Click photo to enlarge
Sakinah Abdul (left) and Noraini Ibrahim view information
at the Clyde St mosque open day on Saturday. Photo by Peter
McIntosh.
The Clyde St mosque opened its doors on Saturday in a bid
to help break down barriers of misunderstanding in the
community.
The open day was held as part of Islam Awareness Week, which
is organised annually by local Muslims to increase New
Zealanders' awareness of their beliefs, values and practices.
Visitors were able to learn about Islam through static
displays and reading material on offer.
Noraini Ibrahim attended the open day with her daughter,
Sakinah Abdul (13), and felt the information displayed was
clear and helpful.
"It resolves some misconceptions and helps understanding.
People need to be exposed to different cultures for social
harmony," she said.
Open day organisers, Aufar Bahri and Yassar Alamri, said the
event was a success with many people attending out of
curiosity.
Mr Alamri felt the Dunedin community was supportive of the
increasing Muslim population.
About 300 people, many of them students, are recognised as
being of the Muslim faith in Dunedin.
