Alhamdulillah, another Palestine Mercy Mission’s Charity Dinner (also known as Misi Kasih Palestin or MKP Charity Dinner) was successfully held on 30th October 2010 at Fraser Noble Hall of University of Leicester. This event was organised by Majlis Syura Muslimun of East Midlands and South Yorkshire (MSM EMSY) with the support of Leicester University Malaysian Society (LUMS). It was the second MKP Charity Dinner organised by MSM after another similar event, which was held in Birmingham earlier this year. This time, the theme of the event was: ‘A Night for Palestine.’

This Charity Dinner aims to raise funds for MKP Projects, and the collection will be channelled to help the Palestinians.  It also aims to increase awareness and sensitivity of the community in regard to the Palestinian issues and the sufferings that they have to endure every day.

Alhamdulillah, the event attracted about 180 guests who came from all over East Midlands and South Yorkshire including Leicester, Loughborough, Nottingham and Sheffield. Some guests came as far as Bristol too.

We started at about 6.45pm with a welcoming speech by the Master of Ceremony who reminded us all on the importance of giving alms to help our brothers and sisters. Certainly Allah will bestow his Love and Blessings to His servants who spend in charity, and in His way.

 The master of ceremony and Quran recitation

The event continued with the recitation of the Holy Quran from Surah Al Isra by brother Badrul Hisyam Alias from Leicester. Next, brother Abdul Rahman Razali, the Masul (Head) of MSM EMSY presented a speech on Majlis Syura Muslimun, introducing to the audience the many beneficial and exciting activities organised by MSM in the UK and Ireland.

 
The VIPs of the day: (from left) Head of MSM EMSY, Brother Abdul Rahman Razali; MKP Beirut Team representative, Brother Abd Rahman Mohamad; Br0ther Ismail Patel; Ustaz Mazrul.

Following this was one of the highlights of the event, which was the talk by Brother Ismail Patel. Ismail Patel is a very well known activist of Palestine, and is the founder of an established organisation, Friends of Al Aqsa. He presented a beautiful and inspiring talk entitled, “Palestine: The Long Walk to Freedom”. He drew the audience’s attention on the importance of Mosque of Al Aqsa and shared the history of the building of the Kaabah in Mecca and the Mosque of Al Aqsa. He also encouraged us all to keep on fighting together to help the Palestinians against the atrocities that they have faced and are still facing now.

Speakers of the day: Brother Ismail Patel (up) and Brother Abdul Rahman Mohamad

Next, there was an enlightening childrens performance dedicated specially for Palestine by the children of MASLEIC (Leicester Malaysian Postgraduate Society) students. They beautifully presented a pantomime, where they acted as students in a classroom. Shortly after the teacher, Anis, started a lesson, there was a fierce attack from the Israeli’s soldiers. Fighter jets started to destroy their school and the surrounding area. Later, as an expression of their hope, the children sang a song by Maher Zain entitled “Palestine will be free.” Their presentation ended with a touching poem on Palestine, read by Ariff.

Children Performance by the children of MASLEICS

Guests were then served with home-made traditional and delicious Malaysian dishes cooked by our very own Malaysian sisters. While enjoying their dinner, audiences were also presented with the three best videos that were chosen as winners of the Palestine Video Making Competition.


Up next, was the sharing session by the MKP Team who went to Beirut recently, delivered by Brother Abdul Rahman Mohmad. The meaningful and unforgettable moments that he experienced during his visit to Palestinian refugee camps in Beirut opened our eyes of the difficulties that Palestinians suffer from. He also urged the audience to keep on boycotting Israeli’s products in order to help alleviate Palestinians’ suffering.


Throughout the night, there were also exciting auction sessions. Many donated items were up for bidding including a TV, slow cookers, a printer, an office chair and many more. There were also booths that were set up including booths from Friends of Al Aqsa, MSM and MASLEICS where Palestine merchandises, clothes, books, food and many more were sold.

 
Booths of the day: (left) Friends of Al Aqsa, (right) MASLEICS

Lastly, guests were entertained with a Nasyid Performance by some Leicester Malaysian brothers. The memorable night ended with prize-giving and closing ceremony.

Alhamdulillah, the MKP Charity Dinner in Leicester had succeeded to collect an amount of GBP 2637.12 in just one night. The amount was a collection from the sales of tickets, auctions, contributions from booths, sponsors and many more. All of the income generated from this event will be given towards the Palestinian cause.

The committee members would like to extend our token of appreciation to all guests of the event for spending their time and money in support of the Palestinian cause. Our special thank you also goes to all who have supported this event as well such as the Malaysian Students Department (MSD), Leicester University Malaysian Society (LUMS), Leicester Malaysian Postgraduate Society (MASLEIC), Friends Of  Al Aqsa and last but not least MSM EMSY. We hope everyone has enjoyed the event as we did, and we hope the spirit of Palestine will always be present in our hearts. May Allah give us victory and may Palestine be free again one day. InsyaAllah.


Prepared by:
Wan Farah Wan Ibrahim
(Secretary of MKP: Night For Palestine 2010 MSM EMSY)

Special credit to:
-Mai Shahira Meor Hazizi (Project Director)
-Zainal Abidin Adlin (Project Cameraman)
-Halimah Hana A Karim (Project Camerawoman)
-MKP 2010 Team