Jeddah
Secretary General of the Organization of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) Dr. Yousef Al Othaimeen, highlighted the OIC’s success and emphasized that despite all difficulties and immense challenges, it has stayed the course as the only collective voice of the Islamic world, as a staunch advocate of rights, identities, culture and resilience, and as a moral and institutional framework backing the causes of the Islamic world and uniting its stands in the international arena.
These facts were captured in the statement delivered by the Secretary General at the opening session of the Senior Officials Meeting which convened to prepare for the 47th Session of the OIC Member States’ Council of Foreign Ministers (CFM) which is scheduled to hold from 9 to 11 February 2010, at the General Secretariat’s headquarters in Jeddah.
Dr. Yousef Al Othaimeen paid tribute to the United Arab Emirates for its successful chairing of the 46th Session of the CFM. He also expressed his appreciation to the Republic of Niger, which will act as Chairman of the CFM over the coming session and commended, too, all the efforts and initiatives undertaken by the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia in its capacity as the chairman of the 14th Islamic Summit. The Secretary General went on to say: “I wish to address my most sincere expression of gratitude for all that the Kingdom, as a host country, has been extending, in terms of facilities to host the OIC’s meetings with the gracious and attentive support from the Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques, King Salman Bin Abdulaziz Al Saud and HRH the Crown Prince, Mohammed Bin Salman Bin Abdulaziz Al Saud.
The Secretary General further noted that, since its establishment five decades ago, the OIC has been and still continues to be a beacon of light in the contemporary history of the Islamic Ummah, and in the defense of the Palestinian cause and the affirmation of its standing and symbolic value.
He went on to say that the OIC played a pioneering role in the strengthening of ties of cooperation and solidarity among the Islamic nations and peoples and in defending the authentic image of noble Islamic faith, countering hate-speech and all forms of extremism and terrorism, promoting balance and modernity in the Islamic world. He evoked in particular the significant role played by the Voice of Wisdom Centre which has recently undertaken activities in the Somali capital, Mogadishu, and will continue its action in the republics of Niger and Burkina Faso, as a centre in charge of disseminating the values of peace and dialogue, promoting tolerance and moderation, encouraging inter-cultural and inter-faith dialogue and anchoring the culture of mutual respect and diversity.
Al Othaimeen highlighted the fact that choosing “United Against Terrorism for Peace and Development” as the theme for the ministerial conference this year, offers an indication of the Member States’ awareness of the undeniable organic link and complementarity between security, peace and development.
