To create a platform for Muslim Thinkers in South Africa (academics, leaders, trend setters, influencers and philanthropists). To create positive, innovative, lasting change in South Africa and the world.
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On 29 September 2025, The Muslim Thinker NPC launched its Inaugural Public Lecture at the Islamia Auditorium, Cape Town, under the theme:
Leadership, Democracy, and Human Dignity: Responsibility in a Fractured World.
The evening marked not only the start of The Muslim Thinker’s Public Intellectual Series but also a deliberate effort to create a reflective space where scholars, community leaders, educators, and ordinary citizens could engage critically on the moral responsibilities of leadership in fractured times.
Voices of Leadership
In his keynote, Ambassador Ebrahim Rasool spoke strongly about the threats of anti-intellectualism among Muslims, warning that the spirit of thinking and questioning (ijtihād) has been silenced in our time. He argued that true leadership cannot just be about holding power, it must be about moral courage, responsibility, and justice. His message was a clear call to revive our intellectual traditions and reimagine leadership in a way that restores human dignity.
Former Minister of International Relations and Cooperation, Dr. Naledi Pandor, opened the panel by reflecting on the enduring model of leadership embodied by Prophet Muhammad (ﷺ). Drawing on Nabeel al-Azami’s book, Muhammad (s): 11 Leadership Qualities that Changed the World, she reminded the audience again, that leadership is not a question of power or control, but of humility, justice, compassion, and service to others. Her reflection set a tone that located the evening’s theme within a moral and ethical lineage that transcends time and geography.
The dialogue was skillfully moderated by Khadija Patel, whose experience as a journalist ensured the conversation flowed seamlessly while probing both keynote and panelist on urgent questions of leadership human dignity, and even on masculinity.
Honouring Distinguished Contributions
To mark their invaluable role in the evening, The Muslim Thinker conferred Certificates of Honour upon Ambassador Rasool, Dr. Pandor, and Ms. Patel. These awards recognised not only their contribution to the lecture but also their standing in our community, South Africa and the world:
Audience Reflections
Feedback gathered from participants confirmed the impact of the event. Attendees found the theme highly relevant, particularly in linking South Africa’s leadership challenges with global struggles for dignity, such as Palestine. The keynote was described as powerful and urgent, while Dr. Pandor’s framing of prophetic leadership qualities resonated deeply with participants across generations.
Teachers spoke of taking lessons into their classrooms; students emphasised intergenerational dialogue; others called for conversations to be extended across mosques, churches, and civic spaces. Suggestions for future lectures included women’s leadership, the role of youth, and media responsibility in sustaining democracy.
What stood out most in the feedback was the appetite for more spaces of reflection. Participants emphasised that The Muslim Thinker should continue creating forums where diverse voices, across faiths, generations, and civic spaces, can engage critically and constructively.
Areas to Strengthen
Feedback encouraged better time management and more opportunities for audience interaction. Several participants also stressed the importance of inclusivity across faiths and communities.
A Way Forward
The Muslim Thinker extends its deepest gratitude to all participants, institutions, and community members who supported this necessary initiative. The Inaugural Lecture was not only a launch, it was a collective affirmation that we need more spaces of reflection, across faiths, generations, and communities.
Your presence and feedback affirm that this is not just an event, but the beginning of a shared journey to reimagine leadership and restore dignity in fractured times.
He was a formidable force…a thinker and visionary. Imam Achmad Cassiem was a man that refused to bow to the apartheid regime or any other oppressor. He was ready to resist till the end as his guide and defence was the Quran.
Imam Cassiem is said to be one of the most underappreciated anti-apartheid leaders in South Africa despite his influence and contribution to the establishment of the Qibla movement and other organisations…
Guest: Khalid Sayed – Politician who has written a thesis on the Qibla Movement (aired on Radio 786)
Tribute - Cassiem embodied ideological clarity (Khalid Sayed) - Radio 786
President Cyril Ramaphosa has expressed his sadness at the passing of Imam Achmad Cassiem, former Robben Island prisoner, Pan Africanist Congress member and founding member of the Qibla Movement.
Imam Cassiem passed away on Friday 17 July 2023, at the age of 78.
President Ramaphosa extends his condolences to the family, friends, comrades and associates internationally of the late political and religious leader who hailed from the Western Cape.
As a teenager, Achmad Cassiem was politically conscientised by the Pan Africanist Congress’s campaign against apartheid pass laws, motivating him to join the armed struggle at the age of 15.
He was a high school learner when he and his teacher, Sadiq Isaacs, were arrested for sabotage, detained and charged under the Sabotage Act.
His was handed a five-year sentence, which caused him to become one of the youngest prisoners on Robben Island.
Upon his release, he was issued with a banning order, which he defied to remain politically active, including his role in the establishment in 1979 of the Qibla Movement to promote and defend Islam in South Africa.
He was detained again for an extended period after mobilising learners during a protracted class boycott in 1980 and was later charged under the Terrorism Act for facilitating military training and infiltration into South Africa for Qibla fighters who had been trained in Libya.
Years after arrest for this action, Achmad Cassiem was sentenced to six years in prison, which was cut short his release in 1991, following the unbanning of liberation organisations.
In later years, he served as National Chairperson of the Islamic Unity Convention and as advisor to the Islam Human Rights Commission.
President Ramaphosa said: “Imam Cassiem lived a life of courage, principle and faith in mobilising communities on the Cape Flats and around the country against apartheid.
“Imprisonment, confinement to his home in Hanover Park and repeated harassment and detention by the apartheid security machine failed to extinguish the flame of resistance and revolution that burned in his being and which he ignited in everyone he inspired as an activist.
“We are joined by supporters of our Struggle in Libya, Iran and other nations who had an impact on Imam Cassiem who in turn, had an impact on them.
“We are grateful for his life and wish him eternal, peaceful rest.”
Issued by: The Presidency
Pretoria
The Muslim Thinker NPC Condemns US-Israeli Strikes on Iran –
A Direct Attack on Peace, Sovereignty, and the Muslim World
Cape Town, The Muslim Thinker NPCexpresses unequivocal condemnation of the joint US-Israeli military strikes on Iran’s nuclear facilities at Fordow, Natanz, and Isfahan. The strikes have reportedly killed over 400 civilians and injured thousands, places the entire Middle East and Western Asia at risk. Despite no verified evidence of Iran developing nuclear weapons, these attacks were carried out without UN authorisation, a blatant violation of international law, ignoring multilateral diplomacy, and basic human decency. By bypassing international law and targeting a Muslim-majority nation without conclusive evidence, these strikes further erode trust in global institutions, continue to degrade Muslim sovereignty, and normalise violence over diplomacy. If left unchallenged, the attacks on Iran’s sovereignty they set a dangerous precedent for the world.
Key Concerns for The Muslim Thinker NPC:
· Collapse of International Law:The strikes set a dangerous precedent for unchecked aggression, and global lawlessness.
· Targeting of Muslim Sovereignty:Once again, a Muslim-majority nation is bombed under the guise of “security” without legal justification.
· Regional Destabilisation: Iraq, Syria, Lebanon, and Palestine are all in the crossfire of this escalating crisis.
· Moral Failure of Global Institutions:The UN and IAEA risk irrelevance if they fail to act decisively.
The Muslim Thinker Calls For:
· Immediate Ceasefire and de-escalation by all parties.
· UN-Led Investigation into the legality and human cost of the strikes.
· Global Civil Society Mobilisation, it is time to resist the normalisation of war.
· Restoration of Just Diplomacyrooted in human rights and truth, not military might.
What’s at Stake?
This moment is not just about Iran, it is about the future of international order, the dignity of the Muslim world, and the voice of justice in a time when silence is complicity. From the ongoing siege of Gaza to the strikes on Tehran, we are witnessing a dangerous normalisation of violence against Muslim countries and communities, carried out with impunity, and marked by selective narratives and the application of double standards.
If such aggression continues unchecked, we risk legitimising a world where international law is ignored, where diplomacy is discarded, and where the suffering of Muslims, whether in Palestine, Iran, or elsewhere, is treated as permissible, or as collateral damage.
As The Muslim Thinker NPC, we view this as a test of global conscience, a moment that demands moral clarity, ethical resistance, and unified action. What is at stake is not only peace in the Middle East, but the credibility of the systems meant to protect us all.
History will remember how we responded, with indifference, or with the courage to speak when others were silent.
Email: info@themuslimthinker.org
Website: www.themuslimthinker.org
Issued by:
Adnaan Adams
The Muslim Thinker NPC
Ideas. Ethics. Impact.
Prof Yusef Waghid, HDE (UWC), BEd (UWC), MEd (UWC), DEd (UWC), PhD (SU), DPhil (SU) (Distinguished Professor)
FOCUS AREAS
Philosophy of Education; African Philosophy of Education; Democratic Citizenship Education; and Moral Education
BIOGRAPHICAL NOTE
Yusef Waghid, a leading African philosopher of education