Hong Kong 2005
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Chapter 18: Religion and Custom*
   
 
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Muslim Community
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There are about 90 000 Muslims in Hong Kong, of which some 30 000 are Chinese. The others are mostly locally born non-Chinese but there are also Muslims from Pakistan, India, Malaysia, Indonesia and Middle Eastern and African countries.

Coordinating all Islamic religious affairs is the Incorporated Trustees of the Islamic Community Fund of Hong Kong, a public charity. A board of trustees, nominated by the Islamic Union of Hong Kong, the Pakistan Association, the Indian Muslim Association and the Dawoodi Bohra Association, manages and maintains the masjids, two cemeteries and one kindergarten. The trustees also organise Muslim festival celebrations and other religious events. Charitable work among the Muslim community, including financial aid for the needy, medical facilities and assisted education, is conducted through various Muslim organisations.

The Chinese Muslim Cultural and Fraternity Association, established in Wanchai in 1922, is the major organisation representing Chinese Muslims in Hong Kong. Apart from conducting religious activities, the association manages and maintains five non-profit educational facilities — one college, two primary schools and two kindergartens. The association conducts charitable work to aid local Chinese Muslims and Muslims in China.

Five principal masjids are used for daily prayers, the oldest being the Jamia Masjid in Shelley Street on Hong Kong Island, which was established in 1849 and rebuilt in 1915 to accommodate 400 worshippers.

The eight-storey Masjid Ammar and Osman Ramju Sadick Islamic Centre, managed by the Islamic Union of Hong Kong in Wan Chai, houses a masjid on two floors, community hall, library, medical clinic, classrooms and offices and can accommodate from 700 to 1 500 people depending on requirements.

The imposing Kowloon Masjid and Islamic Centre, with its distinctive white marble finish, is a major landmark in Tsim Sha Tsui. With three prayer halls, community hall, medical centre and library, the masjid can accommodate 3 500 worshippers. There is also a masjid inside Stanley Prison.

There are two Muslim cemeteries, one in Happy Valley and the other, which also has a masjid, at Cape Collinson, Chai Wan.

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