On Saturday, October 26th, the Islamic Community of Bosniaks in Germany (IZBNJ) celebrated its 30th anniversary with an appropriate ceremony in the town of Dormagen near Cologne.
The ceremony was attended by reisu–l-ulema of the Islamic Community in Bosnia and Herzegovina (BiH) Husein-ef. Kavazovic, who, pointing out the importance of institutional action, also reminded of the responsibility that comes with working in congregations.
“Here in this country, we started to establish congregations even before the aggression. We were aware of what it means to have our own institutions and act through them. It turned out that these were the initial bricks of a great building, which will grow more and more and spread its influence. It is today’s Islamic community, united around its headquarters and connected to the center in Sarajevo. It is still growing and organizing itself in order to be even more efficient,” said reisu-l-ulema Kavazovic.
On this occasion, the President of the Islamic Community of Bosniaks in Germany, Zenahir Mrakovic, referred to the different periods of work and activity of Bosniaks within the Islamic community in these areas.
“Now as long ago as 1994, with the appointment of the chief imam for the area of the Federal Republic of Germany, the foundations of our organized activities in this area were laid. Of course, our community is much older than these 30 years and its roots go back to the seventies of the last century when the first congregations were created in these areas. So, in few years there will be 50 years of existence of the Bosniak community in Germany”, reminded Mrakovic.
As he pointed out, since the formation of the first congregations, the community has grown and developed, becoming more and more numerous.
“This anniversary that we are celebrating is an opportunity to look back on our past, with respect for those who existed, worked and built before us, but also to remind ourselves of the responsibility we have when it comes to building our community,” said the president of the Islamic Community of Bosniaks in Germany Zenahir Mrakovic.
On this occasion, Chief Imam Aldin-ef. Kusur and President Zenahir Mrakovic presented Muhamed Jusic, director of the Directorate for Foreign Affairs and Diaspora, with a check in the amount of 400,000 euros, which are the funds collected at a gathering in congregations in Germany for the victims of the recent floods in BiH, Radio Sarajevo writes.
Photo: MINA