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Issue 238, Friday 27 February 2009 - 2 Rabi' al-Awwal 1430 The Muslim News Awards 2009 Shortlist The readership of The Muslim News selected and nominated them, and our distinguished panel of judges reviewed, deliberated and mused over the list and here they are. The illustrious men, women, children and projects deemed to be worthy of short-listing for a Muslim News Award for Excellence. These exemplars of good practice, excellence – our future role models – will be treated to a Gala Evening in the presence of their peers and other renowned guests in March, when the finalists are announced for the 15 coveted Awards for Excellence. Alhambra Award for Excellence in Arts Mohammed Ali. Born and raised in Birmingham, Mohammed’s AerosolArabic is influenced by both classical Islamic calligraphy and urban street graffiti. He was once part of the underground graffiti scene in the UK and has since been painting on canvas and exhibiting his work throughout the UK and around the world. Mohammed runs workshops for children up and down the country and inspires his students to express positive virtues, as well as giving them an insight into Islam. He is keen to use the graffiti style for spiritual and selfless expression rather than its more egotistical uses. Rafia Hussain Kamel. She originally wanted to be a fashion designer but Rafia found her calling in Islamic calligraphy after becoming interested in contemporary Islamic art and handmade crafts. Rafia combines traditional and modern techniques in her compositions, utilising digital art, futuristic and abstract forms. She has produced Glass art that incorporates calligraphy and has taken on business design using Islamic calligraphy in corporate logos. Rafia lives and works in London where she co-formed MAHEL, which provides Islamic arts and crafts products. She is also a member of the US based International Muslimah Artists Network. Ahmed Mukhtar. Born in Baghdad, Ahmed is a world acclaimed composer and master Oud player. He has been playing the Oud since 1979, which he studied under the masters Ganim Hadad and Jameel Jerjis. Since 1990 he has been performing, teaching and touring throughout the Middle East and Europe, and has written music for theatre, film and television. The United Nations chose Ahmed and sixteen other musicians from all over the world to release a CD for the benefit of victims of terrorism and wars. Sbah Uddin. Otherwise known as SaB-o-TaGe, Sbah is an award winning poet from Watford. He has gained the support of legendary boxer Amir Khan and the R&B sensation Jay Sean. He released an album worldwide at the age of 17, and through his poetry seeks to build bridges between different faiths. Sbah has run numerous youth workshops helping children from troubled backgrounds in London, teaching young boys the art of poetry. His lyrics, which deal with issues facing Muslims, have been described as ‘extremely powerful’ and ‘simply thought-provoking’ by top British lyricists. Annemarie Schimmel Award for Championing a Muslim Cause Community Counts. For seven years, this initiative has worked to improve the lives of residents in Gloucester. The work of Community Counts aims to ensure local services accurately match the needs of residents within the neighbourhood and give local people the chance to help shape and influence these services. It has empowered the local Muslim community to get involved and play an active part in the city. Community Counts will come to an end in January 2009, but its spirit endures as many of the initiatives originally set up by Community Counts have now been taken up by mainstream organisations Gill Hicks. Though she was severely and permanently injured in the London bombings of 7 July 2005, Gill Hicks aims to use her experience to do all she can to deter anyone from following a path of violent action. In 2006, Gill was appointed Ambassador for Peace Direct and founded M.A.D. for Peace, a not-for-profit organisation which promotes peace building. She is well-known for her inspirational talks and seminars with many organisations in the UK and Australia, such as the Young Muslim Advisory Forum and the Sufi Muslim Council, as well as schools and community groups. Reverend Gilleasbuig MacMillan. As the Minister of St Giles Cathedral, Edinburgh, Gilleasbuig MacMillan’s church is symbolically important because of the royal or official events and ceremonies held there. He is recognised for this award because of his determination to welcome Muslims to his Cathedral. In October 1991, St Giles held a Service of Repentance in memory of the victims of the first Gulf war, which was also attended by Muslims. Instead of simply allowing the Muslims to leave the service to carry out their prayers, Reverend MacMillan decided to stop the service twenty minutes after its start and let the Muslims perform their prayers in the Cathedral next to the altar. The Adhan, the Muslim call to the prayer, was made from the pulpit of the Cathedral and the prayers were performed in the midst of a Christian congregation of over 1,000. Uthman Dan Fodio Award for Excellence in Community Development Saif Ahmed. As a social entrepreneur, Saif has transformed Muslim Aid since joining in 2006 as Chief Executive, bringing about a paradigm shift in the charity’s ethos vis-à-vis engagement with the wider community. Saif was one of the key people in facilitating the global partnership between Muslim Aid and the United Methodist Committee on Relief (UMCOR), a US based Christian development organisation. Muslim Aid, UMCOR and the Methodist Church are currently looking at inter faith initiatives and action in Sri Lanka to reconcile warring communities. Black and Asian Service in Alcohol and Narcotics (BASIAN). Noted for its faith-based approach to drug intervention, BASIAN has helped many families cope with drug addiction problems and has made an impact in reducing drug related crime. The project is run by Urfan Azad and Shahid Farid, former Class A drug users who assisted a Home Office research project identifying the lack of drugs services that meet the needs of Muslim and BME communities. Shereen Williams. Having arrived in the UK only three years ago, Shereen quickly made her mark as Director of the Council of Ethnic Minority Voluntary Sector Organisations, securing over £1.5 million in grant funding for Muslim and other community organisations. She has been at the forefront of opposing Islamophobia in Wales and has given presentations to the Welsh Assembly Government. In the field of inter-faith dialogue, Shereen founded the Swansea Faiths Forum in South Wales in the immediate aftermath of 7/7. She has recently been appointed to the All Wales Convention. Imams Hasan and Husayn Children's Award For Excellence Muhammad Aswat. The 15-year-old from London started memorising the Qur’an at the age of 8. After winning a number of recitation competitions at the London Central Mosque, Muhammad was selected for an international competition in Egypt at the age of 11. In 2005 he achieved first place at the Amal Trust competition. Muhammad won a national competition on Islam Channel and has performed for the past few years at the Global Peace and Unity event in front of a crowd of 20,000. Currently, Muhammad is making short programmes for a children’s show on Islam Channel. Ahmad Saleh. At the age of 4, Ahmad Saleh from Leicester became the youngest brown/black belt in freestyle martial arts, karate and kickboxing. He has already won the British title, competing against children twice his age. He was allowed to compete in the European championships where he won silver, narrowly missing out on gold. 5-year-old Ahmad has also excelled at school and Qur’anic studies, coming first in two out-of-school exams. Imran Sidat. The 15-year-old has excelled in freestyle karate and kickboxing. He has been a regular member of the England team for the last four years, competing worldwide and winning medals every year. This year he has already won the European title and many British and regional titles. Imran has been elected as the youngest sporting ambassador for the Special Olympics, which will be held in 2009 in his home town of Leicester. He is also a cadet coach and was recently voted Mercury Junior Sportsman of the year. Allama Iqbal Award for Creativity in Islamic Thought Muhammad Afifi al-Akiti. Noted here for his expertise in classical Islamic scholarship, Dr al-Akiti is currently teaching at the faculty of Theology at Oxford University. For his doctoral thesis, Muhammad discovered and presented a medieval manuscript of an advanced theological work by Imam al-Ghazali. He has translated various works in Malay as well as English; mostly textbooks that make up the curriculum of a Classical Islamic education. In his home country of Malaysia, he studied the Shafi’i tradition of Islamic jurisprudence with jurists, theologians and Sufis. In addition to the specific ijazas or licenses to teach, from his systematic training, he has received general ijazas from teachers beyond his homeland. Muhammad A S Abdel Haleem. As a prolific writer and scholar, Professor Abdel-Haleem has dedicated a distinguished career to the study of Arabic culture and literature and for inter-faith understanding. The author of some ten books, his latest, The Qur’an: A New Translation, published by Penguin has become a bestseller and is the first Qur’an to be translated by an Arab Muslim to be published by a prestigious international academic publisher. As an academic at the School of Oriental and African Studies, University of London, Professor Haleem played a key role in establishing the School’s Centre of Islamic Studies. He has awarded an OBE in 2008 in recognition for his scholarship and work. The International Institute of Islamic Thought (IIIT). Based in Surrey, IIIT is dedicated to the revival and reform of Islamic thought and its methodology. It has produced over 400 publications and attempted a variety of methods and approaches to synthesise the ethics of Islam with various fields of modern thought. It has been the vision of the IIIT to integrate modern scientific method and knowledge within Islamic limits through ijtihad and the reform of Islamic thought. It has also tried to develop and revive awareness of Maqasid al Shari’ah, the higher principles and objectives of Islamic law, applying them to current issues, including domestic violence and economics. Alija Izetbegovic Award for Good Citizenship Amar Abass. Noted here for his pioneering civic work, Amar led a project to record and communicate the contribution of Muslim veterans of the Second World War to young Muslims in Blackburn. The project involved over forty young Muslims and eight Muslim veterans of the War. Amar worked with the local Museum service to produce a DVD entitled ‘Mutual Respect’, recording the contributions of the Muslim Second World War Veterans. Over 6,000 copies of the DVD have been distributed across the UK and it has now been utilised by the Ministry of Defence, the Imperial War Museum and the National Army Museum. The veterans, as a direct result of this project, now annually participate on Remembrance Day. In recognition of his work, Amar won the Queen’s Gold Award for Voluntary Service Mohammed Amran . As the youngest member of the Cabinet Office Advisory Panel on Futurebuilders and the youngest Lay Advisor to the National Police Improvement Agency, Mohammed has proved to be an effective leader who initiates civic change. At the age of 22, Mohammed was appointed the youngest ever Commissioner in the Commission for Racial Equality. During the Bradford disturbances of 1995 and 2001 he was at the forefront of conflict resolution, after which he set up the Young People’s Forum. At the age of 26 he received an Honorary Doctorate for his work with disadvantaged young people in his hometown of Bradford, his community work and contributions in the field of race relations. Emdad Rahman. Through his skills as a campaigning journalist, Emdad has told the story of ethnic minorities through his own writing and by assisting the grassroots as they sell their narrative. Hailing from East London, Emdad has won awards for his journalistic work, including a Civic Award from the Mayor of Tower Hamlets in 2004. He has been called upon by the Foreign & Commonwealth Office along with their organisations and bodies in his capacity as a journalist. In his most recent initiatives as a community worker, he is working with a range of faith organisations on inter-faith work. Al Biruni Award for Excellence in Community Relations Ikram Malik. Being a founding member of Building Bridges Pendle and the Lancashire Forum of Faiths, Dr Malik has been a key leader in bringing faith communities into the public and political framework of community regeneration. He took a leading role to help Pendle in securing a range of Government funding, including Community Economic Development resources from the EU and, more recently, the Preventing Violent Extremism Pathfinder Funds. He has actively led the numerous local community groups in utilising these resources for the benefit of local communities. This included the development of Brierfield People’s Centre with regeneration funding support of nearly £500,000. Dr Malik was recognised for his services to community relation by being awarded an MBE in 1999. Suleman Nagdi. As a founding member of the Muslim Burial Council of Leicestershire (MBCOL) Muslim Burial Council of Leicestershire (MBCOL), Suleman was instrumental in MBCOL being awarded the Queen’s Golden Jubilee Award in June 2007. He has signed a historic legal document together with Leicester City Council which has enabled Muslims in the UK and in parts of Europe, to access faith sensitive and timely burial provisions. He is noted here for facilitating the mainstreaming of British Muslims in this key delivery of public service. He has contributed to several high level Government consultations and was appointed as Her Majesty’s Deputy Lieutenant in 2008, representing the Crown in Leicestershire. Awarded an MBE in 2002, Suleman is also the Public Relations Officer of the Federation of Muslim Organisations (FMO). Mona Siddiqui. As a broadcaster, academic and writer Professor Mona Siddiqui has harnessed her academic expertise to facilitate an enlightened discourse on the faith and its followers. Well known for introducing Islam on the BBC’s ‘Thought for the Day’, Professor Siddiqui is the founding director of the Centre for the Study of Islam at Glasgow University. She provides consultancy work to institutions such as museums, local government and educational institutions, and also provides advice in legal cases, including anti-terrorism cases. She is Chair of the BBC’s Scottish Religious Advisory Committee, and a member of the World Economic Forum’s Global Agenda Council on the Islam-West Dialogue. Sankore University Award for Excellence in Education Tahir Abbas. A Brummie born and bred, Dr Tahir Abbas is Director of Birmingham University’s Centre for the Study of Ethnicity and Culture. Appointed in 2003, Dr Abbas brought to bear expertise harnessed during his post-doctoral study on wider race equality and practice matters across the West Midlands region. He has advised national and international government departments, speaking on British Muslim matters at academic, community and civil events around the world, and has published five books, including Education of British South Asians, and (as Editor), Muslim Britain. Still in his 30s, he is already a household name with a strong representation in the media. Zafar Iqbal. A pioneer well ahead of his time, Zafar Iqbal helped found the Southwark Muslim Women’s Association (SMWA). Before becoming the Association’s Director, Zafar worked tirelessly as a volunteer since the Association’s inception in 1979. The SMWA aims to counter disadvantages and discrimination faced by Muslim communities with special emphasis on meeting the social, educational and cultural needs of women, children and elders. Zafar is noted here for this award as he has focused on education as the means to empower Muslim women to lead a full and active life. Improving School Attendance in Partnership (ISAP). As an initiative of the East London Mosque, ISAP was launched in 2002 to address the problem of high unauthorised absences and low attendance in primary schools in the London Borough of Tower Hamlets. With the motto ‘Every day matters; every minute counts’, the project’s full-time Liaison Officers work with parents, pupils and schools to curb truancy and lateness. As they are based at the East London Mosque, parents and children don’t see the Liaison Officers as social workers but rather as part of their own community. For their innovative approach to improving education through the faith community, ISAP was instrumental in helping Tower Hamlets Council achieve the status as a ‘Beacon Council’ and its good practise has been cited in The Guardian and has been taken up in other parts of the country. Fazlur Rahman Khan for Excellence in Engineering, Science or Technology Sayyed Misbah Deen. Based at Keele University, Professor Sayyed Misbah Deen is a prominent computer scientist who helped establish the British National Conferences on Databases in 1981. This annual forum is now the main platform for British Database research for the practitioner community. He is also known for his writings on science history and most notably his book, Science under Islam: Rise, Decline and Revival. He is involved in charitable work which centres on getting scientific research funding for those who cannot afford it. Mohamed El-Gomati. As an internationally renowned scientist and researcher based at York University, Professor Mohamed El-Gomati has written more than 180 articles, patents, and books. He has excelled in the field of novel instrumentation, developing and building several state-of-the-art instruments in surface analysis and microscopy. He has acted as a scientific referee to the British Government and UNESCO. Among his inventions are the world’s first multi-spectral analytical microscope and the world’s first parallel electron energy analyser for surface analysis. Namir Hassan. Dr Namir Hassan, from Greenford, Middlesex, completed his Ph.D from the University of Oxford studying the role of CD5 and CD6 receptors on the immune system. He then joined GlaxoSmithKline and moved into progressively more senior roles within the company, and he now leads a group within the Biological Reagents and Assay Development department. Dr Hassan has worked and published on the study of drug transporters. These are proteins that can influence the adsorption, distribution, metabolism and elimination (ADME) of drugs. One of the major challenges facing the Pharmaceutical industry at the present time is overcoming the problem of high numbers of compounds reaching clinical trials with poor safety characteristics. A greater understanding of drug ADME can assist in overcoming these challenges. Dr Hassan has been actively involved in studying the role of transporters in the ADME of drugs, using a variety of techniques. In 2005, he was awarded an Exceptional Science award by GlaxoSmithKline for his contribution, through outstanding science, to building a great pipeline for the company. Ummul Mu'minin Khadijah for Excellence in Enterprise Tehsin Aslam. Fusing her long experience in social work with her industry experience in Wills, Tehsin Aslam founded Abacus Will Writers UK Ltd to act as a service for the Muslim community. Based in Leicester, Abacus has become the UK’s leading Will Writing company that specialises specifically in Shari’ah Complaint Wills. Tehsin came to realise that many Muslims don’t write wills and, as Managing Director of Abacus Will Writers, she is currently working on raising awareness in the Muslim community of the importance of writing one. Muslim Enterprise Development Service (MEDS). Established in 2002, MEDS was formed to provide practical, professional, technical and financial advice in the development of new and existing Muslim businesses in Merseyside. MEDS develops and manages appropriate loan and grant making services as well as a Muslim business association, an enterprise club and credit union. It covers the demands placed by the Muslim community and funding agencies. Within its Enterprise and Economic Development work, MEDS assists its clients with the preparation of a business plan submittable to potential financial service providers and provides clients with links to professional bodies. Afzal Kahn from Bradford is among the top five designers of bespoke vehicles in the world and has designed cars for Hollywood actors and Premiership footballers. His achievements include the James Bond car, DB9, that sells for 120,000. In January 2007 Afzal made the headlines by designing the most expensive F1 car in the UK for 440,625. His strength lies in unique wheel designs and state of the art accessories created by his automotive design company in Bradford. With a team of 60 staff, the 37-year-old sells an average of 250 bespoke vehicles a year. Ibn Sina Award for Health Mohammed Mujahid Ali. Multi-disciplinary alternative therapist Mohammed Mujahid Ali has worked tirelessly to improve the wellbeing of BME and immigrant communities in Oldham. He is a qualified practitioner in Counselling, Neuro-Linguistic, Hypno-Psychotherapy, Acu-stimulation and Reiki. He offers his services free of charge to those in need, and has set up support networks for mental health carers and practitioners. Mohammed has also worked to promote mental health awareness within BME and immigrant communities, and has helped deliver projects to raise awareness of mental health and improve equality of access to mental health service provision. Rafik Gardee. Originally from South Africa, Dr Rafik Gardee has been promoting equality and diversity within Scotland for over 25 years. He is the Visiting Honorary Professor of International Health at Queen Margaret University in Edinburgh, and directed the National Resource Centre for Ethnic Minority Health. Dr Gardee ensured that the NHS changed its processes and procedures so that disadvantaged groups could access healthcare services without fear of prejudice and discrimination. He set up the award winning One Stop Clinics that provide support and advice to elderly Muslim men and women with mild mental health problems. In 2005, he was awarded an MBE for services to Healthcare. Shuja Shafi. Excelling in his own field and using his expertise to benefit British Muslims, Dr Shuja Shafi has recently retired from the NHS after thirty years of service. He reached the post of Consultant Microbiologist, serving the people of the London boroughs of Brent and Harrow. Following the meningitis outbreaks amongst Hajj pilgrims in 1999/2000, he worked closely with the Chief Medical Officer in high-profile public awareness campaigns to alert the public on the need for vaccination. Dr Shafi chairs the Muslim Council of Britain’s Food Standards and Chaplaincy committees. He also leads the steering committee that manages the MCB’s project on the training and provision of Muslim chaplaincy in NHS hospitals. Ibn Battuta Award for fair, accurate and balanced reporting on an issue involving Muslims Al Jazeera Satelite Network. Launched in 1996 from Qatar, Al Jazeera has become an international household name and is known for its willingness to broadcast dissenting views and become a thorn in the side of Arab and Western states alike. The station gained worldwide attention following the September 11, 2001 attacks, when it broadcast video statements by Osama bin Ladin and other al-Qa’ida leaders, but its mission to have all views represented was demonstrated when it was the only Arab network to have Israeli spokesmen explain their point of view. Riding on its success, Al Jazeera launched its English language channel in 2006. As of 2007, the Arabic Al Jazeera channel rivalled the BBC in worldwide audiences with an estimated 40 to 50 million viewers, and Al Jazeera English has an estimated reach of around 100 million households. In Britain, Al Jazeera has quickly become an alternative broadcaster to many homes keen to discover a more holistic view of the Middle East. Mehdi Hasan. Londoner Mehdi Hasan is a rising star in the British media and one of this country’s leading young television journalists in an industry once described as ‘hideously white’. He is currently an editor for the news and current affairs department at Channel 4. At 29, he is the youngest editor in commissioning at Channel 4 and has been nominated for the Royal TV Society Young Journalist of the Year Award. Since joining Channel 4 last year, Mehdi has commissioned five different ‘Dispatches’ documentaries, all of which have generated headlines in the press. Mehdi commissioned the Channel 4 ‘Dispatches’ film, ‘It Shouldn’t Happen to a Muslim’, which addressed the issue of rising Islamophobia since 7/7. Yvonne Ridley. As a campaigning journalist, and a one-time ‘guest’ of the Taliban during assignment for the Sunday Express, Yvonne Ridley’s forthright and insightful articles have appeared in a range of publications including the Washington Post, the Dhaka Post to the Tehran Times. Last year Yvonne, who works for Press TV, went to Guantánamo Bay, and has highlighted and campaigned against the injustices committed as part of the ‘War on Terror’. She also went to Sudan with Lord Nazir Ahmed to work on a joint venture to develop a peace initiative in Darfur and in August 2008 joined international peace activists as part of the Free Gaza Movement. Faezeh Hashemi Award for Excellence in Sport CKI School of Martial Arts. Based in Leicester with more than 820 members, the CKI School of Martial Arts is run as the only non- profit making club of its kind in the country. Its members are as young a 3 ½ and come from all races, religions and classes, with over half being female. For its voluntary efforts the Club was recently rewarded by the Queen’s Award for Voluntary and Community Service. Moreover, CKI’s students won a total of thirty-seven medals in National and European championships. Muslim Women’s Sport Foundation (MWSF). Having so far helped over 250 women in the UK get back into sport, the Muslim Women’s Sport Foundation has provided a player pathway for higher levels of competition, including participation at the Women’s Islamic Games that are held every four years. The MWSF organises training sessions and tournaments catering for the religious sensitivities of participants through an all-female environment. MWSF supports individuals in attaining coaching and refereeing qualifications and getting placed with teams across the country to encourage an increased representation in the mainstream sporting community. It is recognised by and advises the FA, England Basketball and Kick It Out. Inayat Omarji. As the Children and Young People’s manager at Bolton Council of Mosques, Inayat Omarji established an Inter Mosque football tournament which is supported by the local authority and has been running for seven consecutive years. Building on this success, he is currently working to establish an Inter Mosque Cricket Tournament. Over a number of years he has successfully managed to get excluded young people from the streets to engage in sports and outdoor activities, and thanks to his contributions, various organisations have made arrangements for Muslim women to engage in sports and outdoor activities. Malcolm X Young Person’s Award for Excellence Andleeb Ahmed. Noted here for her community service from the age of 16 when Andleeb Ahmed started working as a volunteer with elderly and disabled people in a local village day centre in Leicester. During her time at university, she began working once a week on a voluntary basis with a children’s special needs charity the Shine Project. She worked there as a mentor and went on to become a volunteer co-ordinator. She is a trustee for the Pelvic pain Support Network group which is based in Pool, Dorset, and last year attended International Women’s day with the organisation. Faizaan Ahmed. Moved by the murder of his 19-year-old sister in November 2007, Faizaan Ahmad from Derby founded The Halimah Trust (THT) while still an 18-year-old A’ level student. With Faizaan as the Chairman, THT is committed to raising £108, 000 by the end of the year to build The Halimah Girls’ School of Excellence, a secondary for orphan girls in Pakistan. A keen vocalist, Faizaan has just released his first single in memory of his sister, which he hopes will raise further funds for his charity work. The Young Muslims UK. Set up in 1984, the Young Muslims is a youth led organisation that has a national membership of young Muslims from all backgrounds. Its members have gone on to excel in life and become, amongst other things, solicitors, writers, politicians and business men and women. The focus of the Young Muslims has always been in the UK and in encouraging young Muslims to be part of mainstream British society. Members of YMUK have been preventing violent extremism long before the government started to after 7/7. In July 2009 YMUK will host UK iFest, an event to celebrate being a young Muslim in Britain.
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