Ramadan
Belinda WILSON (Narre Warren North) (10:04): We are in the heart of Ramadan, and what better way to celebrate in the community than attending an iftar dinner. I know that many people on this side of the chamber have attended many iftar dinners over the last week or so and, going forward, will continue to do so until we hit Eid in a week’s time. I must, first of all, acknowledge the incredible team at the Ahmadiyya Muslim community women’s association, the east chapter, who hosted me for a women-only iftar last week. It was absolutely beautiful. We had a great panel of guests from all sides of politics. We shared some great learnings with each other, and then of course broke the fast with an incredible meal, always very well enjoyed by many members of the community.
I also want to give another big shout-out to the Abu Talib centre, where on Sunday I again had a magnificent meal with a group of women – many of them my friends, many of them going to the local schools. I will say that I had a very intriguing group of four little eight-year-old girls who quizzed me, ‘Are you a Christian or a Muslim? Do you wear that scarf all the time?’ They also did ask me if I was a Karen, and I wondered what that actually meant. The eight-year-olds gave me a great description of what they thought a Karen was, but we had a really great time and we enjoyed it.