MUSLIM
AUSTRALASIAN
Multimedia News & Views
ISSN: 1039-2300
Print Post Publication No. 100021354
Print edition published Monthly on first Friday with Website updates
Towards Cultural Convergence
BOOMERANG PAGE 7
“LAST CHANCE� Short Film
COMMUNITY PAGE 8
S
TIME
AMUST
www.amust.com.au
Phone: (02) 8006 2063 Email: info@amust.com.au
Issue # 132
November 2016; Safar 1438
Prof Stuart Rees on Palestine
EDUCATION PAGE 20
$1.00
Hiking Through Pakistan
TRAVEL PAGE 21
Mosques open doors in order to embrace all Abu Anees On Saturday 29 October Mosques all around Australia welcomed thousands of people of all faiths and diverse background, men, women and children, in order to build community understanding and harmony. National Mosque Open Day is an annual Australia-wide event initiated by the Lebanese Muslim Association (LMA) with support from the Department of Social Services. The event features a number of mosques across the nation simultaneously opening their doors to the public and inviting them to come in and explore their local mosque. This year National Mosque Open Day was the largest ever, featuring increased number of participating mosques across Australia, in capital cities as well as in regional towns, giving more Australians the chance to visit and be welcomed into their local mosques. One of the oldest and largest mosques, the Imam Ali Mosque in Wangee Road, Lakemba was visited by thousands of people last Saturday to observe prayer services, listen to the recitation of Quran, and look at the exhibition on Islamic teachings, practices and cultural activities within the mosque. A number of politicians and interfaith leaders visited the Lakemba mosque throughout the day meeting the congregation as well as the visitors. Jihad Dib, the state member for Lakemba and the NSW Shadow Minister of Education was readily available at the front steps of the mosque welcoming visitors and engaging people into conversation. continues on page 3
National Mosque Open Day visitors at Lakemba Mosque on Saturday 29 October 2016. From left: Mr Jihad Dib, Ms Tanya Pilbersek and Mr Tony Burke (right). Photo by ZIA.
Amity College celebrates its 20th anniversary (1996-2016) Zia Ahmad
Stage performance by Amity College students. Photo by Samet Erkut. Proudly Printed in Australia by Spotpress Pty Ltd
Amity college marked a major milestone by celebrating its 20th anniversary since its formation by bringing together staff, both past and present, students, parents, politicians, educationists and community leaders on Saturday 22 October at its premises in Prestons. The program commenced at 5.30 pm with a reception for invited guests together with the laying of a time capsule, with messages and comments, to be opened in future at the 50th anniversary. An open session was held at 6.30 pm in the main assembly hall attended by guests as well as a large contingent of students, parents and general public with formal welcome, awards, speeches, students performances and vote of thanks to all movers and shakers who had contributed at the success of Amity College. Mr Deniz Erdogan, Executive Principal of Amity College acknowledged everyone who shared this beautiful dream and the journey in building this educational institution. He further extended gratitude to the
tireless founding members and volunteers, all past and present staff, parents, students and supporters of this success story and its long track record. The highlight of the evening was the specially prepared video presentation showcasing 20 years of fond memories with photos and video clips and the growth of the College from a vacant bushland to a state of the art educational faculty. Awards were presented to the past principals of the College, some of whom had arrived from overseas specially for the occasion. Additional awards were presented to other staff who had a long track record of contributing towards the development of the College from its very beginnings. The audience were addressed by a number of distinguished guests including Mr Luke Foley, NSW Opposition Leader, Mr Paul Lynch MP for Liverpool, Ms Anne Stanley MP for Werriwa, Ms Wendy Waller Mayor, Liverpool City Council and Dr Geoff Newcombe, CEO of Association of Independent Schools, NSW. continues on page 3
Dispose of this paper thoughtfully - PLEASE RECYCLE