Speech On Kathradas Funeral

I would like to start off with the traditional greetings of peace in our faith. Assalamu aleikum wa rahmatullah wa barakato. May the peace and blessings of the Almighty be upon each and every one of you, distinguished guests, we first begin by praising the almighty for the many favors Allah has bestowed upon us. And we say al hamdu Lillahi Rabbil aalameen. All praise is due to Almighty the Lord that the Sustainer and the Church of the universe, the most benefits and the Most Merciful salutations be upon the messengers of the Almighty, and all of those who follow them in righteousness.

On occasion like this, in our tradition, in our teachings, there is a phrase in our in law he

we're in Iraq.

to Almighty do we belong,

and to the Almighty is our return. And I think this phrase is an ideal way to start off my prayer and address on this occasion. On behalf of the Muslim community. We would like to take pride

in a member of our community.

And we would also like to express our heartfelt condolence to the Katara family, and not only to the family to his colleagues, his comrades, and to the entire country.

Mr. Qatada or Uncle kaffee, as he was fondly known, had dedicated his life to the pursuit of freedom and justice. And these are values that are valued

in all traditions and are cherished in all values.

In the Quran, if there is one word that describes the overriding value

that permeates our teachings, it is justice says Allah in the Holy Quran, la casa Santa Susana bobina Kwanzaa novel kita Well, meezan Leah Puma, NASA will cast the Almighty has sent all the messengers of the Almighty Nia humaneness to establish people upon justice. The Quran further goes on to say that be steadfast upon justice, even in conflicting emotions, justice, even if it be against your own kind, even if be against your own self, and it tells us what are you gonna come Shanahan comin to not that let the dislike of anyone make us work from justice. So even against your own time, and even in dealing with people whom you might dislike, remained steadfast upon justice,

who are properly taqwa it is closer towards righteousness. And with regard to freedom, the second half of Islam had said that when he told someone who had oppressed another person, since when have you enslave people, when the Almighty created them as free people

in this regard,

we know that uncle Kathy and Ahmed kathrada strove throughout his life for these ideals, and we pray to the almighty reward him for that whole statement and saying,

on behalf of

our own, for the pursuance of freedom and justice and the upliftment of people in our country and throughout the world.

With the passing of uncle Kathy, we lose yet another library of knowledge, a Brook of wisdom, a cache of experience and a voice of integrity. The curtain sadly, is growing, and closing on a generation of gallant and selfless fighters for freedom and justice, has rejoined the rest of South Africa and mourning his passing. It is an opportune time to renew our commitment to the values that he stood for, and he looked forward. This was his address, at the time of the passing away of Madeira, where he made mention of some of the challenges. Poverty ill health and hunger still stackable and greed show their ugly faces. xenophobia and intolerance plays a mischief in our

beautiful land. parts of the world out there find themselves in unhappy situations, economists falter and stagger extremism and fundamentalism of all kinds are rampant, and the list goes on. On this occasion, Mr. kathrada reminded us never to sit on our laurels but continue to fight in the myriad of things

tackles domestic and internationals for a better tomorrow. It was because of this, that He also took a very keen role in the persons of the justice and freedom of the Palestinian people and other oppressed people of the world.

In conclusion, let me give you a message of hope. Once Mr. Katahdin uncle Kathy,

to a colleague of mine she was asked that what did you miss most in Robben Island? And he replied, the face of a young child. A child's face is a symbol of the renewal of humanity, the future the coolness and innocence and a freshness that he always longed for. His message remain the same

as he forcefully and yet more gentle demeanor, advocated for education, health intolerance, celebrating the lives of people such as Kathy lies in our emulation of the ideals which they burn, the edifice of the service of humanity. This is a lasting legacy that they leave behind with us. May the almighty Forgive me shortcomings. May the almighty admit his soul to His mercy. May the almighty elevate his status. May the almighty give us all the opportunity to follow in his footsteps for a better South Africa and a better world amin