Sussex Downs College

Twenty-year-old Thasnima Haque is lobbying the Government to continue its plans for Sharia-compliant loans so she and others can go into higher education.

Under the current system, students have to pay interest – something which is forbidden in Islam. 

Thasnima, who is studying for her A-Levels at Sussex Downs College, will have to crowdfund to go to university if the Government does not put through the new finance model it had been set to launch in 2016.

She said,“There are so many Muslims I know in the same situation who have not gone to uni.

"One thing we want to fight for especially is for female Muslim students to go for higher education and get a good job. The most economically deprived group is female Muslims. This will be a huge opportunity to make this social change."

She went on, "Theresa May recently talked of the tremendous contribution made by women 100 years ago to achieve the vote for women over 30 and men over 21.

"I am asking that she push this piece of policy through to demonstrate her commitment to equality today. I am not alone in asking this.

"There is a growing number of young Muslims in Eastbourne who are also not able to enter higher education because of their faith so I hope that this will be a community effort and emphasise political participation on the part of young voters in Eastbourne.  

"We want to put pressure on the Government for this to be put in place."

Thasnima explained why her religion does not allow interest. She said in Islam it is seen as right to have sympathy for the ‘debtor’, who is in a vulnerable situation.

She said, "A foundational belief in Islam is that interest is forbidden. This is because the end result is that the rich get richer and the poor get poorer, leading to further inequality. I think this is the main reason."

Thasnima also addressed the negative connotations around the word Sharia
She said, "We have felt we have to distance ourselves from the word. But it linguistically just means ‘a path’"

The student went on, “We want to use our voice in the best way possible. Imagine the number of people who have dreams but don’t get to go to university.

“We are seen as the future so we should get that chance. “We need more women taking roles like my friend Fowzia, who wants to study Occupational Therapy. It’s for future generations.”

She is encouraging people to ‘spread the message, contact your local MP’ and has launched a petition calling on the Government to act.

Her campaign has support from Peter Kyle, MP for Hove, who said, “It is totally unacceptable that government ministers are dragging their feet on this crucial issue.

"Having begun a consultation back in 2014, the government have recently confirmed to me that Sharia-compliant student loans now won’t be ready before 2019.
 
"Students like Thasnima shouldn’t have to resort to crowdfunding to be able to go to University, and I am extremely frustrated by the government’s failure to understand the urgency of this issue for many Muslim students.

"This is an issue of fairness, and I will keep campaigning for this vital new scheme to be introduced as soon as possible.”  

And Tracey Davanna, who teaches politics at Sussex Downs College, also threw her support behind her student Thasnima.

She said, "I'm really proud of Taz and her attempts to raise awareness on this issue. This demonstrates how young people are interested in taking part in politics and importantly challenging equality issues. 

"It's also fascinating to learn about what Sharia means and how this is translated into an ethical loans system. I'm sure if more people knew about this type of loan, it would appeal to non-Muslims too."

Click here to sign the Government petition.