Australian Federation of Islamic Councils
| Formation | January 1, 1964 |
|---|---|
| Registration no. | (ABN) 37 002 757 155 |
| Location |
|
|
Area served
|
Australia |
|
President
|
Dr Rateb Jneid. |
|
Budget
|
$65 million |
| Website | muslimsaustralia |
The Australian Federation of Islamic Councils (AFIC) (also known as Muslims Australia) was founded in 1964 as an umbrella group for various small Sunni Islamic groups and councils, and is a Sunni Islamic organisation. The mission of AFIC is to provide service to the community in a manner that is in accordance with the teachings of Islam and within the framework of Australian law, and to advocate for the Sunni Muslim community on matters that will affect the community's relevance, settlement and integration within Australian society. It is highly debatable whether AFIC represents Australian Muslims, as AFIC run organisations are very few, and their members are not elected by a majority Muslim vote.
It is reported that AFIC "sits on"' $65 million in assets.
The main role of AFIC is to represent Sunni Islam and Muslims of Australia as one "Ummah" to the government and other bodies nationally and internationally. AFIC coordinates and provides resources for activities of its State Islamic Councils and member Sunni Islamic societies.
The definition of Muslim according to AFIC member organisation, the Islamic Council of Western Australia, is "any person who conforms to the teachings of the Qur'an and Ahli Sunnah and Jamma' and shall specifically exclude any person or organisation, professing adherence to the Ahmadi, Lahori, Qadiani or Bahai schools of thought or of any similar inclination."
The member organisations of AFIC are:
- and
In July 2016, Keysar Trad was elected President of the AFIC following the standing down of the previous president, Hafez Kassem. However it was reported in February 2017 that following a bid to take-over AFIC, which involved the changing of locks and the passing of no-confidence motions against the current executive, Trad has not been able to enter his office.
In March 2017, it was reported the NSW Supreme Court had reinstalled the AFIC executive members, with Trad returned as president. Mohammed El-Mouelhy, head of the Halal Certification Authority (a competitor of AFIC), was installed as treasurer.
Professor Shahjahan Khan, former Vice President of the Islamic Council of Queensland, has said that to save AFIC from "self-destruction", the younger generation of Muslims need to work to rebuild the organisation.
...
Wikipedia