allAfrica.com: Senegal: Dakar Declaration of the 2008 OIC Conference (Page 1 of 2)

We, the Kings and the Heads of State and Government of memberstates of the Organization of the Islamic Conference (OIC) meeting onthe occasion of our 11th Ordinary Conference in Dakar, capital of theRepublic of Senegal, from 6 to 7 Rabiul Awwal 1429H (13 - 14 March 2008),Have taken stock of the Summit's historic importance in these earlyyears of the third millennium, which is marked by major worlddevelopments at the ideological, political, economic, scientific andtechnological levels.

Furthermore, the 11th OIC Summit Conference is the first to be held since the 3rd Extraordinary Session was held in Makkah Al Mukarramah in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia from 5 to 6 Dhul Qa'ada 1426H (7 - 8 December 2005), which was a landmark and a source of pride for the Ummah as illustrated by the Ten-Year Programme of Action adopted on the occasion.

We have underscored, once again, the guidelines of the Programme in order to rise up to the challenges facing the Ummah in the 21st century in its bid to seize any opportunity to ensure sustainable development in peace, brotherhood for the sake Allah and solidarity.

We are proud to proclaim, once again, to the entire world that theUmmah is fortunate, in the face of such challenges, to find in the Holy Quran's lofty teachings the right solutions to the problems currently besetting human societies. Islam, a religion of total devotion to Allah the Almighty, is also an irreplaceable vector of progress in this world in that its message of human salvation encompasses all walks of life. In light of the foregoing, we believe that the 11th OIC Summit Conference (The Ummah's 21st Century Session) is a happy continuation of the Makkah Al Mukarramah Extraordinary Summit because it has helped to give impetus to our collective willingness to achieve gradually the Ummah's set objectives.

In this vein, we believe that the Ummah's unity should remain, in our hearts and minds, an ultimate goal that dictates on our countries a conduct that prefers abnegation, values and common interests to division, hatred and confrontation.

The Leaders of Muslim countries hereby renew their pledge to preserve world peace and security, one of the OIC's objectives, and thus to fully adhere to the United Nations' key mission in this regard as well as international legality as a rule for all without any political double standards.

This is the reason why we proclaim, once again, our resolve to make sure that the Ummah's entire causes prevail in accordance with resolutions adopted in this regard by the Islamic Conference and the United Nations.

From this standpoint, in order to ensure just and lasting peace in the Middle East, we reaffirm solemnly the need to comply with all Security Council resolutions on Al Quds, an issue for which the OIC was established, and on the inalienable rights of the Palestinian people to establish an independent state within internationally guaranteed borders.

We reiterate our condemnation of Israel's pattern of refusal to fully comply with the resolutions in question, to allow the establishment of an independent Palestinian state with Al Quds Al Sharif as its capital without any territorial discontinuity, to pull out of the Golan Heights of Syria and to respect Lebanon's territorial integrity and sovereignty.

We reaffirm our respective countries' solidarity with the Palestinian people's heroic struggle and applaud their exemplary courage, which appears prominently on the most beautiful pages of the Ummah's history.

We proclaim, once again, our common position on the overall settlement of the Palestinian question in accordance with OIC and UN resolutions, the Arab Peace Initiative and the Road Map of the Quartet within the spirit of the OIC's constant commitment to theMiddle East peace process.

Our faith in such a strategic option for the quest for peace in that part of the world, where had originated many spiritual messages that advocate love for one's fellow human being, illustrates our strict adherence to the values of Islam, a religion of peace that forbids all forms of exclusivity and extremism and that warrants the following quotation "You have been made a Prophet only to restore peace in the world", which is based on a verse from the Holy Quran.

Based on this deep conviction, we the Kings and the Heads of State and Government of the OIC renew our pledge to work harder to make sure that Islam's true image is better projected the world over in line with the guidelines contained in the Ten-Year Programme of Action issued by the 3rd Extraordinary Summit of Makkah Al Mukarramah, which seek to combat an Islamophobia with designs to distort our religion.

Consequently, we continue to strongly condemn all forms of extremism and dogmatism, which are incompatible with Islam, a religion of moderation and peaceful coexistence.

It is in this vein that we support the dialogue of civilizations, and we believe that it is important to plan along such lines a preparatory phase by organizing a major international gathering on Islamic - Christian dialogue that involves governments, among other players.

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