NEW YORK, Nov 13: President Asif Ali Zardari told world leaders on Thursday that Islamophobia and anti-Semitism were both forms of bigotry which must be combated.
Addressing leaders from 66 nations at the UN General Assembly, Mr Zardari stressed the need for dialogue between civilisations and faiths.
“Bigotry manifested in Islamophobia and anti-Semitism must be combated,” he said. “Dialogue, and not discord, between civilisations and faiths must be encouraged.”
His remarks were well received by the audience which included Saudi King Abdullah and Israeli President Shimon Peres who, along with the United States, have played a key role in arranging this conference on ‘culture of peace’, which seeks to remove differences between the Islamic and western worlds.
A meeting between the Saudi king and the Israeli president on Tuesday night was the high-point of the four-day conference which, according to media reports, was also expected to lead to a meeting between Pakistani and Israeli leaders.
Although leaders of the two countries have not met so far, diplomatic observers at the United Nations say that Mr Zardari and Mr Peres may meet briefly at a dinner Turkish President Recept Tayyip Erdogan is holding on Thursday evening.
President Zardari also used his speech to pitch the idea of providing financial assistance to nations caught in extremism.
“Nations with little resources caught in the crossfire of extremism should be helped, strengthened and aided by the international community,” he said.
Man of wisdom
President Zardari praised Saudi King Abdullah bin Abdul Aziz and described him as “an elder brother”, “a man of wisdom and a man of action”.
He commended the Saudi monarch for “having the courage and the vision to convene this meeting on interfaith dialogue,” noting that this initiative had “revived the great Islamic tradition of reconciliation and inclusion”.
President Zardari started his speech with the traditional Islamic salutation, repeating it in English to wish “peace” to the participants and the rest of the world.
“Let us not isolate people; let us engage people,” he said. “Violence is an act of desperation.”
Menace of terrorism
Mr Zardari also stressed the need to eliminate the root causes of extremism and terrorism, giving all people in all societies renewed faith in their countries, in their laws, and in the futures of their children.
“Let us hit the causes of the terrorist menace, not condemn its innocent victims,” he said.
“We stand at a critical crossroads as we gather in this great hall of the nations,” said the president. “We have the opportunity to start afresh and rebuild a better world for our children to prosper.”
The president reminded world leaders that they lived in a dangerous world of confrontation and terror, which threatened to provoke the “clash of civilisations” that this dialogue was instituted to prevent.
Mr Zardari noted that there were elements in this world who would thrive in chaos and draw power by pitting “thought against thought; faith against faith; people against people.”
“This was surely not the world man was gifted by our God,” he said.
“For the children of Ibrahim, the world was meant to be the meeting ground of civilisations, of ideas and of human dignity.”
Religion of tolerance
The president said that this conference was particularly important for Pakistan, which was a major victim of extremism and terrorism.
“For us, it is a personal opportunity to advance the message of a moderate, modern and loving Islam, which guided the work of our beloved leader, Shaheed Mohtarma Benazir Bhutto, who sacrificed her life for the cause of tolerance, dialogue and the avoidance of a clash of civilisations,” Mr Zardari said.
The president noted that Islam was tolerant of other religions and cultures and internally tolerant of dissent.
“Islam accepts as a fundamental principle the fact that humans were created into different societies and religions and they will remain different,” he said.
Mr Zardari reminded world leaders that in his last sermon the Holy Prophet (peace be upon him) declared that all human beings were children of Adam and were all equal.
Equal opportunities
Mr Zardari said that the Pakistani society was a tolerant society which offered equal opportunities to people of all faiths and to both men and women.
He noted that the first woman ever elected prime minister of a Muslim country was from Pakistan.
“In following her footsteps, we made a woman, speaker of Parliament, again for the first time anywhere in the Muslim world,” he said. “And in coming generations, Insha’Allah, we hope to have a woman as president and head of state.”
Mr Zardari recalled that Ms Bhutto rejected the so-called clash of civilisations as an attempt “to twist the values of a great and noble religion”.
He noted that in her last book, Ms Bhutto laid out a political vision of reconciliation that must guide us in the days and years ahead.
“These views are the guiding principles of the newly elected democratic government of Pakistan. Her example continues to lead us today, not just only in Pakistan, but in every corner of the world.”
Mr Zardari urged world leaders to honour Ms Bhutto’s memory and unite to recreate a world of tolerance and an end to bigotry.
“Let us unite to create a world of understanding and respect. Let us unite to build a world of peace and stability. Let us unite to create the world of ‘reconciliation’ for which she died.”
The president said he believed there was nothing more un-Islamic than discrimination and violence against women.
“And above all, there is nothing more un-Islamic than terrorism – the killing of innocent men, women and children, a crime expressly prohibited in the text of the Holy Book itself.”
Hate speeches
The president said that while most Muslims advocated interfaith dialogue they also witnessed events frustrating the call for dialogue.
“We hear hate speeches across countries and regions in which Islam as a religion is attacked. Hate speech against Islam also leads to injustices against Muslims.”
Mr Zardari noted that the imaginary fear of Islam was rising. “This is exactly what the terrorists had hoped to provoke. Those in the West that accept this are falling into the trap of the terrorists,” he warned.
“This imaginary fear of our religion has created a new form of discrimination and is giving rise to new tensions.”
Mr Zardari urged world leaders to declare that hate speech aimed at inciting people against any religion was unacceptable.
“Injustice and discrimination on the mere basis of one’s faith must be discouraged --- not only in words but through meaningful actions,” he said.
The president said that for Muslims, Islam was about social justice and emancipation of men and women.
“Islam is about serving the Muslim masses by ending poverty and backwardness and building peace and tolerance. As such we reach out to all of God’s creations.”
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