize a volunteer militia.

So whenever they decide to use violence against their own country or against any other country while living in their own country, they will have to adopt secret modes of operation. As a result, they will not be able to adhere to the norms Islam makes mandatory while attacking their opponents because they can neither choose their own battlefield nor the time for war. They are compelled to make secret preparations and use whatever opportunity they get to strike at the enemy.

They cannot reach the fighter planes. Therefore, they target passenger planes. Soldiers and uniformed combatants are out of their reach, so they kill ordinary citizens. They cannot reach the military installations of their enemies, so they attack commercial centres and so on.

The ‘organisation’ that resorts to such retaliatory violence is much different from and smaller than the ‘organisation’ that comes into operation under the leadership of states in power because powerless groups are destined to possess a limited organization. The history of secret organizations in the world tells us that they do not operate under one leadership for long, nor is the grip of any leadership on their activities in the field as strong as is that of organized state armies of the opponents. Every task has its limitations and compulsions. The compulsion on the retaliatory violence of individuals or groups (in retaliation to the state violence and terrorism) is that it finally takes the shape of terrorism. This issue is important that if these groups or individuals shun violence, what should they do? How should they defend themselves and achieve their objectives?

But before that we should come to the conclusion that terrorism is not permissible.

Dr Mohammad Nejatullah Siddiqui is a leading Indian Islamic scholar, whose specialisation is Islamic Economics. Recipient of the King Faisal Award for Islamic Studies, he has taught at the Aligarh Muslim University and the King Abdul Aziz University, Jeddah. He can be reached at mnsiddiqi@hotmail.com This article is extracted the author’s Urdu book “ikkeeswwin sadi mein Islam, Muslaman aur tehreek-e-Islami” [Islam, Muslims and Islamic Movement in the 21st century, Courtesy translation by New Age Islam Edit Desk)

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The 99 Divine attributes of Allah Part 4 - Attributes 16-24 of Allah BEYOND THE BOX Dr Q Ashfaq Ahmad This issue continues the series exclusive to AMUST on the 99 divine attributes of Allah.

Read previous parts at www.amust.com.au/category/education/beyondthe-box/ Part 4 - Attributes 16-24 of Allah 16. Al-Wahhāb – The All-Giver “(They say): ‘Our Rabb! Let not our hearts deviate (from the Truth) after You have guided us, and grant us mercy from You. Truly, You are The Bestower, The All-Giver.’”

(Quran: Āle-Imrān, 03:08) “Has the reminder been revealed to him from among Us? Nay they are in doubt as to My Reminder. Nay they have not yet tasted My chastisement. Or have they the treasures of the mercy of your Rabb, The All-Mighty, The All-Giver.”

(Quran: Sād, 08:09) Allah is the wholesome Owner of all small and large, material and non-material things and sources. He is capable of providing the requirements of vast quantity and All-Giver of best quality. Hence He is the All-Giver of everything. No one should hesitate or feel shy for not asking from Allah any need from Him. Rather He is much pleased if anyone expects and asks Him with full sincerity and genuine purpose.

17. Al-Razzāq – The Bestower of Sustenance “And I (Allah) created not the Jinn and mankind except that they should worship Me (alone).

Neither I seek sustenance from them nor I want them to feed Me. Verily, Allah is The Bestower for sustenance (17), Owner of Power, The Most Strong.”

(Quran: Adh-Dhāriyāt, 51:56, 57, 58) All creatures are in need of their sustenance and requirements. On the other hand, Allah Himself is self-sufficient and does not need any sustenance of any kind- food, clothes, material or non-material requirements.

Moreover Allah is the overall Provider of all genuine requirements.

18. Al-Fattāh – The Granter of Success 19. Al-‘Alīm – The All-Knower “Ask them (the polytheists): ‘Who provides you sustenance from the heavens and the earth?’ Say: ‘Allah’(1). ‘And verily (either) we or you are rightly guided or in manifest error’.

(Say to the polytheists) ‘You would not be questioned about our sins nor shall we be asked of what you perform’.

Say ‘Our Rabb (Sustainer) will assemble us altogether (on the Day of Judgement), then He will judge between us with truth. And He is Al-Fattāh- the Granter of Success(18) and Al-‘Alīm- the All-Knower(19) of the state of affairs.”(2) (Quran: Sabā, 34:24, 25, 26) The polytheists addressed in these verses were not the deniers of Allah. Rather they knew and believed that the procurement and management of the sustenance also belongs to Allah. However, they still used to include others in the deity-ship with Allah.

Now the pin-point question about the Being who provides sustenance from the heavens and the earth perturbed them. If they cited a name other than Allah it construed against their own beleifs and that of the community.

On the other hand if they admitted that Allah is the Sustainer another objection can be brought forward: ‘What is the justification

Friday 5 December 2014

of others as the partners to Allah’. Hence they became confused. The enquirer then provides the answer of the question Himself: ‘Say Allah’.

The obvious reality is that both the believers and the non-believers are to be presented before the same One God who already knows the absolute reality and is also wellaware about our dealings. Hence, together with the awareness of the rightness, what efforts were carried by the believers for exposing the truth and what offensive steps were taken by you against insisting on your wrong verdict?

20. Al-Qābid – The Overall Withdrawer “Have you not seen how your Rabb lengthens the shadow?; and if He willed , He could have made it a permanent shadow. Then We placed the sun for it as indication (as the sun climbs up). We withdraw it towards Ourselves with a gradual withdrawal.”

(Quran: Al-Furqān, 25:45, 46) The Arabic word daleel (intention), is used for a person who navigates the boats according to the water course. To use the shadow as daleel for the sun construes that the elongation and contraction of the shadow follow the extension and degradation – that is, on the rise and setting of the sun.

Towards Ourselves means the extension or appearance of the shadow. As Allah is the full Controller and the Overall Withdrawer, this phenomenon occurs by His will.

21. Al-Basit – The Extender “And when we let the people taste mercy, they rejoice therein, but if evil afflicts them for what their hands have put forth, immediately they fall into despair. Do they not see that Allah extends provision for whom He wills and restricts (it)? Surely there are signs for those who believe.”

(Quran: Ar-Rūm, 30:36, 37) In these verses people are admonished for their meanness and narrow mindedness.

Whenever this cheap person receives favours he never acknowledges that all this has been bestowed upon him by Allah. He is deceived into thinking that all these benefits to him are because of his own competency and efforts. He gets so much intoxicated with pride and self-praise that neither he gives any importance to Allah nor even any human being. But the moment when this benevolence vanishes, he gets totally discouraged and completely disheartened.

22. Al-Khāfid –The Humbler “When the inevitable takes place and there can be no denying of its happening, some shall be amazed and others exalted.”

(Quran: Al-Wāqiah, 56:1-3) Two contrary characteristics of occurrence have been mentioned through the Arabic words khāfidah and rāfiah. These literally mean having two simultaneous occurrences. One will be that all the material will be turned over and the other can be that the material underneath will come to the top and the top one will be buried in the bottom. It also connotes that the dishonoured people will be honoured and the honoured ones will be dishonoured. This will occur on the day of Resurrection and thus Allah will honour some people and He will be the Humbler for others who consider themselves honourable in this world.

23. Al-Rāfi’ – The Promoter “And when he saw the sun rising, he said, ‘this is my Rabb; This is greater’. But when it set, he said, ‘O my people, indeed I am free from what you associate with Allah. Indeed I am turned my face (self) toward He

who created the Heavens and the Earth inclining toward truth, and I am not of those who associate others with Allah’.

And his people argued with him. He said, ‘do you argue with me concerning Allah while He has guided me? And I fear not what you associate with Him (and will not be harmed) unless my Rabb should will something. My Rabb encompasses all things in knowledge; then will you not remember?

Those who believe and do not mix their faith with wrongdoing will have more security and shall be rightly guided. That was our argument which we gave Abraham against the people, We promote by degrees whom We will. Indeed your Rabb is The Wise and The Knower.”

(Quran: Al-An’ām, 6:79-83)

company? But indeed all honour belongs to Allah Al-Mighty.”

(Quran: An-Nisā, 4:190)

The above statement of Abraham is itself the evidence that his nation was not a denier of Allah the Creator of the Heavens and the Earth. Their main sin was to make others partner to Allah in His attributes and rights.

The statement of Abraham is his affirmation about the people for the partnership of their deities with Allah.

In verse 82 the word ‘wrongdoing (zulm)’ does not mean the common aggression or injustice. The Prophet (pbuh) him defined it as ‘polytheism (shirk). Thus this verse refers to this group as comprised of the people who believe in one Allah without contaminating it with polytheistic faith and actions. Hence the security and right-guidance is qualified only to such people.

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24. Al-Mu’izz – The Raiser to Honour “Those who take deniers of the Truth as their allies; do they seek honour in their

Allah, being the source of all power and honour, grants these to whom He wills. The Arabic word ‘izzah contains more broad perception than ‘honour’. It encompasses a higher and more extensive connotation pertaining to the attainment of prestigious and high position at the level from where no one can bring him/her downgraded. It may be considered equivalent to firm sanctity.

Continued in AMUST issue #110

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BUSINESS

NEWS 1-2

BOOMERANG 3-5

COMMUNITY 6 - 10

LIFESTYLE 11

Going Big: Apples New iPhone 6 Plus

screen sizes: A iPhone 6 and 6 plus is just it easier and more accessible to do all these smartphones. the ultimate culmination of his vision that things. I will admit that having bought the Despite steep competition from Android, the iPhone would become the most impor- very first iPhone in 2007, by importing it the iPhone is still popular with 10 million In September, Apple ventant computer in our lives. from the USA, I did become an iPhone fan iPhones being sold in the launch weekend. tured into the big-screen The real reason people are gravitating to as I witnessed how it started and revolution- For hard-core Android fans, well, there are arena by releasing two larger smartphones now is that the smart- ised the concept of a smartphone. On light Android phones that cost less, have highnew iPhones, the 4.7 inch phone has become our primary computer. use the battery has lasted 48 hours which er-resolution screens (and screens even iPhone 6 and the 5.5 inch As Ben Taylor from PC World writes “As is brilliant coming from a iPhone 4S which larger than the 6 Plus), boast better battery iPhone 6 Plus. While the smartphones become our primary devices, gave up on me after half a day. I got a cus- life, have removable SD card storage, and 4.7 inch iPhone 6 has a 38 doing the jobs once held by computers and tom made wallet which can hold my cards even removable batteries. And the Android per cent larger area than even televisions, we need a product that can and my iPhone by magnets from portenzo. camp has an all-new operating system, too, its predecessor the 5S, the change, like a chameleon, to serve all of com so despite the 6 plus being quite large with Android 5.0 Lollipop. You won’t find 5.52015. inch 6This PlusCalendar has an 88 has per cent alendar beenlarger printed forfunctions”. the last decade or so by the Islamic Education & Welfare (IFEW), has been doing innovative these I canFoundation easily carry itfor around.

For people that any of thesewhich on an iPhone 6; you can’t have viewing area than the previous model.

Having owned the iPhone 6 plus for a need to put the phone in their pocket it might everything in Apple-land. That said, the In 2010, the late Steve Jobs famously stat- month now, it has certainly impressed me not be a good choice. larger screens of the new iPhones combined Planner which has Islamic dates timesmyalong with contact numbers of mosques, websites andwith otherwith keyiOS information edCalendar that “no one is ever going to buy a bigand andprayer surpassed expectations of what With the splendid Retina HD display 8’s bevy of familiar customisation mall. phone”. He seemed adamant that the size a great smartphone can do. Being a busy a resolution of 1920 X 1080, glam new features make the 6/6 Plus the most attracof the iPhone’s screen was perfect, since mother of two kids, the iPhone has certain- design, thin profile, improved battery life, tive iPhone generation yet, and the most it was the maximum width a screen could ly become my primary computer. From on- better camera, faster performance, touch tempting to Android owners in years. be and be comfortable to hold while typing line banking, shopping, reading Quran etc, ID and the prospect of Apple Pay, this is one-handed. Steve Jobs wasn’t wrong about having a much larger screen has just made the biggest leap forward yet in the world of Sakinah Ahmad is an IT graduate and a high d3V2lLZTg/preview?pli=1 school teacher.

Sakinah Ahmad

s and they are distributed free of charge through mailouts to individual and community organisations, government departments, business outlets, shops special

he booking form will be very useful for you to promote your business. details.

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AUSTRALIA 12 - 13

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#SOCIAL

SOCIAL 19

The importance of social networking for Businesses Mobinah Ahmad

Businesses have definitely realised the power of social media and learnt how they can use social media marketing to get better engagement with the public.

Social media has boomed because it offers instantaneous engagement between users.

It has: real time communication, engagement, marketing and advertising.

Real time communication takes seconds and minutes, not hours or days.

The flow between customers to businesses can be instantaneous and therefore businesses are able to tailor their product and services according to the market.

There is a sense of business culture on social media that relies upon speed and current trends, rather than planning and predicting future trends.

Businesses can immediately be informed on what is going on with their consumers and members by engaging with them on social media and gaining feedback.

Businesses place a very high value on social media marketing as it can increase exposure, sales and increase membership.

They have the ability to reach out and communicate on a personal level with their target audience on a daily basis. Using social media for marketing leads to benefits such as: • • • • • •

Increased Traffic & Exposure Developed Followers & Fans Improved search ranking Grew business partnerships Improved sales Provided marketplace insight

It is important for businesses to understand that although it is social networking, this does not mean you present your busi-

Friday 5 December 2014

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ness as too informal and disorganized manner on social media. Your business should take advantage of social media marketing and advertising by taking a planned, strategic approach.

Social media is meant for interactions with the customers and getting to know them. It’s an opportunity to build trust, rapport and be friendly. Small businesses need to understand that’s social media buyer behaviour is very different to offline advertising and therefore needs to be changed accordingly.

People are so use to blatant ads and are more drawn towards businesses adding value to their lives. There are two key elements to social media marketing. They are to: • •

Integrate with other Marketing tools Consistency across social media platforms

Social media cannot function unless it is completely embedded in your other advertising and marketing avenues. It needs to be integrated into the business and linked to marketing initiatives as an extension of the business online. Ways in which social media can be promoted is by integrating it with other marketing avenues such as: • • • • • • •

Email Marketing and Subscribers Search Engine Optimization Post Mail Online ads (Google Adwords) Print Publicity Materials Sponsorships Mobile Marketing

Linking all online content together is key to social media success.

Along with integrating it, sharing social media links in online and offline marketing areas such as a website, blog and email newsletter is essential.

It is key to include a social “share” buttons for consumers to easily share content on all their social networks.

The aim is for users to engage, to like, share or comment on posts so that they have maximum exposure.

There are three short considerations to keep in mind when posting content on a Social Media business page: • • •

Being Personable Be Useful Sharing

Being Personable Users come onto social networking sites to share and interact with their friends and families, they do not come onto these sites to be advertised to. This is why it is important not to hide behind your business. Use the social platform so people are able to view your business as personable, accessible and human. You’ll need to be open to connect to others on a friendly level. Social networks should be used to get to know your customers and consumers, learn from them, rather than doing a sales or marketing campaign. Try to think about how you want people to feel when they see or hear about your business.

Be Useful If your social media presence is not useful to users, and they are constantly bombarded with marketing of your products and services, they will not engage with your small

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business. One of the easiest ways to build trust and rapport is to be useful to the users, understand what they want and deliver it to them. A good way to do this is by sharing articles your small business have produced and content from other sources that your followers would find interesting. Engage with your users, and they will engage with your content and be willing to read it. Become a useful contributor to the Facebook community, rather than just promoting your business.

Sharing The exchange and sharing of experiences and stories is what makes social media thrive. In order to be more accessible to your audience, share your business with them, including successful outcomes. You could also share and support other businesses that are related to your business. Engaging and supporting other businesses can encourage others to support your business.

Being Personable, Be Useful and Sharing can so often be overlooked, but these are three very simple ways to take advantage of the way social media thrives, being social. You cannot use social media to promote your business and sell your products or services, you need to be able to have a particular identity and personality for users to find you more accessible and interesting.

Let them get to know you and your business, users want to be aware of who they are interacting with, and therefore be more receptive to being advertised to.

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Paradise under water: Kashmir floods Read eyewitness report on page 14

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Fundraising dinner on 12 December 2014 - Details page 14 Australasian Muslim Times

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