Table Of ContentHUZOOR’S TOUR OF CANADA
OCTOBER-NOVEMBER 2016
PART 2
A Personal Account
By Abid Khan
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Introduction to Part 2
After an extremely blessed first week, Huzoor’s tour of Canada had now
reached its second week. The days that followed proved to be extremely
memorable, as Huzoor’s engagements continued in Peace Village before an
extremely historic trip to Canada’s capital city of Ottawa.
The Peter Mansbridge interview
Soon after we arrived in Canada, the local Jamaat media team and other
senior office bearers mentioned that they hoped that Huzoor could be
interviewed by a journalist called Peter Mansbridge. They told me that he
was known as the ‘Voice of Canada’ and had been considered the leading
Canadian journalist for many years.
In his role as Chief Correspondent of Canada’s national broadcaster CBC, he
had interviewed many world leaders such as Barack Obama, Justin Trudeau,
Hillary Clinton and Tony Blair.
One thing, I reminded the local Jamaat members is that the dignity and status
of Khilafat-e-Ahmadiyya is such that we should never think that an interview
with any journalist, no matter how prominent, is an honour for the Jamaat
or Khalifa-Waqt. Rather, it is a blessing for the journalist and the broadcaster
to have the opportunity to interview Khalifatul Masih - whether they
comprehend it or not.
In terms of Huzoor’s own demeanour it does not change whether he is
meeting a leading world figure or a guest from a local town or village. In all
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such meetings, Huzoor meets the other person with respect, kindness and
sees it as an opportunity to spread Islam’s true teachings.
Nonetheless, where a journalist or broadcaster has a wide audience, it is of
significance in the sense that it will allow for the views and message of
Khilafat to reach far and wide. It was for this reason that the idea of Huzoor
being interviewed by Peter Mansbridge was significant and appealing.
A senior member of the Jamaat told me he had floated the idea of Peter
Mansbridge interviewing Huzoor with members of the Canada media team
before Huzoor’s tour but, perhaps, more in hope than in expectation.
Generally, the media has its own agenda and we have seen for many years
how Western media has preferred to highlight injustices and cruelties taking
place in Muslim nations, as opposed to the constant worldwide efforts to
promote peace undertaken by the Jamaat.
Nevertheless, our local media team contacted the producers of Peter
Mansbridge’s CBC ‘One on One’ television programme to see if an interview
could be arranged, however initially they did not receive a favourable
response.
Yet, despite this, when Huzoor arrived in Canada there was a great deal of
media interest from the off, whereby many national and provincial media
outlets covered Huzoor’s arrival in Peace Village and requested the
opportunity to interview Huzoor.
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Perhaps having observed this, the day following Huzoor’s arrival, the
producers of Peter Mansbridge contacted the Jamaat and now requested the
opportunity to interview Huzoor.
Safwan Chaudhry, in-charge of Canada’s media team, immediately came to
me to discuss the proposal. He said that Peter Mansbridge wished to conduct
an interview but had sought exclusivity, whereby we would decline other
one-on-one interviews with Huzoor, until their interview was broadcast.
Safwan seemed to be suffering from mixed emotions – on the one hand, he
was excited and happy that the producers had requested the interview, yet
on the other hand was concerned by the exclusivity part – particularly as
Huzoor had already graciously approved an interview with Global News the
following day.
Though at that time, I did not fully appreciate who Peter Mansbridge was or
the scale of his audience, as I had personally never seen any of his interviews,
I could tell from the demeanour of Safwan that it was potentially a huge
opportunity for the message of Islam Ahmadiyyat to be spread in Canada
directly by Khalifatul Masih.
However, my initial response was still that we should not cancel the
interview with Global News but should also try to pursue the Peter
Mansbridge interview in parallel. It did not feel right to cancel an agreed
interview because a potentially better opportunity had arisen.
As I wrote in part 1 of this diary, when I later informed Huzoor he instructed
the same.
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Alhamdolillah, there are always blessings in following the guidance of
Khilafat and so despite the fact we did not cancel the Global News interview,
Peter Mansbridge did still request the opportunity to interview Huzoor.
Now their only condition was that in the period between the recording of the
interview and its broadcast, no other one-on-one interview with Huzoor
would be broadcast in Canada. We sought Huzoor’s guidance on this and he
graciously granted permission for us to agree to this request.
Interview Location
The interview was scheduled for 12 October 2016 and so the day before CBC
sent a team in advance to Peace Village and met our local media team. Having
looked at different locations at complex, the producers stated their
preference to conduct the interview in the Baitul Islam Mosque itself.
Personally, I liked the idea of conducting the interview in the Mosque, as I
thought it would look good on camera. However, initially Private Secretary,
Munir Javed sahib was reluctant and said that the interview should be held
in Huzoor’s office, as he felt it would be more convenient for Huzoor.
After a few minutes, I was able to persuade him that holding it in the Mosque
would be more convenient as the camera crew would require a lot of time to
set up and wind-up their cameras and equipment.
I then mentioned to Huzoor that our humble suggestion was to hold the
interview in the Mosque and most graciously Huzoor approved it.
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A conversational style
The interview was scheduled at 11am and so at around 10.30am, I went to
the Mosque and was introduced to Peter Mansbridge who had just arrived.
He appeared quite friendly and told me how he himself had been born in
England.
Thereafter, Safwan and Asif Khan (Secretary Umoor-e-Kharija) told me that
Peter Mansbridge’s style of interview was very conversational and that I
should let Huzoor know this in advance. Personally, I did not think it was a
big issue, as Huzoor had dealt with all types of journalists but out of respect
for their request I did mention it to him as he walked towards the Mosque
prior to the interview.
In response, Huzoor smiled and said:
“It does not matter to me what his style is. He can interview as he prefers.”
The Interview
The interview commenced at 11am and lasted for about 45minutes. During
it, Peter Mansbridge asked Huzoor about the rise of extremism and
terrorism and about what he perceived to be an increasing divide between
Muslims and non-Muslims.
He also asked about increasing tensions between the United States and
Russia and the risk of a Third World War. He also asked about the values of
our Jamaat and about the role of women in Islam.
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Unsurprisingly, he also asked Huzoor his views on the prospect of a Donald
Trump Presidency in the United States and his views on Canada.
In response to a question about why the world was becoming more and more
uncertain and why some Muslims were being radicalised, Huzoor said:
“The present situation did not flare up after 9/11, in my view it flared up
after the 2008 economic crisis, when a number of people, especially the
youth, were made redundant from their jobs. They had nothing to do and
this was a cause in increasing their frustration. Then, a new extremist
group emerged, called Daesh or ISIS, and they benefitted from these
frustrations.”
Asked about the prospect of Donald Trump banning Muslims from the
United States, Huzoor said:
“If he tries to do it then it will lead to great chaos in the country. If he
takes any measure or harsh step or tries to deny the rights of the Muslims
living in his country, then there will be conflict and disturbance.”
Huzoor continued:
“If he tries to implement what he has been saying then I fear there is
going to be a civil war. If the Government takes harsh measures and tries
to deny the rights of people, then there will be a reaction. In order to
create disturbance even a single person is enough. Thus, (the
government) has to be sensible. I hope that no elected President of the
United States will ever take a measure that is senseless.”
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I vividly remember the look of surprise on the face of Peter Mansbridge
when Huzoor warned of the prospect of a civil war if the US President sought
to discriminate against Muslims.
Yet, as I write this weeks later, Huzoor’s words of warning seem ever more
far-sighted and prescient. In the past week, the newly-elected President
Trump has started to place restrictions on Muslims and already there have
been demonstrations of the frustration and anger of such policies have
elicited.
Under the guidance of Khilafat, no Ahmadi Muslim would ever partake in
violence or harmful action against the State, yet there are millions of other
Muslims and minorities who are not the beneficiaries of such guidance.
Whereas, we Ahmadis, are instructed by Khalifa-Waqt to bow down in
prayer and to show patience and restraint, there is no telling how other
groups that may feel marginalised or oppressed will react.
In response to a question by Peter Mansbridge about the integration of
immigrants, Huzoor said:
“It is the saying of the Prophet of Islam (sa) that the love of your country
is a part of your faith. It means that an immigrant must try his level best
and use all his capabilities and faculties for the betterment of the
country… To me integration means you have to be law-abiding, you have
to work for the betterment of your nation and you must never even think
ill of your country.”
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Peter Mansbridge then asked Huzoor about the role of women in Islam and
specifically about segregation after showing Huzoor a photo of the men’s hall
at Jalsa Salana Canada. Mansbridge said that such segregation was
“unacceptable” to some people.
Huzoor said that the journalist should ask Ahmadi women what they
preferred and that people should be permitted to sit separately if they
wished, without being judged.
Huzoor said:
“It is a religious teaching and Governments should not interfere in
religious matters. If Muslim women believe that doing Hijab is part of
their faith then they should not be stopped.
However, as far as opportunities are concerned our Ahmadi ladies are
more educated and literate than our men. They are doctors working in
hospitals, they are engineers, architects, scientists, researchers and they
are pursuing these careers with Hijab.”
Alhamdolillah the interview concluded successfully and was broadcast to
millions of people nationally on Peter Mansbridge’s One on One television
programme on 29 October 2016.
A few moments with Huzoor
Following the conclusion of the interview, Huzoor returned to his office and
called me in for a few moments.
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Before I sat down, Huzoor asked me to open the blinds in his office.
Huzoor said:
“I like the view when the blinds are open, as I can see the park from here.”
Thereafter, Huzoor mentioned the interview that had just taken place. It
appeared that he had enjoyed it.
Huzoor said:
“I liked the conversational style of Peter Mansbridge which you had told
me about prior to the interview. It is more relaxed and informal. Also, he
spoke clearly and slowly and so it was much easier to understand his
accent, compared to some other journalists.”
Huzoor continued:
“I purposely brought up the fact that Muslims do not shake the hands of
people of the other sex because it was a means to spread Islam’s true
teachings. Based on what I said, he asked the follow up question about
segregation and so then had the opportunity to give a detailed answer
about the rights of women in Islam and the true concept of Hijab.”
It was very interesting to hear how Huzoor had said that he had purposely
brought up the handshake issue, which in turn led to a follow-up question
from Peter Mansbridge about segregation.
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Description:of Khilafat-e-Ahmadiyya is such that we should never think that an interview Peter Mansbridge did still request the opportunity to interview Huzoor.
