Report of the Secretary General of the Organization of the Islamic Conference
Submitted to The Islamic Symposium on Dialogue among Civilizations
Tehran, Islamic Republic of Iran
17-19 Muharram 1420H (3-5 May 1999)

Historic Brief :

1. Through various phases of its long history, the Islamic Ummah experienced a doctrinal and ideological attack that targeted its originality and cultural values. Upon reaching its zenith of maturity, it was accused of being spread by force and not through the lofty principles, which it had been advocating; and that tyranny, mental stagnation and intolerance are prevalent types in rule and thinking.

2. When the Ummah was plagued by weakness, and its communities showed signed of backwardness, stagnation and regression, colonialist and imperialist hordes began invading its territories with the aim of usurping its bounties. Leading thinkers in the West, especially Orientalists, were mobilized to achieve and justify this objective. They launched a vicious attack on Islam accusing its civilization of mediocrity and incapability of rational thinking; they doubted its originality; denied and rejected the shining role which it had played during the Middle Ages, in communicating ancient civilization, and contributing towards the enrichment of that heritage and imparting on it a distinctive character. It had been, in fact, an essential factor in European renaissance, which established the cultural and scientific foundations of contemporary Western civilization.

3. That period in the history of our Ummah had been characterized by the emergence of orientalism in the West, whereby a number of scholars specializing in Eastern Affairs, devoted themselves to study Islam and its belief as well as cultural, social and economic aspects of Muslim societies. Those studies, on the civilization of Islam, which intensified during the past two centuries, were far removed from academic and objective fairness, which should have been observed by any fair-minded researcher, who only seeks the truth and shuns a priori judgements and personal ideas which may affect his judgement. In our view, this is due to the fact that Orientalist studies were essentially meant to serve the purposes of colonialism and its expansionist greed, and were not purely academic purposes. Furthermore, research methodology used by Orientalists, which might have been useful to study social, historical or psychological phenomena in the West, cannot be adopted for studying Islamic phenomena, in view of its cultural specificity, as well as its radical difference from the concepts and ideologies of Western culture.

4. Apart from the above, we should not forget that relations between the West and Muslims witnessed violent conflicts for centuries : the Crusades, fall of Andalus, Christianization campaigns to control and Christianize the Arab Meghrib, modern European colonization of almost all the Arab and Islamic world and finally the implanting of the Israeli entity in its territory. All these events have made their imprints on the sentiments of the West and Muslims, promoted the spirit of hatred and animosity between them, and created a psychological barrier which is difficult to surmount. It is no wonder, therefore, that most of the studies made by Western thinkers on Islam and its civilization are mostly characterized by partiality and bias, and included attacks and harsh judgements, commencing with rejection of the message of the Prophet (pbuh); attributing the revelation to delusions, hallucination and fantasy; and claiming that most of the precepts and roots of Islam and its lofty belief belong to Judaism and Christianity, thus denying its originality. Some of them even have gone further and claimed that the backwardness of Islamic peoples and their lagging behind contemporary civilization was due to their adherence to Islam, and upholding its precepts which were, as they alleged, mere rigid molds and impediments, which were incapable of keeping abreast of development and requirements of the modern era.

5. Such an attack against Islam and its culture, and the distortion of its image had had tremendous ramifications in the Islamic world at that time. Some of its ulamas, scholars and intellectuals responded to those campaigns aimed at the essence of Islam and its Sharia (Law and way of life), as evidenced by the famous debate between Jamaluddin al-Afghani and Ernest Renan on those subjects at the Sorbonne University in Paris, despite the widespread colonialism in those days and its total control over the entire Islamic world.

The West’s relationship with islamic civilization and peoples is still tense, dominated by caution and suspicion, as was the case in the lifetime of Jamaluddin Al-Afghani and Ernest Renan, despite the radical developments and  transformation that took place in the world in the present century, which is marked, more than ever before, by a spirit of tolerance among the various civilizations and cultures and rapprochement among people, except where Islam was concerned. The West’s vision of Islam remained negative without much change from what it used to be in the Middle Ages. One may even venture to say that the onslaught on its values and civilization was stepped up in recent years in terms of ferocity and in a frightful way reaching hallucinatory levels at times. Western media waged rabid campaigns,  accusing Islam of being violent by nature. They alleged that its creed was the main underlying reason for the emergence of violence within Islamic communities in the world. They considered the presence of Muslim communities in European states, who immigrated there for economic reasons, as a threat of their security and stability.

6. There appeared in this respect theories on the part of those who are considered leaders of Western thought advocating overtly a conflict between civilizations and warning that Islamic civilization was the only one capable of challenging Western civilization and standing before it in the coming century.

The OIC Drive

7. Since its inception, the OIC has acted to propagate a spirit of tolerance and understanding among the various cultures and religions. Thus Seminars/symposia were held under various themes, like “the Dialogue Among Religions”, “Islamic-Christian Coexistence”, “The Role of Arab-Islamic Civilization in the Renaissance of Europe”, and “The Dialogue Among Civilizations”. All those seminars/symposia had, in fact, a single objective, namely to shed light on our civilization, foster its Islamic identity and reply to Western writers and thinkers who, out of ignorance most of the time, adopted erroneous judgements and theories towards that civilization.

8. One evidence of the success and positive results achieved in this field by such seminars, is provided by the gatherings witnessed on the European scene in recent years between Western and Islamic parties. Sponsored by international organizations and local and European associations, they debated fundamental issues relating to Islam’s relationship with two divine religions (Christianity and Judaism) and the way to advance the dialogue among the three religions while acting to incalculate confidence and tolerance among them for the sake of achieving rapproachment among peoples - something that was difficult to achieve in the past, in view of the absence of the propitious conditions. However, and notwithstanding the efforts exerted by certain Islamic bodies to establish a “dialogue bridge” with Western civilization  through the seminars/symposia and conferences held on the Islamic scene in recent years, especially after the Casablanca Summit, with a positive outcome, the effects of these efforts on the West remain limited, if not inadequate, owing to the absence of a unified strategy for the Islamic world in that dialogue.

9. The Tehran Declaration, adopted by the Eighth Islamic Summit in December, 1997, contained the following paragraphs :

a) The Kings and Heads of State and Government of the OIC member States consider the revival of the Islamic Civilization a peaceful global reality, and express their concern in tendencies to portray Islam and a threat to the world, and emphasize that the Islamic civilization is firmly and historically grounded in peaceful coexistence, cooperation and mutual understanding among civilizations, as well as constructive discourse with other religious thoughts.

b) Reaffirm the need to establish understanding and inter-action among various cultures in line with the Islamic teachings of tolerance, justice and peace; and denounce various manifestations of cultural invasion, disregard for religious and cultural values of  other nations, particularly as regards divine values and principles, and call for the speedy conclusion of an internationally binding document to prevent insult against sacred values... etc.

10. His Excellency President Muhammad Khatami, President of the Islamic Republic of Iran and Chairman of the Eighth Islamic Summit, wishing to activate the move forward by Islamic States in a strategic and concerted manner, expressed to the OIC Secretary-General, in February, 1998, his desire that the OIC may undertake this momentous cultural task and start a dialogue, in the name of the Islamic World, with the world’s other major civilizations.

11. The OIC General Secretariat hosted, in March 1998, a small working group consisting of itself, the State holding the Chair, the headquarters State, the Islamic Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (ISESCO), the Islamic Fiqh Academy and the Islamic Development Bank (IDB). Its main recommendations could be summed up as follows :

a) To start by holding a purely Islamic symposium. The latter should bring together leaders of Islamic thought who combine their knowledge with the lofty values of Islam,  their wide ranging acquaintance with the conditions of the contemporary world, its intellectual philosophies and practical practices. Islamic states will be invited to nominate the above-mentioned intellectuals. The task of the symposium is to determine the pivots of dialogue between Islam and other contemporary civilizations in a constructive manner that would reflect the true image of Islam based on peace, renunciation of aggression and violence, save for the purpose of self defense, amicable dialogue, and recognition of human cultural diversity aimed at cooperation and not conflict.

b) The process of dialogue should move to the next step wherein the Islamic Conference should take the initiative, together with the UNESCO, to invite representatives of major human civilizations to participate in a constructive peaceful dialogue with representatives of the Islamic civilization with the aim of realizing international cultural peace. This could be achieved through the organization of international symposia.

c) Nominating a number of prominent Muslim intellectuals (outside the governmental framework) to seek their help whenever needed.

d) Using technological revolution in the sector of information and telecommunications with the aim of communicating the elements of this international dialogue to the entire world.

e) With regard to financing, assistance may be sought from UNESCO, ISESCO and some states and organizations concerned with dialogue.

12. In his speech before the 53rd UN General Assembly, September 21, 1998, His Excellency the Iranian President proposed that the United Nations proclaim the year 2001 as “The Year of Dialogue Among Civilizations.” The proposal was sponsored by a large number of Muslim and non Muslim countries. Besides, it was unanimously approved by the General Assembly in a resolution dated November 11, 1998, which, inter alia, invited governments and the UN, including UNESCO, and other relevant international organizations and non governmental organizations (NGOs) to draw up and implement adequate cultural, educational and social programs to enhance the concept of dialogue among civilizations by various means including the organization of conferences and study seminars and the publishing of information and academic material on the subject, and to inform the Secretary-General about the activities they carry out. The latter was also requested to submit to the 54th General Assembly in interim report on the activities carried out by him in this connection and a final one to the 55th General Assembly.

13. At its 23rd session, held in Jeddah, January 1999, the Islamic Commission for Economic Cultural and Social Affairs adopted recommendation No. 13/22-C titled “Enhancing the Role of the Organization in the Dialogue Among Civilizations” The recommendation, inter alia, requested the Secretary-General to form a group of  “experts to be nominated by governments of member States, taking into consideration the leaders of Islamic thought who combine with   their knowledge of the lofty values of Islam, wide ranging acquaintance with the conditions of the contemporary world, its intellectual philosophies and practical practices with the aim of determining the issues of priority, the appropriate frameworks and the bodies with which dialogue could be established and the necessary basis to followed for achieving positive results; and to report thereon to the Twenty-sixth Session of the Islamic Conference of Foreign Ministers.

14. Thereupon, the Islamic Republic of Iran decided to host an Islamic seminar to prepare for the Islamic dialogue with the other contemporary major civilizations. His Excellency President Sayed Muhammad Khatami graciously addressed messages in the second week of March, 1999, to  their Majesties, Their Excellencies and Their Highness, the Kings, Presidents and Emirs of the Islamic OIC member States inviting them to designate a representative from amongst their recognized intellectuals to take part in the first meeting of the Islamic dialogue due to be held in Tehran, May 3-5, 1999.

15. In the meantime, a number of senior officials of the European Union (EU) made statements about dialogue with the OIC. Most importantly, perhaps, was the one contained in the speech delivered by British Foreign Secretary Robin Cook, October 8, 1998, before the Isma’ili Center in London, containing references such as :

a) I propose that we begin in appropriate dialogue between Europe and the Islamic world. It is high time for talks to begin between the EU and   the OIC at the highest level on a host of issues of common interest: the Balkans, the Middle East peace process, Afghanistan, terrorism, drugs, human rights and the treatment of minorities, because it is through dialogue that each of us will learn how to understand and trust the other.

b) Our civilization does not have only Greek and Roman roots, but also Islamic roots. Islam laid the cultural groundwork for large segments of Western civilization. We had better recall the debt owed to Islam by our civilization as we develop our relations with the Islamic world, because both of us have gone a long way in distancing ourselves from each other, letting lack of understanding and mistrust increase between the West and Islam.

c) Some claim that the clash between civilizations is imminent. I say that this is a monumental error. We are very far from considering Islam as an enemy. The only course before us is to befriend Islam. True that we have different cultures and religions, but this does not mean that we shall not be able to coexist, that each of us may not understand and learn from the other. We must trust each other so that each party may enrich the other without anyone loosing his separate identity.

16. It follows that foremost among the responsibilities entrusted to this meeting is coordination among the OIC member States with regard to the dialogue between the Islamic world and the other contemporary major civilizations to come up with appropriate recommendations on the essence and methodology of such dialogue which should be submitted to the Chairman of the Eighth Islamic Summit Conference and to make use of his directions; as well as to submit these recommendations to the 26th ICFM scheduled  to be held in Ougadougou, Burkina Faso, at the end of June 1999.

May Allah grant us success.