L'ASSOCIATION DES MUSULMANS PROGRESSITES DU CANADA

TWENTY-FOURTH ANNUAL EID-UL-FITR CELEBRATIONS AT PARLIAMENT HILL ON MAY 5, 2022

Ms. Louise Summers, Regional Vice President RBC, Ottawa Central brought greetings from the Royal Bank of Canada as did  Mr. Maher Markabi, Vice President National Capitol Region, Commercial Banking, TD Group. Hon. John McKay, PC, MP., host of AMPC's Eid dinners at Parliament Hill also welcomed everyone after Mobeen Khaja's welcome address..  Everyone spoke about the values of charity, sharing, tolerance, inclusion and diversity that are shared by all religions and are practiced in the month of Ramadan.

This year, APMC honoured the Right Honourable Jacinda Kate Laurell Ardern, Prime Minister of New Zealand, for her leadership  in taking measures to stop and prevent violent extremism and terrorism online after the terrorist attacks on two mosques in Christchurch in which 51 Muslims were murdered and 49 wounded. 

The Keynote address was delivered by Mrs. Amy Tisdall, Deputy Head of Mission for New Zealand. In her speech, she spoke about how this tragedy brought New Zealanders closer together and the grief they shared. She spoke about the messages of  sympathies, support and solidarity from people across the world, the generous support that came from Canada and the core values shared by both countries.  She received a standing ovation for her speech.  For full speech, please click here.

 A plaque and a Sandulak's polar bear sculpture were presented to Mrs. Tisdall for the Prime Minister.  The plaque had the following inscription: 

PRESENTED TO: RT. HON. JACINDA KATE LAURELL ARDERN, PRIME MINISTER OF NEW ZEALAND, IN RECOGNITION OF YOUR REMARKABLE AND COURAGEOUS LEADERSHIP IN THE WAKE OF THE TERROR ATTACKS IN THE CITY OF CHRISTCHURCH AND YOUR EFFORTS TO STOP AND PREVENT VIOLENT EXTREMISM AND TERRORISM ONLINE.       THANK YOU FOR YOUR KINDNESS, COMPASSION AND CARING. 

PRÉSENTÉ À: LA TRÈS HONORABLE  JACINDA KATE LAURELL ARDERN,  PREMIÈRE MINISTRE DE NOUVELLE-ZÉLANDE , EN RECONNAISSANCE DE VOTRE LEADERSHIP REMARQUABLE ET COURAGEUX À LA SUITE  DES ATTAQUES TERRORISTES DANS LA VILLE DE CHRISTCHURCH ET DE VOS EFFORTS POUR CONTRER ET PRÉVENIR L’EXTRÉMISME VIOLENT ET LE TERRORISME EN LIGNE.        MERCI DE VOTRE  BONTÉ, DE VOTRE COMPASSION ET DE VOTRE BIENVEILLANCE  

In her greetings, Mrs. Marjolaine Hudon, RBC's Regional President for Eastern and Northern Ontario, said " What we just heard from Deputy High Commissioner Tisdall is an inspiring story of how the world comes together in solidarity when these terrible attacks occur, an affront to our citizens, to our society, to our global community.   The way the Prime Minister of New Zealand chose to address this tragedy … through caring, courage and grace … insisting on not giving criminals any notoriety … and instead, focusing on uniting the community … I find this to be truly an inspiring example for all of us.

In Canada, and in our nation’s Capital, we have the privilege to live in a place that considers inclusiveness a part of who we are.  At RBC, we create the space for our teams to have open and honest dialogue around diversity and inclusion.  All these conversations lead to greater understanding and greater appreciation of each other.  At RBC, Diversity & Inclusion are at the core of who we are and what we value."

The celebrations were held in the Sir John Mcdonald Building on Wellington Street.  Retired Chief Armand La Barge was the Master of Ceremonies.   Miss Yumna Siddiqi APMC's Secretary, introduced Mrs. Amy Tisdall.  

The celebrations were attended by many members from the Diplomatic Corps, Members of Parliament and representatives from several organizations.  As in the past, many drove from Toronto to attend these celebrations.  

Many thanks to our sponsors whose generous support makes it possible for APMC to continue hosting these celebrations.  Thanks to John McKay, M.P., P.C., for co-hosting this event.  Catering was by the Parliamentary Restaurant - the food was delicious and the cakes were beautiful and delicious.  Everyone joined in to cut the cakes.

Tilawate Qur’an /Dua was shared by Ahad- Jibran Junaid Kayani and Imam Shaykh Faisal Abdur-Razak of the Islamic Forum of Canada.  Five year old Ahad- Jibran Junaid Kayani has a remarkable voice and amazed everyone with the recitation of some verses from the Qur'an.

Here are some pictures from the event.