The current predicament of ethnic and religious minorities in Afghanistan and Pakistan is a cause of grave concern, and it is essential for the international community to be aware of multiple complexities and rivalries in the region. For this article I partnered with an ethnic Hazara human rights activist and Chinese-educated medical doctor, M. Saleem Javed, based in Quetta, Pakistan to provide a brief history of this threatened community and to document the challenges they are currently facing.

Origin and Identity

Central Asia has been the crossroads of ethnicities for millennia as exemplified by the diversity of languages and other cultural expressions in this region. The West has been exposed to these narratives in the past decade unfortunately through the lens of conflict in Afghanistan. As NATO forces withdraw from the region, the plight of indigenous minorities deserves greater attention and scrutiny. Perhaps the most vulnerable of these minority groups are the Hazara people. Phenotypically, the Hazara have distinct similarities to Mongols and there may have been an ethnic connection as evident from the etymology of many Hazara names. There was likely widespread intermarriage when the Mongols invaded South-central Asia in the twelfth and the preexisting descendants of the Indo-Hephthalite Kushan Buddhist empire as well as subsequent Persian settlers.

A Chinese traveler, Tauchaun, wrote about people similar to Chinese in Hazarajat called ‘Hosalo’ in June 644 A.D. Since the Chinese alphabet does not have an ‘R,’ this reference could have been ‘Hozora’ or Hazara’. The proximate etymology of the word is derived from the Persian word for a ‘thousand’ (Hazar) which may be a reference to a military contingent. During the various conquests of the times perhaps this syncretic identity emerged beyond the battlefields. Now more than 5 million people consider themselves to be Hazara, a vast majority of whom live in Afghanistan (constituting at least 20% of the country’s population), followed by around a million in Pakistan. In Iran, there is a sizeable population of Hazara but they are intermingled with the Khawari ethnic group and a definitive census is hard to determine. The largest Hazara diaspora abroad is in Australia, which has been welcoming of Afghan immigration due to old ties of Afghan workers during British colonial times (even now one of Australia’s major train lines is called “The Ghan” in respect of this legacy).

Marginalization and Conquest

Discrimination towards the Hazara was poignantly portrayed by Afghan-American writer Khaled Hosseini in his epic novel The Kite Runner. The roots of persecution towards the Hazara are largely related to sectarian rifts within Islam – the dominant religion in the region. Though a comprehensive census eludes us, it is fair to say that a vast majority of Hazara are Shia (believing in twelve imams) with small Sunni and Ismaili minorities as well. While a majority of Pashtuns are Sunnis, there are also several Shia groups within Pashtun ranks, particularly among the Orakzai tribes. As documented in Sana Haroon’s book Frontier of Faith, there were several episodes of anti-Shia movements during the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries. Most notable among these was the one led by Mullah Mahmud Akhunzada against the Shias of Orakzai which led to a bloody confrontation and expulsion of many Shias in 1929. The British supported the Shia at the time as a persecuted minority, though tribal leaders (particularly the Afridis) were highly suspicious of British intentions and tried to prevent their intervention by mobilizing their own dispute resolution system with the mullahs.

The inhabitants of Hazarajat in the central highlands of Afghanistan, were semi-independent until Amir Abdul Rahman, the King of Afghanistan, invaded their homeland in the late nineteenth century with the help of Sunni clergymen who declared Jihad (religious decree) against the Hazara Shias. According Afghan historian Mir Ghulam Mohammad Ghubar The Amir’s army and tribal militiamen massacred almost 60% of the Hazaras, confiscated much of their fertile land and enslaved many others. Many of them sought refuge in Quetta Pakistan and Iran’s Mashhed at that time leading to current populations in these areas. The remaining population has faced persecution and social discrimination at the hands of Afghan rulers ever since then.

Similar dynamics of dissent and conflict with foreign forces in the region appear to be playing out almost a century later. In March 1979 the Hazara launched a major offensive against the communist Afghan government and claimed their homeland (Hazarajat) in just a few months. However, in the 1980 various Hazara factions were engaged in a civil war while trying to establish domination over Hazarajat which ended in 1988 under the platform of the Hizb-e-Wahdat.

Taliban terror and its aftermath

Following the Russo-Afghan war and the subsequent Afghan civil war, the Taliban toke over Kabul in 1996 which marked the beginning of another wave of persecution and repression against the Hazara. From 1998 to 2002 thousands of Hazaras were massacred by Taliban in Mazar-e-Sharif (1998) , Rotak Pass (2000), Bamiyan (1998 -1999) , Yakao lang (January 2001) and other places of Afghanistan. Human Rights Watch (HRW) has documented through archived sources the massacre of thousands of Hazara Shias by Taliban forces during these years. Mullah Manan Niazi, the Taliban governor of Mazar-e-Sharif, had issued a Fatwa that ‘Hazaras are not Muslim, killing them is not a sin’. While the Taliban did make some tentative alliances with a few Hazara, it is widely believed that it was an official policy of the Taliban to marginalize the Hazara, confiscate their lands and force them into exile, particularly in Iran.

Termination of the Taliban government was wholeheartedly welcomed by the Hazaras and other ethnic and religious minorities in Afghanistan. The situation greatly improved as compared to Taliban times as the Afghan constitution gave fundamental protection to persecuted minorities, including the Hazara. However, minority communities continued to have grievances even under Hamid Karzai’s democratic government and violence continued. In 2004, 16 Hazaras were pulled from their vehicle by Taliban forces in south-central Afghanistan and executed. Hundreds of them have been massacred by Kochi nomads—who are presumptively allied with Taliban — in Behsud since 2007. Afghanistan’s Independent Human Rights Commission has produced a report on the dreadful series of incidents in this region.

Quo vadis NATO?

After ten years of the presence of US led NATO forces and at the eve of their withdrawal, there are ominous signs of a return to wider persecution of the Hazara Shias. On December 7, 2011 more than 70 Shias, mostly Hazaras, were killed in simultaneous suicide attacks on the tenth day of Moharram in Kabul and Mazar e Sharif. These attacks were ambiguously claimed and then denied by Lashkar-e-Jhangvi-al-Alami, a Pakistan based Taliban affiliate, with historic ties to Pakistani intelligence services that have operated under the despicable doctrine of “strategic depth” (exerting influence through destabilization of Afghanistan in order to gain leverage with their arch-rival India).

Pakistani Hazara diaspora protesting in Oslo Norway, Photo by Penny Thew, creative commons license

Similar attacks have taken place against the Hazara Shias of Pakistan since 1999 in which more than 700 innocent people have lost their lives along with hundreds injured and maimed. Two of the worst attacks which shocked the world were when 29 Hazara passengers were taken off a bus, made to stand in line and executed one by one in Mastung on 20 September 2011. Another 13 were executed after being identified as Hazaras Shias in Akhtarabad, Quetta, on Oct 04, 2011. The responsibility of almost all such attacks/targeted killings have been claimed by Lashkar e Jhangvi. A few weeks before the massacre, this banned terrorist outfit had circulated an open letter addressed to Hazaras in Quetta reading: “All Shi’ites are worthy of killing. We will rid Pakistan of unclean people….”

London-based Minority Rights Group (MRG) has identified the Hazara as the ‘most under threat minorty group’ in Afghanistan. The Hazara, both in Afghanistan and Pakistan, have been persecuted because of their religious and/or ethnic heritage and are particularly fearful of the peace talks with Taliban that are being brokered by Qatar. These talks may lead to the release of a particularly ruthless anti-Hazara Taliban commander and former deputy defense minister in their regime, Mullah Muhammad Fazl from Guantanamo Bay, who is known for his pernicious attacks on Shias.

For peace to prevail in Afghanistan and Pakistan, assuring security of the Hazara minority is essential. The United States and all interested states must not compromise on the security of this persecuted minority population in their peace talks. The Hazara constitute a vital indigenous culture that has survived for centuries and is threatened. While all groups must try to promote sectarian harmony internally, the responsibility of protecting the fundamental human rights of the Hazara remains with the Afghan and Pakistani states and their allies who purport to support peaceful pluralism.

http://newswatch.nationalgeographic.com/2012/01/16/hazara_afghanistan_pakistan/

Last year, the Ismaili Walk raised over $300,000, and has now raised over $3.8M since inception. The 20^thAnnual Ismaili Walk featured a full day of live entertainment, delicious heart-healthy meals, and activities for the whole family. Healthy Families BC was one of many proud supporters of this year’s record-setting Walk.

For more information visit www.healthyfamiliesbc.ca.

While preserving the dying qawwali tradition, the Trust hopes to simultaneously create spaces in the Nizamuddin Basti, like the Chaunsath Khamba, the Central Park opposite the MCD school and the Dargah, where regular performances can take place. As part of a cultural revival initiative called the ‘Aalam-e-Khusrau’, co-funded by the Ford Foundation, the Trust is facilitating public performances, discussions, research, archiving and documenting, research fellowships, scholarship programmes and multimedia exhibitions on Khusrau.

Since its beginning in the 13th-14th Century by the Sufi Saint Hazrat Nizamuddin Auliya in Ghiyaspur, qawwali is said to have been adapted in many situations and variations, but all of them display the distinct musical style and structure of the present-day qawwali. Amir Khusrau, the most beloved disciple of Hazrat Nizamuddin Auliya, supposedly created this style of music as a form of veneration.

Scholars, however, say the tradition is now dying out. Children in qawwal families are found to carry the tradition forward, but without any formal knowledge of music. To train them, AKTC is now in the process of hand-picking children from these families from the Nizamuddin Basti, Chitli Qabar in Old Delhi and Fatehpur Sikri. They will be sent to maestros in classical music for formal training.

Last year, the ‘Jashn-e-Khusrau’ programme included khanaqahi qawwali performances, poetry-reading, lectures and discussions on qawwali and Amir Khusrau, exhibitions depicting the world of Dargah Hazrat Nizamuddin and the Basti area urban renewal projects, as well as heritage walks through the settlement of the Hazrat Nizamuddin Basti.

A similar programme is being planned for 2012, when a travelling exhibition-cum-workshop will also travel to UP, Rajasthan, Punjab, and Jammu-Kashmir, where the AKTC is documenting and archiving the existing qawwali traditions.

The AKTC has also put forth a suggestion to the Ministry of Culture to set up an Amir Khusrau Resource Centre that can house books, manuscripts, illustrations, recordings and artifacts pertaining to Khusrau’s legacy.

The AKTC has proposed that the centre be located in the Nizamuddin area, while regular events can be organised at central locations like the India International Centre and monuments such as Chaunsath Khamba that will create an interface between performers and scholars to ensure that Khusrau’s legacy is carried on.

“Qawwali traditions initiated by Hazrat Amir Khusrau here in the Nizamuddin area in the 14th Century are as much our contribution to the world’s heritage as Humayun’s Tomb. Hopefully this programme will lead to the revival of the pure art and generate greater interest amongst the younger generation while giving the qawwals new performance venues and greater recognition,” Ratish Nanda, project director, AKTC, told Newsline.

“Nizamuddin Basti has been the cradle of Hindustani culture for 700 years and we hope to revive it through these programmes.”

“I have dedicated my life to the uplift and progress of the Ismailis all over the world and I pray for all your happiness and success.”

These words of dedication were articulated by Mawlana Shah Karim al-Husayni, His Highness the Aga Khan IV, soon after he succeeded his grandfather, Sir Sultan Muhammad Shah Aga Khan III, as the 49th Imam of Ismaili Muslims.

In his will, the late Aga Khan III had declared:

“In view of the fundamentally altered conditions in the world in very recent years due to the great changes which have taken place including the discoveries of atomic science I am convinced that it is in the best interests of the Shia Moslem Ismailian Community that I should be succeeded by a young man who has been brought up and developed during recent years and in the midst of the new age and who brings a new outlook on life to his office as Imam.”

July 12, 1957: The newly enthroned Imam, Shah Karim al-Hussaini,
with Ismaili leaders at Villa Barakat.

The new Imam was none other than a youthful and vigorous twenty year old student at Harvard University. The Aga Khan took some time off from his studies to visit his followers in various parts of the world. Public ceremonial installation ceremonies (Takht Nashini) were held in East Africa and Southern Asia in the presence of both Ismailis and non-Ismailis. The following excerpts from his speeches reflect his foresight and sophistication. For the past 53 years, his acumen, understanding and wisdom have driven the spiritual and material well being of his followers. He has consistently maintained that education, unity, character and generosity, as well as the ethic of keeping a balance between the spiritual (din) and temporal (dunya) are the elements which keep a community vibrant and healthy and lead to enlightenment and dignity.

At the age of 73, the Ismaili Imam’s wisdom continues to create opportunities for his community, charting a path that will ensure that they are at the leading edge of  social and intellectual evolution. His engagement, grounded in the ethics of Islam, has also contributed to the improvement, well-being and dignity of millions of non-Ismailis in some of the world’s poorest, most deprived, and most diverse communities regardless of faith, origin or gender.

Takht Nashini, Dar-es-Salaam, 19th October 1957

Today I believe education is more important than ever before. But remember that education does not stop at the school room; it continues through the newspapers, the radio, films and particularly television. One teacher can reach hundreds of thousands of children at the same moment through the television set.

My grandfather often reminded you that we are living in the atomic age. But what in fact do we mean when we say this? Certainly we mean more than the age of  ‘the red moon’. The most significant thing about the atomic age is the new and unbounded sources of energy which are released for the use of mankind. In Europe and America today, power stations are springing up which need no coal, nor oil, nor water power to run them. They feed themselves. This is close to the secret of perpetual motion.

In my life time, it is almost certain that such atomic power stations will be exported, very likely to countries like Tanganyika. From them will flow the energy which will create new towns, railways, factories and all the foundations of modern industrial progress. These things are still far off, but they will come. They will affect all your lives in the next half century. With this material progress will come many difficulties as well as many blessings. This will affect not only the Ismailis, but all who live in this territory and, perhaps, even the whole of Africa.

I shall devote my life to guiding the community in all the problems which these rapid changes will bring in their wake.

However, it should not be believed that material progress is all that counts. As so many advanced nations are finding to their cost, man’s mastery of physical forces has far outstripped his mastery of himself. His mind cannot grapple with the complexities his hands have created. That is why my grandfather attached so much importance to education in our community.

Today, I believe education is more important than ever before. But remember that education does not stop at the school room; it continues through the newspapers, the radio, films and particularly television. One teacher can reach hundreds of thousands of children at the same moment through the television set. Sooner or later the same thing will happen here in Tanganyika. The Ismaili community must prepare itself for changes of this magnitude. We must identify ourselves with Tanganyika and move forward with all the other communities in this rapidly advancing country.

I do not think that the great progress I have spoken about will make our lives any less happy than in the past. This faith by which we live is the only sure guarantee that our problems will be surmounted. The younger people among you must be especially aware of this.

Only the faith of your fathers will enable you to live in peace.

Takht Nashini, Nairobi, 22nd October, 1957

The years of development and change which lie ahead are certain to throw up many new problems. We should not be afraid of these. You will surely surmount them if you stand by your faith and meet your difficulties in the spirit of humility and tolerance that your religion demands of us. This is specially important for the younger generations who will have to carry the future on their shoulders.

How beautiful your city is looking! The decorations along the streets and here on this ground are truly magnificent. I remember Nairobi as a boy and most of you know how much it has changed since the war. Yet, this is only a symbol of the still greater changes which are taking place throughout Kenya.

Never before in the history of man has there been such an age of technological progress. Only thirty years ago it was an adventure to fly in an aeroplane. Today there are machines that travel faster than sound. Before long, the oceans will be scattered with atomic powered ships travelling on and beneath the sea. New and undreamt of changes in the means of transport and communication lie in the future.

All of this will create new markets and new fields of enterprise for Africa. Fresh outlooks and unforeseen influences will follow in their train. It is most important for the future of this country that the various races face these changes together and with mutual understanding.

How do we Ismailis fit into this picture! Our faith keeps us a united community. This is essential to our spiritual welfare, but in every other way you must remember that you are citizens of Kenya. It is to this Government that you owe allegiance.

Although, as a community, the Ismailis will never be involved in politics, individually they may well play a constructive part in their country’s political developments. Some of your leaders here are doing this with great distinction. They should remember, above all, how important it is to encourage and promote good relations among the different races who live here together.

Let me give you a practical example. Behind, you can see the structure of a great new hospital which is almost completed. It will be one of the best equipped hospitals in East Africa. Half of it has been paid for by the Ismaili community and half by the Government. It will be, like our schools, available for all races. I hope that this will be only one of many other ventures in which the spirit of partnership will always prevail.

The years of development and change which lie ahead are certain to throw up many new problems. We should not be afraid of these. You will surely surmount them if you stand by your Faith and meet your difficulties in the spirit of humility and tolerance that your religion demands of us. This is specially important for the younger generations who will have to carry the future on their shoulders.

Only the Faith of your fathers can sustain you and enable you to live in peace here, in this world, and the next.

Takht Nashini, Kampala, 25th October, 1957

One event which I witnessed was a boxing match between two Ismaili boys- one African, one Asian. I saw a good fight and, at the end, I think each of them thought he had won. Perhaps both were right! To me this friendly contest reflected something of tremendous importance to our community. It reflected first the qualities of determination and endurance which are demanded by our Faith.

Today’s ceremony is of a very different nature. We are assembled on the holy grounds of the Jamatkhana for an installation, whose significance is entirely religious.

The position which I occupy as Imam of Shia lmami Ismailis here in Uganda, and in other countries all over the world beneath the flags of many nations, with widely different forms of government, is not and never will be a political one.

Yesterday, I visited the magnificent new Aga Khan educational institution. I was shown enough of its work to convince me that this school compared with the finest in the world.

One event which I witnessed was a boxing match between two Ismaili boys – one African, one Asian. I saw a good fight and, at the end, I think each of them thought he had won. Perhaps both were right! To me this friendly contest reflected something of tremendous importance to our community. It reflected first the qualities of determination and endurance which are demanded by our Faith. These qualities are also necessary to the future leaders of the community and for the country as a whole. At the end of this sporting event, the two boys shook hands and stood together to be photographed. To me this symbolised the partnership between different races which I am convinced is the only condition of peace and prosperity.

Uganda is a predominantly an African State and when it becomes autonomous, the Government will, I understand, be mainly African. If this is accepted by the other races, and provided they in their turn are given a legitimate role in the development of the country they seek to serve, Uganda will prosper as never before. If on the other hand, the different races fall out and quarrel, there will be no confidence, foreign capital will not be attracted, development will be slowed and the country’s progress impeded in every way. This is why I most strongly urge the Ismaili community to work hand in hand with all other citizens.

Finally I would like you to speak of your spiritual welfare. We think a great deal today of material advancement. In Uganda most of our community is prospering. This is a tribute to its skill and industries – particularly to the wise advice and guidance it received from my beloved grandfather. But wealth is not all that matters. Our religion teaches us that a spirit of humility and devotion is of first importance.

You must work together with mutual forbearance and with respect for each other. Only thus shall we achieve the harmony and happiness which is necessary for the true advancement of our faith.

Takht Nashini, Karachi, 23rd January, 1958

I do not believe that we should fear material progress, nor should we condemn it. The danger is that it could become an obsession in our lives and that it could dominate our way of thinking. There is no reason why our traditions and our faith should stop us from moving with our times, nor in fact why we should not lead our fellowmen to new spheres of knowledge and learning.

Today, I am speaking to you in a city and in a country which have a particular meaning to my family and myself. On November 2, 1877, my beloved grandfather was born here in Karachi. Through 72 years of Imamat, he guided his spiritual children to happiness and prosperity and some 10 years ago, he saw a new Muslim State born. He believed strongly in Pakistan’s future, and a very great number of Ismailis are now happily settled here.

The progress which this country has made since my visit in 1954 is astonishing. It brings to mind what is perhaps the most fundamental change in world politics: the growing influence of the Asian nations. Millions upon millions of people have won the right to independence. Their influence in world counsels is becoming stronger every day; their voice is being listened to with increasing respect by older nations of the West.

Pakistan’s role among Muslim States and amongst Asian countries as a whole is of the greatest interest and importance. Here is a nation newly-born, unfettered by too many outworn traditions. She is free, therefore, to forge her own future, her own standard of living and her own set of normal principles. She is a Muslim country who must adapt herself to the fast changing world, but she has the potentialities for a great future and I pray that she may fulfil it. To adapt modern values and the pressures of a changing society to the basic ideals of Islam, to put modern democracy into Islamic form – here is her task. Not an easy one, but she will succeed.

To my own community, I would say this: We may be relatively small in numbers, but our influence is great. It is your duty to use that influence, not simply for the advancement of yourselves as individuals nor even for the whole of the Ismailis: you must use it for the benefit of Pakistan. As a community, our Faith will always preserve our special identity, but there should be nothing exclusive in what you do. To partake more thoroughly in this country’s development, I hope to see my spiritual children spread out into all the walks of life. All the fields are open to you, it is for you to sow the seed and to reap the fruit.

I have spoken of the tremendous political advances made by the nations of Asia. It should not be forgotten, however, that in Europe, America and Russia there has been a simultaneous revolution in technology and industrial power. The huge new atomic power stations, the sputniks and the vast throbbing machines of modern industrial life are symbols of a fresh chapter in material progress.

The end of the chapter is unforeseen and, in this sense, the gulf between ourselves and the older countries is still very wide. It is a forbidding void, but though it may and should make us hesitate, let it not make us turn away.

Of one thing I am quite certain: through a strong educational system sustained by Islam, our future prospects are happy ones. I do not believe that we should fear material progress, nor should we condemn it. The danger is that it could become an obsession in our lives and that it could dominate our way of thinking. There is no reason why our traditions and our faith should stop us from moving with our times, nor in fact why we should not lead our fellowmen to new spheres of knowledge and learning.

We can have confidence in our future—a confidence given to us by the certainty that our traditions and our religion will always inspire the creations of our hands and minds.

Takht Nashini, Dacca, 12th February, 1958

The recent decision to make Islamic teaching compulsory in the schools will, I believe, prove a very wise one. But its benefits will not be fully experienced if that religious instruction is too hidebound by dogmas of the past. There is no need to discard the great traditions of our Faith. There is every need to adapt and invigorate them in the light of the quite altered circumstances of today.

The position which I hold has no political significance. The Ismailis are scattered all over the world, owing allegiance to many flags and serving beneath many different forms of government. In taking up my new duties, it has been a tremendous inspiration for me to experience the hospitality and personal kindness so readily offered by national leaders wherever I go. I know how much this kindness is due to the respect in which the world holds the memory of my beloved grandfather. I can only hope to justify the faith he placed in me.

The younger generation should think of your country as something more than a cradle in which to be born, to grow up, make money, marry, have children and die. No nation can prosper unless its people are alive to their civic responsibilities. Certainly no Muslim nation can endure unless its leaders, its teachers, its parents and its youth hold fast to the faith which should inspire their whole outlook. This has been said to you before – and by men who are more experienced and better qualified to speak than I.

The recent decision to make Islamic teaching compulsory in the schools will, I believe, prove a very wise one. But its benefits will not be fully experienced if that religious instruction is too hidebound by dogmas of the past. There is no need to discard the great traditions of our Faith. There is every need to adapt and invigorate them in the light of the quite altered circumstances of today.

We should not be afraid of material progress. The less advanced nations need its fruits desperately in their fight against poverty and disease. If Muslims will accept this need, and at the same time ensure that the living essence of their Faith infuses every field of human activity, you will rediscover the ancient glories of Islam.

Takht Nashini, Bombay, 11th March, 1958

The Ismailis have always prided themselves on their highly developed social conscience. Our faith teaches us that we have obligations far beyond our own or even our family’s interests. If you remain united, work towards community progress, and respect your leaders, you will, I am sure, go far. As part of the nation of India, you must contribute your share to her advancement….it could be said that Bombay is the birthplace of our modern, world-wide community. I hope that the Ismailis who live here will remember this fact and their duty to set an example which other communities abroad will be proud to follow.

Bombay, as you have been reminded, has very close associations with my family. It was here, and here alone, that my grandfather was acclaimed as 48th Imam of the Shia Imami Ismailis. That was 73 years ago, and at the time he was only eight years old. What tremendous changes have come about since those days! The Ismaili community has grown and prospered almost beyond recognition. Thanks to my grandfather’s guidance and wisdom, Ismaili families are to be found today all over the world, living peaceably beneath the flags of many nations, owing allegiance to a wide variety of Governments.

In some ways, therefore, it could be said that Bombay is the birthplace of our modern, world-wide community. I hope that the Ismailis who live here will remember this fact and their duty to set an example which other communities abroad will be proud to follow.

The Ismailis are a relatively small segment of the huge and complex tapestry we know as modern India. But I believe they will play a full and by no means unimportant part in the future development of this country.

To all Ismailis here today, I would say this: there is nothing exclusive about you. While your religious faith will always preserve a special identity, your secular loyalty is solely to India and to its elected Government. I urge my community to keep this constantly in their minds, but they should do more still. The Ismailis have always prided themselves on their highly developed social conscience. Our faith teaches us that we have obligations far beyond our own or even our family’s interests. If you remain united, work towards community progress, and respect your leaders, you will, I am sure, go far.

As part of the nation of India, you must contribute your share to her advancement.

With humility, tolerance and respect for each other, by honest work and straight dealings, you will earn the true friendship of your fellows. It does not matter whether you are wealthy or poor, whether you work with hands or brain, your spiritual obligations are equal. By the way you conduct your daily lives, by the compassion you show to your fellow men and women, and above all by your faith in God - you will ultimately be judged.

Article publication date: August 26, 2010

_______________

The above speech excerpts are taken from Ilm, July-November 1982, Volume 8, Number 1, published by the Shia Imami Ismaili Tariqah and Religious Education Board for the UK.

This article is part of a special series on H.H. The Aga Khan IV. Please also see Voices: “The Power of Wisdom” – His Highness the Aga Khan’s Interview with Politique Internationale

Source: http://simerg.com/special-series-his-highness-the-aga-khan-iv/
his-highness-the-aga-khans-foresight-and-wisdom-at-age-20/

Lawyer honoured for his volunteerism, community service

Aly Alibhai’s job as a lawyer helps keep a roof over his family’s head, but his volunteer work pays a different kind of bill.

“I really view this work as the rent I pay for living on this planet,” Alibhai says. “I’m a really big believer in a concept that has existed for a long time, which is the notion of the citizenship role of a lawyer.”

Alibhai, a 45-year-old senior lawyer with the Department of Justice’s international program, has been named the recipient of this year’s Lincoln Alexander Award by the Law Society of Upper Canada. The award, which honours an Ontario lawyer committed to community service, recognizes Alibhai’s volunteer work with more than a dozen organizations.

There’s another reason why Alibhai’s achievement is notable: he is the first non-Torontonian to receive the Lincoln Alexander since the award was created in 2002.

Born in Kenya, raised in Vancouver and a resident of Ottawa since 1993, Alibhai says he’s particularly happy to help the legal community in Canada’s capital get some recognition.

“I’m not one of those people who hate Toronto. I love it,” he says. “But I think, like a lot of other things, the legal profession can be a little too Toronto-centric.”

Alibhai speaks from experience — he began his legal career in Toronto as a civil litigator with a major Bay Street law firm. But he quickly realized private practice wasn’t his calling and moved to Ottawa to take his first public-sector position as a senior policy advisor to Herb Gray, who was solicitor general at the time.

Gray, who was the longest serving MP in Canada’s history, says he remembers Alibhai as a bright and promising employee.

“I found him a very efficient and effective assistant,” he says. “I’m not surprised that he’s earned this award.”

Alibhai’s zeal for public service has always extended beyond his job.

One summer while he was in law school, he worked for a camp in Haliburton for children with learning disabilities. He enjoyed it so much that he was inspired to do more community service.

Today, the list of organizations he has volunteered, fundraised or served on boards of directors for includes Legal Aid Ontario, the Aga Khan Foundation of Canada and the John Howard Society of Ottawa.

Melanie Adams, executive director of the Queensway Carleton Hospital Foundation, has worked with Alibhai during his term on the institution’s board of directors. She says he’s especially good at using his contacts to find and organize support.

“He brings a level of professionalism and expertise from his own profession,” she says. “He’ll have different insights from what other people would have when we’re having discussions.”

Alibhai’s volunteer interests are broad, spanning from libraries and children’s choirs to prisoner’s rights. He says the only common thread is a desire to focus his attention where he can make the most difference.

“If there is a connection, I think it’s really helping where I can help those who need it most,” he says.

But balancing a legal career with a heavy load of community service comes at a price. His workday can go late into the evening and his volunteer work can go even later — sometimes as late as 2 a.m. especially when preparing for a board meeting.

Alibhai’s wife also has a busy professional career as a family doctor and they have daughters in Grades 2 and 6.

“You make sacrifices,” he says. “My family doesn’t necessarily see me as often as they’d like and I’d like.”

But family, tradition and faith are major reasons why Alibhai endures the long hours. He was raised an Ismaili Muslim and the importance of volunteerism is one of the major teachings of the religion’s spiritual leader, the Aga Khan.

Alibhai says his parents, who immigrated to Canada when he was 61?2, are proud of how he’s worked their traditional values into his life.

“I think they’re genuinely proud that I’ve chosen a career where I’ve found happiness, where I feel like I’m fulfilled and self-actualized and making a meaningful contribution.”

Source: http://www.ottawacitizen.com/life/
Helping+those+need+most/3133879/story.html#ixzz0v4JVx5cA

The Donor: Gulnar Carlisle

The Gift: $52,000 and climbing

The Cause: The Aga Khan Foundation

The Reason: To support development projects in Kenya

When Gulnar Carlisle was 21 years old her parents made a fateful decision.

It was 1977 and Ms. Carlisle and her family were living in Kenya. Neighbouring Uganda was in turmoil at the time because of the brutal dictatorship of Idi Amin. Fearing the trouble might spread across the border, Ms. Carlisle’s parents sent her to Vancouver to live with an uncle.

Over the next 30 years, Ms. Carlisle built a new life, family and career in Canada, never returning to her native country. That changed in 2008 with news that a global Ismaili sports festival, sponsored by the Aga Khan, was going to be held in Nairobi. Ms. Carlisle jumped at the chance to visit Kenya and entered the tennis competition, winning a place on the Canadian team.

Before she went to the games she decided to raise some money for Kenyan development projects run by the Aga Khan Foundation. “When I had the opportunity to go there I knew I had to make some difference in the level of poverty in Kenya because I had seen that first hand,” she recalled.

Ms. Carlisle raised $17,000, which was used to build a water reservoir and a school in a remote village called Chanzou. During her trip to Nairobi for the competition, Ms. Carlisle and her husband, Jack, visited the village to see the projects. “I was actually blown away by how these villagers had become completely self-sufficient on such little money from the Aga Khan Foundation,” she said.

After returning home to Vancouver, Ms. Carlisle started raising more money for the foundation. She raised $35,000 last year and hopes to raise $25,000 this year at the upcoming World Partnership Walk, which takes place on May 30 in several Canadian cities.

Ms. Carlisle, a financial planner with Investors Group, said the trip to Kenya left a deep impression. “It was unbelievable how poverty had just taken over the country,” she said. “When we went to these really, really remote villages that’s when it hit me. They live on less than $2 a day. It really inspired me that I have to do something to make a difference for these people.”

Source: http://www.theglobeandmail.com/report-on-business/
giving-back/homage-to-the-villagers-of-kenya/article1577741/

In her work, Zainab takes inspiration from Arabic Calligraphy and Islamic art and architecture, such as the historical mosques of Turkey, Spain, and Cairo. She uses traditional elements in her work like ceramic tiles, mirror and glass––materials that were used in the architecture and décor in the Fatimid era as well as in the time periods of Mughal and Ottoman Dynasties. “Developing a unique pattern and style which is uncommon within the art world is a success in its own way,” notes the proud artist.

“I feel that by adapting and practicing my art I have not only been able to expand my skills as an artist but also been able to gain a better understanding of the concepts of my faith, societal beliefs, and extremism of politics in the world.”

Her style does manage to set her pieces apart. Take for instance her breathtaking olive Faiths Girdle piece on canvas that draws you in toward a single focal point with the word “Allah” in the center, encircled by colored mirror pieces or Luminous Glow which almost sails afloat the name of the Creator in a fiery orange. Dragon’s Eye is a slightly different but bolder piece that is done in a haunting palette—the bright reds and the eager greens combined with the subtle blues to soften the overall effect. The elements in that composition show a budding artist wanting to break forth and establish her mark on the art world.

Dragons Eye – Acrylic on Canvas

Faiths Girdle – Glass and Mirror work on Canvas

Luminous Glow – Acrylic on Canvas

Zainab’s creative journey began at the age of three, when she first started dabbling with watercolor and pottery. Over the years, that passion continued but she found herself also getting very interested in politics and law. Zainab, who is currently pursuing a bachelor’s degree in political science and art from Houston Baptist University, is inspired by some of Houston’s most renowned artists such as Michael Collins and Virgil Grotfield. “At school, I am the only artist generating Middle Eastern concepts and designs of calligraphy in general within the art department,” says Zainab. “By viewing my work, some of my fellow student artists and professors have been able to develop a better understanding and appreciation for Muslim art and architecture in general.”

Zainab’s art has been acquired by many private collections. “I do hope in the near future to showcase my work on greater spectrum,” says the hopeful young artist and we wish her the very best in her journey.

Links to the artist
Contact link to purchase: Galerie.Khuwaja@gmail.com

Source: http://hyphenatedspirit.blogspot.com/2009/06/zainab-khuwaja-american-muslim-with.html

Plans call for the building of a museum named after the Aga Khan, an Ismaili Centre and the creation of a park. The massive project is slated for completion by 2013.

“These projects represent a major investment by His Highness in this country’s cultural fabric and are a reflection of the Aga Khan’s commitment to Canada, which serves as a beacon to the rest of the world for its commitment to pluralism and its support for the multicultural richness and diversity of its peoples,” said Farid Damji, of the Ismaili Council for Canada.

The Aga Khan Museum — announced in 2002 — will be built on a 7-hectare site on Wynford Dr. and is the first of its kind in the English speaking world. The 10,000-square-metre structure will house collections of Islamic art, including ceramics, metal work and paintings covering a 1,000-year period of Islamic history. The design was done by Japanese architect Fumihiko Maki.

The second part of the project is the Ismaili Centre — a community centre that includes a place of prayer, library, youth lounge and public spaces for cultural activities. It will be located on the same spot as the museum and is designed by Indian architect Charles Correa.

The park on Wynford Dr. has been designed by award-winning Lebanese landscape architect Vladimir Djurovic. It will surround the museum and project a sense of a traditional Islamic garden.

“I’m excited this is happening because (the Aga Khan) is one of the few Muslim leaders who have reconciled with modernity,” said Tarek Fatah, author and founder of the Muslim Canadian Congress. “He offers a very clear alternative to the Islamism that is being spread by Jihadis. (People in the GTA) will get a view of Muslims and Islam without looking through the prism of Saudi or Iranian-tainted politics.”

The Ismaili Centre Toronto is the second in Canada — the other was built in 1985 in Burnaby, B.C. and opened by prime minister Brian Mulroney in the presence of the Aga Khan. Other Ismaili Centres have been built in London, Lisbon, Dubai, United Arab Emirates and Dushanbe.

Toronto was picked as the site of the museum because of the city’s cultural diversity.

Nearly 100,000 Ismailis are settled throughout Canada — more than 30,000 of them live in Toronto.

Source: http://www.torontosun.com/news/torontoandgta/2010/05/24/14064286.html

Fixing potholes isn’t the sexiest way out of the recession.

But for Aziz Tejpar, an entrepreneur who runs a company that destroys drain grease in restaurants and hospitals by using live bacteria, pothole repair might just prove to be the best way.

“America is built on strip malls,” says Tejpar. “And strip malls have a lot of potholes.”

So Tejpar, president of Bradenton-based Environmental Biotech, has created a new franchise-model business to harness a technology he says will turn the staid industry of filling potholes into something efficient and entrepreneurial. Even better, says Tejpar, this system has no need for jackhammers and is environmentally friendly.

Tejpar calls the system, and the new company behind it, B Pothole Free. The technology revolves around a patented, infrared asphalt heater that is placed over a pothole.

Then, using short, medium and long wave thermal induction, the temperature is raised to 200 degrees Celsius, so heat permeates the entire pothole. The heater is removed after about 10 minutes and a two-man crew reshapes the area with the new road material.

The area is then compacted down and smoothed over while still hot. The entire process takes about 20 minutes.

B Pothole Free charges $99 for each standard size repair, which covers a pothole as big as 3 feet by 3 feet. It costs a county or municipal government about $250 to replace a pothole using traditional methods, says Tejpar, for a job that takes at least twice as long and usually requires twice as much manpower.

Tejpar discovered the pothole repair system in England, his native country, on a business trip last year. Tejpar bought the technology and imported it to Bradenton, where he and a team of researchers spent the past six months refining it.

“[This] is a project we’ve dedicated ourselves to for a long time because we believe in its many benefits,” says Tejpar. “It’s a safer, cleaner and quieter process than current pothole repair methods.”

Tejpar has already begun deploying the system. Clients include a mall in Bradenton and about 45 Starbucks stores in the Jacksonville area, for which Tejpar sent out two-man crews to fix potholes in the store’s parking lots.

Company executives are also targeting Wal-Marts in Florida, thinking that well-traveled lots are in greater need of this kind of service.

But Tejpar believes the future of the business lies in a franchise model. He is planning to lease a full B Pothole Free operation for $35,000, as well as charge a royalty fee on revenues. The operation includes the asphalt heater and related equipment, which is packaged into a hitch-ready cart that includes company signage. Tejpar’s crew from Environmental Biotech will train the franchisees.

B Pothole Free is also partnering with Sarasota-based Insignia Bank on equipment leasing, as Tejpar says he realizes a lack of financing is a steep hurdle for entrepreneurs to get into a new business these days.

Tejpar projects that an ambitious, fully trained B Pothole Free operator, working with commercial landlords, can be filling 30 potholes a day. That can translate to $3,000 a day in sales.

Source: http://www.review.net/section/detail/smooth-move/

Years later, Jessani finds herself not only at McGill, but playing an active role in providing that friendly welcome to non-Canadians as the president of the McGill International Students’ Network.

“My grandfather, who didn’t go to any university, knew of McGill,” says Jessani, who is in her fourth year in a BSc program, majoring in anatomy and cell biology, with a minor in psychology.

Jessani began working with the MISN last year as vice-president, communications. She sought the presidency last year with a few ideas in mind for improving the lot of the University’s 3,000 international students.

For instance, one of her priorities is finding a housing solution for exchange students who number roughly 400 annually. Because these students stay only four months, they frequently have trouble finding accommodation.

Working with Off Campus Housing and the Student Exchange Office, Jessani hopes to enlist the “buddy system,” whereby recent arrivals are matched with well-settled students, to help such students find accommodation. She also plans to lobby nearby landlords to offer short-term leases.

Her work on this dossier has impressed Pauline L’Ecuyer, the International Student Adviser. “I’ve met lots of students with great ideas and projects, but she realizes them fast; she’s very pro-active,” says L’Ecuyer.

Fostering communication seems to be one of Jessani’s strong points. Last year, for instance, she initiated the newsletter MISiNformed, to keep MISN members abreast of information. A glance through the current issue reveals articles on the Network’s new home in the new student services building, a regular advice column penned by L’Ecuyer, a page on culture and events listings.

Winter events, such as skating at the Bell Amphitheatre and planned trips to the winter carnivals in Quebec and Ottawa, figure in the list.

“We try to give people Canadian experiences,” says Jessani, who has become an enthusiastic floor hockey player since coming to McGill — she played field hockey in Kenya as a child, and, later, in the United Arab Emirates, where her family moved when she was a teenager. She has also become an avid skier.

Still, Jessani recognizes that adapting to this culture, this climate and this distance from home is harder for some international students than for others. While Jessani herself is Kenyan-born, she lived in Canada for a few years when she was a toddler. Her mother’s family lives in Alberta. “I suffered no culture-shock nor weather-shock,” she laughs.

Many members of the MISN “are like me” and have some previous Canadian experience, she says. There are also members who are not international students but who join MISN out of an interest in helping the newcomers and in learning about a whole slew of countries. Among McGill’s roughly 3,500 international students, 145 countries are represented.

Next year, Jessani hopes to find herself doing volunteer work in the health field, in some corner of the developing world. Last year, while working in Pakistan teaching children how to read, she caught the bug for development work.

She enjoyed the experience of rubbing against the realities, as opposed to the stereotypes, of people from other cultures. The people she encountered found Jessani to be something of a revelation as well.

In the village in northern Pakistan, for instance, “They couldn’t believe that we [of Indian origin] could speak French and English so well and they couldn’t believe that [Canada's] prime minister is not Muslim,” chuckles Jessani, herself a Muslim of the Ismaili community.

“It’s amazing the questions you get, which is why it’s so important to work or travel internationally.”

Source: http://reporter-archive.mcgill.ca/Rep/r3207/scope.html