A candlelit hīkoi to the Hastings mosque strengthens community ties. Made with funding from NZ On Air.
The man who founded the mosque in Hastings says the tributes outside the mosque after the Christchurch terror attacks has taken support in the community to a new level.
Hastings' Haji Shahbaz Ali, the pioneer founder of Hawke's Bay's Baitul Mokarram Masjid and Islamic Centre Trust, is a devout Sunni Muslim with unshakeable faith and a firm belief in the power of prayer.
Shahbaz Ali moved to Hastings from Fiji nearly 30 years ago to work in the halal meat industry and met fellow Muslims through work and friends.
Stay together, stay strong, hold tight onto your faith believes pioneer founder of Hawke's Bay's Baitul Mokarram Masjid & Islamic Center Trust.
"In 1997 we started praying, Friday prayers, with a handful of 10 to 15 Muslims from Hawke's Bay, at home," he said.
"We used to gather at my place, then we moved to another house [once numbers grew], then a friend offered a garage to pray in."
In 2000, an influx of Somali refugees led to an increase in the number of Muslims in the community, he says.
"There were also more Muslims from Fiji, Bangladesh, a friend of mine came from Syria, and Somalia.
"The numbers went up to between 50 and 80. We hired a place in mid-2000s near the hospital to rent for five times daily prayer, and other religious activity."
Muslims continued to arrive in Hastings for work and the increase in numbers meant a mosque/masjid became a necessity, he says.
"It is our faith, mosque is a mutual place to pray, it is in our blood. Wherever we go, we build a mosque.
People gather to pay their respects at Hawke's Bay Baitul Mokarram Masjid and Islamic Centre Trust in Hastings. Photo / Paul Taylor
"We went around the country to mosques all over NZ (to fundraise for a mosque) and some of our [Muslim] brothers donated quite a bit.
"In late-2010 we built a mosque. We bought the American church, on 718 Heretaunga St East, and it cost us about $180,000."
The Hastings community was welcoming at the time and they still are, he says.
"The people were very welcoming, we had a few Māori who became Muslims."
The mosque is now has more than 200 Muslims who attend, and Shahbaz Ali believes it will keep going from strength to strength, even in the wake of tragic circumstances.
"We are getting stronger now, especially after the [mosque shootings on March 15].
"The support from outside encourages us to keep going. My faith, my strong belief to keep going helps too.
"We are safe here, and right behind our community."
Shahbaz Ali said he encourages his fellow-Muslim community to maintain calm after "the hate inflicted".
