----- Original Message -----
Sent: Saturday, March 01, 2003 9:30
PM
Subject: [A-List] Thus spake
Abdullah
While challenges facing the Muslim
Ummah are stupendous these times, the prospects are even brighter, said Mr.
Abdullah, former Chief Secretary, NEAP, former director, Pakistan Academy for
Rural Development, present Chairman, Public Service Commission, NFWP and an
ideologue.
Mr. Abdullah was addressing
students, mainly from social sciences, particularly international affairs,
Friday evening at the Senate Hall, University of Peshawar before a thin but
responsive audience. Dr Adnan S Khan, Chairman IR Dept. University of Peshawar
presided the event.
Abdullah, who is frequently
addressing academicians since long urges them to wake up those not fully aware
of the challenges faced and of their responsibilities. He said, the 57
countries of Muslim Ummah form one third of the UNO membership, every sixth
person in the world is a Muslim, the Ummah controls all the water ways and
land routes, though their presence on the continents of Americas is not really
significant. He added Muslims own 60% of the Mediterranean, the cradle of all
civilisation, in fact the sea is a Muslim lake. They hold 60% of the world oil
wealth beside many strategic minerals. The income spectrum of Muslim countries
is evenly spread, from very rich to really poor.
Comparing the relative military
strengths in terms of manpower and showing figures on a screen he the total
military manpower of 41 Muslim countries, 7.2 million was more than the
combined strength of NATO and the then Warsaw Pact.
Inspite of so much assets the Ummah
is like a disabled giant, major reasons for that and what the Ummah really is
like, he cited: topping the list are the un-representative governments
followed by massive illiteracy, low quality of governance, lack of operational
commitment to Islam, especially by the elite, people - government
polarisation with lack of credibility of the latter, lack of real reforms and
misusing Islam for ulterior motives, the fragility and ineptness of
institutions, which if do exist, prevalent permissiveness and promiscuity,
riled up ethnic issues and finally Cabal, subversion and espionage, both from
within and without.
Furthering his stand he said the
Ummah is burdened by neo-colonial history and policies that are detrimental to
their interests by others. To make such policies effective we have
ineffective and non-genuine regimes, he called them surrogate governments, the
UNO is there as an effective instrument of neo-colonialism coupled with the
Breton Wood institutions ensuring market and state capitalism. He drew
attention towards environmental exploitation by the consumptive developed
nations worst of which is the dumping ofradio-active material in the Third
World countries. He said the developed nations find it economical to dump
this waste in others' yards than to neutralise it, saying it as a serious
threat to human and other life for a long time to come. Referring to a letter
by Larry Summers who terms this dumping of RA waste as a typical _expression_ of
neo-colonialism.
Abdullah termed the calls for
democracy, human rights and the like as fake slogans meant to cause
destabilisation. He said the NGOs phenomenon, especially those receiving
funding from abroad as a network for strategic subversion. In similar manner
he called the intelligence seeking research studies in the under developed,
especially Muslim lands by the intellectuals from the west; topping all he
said, is the highly touted 'new world order'.
Describing the modes of invasion
against Muslim Ummah, he said besides physical occupation by military forces
the political installationof surrogate governments in Muslim countries are the
most blatant forms of invasion. In addition to that is the economic
exploitation and trade invasion and mortgaging developing
economies.
While listing the various modes of
invasion, Abdullah said the most subtle and yet lethal with long lasting
effect is the cultural invasion made in the forms of encouraging
permissiveness and promiscuity among the Muslim masses, particularly the
educated and the youth. Alongside is distortion of history in the sectors of
archeology, anthropology etc. Destabilisation of technology, assault by
media, strategic intelligence and introducing the sweetened ideas of
pluralism, secularisation and other pantheistic perceptions are also some
strategies used.
Describing the levels of
consciousness and goals aspired by the Ummah he listed in the order of their
strength: establishing of khilafa, establishing an Islamic state, islamisation
of existing laws, revolt against east and west, discovering faith as binding
force in the Ummah and attaining political autonomy.
As the means for reviving Muslim
realisation through faith he suggested: reversion to Islam of both Muslims and
others through tabligh and dawa, observance of religious
imperatives in quality as well as quantity aspects, working for achieving
greater political and economic cohesion and strength. He proposed
dis-satisfaction for the existing un-Islamic practices and trends and divisive
factors and adopting Islam as a regime-maintaining strategy and a definitive
quest for Islam as reaction to permissiveness and other poisons. He said these
levels of efforts are a measure of our responses to re-establish our identity
as Muslim Ummah.
He proclaimed, now is the time to
speak out. Suggesting, what to do, as said by poet Iqbal in his Persian book,
Pas che bayed kard (What need doing) he listed a string of doables:
a) Review the memorandum of association of the OIC organically and change the
title of its 'chairman' to 'Khalifa-tul-Muslimeen', saying this
symbolic change will convey a totally different message, b) organise an
Islamic defense force, c) establish Islamic common market and Islamic DFIs, d)
use all possible means to introduce Islam in its original purity, e) organise
Muslim communities living in the non-Muslim world as good ambassadors of
Islam, f) achieve media independence, g) reform and/or change surrogate
regimes through internal means, not from without, h) establish supremacy of
sharia', i)set up an Islamic court of justice j) evolve strategic
intellectual consensus (SIC) and k) establish an Islamic Council of
Ijtehaad.
In the end when answering questions
he emphasised that Islam for one is not an ideology to create splits. In the
light of Unity of Allah it is a unifying force. He said we must work for
unifying all humankind and the creation of Allah. He emphatically added that
he expects the rise of concept of strategy from the classrooms. He expressed
his choice of working through the learned and academicians, saying working
with them is so easy, one covers more mileage.
Dr Adnan S Khan in his capacity of
host and presiding the evening thanked and praised the guest speaker. He said
Mr. Abdullah is unlike a bureaucrat but is an ideologue and an activist who
seeks change and suggests ways to it.
Contributed by Tariq
Mahmood