OIC has a responsibility to direct the world towards peace
For the first time, India was invited to address the Council of Foreign Ministers of the Organisation of Islamic Co-operation (OIC) in Abu Dhabi, UAE, last week. This is an edited version of the speech by India’s External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj. I
I AM honoured to join my colleagues from nations that represent a great religion and ancient civilisations. I stand here as a representative of a land that has been, for ages, a fountain of knowledge, a beacon of peace, a source of faiths and traditions, and home to religions from the world – and now, one of the major economies of the world.
I carry the greetings of my prime minister and 1.3 billion Indians, including more than 185 million Muslim brothers and sisters. Our Muslim brothers and sisters are a microcosm of the diversity of India. They practise their respective beliefs and live in harmony with each other and with their non-Muslim brethren. It is this appreciation of diversity and co-existence that has ensured that very few Muslims in India have fallen prey to the poisonous propaganda of radical and extremist ideologies.
This is a very special year in which:
The Organisation of Islamic Co-operation (OIC) is celebrating its Golden Jubilee.
The United Arab Emirates is celebrating the Year of Tolerance, and
India is celebrating the 150th birth anniversary of Mahatma Gandhi, a global symbol of truth and non-violence. It is therefore a matter of pride for me, and for India, to be invited in this special year to be your guest of honour and to be extended a hand of friendship.
The OIC members constitute more than one fourth of the members of the UN, and nearly a quarter of humanity. It is an organisation that has a key role in shaping our world.
India shares much with you. Many of us have experienced the dark days of colonialism. Many of us saw the light of freedom and the bright ray of hope at the same time.
We have stood together in solidarity in our quest for justice, dignity and equality of all people, regardless of race and religion.
We have worked together to fashion global institutions into representative platforms, defined not by the interests of a few, but the voice of all sections of humanity.
As India’s economy has grown and become more integrated with the world, these partnerships have become stronger. We have excellent political ties, marked by warmth, respect and goodwill. With many we have expanding defence and security co-operation.
Nations to our east – Brunei, Indonesia and Malaysia – are important pillars of India’s Act East policy, and of our broader engagement in the Indo-Pacific region.
In our neighbourhood, with Afghanistan, Bangladesh and the Maldives, we have ties forged in our shared struggles and sacrifices, in the immeasurable warmth of our hearts, and in our unwavering commitment to the security and prosperity of our people and region.
In West Asia, our solidarity with the aspirations of the Palestinian people has remained unwavering. Further to the west, with nations like Tunisia, Morocco and Algeria we work for a shared desire for a more inclusive world.
With Turkey, a nation with which we have many strands of connected history, we are imparting new momentum to our ties. Our many friends from Africa are here.
Today, on the foundations of that extraordinary heritage, India and Africa have launched a new partnership of prosperity in the dynamic African continent.
The centre of gravity of the global economy is moving to Asia. The international order we are familiar with is changing. Freedom, opportunities, connectivity, health, education and prosperity are more widespread than ever before.
Yet we also live on the edge of uncertainty. Tensions, turbulence, disputes, violence, dislocation and displacement are also at a high. Conflicts, within and between societies, are rising. And we are witnessing the terrible daily destruction in senseless terrorist violence.
It is destroying lives, destabilising regions and putting the world at great peril. The reach of terror is growing and the toll it is taking is rising.
Terrorism and extremism bear different names and labels. It uses diverse causes. But in each case it is driven by distortion of religion and a misguided belief in its power to succeed. The fight against terrorism is not a confrontation against any religion. It cannot be.
Just as Islam literally means peace, none of the 99 names of Allah means violence. Similarly, every religion in the world stands for peace, compassion and brotherhood.
It is a verse in the Holy Qur’an which says La Ikrah fiddeen – Let there be no compulsion in religion.
And Sura Al Hujurat says: “O Mankind! We created you from a single pair of male and female, and made you into nations and tribes, so that you may know one another, not that you may despise one another.”
The founder guru of Sikhism, Guru Nanak Dev, gave a similar message to mankind, and I quote: “First, Allah created light; then, by his creative power, he made all mortal beings. From that one light the entire world came into being.”
So, who is good and who is bad? India has always embraced and found it easy to embrace pluralism since it is embedded in the oldest Sanskrit religious text, the Rig Veda: “God is One, but learned men describe Him in many ways.”
Our great philosopher Swami Vivekananda said this phrase from the Rig Veda had “given the theme to all subsequent thoughts in India, and one that will be the theme of the whole world of religions”.
This is not a clash of civilisations or cultures, but a contest of ideas and ideals. As the prime minister has often said, it is a struggle between the values of humanism and the forces of inhumanity.
If we want to save humanity, then we must tell the states who provide shelter and funding to terrorists to dismantle the infrastructure of the terrorist camps and stop providing funding and shelter to the terror organisations based in that country.
At the same time, I would like to say that this menace cannot be fought only through military, intelligence or diplomatic means.
It is also a battle that must be won through the strengths of our values and the real message of religions.
This is a task that states, societies, sages, scholars, spiritual leaders and families must pursue, through personal contacts and on social media. And, for this: Faiths must speak to faiths. Cultures must engage cultures. Communities must build bridges, not erect walls.
The youth must shape the future, not destroy lives.
I am particularly pleased to participate in a conference whose theme is a roadmap for prosperity and development.
However, I may enter a caveat: the young are not going to be content with only roadmaps. They want roads as well. They also want them to be built fast.
India is the world’s third-largest economy on purchasing power parity, and is the fastest-growing one. We are prepared to share our market, resources, opportunities and skills with our partners.
The Organisation of Islamic States is making a new beginning. The choices you make and the direction you set will have a profound impact on humanity. The OIC has a huge responsibility and a great opportunity to lift humanity to a higher level of peace and prosperity, and to make this planet a better place, not just for your people but for the rest of the world.
I come from the land of Mahatma Gandhi, where every prayer ends with the call for Shanti or Peace for all. I convey our best wishes, our support and our solidarity in your quest for stability, peace, harmony, economic growth and prosperity for your people and the world.
India and Africa have launched a new partnership of prosperity in the African continent SUSHMA SWARAJ India’s External Affairs Minister