18th July 2016

Harun Khan and Dr Omer El Hamdoon

  • Harun Rashid Khan elected Secretary General and Dr Omer El Hamdoon Deputy Secretary General
  • British Muslim leaders discuss Brexit and a growing generation of youth

On 17th July 2016, the Muslim Council of Britain elected its sixth Secretary General, Mr Harun Rashid Khan. It also elected as Deputy Secretary General, Dr Omer El Hamdoon. (Full bio’s below). Harun Khan takes over from Dr Shuja Shafi who has completed a two year term as Secretary General of the MCB.

Harun was previously Deputy Secretary General of the Muslim Council and has been involved with the MCB since its inception, where he has led, amongst other things, the MCB’s London committee where he launched Eid celebrations at London’s Trafalgar Square. He is a passionate individual striving to work for the community.

In his inaugural speech at the nineteenth MCB Annual General Meeting, Harun Khan spoke of his time growing up in London and spoke personally of aspiring to be able to work for the community as his late father did. Harun started as a young volunteer with the events management team that organised the inaugural meeting of the Muslim Council of Britain in 1997 at Brent Town Hall. He said, “It was exciting to see for the first time, a unique gathering of such a broad and diverse range of Muslims, from across the UK, meeting, deliberating and setting the wheels in motion for a burgeoning Muslim community to come together for the first time. Never did I contemplate for one moment that fast forward 19 years and I would be here today, speaking to you as the head of the same organisation. It is deeply humbling to be the MCB’s sixth Secretary-General”.

Addressing the issue of extremism and terrorism, he said, “The MCB must still occupy the space of sanity with a voice of reason. This means clearly stating our opposition to terrorism, finding meaningful ways to ensure our young people are not lured into extremism, and express our independent voice when we think government policies designed to counter-terror are only making matters worse”.

Harun Khan talked about the growing number of Muslim youth in this country and spoke about the need to reach out and “engage our younger generations so that they can be a force for good as citizens for our country”. He continued, “As a community too I hope we can work with our affiliates, our mosques, charities and associations to demonstrate our collective aspiration to be of service to fellow Britons, of all faiths and none”.

The AGM elections were conducted by an independent Election Commissioner, Professor Judge Khurshid Drabu CBE, who chaired the first meeting of the newly elected National Council consisting of 30 members, out of which seven are women.

Panel Discussion – ‘Islam, Participation and Public Life’

A panel discussion was held focusing on how Muslims can play more of an active role in society. The session was chaired by Rt Hon Stephen Timms MP with Sir Iqbal Sacranie OBE and included panellists such as Robin Richardson, former director of Runnymede Trust, Neil Jameson CBE, Executive Director of Citizens UK,Esmat Jeraj, Citizens UK, Hashi Mohamed, Commissioner in the Citizens Commission on Islam, Dr Muhammad Abdul Bari MBE, Former Secretary General of the MCB and Muhammad Marwan, a youth activist who had flown specially from France to attend and speak at the AGM. All panellists equally talked about the importance of social activism and encouraged British Muslims to play a consistent and positive  role in today’s society.


About the New Leadership

Harun Rashid Khan

Harun Rashid Khan is a Londoner born and bred, and has been a Civil Engineer in the city for over two decades. Since he was a teenager, Harun also devoted a lot of his time to community work in East London and has also served as a school governor for many years. While serving as the Chair of the MCB London Committee (2006-2010) he founded the Eid celebrations in London’s Trafalgar Square in partnership with the Mayor of London and attended by up to 20,000 visitors. Harun was the first second generation Muslim to be elected into the leadership of the Muslim Council of Britain in 2010 as its Treasurer and during that time has lead on delivering the annual Muslim Leadership Dinner attended by Muslim leaders, politicians and civil society leaders. He has also appeared on various media outlets, challenging stereotypes and arguing the case for Muslims to be full and active citizens. Harun is married and lives with his wife and three daughters in London.

Dr Omer El Hamdoon

Dr El Hamdoon has been involved in leadership positions within the Muslim Community since 1993, including being a member of the MCB’s National Council, as well as serving as Assistant Secretary General of the MCB in 2010. He also served previously as a president of Islamic Society and president of the Muslim Association of Britain, a national organisation working in the UK for the community. Dr El Hamdoon has made many media appearances during his time as Assistant Secretary General of the MCB.

[Ends]

Notes to Editors:

The Muslim Council of Britain is the UK’s largest Muslim umbrella body with over
500 affiliated national, regional and local organisations, mosques, charities and schools.

For further information please contact:
The Muslim Council of Britain
PO Box 57330
London
E1 2WJ
Tel: 0845 26 26 786
Fax: 0207 247 7079
[email protected]

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July 18, 2016 in Press Releases
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