IN MEMORY OF JALAL-UD-DIN AKBAR IBN-I ABDULLAH, SACRAMENTO, CALIFORNIA

Nov-Dec 2013 Acting Editor: Nasir Ahmad B.A. LL.B. Vol. No. 7, Issue No. 16

Formatting and Designing: Erwan Hamdani, Jakarta, IndonesiaPhotographs: Amir Aziz, Pakistan

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Hazrat Ameer Dr Abdul Karim Saeed(Fifth Head of the Lahore Ahmadiyya Movement)

IN INDONESIAGrand 66th Anniversary of the PIRI Educational Board

Ten-Day Visit of Hazrat Ameer and the General Secretary to Indonesiaby Amir Aziz al-Azhari

IntroductionThe visit to Indonesia was undertaken in response to an invitation extended by the Ahmadiyya Anjuman Indonesia for Hazrat Ameer, Prof. Dr Abdul Karim Saeed, to participate in the 66th Anniversary Celebrations of the Anjuman’s Education Foundation in that country. The Anjuman had requested that Hazrat Ameer and his delegation stay for at least ten days so that they could visit as many of the Indonesia Anjuman’s branches as possible. In response, it was decided that Hazrat Ameer and the General Secretary, Amir Aziz, should visit Indonesia from 18 to 28 September 2013.

An invitation was also sent to the AAIIL Regional Coordinator for Asia and the Pacific, Mr Shaukat A. Ali.

It may be worth mentioning that the Ahmadiyya Anjuman Lahore’s mission in Java, Indonesia was established in 1924. At that time Indonesia was a Dutch colony and was known as the Dutch East Indies. The Lahore Anjuman, under the able guidance of Hazrat Maulana Muhammad Ali Sahib, sent a three-man team to establish a mission in that country. The team comprised Maulana Ahmad, Hafiz Muhammad Hasan Cheema, and Mirza Wali Ahmad Beg. Due to unforeseen circumstances Hafiz Cheema Sahib had to stop off in Singapore and then return home. Maulana Ahmad, on the other hand, fell ill after arriving in Java and had to return to India after four months.

This left only Mirza Wali Ahmad Beg to face the many problems and obstacles in establishing a viable mission. He was a foreigner in the country and did not know its language. However, he had an un-flinching faith in Allah, and as a spiritual warrior he persevered in his activities for fourteen difficult years in order to achieve his objective. The activities of the Ahmadiyya Movement in Indonesia pro-gressively spread to many areas in the country and large numbers of people joined the Movement.

During that period, the English translation of the Holy Qur’an and other Islamic literature published by the Central Anjuman in Lahore were translated into Dutch to promote Islam and to counter the attacks by Christian missionaries. As a result, a resilient and sustainable Lahore Ahmadiyya Jama‘at was established. Mirza Wali Ahmad Beg, at the beginning of 1939, went to Holland to establish a mission there, but after some time, World War II erupted and the country was occupied by Germany. Mirza Wali Ahmad Beg, being a foreigner, was taken into custody and remained in prison till the end of the war, after which he returned to India.

The Jama‘at in Indonesia has since flourished during the last nine decades and has maintained a strong link with the Central Anjuman in Lahore. It may be of interest also to note that the student population at the Anjuman’s schools in Indonesia has been 5,000 to 6,000 annually over the last two decades. Many of the students who went through these schools have played prominent roles in various fields in the country.

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18th September in JakartaHazrat Ameer, Mr Shaukat Ali and I reached Jakarta on 18th September 2013 and were received at the airport by the President of the Jakarta Jama‘at, Mr Sulardi Notopertomo, Dr Nanang Iskandar, former President of the Jakarta Branch, and Br Basharat Basuki, and were taken to the hotel. In the evening we had a programme at the Gerakan Ahmadiyya Centre, Jakarta Branch, where other members had gathered to welcome us.

Hazrat Ameer led the Maghrib and Isha prayers. After an address by the President of the branch, Dr Nanang, a senior member and a former President of the Jakarta Jama‘at, presented a specimen of the new edition of the Indonesian translation of the Holy Qur’an to Hazrat Ameer and expressed his wish to publish it in a new format. The plan is to reduce the volume by using a finer paper and making changes in the formatting to make it handier.

Hazrat Ameer in his speech stressed the need to strengthen our faith in Allah and to take the message of the Holy Qur’an to others. He said we should enhance our activities and explain the differences between our Jama‘at and the Qadianis at every opportunity so that the general public in Indonesia could easily differentiate between the two sections of the Movement. Mr Shaukat Ali encouraged the members to carry on publication work in spite of the difficult situation and financial problems. He also apprised them about the progress of the Jama‘ats in various countries in the region. I deliv-ered a short speech and answered questions posed by members.

Mr Sulardi and Dr Nanang briefly talked about the activities of the Jakarta Jama‘at, which has been very active. Br Basharat Ahmed, son of the late Br Mansyur Basuki, who had been the General Secretary of the Indonesia Jama‘at for many years, translated the talks in Indonesian. It was nice to see the late Br Basuki’s entire family. Br Basuki had visited Lahore on the eve of the Annual Jalsa. He was a devout Ahmadi and actively participated in the organisational work of the Jama‘at.

We expressed our appreciation of the activities of Jakarta Jama‘at and prayed for further increases in their activities and publications. Hazrat Ameer closed the session with a du‘a.

The next morning Mr Sulardi, Mr Basharat Ahmad, and other members visited us and we held some discussions on how to increase collaboration between the Centre and the Indonesian branches. Afterwards, we went to Dr Nanang’s home for further discussions and to meet Prof. Dr Wiratni Ahmadi, who had come from Bandung to take us there.

19th and 20th September in BandungIn the afternoon of the 19th, we set off for Bandung, which is a four and half hour drive from Jakarta, to meet the President of AAIIL Indonesia, Prof. Fathurahman Ahmadi, and members of the Bandung Jama‘at. Prof. Dr Wiratni Ahmadi had come to Jakarta to accompany us to Bandung and we had discussions about the activities of the Jama‘at on the way.

Although Prof. Ahmadi was not very well he spent a lot of time with us and held discussions on a wide range of subjects and issues pertaining to the activities of the Jama‘at in Indonesia. He men-tioned that because of his ill health he has authorized Mr Muslich Zainal Asikin to act as President of the Indonesia Jama‘at.

On Friday 20th September, Hazrat Ameer delivered the Jumu‘ah khutbah and led the prayer. General discussions followed, and we were briefed about the activities of the Jama‘at. Hazrat Ameer was presented with some copies of the pocket edition of the Indonesian translation of the Qur’an with Arabic text and commentary, which was printed with the funds provided by the Saleema Faruqui

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Trust, Lahore, Pakistan. Every copy of this edition, which has been distributed among the students of PIRI, was stamped to show that it is a gift from the Trust. The Central Anjuman, Lahore is operating the Trust. We also informed Prof. Ahmadi that additional funds were brought for further printing of the Holy Qur’an.

Hazrat Ameer urged Prof. Ahmadi to make every effort to visit Yogyakarta to grace the 66th anniver-sary celebrations with his presence as it would give tremendous encouragement to the members of the Jama‘at and to the staff and students of the PIRI Schools System.

21st September in PurwokertoOn 21st September, in the early morning we travelled seven hours from Bandung to Purwokerto to meet members there. We arrived at 2 pm and were taken straight to the PIRI School where the Principal and teachers were waiting for us. They presented a brief history of the school and details about the developments made so far at the school, which has over 1,200 students. The vocational education at the school has gained national recognition. For instance, the automobile section has been judged the best in Indonesia for three consecutive years and one of its students has won the national award for best engineering student.

In the evening we were taken to the mosque at Banyumas where a programme had been arranged. Over a hundred members attended the function. Hazrat Ameer delivered an inspiring speech and we replied to various questions asked by the audience. Hazrat Ameer led the Maghrib and Isha prayers and after further discussions we left the masjid at 10 pm. We reached the hotel after 10.30 pm, after being up from about 4 am in Bandung.

22nd September in PurbalinggaEarly the next morning we visited the Purbalingga village Jama‘at. One of the main interests for the visit to this Jama‘at was that our late brother, Surayuda, belonged to this place. He was an energetic student who studied as a muballigh in Darus Salaam, Lahore, Pakistan. We were very pleased to meet and get to know his son, who is working with the same dedication. We visited Br Surayuda’s house and met his family and other members. A programme was also arranged at the mosque and a large number of men, women and children attended the meeting. It is very encouraging that all our members are knowledgeable and devoted to promoting the beliefs and message of the Lahore Ahmadiyya Movement.

Hazrat Ameer addressed the gathering, and among the points he stressed was the differences be-tween the two sections of the Ahmadiyya Community, which he said must be explained to non-mem-bers, as well.

Mr Shaukat Ali, in his brief talk, stated that each member should try to bring at least one relative or neighbour to the monthly gatherings so that they could be aware that we discuss only the teachings of the Holy Book and that the beliefs of our Jama‘at are in accordance with the teachings of Islam and nothing besides them.

WonosoboAfter the meeting at Purbalingga, we travelled for four hours to reach Wonosobo City, where sev-eral members from Wonosobo and Yogyakarta had gathered to welcome us. A few members from Purbalingga had accompanied us, and after meeting the members from Wonosobo City they re-turned to Purbalingga. We had brief a discussion about our programme and enjoyed lunch before heading to a hill station of Wonosobo, which is over an hour from the city. Our Jama‘at has four mosques in this area and it is one of the largest Jama‘ats as far as numbers are concerned. The road

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to the village is picturesque but very tortuous, as large sections are not paved. We reached at the top of the mountain where a large number of members had gathered to welcome us at Masjid At-Taqwa.

Before going to Masjid Abdul Wahab, they had arranged a meeting with the executives and officials of three Jama‘ats in that particular area to discuss important issues of the Jama‘ats and problems faced by the members in the area. While we were still busy at the meeting, word came that a large number of members had already gathered at Masjid Abdul Wahab and were eagerly waiting for us.

When we arrived at the masjid, over 800 members and their children were waiting there. The pro-gramme at Masjid Abdul Wahab was very interesting, enlightening and encouraging. Local execu-tives and Hazrat Ameer delivered speeches about the Ahmadiyya school of thought and the progress of the Jama‘ats. The men, women, and children who attended the programme listened attentively and with great enthusiasm. However, because of time constraints and other planned engagements they had to shorten the programme to allow us to leave.

We were then taken back to Masjid At-Taqwa for further discussions where we were informed that members had already gathered at Masjid Al-Mubarak at Sumber Village, where they had arranged the next programme.

Sumber VillageAfter Maghrib prayer we were taken to Masjid Al-Mubarak in Sumber Village. On the way we passed Masjid Bait-us-Salaam, which was completed with funds provided by the Central Anjuman, Lahore a few years ago. As we were running out of time, we could not stop at Masjid Bait-us-Salaam but were shown the mosque from the road. The representatives and members of this masjid and the surrounding areas were all present at Masjid Abdul Wahab.

At Masjid Mubarak over a thousand members – men, women and children – had gathered to greet and to listen to us. We were very pleased to learn that the members of our Jama‘at in the area had built this mosque with their own contributions at a cost of over one billion Indonesian rupiah. This mosque is a masterpiece of art and architecture. It’s a splendid building and the people are full of enthusiasm and dedication.

Hazrat Ameer led the ‘Isha prayer before the programme started. The President of the Jama‘at and Hazrat Ameer delivered talks, which were much appreciated by the audience.

We left the village mosque at about 8.30 pm to travel another four hours to reach Yogyakarta. We reached there after midnight and went to Prof. Ahmadi’s house, which was specially prepared for us, as it had been vacant for a long time.

23rd September in YogyakartaWe had two meetings with members and with the Chairman of the PIRI Foundation, Mr Iwan Yusuf, who has not been well and who came to the meeting only because of our visit. The Executive mem-bers of the Advisory Board of the Foundation to GAI also attended. Hazrat Ameer was presented with a copy of the Indonesian translation of the Holy Qur’an, which was printed with funds provided by the Saleema Faruqui Trust, Lahore for free distribution to the students of PIRI as well as to others as considered appropriate by the Executive. The Executive expressed much appreciation for the contribution made by the Lahore Central Anjuman.

It was a great moment to see all students carrying copies of the Holy Qur’an, as they are required to recite it every day.

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The second meeting was with Executives and officials of Gerakan Ahmadiyah Indonesia (Lahore Ahmadiyya Movement of Indonesia), at which matters of mutual interest were discussed. Suggestions to promote the AAIIL cause were also presented.

Hazrat Ameer explained in detail the differences between the two Ahmadi Jama‘ats, and Hazrat Ameer, Mr Shaukat Ali, and I responded to questions from the officials. Hazrat Ameer also referred to my book in Urdu “Ikhtilaf-i Silsilah-i Ahmadiyya” (Split in the Ahmadiyya Movement). It gives summary of the historical background of the Split and quotations from the writings of Late Mirza Mahmud Ahmad and the succeeding heads of the Qadian Section which have distorted the enlight-ened stance of the universal concepts of the Ahmadiyya Movement about Islam and its Founder. Plans are considered to get such and other such writings translated into Indonesian language.

The officials mentioned that although the Government had accepted that there is a vast difference between the two sections of the Movement, the general public still feel we are the same. After further discussions, Mr Shaukat Ali mentioned that many Qadianis are now leaving their Jama‘at once they come to know about the real beliefs of their Jama‘at and what their second Khalifa had written when the split took place in 1914.

Hazrat Ameer strongly recommended that the Gerakan Ahmadiyah Indonesia should arrange to translate the book about the differences between the two Jama‘ats that was written by Amir Aziz into the Indonesian language. It was also suggested that they translate Denial of Prophethood, which contains quotations from the writings of Hazrat Mirza Ghulam Ahmad, the Founder of the Ahmadiyya Movement.

MagelangIn the evening we went to visit members at another village, Magelang, which is about 60 kilometres from Yogyakarta. On the way we stopped at Br Yatimin’s home for Maghrib and Isha prayers and dinner. We were accompanied by several brothers from Yogyakarta, and we continued discussions on the way.

At Magelang members were waiting for us at the residence of their President. They were extremely pleased to see us and expressed their appreciation that even though they were not many in number yet we had taken the trouble to visit them. Hazrat Ameer addressed the gathering, and his talk was followed by questions and answers.

The membership of the Anjuman in this area is small but they are strong in their belief and doing everything possible to propagate Islam among their neighbours. They have very good relations with non-members and are able to conduct their prayers and meetings without any hindrance.

24th September in YogyakartaWe had meeting with the Institute of Interfaith Dialogue on the morning of 24th September. We reached the office and were welcomed by the officials. Hazrat Ameer expressed his pleasure at being invited to discuss interfaith matters. He told them he is involved with interfaith matters and in recent years had attended several global interfaith meetings. As a member of the Peace Foundation of Europe he has attended several meetings in different cities in Europe. He said the Founder of the Ahmadiyya Movement was the first to initiate and promote interfaith dialogue, and the Lahore Ahmadiyya Movement has always promoted and emphasised that Islam is a peaceful religion. At the meeting a Catholic priest, who is Chairman of the Institute, also presented his point of view about humanity and said there is a great need to avoid communalism in Indonesia as it had bred intolerance among the people of different faiths and different areas.

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Regarding the communalism issues, Mr Shaukat Ali provided information on what a small country like Fiji had done to avoid communal conflicts. He said recently a new National Constitution has been promulgated in the country to do away with the communal system of voting and have a common roll. The new Constitution makes it compulsory for every political party to have members in all constituencies and to nominate candidates from every constituency for the National Election next year. All the communal schools are now required to change their names to avoid any identification which is related to any particular faith or denomination.

The same evening we had a meeting with the Muslimah wing of the GAI (the Women’s Organisation of Ahmadiyya Anjuman Indonesia). It was an educative and informative meeting, which lasted for two hours. The ladies asked many questions of interest to them. Hazrat Ameer explained the role of the Lahore Women’s Organisation in Pakistan and advised the audience to encourage all their members and children to devote their time to learning the teachings of Islam and promoting the Jama‘at’s works.

25th SeptemberIt was the official 66th Anniversary Celebration Day of the PIRI (PIRI Foundation for Schools), which was established in 1947. Various activities organised by different wings of the PIRI took place throughout the day. A fascinating musical school band welcomed us and the other guests. We were taken to the main hall where students, teachers and parents had gathered to participate in various interesting items of this special function. The programme started with a recitation from the Holy Qur’an, and later on a band presented quwalis and the National Anthem.

The Chairman of the PIRI Foundation, Mr Iwan Yusuf, and Hazrat Ameer delivered speeches and expressed their appreciation of the PIRI school system and their educational activities.

A lot of activities were organised. These included competitions in reciting the Azan and the Holy Qur’an, in Hifz-i Qur’an, handwriting, embroidery/batik printing, music and musical instrument play-ing, rock climbing and badminton, and a football match.

It was a very colourful day and everyone enjoyed the excellent arrangements to showcase the vari-ous vocational activities organised by the PIRI Schools.

In the evening we had another important meeting with the Executives of the GAI at which Prof. Ahmadi and Prof. Dr Ida Adi were also present. The issue of funds for printing the Holy Qur’an for the students of PIRI was discussed in detail as well as who would be the main persons responsible for receiving and spending the funds while at the same time communicating with the Central Anjuman in Lahore for the funds provided by the Saleema Faruqui Trust, Lahore.

26th September in KediriThe next programme was a visit to Kediri, which is in the far east of Java Island. It was a very tiring day as we had to travel to the Jama‘at in Kediri, which is a journey of seven to eight hours from Yogyakarta. We left the house where we were staying at 5 am and arrived at our destination after 1 pm. A jalsa had been arranged there and the mosque was filled to capacity, with many members standing outside, as well. After a welcome address and some historical background of the Jama‘at there, Haji Ali Yasir, who had accompanied us from Yogyakarta, also addressed the gathering. He is the Head of the Religious Division of the GAI. He covered briefly the activities and beliefs of the Lahore Ahmadiyya Movement with particular reference to Indonesia. Hazrat Ameer delivered his talk, and after providing the overview of the Lahore Ahmadiyya Movement he explained in detail the

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differences between two Jama‘ats. The programme was followed by a question/answer session. The members in Kediri are very knowledgeable and they asked some intelligent questions.

We left the Mosque at about 5 pm for Yogyakarta and reached our residence at 1 am. It had been a very long, tiring, but very enjoyable and fruitful journey. The Jama‘at in Kediri is working very effectively and with dedication.

27th SeptemberIt was our last day in Yogyakarta. It was very hectic but exceptionally fruitful and enlightening. In the morning we were taken to visit the Jama‘at’s elementary school. The students all lined up to welcome us. Hazrat Ameer, Mr Shaukat Ali and I handed out award certificates to those who had achieved the highest grades in their respective classes and vocations. It was a well-organized programme which was conducted by the young students. Hazrat Ameer expressed his profound appreciation and his admiration of the administration, staff and students of the school.

Later on we attended Friday prayer in the main GAI/PIRI Schools mosque, which was full of both members and non-members, as well as teachers and students of the PIRI Schools.

After the Friday prayer we had another meeting with the officials, and Br Iwan Yusuf had again attended. This was followed by our last lunch there and shortly afterwards we left for the airport. Prof. Dr Ida Adi, Br Purwiyadi (who had provided transport to us throughout our visits since picking us at Wonosobo), Br Ali Arie, and Br Muliano came to see us off. After we had checked in and gone into the lounge, we were told that the flight had been delayed – eventually by two hours.

JakartaBr Sulardi and Br Basharat Ahmad were patiently waiting for us at Jakarta Airport even though the flight was delayed by two hours. They took us for dinner and then to Br Basharat Ahmad’s residence where we spent the night.

In the morning we had Fajr prayer, which was attended by the whole of Br Basuki’s family, and dars-i Qur’an, which was delivered by Hazrat Ameer. We were then joined by other members and had interesting discussions before we all left for the airport.

We thank all the Executives, officials and members of the Gerakan Ahmadiyyah Indonesia (AAIIL Indonesia) and other officials and members of the various Jama‘ats who made our visit, which, at times, was long and arduous, not only fruitful and enjoyable but spiritually elevating by their enthusiasm and devotion for the cause of the Movement. We are also grateful for their excellent hospitality, cooperation and support throughout our visit.

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Glimpses of Hazrat Ameer's Visit to Indonesia

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blessings of Allah be on him). LOVE also generates peace and happiness in the society. Follow the commandments of ALLAH and His Messenger, the Holy Prophet MUHAMMAD and earn an ever-lasting life here in this world and in the Hereafter. May Allah bless you all.

Ahmad Nawaz, Hayward, California I have just finished reading the February 2013 issue of the HOPE Bulletin dedicated to the memory of the late Br. Akbar Abdullah. I must say that your team has worked very hard to collect facts about the life and contributions made by our late Br. Akbar. The formatting of the Bulletin and photographs have made it very impressive and visual. Br. Akbar deserved such a beautiful dedication. I wish to congratulate you for making the Bulletin more than just a news bulletin. The brief life history of the Holy Prophet Muhammad (sas) by our new sister in the fold of Islam, Christiane Backer, is very impressive and shows how his Perfect Example has inspired her thoughts and behaviour. I am sure her book “From MTV to Mecca” must be worth reading. Thanks for introducing the autobiography of a highly popular figure in the Western media, who, by her own study, has adopted Islam, and is facing challenges with firm faith and conviction.

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