Dr. Abdullah Omar Naseef, the President of the World Muslim Congress (WMC) attended the 11th Summit of the Organisation of the Islamic Conference (OIC), which is the world’s second largest body after the United Nations. The Summit was held in the Senegalese capital, Dakar, on the 13th and 14th of March 2008. At least 33 heads of state, and nearly 5,500 delegates, representing member countries and international organizations attended the summit.

US Envoy to OIC

The United States government has appointed Texas entrepreneur Sada Cumber as an envoy to the OIC Summit for the first time “to promote mutual understanding and dialogue between the US and Muslim communities.” OIC Secretary-General Ekmeleddin Ihsanoglu welcomed Washington’s decision and hoped that it would contribute to improving US relations with the Islamic world. “There are plenty of problems and misunderstandings. But still there is plenty of potential for cooperation,” he said.
US Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice said the appointment of Cumber signals the deep respect for the values and ideals of Islam held by the US government and the American people. “This appointment is one part of a much larger effort that our government has undertaken to increase our engagement with Muslim communities worldwide,” she said.

Agenda

Islamophobia was a key issue high on the Summit’s agenda. The Israeli-Palestine conflict, Iraq war, the political crisis in Lebanon and Sudan’s crisis in the province of Darfur also figured high on the agenda.
Saudi Arabia, which has the OIC’s headquarters, highlighted the Summit’s significance and expressed the hope that it would strengthen Muslim unity. “The summit is being held at a time when the Islamic world faces challenges and situations that demand joint effort,” said the Saudi Cabinet in a statement after a regular session chaired by Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques, King Abdullah.
On the opening day of the summit on 13th of March, Prince Saud Al-Faisal, Saudi Foreign Minister, condemned “defamation” of Islam in some Western circles, and also the Israeli attacks on Palestinians.The Saudi Foreign Minister said our call for tolerance among civilizations and cultures can be achieved only through mutual respect to ensure parity of dialogue. “In this regard, we call upon the international community and all its civil and official institutions, and its media to respect Islam in its capacity as a divine religion and the most widespread,” said Prince Saud.

Islamophobia

The first point is about Islamophobia and how to deal with it. A detailed voluminous report on Islamophobia, including the publication of cartoons denigrating Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him), prepared by a special OIC monitoring Group, was submitted to the Summit leaders. The report also recorded the anti-Islamic speech and action around the world. It also cited the publication of the Danish cartoons, as well as articles by Ayaan Hirsi Ali, a Somali-born woman who claims women do not have rights under Islam.
The report concluded that Islam is under attack and that a defence must be mounted. “Muslims are being targetted by a campaign of defamation, denigration, stereotyping, intolerance and discrimination,” said OIC Secretary General Ekmeleddin Ihsanoglu. “The Islamophobes remain free to carry on their assault due to absence of necessary legal measures against the misuse or abuse of the right to freedom of expression,” charged the report.
The OIC leaders expressed renewed concern following events such as the publication in Denmark of cartoons lampooning the Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him) and a plan by the Dutch far-right wing MP Geert Wilders to release a film calling the Holy Qur’an “fascist.” The OIC called on Europe and America to take stronger measures against ‘Islamophobia’ and the Muslim leaders and heads of state protested against the growing Islam-bashing in the West warning of “dangerous implications for global peace and security” and to convince Western powers to do more.
To protect the faith, Muslim nations have already created an “observatory” that meets regularly to monitor Islamophobia. It examines lectures and workshops taking place around the world and prints a monthly record of offensive content. The report, which was presented, urged the creation of a “legal instrument” to crack down on the defamation of Islam, but it is unclear what kind of legal action could be taken.
Commenting on this issue, Dr. Naseef said, “Islamophobia has become a phenomenon of the Western press. May be individuals, may be some Church leaders and so on have been attacking Islam without any scientific base and they want to criticize things which they don’t fully understand, to agitate the Muslims and to create some kind of uneasiness among the Muslims. And somebody says that why only the freedom of press to express their opinion against Islam, why they can’t talk about any other issue?
On the issue of how to tackle it, Dr. Naseef observed, “There are some good suggestions from some individual Muslim countries what OIC should do to try to correct the image of Islam in the West and try to tackle some of those problems, like the negative caricature made about the Prophet (peace be upon him) and so on. I think, we should be more wise and more patient and we should understand what is the background they have in the West, what information they have and the need they are saying and the curriculum in the school talking about Islam; so that we know why the wrong thing is happening; where is the wrong thing going; I think now whatever will be decided is important, Insha Allah.”
Some delegates pointed to laws in Europe criminalizing the denial of the Holocaust and other anti-Semitic rhetoric. They also pointed to articles within various UN charters that condemn discrimination based on religion and argued that these should be made stronger. “In our relation with the Western world, we are going through a difficult time,” Ihsanoglu told the Summit’s general assembly. “Islamophobia cannot be dealt with only through cultural activities but (through) a robust political engagement,” he said.
Some Muslims, deeply offended by the caricatures, said that the freedom of expression does not mean freedom to blasphemy. “There are specific laws in several countries in the West that limit the right of freedom to express. This is why there are privacy laws and defamatory laws – these are integral laws that exist in the judiciary of numerous countries,” said Muhammad Ismail.
“Nobody is calling for a ban on robust academic discourse critiquing Islam. However, a lot of the stuff that is being published is of a mocking type and sheer offensive. What the OIC is perhaps calling for is legislation similar to what already exists in certain Western countries regarding Holocaust denial. Interestingly, no one assumes that those who have championed such Holocaust denial legislation are infringing on the freedom to express.”
Islamophobia and how to deal with it was the key issue during a two-day Summit of the Organisation of the Islamic Conference (OIC that ended on Friday, 14th of March in the Senegalese capital, Dakar and the leaders of the world’s Muslim nations were considering legal action against those who slight their religion or its sacred personalities.

Revision of the Charter

The second important issue was the revision of the charter of OIC. Former presidents and other political leaders and scholars and legal experts took part in a panel that recommended changes to the charter of the Muslim world’s main representative body. Sheikh Tidiane Gadio, Foreign Minister of Senegal, host of the 11th OIC summit told a press conference “we have concluded an historic act” with the consensus on a revised charter after two years of debate within the 57-member body.”
Ekmeleddin Ihsanoglu, the OIC Secretary General, emphasized that the current charter has been used since 1972, three years after the group was founded. It has grown from 24 members to 57 and Ihsanoglu said “the OIC is not what it was in 1972 and the world we are living in today is no longer the bipolar Cold War.”
Gadio said the points revised included criteria for membership or observer status of the OIC, modernizing its institutions and giving a new definition for self-determination. The current self-determination declaration has caused problems for countries such as Morocco which is fighting a rebellion in Western Sahara. Under the programme, serious efforts were made to enhance the scope of political participation, ensure equality, civil liberties and social justice, and promote transparency and accountability, and eliminate corruption in member countries.
The OIC executive hopes a new charter will speed up decision making and allow initiatives to encourage solidarity between the organization’s powers and African members who are among the world’s poorest nations. Muslim leaders held closed talks at a summit to hammer out a new charter for the world’s biggest Islamic group, officials said.
The proposed new charter would also seek to soften the image of the OIC, which has launched a campaign against ‘Islamophobia’ in the West. “The new charter embraces the United Nations language to reflect moderation and tolerance of Islam and focus on development and solidarity in action between members,” OIC Secretary General Ekmeleddin Ihsanoglu told a news conference.
Commenting on the revision of the OIC Charter, Dr. Naseef said, “The Charter of the OIC needs to be rejuvenated; it has to be more active, more relevant, more involving of the Islamic countries members to participate in the bilateral and collateral cooperation and works and so on. I think, that is a very positive sign. The charter, after so many years, has been revised. It has been accepted unanimously by everybody and now the Secretary General has a very big job to try to implement what the charter says.”

Israeli-Palestinian conflict

Another issue which was on the agenda was Israeli-Palestinian conflict. Addressing the Summit, the Foreign Minister of Saudi Arabia, Prince Saud Al-Faisal, said, “Jerusalem should be at the center of any dialogue aimed at resolving the Arab-Israeli conflict.” UN Secretary-General, Ban Ki-moon, condemned Israel’s “inappropriate and disproportionate use of force” and called on the Jewish state to stop strikes that end up killing civilians. Highlighting the deaths of women and children in the Israeli attacks he said, “I condemn these acts and call on Israel to cease them.”
UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon also condemned Israel’s attacks on Palestinian civilians in a speech to the OIC summit as Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas accused Israel of “ethnic cleansing” in Arab East Jerusalem by banning the building of Palestinian homes and cutting the city off from the occupied West Bank.
Commenting on this issue, Dr. Naseef said, “Irrespective of what the Muslim world sacrifice and the Palestinians themselves; they have made a lot of sacrifices; they have accepted whatever the pressure has been put on them and still they have been treated very badly. The massacre has happened in Gaza; it is really something the world should be aware of, to do something to help solve the problem. Prince Saud al-Faisal talked on behalf of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia and he put emphasis on this issue that we have offered an Arab Initiative which has been accepted by one of the OIC summits, still Israel is not accepting that, not trying to be appreciative; instead they are very arrogant, they want to do the things the way they want and so on.”
The President of Senegal, the new chairman of OIC, said that he would make solving the long-standing Israeli-Palestinian crisis a priority for the organization. “The just and legitimate cause of Palestine remains at the heart of our concerns,” Abdoulaye Wade told the leaders of dozens of Islamic nations at the OIC summit.
Wade called Israel “an occupying power” and urged its government to “immediately stop its disproportionate use of force.” He added: “I should like to tell our Palestinian brothers and sisters of that your unity is the first priority of success .... Please unite.”

Condemn Israel for war crimes against Palestinians

The Middle East has long been a core issue for OIC, which was founded in 1969 in response to an arson attack on the Al-Aqsa Mosque in Jerusalem. The group aims to promote Islamic unity and serve as a voice for the Muslim world.
The executive head of the world's biggest Muslim body, the Organization of the Islamic Conference (OIC), called on 13th March for Israelis to be tried by an international war crimes court for heinous attacks against Palestinians. Ekmeleddin Ihsanoglu, Secretary-General of the 57-nation body told the summit that Israel was repeatedly seeking to undermine foreign-brokered peace plans. “The situation in Palestine remains deplorable due to the successive crises fabricated by Israel to stall the peace process and to thwart the many peace plans and initiatives proposed by the international community,” he said.
“It has become indispensable that these aggressions and heinous crimes be officially documented and their perpetrators be brought before international justice designed for these kinds of acts ... such as the International Criminal Court.”
Israel's five-day offensive in Gaza during the first week of March 2008 killed more than 125 Palestinians.  OIC was considering accusing Israel of committing war crimes against Palestinian civilians, according to the draft of the final communiqué of an Islamic summit in Senegal. “The conference denounces the current and increasing Israeli military campaign against the Palestinian people and the serious violation of human rights and war crimes including the killing and injuring of Palestinian civilians,” the draft said.

Islamic Development Fund

The OIC has set up an Islamic Development Fund aiming to raise $10 billion. So far it has received pledges for only $2.6 billion, mainly from Saudi Arabia. The Kingdom announced at the summit that it will contribute $1 billion to assist poor Muslim nations. One reform would allow decisions to be taken by a two-thirds majority, diplomats said.

Dakar Declaration: Favours Dialogue with the West

World Muslim leaders of the 57-nation Organisation of the Islamic Conference (OIC), condemned extremism and terrorism as incompatible with Islam and proposed a high-level international meeting to promote a “dialogue of civilizations” with the Christian world. “We continue to strongly condemn all forms of extremism and dogmatism which are incompatible with Islam, a religion of moderation and peaceful coexistence,” the Declaration said.
“We believe that it is important to plan along such lines a preparatory phase by organizing a major international gathering on Islamic-Christian dialogue that involves governments among other players,” it said.
The Dakar Declaration recommended cooperation and dialogue with the non-Muslim world to defuse a potential clash of civilizations stoked by Western fears over terrorism and Muslims’ anger at perceived insults against their faith. “The Islamic Ummah (community) is moving in a moderate direction and almost on a progressive path, we’re all moving in the same path,” said Sada Cumber, who was appointed by President George W. Bush, the US envoy to the OIC.
Indonesia’s President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono called for a jihad of peace to spark an “Islamic Renaissance.” He favored greater democracy and greater efforts to improve the plight of Muslims worldwide. “The possibility of an Islamic Renaissance lies before us,” Yudhoyono told the summit, but first, he added: “We need to get our act together as an organization of Muslim nations. When the Islamic Renaissance comes it will be the natural fruit of a peaceful and constructive jihad.”
Yudhoyono said the OIC was “unique” because it covers three continents and “Muslim countries supply 70 percent of the world’s energy requirements and 40 percent of its raw material exports.” But he said the Muslim world must improve its image. “Protracted conflicts in Muslim societies bring shame to the Ummah and tarnish the good name of Islam.”
In many non-Muslim circles “Islam has unjustly been associated with violence,” said Yudhoyono. “We must disabuse the world of this terrible misconception,” he said, calling for greater efforts against ‘Islamaphobia’ in the West but also greater democracy in Muslim nations. “We must strive for good governance and attend to our democratic deficit.”
Indonesia, with more than 230 million people, is the world’s most populous Muslim nation and its third biggest democracy. “History tells us that Muslims in the past contributed immensely to the march of civilization through groundbreaking achievements in the sciences, as well as in arts.” But Yudhoyono added that Islam was now “on the defensive.”
He called for efforts to “improve the plight of the Muslim peoples and empower them. This means extensive economic cooperation among ourselves. This entails pooling of resources and plugging of the development gaps all over the Muslim world.”

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