Mohammed Rana, Chairman of Merton Muslim Interfaith Forum, arranged and hosted a Conference in Merton Council Chamber. Lord Sheikh is a patron of the Merton Muslim Interfaith Forum, Mohammed Rana is a keen supporter of the Conservative Muslim Forum and has been a Member of the Executive Committee of the Forum.

There were a number of speakers at the event which included leaders of the Sikh, Christian, Jewish and Hindu communities. Lord Sheikh in his speech talked about the similarities between Islam and other religions and stated that there are more similarities between people than differences. He referred to the fact that in the United Kingdom, there are people of different religions and we must not only accept but respect people of different faiths.

There was also a Question & Answer session after the initial speeches where the members of the audience were able to interact with the speakers.

The Conservative Muslim Forum Youth Wing organised a meeting in the House of Lords where the main speaker was Rashad Hussain. Rashad Hussain is the US Special Envoy to the Organisation of Islamic Cooperation. Rashad is a practising Muslim and he talked about the United States’ policies towards the Muslim world. He started with President Obama’s speech in Cairo and America’s attitude and involvement in Afghanistan, Iraq and Pakistan.

The meeting was very well attended and a number of questions were asked by members of the audience and Rashad Hussain answered them honestly and adequately.

The opening remarks were made by Raza Anjum, Chair of CMF Youth Wing and the MC for the event was Mohammed Amin, Vice Chairman of CMF. Lord Sheikh also spoke initially and referred to the present situation in the Muslim world.

Conservative Muslim Forum North West held a dinner at Sachas Hotel in Manchester during the Conservative Party Conference. The Chief Guest was Rt. Hon. Eric Pickles MP, Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government.

Other attendees included His Excellency Wajid Shamsul Hasan, High Commissioner for Pakistan, Alistair Burt MP (Parliamentary Under Secretary of State at the Foreign and Commonwealth Office), Andrew Stephenson MP, Paul Griffiths MP, Sajid Javid MP and Sajjad Karim MEP.

In his speech Eric Pickles talked about the Conservative Party being an inclusive Party and also talked about the role that the Muslim community has played in the advancement and wellbeing of the country. He further said that the United Kingdom is a cohesive society and it is important that all the communities live in harmony.

Lord Sheikh initially talked about his connection with Manchester, followed by the economic situation of the country, the need to take remedial action, NHS reforms, Conservative policy on education and international aid. He also mentioned that the Conservative Muslim Forum was a robust organisation with a large membership. It is an active organisation with distinct objectives.

He also thanked the Conservative Muslim Forum North West branch for organising the event which was attended by over 700 persons. Lord Sheikh also gave interviews to the media and the event was widely covered by newspapers and television channels.

The 2011 Conservative Party Conference was held in Manchester this year. The Conservative Muslim Forum had a stand at the Conference which was manned by Shaheen Mahmood and a number of Executive Committee Members and other CMF Members and Supporters. The stand was constantly visited by Government Ministers, Conservative Parliamentarians, Ambassadors of various countries and numerous persons who attended the Conference

A number of persons who came to the stand enrolled as Members of the Conservative Muslim Forum. We are pleased to welcome them. We were also very happy to see the existing members and supporters who did agree to render us support.

The pictures above show the stand being visited by Rt. Hon. William Hague MP, Rt. Hon. Andrew Mitchell MP, Rt. Hon. Iain Duncan Smith MP, Rt. Hon. Dominic Grieve MP, Rt. Hon. Cheryl Gillan MP and Alistair Burt MP.

The Conservative Muslim Forum hosted the launch of the book “The Role of the Righteous Muslims” in a Committee Room in the House of Lords. The book was edited by Fiyaz Mughal OBE and Esmond Rosen and is aimed at broadening knowledge and awareness of some Muslims who risked personal danger to save Jews during the Holocaust.

The book shows that there are many stories of positive Muslim and Jewish interaction even at the darkest moments of history. On the cover of the book there is a quotation from the Holy Quran “Whoever saves one life saves all of mankind” and also a quotation from the Talmud “If you save one life, it is as if you have saved the world”.

Lord Sheikh in his opening remarks talked about the acceptance of all religions in Islam throughout history and mentioned that he had recently been to Jerusalem. He referred to the Jerusalem Declaration decreed by Khalifa Omar when the Muslims conquered the holy city whereby people of all religions could freely live in Jerusalem and reinforced the coexistence of all people. He also talked about Saladin’s conquest of Jerusalem and the fact that persons of all religions were allowed to stay in the city.

The Conservative Muslim Forum is involved in building harmonious relationships between people of different racial and religious groups.

Cllr Mohammad Bhatti (member of CMF Executive Committee) organised a meeting and dinner to celebrate Eid ul-Adha and Pakistani Independence Day. The event was attended by Parliamentarians and other dignitaries.

Cllr Bhatti in his speech referred to the history of Pakistan and passed his greetings to everyone on the Eid ul-Adha celebrations. Lord Sheikh spoke about the current situation in Pakistan and the relevance of Eid in the Abrahamic religions.

The Conservative Muslim Forum has been shocked and saddened by the outbreak of looting, arson and other violence on the streets of England’s major cities. Night after night we have seen shops being vandalised and robbed and properties being set on fire with no concern for the safety of residents, while the police have struggled to restore order. Most tragically, in Birmingham three young men seeking to defend their community were killed by a “hit and run” driver.

There can be no excuse for such behaviour. Those who perpetrate it are criminals who must be met with the full force of the law. We applaud and appreciate the bravery of our Police Officers who have confronted the criminals and dealt with the situations under very difficult circumstances. We urge all Britons to give full support to the police for whatever measures are required to restore law and order to our streets.

There has been a total lack of responsibility amongst some of our citizens and we should all do whatever is necessary to restore the sense of responsibility. It is important that we all stand united and deal with unacceptable behaviour of the unruly elements amongst us who threaten the wellbeing of our society.

After order has been restored will be the time for analysis and policy prescriptions. Meanwhile, politicians and commentators should not seek to score political points, or attempt to justify such criminal actions by reference to poverty or social deprivation. In our society, poverty can never be an excuse for theft or violence.

The behaviour of the rioters and the comments some of them have made in the media both point towards their lack of values. All religions teach a clear distinction between right and wrong, and teach that poverty cannot justify robbery. Sadly in Britain today many young people are growing up without learning such values either at home or at school.

We believe that the common shared values of all religions need to be restored to a central place in our education system so that young people no longer grow up lacking any appreciation of the difference between right and wrong.

The Executive of the Conservative Muslim Forum was horrified by the loss of life and devastation caused by the car bomb in central Oslo, and then shocked to learn that Anders Behring Breivik had set out to murder as many young members as he could of the Norwegian Labour Party during their summer youth camp at Utoya Island.

It is for the Norwegian legal system to determine whether Mr Breivik is clinically insane, or whether he is competent to stand trial for the killings which he has admitted. Meanwhile we can only mourn alongside those who lost friends and relatives in Oslo, and for the many parents who sent their children to a safe summer camp to learn about democracy and are now bereaved. The children who died were amongst the finest of their generation, devoting a week of their time to learn about the democratic government of their country. Who knows how much they might have achieved had they lived.

The killer’s loathsome 1,500 page manifesto has reminded us, if we needed reminding, that hatred has no religion. In their shared grief, Norwegians of all races and religions have come together to reaffirm their belief in democracy, freedom and an open society, utterly rejecting the hatred that Mr Breivik sought to spread.

Each year, the people of Norway send a Christmas tree to London to thank our country for the support we gave Norway during World War 2. Today Britons of all races and religions grieve alongside the people of Norway; their loss is our loss. Our prayers, thoughts and condolences are with the people of Norway.

At the invitation of Yousuf Miah, Member of the Conservative Muslim Forum Executive Committee, Lord Sheikh attended a dinner organised by the NiinaMaria Foundation in order to raise funds for an orphanage and schools in Bangladesh. Yousuf Miah was also involved in arranging the dinner which took place in Witney, Oxfordshire (David Cameron’s consitutuency).

During his speech Lord Sheikh thanked Yousuf Miah for the support he has rendered both to Lord Sheikh and the Conservative Muslim Forum. Lord Sheikh referred to the satisfaction people obtain by donating and undertaking charitable work particularly relating to orphans.

He made the point that we should support orphanages which look after children irrespective of race, colour or creed. He also said that our Holy Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him) was an orphan, his father died before the Holy Prophet (peace be upon him) was born and his mother died a few years afterwards.

Lord Sheikh with His Excellency Dr Abdullah bin Abdulmuhsin Al-Turki and His Excellency Mr Khaled Al Duwaisan.

Lord Sheikh (Chairman of Conservative Muslim Forum) was asked to attend the opening of “Muhammad – A Mercy to Mankind”, a permanent exhibition at the Islamic Cultural Centre and the London Central Mosque. Lord Sheikh in fact cut the ribbon to officially open the exhibition with His Excellency Dr Abdullah bin Abdulmuhsin Al-Turki (Secretary General, Muslim World League) and His Excellency Mr Khaled Al Duwaisan (Ambassador to Kuwait).

Lord Sheikh is a supporter of the exhibition as it does convey the true message of Islam and has examples of the glorious history of the Muslims over the centuries.

After the opening ceremony there was a dialogue seminar with the participation of eminent speakers from various faiths. Lord Sheikh made the initial speech with the opening remarks and if you wish to view his speech please click here.