This website focuses on the remarkable contribution of Ustadh Ahmad Ibrahim Az-Zarruq Ehwas made to the Muslims of Guyana between the years 1977 to 1981. During these years Ustadh Ahmad served as the Chargé d'affaires of the Libyan embassy in Georgetown.

In the summer 2022, just over forty years after he departed Guyana and never to return, an advisory team was formed to help guide and support this endeavor. Ustadh Faisal Baksh (Ontario), Imam Naseeb Khan (Florida), Ustadh Haseeb Yusuf (Mecca) and Dr. Ateeka Khan (Ontario) voluntarily agreed to serve in this capacity.

We believe the contribution Ustadh Ahmad made is so significant that it should be preserved for current and future generations of Muslims in Guyana, the Caribbean, and those who live as minority faith communities in Canada, the United States, and Western Europe. While we can’t focus on the sacrifices of countless others who impacted the Muslim community in Guyana in the decades before Ustadh Ahmad’s arrival, we acknowledge that their portraits on the canvas of the Muslim community made it possible for Ustadh Ahmad to inspire our generation to pursue sacred knowledge and to continue following in the footsteps of the Messenger of Allah ﷺ.

We dedicate this project to all the men and women who commit their lives to calling to Allah and His Messenger ﷺ and we hope the legacy of Ustadh Ahmad will inspire others to continue traveling on the path of da’wah even at times of personal difficulties and hardships.

We acknowledge that with the generous support of a private Guyanese donor, we’ve been able to conduct interviews with individuals in Canada, the United States, the United Kingdom, and Guyana. We are grateful to all those who took time out of their busy schedules to share their recollections of Ustadh Ahmad.

This website is a novel attempt to create a “narrative history” or rather, an “oral history” by using videos, audio recordings and photographs. The intention is to make this site a repository of information of an important period in the history of Muslims in Guyana. It is also very much a work in progress, and we ask you to forgive us for any and all shortcomings or mistakes.

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The executive producer of this project is Nazim Baksh, a veteran journalist with the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation (CBC) for over three decades. Nazim has retired from the CBC and has re-migrated to Guyana - the country of his birth and early life.

Nazim was 14 years-old when Ustadh Ahmad Ehwas arrived in Guyana. At the time, his family lived in Albouystown, Georgetown and his elder brother, Faisal Baksh, was among a handful of students who attended the weekly classes that Ustadh Ahmad initiated. Nazim attended almost all the camps and classes designed for youth in his age group prior to his departure in December 1980.

In January 1981, Ustadh Ahmad resigned as the Libyan ambassador and announced that he had joined the National Front for the Salvation of Libya - a movement dedicated to the removal of Col. Muammar Gaddafi from power.

Nazim returned to Guyana in the summer of 1981 to attend the second one year Islamic course held at the Muslim Youth Organization (MYO). He returned to Canada in 1982 and successfully completed a Bachelor of Arts degree in political science and history at York University and a Master’s in Journalism at the University of Western Ontario.

Nazim was fortunate to have met Ustadh Ahmad on Labour Day weekend of 1983 at the annual conference of the Islamic Society of North America (ISNA) held in Indianapolis, USA. Their interaction was brief and yet impactful and memorable. The following year, Ustadh Ahmad participated in an attempt to dislodge Gaddafi from power. Ustadh Ahmad was killed by Libyan security forces in May 1984 while he was on Libyan soil.

Nazim conducted interviews with twenty-three individuals who had first hand knowledge and direct interaction with Ustadh Ahmad and as a result, were deeply influenced by him. To these individuals who took time out of their schedule to sit with Nazim to recount their memories, our profound gratitude.

We welcome you to the “Ustadh Ahmad Ehwas Documentation Project” - an independent initiative that is not associated with any organization in or outside of Guyana.

We invite you to send us your feedback and we hope that you will find words, description and memories here that will inspire you in your own journey.

The Documentation Project Team

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