As with other youthful activists studying in Australia in the 1970s, several defining events shaped our worldview. The student demonstrations against poverty in Baling in 1974 shaped thinking on economic development. The other is the end of the Vietnam War in April 1975, when a determined indigenous rag-tag army successively defeated two mighty military machines of the West that triumphed in World War II.
Amidst competing ideologies in cosmopolitan Melbourne, I and several students were persuaded by Ir. Dr Imaduddin of Institute Teknology Bandung to form the Melbourne University Islamic Society (MUIS). Together with two other founding presidents of MUIS, we begun a genesis of Islamic awakening steeped in ideas of economic justice and brotherhood. This idealism persist even after many years of the inevitable phase of an exhausting professional life, parenthood and raising families. In much of these occasions, I had the unintended opportunity to deal with new projects, start up companies and a public listing.
I graduated from Melbourne University with Bachelor of Engineering (Chemical) in 1977 and joined Petronas in 1979. Subsequently I left in 1987 to join other O&G service companies in Malaysia and Indonesia. I decided to take a masters in Islamic finance in INCEIF in 2013 – 2015. This marks a deeper and a more structured immersion in a field of knowledge which has the potential of leading a civilizational quest to face several existential challenges in global health, economic and climate crisis and the collapse of family/civilizational values that will define this century. Islam as His eternal Religion continues to present itself as the viable guidance for humanity.
The same idealism, experience and commitment are evident in my colleagues in Global Islamic Unity Forum (GIUF) who are successful businessmen, bankers, lawyers, engineers, accountants and diplomats. The CVs of the Board of Management are listed on this website.GIUF had existed for 3 years as an NGO focused on actionable programs for Islamic unity through trade, investment and poverty alleviation. Its Board of Management has successfully developed a Roadmap inspired by Maqasid Shariah and formulated as a strategy management framework based on the principles of the Balanced Scorecard popularized by the Harvard School of Business.
Members, donors, activists and participants of GIUF programs will be able to validate their commitment to the Belief that this Universe was created 13.8 billion years ago as an act of Mercy by a Loving God who continues to create and nurture His Universe for the sustainability of humanity and planet Earth. His majesty is being manifested in the infinity of a massive Universe of quadrillion (1 followed by 24 zeros) stars, planets, black holes and still undiscovered heavenly bodies and another quadrillion of the smallest of creation in mankind, animals, plants, rocks, sands, water, lights, winds, electromagnetic waves etc.
It is pure superstition to believe that such infinite majesty could have existed by pure chance and held together without an Owner. And incredulously superstitious too that such a purposeful creation has no Guidance for every facet of life since the prophethood of Adam AS to that of Muhammad SAW as the final Seal.
I am humbled by the request of the Board of Management to lead GIUF at the start of 2023. With all that Allah has guided me and members of the Board, we will do our best and the rest is “Tawakkal ala Allah”
Together with the Board and members of GIUF, we wish to welcome everyone visiting our website and ushering the New Year of 2023. Let’s remain resolute in our belief that this existence is purposeful and that we will continue to receive His Guidance.
Wassalaam
Haji Rahim Kamil Sulaiman.
Chairman
Global Islamic Unity Forum (GIUF)
1st January 2023