Senator Mushahid Hussain Sayed on Tuesday called for dialogue, consultation and co-operation instead of confrontation between the Muslim world and the West.
Senator Mushahid Hussain Syed, chairperson of the seminar and Pakistan's nominee for the Organisation of Islamic Conference (OIC) Commission of Eminent Persons on Enlightened Moderation said, it is time that the Muslim world unites and rises to face the challenges confronting it.
Speaking here at a seminar on OIC - Challenge and response - Enlightened Moderation, being attended by scholars from 40 OIC member states, Mushahid said there were several issues, crises and problems faced by the Muslim world.
Mushahid said President Musharraf last year presented the Organisation of Islamic Conference the enunciated vision of Enlightened Moderation, which aims at harnessing the energies of the Muslim world through a two-pronged strategy.
He said the vision of President Musharraf seeks to resolve the problems, where wrongs are resolved and rights are reinforced and there is a move forward, which is rooted in the religion.
He said the other prong aims at greater understanding from the international community, particularly the West, to stomp out roots of injustice by resolving issues in a just and principled manner, especially the longstanding conflicts of Palestine and occupied Kashmir.
He said the setting up of a commission of eminent persons, headed by the Prime Minister of Malaysia is focussing on the preparation of an action plan to infuse new life into the OIC to make it more effective and a true representative of the Islamic world. He said the organisation could also promote a true image of Islam, which rejects extremism, promotes enlightenment and pursues moderation.
Mushahid said to cope with these challenges the best brains in the Muslim world would focus on the problems confronting the Ummah and come up with ideas to meet those challenges.
Professor Kamal Hassan, the Malaysian representative of the Commission of Eminent Persons, appreciated the efforts of the Government of Pakistan for taking up the "insightful initiative" to revitalise the OIC.
He said the intelligentsia holds in high regard the global agenda of Enlightened Moderation by President Musharraf and the efforts of Pakistan to make OIC more responsive to the challenges it faces.
He said that the Muslim world needed to work for a violence-free contemporary society that has peace within and lives with peace with others. He also prayed to Allah Almighty to protect Pakistan and other Muslim countries from the forces of destruction.
The seminar provides an opportunity to intellectuals and intelligentsia from the Muslim world to focus on ways and means to live in harmony with the West.
The seminar will deliberate on revitalisation and unity of Islamic Ummah, structured reform and renewal within Muslim countries to address social and economic deficits and to enhance Muslim countries' capacity in the areas of education, science and technology.
Fifty scholars, researchers, and academics from 40 OIC member states with proven expertise on Islamic issues are participating in the seminar.
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