Muslim countries warned on Thursday that an “alarming” rise in anti-Islamic insults and attacks in the West has become a threat to international security.
The Organisation of the Islamic Conference (OIC) called on Europe and America to take stronger measures against ‘Islamophobia’ in a report prepared for a summit of the group’s 57 members in Dakar on Thursday and Friday. The report by a special OIC monitoring group said the organisation was struggling to get the West to understand that Islamophobia “has dangerous implications on global peace and security” and to convince western powers to do more. Islamic leaders have long warned that perceptions linking Muslims to terrorism, especially since the September 11, 2001 Al Qaeda attacks on the United States, would make Muslims more radical.
Concern: OIC leaders have expressed renewed concern following events such as the publication of cartoons in Denmark and a plan by the Dutch far-right wing MP Geert Wilders to release a film Muslims consider blasphemous.
The OIC report said Islam had faced attacks since it was created “but in recent years the phenomenon has assumed alarming proportions and has become a major cause of concern for the Muslim world”. The monitoring group called on Europe and North America to do more, through laws and social action, to protect Muslims from threats and discrimination and prevent insults against Islam’s religious symbols.
New charter: If last-minute differences can be ironed out, the revamped charter of OIC will be adopted at the summit, OIC officials said. “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 late on Tuesday after a meeting of foreign ministers.
He and other officials said the changes to the 40-article charter would help OIC become more proactive as it seeks a bigger role in a globalised world for the international Islamic community, which spans the Middle East, Africa and Asia. This includes pushing for closer aid and cooperation between its richest and poorest members. “We are pinning many broad hopes on the adoption of the revised charter,” said Ihsanoglu. |