Whither the Muslim World?
THE Muslim World is living through a somber era – an era of tribulations and crises. Times are abnormal, not just for the Muslim states but also for the Muslim community at large. The pity is that far from waking up to the gravity of the situation, most Muslim States appear quite content at playing ducks and drakes with local and regional issues, most of which have long lost their relevance. And all this at a critical juncture when Islam and the Muslim Ummah are unjustly being made butt of slander, regrettably by those who have hardly ever distinguished themselves for championing the causes of the just.
Islam as a religion and civilisation is by and large dedicated to a regime of peace, amity and tolerance. In common with other “religions of the book”, Islam too is on the side of a peaceful, just and equitable Social and International Order. Aggression is alien to the very philosophy of Islam. Allah does not love aggressors. History bears witness that over the centuries, whenever Muslims have been obliged to take up arms, it has invariably been strictly in defense of what is theirs by right – hardly ever in covetousness of what belongs to others.
History has dealt the Muslim world a terrible hand. From the thirteenth century onward, the defining moments in the world of Islam have been the Mongol invasions and the imperialist intrusion by the West (i.e. the advent of colonial dependency). The Western approach to the Muslim World has changed little since then. Given what passed for normal times over the past few decades, the leadership of the Muslim States has been quite content to continue with their puerile games, in which they and their elders have been indulging in for centuries. This is the bane of the Ummah.
Today, the world of Islam is faced with grave challenges – challenges that present it with stark choices. Ironically, Muslims appear to have brought these challenges on themselves. Not that any Muslim country has exhibited any untoward ambition of late. In particular, there is hardly any instance of a Muslim community coveting land that belongs to non-Muslims. All in all, Muslims have exhibited no tendency at all to cast a covetous eye on the riches and resources of others. If anything, the Muslim states are guilty of criminal over-indulgence in their dealing with the states of the industrialized West. Even a cursory look at the international economic scene of the past few decades would indicate a net transfer of resources from Muslim states to the industrialized West. Why, then, should the Muslim World be in the dire straits that it finds itself in today?
Where, then, lies the flaw? The fault lies not in the stars, but within the Ummah itself. What the Muslim World badly needs to do is to cultivate the edifying habit of having a good hard look in the mirror every now and then. Regrettably, the Muslim states have nurtured the somewhat unsavory habit of blaming others for their own failings. It is time that they shed this futile disposition by adopting the edifying practice of self-introspection.
How many prosperous Muslim States, for instance, can in all honesty claim that they have contributed their due share towards the prosperity and stability of the rest of the Muslim World and the Muslim Ummah? Many among them may even discover that they have, in reality, shortchanged the very entity that they have so often pledged to preserve and to protect. Here a clarification may be necessary. This is not at all intended to apportion blame or to point an accusing finger at any one State. To be fair, the blame falls squarely on one and all.
Let all Muslims, then, do a bit of introspection. For one thing, have they done their bit to promote Islamic unity? Has sufficient heed been paid to the words uttered by the Holy Prophet (peace be upon him) that all Muslims are equal, irrespective of colour or ethnic origin, and that all Muslims constitute but one single brotherhood? Had this been done, perhaps the Muslim World would not have been in the bind that it finds itself today.
This is not a call to grasp an idealistic dream, because in the world of today realism is the name of the game. It is imperative, though, for the Muslim World to set out for itself some achievable goals and, thenceforth, to focus all energies to fulfill these. In talking of the “unity” of the Ummah, it is not implied that all differences among Muslim States must disappear overnight. This would hardly be realistic and would, in effect, border on the make-believe. Healthy competition among the various Muslim communities and a reasonable measure of give and take is all one aims for. At the same time, it is imperative to ensure that internal differences are not of such a nature and magnitude as to expose a chink in the armour wide enough to permit enemies to take advantage of.
Islam is today under flak from all directions. Muslims around the world are being branded as “extremists” and “terrorists”, without even the formality of indictment, trial or proof. The omnibus phrase “Islamic extremism” has been expressly coined to suit vested interests. These vested interests have predetermined that Islam is the “enemy” that needs to be subdued by any means, fair or foul. The evident fact that hundreds of other acts of violence are being committed day in, day out by non-Muslims is conveniently swept under the rug. At the same time, no weightage is given at all to the glaring circumstantial evidence that the vast majority of the victims of terrorism over the past several decades have been Muslims. And what, it may be asked, have the Muslim States done to stand up to such calumnies? The irony is that they fight amongst themselves over trivial issues that are the creations of none other than the enemies of Islam and Muslims!
— The writer is a former Ambassador and former Assistant Secretary General of OIC.
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