Annual Community Leadership Awards
And Gala Dinner
Dr. Mozammel Haque
An
Annual Community Leadership Awards & Gala Dinner, organised by Community
Leadership Foundation in Partnership with SOAS University of London, supported
by Connecting Communities was held at The Royal Regency, Manor Park, on Tuesday
12th December 2017. This Community Leadership Awards were given to
those Muslims who have been doing good works in the community also
acknowledging the services and contributions.
Dr.
Ahmad al-Dubayan, Director General of the Islamic Cultural Centre & London
Central Mosque, was given an Award for his excellent leadership role in the
British Muslim community and the role of the Islamic Cultural Centre, London.
The Award was presented by H.E. Saud Al-Hamdan, Head of the Islamic Affairs of
the Saudi Embassy in London.
Barrister
Abid Hussain finally announced: “Our final penultimate speaker is Lord Nazir
Ahmed of Rotherham. He chooses to draw the lines what he feels what he thinks
right; and he speaks for justice and against injustice. Unfortunately last year
he had to fly out and I had to take this opportunity to ask what it is meant to
give him the award that you should have last year for riding support for
locally nationally and internationally.”
While
giving the Award to Lord Ahmad, Barrister Abid said, “This is from SOAS
University Professor Ornament Tea Award giving to Lord Ahmad for what he should
have and now round of applause for our keynote speaker Lord Nazir Ahmad.”
Keynote Address at Leadership
Award Event Lord
Nazir Ahmed
While
delivering his keynote address, Lord Nazir Ahmed of Rotherham, Peer of the
House of Lords of the British Parliament, mentioned, “I had the honour of
hosting this event for many years in the House of Lords. Community Awards SOAS
and the community had been training the Awards and I had been proud of hosting
this because I think the community needs to be recognised. You know in the
United Kingdom and here in Europe and the United Kingdom our community has made
a huge contribution whether it is in the field of economic development
political development social and communities we have done lots of works.”
Lord
Ahmed said, “The point that I wanted to make that the contributions I remind
people that after the Second World War when they destroyed this country and the
Bangladeshi community in East London and Afghanis, Pakistanis, Turkish and all
the diasporas who are here tonight we are proud that our forefathers, our
elders, made a contribution in the society and made this country the richest
country today.”
“I
am reminding when some people were asking us we should issue some sort of Fatwa
against those people who believe in Caliphate. We also related to the verses in the Holy
Bible and I said that no religion no religion actually promote violence; even I
say; we used to believe the Buddhism; the Buddhist religion is the most
peaceful religion on earth and get what you see in Burma you would be horrified
to see nearly a million Muslims have been driven out of their homes. Ten thousands
who have been killed; thousands and thousands of women who have been raped,”
mentioned Lord Ahmed in his keynote speech.
Lord
Ahmed also described his visit to Bangladesh, to Cox’s Bazaar just on the line
of the border where the river is. He mentioned, “I see those one thousand
children; that ten thousand children; have come across this river to save their
lives. Children don’t leave their parents or their homes if they were not
afraid of their lives. I saw an old woman probably the same age of my mother
who had broken arms, not but actually broken into two pieces; bruises are not
fake. I saw and I met with a eleven or twelve year old girl; it is not only
flesh, she will be okay; but when I realise on the side of her leg, the bones
were coming out of her and when I asked her, she said that the Burmese had
thrown her on the fire; because the Burmese army had burnt their house and threw
them on the fire and also killed her parents.”
Lord
Ahmed also narrated the horrific events that were happened to the Rohingya
refugees. He mentioned, “When I was distributing food, I asked some young women:
how many they have seen people have been murdered. Three women, barrister
shahab was there; three women, young women, 18, 20 years old they stood up and
said my husband was killed. There were many; they said, their mothers and
sisters have been raped. So what are the points I am making even if you have
the most peaceful religion on earth; those who use and abuse nationalism with
religion; they cause disaster for all of us; whether Christians - Donald Trump
is a Christian but do you believe what he does and what he practices.”
Going
back to the topic of Khalifat, Lord Ahmed again mentioned, “Both Lord Qurban
said and I tried to give them proper kind of answer because so many had spoken
about these young Muslims or these fanatic who wanted to live in a Khilafat and
they wanted to have a khilafah like in Turkey, the Ottomans and I told them
that there is no such thing like khilafah after the four Caliphs – Sayyidana
Abu Bakr, Sayyidana Omar, Sayyidana Osman and Sayyidana Ali. There were the
Ottoman Empire, Mughal Empire, there were North African Empire. I told them
that the Prophet peace be upon him sent his companions to Abyssinia and then
one hundred joined them in Abyssinia who lived under a Christian ruler and they
were allowed to practice their religion very fairly like the European countries
and the United States live peacefully amongst other communities. And we have no
problem whatsoever.”
“Therefore
those fanatics, those extremists from all sides, whether they are from my
religion or from any other religion, create hatred. They wanted to create
hatred; they wanted to create wall, they wanted to create distance, divisions;
so we want to stand together and be proud of the contributions that our
communities make on daily basis in East London, in Greater London, in
Yorkshire, in Scotland; all of you who have come here,” said Lord Ahmed.
Then
Lord Ahmed expressed his thanks to Barrister Abid, his team and SOAS. He said, “You
have attended all the awards in the House of Lords. It is a very small place
and there was a smaller sort of celebrations. This is a huge gathering of the
community and I am very proud to be with you tonight. Thank you Barrister
Saheb; thank you. But I want to say how proud I am all of you for the
contributions that you make at every level whether in this country, whether in
economy, or in political life; social life; there are many doctors in the
National Health Service; NHS would not be as good as it is today without the
works of Asians and Muslim doctors today. So all of you together we make
contributions and thank you for recognising the great works there are and
please continuing doing hard work and we wanted to come back next year even
celebrate many more of you.”
