'We believe we can improve social harmony within our society and bring Australians closer together'

Tuesday 27 August 2019 - A group of young Australian Muslims are embarking on a rural expedition across the country to challenge misconceptions about their faith.

More than 60 young men from the Ahmadiyya Muslim Youth Association (AYMA) will travel from six cities this weekend on a seven-day ‘Discover Islam road trip’, culminating in a gathering at Uluru [a place sacred to aborigines].

The group, made up of several high school and university students, will cover more than 30,000km and stop at more than 50 towns along the way in an effort to promote social cohesion.

'We really, really hope to have honest conversation and open dialogue,' 27-year-old participant Ata Ul Hadi told SBS News.

Mr Hadi, who is an outreach coordinator working with young Muslims, and a medical student at Griffith University, said for him the trip is an opportunity to interact with people from all walks of life and break down social barriers.

'We believe we can improve social harmony within our society and bring Australians closer together because when we know better about each other, we are more tempted to be better human beings and be better Australians,' he said.

Research published in the Journal of Muslim Minority Affairs suggests about 70 per cent of Australians know 'little to nothing' about Muslims or what they stand for.

The road trip aims to educate people in regional areas about the peaceful nature of Islam, and to 'remove misconceptions' about the faith.

Editor's comment - If you want to learn the truth about Islam, don't start by asking a Muslim. No Muslim will ever tell a non-Muslim the truth about Islam if in doing so, it puts Islam in a bad light. This, as I'm sure many of you know, is 'Taqiyya' - part of the doctrine of deceit that Muslims are obliged to use in their dealings with the 'Kuffar'.