'1st Ethical Trust' Muslim Leaders Back 'At Our Mother's Feet', A Maternal Health Campaign

7 April 2011, London, UK

The At Our Mothers’ Feet campaign on the 7th April launched a statement on global maternal health backed by Muslim leaders at an event at the London Muslim Centre. The launch coincides with World Health Day.

The event was opened by Saif Ahmad, CEO of MADE in Europe, one of the organisations leading the At Our Mothers’ Feet campaign along with partner Ammalife. Mr Ahmad emphasised that the majority of global maternal deaths could be easily prevented by ensuring that women have access to basic medication and trained birth attendants.  Dilowar Khan, Director of London Muslim Centre, also said a few words in support of the campaign.

The statement was presented by Shaykh Ibrahim Mogra from 1st Ethical Charitable Trust. It calls on Muslim communities in the UK to lead the campaign to promote maternal healthcare around the globe by raising awareness in the UK and abroad and by supporting charities and governments to increase their work on maternal healthcare. The statement is endorsed by over 40 Muslim religious scholars and community leaders from across the UK, including Mufti Abdul Kadir Barkatullah from Muslim Council of Britain and Shaykha Halima Krausen of the London-based An-Nisa Society.
{Video: watch Sh. Halima Krausan talk about nature's role on humanity}

The statement quotes a saying from Prophet Muhammad ﷺ –

 “Be at your mother’s feet and there is paradise” 

– to emphasise the importance that Islam places on the status of mothers and their indispensable role in society.  It highlights the fact that Muslim communities in the UK have the opportunity to use their links with countries with high maternal mortality rates such as Pakistan, Somalia, Afghanistan and Bangladesh to influence attitudes, share life-saving knowledge and help to provide vital healthcare to women around the world.

Shaykh Ibrahim Mogra said: “I am very pleased to be part of this initiative. It is shocking that so many mothers are still dying when we have the knowledge and experience to be able to save them.  Our Messenger Muhammad (pbuh) said that if we see something evil we should change it with our hands, or with our tongue or at least hate it in our hearts. That’s why I believe that as Muslims, we have a duty to make the most of the avenues available to us to combat maternal deaths and make universal maternal healthcare a priority.”

Imam Qasim Ahmad, CEO of Iqra TV and Al-Khair Foundation, also attended the event and pledged his support for the campaign. He said “It is very difficult when mothers don’t have access to their basic healthcare needs. We have seen mothers delivering babies on footpaths and on buses. When you save a mother’s life, you save a whole family’.

The At Our Mothers’ Feet campaign is asking Muslims of all ages and backgrounds to support the campaign by pledging to take one of 5 suggested actions
(1) HOLD AN EVENT ANYWHERE
(2) SHARE WHY YOU ADMIRE AOMF
(3) GET IN TOUCH WITH FAMILY
(4) SEND A POSTCARD
(5) SHOW YOUR SUPPORT THROUGH ACTION
Encourage friends and family to support the campaign. A full list of actions is available at www.atourmothersfeet.org.uk/act/.


Ethical Information About The Organisations
At Our Mothers’ Feet aims to raise the profile of global maternal health within UK Muslim communities and charities. The campaign takes its name from a saying of the Prophet Muhammad ﷺ – ‘Be at your mother’s feet and there is Paradise.’ The campaign is being run by MADE in Europe and Ammalife with the support of UKaid from the Department for International Development (DfID). For more information please visit www.atourmothersfeet.org.uk.

World Health Day is celebrated annually on 7 April under the sponsorship of the World Health Organisation.

- MADE in Europe (www.madeineurope.org.uk) is UK-registered charity (no. 1134415).  Inspired by the Qur’anic teaching,

“Allah does not change the condition of a people until they change themselves” (Qur'an, 13:11),

we believe that we can empower Muslim communities to be at the forefront of the fight against global poverty, to challenge global norms and to become leaders of social change.




Ammalife (www.ammalife.org) is a UK-registered charity (no. 1120236) that aims to prevent women from dying or suffering long-term complications as a result of pregnancy or childbirth by implementing simple, safe, inexpensive and effective systems. Ammalife draws on the experience of medical professionals and those with experience of working in developing country contexts.


This project is supported by UKaid from the UK Department for International Development (DFID). DfID (www.dfid.gov.uk) is working to reach the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs), the international targets agreed by the United Nations (UN) to halve world poverty by 2015.


The At Our Mothers’ Feet campaign will be holding community workshops on global maternal health in mosques, community centres, universities and schools across England between April and October 2011. If you're interested in hosting or attending a workshop please contact shabana@madeineurope.org.uk to find out about workshops taking place in your area.


Get in touch with: Shabana Basheer, Project Officer, MADE in Europe

shabana@madeineurope.org.uk | +44 (0) 208 211 9439 / 07595 690 492

Support our mothers: www.atourmothersfeet.org.uk