“Before being any religion we are Australians first. So as a citizen of this country it is our responsibility to undertake such services on Clean Up Australia Day and also in other ways."
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| Photo via Twitter: @IhsanVohra |
Source/Credit: The Australian
By Greg Brown | March 7, 2016
While the face of Clean Up Australia Day is Ian Kiernan, the moustached, Akubra-wearing yachtie who grew up on the shores of Sydney harbour, its largest volunteer army is the Ahmadiyya Muslim community.
More than 1000 members of the [Ahmadiyya] sect, which traces it origins to 19th century India, pitched in yesterday to pick up rubbish from the nation’s parks and waterways. It is the fourth year running that the Ahmadiyya community has provided more volunteers than any other group.
The leader of the Victorian branch of the Ahmadiyya’s, Sayed Wadood Janud, the mass involvement was part of a broader strategy of community contribution which aimed to build national pride and reduce the lure of radicalisation.
“It is important that the Muslim youth and the rest of the congregation realise that loving and serving the country that you live in is a part of your faith. This is just one way of exercising your duty as a Muslim,” Imam Janud said.
“Before being any religion we are Australians first. So as a citizen of this country it is our responsibility to undertake such services on Clean Up Australia Day and also in other ways.
“Also, in the political climate that we live in it is necessary for others to see that we are Australians that also happen to be Muslims and we care as much, if not more about Australia, then the rest of the community. We don’t only want to preach that in mosques and tell it to our youth but we want to show it through actions.
“People get this perception that Muslims don’t consider themselves Australian; that they only consider themselves as Muslims. We want to make sure that people know we are Australians first and we completely differentiate between state and religion.”
The Ahmadiyya Muslims raised $3291 for yesterday’s Clean Up Australia Day, more than any other group. Mr Kiernan, the founder and chairman of Clean Up Australia, gave special thanks to the Ahmadiyya Muslim Assocation.
“They not only donate their time to pick up rubbish, they are also very active fundraisers,’’ Mr Kiernan said yesterday. “They continue to be our largest group of volunteers and their support is always appreciated.’’
The Ahmadiyya movement is a Sunni sect considered unorthodox among mainstream Sunnis. It has had a presence in Australia for more than 100 years.
The group had 1000 volunteers take part in the annual Red Cross door knock appeal. On Australia Day, it distributed 500,000 pamphlets covered with the Australian flag saying: Muslim’s For Loyalty.
The Ahmadiyya community has also held multi-faith dialogue events at its mosques.
Imam Janud said the community events had reduced the risk of young followers joining terrorist groups.
“Since we have had this practice not a single Ahmadiyya Muslim has ever been associated with any terrorism activity,” Imam Janud said.
“This is a proven way towards tackling (terrorism) issues within Muslim organisations.”
Read original post here: Ahmadiyya Muslims lead the way on Clean Up Australia Day
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