JHANG: Thousands of Pakistanis clad in white gathered in the central cityof Jhang Friday to make a human image of Christchurch’s Al Noor mosque,where 50 people were killed by a white supremacist four weeks ago.
Drone images showed worshippers standing in formation, their snow-whitetraditional shalwar kameez and prayer caps in stark contrast to the emeraldgreen of a public field, as a second group formed the words “Islam ispeace” nearby.
Huge New Zealand and Pakistani flags were also displayed along with a giantbanner that read: “Solidarity with the martyrs of Christchurch fromPakistan”.
The tribute was organised by the Muslim Institute, a non-governmentorganisation aimed at promoting peace and stability in the Muslim world,which also released the drone footage.
Brenton Tarrant, a 28-year-old Australian and self-avowed whitesupremacist, has been charged with 50 counts of murder and 39 of attemptedmurder after opening fire at the Linwood and Al Noor mosques on March 15.
Nine of the victims were of Pakistani origin. One, Naeem Rashid, wasposthumously given an award for bravery by Pakistan after he apparentlytried to tackle the gunman before being shot.
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Tribute organisers praised the New Zealand government after what had been a”very tough time” for Muslims in the country – especially Prime MinisterJacinda Ardern.
Her response “not only soothed the wounds of Muslims but also assured themthat Muslims in their country are safe,” said Sahibzada Sultan Ahmad Ali, areligious scholar and one of the organisers.
“We worked really hard to make this model,” one participant, Noor Hassan,told news agency AFP of the tribute.
“It was so pleasant that we were ready to stand like this for the wholeday,” he added.
