THE CALL OF ISLAM

ACKGROUND TO ISLAM

We as in South "77ie unity of the oppressed shoulder to shoulder to Africa find ourselves in a which is vital can only be break down the granite wall unique situation in that our achieved by engaging the of apartheid and open the society is one dominated by enemy in all possible ways aoors of freedom to each apartheid, i.e. the division — where true Moslems, true and every soul in this and economic exploitation and all progres­ country". of the people on the basis sive organisations stand (Iman Hassan ) of race and colour. This is the one reality that is towns and suburbs. These most pervading in our halaqat are at the same time country amongst the majority of the population. the basic unit of Islamic Education and training as Of course, to us in The well as the working units Call of Islam, this is totally in the community. To co­ against the concept of ordinate the work of The tauhid and against the Call of Islam in a region, we and Sunnah. It has have a regional shura, with become apparent to us that a national co-ordinator for Islam to make any facilitating national contact. impact amongst the popula­ Alhamdulillah, in the tion of South Africa — short lifespan of The Call of which is overwhelmingly Islam, we have been able to non-Muslim — then the achieve much of our preaching/teaching of THE CALL OF ISLAM objectives. The challenge we 's tauhid will have to now face is to build on this address this basic form of The Call of Islam was form­ and to deepen our work so evil. This is a 'definite ed in 1984. It was formed that ultimately Islam may challenge we face. to fulfil our tasks as out­ triumph in this part of the lined in the first part. To world. The Muslim community $u;mmarise:— makes up only 1, 3% of We see ourselves taking the South African popula­ a) To spread an understand­ ing of Islam amongst on these challenges, Insha- tion. Since the first arrival Allah. of muslims 333 years ago, non-Muslim especially as Islam has been preserved it relates to the way in through the dedication of which the , tauhid of illustrous personalities. Over Allah is violated in South the last few decades, how­ Africa. ever, the adherence of b) To bring Muslim back on Muslims to the Deen of to the path of Allah by Islam has waned with the making them conscious more concerted Westernisa­ of their duties, especially tion of South Africa. This in so far as it concerns is the second challenge that the establishment of a we face in South Africa. just society. But we have seen in The Call of Islam was 1985 that muslims have formed by prominent mem­ Go forth lightly prepared and well- found new meaning in Islam bers of the community, equiped. And strive in the path of (particularly in Cape Town) including members of the Allah with your wealth and your with the assertion of Islam selves. (Quran) by' The.Call of Islam and ulama in Cape Town. From others as a definite force Cape Town The Call of politically, as well as in all Islam spread to other parts other spheres of life. A of South Africa. The way in basic understanding of Islam which we organise is to form halaqat in different

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LE TTER TO I SLAMI C COMMUNITY

Shaik Gabier

Dear Brother/Sister, Assalaamu alaykum wa rahmatullahi wa barakatuh!

I pray that this letter reaches you whilst you are in the best of health and imbued with the determination to work for Islam, Insha Allah. I am writing this letter to you from Lusaka, the Headquarters of the African National Congress, the vanguard of our struggle for justice and for the liberation of our country. You may find it strange that an alim should be writting to you from the HQ. of the ANC. This is because so many of us are victims of a deliberate campaign of distortion against the ANC. We are tired of being warned against imaginary commun­ ists threats whilst our children are being killed on the streets of South Africa. The Muslims inside South Africa are, Alhamdulillah, increasingly becoming active combatants in the struggle for justice and have in greater numbers identified with the ANC. We have done so because of the ANC track record, and because the Freedom Charter to which the ANC is committed, provides the surest guarantee of the preserva­ tion of our Din and culture in a liberated South Africa. Above all, we have done so because the masses of South Africa recognises the ANC as the custodian of their aspirations and there is no way tha't Islam is going to survive in South Africa if does not identify with the oppressed. It is only through being united with the 'mustadafin fil ard' i.e. the oppressed on the earth, that we will be able to bring about the downfall of the white racist regime. In their destruction lies the hope of our people and the future of Islam. We enclose a copy of the Freedom Charter to which the ANC and all of us are committed, and it has met with acceptance by a number of senior ulema inside South Africa. We appeal to you to support our struggle as commanded by Allah in the Quran:

0' You who believe! stand up firmly as witness bearers for Allah in Justice, though this may be against yourselfs...

We assure you of our commitment to bring about a solution where justice and the noblest of our Islamic traditions shall prevail. Please write to us for further informa­ tion and offers of support. We pray for the Guidance from Allah at all times for indeed *the only true guid­ ance is the Guidance of Allah.'

Wassalaam. Your Brother in Islam. Shaikh Abdul Humid Gabier (Former Chairman, Muslim Judicial Council)

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