Property Rates Bill B19 -2003


1. MJC Executive Summary

T he Muslim Judicial Council (MJC) is a faith-based organisation (FBO} I established in 1945. We are the oldest and by far the most representative
and influential Islamic religious organisation in South Africa and enjoy national and international credibility. At this stage of its history the MJC enjoys membership from religious leaders across the spectrum from all over South Africa.

The current President of the MJC, the distinguished Sheikh Ebrahim Gabriels, is also the President of the United Ulamaa Council of South Africa. representing all the Islamic religious bodies nationally. Sheikh Ebrahim, Gabriels, in addition, is a senior member of the National Religious Leaders Forum that meets with the President of our Country, the honourable Thabo Mbeki to expound on the all important role FBO)'s play in ensuring the prosperity of our nation.

Our proximity to the community we serve ,an estimated Muslim population of approximately 1.1 Million in the Western Cape) through the network of Mosques provide us with an enabling environment in the quest to address the moral regeneration and social upliftment of our nation. We are fully committed to the presentation of Islam. and to the development of Muslims in South Africa, continuously striving to highlight lslam's call for unity. rejection of wanton violence, discrimination, racism. bigotry condemnation of injustice. fanatism. etc.. thus lending credence to the prophetic teaching: "The religion is Sound Advice.

To this end, the MJC fully supports the process of reconciliation and nation building. We strongly believe that religion should play a pivotal role in the South African society and endeavour to propagate lslamic values as a meaningful contribution towards building a morally conscious society.

The MJC advocates cooperation with government and other Faith Based Organisations (FBO's) concerning religious matters in the general interest of society.

Furthermore, the MJC will remain instrumental in the quest to engineer alleviation and possible eradication of many horrendous consequences of contemporary problems. viz., poverty, HIV/AIDS, child and women abuse, drug and alcohol abuse, crime. etc.

2. Historical Background

Historically the MJC has always represented the Muslim community and has been at the forefront of the struggle for liberation. The legacy of the late Sheikh Nazeem Mohamed, the previous president of the MJC, is well documented in hearts of our nation.

For more than 350 years this community has been active participants in shaping our unique heritage and culture. We have been. and we still are the backbone on which the city is built. However, as a community, we have received very little from this province and city for our development and prosperity.

Remarkably, this communication limited infrastructure and resources was
acquired through many decades of sacrifice and hard work. This despite the
S.A. government's deliberate attempt, through its National Development
Strategy. to bridge the social divides so prevalent in our society.



3. MJC's Position with regard to Property Rates Bill

The Muslim Judicial Council (MJC in conjunction with Jamiatul Ulama, KZN. endorses the Property Rates Bill. We would like to express our full support in redressing the disparities prevalent in our beautiful country.

We do however. want to emphasize the crucial role that Mosques and other
Religious lnstitutions, from all denominations, play In nurturing and sustaining
the moral fiber of our communities. This inevitably. contributes directly to the
Moral Regeneration of country's citizenry

We therefore appeal for complete exemption for all Places of Worship, including Mosques, Churches, Temples, Cathedrals, Religious Educational Institutions (not for profit) etc. in terms of clause 14 (1) (a) of the Property Rates Silt


4. Motivation

The are 133 Mosques In the Western Cape area alone. most of which are built on properties acquired from residents. These properties were subsequently rezoned as religious sites for the purposes of erecting Mosques and/or Islamic Educational Institutions through applications to local municipal authorities. This is the predominant position with most Mosques and Islamic Religious Institutions throughout the country.

In certain isolated cases land was purchased from the local authorities for religious purposes. However, there was never a situation where large tracts of land and Church sites were freely available to Muslim communities. This disparity has been admirably addressed and redressed through the freedom of religion and religious practices. We therefore want to commend the Department of Provincial and Local Government for creating this enabling environment in the interest of nation building.

Fundamentally, the socio-economic conditions and the adherence of religious principles affect the establishment of religious institutions. including Mosques. Based on the strong Islamic Religious principles of Waqf (a phenomenon where there is no individual exclusive rights or claim to ownership of property) and the non-acceptance of and non-indulgence in interest. Muslims do not, In accordance with Islamlo Law. make loans from banks or financial institutions. which deal in interest. Neither do we have large financial resources To make investments to capitalise on the returns.

it is only recently that Islamic banking is becoming a reality in this country. Muslims virtually had to build their Mosques and Religious Educational institutions out of their pockets from funds accrued through community fund raising efforts. This inevitably is not sustainable because of The socio-economic conditions they are faced with.

It must be emphasized that the Muslim community was/is part of the broader historically disadvantaged section of the South African population and as such already have difficulty in sustaining the upkeep of existing communal religious properties. If in addition they now have to be responsible for paying The rates on these properties. it will put a further strain on their financial resources and capacity to maintain such properties. (Refer Part 1. Adoption of rates p.oliov. 3(2; (d'}.

5. Conclusion
Most FBO's have extensive and strong membership of the poor and creatively implement outreach programmes to address their needs. With our spiritual values moral championing of the poor, and a concern for social reconciliation we are particularly suited to champion the plight of the poor. We nave a specie' ability to speak across lines of party .:.interest and offer leadership and credibility To pro-poor policies.

Faith Based Organisations (FBO's). including the MJC. provide social support to poor members and the broader community through traditional charitable activities. development projects, welfare institutions, hospitals. schools. crèches. hospices and so on. (Refer Adoption of Rates Policy 3 (2) (ej). Without this valuable contribution to the upliftment of society in general, it will directly impact on the national and provincial government's ability to create a self-reliant community. We beseech those in authority to consider our appeal favourably and not to burden our FBGs to the extent where our existence and service delivery are compromised.


We value the extensiveness in which this process of community participation and consultation in the drafting of the Property Rates Bill is being conducted and appreciate the opportunity to inform this process through this submission.

We are confident that our input will contribute to a Property Rates Bill that will ensure equity and sensitivity to needs of our community.