New Zealand to broadcast Muslim call for prayer on national TV, radio on Friday

[WebGuru]

New Zealand’s Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern on Wednesday announced that the Muslim call for prayer – the Azaan – would be broadcast on national television and radio as a soon of solidarity with the country’s Muslim community after the Christchurch carnage, said Radio Pakistan.

Ardern also announced that New Zealand would hold two minutes of silence as a mark of respect for the dead on the day and women in the country were being encouraged to wear headscarves to show their support for the Muslim community.

New Zealand’s premier called for a global response to the dangers of social media after the twin-mosques massacre.

A white supremacist gunman streamed his 17 minutes of carnage during which he killed 50 Muslim worshippers during Friday prayers.

Facebook said the live stream from Christchurch was viewed fewer than 200 times but it had to remove a staggering 1.5 million videos as footage of the slaughter went viral.

Ardern said while her focus was on the people of New Zealand, there were issues world leaders needed “to confront collectively”.

“We cannot, for instance, just simply deal with some of the issues we face with our social media to be dealt with on a case-by-case basis,” she said.

“There is an argument there to be made for us to take a united front on a global issue.”

“This is not just an issue for New Zealand, the fact that social media platforms have been used to spread violence (and) material that incites violence. All of us need to present a united front.”

In the United States, a congressional panel said it was asking top executives from US tech firms to explain the proliferation online of the “horrific” video.

The House Committee on Homeland Security called it “critically important” to filter such violent images.

Social media companies have long argued that they are not responsible for what is put on their platforms but Ardern has countered that they cannot simply be “all profit, no responsibility”.

A 44-year-old businessman was remanded in custody after a preliminary court appearance in Christchurch Wednesday on charges of distributing footage of one of the mosque shootings.

If found guilty, he faces up to 14 years in jail.



Source: https://tribune.com.pk/story/193343...-muslim-call-prayer-national-tv-radio-friday/

 

[the Great Khan]

wow..think im gonna move to NZ lol

 

[WebGuru]

wow..think im gonna move to NZ lol

Check the video from yesterday an Imam was invited in to NZ Parliament to recite Quran before the session started.

 

[Zeshan547]

I think now they are going a little over board, more than these good will gestures they should cut short these white racists.

 

[the Great Khan]

I think now they are going a little over board, more than these good will gestures they should cut short these white racists.

I think these gestures will be long remembered by the Muslim community in NZ and willa ctually help them with any integration issues they may have had previously..

as for the white racists, they need to clampdown massively..no more free rides for these trash..

 

[PakLFC]

New Zealand will henceforth be my second team in Cricket.

 

[Bilal7]

Fantastic. I think it was Sheikh Hamza Yusuf who said that is is better to be the oppressed than the oppressor and this is why. Although our community has had 50 martyrs, there has also been a lot of good-will and outporing of love towards us and apparently, a lot of people have accepted Islam.

 

[ataullah]

MashAllah great gesture. Are such nice people.

 

[troodon]

NZ finally seeing the light.

 

[Cpt. Rishwat]

I think now they are going a little over board, more than these good will gestures they should cut short these white racists.

Agree somewhat. Broadcasting the azan might just make those who are borderline more resentful.

 

[slipcatch]

Muslims takin' ova one city at a time.

Good gesture to show that government is against extremism of all kind.

 

[MRSN]

NZ has a really great leader. I have to say I have never seen such a brave leader before.

 

[The_Odd_One]

They are going way too overboard with this. It will only trigger anti-Muslim sentiment more.

 

[KingKhanWC]

A lot of western nations could learn a thing or two from NZ. This is what you call a liberal free civilised nation.

The suggestion this will make non-muslims angry is really stupid. You only have to watch how the people have NZ have all come together.

 

[The_Odd_One]

Let's put the shoe on the other foot. In a hypothetical situation, if an attack like this happens in Pakistan against Christians and the Pakistani government announces that it will broadcast Sunday prayers on TV and radio, what will be the reaction of mullahs and extremists? How many will be happy with it?

 

[Cpt. Rishwat]

Let's put the shoe on the other foot. In a hypothetical situation, if an attack like this happens in Pakistan against Christians and the Pakistani government announces that it will broadcast Sunday prayers on TV and radio, what will be the reaction of mullahs and extremists? How many will be happy with it?

I think they would be ok with it.

 

[KingKhanWC]

I think they would be ok with it.

Lets stick to the topic which is about NZ not Pakistan.

Can both of you explain in detail why you think this will upset the non-muslims of NZ or does it just upset you?

 

[James]

Great move.

 

[The_Odd_One]

I think they would be ok with it.

Then you are not familiar with laws in Pakistan, specifically PEMRA's rules of not airing any Christian content except Christmas and Easter.

 

[ahsan17]

Seems a little over the top to me. I get why they are doing it - probably to increase tolerance and understanding - but its not like NZ is Alabama or Queensland.

 

[The_Odd_One]

Lets stick to the topic which is about NZ not Pakistan.

Can both of you explain in detail why you think this will upset the non-muslims of NZ or does it just upset you?

The other day on my way back from work, I was listening to WBAP 820 which is basically a redneck radio station. I usually listen to it for fun because little things rattle those guys big time. Believe me, anything pro-muslim really really trigger those guys. Just yesterday, the host Mark Levin went berserk about CAIR (council of american islamic relations) demanding ban on two FOX news hosts for their islamophobic comments.

 

[KingKhanWC]

The other day on my way back from work, I was listening to WBAP 820 which is basically a redneck radio station. I usually listen to it for fun because little things rattle those guys big time. Believe me, anything pro-muslim really really trigger those guys. Just yesterday, the host Mark Levin went berserk about CAIR (council of american islamic relations) demanding ban on two FOX news hosts for their islamophobic comments.

You take your world view by listening to redneck radio

Again the topic is about NZ not Pakistan or America. Why do you think non-Muslims in NZ will be upset by this?

 

[The_Odd_One]

You take your world view by listening to redneck radio

Again the topic is about NZ not Pakistan or America. Why do you think non-Muslims in NZ will be upset by this?

To understand a redneck mind, obviously I will listen to their point of view. The guy who carried out the attack in NZ share the same views with his redneck brothers and sisters in America.

 

[KingKhanWC]

To understand a redneck mind, obviously I will listen to their point of view. The guy who carried out the attack in NZ share the same views with his redneck brothers and sisters in America.

Yep but he is Australian. Are you saying it will trigger anti-Muslim feelings in NZ or USA?

 

[The_Odd_One]

Yep but he is Australian. Are you saying it will trigger anti-Muslim feelings in NZ or USA?

It will trigger anti-Muslim feeling globally. There is enough propaganda that Muslims are taking over the world and enforcing Sharia law in the west.

 

[KingKhanWC]

It will trigger anti-Muslim feeling globally. There is enough propaganda that Muslims are taking over the world and enforcing Sharia law in the west.

I wouldn't worry about trash who believe this, they would be triggered if they see a Muslim doing stand up comedy.

The people have NZ have shown great humanity and this is what we should focus on.

 

[Mamoon]

I think they would be ok with it.

Well, I needed a good laugh today.

 

[Cpt. Rishwat]

You take your world view by listening to redneck radio

Again the topic is about NZ not Pakistan or America. Why do you think non-Muslims in NZ will be upset by this?

The image of NZ as being the welcoming paradise for immigrants isn't entirely true for one thing. There is an underbelly of white racism there just as there is in many other countries. Have a look through this article, there are plenty more which have been published in the last week if you aren't convinced.

https://qz.com/1574274/why-did-the-new-zealand-shooting-happen/

The shooting today (March 15) is an extreme aberration and—as many New Zealanders have correctly said in the wake of the attacks—it isn’t us.

But the attacks, and the attitudes that underpin them, didn’t come out of nowhere. They are the nastiest and most extreme version of a pervasive racist and anti-immigrant mentality present throughout New Zealand. And it exists online, on the streets, and in government policies and party politics alike.

A climate of anti-immigration
Though New Zealand’s Muslim population numbers fewer than 50,000 people, or a little over 1% of the population, there are frequent reports of institutional and casual Islamophobia, ranging from Muslims being repeatedly stopped at New Zealand Customs for hours at a time to the police being called on a Sikh student working in a café. (A fellow patron saw the man’s turban and headphones and assumed that he was a terrorist.) In 2016, members of the Muslim community told reporters that the country’s Security Intelligence Services were asking them to spy on fellow worshippers at the mosque.

This anti-immigrant, Islamophobic strain is also present in New Zealand’s political culture. In the country’s most recent election, the nationalist political party New Zealand First received the third-largest share of votes, turning it into a kingmaker of sorts. The party, run by veteran political maverick Winston Peters, prides itself on a “rigorous and strictly applied immigration policy,” which would cap migrants at 10,000 a year, down from 65,000 in 2017.

Now the country’s deputy prime minister, Peters has repeatedly described New Zealand as being colonized by immigrants. In 2002, he claimed that New Zealand was “letting in” Muslims banned from “Muslim Arab countries” for their security risk and “political baggage” and “giving them housing, health and governmental blessing.”

On Twitter today, Peters condemned the attack, calling it “an awfully, awfully, sad day for New Zealand.” He added: “There are lessons here from which we must all learn”—prompting New Zealanders to suggest that one such lesson might be to “stop pushing anti-immigration rhetoric.”

Far-right extremism in Christchurch
Though anti-immigration sentiment is common in New Zealand, Christchurch has the dubious honor of being home to the country’s largest number of extremist and white-supremacist individuals and groups. It is the largest city in New Zealand’s traditionally conservative—and overwhelmingly ethnically white—South Island.

Perhaps the biggest barrier to fighting racism in New Zealand is a reluctance to admit that it exists.

A disinclination to recognize the importance of “everyday racism” seemed common among many New Zealanders, researcher Audrey Kobayashi wrote in a New Zealand Geographic journal article. “Because racism was generally viewed as confined to the actions of the National Front, and because most people did not support the National Front, the existence of racism was denied,” she wrote. “The claims of the rally organizers and others that Asians experience racism on an everyday basis were thus taken as an affront.” In an interview with The Press, the former mayor of Christchurch, Vicki Buck, decried “incredibly stupid comments” made by racist individuals as being “not reflective of the community. I don’t believe it to be true actually. I don’t see evidence of racism.”

But extreme views such as the ones that inspired the attacks do not emerge in a vacuum. It’s a devastating truth for New Zealanders and the world to reconcile themselves to: This happens here. Now is the time to acknowledge how, and why.

 

[haris93]

I think they would be ok with it.

if ok means Dharna, jalao ghrao, road blocks, Anti-govt slogans then Yes it will be OK

 

[Abdullah719]

Two minutes of silence for shooting victims: What you need to know

Thousands from across New Zealand are expected to come to Christchurch's Hagley Park for a call to prayer and two minutes of silence one week after 50 people were killed in a terrorist attack.

Friday's service will start with the call to prayer, which will be broadcast nationally across all major free-to-air TV and radio stations.

The Muslim Call to Prayer for the Friday congregational prayer, the Jumu'ah, will be broadcast at 1.30pm, and will be followed by a two-minute silence at 1.32pm, at Hagley Park, opposite the Masjid Al Noor in Deans Ave.

TVNZ and RNZ will broadcast the call, and MediaWorks has confirmed it will follow suit on television station Three and radio station Magic Talk. NZME will also broadcast it on Newstalk ZB.

Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern, community leaders, and about 30 foreign dignitaries have been invited to the event by the Muslim community to be part of the official proceedings.

The Muslim community will then pray from 1.34pm until about 2pm, with the crowd asked to remain silent.

The event will end with a brief closing remark from Ardern about 2.02pm.

The adhan, the Islamic call to prayer, is called out from mosques five times a day, to summon Muslims for worship.

Victoria University religious studies lecturer Eva Nisa said the timing of the prayer was determined by the positioning of the sun, so the timing of prayers by a few minutes depended on which region they are in.

She said practising Muslims would time their prayers to their specific region.

"When you fast, there are Muslims in Wellington who will break fast when other areas are still fasting, because of the sun."

For non-Muslims who hear the call to prayer on Friday, Nisa said the best thing to do was "just be quiet and listen".

"Muslims respect that call a lot, so ideally they have to listen. In some countries, if there is a call during a seminar or a lecture, they might stop until it is over."

The person tasked with reciting the call is called the muezzin.

Historically, the muezzin would recite the adhan from on top of a tall balcony on the mosque, though these days many mosques are equipped with loud speakers.

The call to prayer differs slightly in the different sects of Islam, mostly around the number of times each line is repeated, and some lines are left out, or only read during Fajr, the dawn prayer.

The majority of Muslims in New Zealand are Sunni.

The call to prayer is read is read in Arabic. A translation of the Sunni call to prayer is below:

God is the greatest (4x)

I acknowledge there are no other gods but the One God (2x)

I acknowledge that Muhammad is the messenger of God (2x)

Come to prayer (2x)

Come to salvation (2x)

Prayer is better than sleep (2x) (Only at Fajr, the dawn prayer)

God is the greatest (2x)

There are no other gods but the One God (2x)

A national two minutes of silence was last held in 2010, to commemorate the 29 men who died at the Pike River mine disaster.

Vigils will continue to be held around the country on Friday evening.

Events taking place around the time of the Friday afternoon prayer, when the two minutes of silence will be observed, include:

AUCKLAND

Love Aotearoa Hate Racism activists will host Kia Kaha: Stand Against Racism in Aotea Square on Sunday at 2pm.

WELLINGTON

New Zealanders of all faiths are invited to create "a human chain of protection" around the Kilbirnie mosque from 1.15pm to 2.15pm on Friday.

NELSON

The Nelson Islamic Cultural Society will hold a special service at its mosque at 320 Hardy St on March 22. The programme includes a holding hands session at 12.30pm, Friday prayer at 1.30pm and a prayer for the victims at 2pm. Everyone is welcome to attend one or all sessions.

CHRISTCHURCH

Community members are invited to join hands to create a human wall around Masjid Al Noor in Deans Ave on the edge of Hagley Park on Friday at 1.20pm.

A vigil is set to be held outside the mosque from 1.30pm to 3.30pm. Attendees are asked to bring a candle or flowers.

https://www.stuff.co.nz/national/ch...ce-for-shooting-victims-what-you-need-to-know

 

[GrandMaster]

Before immigrating, I had an option to choose from NZ, Aus and the UK. I am glad I took the right decision and chose NZ as my second home. One of the best decisions I have ever made.

The kind of support Muslims getting in NZ currently is overwhelming. I doubt if any other country would have done what NZ did. A tiny country with 5 million population managed to raise 11 million dollars for the victims. That's just outstanding.

 

[Gharib Aadmi]

What a great gesture to provide comfort to a minority community. Imran Khan should take inspiration from this and have a month honoring the minority religions in Pakistan. For example in America we have Black History Month, Hispanic Heritage Month, etc. So for Pakistan maybe a Christian Heritage Month, Hindu Heritage Month, etc. You basically can honor important members of their community, have awareness of their culture, maybe invite their religious figures to deliver a sermon in Parliament.

 

[MenInG]

The full video of the prayer and speeches

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Call to prayer and two-minute silence: 'We are broken-hearted, but we are not broken'

The country has observed the Muslim call to prayer and two minutes of silence in Christchurch, one week after terror attacks that killed 50 people at two mosques in the city.

The call to prayer, the adhan, is an Islamic practice that is observed by devotees five times a day. The call to prayer took place about 1.30pm, lasting about one minute and 40 seconds.

It was attended by Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern, Muslim community leaders, local iwi and international dignitaries, among others. It was followed by two minutes of silence, which has been observed nationally.

Al Noor Mosque Imam Gamal Fouda, who survived Friday's attacks, then spoke, telling the crowd New Zealand was unbreakable.

"We are broken-hearted, but we are not broken. We are alive, we are together, we are determined to not let anyone divide us.

"To the families of the victims your loved ones did not die in vain, their blood has watered the seeds of hope. Through them the world see the beauty of Islam and the beauty of our unity."

"We are here in our hundreds ... love will redeem us.

"To the people of New Zealand, thank you for your tears, your haka, your compassion."

Fouda also thanked the prime minister, the government and people of New Zealand.

He also thanked the police service and people who helped on the day.

"It's easy to feel lost after the trauma of Friday but Allah will give strength."

He asked Allah to protect New Zealanders and the world.

Friday Jumuaha Prayers took place afterwards.

A range of other vigils and commemorations are also taking place across New Zealand today.

Thousands of people arrived at Kilbirnie Mosque to show their solidarity with the Muslim community as they attended their Friday afternoon prayers.

Among the attendees were emergency service staff, Police Commissioner Mike Bush, Mayor Justin Lestor, MPs Grant Robertson and James Shaw and leaders from other religious communities.

A human chain formed outside the mosque, which at times become a waiata.

https://www.radionz.co.nz/news/nati...e-we-are-broken-hearted-but-we-are-not-broken

 

[MenInG]

ISLAMABAD: Eight Pakistanis martyred in last week’s terrorist attack on two mosques in New Zealand were laid to rest at a local graveyard in Christchurch on Friday, Pakistan Foreign Office spokesperson said.

More than 20 family members flew from Pakistan to join in the last rituals of the martyrs. Their travel was facilitated by the Pakistan Foreign Office and the New Zealand government, Dr Mohammad Faisal tweeted.

The body of Syed Areeb Ahmed, who was among the nine Pakistanis martyred in the terrorist attack, would be repatriated to Pakistan in the next few days. His family is being kept informed, the spokesperson added.

Pakistan’s High Commissioner and the High Commission staff is in Christchurch to continue assistance to the bereaved families, Dr Faisal informed.

He added that the funeral was attended by more than 5,000 people, of whom there were about 1,500 Muslims who came from all over New Zealand.

New Zealand Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern led the mourners gathered at a park in front of the Al Noor Mosque, where most of the victims died, for a prayer followed by two minutes of silence.

Azaan broadcast across NZ as world marks a week since Christchurch massacre

The prime minister was accompanied in the Christchurch prayers with community leaders and other foreign dignitaries.

Australian Brenton Tarrant, 28, the suspected white supremacist who was living in Dunedin, on New Zealand’s South Island, has been charged with murder following the attack.

He was remanded without a plea and is due back in court on April 5, when police said he was likely to face more charges.

Twenty-eight people wounded in the attacks remain in hospital, six in intensive care.

Most victims were migrants or refugees from countries such as Pakistan, India, Malaysia, Indonesia, Turkey, Somalia, Afghanistan, and Bangladesh.

https://www.geo.tv/latest/231828-ei...n-mosque-attacks-laid-to-rest-in-christchurch

 

[MenInG]

<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-partner="tweetdeck"><p lang="en" dir="ltr">New Zealand today fell silent in honour of the mosque attacks' martyrs. Thank you PM <a href="https://twitter.com/jacindaardern?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@jacindaardern</a> and New Zealand for your sincere empathy and support that has won the respect of 1.5 billion Muslims after the terrorist attack that shook the Muslim community around the world. <a href="https://t.co/9LDvH0ybhD">pic.twitter.com/9LDvH0ybhD</a></p>— HH Sheikh Mohammed (@HHShkMohd) <a href="https://twitter.com/HHShkMohd/status/1109124817888915461?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">March 22, 2019</a></blockquote>
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