THE MINISTRY of Social Cohesion hosted its first consultation with religious organisations and groups on Thursday. Minister with responsibility for social cohesion, Amna Ally met with representatives of the Muslim community at the Ministry of the Presidency.The consultations which are aimed at developing new strategies for achieving national unity saw representatives of the Central Islamic Organisation of Guyana (CIOG), the Guyana Muslim Mission, the Guyana Islamic Forum, the Muslim Youth League, the Guyana Islamic Trust, the Guyana International Relief Organisation, the Darul Uloom Centre of Islamic Education, contributing to discussions.
“This is your opportunity to speak to us. We want to be able to undertake the initiatives that would [allow] us to partner in an atmosphere of trust,” said Minister Ally.
“We want communities to be allowed to contribute in a strategic way. It is our duty to give you the opportunity to tell us how the Ministry and the Muslim community can collaborate to achieve this; how can we remove barriers to unity; how can communities be supported, how can we remove inequalities? We want to talk about these issues openly and find solutions together. It is the only way we are going to progress and move this nation forward,” she added.
Ally told the participants that the meeting was not intended to be a one-off discourse but rather, a series of consultations to ensure that all stakeholders are given a chance to contribute to and refine a plan of action that will allow the Ministry to achieve its mandate.
“We cannot continue to live in Guyana as a divided society. Regardless of your political affiliation, religious beliefs, ethnicity. There is a need for us to work together to build our country. All of us want a good life and we must work together to achieve that,” The Minister stated.
Meanwhile, Shaheed Uthman, a representative of the Guyana Muslim Mission-Masjid Muhammad, lauded the initiative, while noting that it is the first time that his organisation and by extension the Muslim community has been contacted by any government on matters of social cohesion.
“I give gratitude for this forum and I ask for us to appreciate the foresight of President Granger for putting this mechanism in place to deal with the difficulties we face. This morning is a manifestation of a work in progress. Oftentimes we do not want to talk about the issues that are affecting the country and I believe this was long overdue. We need to start talking to one another in such a free way,” he said.
He opined that it is now the Ministry’s responsibility to ensure that every Guyanese is educated on the importance of social cohesion and engaged through such forums, to begin the work of eradicating the barriers to national unity and equality. “There is too much ignorance out there as it relates to social cohesion. We must intensify the information out there and we must work together to change that,” he said.
Ameena Hescott, of the Darul Uloom Centre of Islamic Education, said her organisation is committed to support to the Administration’s efforts. She said the institution is willing to begin the groundwork of educating the population on the goals of the Ministry of Social Cohesion.
Like Uthman and Hescott, Wasir Baksh said that the teachings of Islam are consistent with the themes of unity, equality and fairness and as such, he will support government’s efforts in achieving these goals for Guyana. (Ministry of the Presidency press release)