Farid Ahmed: "The killer is my human brother. I love him as my brother, but I don't support what he did."
Farid Ahmed: "The killer is my human brother. I love him as my brother, but I don't support what he did."
If keeping busy is the default setting for recovery from grief, mosque shooting survivor Farid Ahmed is doing a pretty good job of it.
In a four-day visit to Hawke's Bay he packed in at least 10 engagements.
It was Ahmed's first visit to the region and stemmed from aninvitation to speak at the National Ostomy Conference in Havelock North.
His commitments ranged from time at the Hawke's Bay Baitul-Mukarram Masjid mosque and a church, to time with the people of Waipatu Marae, speeches to Rotary members, a high school assembly and separate meetings with the mayors of Napier and Hastings.
All were carried out with remarkable dignity, demonstrating his preparedness to forgive, which the country saw publicly just three days after his wife was killed, along with 50 others, in the Christchurch mosque shootings on March 15, 2019.
As Ahmed has said before, the "hate" event of "the 15th of March" tested "what I believe and what I have learnt."
"I think that I passed the test," he says. "The killer is my human brother. I love him as my brother, but I don't support what he did."
In his speeches, Ahmed talks a little about what happened, but says: "It was a hate crime, but we should learn from, and then promote love."
"To do that we need to understand others, be open with others, and not be scared to ask questions," he said.
"We all have had horrors, and we all have feelings. But that increases the bond between us."
Farid Ahmed, at left, a victim of the Christchurch mosque terrorist attack, came to Hawke's Bay to meet fellow Muslims and express his thanks for their support. Photo / Paul Taylor
Since the shooting, he has travelled to the United States, the Netherlands and Abu Dhabi.
Ahmed says New Zealand earned a good reputation for the way it reacted to "love and support" his people, and he says it is a reputation New Zealand must maintain.
His visits to mayors Sandra Hazlehurst, of Hastings, and Kirsten Wise, of Napier, are about expressing the gratitude of himself and his people.
"I thank you from the bottom of my heart," Ahmed said.
"It gives me a huge motivation and inspiration that I can go around sharing these reactions with others."
"I'd like to congratulate all Kiwis for the remarkable power of compassion which helped us in our healing," he said.
"I also want to remind the wonderful New Zealanders to maintain the role-modelling that we are known for, as the most compassionate country in the world."
The mayors are receiving a copy of his book, and a card also expressing the gratitude.
