After reciting the Tashahhud, the Ta’uz and the first chapter Al Fatiha followed by verse 59 of chapter 4 of the Holy Quran Imam Zafrullah Domun said:

As you are already aware on Wednesday next general elections will be held in Mauritius. This will be the 9^th General elections  after independence. For the information and guidance of our young people general elections have been held in 1976,1982,1983,1987,1991,1995,2000,2005 and now 2010. By the Grace of Allah we are the only country in Africa which can boast of this tradition of free and fair elections. When we are young we do not know the value of our vote. But if you try to learn the history of our country you will note that the freedom to vote at elections and to choose our own representatives was an uphill battle that was waged by our elders. Most of us have received this right at birth to be exercised when we will be of age. But for our elders it was not their birthright at all. They had to fight to get it. Briefly I will tell you the main steps leading to the acquisition of this most important right.

You should know that there were no indigenous people in Mauritius. The different ethnic groups that form part of  today’s Mauritian rainbow nation came here from different parts of the world. Although it is on record that the Arabs and the Portuguese visited Mauritius before the arrival of the Dutch in 1598. It was they who gave it the name of Mauritius after their prince Maurice van Nassau. In 1638 a first batch of settlers came here. They stayed here for about 20 years before moving on to the Cape of Good Hope. In 1664 the Dutch tried to settle here again and they developed some agriculture. But in 1695 because of a devastating cyclone that blew down most of the infrastructure, the Dutch government decided to give the colony up for good and the last settlers left Mauritius in 1710.

Then came the French period of our history. The French took possession of the island on September 20^th, 1715 and they named it l’Ile de France. But French settlers came only in 1721. But the real development of the Island started with the arrival of Mahe de Labourdonnais in 1735. It was he who embarked on a programme of construction of buildings and roads and other facilities. Mahe de labourdonnais left in 1746. In order to develop the island the French offered concessions to French settlers. The island was parceled in about 450 plots known as “domaines”. These French colonizers took possession of two third of the arable land of the country. It is their descendants who still today possess about 50 % of this arable land. In order to work the land these colonizers brought slaves. The slaves came from as far as Senegal but most of them came from Madagascar, Mozambique. The descendants of the slaves are the creoles of today. There was a massive influx of slaves in Mauritius during the French period. From published statistics we learn that in 1767 there were about 16,065 and in 1817 there were about 74,665. But when in 1835 slavery was abolished, Great Britain compensated the French colonizers and paid them £2,112,632 for the loss of slave labour. They were compensated for about 68,613 slaves.

Once emancipated, the slaves wanted their labour to be adequately compensated. But their masters of yore sought cheaper labour. It was in these circumstances that people from India were lured to come to Mauritius to work in the cane fields. Most of the Muslims, Hindus, Maratis, Telegus and Tamil and other ethnic groups came to Mauritius as indentured laborers between 1834 and 1909. In other words they had an initial contract of employment for five years which they could renew or go back to India. Among the Muslims there was a group of businessmen who came during the 1830’and 1840’s and started their own businesses. A small group of Chinese also came and they engaged in the detailed trade. By 1907 Indian migrants (all those who came from India) formed about 72 % of the population of the country.

With the arrival of the English in 1810 the French settlers were not happy in the beginning but since England gave them a market for their sugar, so they continued to develop sugar plantation in the country. But they did not have any political rights. No one had any rights. The first election held in Mauritius was in 1886. The right to vote was limited only to planters i.e those who possessed land. Then after a long battle spanning about 70 years universal suffrage was granted in 1959 and the minimum age to vote was 21. Eventually the minimum age to vote was reduced to 18. So those who are young today and who have a birthright to vote and who enjoy free education and free medical health should remember and be grateful for what their elders have done so that they might enjoy all these privileges today. The history of Mauritius is fascinating. All of us should try to understand it more so that we might understand how much we share in common with all other Mauritians despite our ethnic differences and so that we learn not to live in ghettos. We should cultivate such broadmindedness that we reach out to others and make this place more harmonious.

Now let us say a few words about elections from the Islamic point of view. In the verse that I had just read Allah says:

“Verily, Allah commands you to make over the trusts to those entitled to them, and that, when you judge between men, you judge with justice. And surely excellent is that with which Allah admonishes you! Allah is All-Hearing, All-Seeing.” [4:59] 

Today due to the struggle of our grandparents we live in a country which allows us to freely choose our political representatives. The teaching of Islam concerning this important choice is clearly spelt out in this verse. Allah commands us that we should always hand over trusts to those people who are most apt to exercise the trust that we place in them. The general principle is that we should hand over the affairs of the country or our organization to those people who are most apt to exercise this function. Such people are usually well known. And Allah tells us that in making our choice we should be just. We should expel from our heart any family feelings and we should chose such people who will work for the common good and who are not just interested in fulfilling their personal ambition to exercise power. In the list of candidates that are offered to us we should choose those candidates whom we consider being capable and honest and who can deliver even if such persons have no personal affinity with us. Allah has told us that when “we judge between men we judge with justice” In Islam the emphasis on what is just is so important that it applies to individuals and rulers alike. The individuals are commanded to exercise judgment in choosing their leaders and the leaders are required to see to it that all matters are judged justly so that no one is harmed. If justice is established peace will prevail.

In the verse under discussion we can also interpret the verse to mean that the commandment that Allah is giving us here is most excellent because it says “And surely excellent is that with which Allah admonishes you!” And here He is telling us to always judge with Justice. This is a core value. It is when there is no justice that people suffer. If the people does exercise justice in choosing their administrators/leaders and they in turn fail to administer the affairs with justice disorder will prevail. If Justice is observed meritocracy will prevail and every one will have the place that he merits and no one will be discriminated against.

However we know quite well that during campaigning there is a lot of propaganda that goes on. Propaganda is there to make you believe that which is not or not to believe that which is. And it is your duty to try to become an elector who is aware of the issues and who understands them so that you might not fall prey to propaganda. You will hear all the parties say that they will form the next government even the little insignificant party known as “Party Malin” which may be translated as “The Cunning Party”. The conscientious voter should be able to sift through everything that he hears and reads and he should seek Allah’s guidance so that he might make the best choice amongst all the candidates that are presented to him. At the end of the verse we are reminded that Allah is all hearing and all seeing. In other words whatever we do Allah is well aware of it.

Wherever there are elections these principles should apply. Whenever we are called upon to elect representatives we should bear the verse under discussion in mind. In Jamaat Ahmadiyya elections are held quite often and here also members of the Jamaat should know what Allah expects of them whenever they have to make a choice. Members should always make their choice with fear of Allah in their heart and should not under any circumstance feel compelled to vote for a candidate because he is a friend or a relative. If members try to be just, their affairs will be dealt with quite smoothly. Casting ones vote without any fear or hindrance is an important duty and we should learn how to use such a right once it is given to us.

Several times I have said that in Jamaat Ahmadiyya there is a big gap between what is said and what is done. Recently I came across a declaration of the actual caliph during a special Majlis Shura that he called for 20^th December 2009 in Germany. He said many things. But I have translated the following for you. You may judge what is said and what has been said especially with reference to Mauritius. He said:

“….. One of the most important tasks of khilafat is to establish justice. Since Jamaats have spread around the world, it is not possible for the caliph to be everywhere to know about the conditions of the Jamaats. That is why representatives are chosen and that is why you have been chosen so that you might help the caliph of the time to establish Justice. And if any officer of the Jamaat acts unjustly against any member of the Jamaat or ignoring the requirements of justice, he sends a false report or he gives precedence to his or his relatives interests , such a person is not only failing to fulfill his own obligations but he is being totally unjust. By taking the rights of someone else and by being unjust to him and by having him punished he is filling his belly with fire. Allah knows best how such a person should be treated in this world and what will be his lot in the next. It should be clear that all officers should fulfill their duties with good intention. If I take action against anyone based on your false report, the sin is yours. There have been many such instances. Even here (in Germany) and elsewhere where following officers’ reports someone has been expelled from the Jamaat. When later I personally made a more thorough report it appeared that the offence was not such that the person had to be expelled. Such persons are forgiven. And many times I have removed these officers from their posts. And it is very important for you to keep in mind that under no circumstance should you give your personal interests more importance than members of the Jamaat’s rights. The commandment of the Holy Quran is very clear that if you have to give witness against your own self or against your relatives, you should do so. We tell others that the beautiful teachings of Islam forbid us from being unjust even to our enemies because this is closer to Godfearingness. So this is a very important responsibility of all officers and members of Majlis Shura. If you see that an officer has written a false report against someone and consequently he has been expelled whereas the truth is the contrary, so you should report this to the national Amir. And if you think that the Amir will not give an ear to it, you may write to me……”