The New Nation - Internet Edition

Anealla Safdar and Abdul Adil

As Muslim guests from all walks of life arrived at the Grosvenor House Hotel on Park Lane in Mayfair on March 25, they were able to leave more than just their coats and bags at the cloak room. On entering the eighth The Muslim News Awards for Excellence, they could also shed their permanent 'Muslim in a Western world' exterior, and really enjoy celebrating one another's achievements. For the next four hours, they did not have to explain why women wear the hijab, they did not have to defend Prophet Muhammad's (pbuh) honour, they did not have to justify their sympathy and sadness for the atrocities committed in the Middle East. No, they were there to enjoy a truly inspiring, motivational, proud yet humbling experience.

From every racial and religious background, peace campaigners, charity executives, business men and women, students, members of the media and more politicians in one room together then you'll ever see anywhere else, gathered to enjoy a presentation of Muslims in a rare positive light. Poetic Pilgrimage, a hip hop act consisting of two young sisters, Muneera and Sukina, provided the entertainment for the night with a performance that was refreshingly emotive for an otherwise formal event; with daringly political lyrics that created an atmosphere of delectable incongruity amongst the suited diplomats and ministers.

The Muslim News launched its first awards ceremony in 2000, marking the 10th anniversary of publication as Britain's leading Muslim newspaper, when the guest of honour was International Development Secretary, Clare Short. Following on, the Awards for Excellence has been attended by high profile guests including Prime Minister, Tony Blair, the then Chancellor of the Exchequer, Gordon Brown, and His Royal Highness the Prince of Wales.

This year, as always, the wide variety of guests, peppered throughout the audience, made for an interesting mix. These included Guest of Honour, Foreign Secretary, David Miliband, London mayoral candidates, Boris Johnson and Brian Paddick (Ken Livingstone was unable to attend due to other engagements), Yvonne Ridley, nasheed artist Khaleel Mohammed, Shadow Foreign Secretary, William Hague, Liberal Democrat Shadow Chancellor and Deputy Leader, Vincent Cable and peace activist Brian Haw, to name just a few. Prime Minister, Gordon Brown, and boxing hero Amir Khan, who won the sports award, were there in spirit, but the audience made do with their video messages.

"This is easily the most prestigious occasion in the Muslim calendar," Press TV journalist Yvonne Ridley told The Muslim News, admitting that her dislike for politicians' hypocrisy has in the past prevented her from attending.

Miliband, ever the emphatic and skilled orator, talked positively about integration and immigration in his speech, relating his own experience as a second generation Jewish immigrant. "Stories of the people in this room are inspiring about what our country can be," he said. "By celebrating the many contributions of those that represent the best of Britain, we can inspire others and also show that we are a nation in which British Muslims are an integral part of our society: in politics, business and social life."

As each of the 16 awards was presented, the 800-strong audience was able to put, as The Muslim News Editor, Ahmed J Versi, put it "another difficult year" behind them.

Versi, himself awarded with a standing ovation for masterminding and putting together such a worthy and successful event, said in his welcoming speech that the Awards had now become a very significant and important event for the Muslim community's calendar, "especially at a time when our citizenship and level of contribution are being unduly questioned and unfairly scrutinised" and that therefore such occasions "not only challenge misconceptions and stereotypes but give the existing British Muslim community something to be proud of."

The shortlist and winners were picked by an independent panel of seven distinguished judges, from varied backgrounds and walks of life (see The Muslim News No 226), who sifted through the plethora of nominations made by the general public. Excellence was awarded in 15 categories, ranging from science and engineering to community development and arts.

Labour MP for Tooting, Sadiq Khan, got a loud ovation as he picked up the award for citizenship for his role in campaigning on behalf of the Muslim electorate and mentoring potential Muslim MPs. Khan recently made the headlines after he was bugged on two separate occasions when visiting his constituent Babar Ahmad. His acceptance speech was quite vehement as he warned of what lay ahead for British Muslims. "You will see Muslims being demonised. You will see our faith being demonised," he said. "I want you to look around. I want you to use this evening as an antidote when that occurs."

In his video message, Gordon Brown said, "These awards celebrate the achievements of British Muslims in all walks of life. They identify Muslim achievers and highlight the wonderful contribution that British Muslims make," and added his admiration for the team of mainly young women volunteers he remembered from his attendance as Guest of Honour at The Muslim News Awards 2005, the same volunteers who work tirelessly and efficiently every year to make the awards a success.

Conservative Leader, David Cameron, sent his best wishes to everyone attending. "These Awards have gone from strength to strength over the last eight years. This is testament both to The Muslim News and the organisers of the awards, and to the huge contribution which Muslim people make to British society," he said. Liberal Democrat Leader, Nick Clegg, who also couldn't attend, said the event "serves an excellent role in providing Muslims across Britain with role models that that can inspire them" and at the same time "demonstrates that in modern Britain Muslims can, and do, thrive in the widest possible spectrum of contemporary life."

The winners received a beautifully and intricately designed brass astrolabe. The astrolabe was a highly developed tool used throughout the Muslim world to measure the altitude of stars and planets; by the eighth century they were used to aid navigation, to locate the qiblah (the direction Muslims face when praying), to calculate the lunar calendar and to assess meteorological conditions.

One of the winners of the Ummul Mu'minin Khadijah award for excellence in enterprise, Nasser Saleem, said, "One of the things that Muslim companies need is reassurance that their brand is authentic," something, Ahmed said, this award will now give him. "It's events like this that are going to help us to really be taken seriously," he added.

A warm sense of unity descended on the evening as William Hague noted when he presented an award: he marveled at the "cross-party unanimity about the merits of this occasion and these awards. It is a rare thing you have achieved…It is special that Vince Cable and I sat applauding the message from Gordon Brown. That is a very rare thing indeed." This cross-party unity, he added, perhaps proved that without the media propaganda, hype and hyperbole, Muslims in the UK would increasingly be seen as a true asset to this country.

The mayoral candidates were not without their brimming praise, either (or transparent campaign lines). Boris Johnson lamented the world's forgetfulness of medieval Spanish convivencia, paying homage to such historical figures as Avicenna (Ibn Sina) and Averroes (Ibn Rushd), and said that if he was Mayor, London would reflect this same convivencia. Brian Paddick, who on the other hand expressed his distaste for patent campaigning at such events, said that, "The country is a much better place for having a Muslim community."

"This is really more than an awards show," said journalist and winner of the media award, Alan Johnston. "There are fewer issues at the moment that are more important," he added. Having become a bit of an international hero after being held captive for 114 days in Gaza last year, Johnston left his dinner to meet and mingle with his hoard of eager admirers. As guests mingled and enjoyed their three-course meal, the atmosphere was brimming with excitement and friendly warmth, despite there being strictly not a drop of alcohol available, in keeping with Muslim etiquette.

Shortlisted Brian Haw's partner and fellow peace campaigner, Barbara Tucker, said, "It's a great event, it's bringing people together in a positive light. It's a mix of all different sorts of people, embracing the creativity of the human spirit and recognising all the things that people do."

(Source: Muslimnews, London)