While COVID-19 infections keep increasing in NSW, children and teenagers now accounting for one third of the cases infected with the highly contagious Delta variant, Muslims leaders are showcasing their own vaccination images encouraging the community at large to protect themselves against the virus. “I took the COVID vaccination because I believe it’s the right thing to do by my religion, by my family, by my community and by my health and safety,” says ANIC President Sheikh Shadi Alsulaiman.
Almost 15 percent of teenagers aged 16 to 19 in NSW had received a first dose of a COVID-19 vaccine after the NSW government started a vaccine program earlier this week for thousands of HSC students from Sydney’s west and south-west.
NSW Police Commissioner Mick Fuller will tighten rules around the COVID-19 lockdown regulations in order to slow the spread of the Delta strain asking the Australian Defence Force for an extra 500 troops for Sydney’s worst-affected areas.
Sharing his video getting vaccinated, Sheikh Shadi said that he believed the vaccination to be safe, it was the right thing to do while acknowledging that people were entitled to their own decision on whether or not to proceed with it.
“I based my view on the overwhelming majority of Muslim and non-Muslim doctors and health experts who advised me that it is safe, and who also underwent vaccination themselves. From an Islamic perspective, the vast majority of Imams and Muslim scholars locally and abroad have said that it is permitted to be undertaken,” Sheikh Shadi said.
The Grand Mufti of Australia, Dr Ibrahim Abu Mohammed speaking while getting vaccinated said that he hoped that the scientists continued their efforts towards eliminating the virus completely and that the vaccination was shown to be saving lives.
Quoting from the Hadith, the Mufti said, “I wish that all our Muslim Community takes the vaccine. The vaccine is one of Allah’s gifts that the human intellect – that Allah created – has found and I wish all people to take the vaccine. It was narrated that the Prophet (s) said “Allah is the one that created the disease and the cure, O’ servants of Allah, take the cure.”
A number of Muslim leaders, both males and females have declared that they have been vaccinated and the community members to do the same. These include Tasneem Chopra OAM, Mariam Veiszadeh, Hanan Dover and Zia Ahmad, Editor-in-Chief of AMUST.
Hanan Dover, a Sydney based clinical psychologist and a social media celebrity posted a picture of herself getting vaccinated on social media with a little humour showcasing a tongue-in-cheek video listing wild conspiracy theories as the ingredients of the vaccine.
A number of Muslim doctors have been disseminating correct information on COVID-19 pandemic and its effects on individuals and populations and relaying to counter anti-vaccine misinformation.
Source: Australian Muslim Times ( https://www.amust.com.au/2021/08/muslims-leaders-front-up-for-vaccination/)
More Stories
Prayer Update
Jummah update
Friday Jummah update