Scotland's biggest mosque has appointed the first ever non-Pakistani to its ruling committee as it seeks to heal wounds between its liberal and orthodox factions.
In a hugely symbolic move, Glasgow Central Mosque's new 14-member board selected this weekend includes an ethnic Somaili worshipper called Mohammed A Baous.
However, the institution has again failed to appoint any women to the committee despite calling for female nominations.
Islam watchers stress Mr Baous's appointment marks a watershed for the Mosque, which has been dominated by Pakistanis ever since it opened its doors in the early 1980s.
Pictured: the new committee with its first African member
The Mosque's new president, Mohammad Ashraf, said: "This is a very positive step. We want to show that the mosque is for all the people who worship and not just for Pakistanis any more."
Former general secretary Nabeel Shaikh - a leading liberal - said: "This appointment shows that the mosque is moving in the right direction.
"Just a few years ago it would have been inconceivable that a non-Pakistani would make the committee. As former general secretary I am so pleased and proud to have been part of the work that has made this possible.
"It has been a rough ride but it has been worth it."
Non-Pakistanis - including black Africans from Somalia and Kenya - make up a substantial minority in Scotland's Muslim community. But many non-Pakistanis, such Kosovans and Arabs who have arrived in the last decade and a half - have said privately they have been made to feel excluded by Urdu- or Punjabi-speaking elders at mosques.
Several recent controversies featuring the mosque - such as when its main imam praised the killer of a Pakistani politician who called for a repeal of blasphemy laws - have had their roots in the sub-continent and not the UK.
Many younger, Scottish-born Muslims and new arrivals from countries other than Pakistan, including Somalia, are not interested in Pakistan's sometimes toxic religious politics.However, some Scottish Pakistanis feel a strong sense of ownership of the mosque, which they funded and built. Community elders called "property trustees" still hold huge power at the mosque and selected all the members of the new committee. OSCR, the charities watchdog, has previously questioned the ability of these property trustees to manage a charity.
The former president, a conservative retired doctor called Shafi Kausar, has not been re-appointed. One of the mosque's most controversial figures, Sabir Ali, head of religious events, had not sought reappointment.
Mr Ali was named in a BBC investigation earlier this year linking him with a proscribed extremist party called Sipah-e-Sahaba.
Dr Kausar, speaking before being deselected, had said he hoped to extend nominations so more women would come forward.
There were 67 nominations in total for 16 positions, two of which have not been filed. The Herald understands only one woman put herself forward. The two free spaces may offer a chance for women to be co-opted.
Mr Ashraf, Dr Kausar's replacement, said: "We are giving this very serious consideration."
Glasgow Central Mosque has come under substantial pressure to repair its internal divisions in recent weeks after a series of revelations about ultra-orthodox views being expressed by worshippers, its main imam and a committee member. Reformers claimed to have been ousted from the Mosque amid allegations of intimadation and threats.
Mr Ashraf stressed that the new committee was serious about healing the community. He said: "We are trying to build bridges. We need to bring the community together.
Read more: Academic Stefano Bonino on emerging hybrid Scottish Islam
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