PROPER LEADERSHIP REQUIRES TO STOP SUFFERING OF MUSLIMS: KUALA LUMPUR SUMMIT, 2019.

President Erdogan highlighted the importance of solidarity and cooperation among the countries to stop the sufferings at meeting of 450 intellectuals, academics and Muslim leaders of the world in Kuala Lumpur Summit in Malaysia.

He said 94% of the people killed in global conflicts are Muslims and they continue to shoot and kill each other over small disagreements. He pointed out that one in three weapons sold globally are sent to the Middle East and the Western arms dealers are becoming richer and richer. Those countries are not spending money on health, research, artificial intelligence, quantum computers and development.

The President said that the Muslim nations are not supporting Turkey’s plans to resettle 4 million refugees in the planned safe zone in northern Syria. The global powers are more concerned about sending weapons into Syria than supporting Syrian refugees.  

Erdogan said we have not covered any distance in the Palestinian cause due to inaction among Muslim leaders. He further said “the Muslim world is not powerless, they have population, oil and natural resources but a significant part of the Muslim population is dealing with hunger, famine, poverty and ignorance. We need to put the blame on ourselves first”.

President Hassan Rouhani said “the plight of the Palestinians remains the most important issue in the Muslim world.” He said the “mental and behavioural radicalism” in some Muslim countries has paved the way to foreign interventions in Yemen, Syria, Libya, Iraq, Lebanon, Afghanistan. Rouhani said  ‘Digital Economy’ is the solution to the economic crisis created by sanctions of USA.

Qatar Emir Sheikh Tamim expressed the same sentiment, saying the occupation of Palestine  is “one of the most important sources of instability in our region”. The annexation of Palestinian lands and illegal settlements are examples of policies that “wipe out the Arab character of the city and provoke the feelings of Arabs and Muslims everywhere”.  Qatari Emir emphasised for adherence to ethics of Islam at the Summit.

Mahathir Mohamed said the Kuala Lumpur Summit is a good opportunity to address shortcomings among Muslims. He said “it is important for Muslim countries to grow until they become developed nations”. Any country can oppose Muslims and get away with it, we  are paralysed. We can’t even condemn those actions by others because if we do, they will take retaliatory actions against us.  

Mahathir pointed out while the countries devastated by World War II have recovered and developed very fast but Muslim nations did not due to fratricidal wars, civil wars. He said Muslim countries are being destroyed and their citizens are forced to flee to their countries and forced to seek refuge in non-Muslim countries.

Nur Aldin Al Kawamleh, an Islamic scholar from Jordan said the summit will deliver alternative solutions to issues which were not addressed by the OIC in the past.