MastTheMagazine Summer-Autumn2022

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28 INTRODUCTION

What a beautiful Summer it has been!

As we step into Autumn, this edition looks back at the many events held as always during summer. We take-off where we stopped just before the Platinum Jubilee Celebrations and what a time it was.

Some of us were lucky to have witnessed the celebrations in our home cities, towns, villages and in London around Buckingham Palace.

Locally both the Magazine and MTM Awards were involved in the Queen’s Platinum Biriani Street Party on St. Mark’s Road Bristol.

Across the M4 in Swindon Cllr. Bazil Solomon and MTM Award Winner Jane Norgrove of Natural Selections Salon organised the first Natural Selection Charity Association Walk to raise awareness for mental health.

Glastonbury was a big one for us as Junior Sheikh joined RSVP at the Glastonbury Festival , in his words, “an experience I will always cherish’.

July 7th in conjuction with SWMN and Bristol Black Carers we organised a ‘first Kiswahili Day Evening at the historic River Room, the House of Lords with the kind permission of the Lord Speaker of the House of Lords.

We were hosted by Baroness Sandy Verma and H E the High Comissioner of the United Republic of Tanzania Asha -Rose Migiro was chief guest, representatives from the Kenya and Rwanda High Commissioners also attended amongst other guests.

Quoting Baroness Verma, “ History has been made today, never in the 200 year history of this House have we seen sing and dance in the House’.

Talking about the MTM Awards its good to know that the MTM Awards 10th anniversary celebrations have kicked off, #10&Beyond where not only are the awards going green at the Glittering Gala Award Evening at the Bristol Marriott Hotel City Centre on Saturday November 26th, 2022 the group is encouraging partners to be sustainable and support the cause.

Big Q

MENTAL HEALTH AWARENESS

Mental health awareness is the ongoing effort to reduce the stigma around mental illness and mental health conditions by sharing our personal experiences.

Often, because of misconceptions about mental health and mental fitness, people often suffer in silence and their conditions go untreated.

In recent years, there has been increasing acknowledgement of the important role mental health plays in achieving global development goals, as illustrated by the inclusion of mental health in the Sustainable Development Goals.

Depression is one of the leading causes of disability.

Suicide is the fourth leading cause of death among 15-29-year-olds. People with severe mental health conditions die prematurely – as much as two decades early – due to preventable physical conditions.

Despite progress in some countries, people with mental health conditions often experience severe human rights violations, discrimination, and stigma.

Many mental health conditions can be effectively treated at relatively low cost, yet the gap between people needing care and those with access to care remains substantial.

Effective treatment coverage remains extremely low.

Increased investment is required on all fronts: for mental health awareness to increase understanding and reduce stigma; for efforts to increase access to quality mental health care and effective treatments; and for research to identify new treatments and improve existing treatments for all mental disorders.

Mental health includes our emotional, psychological, and social well-being. It affects how we think, feel, and act. It also helps determine how we handle stress, relate to others, and make choices.

Mental health is important at every stage of life, from childhood and adolescence through adulthood.

What causes mental health issues?

Stressful life situations, such as financial problems, a loved one’s death or a divorce.

An ongoing (chronic) medical condition, such as diabetes.

Brain damage as a result of a serious injury (traumatic brain injury), such as a violent blow to the head.

What things help mental health?

Connect with other people. Good relationships are important for your mental wellbeing. ...

Be physically active. Being active is not only great for your physical health and fitness. ...

Learn new skills. ...

Give to others. ...

Pay attention to the present moment (mindfulness)

Mental Health in Asian, Black Ethnic Community.

Research suggests that the adult Black community is 20% more likely to experience serious mental health problems, such as Major Depressive Disorder or Generalized Anxiety Disorder.7.

Existing inequalities have made mental health of BAME groups worse during pandemic, says Mind, UK

A survey of over 14,000 adults by the mental health charity Mind has revealed that existing inequalities in housing, employment, finances and other issues have had a greater impact on the mental health of people from different Black, Asian and Ethnic Minority (BAME) groups than white people during the coronavirus pandemic.

What You Can Do to Help

Although the general perception of mental illness has improved over the past decades, studies show that stigma against mental

illness is still powerful, largely due to media stereotypes and lack of education, and that people tend to attach negative stigmas to mental health conditions at a far higher rate than to other diseases and disabilities, such as cancer, diabetes or heart disease.

Stigma in communities.

Stigma affects not only the number seeking treatment, but also the number of resources

see you as an individual and not as your illness can make the biggest difference for someone who is struggling with their mental health.

Influence

Advocating within our circles of influence helps ensure these individuals have the same rights and opportunities as other members of your places of worship school and community.

Learning more about mental health allows us to provide helpful support to those affected in our families and communities.

Walk for Mental Health NSCA

MTM Award winning Hair Salon organised the Walk for Mental Health, Picnic and Heritage at Lydiard Park House Swindon, Attended by residents of all heritages life stories created a timeless moment of shared common humanity.

A first event for NSCA leaders Jane, Sandra, Anne-Marie, Christine and volunteers Sharon, Amelie, Anita and Peter. Also present were members of Swindon and Gloucestershire Mind

They shared powerful stories of grief, struggle and hope.

silently struggling is: You don’t have to live that way. You don’t have to struggle in silence. You can be un-silent.

You can live well with a mental health condition, as long as you open up to somebody about it, because it’s really important you share your experience with people so that you can get the help that you need.” — Demi Lovato

World Mental Health Day

World Mental Health Day is happening on Monday October 10 2022. The official theme is ‘Make mental health and wellbeing for all a global priority’ and we’ll be exploring how we can put mental health at the top of our personal agenda, and how to create social and work environments that are conducive to looking after number one first.

available for proper treatment.

Stigma and misinformation can feel like overwhelming obstacles for someone who is struggling with a mental health condition. Here a few powerful things you can do to help:

Respect

Showing individuals respect and acceptance removes a significant barrier to successfully coping with their illness. Having people

A fun day for all and a day to share and speak up.

For NSCA mental health information and community events please contact, Bsolomon@swindon.gov.uk jane@naturalselectionsalon.co.uk

Advice

“The advice I’d give to somebody that’s

Chinese Community Wellbeing

Chinese Lantern Project

BRIMS & BOWS 2022

Bristol Black carers is an award-winning charity committed to providing personcentred and holistic services. After a hiatus of two years the organisations held their now a must calebdar year event Brims & Bows at the Gloucester County Grounds.

The Afternoon teas was attened by a cross-section of the Bristol community and Manager Anndeloris Chacon was presented with an appreciation in honour of her passion, dedication and commitment to services.

BRISTOL BLACK CARERS

Families in South Gloucestershire enjoyed a fun day at Patchway Fire Station on 16 August. This event was organised for the Chinese community especially the new immigrants for them to meet and to interact with staff from Avon Fire & Rescue Service. A great day out for children during the summer holiday. Dementia

On the 1st of August, as part of the BAME Dementia Coordinator and Dementia Support Hub for ESEA Carers Ageing Well pilot projects funded by NHS BNSSG ICB, CCWS held a dementia information workshop at the Vassall Centre to raise awareness about brain health. Attendees on the day enjoyed talks on brain health and dementia awareness and participated in activity sessions including gentle yoga and brain health exercises.

East and South East Asian (ESEA) Carers Dementia Support Hub

The Dementia Support Hub is a pilot project funded by NHS Bristol, North Somerset and South Gloucestershire Integrated Care Board (BNSSG ICB). Our services include a wide range of workshops to provide support and assistance for East and South East Asian dementia carers, as well as a library for carers and the general public to provide information about dementia. The carers’ physical and mental health is our main concern and we aim to reduce their stress.

ESEA Community Enablement Hub

“East and South East Asian (ESEA) Community Enablement Hub” project is led by CCWS and funded by West England Combined Authority. The main objectives are to help new migrants of Chinese and Non-Chinese to enhance their employability prospect through referral to our collaboration partner organisations. These may include one-to-one tailor-made program of skills training and employment support whilst strengthening their overall wellbeing as well as social integration.

Spot the signs of dementia Get early support for your family

day is today?

8 of the Vassall Centre, Gill Avenue, Fishponds,

Article by Kevin Chong

East And South East Asian Carers Dementia Support Hub

Article by Anndeloris Chacon

PROFILE: Harivadan aka John Patel

J. Thank You John Patel for inviting me to your wonderful home-let’s start from the beginning, where are you from, where were you born.

HP. I was born in a place called Baroda now known as Vrodha in Gujarat, India. I grew up there till the age of 10 when we moved to Rhodesia & Nyasaland in Africa. I did my schooling there till 16,

J. What was the reason to move to East Africa?

HP. My father was a teacher in Africa, having moved there after the Second World War, I joined him with my mum, sister and three brothers.

J. What were those years like?

HP. Extremely happy-,we had a very good life, had everything we needed– extremely a very happy childhood.

J. What was the leadership like as it was then known as Rhodesia, now Zimbabwe?

HP. Since I was eight, I wanted to join the air force, so when I was there I joined the air cadets and had actually applied for a commission in the Rhodesian Royal Airforce. At the time Ian Smith the self-proclaimed Prime Minster declared UDI (Unity Declaration of Independence) from Britain –that meant positions of the armed forces were for white only. The air- attaché at that time in Rhodesia suggested I travel to Britain and join the Royal Airforce. He organised it all for me, I landed in Britain on the 20th of June 1966 at midnight, by 8 am in the morning I was at the Air Crew selection centre. People at the recruitment exercise asked me, how long I have been in Britain, I said eight hours.

come to Britain and joining the Royal Airforce, the competition was fierce, we started with 400 recruits on Monday morning, every half an hour we did a test and whoever failed was sent back home. Of the 400 at the start by Friday there were only six of us left. At the air crew training, 200 started three years later three of us were left. Every Friday we were tested including flying, unless you scored 80% and above you were sent home, RTU (Return to Unit) Fridays were known as chop days. I was the only person of colour; in 1966 there was a lot of prejudice and one had to fight prejudice. When I got commissioned I was the odd one out, and getting my wings, I couldn’t believe it. I started flying, I was based at RAF Brize Norton, 10 Squadron, which was at that time the cream of the cream – it was the best aircraft at the time. We had regular service to Singapore, I did that for six years, and I got to know places and people. In my 20 years of flying I visited close to 20 countries.

J. Before I ask my next question, I would like to talk a little bit more about the discrimination you experienced in that era, did you feel like you had to work 10 times more than the others and were there times to felt like giving up

HP. Absolutely all the time, first of all you face discrimination, secondly they give you the most difficult tasks so that you can give up. I had to keep my cool, do my task well and prove to them I was better than any of the six. They once asked me, what would I do if I fail the course, I answered I will not fail, I am not here to fail, I am here to succeed.

J. Just thinking about the young generations of today, people like us, when they face discrimination, when they face adversity, when barriers are put in front of them, what your advice would be.

HP. Believe in yourself, whatever doesn’t break you makes you stronger. IF you can produce the results, there’s no stopping you. If you are achieving 95% and the pass mark is 80% - they cannot ignore you even with prejudice – strive to achieve to overcome prejudice.

Work twice as hard, keep your cool, keep your mouth zipped and prove to them you are the best, there’s nothing in the world that one cannot achieve, even if you fail, use the failure as a spring board, analyse it and bounce back.

J. That’s some fantastic advice and I hope people reading or listening to the audio take that on board as well. Back to the 80 countries you visited around the world, which is the one trip, the one place that really sticks up in your mind

end of the RAF service, what you did next.

HP. I became a bursar of a boarding school, the only job offered to me at the time; I did that for a year then joined a firm in Swindon called Galileo They designed the airline reservation system which the whole world is now using called Galileo After two years I decided to pursue my education further, I studied for a degree in system analysts it was a four year course.

J. What was it like as a mature student.

Hard work, I was the oldest on the whole course. They nick-named me granddad, all the students were between the age of 18-20 and here I was at 42. but got through with an honours degree and that’s when I joined the NHS.

Lord Joel Joffe, the person that defended Nelson Mandela in South Africa, was the chairman of the NHS and he and another came to my house and offered me a position on the NHS board.

J. I heard of Lord Joffe in 2017 we did a walk for antipoaching, we happened to get lost just before Swindon, and by absolute chance this couple stopped us and asked, what we were doing,- we explained what the walk was about, and they said ‘by the way there’s a cast of an elephant just down the road’, we got there and met Lord Joffe’s wife- she invited us in, that was a cherished moment during that campaign, any sorry, let’s carry on.

HP. Lord Joffe, became a good friend, we worked together for four years, which was my first contract at board level for NHS. The reason they wanted me was purely because of my knowledge, they wanted two things from me, the first was IT knowledge and expertise, the second was Ethnic Minority involvement – the third to my surprise was dealings with complains at the family practitioner committee. I was the IT lead on the board and spent 12 years on different boards.

(Great Western Hospital) and when it was commissioned I left as my contract came to an end. I then joined the police as assessor for the National Policing Improvement Agency. My job was to assess candidates that wanted to join any of the 43 forces in England. Again I was the only non-white on the board. The police then were very insular – to break into their assessment panel and assess white candidates was something.

J. Wow, what was that experience like, coming from Rhodesia into the UK?

HP. Daunting, I was 17, never been abroad, other than India, to

HP. This was just before Christmas, our aircraft broke down, in New Zealand, as we were enroute to the South Pole, so we ended up spending Christmas there, that’s when I realised that the best place on earth is New Zealand after England For my 40th wedding anniversary, I took my wife around the world and we spent three months in New Zealand.

J. So you’ve now come to the end of your military career, the

J. Please go on HP. I Managed to turn these complains into compliments, thus reducing complains., at the time the NHS was very defensive shutting down complains – I changed that attitude gave it a new approach, thus reducing complains by 94%.

J. After the NHS, what next, in terms of your career and future planning?

HP. The last job I did for the NHS was board member of the Princess Margaret Hospital in Swindon – we built the GWH

J. You mentioned the police were very insecular then, about the mid- nineties, how did you find the diversity then.

HP. Similar to the Royal Airforce, a lot of talk about inclusion and diversity, except that it was not happening. To stay on the board if you are from an ethnic minority background, you have to be four times better to survive. I did that for seven years and that takes some doing.

J. You sound like you had to be very patient with people around you.

HP. (interjects) Totally wrong, I am actually very impatient, I am a perfectionist and when I find people who don’t meet up to my high standards I say it to their face.

J. When did you retire from active working life?

HP. I believe it was 2009. When I retired I decided either to make a living or help my community, as I was on the Royal Airforce pension anyway, so I set up a charity called Ethnic Minority Organisations especially Muslim women- after marriage ended up depressed, the evidence was there at the NHS, some attempting suicide.

We started women’s only computing classes at Swindon College – I volunteered to offer free classes, this was followed by women only swimming, badminton and also excursions to Bournemouth or Bristol – this helped them a lot and the depressed state amongst many reduced. FEMO in Swindon had 55 ethnic minority organisations under its umbrella, which included all ethnic minorities including Jews.

J. I was going to say, at that time the ethnic minorities were together, what you think is the current situation in Swindon, and do you think it’s improved.

HP. 100% it’s improved a lot, then we didn’t have different places of worships, funding for us was scare, discrimination on the NHS, the Job Centres. I got the chiefs of the NHS, Employments Services and the NHS together and said to them – it is time we are given equal opportunities.

J. It’s a lot of work to bring different communities and faiths

together, culture, food, thinking and petty politics are the biggest issue to have people on a common platform

HP. The only way things work is by listening to one another irrespective of our race or faith. Just one more thing, when I became an honorary director of the Health Authority, I was the only non-white non-executive director in the NHS, this was in 1991. We were in a conference of 400 people and the Executive Director started talking about Indians and how pathetic they were, I stood up and the Executive director was shell-shocked that a person of colour was in the Executive board- I gave them a lecture on how our skin colour does not determine our ability and excellence at work – it’s the passion and commitment that the Indian doctors put in and were not considered for promotions in 20 years. After that he referred to me as the ‘gentleman from Brixton’ – I wasn’t from Brixton, I was Swindon based.

J. It’s a very sly English way – that’s how they put us down.

HP. I actually cherished the name and was happy to use it in a positive way, this was in 1991 Since then a lot of people of colour have become executive, directors and chairs of big organisation – whatever the colour of one’s skin we are human beings first. We all descended from Africa – Eve was African – that where we all started.

J. That’s a fantastic way to complete this interview, but I would like your final word to the younger generation- your words have been very inspiring to me – so a closing for all reading or listening.

HP. I got good news, the future is bright, racism is on the decrease, loads of mixed marriages – we will all ne onethat’s the good news

J. Thank you Mr Patel, thank you for the interview, thank you for welcoming me to your house, thank for the inspiration you’ve given me – Thank You

HP. It’s been a pleasure speaking to you, I hope you go very far and I hope you take the community with you.

J. Thank You Sir.

Article by Junior Sheikh

the entire interview

Period Poverty Action Projects

Period Poverty Action Projects

By MTM

Period Poverty Awareness Projects is an ongoing campaign where we link with organisations ‘on the ground in Kenya’ to do as much as can be with the support of our partners to elevate this ‘shadow pandemic’.

Our focus when we launched this project was to provide sanitary pads, menstrual neccesaties and educate girls from puberty age to 19 as our first step.

Why Period Poverty?

Period poverty affects women and girls all over the world. Access to sanitary products, safe, hygienic spaces in which to use them and the right to manage menstruation without shame or stigma, is essential for anyone who menstruates. But for many, this is not a reality. This is not just a potential health risk - it can also mean women and girls' education, well-being, and sometimes entire lives are affected.

Periods are a normal part of life. It is increasingly recognised that good menstrual health is an essential component to wellbeing. • monthly bleeding is as natural as breating • menstruation is a biological fact - not a god-given curse • all women bleed not just in one country. Imagine not being able to afford or access sanitary products to help manage your period?

Launched in 2021 to create awareness and provide sanitary pads to girls from deprived communities.

Period poverty is the lack of access to sanitary products due to financial constraints, this can be negative impact on a girl or woman’s ability to access sanitary products to manage a most intimate and regular occurrence in her life.”

Period poverty refers to the common challenge plaguing women globally wherein they are unable to attend schools or work as a cause of a lack of funds for sanitary products.

Stigma

There is a huge stigma and lack of understanding around menstruation. This stigma exists even in cases or communities where poverty is not an issue. In cases where poverty does place challenges on menstruation, period shaming only further exacerbates the issue.

Why Lamu?

Our first stop is Lamu County in Kenya. our chosen partners for this project iis Huris Foundation FAZA, whose chair has been the inspiration in launching the project.

a newly estabilished local organisation based in Mombasa Kenya with deep roots in Faza.

Huris Foundation has used the opportunity to teach the girls about puberty, hygiene, and gender-based violence and how to remain healthy over the duration of your period.

Lamu Island is separated from mainland Kenya by just a narrow channel of water, but in every other respect it is far, far removed from there. Approachable only by plane or boat – there are no roads or cars on the island - Lamu feels unbelievably remote. At the same time, the island is full of echoes from other places for its history is steeped in foreign influences, like Portuguese, Chinese, Omani and Persian.

A few small towns and villages are dotted around Lamu, nestled against high sand dunes, tracts of mangrove forest, or long stretch of golden beach. The seascape is punctuated by the white sails of dhows. The streets are dotted with men in multi-hued kikois or simple jellabiyas/djellabas, women in Bui Bui's, kids in school uniforms made from crazy shades of pink, green or yellow fabric, donkeys carrying colourful loads of fruits and vegetables, sand or coral stone.

We kick started our campaign mid 2021 with a collection of environmental friendly sanitary towels and donations, and organised the first evert 30 hour Hair Marathon. where particpating salon donated all their proceeds from the marathon to Period Poverty Action Projects by MTM.

CUT-A-THON 2021

Karizma Barbers Yate South Gloucestershire, Natural Selections Salon Rodbourne Road Swindon

Rapunzels Hair Affair Nairobi. We also acknowledge the support from Morrison Supermarket Yate, Franclins Hair & Beauty Saloon County Road Swindon, Parish Cllr Suresh Gattapur , Cllr Karl Tomasin, Cllr Bazil Solomon and KISAF Cargo London, Taslim Husseinbhai amongst others.

Article by Q Sheikh

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The Team

Special FeatureTHE EXPLUSION 50 YEARS

ON.....

This August marks 50 years since ex-President Idi Amin ordered the expulsion of all Asian Ugandans from Uganda.

Asians in the country were given just 90 days to leave in 1972.

Former President Amin forced tens of thousands of people to leave Uganda and it brought panic, heartache and fear as it was a country they loved - and a place they called home.

Fifty years ago, the fortunes of thousands of Asians settled in Uganda for over a Century took a turn for the worse when that East African country’s maverick despot Idi Amin expelled them en-masse, ordering them to quit that country in 90 days. Bombshell for them

Amin made the cardinal mistake of tainting the entire Asian community as exploiters, crooks, and criminals sabotaging the Ugandan economy, forgetting their contribution to that country’s development.

Asians is a term used to describe diaspora communities from the Indian sub-continent jointly - India, Pakistan and Bangladesh. They found they had lost everything – their homes, businesses and livelihoods. They were reduced to refugees.

They scrambled for their passports in a desperate bid to leave Uganda within the 90 days deadline. To them, the UK was a strange country even if they held British passports because Uganda was a British colony until 1963.

At first, the UK arrogantly refused to accept them, even though they held British passports labelling them Overseas British Citizens with no right of free entry to the UK.

But as Idi Amin’s deadline drew nearer, Britain was compelled to accept some 35,000 of the 60,000 plus Asians.

One of the world’s largest (at that time) human airlifts, some 135 flights, took place from Entebbe Airport in Kampala to London Stansted Airport, flying many frightened Asians who had no idea of what lay ahead of them.

Many feared the vagaries of the bitter British winter, never having left Uganda.

The hard-working Asian community picked pieces of their life as they settled in the UK. Those were tough days for them, particularly in a country rife with racism.

Idi Amin’s ‘stupidity of expelling us,’ as one veteran Ugandan Asian put it, proved to be a big boon for the British.

The community settled in business, professions making a sizeable contribution to the British economy.

This week, half a Century on, the community reflects sombrely on the pangs of that expulsion and celebrates its unqualified success.

Many openly say, “Thank you, Idi Amin, for expelling us.”

WHY DID AMIN EXPEL UGANDA ASIANS

The precise motivation for the expulsion remains unclear. Some of his former supporters suggest that it followed a dream in which, he claimed, Allah had told him to expel them, as well as plot vengeance

Amongst the thousands expelled by General Amin was Kassam Ismail Majothi , with his wife Fatma and five children, Abdul Gani, Salim, Yunas , Hamida and Rashid.

against the British government for refusing to provide him with arms to invade Tanzania.

Amin defended the expulsion by arguing that he was giving Uganda back to the ethnic Ugandans:

We are determined to make the ordinary Ugandan master of his own destiny, and above all to see that he enjoys the wealth of his country.

Our deliberate policy is to transfer the economic control of Uganda into the hands of Ugandans, for the first time in our country’s historyIdi Amin, quoted in Uganda: a modern history.

In the South West most of the Uganda refugees settled in Bristol.

The most prominent being Rajendra Rajanu of Rajani Superstore, Rasik ‘Steve’ Patel of RJW wholesalers and Kassam Ismail Majothi of the Bristol Sweetmart.

All the three had humble beginnings in Bristol, with hardwork and passion to succeed the businesses are a pride of the South West.

Good to see a Bristol Asian retail food business pioneer IKassam smail Majothi being celebrated as the Uganda Exodus Communities celebrate 50 years since they were expelled from Uganda, East Africa by General Idi Amin Dada.

Interesting that this ICONIC billboard of a Food Business Legend Kassam Ismail Majothi stands by the Bristol Marriott Hotel City Centre, the home of the MTM Awards since 2014 and it is at the Inaugural MTM South West Asian Awards in 2012 where Mr Kassam Ismail

THE RETURN OF UGANDA ASIANS IN UGANDA.

Since their return to the country in the 1980s and 1990s, Asians from the Indian subcontinent have once again become a pillar of the country’s economy. Drop by an upmarket hotel, cafe or restaurant in Uganda’s capital, Kampala, and the chances are the owner will be an Asian from the Indian subcontinent.

From running banks to farms to supermarkets to shopping malls, Ugandan Asians have regained their prominent role in the country’s economy, following their mass expulsion more than five decades ago. At the time, they owned 90% of the country’s businesses and accounted for 90% of Ugandan tax revenues.

Now, despite making up less than 1% of the population, they are estimated to contribute up to 65% of Uganda’s tax revenues. One of those who came back is today the country’s richest man, Sudhir Ruperalia, worth an estimated $800m.

President Museveni has said that the expulsion of Asians from Uganda by former President Idi Amin Dada in 1972 was a very shameful chapter in the history of the nation and completely unforgettable. President Museveni after taking power in 1986, welcomed back the Asian community and returned their properties.

Article adapted by Q Sheikh

Majothi was honoured with an MTM Posthumous Award 2012, presented to his son Abdul Gani Majothi on behalf of the Majothi Family.

Mock Mayor Gloucester

Ahmed Said Hansdot

What is a Mock Mayor?

The role of Mock Mayor is celebrated due to its historical significance when Gloucester was a stronghold for the Roundhead army under Oliver Cromwell (pro-Parliamentarian) and held out against a Cavalier (Royalist) army, known as the Siege of Gloucester in 1643.

When King Charles II restored the monarchy to the throne in the 1660s he punished Gloucester for siding with the parliamentarians who had executed his father King Charles I in 1649. The walls were torn down and the boundaries of the city were made smaller, leaving Barton without a Mayor, so in response the people elected their own Mock Mayor.

Article by correspondent Gloucester

Mayor of Swindon Cllr. Abdul Amin

Mayor Amin migrated from Bangladesh to the United Kingdom in late 70’s with his siblings and parents. Soft spoken Amin spent his early years in some of the most deprived areas of Birmingham and Handsworth. After completing secondary school he moved to Swindon and set up a family business in Lechlade, Gloucestershire, and since then, set up further businesses in Swindon and the surrounding towns.

“In Swindon, I have raised my own family of seven children with my wife, Subena Akhtar. Two of my eldest children have recently completed their university studies and are now pursuing careers in their respective subjects.”

At one time the position was held by those who had made a fool of themselves but when the title was restored in the 1980s by Town Crier Alan Myatt, the role has become a position to honour those who have gone above and beyond doing their bit for the city .

The new Mock Mayor will be Ahmed Said Hansdot. Known as ‘Said’, the 62-year-old came to England in 1965 from India with his parents at the age of five and has lived in Gloucester ever since.

Said attended Widden School and started working in Birds Eye Walls in 1978, before retiring in 2012 and starting an interest in local politics from 2009 onwards. He was elected as councillor for Barton and Tredworth in 2010 and has had the honour of being Deputy Mayor and Sheriff of Gloucester.

“I feel really privileged to be selected as Mock Mayor. It’s an honour to be chosen and even though I’m now no longer a City councillor or Deputy Mayor, I still stay active in the community”.

“I try to help people whenever I can”, says Said. “Feeding the hungry, going out at night with the Salvation Army and whatever I can do for people, I won’t say no”. “The diversity of the area makes Barton and Tredworth special and I think it’s fantastic that this event recognises that”.

The election of a mock mayor is British folk tradition found in a number of communities throughout the British Isles. A mock mayor is an individual who is elected by a popular informal assembly of individuals as a parody of the official office of mayor in any given community.

During the year, the Mock Mayor of Barton, which is a non-political role, is frequently asked to present prizes, open events, and generally make his or herself useful on behalf of the community.

Having grown up in a council estate, Mayor Amin has experienced and witnessed life of struggling families and realised that community change is necessary to improve lives. He credits his parents in the upbringing that motivated him to pursue politics . He made his debut in politics in 2012, having been elected a as a councillor for Walcot and Park North in the local elections.

This is one of the most deprived wards in the Borough and is comprised of diverse communities. I

Talking to Mast, Cllr Amin have thoroughly enjoyed working as a councillor and helping members of ward with various individual and community-level issues.

He has served in a number of committees including planning, licensing, the Dorset and Wiltshire fire and rescue service as well as the Wiltshire Police and Crime panel, and is currently chair of Wiltshire’s Diverse Communities Independent Advisory Group for Wiltshire Police and a school governor for Westlea Primary School.

As a member of Swindon Rotary Club , “I am very passionate about supporting charities and through my busi nesses, I have raised thousands of pounds for various charities over the years. There are a number of charita ble organisations which play an important role in changing people’s lives. As such, it will be very difficult for me to choose just a few charities to focus on during my Mayoral year.

I have met some fantastic people through my roles and I am keen to meet more people during my role as Mayor for Swindon. I hope that I can bring together the various diverse communities of Swindon and raise money for my chosen charities.”

Cllr Amin has been Deputy Mayor of Swindon for two years.

He said: “Today is a great day for me. I am truly honoured that I will be becoming the second British-Bangladeshi Mayor within Swindon Borough Council. For myself - a man who emigrated to this country at an early age, knowing not a single word of English, and growing up in a Council estate - this is truly an honour.

“Becoming Mayor of Swindon is something I would never have dreamed I would do. I look forward to meeting so many different communities during my year in the role. I cannot wait to communicate with all the diverse communities and integrate them more within the Council.

“This is a good day, and hopefully this year will be brighter, in respect to covid. The last two years have been difficult during the pandemic, but at the same time, we have to be very proud of our town and community who have done so much fantastic work to see everybody through that period. I look forward to working with these communities within Swindon, and being their profile.”

Article by correspondent Swindon

Human Trafficking Create awareness for yourself and others too. Trafficking in human beings is considered as one of the worst crimes against humanity that leaves a disastrous effect amongst those who are being victimized. I began to grow fonder of the situation after reading an article by the New Yorker.

The woman inspired me to start reading and to understand the context of this inhumane strategy. If I could at least understand the factors magnetizing the issue towards its vulnerable victims then I could inform and educate others around me Understanding trafficking in human beings and its definition is complex.

Trafficking can go under many sections of crime. The official definition has been described under Article 3 of the UK Convention against transnational and organised crime. It defines human trafficking as “The recruitment, transportation, transfer, harbouring, or receipt of persons, by means of the threat or use of force or other forms or coercion, of abduction, of fraud, of deception, of the abuse of power or of a position of vulnerability or of the giving or receiving of payments or benefits to achieve the consent of a person having control over another person, for the purpose of exploitation.

Exploitation shall include, at a minimum, the exploitation of the prostitution of others or other forms of sexual exploitation, forced labour or services, slavery or practices similar to slavery, servitude or the removal of organs.” This definition might seem very detailed and may be difficult to understand, but the process of it is very simple.

False advertisement towards its vulnerable victims searching to better their lives presents traffickers with a full recruitment advantage. These victims are falsely advertised a job opportunity across borders that promise earnings and a good living, only to be tricked into an oppressive state of slave labour when they arrive.

Passports are taken away for blackmailing strategies; women are locked in brothels and forced into prostitution. Their identity is taken away. And most importantly, their human rights are taken away.

Trafficking is one of the worst crimes against humanity, yet it is ongoing across the world. As human rights are being violated and affected by countries whose political ideology is too greatly concerned with self-interest.

Every year, thousands of women, children and men are falsely tricked into working for an organized crime agency. They are then tortured, threatened, abused and even killed by their employers. It gets so harrowing that the victim chooses to commit suicide to escape the torture. It is a horrifying ordeal to go through, yet it is happening everywhere, and it can

These factors were known as the ‘push’ and ‘pull’ factors of trafficking, as he stressed the importance of understanding the reasons as to why trafficking is continuing and growing vastly. “Human trafficking is a highly profitable crime that is based on the principles of supply and demand and which exploits a series of push and pull factors in the countries origin and destination.

The push and pull factors are so important for an individual to understand and learn towards the consequences of being a target for human trafficking”. A strong example is poverty which brings about lack of education and opportunity. This makes one an easy target for traffickers. Glynn states: “This then pushes the target to fall prey to the hands of traffickers. This is why the victims are usually transported from rural villages to cities all across the world”. These factors go to show that lack of education on the dangers of trafficking can embark a series of dangerous motives for these traffickers. Pull factors are slightly different to push factors, as traffickers use this motive to then “pull” them in to remain within the trafficking organization.

Demand for cheap labour has been another primary factor mostly involving migrants who work illegally with little or no pay. As for these illegal immigrants, any money is better than

Whilst doing a research on the dangers of trafficking in the UK, many citizens believe that such a torture could not attract them because they are living in a safe environment and feel safe. They argue that “this type of crime is usually committed in developing countries”. It is definitely not safe to say that this crime is not happening in the UK.

This is not true, trafficking is happening in the UK and it is you and me that can stop it by reporting any suspicious cases.

The types of crimes involved were sexual exploitation, domestic servitude and other forms of illegal crime. The UK’s Centre for Social Justice has called on the government for a “radical overhaul” of measures to combat slavery, claiming the “ministers are clueless” about the current scale of slavery and human trafficking in the country.

Our once great nation of abolitionists is a shameful shadow of its former self.

Research has uncovered a shocking underworld in which children and adults, many of them UK citizens, have been forced into lives of utter degradation,We have allowed human beings in the UK to be bought and sold as mere commodities for profit, gain or gratification.

How on earth have we arrived at a place where there is no ambition or leadership to stamp out this appalling crime?”

UK Projects, that have interviewed many on some UK streets find the mention ’human trafficking’, shockingly, most did not have the slightest knowledge of what human trafficking meant.

This is sad in a country where education is in plenty, so imagine in countries where they do not have opportunities of knowledge and education as we do this term would mean nothing, hence the vulnerability.

It is important to encourage victims to report abuse and seek help from welfare agencies without facing the threat of criminal prosecution.

no money. It pulls in and tricks the victim into staying in the business.

It is also important for people to create awareness of the ills of this modern day slavery.

happen to anyone.

Approximately, six hundred million to eight hundred million people are trafficked every year across international borders. This estimation may seem horrifying to many, but it is happening, and it is ongoing. Children are sold into slavery. Women are sold into prostitution, and this is just a portion of what these international crime organizations are doing.

Organizations such as “Stop The Traffic” have statistically stated that it is “The world’s fastest global crime” and yet, many still have zero awareness of this issue. Cristina Andreatta owns a non-profit foundation for human trafficking in Watford, England. She tells me: “It is definitely hard to spot a victim, because it is so well hidden”… So well hidden, that it is difficult to get these victims out.

Some of these victims are so well brainwashed, that they are too afraid to escape and tell officials what is happening to them. This reminded me of a talk I had attended in Coventry by Glynn Rankin, the director of legal services at the UK human trafficking centre. He helped those to understand the factors leading towards trafficking victims.

They are too afraid to come forward, making it difficult to spot who is a victim and who is not. It is definitely hard to get them to talk. The most influencing way to stop this crime from happening is to inform people of it

As many civil societies and NGO’s are coming forward to help fight human trafficking by creating awareness, the world still needs a massive push to educate women, children and men of the dangers of being trafficked.

This is why we need to start educating those around us and in institutions.

Educating a person of the matter may not completely fight it off, but it can help prevent a person from being a victim.

The push and pull factors are a first step to understanding the targets and motives of a trafficker. Educate yourself and educate those around you.

Article by Fatma Ahmed

Zanzibari Street Food

Street food on the East African Coastline is very similar, whether in Mombasa, Daresalam, Lamu or Zanzibar. The locals in these regions thrive on street food, its kind of a norm to have street foods at times, seven days a week. This trend has created employement for many and given birth to hundreds of small street vendors.

All these meals are served with swahili Kachumbari(vegetable salad) and are often accompanied with fresh fruit juices, homemade kulfi barafu (icecreams) and fruit salads.

Chipsi Mayai

Let’s start with the one I have neither heard of nor experienced. Chipsi Mayai is the most popular comfort street food found all over Tanzania and Zanzibar island. In its most basic form, Chipsi Mayai is a simple potato-egg omelet that can be accompanied by kachumbari (swahili onion,tomato salad sprinkled with fresh lemon) and homemade chili sauce..

Zanzibari Pilau

Pilau is a staple dish of Zanzibar, and shows the heavy influence of Indian cuisine. Pilau consists of meat cooked with a wide array of Zanzibari spices, along with potatoes, onions, and coconut milk. It is served with rice which is cooked in the same pot as the meat to soak in the flavor. Pilau is another rice dish that the Zanzibaris are proud of.

Originally an Asian and Middle Eastern dish, the Zanzibar Pilau is made with Basmati rice that is infused with aromatic spices like cardamom, cinnamon, and cloves, sauteed onions, and then cooked in coconut milk for added richness.

The Zanzibar Pilau is usually paired with vegetables, beans, meat, or fish stews such as the Octopus curry.

Octopus curry.

They say Octopus has healing powers, so there is no better place than Zanzibar to heal yourself! In Zanzibar, you can have Octopus grilled, smoked, or roasted but one of the famous Octopus delicacy dishes to try on the Island is the octopus coconut curry.

Zanzibar Urojo

Zanzibar Mix is a popular Zanzibar food. A blend of Indian and African flavors, Urojo is a bowl mix of a variety of ingredients and toppings. Some of these ingredients are potatoes, chickpeas, fried Bhajias, peanuts a creamy curry sauce. As for the toppings, potato chips, fresh coconut chutney, and Piri Piri sauce are always adding the final flavor to the Urojo.

Zanzibar Mishkaki

Zanzibar Mishkaki are skewers of grilled beef that are popular in Zanzibar. They are also popular in many other East African countries. The beef is marinated in a mixture of spices and then grilled over a charcoal fire. Mishkaki is often served with a dipping sauce made from tamarind, chili peppers, and peanuts.

Zanzibar Pizza

More like a galette (savoury crepe) than a pizza, a Zanzibar pizza begins as a small ball of dough that is thinned out then piled with your choice of ingredients (such as chicken or beef) followed by onion, capsicum, an egg, a triangle of Happy Cow cheese, a dollop of mayonnaise, and chilli sauce (if you like it hot). The corners are then folded in to make a square, and the whole thing goes in the frypan. When the base is crispy, it’s flipped, then sliced into bite-sized squares, scooped onto a plate and served with a toothpick ‘fork’

Kachori

These are deep-fried balls of mashed potato (nobody’s ever lost weight in Zanzibar, in case you were wondering), spiced with chilli, lime and ginger. Squish them into a chapatti with some fireroasted redskinned peanuts, and perhaps some “salad” (shredded carrot and cabbage) and you’ve just made yourself lunch for about

Roving coconuts ( Madafu)

Yeah, okay, your plane has landed and your passport has been stamped. But you’re not actually in Zanzibar until you’ve found the roving coconuts.

Vendors pulling bamboo carts filled with young coconuts roam the streets of Stone Town with not much of a route or plan, so you have to wander around to find them.

Or just hang around outside at sunset: sometimes serendipity comes to you. They’ll lop them open for you with a machete, which is crucial, cutting a coconut fruit is an art. Once prepard they will give you the coconut, a drinking straw and a spoon made out of the coconut choppings to enjoy the delicious coconutty flesh.

Sugarcane juice

Fresh sugarcane juice, squeezed from an old-school press right before your eyes, with some ginger and lime: the taste of summer. This is an influence of the Indian traders in Zanzibar. In the United Kingdom sugarcane vendors are often seen in South hall, Leicester and cities with Indian diaspora.

UJI - Morning Special

This thin, maize-based porridge is very difficult to find after 8am, but if you get there before it runs out you’re in for a treat.

It’s sweet and moreish: and particularly good when sprinkled with a little black pepper. Sipping on uji and eavesdropping on the conversations of the locals around is a a great way to make friends and learn Swahili - the preffered langauge of Zanzibar. Well those are the selected specials I would recommend if you are planning to visit this beautful Clove Island, where people are friendly and always seen gathered in groups in what seems a jovial heated discussions but it is a way of how Zanzibaris network.

by Dija Begum

10 AmaZing Years

MTM Awards is a leading player in promoting and honouring diverse businesses and community groups . We are renowned for pushing boundaries and offering audiences a world class award evening and nominees an extraordinary experience and platform to showcase their excellence and achievements in business and community work.

Now in it’s tenth year and building on the success of MTM 2020 Awards (held in 2021), we are delighted to be able to continue to offer our stand-out awards night for 2022.

MTM Awards are offering you the opportunity to partner with us and celebrate the excellence & achievement of the Asian, Black & Ethnic Minority Communities.

MTM Awards are presented every year as a celebration of all that’s great about diverse communities and shines a light on the most innovative and dynamic businesses, community organisations, and individuals.

Our Glittering Gala Award Evening Red Carpet will be turned to Green for the 10th anniversary, this is to highlight the climate emergency and encourage businesses and community groups involved with the awards to make a positive change towards a more sustainable and greener future for us all..

MTM Awards are a uniquely cultural environment and provides our partners with the opportunity to engage with thriving businesses, communities, and cultures. We are the only ethnic focussed awards ceremony of the type in the United Kingdom, welcoming a multitude of diverse guests from the South West, across the country, spanning international waters and those on our doorsteps.

MTM Awards Celebrating the Excellence & Achievementsof the Asian, Black & Ethnic Minority Communities! MTM

The MTM Awards were created in 2012, with the collaboration of the Mast The Magazine, the South West’s First Independent Asian & Ethnic publication. We realised the need to recognise the important contributions of diverse communities, who were otherwise disregarded or used as a tick box exercise with token gestures.

It’s only when you involve with the Asian, Black & Ethnic Communities that you realise the challenges they face, the immense potential and talent they have that goes unnoticed.

MTM Awards has raised awareness for various projects and charities, since inception in 2012.

In 2017 our chosen project - Ivory Belongs To Elephants, we organised the 1st ever Great London to Bristol Ivory Belongs To Elephant Walk to create awareness of continued slaughter of the African Elephants.

In 2021 we launched Period Poverty Action Projects by MTM creating awareness and providing sanitary pads to young girls from deprived communities in Lamu. Kenya and Malaika Foundation by MTM - a project that sponsors children from poor families through education.

These were launched after a successful campaign distributing food parcels across the South West during lockdown in 2020 through our South West Food Bank by MTM.

In the last 10 years we supported Diabetes UK, Prostate Cancer UK, Dementia UK as well as Plastic Pollution & Awareness Project, a local Bristol based project amongst others.

MTM Awards Celebrating the Excellence & Achievementsof the Asian, Black & Ethnic Minorities

MTM Awards is already established as the premier Asian, Black & Ethnic Minority Communities event in the South West welcoming a multitude of diverse guests across all nations.

In our 10th year of an amazing 172 awards winners, 78 Special Recognition honours, 4950 welcomes, 6350 nominees, and over 196,500 votes cast since the inaugural awards we’ve seen a remarkable increase in participation, an immense interest from diverse communities vying for this prestigious award since 2012.

As we celebrate our tenth anniversary we thank all our nominees, finalist, winners, brand ambassadors, and partners for being there when needed most. The year 2020 and 2021 has been very challenging for all but Together We Achieved!

MTM Awards understands each nominee, we embrace and celebrate the rich dimensions of diversity contained within each individual ethnicity, gender, sexual orientation, physical abilities, religious beliefs, or other ideologies.MTM Awards is a leading player in promoting & honouring diverse business and community groups.

Celebrating the essence of business and cultureacross our diverse, rich, ethnic and minority communities.

MTM

MTM Awards are delighted to be able to continue to offer our stand-out awards night for the MTM Awards 10th Anniversary , celebrating the essence of business and culture across our diverse, rich, ethnic minority communities.

We are renowned for pushing boundaries and offering audiences a world class Glittering Gala Award Evening and nominees an extraordinary experience of a lifetime to showcase their excellence & achievements in business and community work.

MTM Awards is now one of the UK’s biggest award ceremony of it’s kind, the awards are open to all in the South West, the United Kingdom and across international waters since 2016.

The evening promises a star studded line up of entertainment, exquisite dining and celebrity guests, all present to raise the profile of the event to a global audience.

The Bristol Marriott Hotel is transformed into a glittering gala evening, the only awards ceremony of this type in the South West, welcoming over 500 guests.

MTM Awards provides sponsors with the opportunity to engage with thriving businesses. cultures and communities spanning International waters, as well as those on our door step.

MTM Awards is a celebration of excellence & achievements of the Asian, Black & Ethnic communities, but if that celebration excludes diversity across the board, then it isn’t effective for all.

Our programme of social events aims to encourage various communities by bringing together and introducing people from a range of backgrounds and experiences.

Diversity is acceptance, respect, and understanding that each individual is unique.

The

Gathering

Diverse

Anniversary

You walk the majestic Bristol Marriott doors to a champagne reception

You walk the Green Carpet glitz & glamour

You network in a uniquely diverse cultural environment

You are chaperoned to your table for a premium waiter service

You enjoy plated exquisite dining with complimentary drinks

You are treated to a unique diverse entertainment

You meet, greet & have a photo opportunity on the Green Carpet

You witness the MTM Awards Presentation

You dance the evening away at the After-Party at no extra cost

You take home an MTM Awards souvenir

MTM Awards celebrating the essence of business andculture across our rich diverse ethnic communities!

People & Places

Zanzibar Island East Africa’s Clove Island!

Zanzibar Island is a jewel in the ocean, surrounded by beaches that rate among the finest in the world. Here you can swim, snorkel or just lounge the hours away, while shoals of luminous fish graze over nearby coral gardens and pods of dolphins frolic offshore.

In the island’s capital, Zanzibar Town, sits the historic quarter of Stone Town, with a mesmerising mix of influences from Africa, Arabia, India and Europe.

For these reasons and more, Zanzibar Island (officially called Unguja) is the archipelago’s focal point, and the most popular destination for visitors, but choose your spot carefully.

The allure of Zanzibar is timeless. White sands and turquoise waters ring the island, and African, Indian, Arabic and Persian influences intertwine in Stone Town to form a rich cultural backdrop. If it is your first time visiting Tanzania’s most famous island, here are some tips to get started.

Beaches

Zanzibar’s beaches are justifiably famous. Fine white sands edge clear turquoise waters, traditional Arabic dhows sail into the dawn, silhouetted against pastel-tinted skies.

Coconut palms wave gently in the breeze. Whether as postsafari relaxation or as a stand-alone destination, the beaches on Zanzibar’s east coast and around its northern tip offer a quintessential tropical island paradise. Each beach has its own personality.

Paje is known for its kitesurfing. Matemwe has a more chilled vibe, and entices with its powdery sands and glimpses of village life Nungwi, in northern Zanzibar, sees tradition mix with contemporary life. Fishing boats launch from the beach and dhow builders ply their ancient craft against a backdrop of western-style hotels and partying.

Nearby Kendwa shares some of Nungwi’s buzz, but everything is more spread out, and the beach here has the advantage of being swimmable around the clock.

Quiet Pongwe is more isolated, and good for getting away from the crowds.

Jambiani, with its impossibly turquoise waters and sun-bleached coral-rag houses, is an ideal spot to gain insights into local life.

All the beaches are within a one to two hour drive of Stone Town. Transport in private minivans or public dalla-dallas is frequent and affordable, and it is quite feasible to base yourself at the beaches and explore Stone Town on a series of day trips.

Stone Town

Zanzibar Town is the island’s main settlement, and the historical old Stone Town is its heart and soul. It’s also a wonderful spot to get immersed in island rhythms.

Start exploring at Forodhani Gardens, a lively stretch of seafront where Zanzibaris of all ages gather in the early evening to watch the sun go down and enjoy the passing scene. Young men jump from the thick stone seawall into the harbour waters below, children play and women in bui-bui (black shawls) gather to chat.

Food vendors hawk sizzling skewers of grilled pweza (octopus), steaming bowls of urojo (a tasty coastal soup) and hot mkate wa kumimina (a filling rice-flour bread).

Just opposite the gardens is the massive Old Fort, built by Omani Arabs when they seized Zanzibar from the Portuguese in 1698. Also here is the imposing House of Wonders, which boasts what are said to be the largest carved doors in East Africa. From the House of Wonders, wind your way through Stone Town’s maze of narrow alleyways, stopping en route at the Palace Museum, with its displays on the Omani sultanate in the 19th century.

Other worthwhile stops include the beautiful Aga Khan and Ijumaa

mosques, Hamamni Persian Baths – Zanzibar’s first public baths –and the Anglican Cathedral, with its moving Slave Memorial and the East Africa Slave Trade Exhibit.

Finish up at lively, crowded Darajani Market, where sellers offer a colourful assortment of textiles, fruit, plastic ware and more. Along the way are plenty of small shops for browsing, packed with curios and fragrant with cloves, cinnamon and other spices.

Although best known today as an island paradise, there are many prominent reminders of Zanzibar’s dark history in the slave trade around Stone Town and across the island.

The market where slaves were confined in dark, airless, underground chambers before being sold still contains the chains bolted to the concrete.

Arab Slave Traders

Zanzibar was one of the largest slave ports in the vast Indian Ocean slave trade, which was dominated by Arab slave traders. The Arab slave trade originated before Islam and lasted more than a millennium. The slavers hacked their way from Bagamoyo on the Tanzania mainland coast into the African interior, as far west as the Congo. The slavers traded, bribed chiefs, pillaged and frequently kidnapped to meet the high demand for slaves. The newly acquired slaves were often forced to carry ivory and other goods back to Bagamoyo. The name Bagamoyo is derived from the Kiswahili words “bwaga moyo” which mean ‘lay down your heart’, because it was here that slaves would abandon any remaining hope of freedom or escape. Slaves who survived the long and perilous hike from the interior were then crammed into wooden boats called dhows bound for the slave markets in Stone Town, Zanzibar.

t is important to understand that in the context of the Arab Slave Trade, the term Arab represents a culture as opposed to a specific race. Many of the “Arab” slave traders such as Tippu Tip and others were indistinguishable from the “Africans” whom they enslaved and sold. All of the main racial groups in Zanzibar were involved in the slave trade in some way or other.

Article by correspondent Zanzibar

Africa is a magical and unforgettable destination with amazing wildlife, spectacular natural beauty, and diverse cultural experiences to enjoy. With so much to see and do, you will want to linger for longer.

The Rhinoceros, a creature that has been a part of the world’s ecosystem for over 60 million years; truly one of the most Iconic animals in the world symbolizing Courage, Strength and Resilience, yet, we are on the verge of losing them forever!

The Rhino was once an abundant species however, today it faces an onslaught of poaching and habitat loss. Three species are classified as “Critically Endangered,” which means they are facing the possibility of extinction; the Sumatran rhino (Dwarf), Javan rhino (Asian), and Black rhino (African).

Rhinos are solitary animals that shy away from human contact. They require a large area to roam freely and enjoy their herbivorous diet. As urbanization forces human settlement increasingly into the rhinos’ territories, causing depletion in the ecosystems, the rhinos are forced to search elsewhere for a greener pasture. This forceful habitat changes makes the Rhinos less protected from poaching! Relentless urbanization, hunting and Poaching saw the numbers perish and distribution decline.

Our current poaching crisis is attributed to the growing demand for rhino horn... Insomuch as international trade in rhino horns was banned since 1977, it continues on the black market, fetching huge profits!

A rhino’s horn has NO MAGICAL MEDICINAL VALUE! It is made of keratin, same as human hair and fingernails. Numerous scientific research proves there is no medicinal benefit to taking rhino horn remedies, however the demand hasn’t heeded to this.

Mankind has the potential to be a revolutionary force for good in this world, but only if we learn to respect the gift of life. It is not too late to be mindful and prioritize making room for our ecosystems diversity. If we can save our wildlife, we can save our Planet!

Thanks to a number of organisations which are dedicated to help saving animals in the wild, there might still be hope for these majestic creatures to continue to live in their natural environment FREE from man’s interference. JUST THE WAY IT SHOULD BE!

Vini Sumaria

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WHEN A PRINCESS CLIMBED UP THE TREETOPS IN KENYA AND CAME DOWN A QUEEN QUEEN ELIZABETH II 1926-2022

Growing up in a Commonwealth country, The Queen has always been special to me; I guess this has passed down from my dad who proudly shared with us all how my grandad, Abdulrashid MBE was honoured by the King with an MBE for his service to the community and his efforts to bring communities together.

My granddad, was known to be very pious. So following events of the Queen has been kind of a life time for me and my siblings.

The story of the young princess who went up to Treetops Lodge in Nyeri, Kenya to share a quiet moment with her husband and came down a Queen has been played to me over and over again in school and that makes me proud that it was in a small remote town by the slopes of Mount Kenya that the Queen came to being.

Treetops, founded in 1932, is Kenya’s oldest safari lodge, and Corbett was in residence when Princess Elizabeth learnt of the death of her father while she was staying in a treetop cabin there on an official visit in 1952.

Overnight Treetops became the world’s most famous tree house, and was the beginning of a royal love affair with Africa that has continued to this day. The lodge itself is a venerable affair, a wooden triple-decker ship of the forest beached on the edge of a floodlit waterhole in the mountainous Aberdare national park. No need to go jolting around in the bush when you stay at treetops. Instead the animals of the forest come to you – lured by a natural salt lick. Elephant, buffalo and bushbuck are regular, when visiting the Treetops, now that the big media houses in the world have highlighted the lodge carry warm clothing as at an altitude 6,450ft the night air is cold. Treetops are an ideal destination for peace and tranquillity.

So putting this page together has been an emotional journey as well as a privilege to be part of the millions remembering 70 years of great achievements by the world’s most loved monarch, Queen Elizabeth II.

On February 6th in 1952, outside Nyeri in the forest of the Aberdare Mountains, did a youthful Princess Elizabeth and her husband Prince Philipp climb up the ladders into a treetop hideaway, to spend the night watching the game parade by the waterhole below. Little did she know, and not learn of it until the next afternoon, that during that night her father, King George VI had died and the crown had passed to her, turning her from Princess to Queen.

The Coronation Oath

On June 2nd 1953 in the presence of more than 8,000 guests, including Prime Minister Winston Churchill ( another hero of my dad) and Heads of State from around the Commonwealth, Queen Elizabeth took the coronation oath to serve her people and to maintain the laws of God and was crowned at a coronation ceremony in Westminster Abbey in London after being handed the four symbols of authority - the orb, the sceptre, the rod of mercy and the royal ring of sapphire and rubies - the Archbishop of Canterbury, Dr Geoffrey Fisher, placed St Edward’s Crown on her head to complete the ceremony.

Looking at a Monarch in a world that has mostly left monarchy behind, yet 70 years down the line the Queen is loved across the world, she is our Queen.

Treetops

“For the first time in the history of the world,” wrote big-game hunter Jim Corbett in the Treetops logbook, “a young girl climbed into the tree as a princess and climbed down as a queen.”

Elizabeth II (Elizabeth Alexandra Mary; born 21 April 1926 is the constitutional monarch of sovereign states known as the Commonwealth realms, and head of the Commonwealth of Nations. She is also head of state of the Crown Dependencies. On her accession in 1952, she became Head of the Commonwealth and queen regnant of seven independent Commonwealth countries: the United Kingdom, Canada, Australia, New Zealand, South Africa, Pakistan, and Ceylon.

She began to undertake public duties during the Second World War, in which she served in the Auxiliary Territorial Service.

She was married to Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh, with

whom she has four children: Charles, Anne, Andrew, and Edward. The wedding of Princess Elizabeth and Philip Mountbatten took place on Thursday 20 November 1947 at Westminster Abbey in London,

After being handed the four symbols of authority - the orb, the sceptre, the rod of mercy and the royal ring of sapphire and rubies - the Archbishop of Canterbury, Dr Geoffrey Fisher, placed St Edward’s Crown on her head to complete the ceremony. Her coronation service took place in 1953, and was the first to be televised in colour.

Looking at a Monarch in a world that has mostly left monarchy behind, yet 70 years down the line the Queen is loved across the world, she is our Queen.

Elizabeth II (Elizabeth Alexandra Mary; born 21 April 1926 is the constitutional monarch of sovereign states known as the Commonwealth realms, and head of the Commonwealth of Nations. She is also head of state of the Crown Dependencies.

On her accession in 1952, she became Head of the Commonwealth and queen regnant of seven independent Commonwealth countries: the United Kingdom, Canada, Australia, New Zealand, South Africa, Pakistan, and Ceylon.

The Longest Serving Monarch

Her reign of 70 years is the longest for a British monarch; Elizabeth’s Platinum Jubilee that was celebrated in June with pomp and pageantry proven that the Queen is the peoples Queen, I was there for the four days at Buckingham Palace, squeezing through the crowds to catch a glimpse of the happenings of this milestone. Elizabeth was born in London, and educated privately at home. Her father acceded to the throne as George VI in 1936 on the abdication of his brother Edward VIII.

Since she was a small girl, she has known her destiny. Though shy, she regards being Queen as a vocation, a calling which cannot be evaded. In this tribute we take you through a pictorial life of the small woman with a globally familiar face, a hundred-carat smile – when she chooses to turn it on, and 1,000 years of history at her back.

QUEEN ELIZABETH II 1926-2022

THE QUEEN’S LEGACY WILL LIVE WITH US FOREVER

A Woman of Faith

She is a woman of faith who stands atop the Anglican Church and is called Defender of the Faith and Supreme Governor of the Church of England. The Queen takes her role as the fount of Anglican respectability very seriously, addressing the General Synod and talking regularly to its leading figures. It’s sometimes forgotten that she’s also a woman of deep Christian faith and has drawn great sustenance from her faith during difficult times in her reign.

1969 TV Documentary

The Queen is Head of the Commonwealth, a title invented in 1949 to allow the newly independent republican India to keep its association with Britain. This involved a huge amount of travel, in addition to visiting her other realms and the diplomatic and trade-boosting visits. These visits involved a lot of planning and travel, endless changes of dresses and hats and, above all, a huge amount of listening, nodding and smiling and most trying of all, are the speeches.

long or short, shall be devoted to your service and the service of our great imperial family to which we all belong.”

The Queen is known for her love of animals.

Horses were the Queen’s childhood obsession; breeding horses and racing them have amused the monarch throughout her 70-year reign.

She can be very funny, a side many have not known as it is rarely seen in public. Her love for animals in particular her corgi is known to all as these hold a very special place for Her Majesty.

In 1969, the queen gave a film crew unprecedented behind the-scenes access to life in the royal household for the documentary, Royal Family. Including footage of a family barbecue at her Balmoral Castle country estate and dinnertime chatter at her Windsor Castle. The late Duke of Edinburgh — who died last April — commissioned the documentary to make the family seem less like an ancestral dynasty. The monarch was “initially uncertain” about letting the cameras into their homes.

The almost two-hour film was viewed by 30 million people in 1969 and 350 million people saw it all over the world.

As head of state, Queen Elizabeth is the living symbol of nations, above all that of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, though another 15 besides, including Australia, Canada, New Zealand and smaller countries, down to Tuvalu.

She is not like most other constitutional monarchs. The British state has neither single written constitution nor any founding document.

Head of the Commonwealth

Her enthusiasm for the Commonwealth of Nations, which is not the private passion of many British politicians, has made her more interested in the lives of the new black and Asian Britons than one might expect.

The Queen made two outward State visits each year, accompanied by The Duke of Edinburgh. Prince Philip.

Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh was the longest-serving royal consort in world history, he died in Windsor Castle at the age of 99 on the morning of 9 April 2021, two months before his 100th birthday.

During her reign, The Queen has visited countries which no other British monarch has ever visited. Historic firsts have included the first State visits by a reigning monarch to China in 1986, Russia in October 1994, Brunei and Malaysia in 1998, and Korea in 1999. Another historic visit was a six-day State visit to South Africa in April 1995, the first since 1947 following the end of apartheid.

Elizabeth II had spoken from the heart four years before she succeeded, again in Africa, on her 21st birthday. “I declare before you all that my whole life, whether it be

If the Queen is the chairman, her chief executive is the prime minister. She has seen 15 of them. Her first, Churchill, born in 1874; her most recent, is Liz Truss that she met just before her dearth at Balmoral Castle Scotland. Every week, the chief executive meets the chairman at her palace or castle, where discretion - on both sidesis absolute. Prime ministers, without the slightest fear of jealousy or betrayal, can unburden themselves and it is said they all came to look forward to these weekly encounters.

James Callaghan, prime minister in the 1970s, observed: “The Queen offers friendliness; not friendship.” But what is discussed and what the Queen has thought of her successive prime ministers remains a mystery. The Queen’s legacy will live with us forever and May she rest in eternal peace as she joins her beloved husband Prince Philip, the Duke of Edinburgh.

#abdulhaq aka #bigQ

I will forever cherish the twelve hours wait in the queue to pay my respects to HM the Queen

Fashionista Gives You Nepal!

When we look at Fashion we first must understand the basic guidelines of a community’s dressing.

Nepalese people love their way of dressing specially the women who love bright colours and gold jewellery. Ear and nose piecering is imporant to the women especially the older folks who hold on to traditions.

Nepal is a country of scenic beauty and with the backdrop of the Himalayas dressing to depict tribe, caste or tradtions is their pride.

Energetic, most of the men are or are in-waiting to serve in the British forecesm as Gurkhas, and it is the families of Ex-Gurkhas that have settled in the United Kingdom after a long battle to earn ther right of stay that we in the UK are now getting a channce to learn and understand the Nepealese culture, food and their way of dressing.

In the South West MTM Award Winning community organisation Nepalese Association of Wiltshure have brought these cultures and colour to the South West

Nepalese traditional dresses based on caste and ethnicity.

Nepal is a diverse country with a wide range of cultural settlements. The Nepalese people remain deeply rooted in ancient old traditions and customs.

This has led to significant variations in Nepalese Clothing, both historically and in modern times. While the dress of Nepal has also been influenced by nearby countries, including India, Pakistan, Bangladesh and Sri Lanka, Nepalese clothing retains an independent identity with garments specific to the cultures of Nepal. Daura Suruwal is our national clothing of Nepal.

Beside Daura Suruwal now we have many ethnic clothing in Nepal. These are Tamang Clothing, Gurung Clothing, Magar Clothing , Newar Clothing, Kirat Clothing, Limbu Styles and Rai Clothing, to name a few popular ones. We were lucky to be treated to an open air fashion parade depicting some of these outfits, beautifully worn with different jewellery/

National Dress of Nepal

However, Daura Suruwal and Gunyu Cholo are the national dress of Nepal and get worn by Nepalese of all sections, class, and ethnicity.

Nepalese men wear Daura Suruwal with Dhaka Topi, and the women wear Gunyu Cholo.

Government Officials and others use this traditional dress on important events and festive occasions. However, ‘Gunyu Cholo,’ has lost its relevance in modern times as Sari is a favourite among the ladies.

The Daura Suruwal

Nepal has diversity in religions, ethnicity, and castes. The unique culture of the country has more than 100 ethnic groups and 90 spoken languages. These various communities have different outfits and dresses. Daura Suruwal once the national dress, young men now only wear it on occasions such as weddings. But, the daura Suruwal is still an ethnic fashion statement.

MTM Award winners Nepalese Association of Wiltshire held their second Nepalese Cultural Day in Swindon, unlike the 2021 event, 2022 saw the participation of more stalls from service organisations and the show stopper on the main stage was a Nepalese Traditional Fashion Show. We share a pictorial journey with you.

of Nepalese Association Wiltshire

MTM Award Winners RSVP

30 years and over 1,000 gigs!

“RSVP Bhangra present a high-energy, interactive and fun Bhangra music experience that really rocks the crowd and keeps them dancing all night.

From legendary UK festivals such as Glastonbury, WOMAD and The Secret Garden Party (to name but a few) to Feest in ‘t Park over in Belgium, Pennabilli down in Italy and Kulturekosmos in Germany, RSVP has rocked them all, leaving delighted audiences everywhere screaming for more...”

Undoubtedly UK’s Favourite Festival Bhangra Band

RSVP has performed at Glastonbury (10 yrs.)

WOMAD (3 yrs.)

Isle Of Wight Festival

RSVP has toured many European festivals and events.

After that intro of much appreciated nationally and internationally and not celebrated by all diverse communities in Bristol – Against All Odds RSVP are no doubt the one and only Music Ambassadors of the South West…here we go maestro is their stage cue…

RSVP are spearheading the renaissance of live Bhangra in the UK, opening doors for other artists and introducing Bhangra to mainstream audiences for the first time. From massive stages at Glastonbury (over 10 years) and Womad, to concert venues across the UK and Europe, they’re always guaranteed to get even the most reluctant on their feet, and leave audiences breathless with excitement.

RSVP Bhangra’s unique blending of Punjabi Indian music with dance beats and mainstream pop has created a new and irresistible sound that audiences everywhere love and keep on coming back for. Is it Dildar’s melodious voice and charismatic stagepresence, Judge’s deliciously engaging interactive involvement with the audience or perhaps Jeevan’s insistent Dhol drumbeats Who knows?

The resulting effect, however achieved, is immediately involving, compulsive and extremely addictive!

Every show comes with an introduction to Bhangra dance – everyone’s included with RSVP’s emphasis on partying Punjabi style. With musicians wholly rooted in an authentic living tradition, yet unafraid to innovate, this is the ultimate celebratory Indian music.

OUT & ABOUT

Inspiring Communities Bridging Cultures Celebrating Diversity..

Walyti Singh 50th

It has been 50 years of him trading and serving the community, an inspirational figure within St. Paul’s area, well known and liked by many who have lived in this area. Every morning at 9am Mr Singh opens doors of his corner shop Singh Stores on Brighton Street, St Pauls, Bristol. He arrived in the UK in 1962 from Delhi, India, took up several jobs before embarking in business. His W. Singh Stores on Brighton street is known to many as a centre for communites.

To honour his legacy three generations of his family got togther for an afternooh of meet, greet and celebrate in the neighbour, there was one special surprise guest for Mr Sigh, the Right Honourable Lord Mayor of Bristol, Councillor Paula O’Rourke.

Cultured Comedy- A platform set up by Omari Douglous and friends for comedians from diverse backgrounds to showcase their talent. Cultured Comedy are now on their 4th night and building a following around Bristol.

The Queen’s Platinum Biryani Street Partyby St Mark’s RoadCommunity Group

The Lord Lieutenant Peaches Golding delivered HM The Queen’s message to residents, traders and guests at the St Marks Road Queen’s Platinum Jubilee Street Party .

Cultured Comedy Nights

We have followed these nights since inception and they are getting better by the day.

The Lord Lieutenant was accompanied by the High Sheriff to Bristol Alex Raikes. Also attending was the Mayor of Bradley Stoke Cllr Tom Aditya, the councillors for Easton cllr Barry Parsons, Jenny Bartle and Cllr. Yassin Mohamud of Lawrence Hill.

The event highlight was the Queen’s Biryani prepared by Tehseen Majothi of Bristol Sweetmart. A first for the city, the St mark;s Community Group brought business, the local mosque, the church and communites together to mark this memorable day.

Bristol Youth Empowerment FloodAppeal

Easton Jamia Mosque hosted visitors to an open day - where the chair of the mosque took time to talk to people. The St. Mark’s Baptist church too offered tea and coiffee to those who stepped in.

A group of local youth have come together and formed Bristol Youth Empowerment - a local community organisation. Its mission is to support communities in Bristol and in Pakistan.

Their fist major event was Pakisan flood Appeal, where close to 70,000.00 was pledged.

OUT & ABOUT

Uplifting community events in Bristol & Beyond

Glad to see Grave Digger’s wife premieresin Bristol.

We featured this Somali film in our Spring Edition. In brief the Grave digger’s Wife is a love story, set in Djibouti, following Guled (Omar Abdi) whose job is to wait outside hospitals to bury new corpses.

His wife, Nasra (Yasmin Warsame) is in desperate need of an operation for her kidney infection.

Guled and his son Mahad (Kadar Abdoul-Aziz Ibrahim), figure out a way to find the money to pay for her operation – the irony being that Guled is eagerly waiting for the deaths of

do get in touch to pick a copy.

“It was the first time we watched a Somali speaking film at the Watershed. It showed our rich culture and beautiful heritage in a positive way.”

St Werburgh based Khaas Charity give local kids an enjoyable summer of creativity.

In an afternoon put together by Easton Jamia’s chair, Abdul Raoof Malik and others, Asghar Ali donated his Sunday sales towards the Easton Jamia Mosque. Bristol communities are known to support causes when needed.

Rise Awards 2022

After a 2 year hiatus the Rise Awards were back in Bristol held under the iconic Concorde plane at Aerospace, Bristol

The Tough Mudder 2022

Returning in the wake of the Covid pandemic for its sixth installment, Entertainment on the night was exciting .

Well done to Chaz Singh selected as one of the baton bearers yesterday. Good to see well deserved recognition for Chaz and all the baton bearers.

PTI Bristol

PTI Bristol’s Mubashar Chaudhry share a moment of friendship with Raja Rizwan of Raja Foods, Bristol, after a successful campaign.

Since its formation, Khaas Charity have supported vulnerable families and credit goes to the dedicated team and and volunteers who have made this possible.

Jalebi For Charity

others in order to save his dying wife. If you were one of the lucky ones invited to the showing and would like a detailed synopsis of the film , please

One cannot miss Jalebi Wala on Fishponds road opposite Eastville Park every Sunday and Bank Holidays.

Every year Frank Arko-Tharkor sets a goal for a crazy challenge. This year’s challenge was to complete The Tough Mudder 2022 15km plus 30 Obstacle Courses with a few of my friends , that included MTM Person of the Year Award winner, Poku Osei of Babassa.

Music was provided by MTM Award Winner, DJ Style from Code of the Street, BBC Radio Bristol and Ujima radio.

… and the Mayor’s Recognition Award went to Father Paul Bartlett Jenkins - a pioneering community legend - presnted by Deputy Mayor of Bristol, cllr Asher Craig. of Bristol.

This is 1 of 103 unique globes across the UK exploring the history, legacy and future of the Transatlantic Trade in Enslaved Africans - Designed by Artist Michele Curtis.

Nigerian Independance Day atthe Ocean City of Plymouth

Swindon Town leads in diverse community events!

Another year the Nepalese Association of Wiltshire excels at their annual Nepalese Cultrual Day.

On a sunny Saturday afternoon the crowds gathered and it was the traditional Nepalese pagentry and pomp.

Gracing the day was the Right Honourable Mayor of Swindon, Cllr Abdul Amin who was joined by Hon. Robert Buckland, MP, now Secretary of State for Wales.

A local retired airforce veteran Harivadan JOHN Patel donated £1000.00 to support the Gurkha Welfare Trust.

President Gyan Gurung credits team work as the big success of the current Nepalese Association of Wilktshire.

South African Cultural Day!

A great South African Cultural day in Swindon, with foods, drinks, music, dancing, meeting friends & supporters of Swindon South African heritage at the The Sun Inn, Coate run by Nick Panterlis.

Swindon currently enjoys the largest mix of diverse communities, and thanks to the local councillors we are able to paricipate and or have access to images of the many events taking place.

Walk for Mental Health

NSCA organised the Walk for Mental Health, Picnic & Heritage at Lydiard Park House Swindon.

Many residents of all heritages

Participating by sharing powerful stories of grief, struggle and hope.

For NSCA mental health information and community events please contact Bsolomon@swindon.gov.uk jane@naturalselectionsalon.co.uk

Out & About Mayor Cllr Abdul Amin

Hindu Samaj Opening Swindon

A s

A stall that attracted our attention was Freedom Kit Bags, run by Dr Rosa and John Matheson - supporting young girls with sanitary Freedom Kits.

It was a first for Nick and team with a big attendance and he made a great success of the day.

It is always good to see the diversity of people from all heritages. South Africa is a country of diverse communities. It has one of largest South Asian diaspora outside of South Asia contributing in science, foods, technology and culture.

attended & the multitude of life stories created a timeless moment of our shared common humanity.

#MentalHealthMatters

#SwindonInclusiveHeritages

A first event for NSCA with ladies from Black & Asian heritage NSCA leaders Jane, Sandra, Anne-Marie, Christine and volunteers like Sharon, Amelie, Anita, Peter & Swindon and Gloucestershire Mind.

...at the annual International Day Celebration of Citifaith Church, celebrating the cultural diversity of Swindon.

Hindu Samaj Swindon’s Hindu Centre opened its doors on Saturday, at the Wyvern House.

Hindu Samaj Swindon (HSS), the longest serving Hindu community organisation was established 50 years ago. The Hindu Samaj aims to bring communities together .

The Centre has special provision for elders and less abled to get to the first floor where the Centre and prayer room are located.

The Murtis in the Prayer room have been kindly donated by Adhen family to whose member of Late Kiran Adhen and Gurmeet Aden established a Hindu Temple in their garage for devotees.

The Centre will open every Sunday between 12-2pm.

presenting medals to our senior citizens of the Nepaleese members of the ex Gurkha Regiments Service Personnel for the great service they’ve provided for the UK here and across the world during world wars and many other conflicts.

A A

The nine nights of Navratri

Ganesh Chaturthi

Ganesh Chaturthi is celebrated as birth anniversary of Lord Ganesh. On Ganesh Chaturthi, Lord Ganesh is worshipped as the god of wisdom, prosperity and good fortune.

Swindon Navratri

When every ounce of the vibe around screams colors, dance, happiness & good food. Navratri the first set of Indian festivities has arrived. The favourite part of year!!So special to each one of us… where we get to celebrate for straight 9 days …A festival about fasting, dandiyas, Garba, pujas and of course, dressing up in your finest Indian wear….

Jamaica Independence Day

This is a milestone year for Jamaica as it marks the 60th Diamond Jubilee anniversary of independence in Gloucester, organisers say it was the biggest since Gloucester started marking this day.

Proclimation Gloucester

Out & AboutThe South West

the festival of Navratri is followed by the festival of light, Diwalli, which will be celebrated around the 24th October 2022. The five days of Diwalli following one another in a row, each having their own set of values and ideas.

Portraying the victory of good over evil. The festival of light is thew biggest Hindu festival of all. In its essecse Diwalli is all about exploring the light within and vanquishing all the flawes from our human system.

The Proclamation

The event brought communites together and with an opportunity to immerse in Jamaican heritage and culture.

A wonderful and moving Gloucester Accession Proclamation ceremony today at Shire Hall and North warehouse.

Big Shout-Out to enny Bircher, Jaimes and Hollie for volunteering today at Gloucester Feed The Hungry.

The Commandant’s Parade

One of Swindon’s community personality, Pradeep Bhardwaj was at the Royal Military Academy Sandhurst, for those attending it was a unique opportunity to see a world famous parade and to visit one of the most famous military sites in the world. The spectacular ceremony lasting around 2 hours, featured hundreds of Officer Cadets conducting a ceremonial march with a military band, to celebrate their passing out to become Officers in British Army.

Following the official proclamation of His Majesty King Charles III, the local proclamation ceremonies were held around the country, in Bristol and Taunton people of all walks of life joined to hear the proclamtion.

God Save the King.

A Wonderful Bristol Fashion Proclamation of our King Charles 111.

Organisations such as the All Nations Community Centre, Ebony Carers and GFM 96.6 were present.

The first reading of the Proclamation in the county was read by the High Sheriff of Gloucestershire, Air Marshal Sir Dusty Miller KBE, from the steps of Shire Hall, Westgate Street, Gloucester. This was followed a short service of thanksgiving led by The Right Reverend Rachel Treweek, Bishop of Gloucester. The Lord Lieutenant

I AM JUDAH SCREENS AT THE CUBE.

January 2017, shocking camera phone footage emerged showing Judah Adunbi, a 63 year old Grandfather and respected Rastafarian community elder, being tasered in the face by the police officer.

of Gloucestershire, Edward Gillespie OBE, also addressed those gathered.

In April 2019, film maker Basharat Malik, poet/activist Lawrence Hui and producer Zaheer Mamon launched a crowd funder to tell Judahs story.

Dr. Lurel Roy Hackett

Roy Hackett: the civil rights hero who stood in front of a bus – and changed Britain for ever When he arrived in the UK in 1952, he faced vicious racism – and decided to fight back.

In April 1963 Roy Hackett, who has died aged 93, stood in the

Mr Hackett was a self-proclaimed “born activist” and was an inspiration to many, with his work still continuing to create change within the city.

Roy grew up in Trench Town in Kingston, Jamaica, on the same 7th Street that was immortalised in the Bob Marley and the Wailers song Natty Dread.

Despite working as an insurance broker, among other jobs, he had struggled as a young man to make enough money even to eat. Ironically, he says he was drawn to Britain by the promises of a better life made by none other than Enoch Powell – the man whose racist “rivers of blood” speech, delivered in 1968, warned of the danger of allowing immigrants into the country. He was laid to rest om September 16th at South Bristol Cemetary.

OBITUARY

Lord Mohamed Altaf Sheikh

Lord Sheikh, the Conservative Party’s first Muslim peer and a force in the insurance industry in the City of London.

‘Idi Amin took everything from us, except what we had in our minds. We came here and were prepared to work hard, and we have done very well’

I met Lord Sheikh at the House of Lords in 2010. In that brief meeting at an event we talked about our connection to East Africa, Kenya, Uganda and the exodus of Uganda Asians by General Idi Amin Dada.

My second meeting with the Lord Sheikh was at his book launch in India House London, in June 2022, titled “An Indian in the House”, this was after I had made contacts earlier with the Lord’s office where I spoke Lady Sheikh, seeking the Lord’s sponsorship of our World Kiswahili Day – July 7th-2022 at the House of Lords.

The Lord wholeheartedly agreed to sponsor this historic day, a first in the UK and the first ever Kiswahili Day celebrated across the world.

A week before the event we were informed by Lady Sheikh that The Lord has been advised by his doctors to take some time off as he was not too well.

Mohamed Sheikh arrived in Britain in 1962, 10 years before Idi Amin forced Uganda’s Asian business community to leave the country.

Mohamed Iltaf Sheikh was born in Kenya on June 13 1941, the son of Mohamed Abdullah Sheikh and Kalsum Ara Sheikh; the family originated from the Punjab. He was 81.

middle of Fishponds Road in Bristol to block the entrance to the city’s main bus station. His mission, as one of the organisers of the Bristol bus boycott, was to draw attention to the Bristol Omnibus Company’s refusal to employ black and Asian people as conductors and drivers.

The boycott, which Hackett planned with three fellow campaigners, Paul Stephenson, Owen Henry and Guy ReidBailey, lasted for four months until the company caved in. Roy founded and led many causes such as the West Indian Parents’ and Friends’ Association, which was the springboard for countless initiatives including the now renowned St Paul’s Carnival.

He has described his early years in the UK as a “dog’s life”, but turned it into a legacy.

Our Warmest Condolences Thoughts and Prayers go out to his family. #Junior

By the time his hitherto wealthy family arrived penniless in London, he was on the rise at Guardian Royal Exchange. A philanthropist and a published author, Sheikh was an active member of the Lords. From his maiden speech onwards, he pressed successive governments to do more to combat climate change.

In 2017, he called for Britain to follow New Zealand and require the Cabinet to consider the implications for carbon emissions of every decision it took.

The Lord Sheikh founded the all-party group on Islamic and Ethical Finance, He was also the founding chairman of the National Muslim War Memorial Trust.

He was laid to rest today at at Greenlawn Memorial Park, Croydon.

Our Warmest Condolences Thoughts and Prayers go out to his family.

#Q

Decori

are specialists in luxury decorating, painting and surface coating techniques which create unique aesthetic features that provide a truly original touch to your interior design.

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also understandably fallen for this gorgeous natural material and its immense design potential. This has led to the creation of stone-effect paints and, in turn, surfaces that you “just can’t resist running your hand across”; walls that allow us to indulge our sense of touch

enjoy tactile pleasures that the modern technological world

robbed us