BORDER CONTROL ISSUES
The homecoming of loved ones from an overseas trip has always created that extra excitement in the home. Of late however, that excitement has often turned to anxiety when passengers were being held up at the airport’s border control. Some Muslim citizens returning to New Zealand have experienced delays ranging from between two to three hours for clearance at customs and immigration posts.

“We do not mind our luggage being searched thoroughly or questions fired at us about our trip. We accept that it is for the safety and welfare of all citizens of New Zealand. But when we are picked on because of our attire, our long beards, headscarves or the flowing white robes, we find that we are victims of stereotyping and subjected to unnecessary embarrassment and delays-” such was the general feeling at a meeting held at the Auckland International Airport between Ministers and their staff members and approximately 100 members from the Muslim community.
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MASJID-e-UMAR IS 10 YEARS OLD
By Mohamed Moses

On the 26 June 1996, the agreement to purchase the property at 185 Stoddard Road, Mt. Roskill was signed amid a lot of criticism from some members of the community that the property was far too large for our needs and very expensive. This property was purchased at an auction for $1.5 million. The current valuation is over $4 million including the adjoining properties purchased over this period.

“While the property has escalated well over 266% in the ten years, let us sit back and examine the community benefits acquired from this investment. We have spent 10 Ramadans here, 120 months of paying our power and water bills, 520 jummahs and more than 18,000 salaats together. Yes, it is astronomical. Let us also look at the 10 years where the walls of this masjid have been echoing countless times with the declaration of, ‘Laeelaha Illalahu Muhammadur Rasoolulah –there is no one worthy of worship but ALLAH (Subhanahu Wa Ta'ala) and Mohammad is HIS messenger’ by its musalees (prayer participants),” reflected Br. Mohamed, the long serving secretary of this institution.

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CELEBRATING UNITY IN DIVERSITY
By Fahmy Omar
The Sri Lankan community in Auckland celebrated a successful cultural day on Saturday, 20th May 2006. This event held at St. Aidan’s Church on Ascot Avenue, Remuera, brought together the three main communities from Sri Lanka living in Auckland. They are: the Sinhalese made up of both Buddhists and Christians; the Tamils made up of Hindus, Christians and Muslims.

This event was organised by the New Zealand Sri Lanka Foundation Incorporated with the theme of “Celebrating Unity through Children by working in harmony with the three main communities of Sri Lanka.” The main purpose of this event was to bring together the future generation, namely, the children to work towards UNITY through song, dance, public speaking and recitation, giving meaning to the motto of the Foundation – ‘mutual respect and serving the community.’

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JAMAL AL ROOH (The Beauty of the Soul)

By Fiza Vlahos
Auckland Muslim Girls Association (AMGA) had the opportunity of organizing a multicultural event, Jamaal Al Rooh, on the 20th May. It was a cultural event held at the Freeman’s bay Community Center and the event was solely for women.

Jamaal al Rooh, meaning the beauty of the soul, focused on acknowledgement of the inner beauty of women and it brought forward the cultural diversity that is shared between the Muslim Ummah. The co-coordinators of the event aimed at bringing women together in a safe environment, where they could relax and enjoy the events that were catered for them.

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MUHAMMAD (SALLALAHU ALAYHI WA SALLAM)
THE YEAR OF THE ELEPHANT

MAKKAH- A SHELTER FOR IDOLS

In the last part on the history of Muhammad (Sallalahu Alayhi Wa Sallam) we read of the rediscovery of the well of the Zam-Zam and also the dispute that followed with the control of this well. We also lived through the experience with Abd al Mutallib when he had to decide either to sacrifice his son Abdullah, or the 100 camels.

After the life of his son was spared, life continued in Makkah where the local people lived their daily lives engaged in prayers to their favourite idols. The Kaaba housed some 360 idols ranging from very small ones belonging to families, to the larger ones representing the different tribes and clans. The idol, Hubal was placed inside the Kaaba because the Quraysh believed that he was a personification of the blessings and spiritual influence on the people. Other idols called the ‘daughters of god’ were ‘al-lat’ who was the lady of Taif, ‘al uzzah’ was from the valley of Nakhlah and ‘manta’ from the Red Sea.

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AT-TAARIQ
The Night Visitor

INTRODUCTION We would recommend that you read the English translation of Arabic which appears below the alongside transliteration before reading this humble explanation of its meaning.

This Surah (chapter) is another example from the Glorious Qur'an that focuses our attention to our surroundings and to our acceptance of some of the realities that ALLAH (Subhanahu Wa Ta'ala) has provided us with to remind us of our origin, existence and final destination. This surah draws our attention to the physical world in our lives, such as, the sky, the stars, the rain, the splitting of the earth and the shining night visitor, with an express purpose of reminding us of our origins and the continuous guardianship we enjoy from our Protector and Provider.

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The New Zealand Halal Slaughtermen Union

LOOKING FOR A JOB?

Why not join the Halal Industry as a Career!

The average weekly gross income of a Halal Slaughtermen ranges from $850 - $1200. People with big families usually prefer to stay within the cities for social reasons, however they might need to reconsider their position for the following reasons:

ALBANIANS IN MACEDONIA
Albanians live in the western part of the Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia, the area bordering Albania in the west and Kosova in the north. According to an EU sponsored census, ethnic Albanians comprise 22 percent of Macedonia's total population of a little over two million. Albanian political parties in Macedonia claim that the number is higher, that Albanians comprise 40 percent of the total population. Nevertheless, Albanians are the second largest ethnic group in Macedonia.

Albanians in Macedonia have considerable rights as far as the use of their own language, national symbols and the cultivation of their ethnic identity is concerned, however, international human rights organizations have many times in the past charged the Macedonian government with discrimination against Albanians, primarily in government representation and education.

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Bahagia Mendidik Anak
By Abdullah Gymnastiar

Anak adalah amanat Sang Pencipta pada orang tua, keluarga dan masyarakat. Ia harus dibimbing dan dipelihara sebagai aset masa depan. Wajah masa depan sebuah negeri dapat dilihat dari bagaimana kualitas anak-anak masa kini.

Saudaraku, yang namanya anak tidak sebatas anak kecil saja, tetapi juga remaja bahkan dewasa sepanjang mereka masih menjadi bagian dari tanggung jawab orang tuanya (baca: belum menikah). Permasalahan anak bukan permasalahan sepele karena menyangkut tanggung jawab kepada Allah Swt. sebagai Pemberi Amanah. Allah Swt. menjadikan anak sebagai ujian bagi kedua orang tuanya sekaligus sebagai anugerah penerus keturunan dan tabungan kebaikan manakala orang tuanya sudah meninggal.

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MARHABA PLAY CENTRE
An open day meeting for parents and children was held on Saturday 22 April 2006 to introduce the idea of a Play Centre to the Parents. The 30 parents accompanied by their children were very attentive when Sr. Hoda welcomed them and gave them her reasons for arranging this Play Centre.

OPEN DAY Sr. Hoda, the organiser and initiator of this project paid her gratitude to the Anchorage Park Community Home, at 16 Swan Crescent in Pakuranga for not only providing the premises but also allowing her the full use of all the equipment of their Play Centre. “Everything is ready- made for us here. All we have to do is look after their wonderful gesture and leave the place in a neat and tidy condition as we have found it. The Department of Education has also indicated that they will be willing to subsidise every child in the Play section with some funding based on the average attendance for the term.

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A MODEL PRE SCHOOL WITH AN ISLAMIC ATMOSPHERE
“Children experience a warm, nurturing environment. Adults are employed who are able to converse with children in their first language. Children feel secure within the centre’s established routines. The adults are reflective about their practice. They are working with their advisory support to develop their skills to extend children’s learning in meaningful contexts and to improve interactions between adults and children” are some of the assessment indicators made by the Government Education Review Office (ERO) in their 2005 review of the An Nur Childcare Centre. For the full report please visit http://www.an-nur.school.nz

The An-Nur Childcare Centre is an Islamic institution chartered and licensed by the Ministry of Education (MOE) for 32 fulltime children. The Centre is located in Hornby, Christchurch, New Zealand, and services the needs of some of the 3,000 Muslim living in the area. The school's goal is to provide its children with a solid grounding in their religion as well as train them to become worthy citizens and contribute to New Zealand as proud Muslims. Although training takes place in an Islamic environment it is guided by the Early Childhood Education Regulations of the MOE of New Zealand.

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YOU TOO HAVE A VOICE
By Julie Middleton

Do you feel that mainstream media pick on Muslims? Do you feel that you can't speak out and correct mistakes, misapprehensions and just plain mischief? You can - don't feel you have no voice. But it does require some effort and sometimes some courage.

You can start small. Find out where to send letters to the editor, whether by post or email. Every media outlet has some way for consumers to respond - they need that feedback. Your communication may not be published but the content of letters is generally noted, especially if there is a flood on a particular issue.

The New Zealand media is self-regulating and has several robust watchdogs. Familiarise yourself with the workings and terms of the Press Council. (www.presscouncil.org.nz). Here you can lodge complaints over issues such as fairness and balance in newspapers. For broadcasters the equivalent is the Broadcasting Standards Authority (www.bsa.govt.nz) and for advertisers the Advertising Standards Authority, which checks that ads not only comply with the law, but are truthful. But there is lots you can do to prevent things coming to formal complaints. In general terms, find friendly insiders among local journalists. Develop friendly relations with them. If there are ethnic affairs reporters, break the ice by inviting them to eat with you or visit your mosque or community centre.

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INTERNATIONAL SOCCER IN NEW ZEALAND
Teams from Fiji, Australia, New Zealand, Canada and America assembled in Auckland over the Easter weekend, from the 14th to the 17th April 2006 to take part in the FANCA tournament. This is the fifth tournament of FANCA and the first one held in New Zealand. The New Zealand Muslim Youth & Sports Association (NZMYSA) and the Fiji Muslim Sports Federation hosted this venture jointly. For this event to take place there were months of planning, heaps of meetings and arranging of all the finer details.

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YUSUF ESTES TO VISIT NEW ZEALAND

Sheikh Yusuf Estes will be visiting New Zealand from the 8th to 18th September 2006. He will be the guest of Voice of Islam.

Sheikh Yusuf Estes embraced Islam at the age of 50 after meeting with a Muslim for the first time in his life. Since then Sheikh Yusuf Estes has been very active in the Muslim community - he runs several Islamic websites where one can find many useful lectures and information. Sheikh Yusuf also runs an online radio station whereby he broadcasts live talks to both Muslim and non-Muslims.

His lectures have been regularly screened on Voice of Islam programs here in New Zealand. His lectures have become very popular and there is a great demand for them.

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Message from Moulana Ahmed Mukadam*
The commemoration or celebration of the Holy Prophet of Islam, (Allah’s Choicest Blessings upon him) can also be the celebration of the hands of that perfect model of life.

In Arabic we say ‘YAD’ in Persian ‘DAST’ and ‘HATH’ in the language of Urdu for hands.

The image of ‘hand’ in Islamic literature and theology, at least in the ‘AHSA’RITE’ tradition, has literal and metaphoric meanings. In relation to ALLAH, ‘YAD’ would mean power, sovereignty and its synonyms. For creation when the word is used, both literal and metaphorical meanings are employed.

The relativity of ‘YAD’, ‘ADST’ or ‘AHTH’ to the person and personality of the Holy Prophet SAW is marked by both literary meanings.

ALLAH, Himself announces in the Quran, referring to the incident at the beginning of the battle of Badr as the Holy Prophet threw a handful of dust or sand at the enemy. “You did not throw when you did, but verily ALLAH threw” (8:17)

*Moulana Ahmed Mukadam is from Cape Town, a distinguished Islamic scholar, BA (Durban University), MA Religious Studies (University of Cape Town) and Rector at International Peace University South Africa.

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