Aunali
Khalfan
Tel:
(718) 779.6505
aunalikhalfan@hotmail.com
In
the Name of Allah, the Most Gracious, the Most Merciful.
And the Messenger (Muhammad) will say: “O my
Lord! Truly, my people (took the Message lightly and) abandoned this Qur’an.”
The Holy Qur’an,
25:30
Dear Brother and
Sisters in Islam,
Assalam alaykum wa rahmatullah
wa barakatuh.
I would like to
hereby declare that I, Aunali Khalfan,
intend to stand for the President of The World Federation, and I humbly seek
your support and cooperation in this endeavor. I believe that the Federation
needs to improve in a fundamental respect and that it is essential to have a
clear and workable agenda in order to satisfy the many needs of our community.
Our communities
have been in existence for nearly 100 years, and it is sad to note that nearly
more than 50 years, our organizations we have hardly done much in terms of
educating the younger generations in terms of Qur’anic
education. We have not made attempts to
read the Qur’an the way it should be read. A child between the age of 3 and 11 has the
capacity to grasp 9 languages at a time.
We have not made use of these tender years to mould a child’s brain with
excellent Islamic education.
In the name of Allah, Most Gracious, Most
Merciful
Those to whom We
have sent the Book, study it as it should be studied:
They are the ones who believe in it:
And for those who reject faith in it, the
loss is their own.
The Holy Qur’an,
2:121
Our centers all
around the world should be open at least eight hours a day and not eight hours
a week, for help and advice to the community.
There should be professional and volunteer welfare advisors, counselors
for advice on legal, matrimonial, domestic and other matters. Refugees, displaced
persons, the indigent and others who face social and economic difficulties
should also have access to our centers.
The Community is an
international diaspora that should have an
international agenda. In this regard, I strongly urge that we apply for
consultative status at the United Nations as well as increase our formal ties
with other international bodies. This will not only raise our profile as a
world community but will lead to the positive representation of Muslim concerns
at all levels. This would also encourage other, smaller, NGOs (non-governmental
organizations) to affiliate with our international, national and regional
centers and would promote the establishment of relations with other world
bodies where policymaking decisions are tabled and implemented.
Our centers should
have functioning public affairs and public relations committees that a) respond
to media reports concerning Islam, b) monitor, print and broadcast media, c)
issue press releases in response to issues that affect Muslim communities, d)
meet regularly to discuss the image of Islam among non-Muslims, e) consider
appropriate forums for promoting our faith to others) and reach out to other
Muslim organizations.
Women must be given
a position in the Jamaat as well as in the Federation to take care of the daily
working of the centers, and all other equal rights. Inshallah, if I am
elected, I would like to work with a sister, as one of my Vice President, who
will be able to talk freely with the sisters of the community, and who will be
able to take care of their issues.
Wa
salaam,
Aunali Khalfan
Tel: 718.779.6505 /
Fax 779.6532
aunalikhalfan@hotmail.com