Henry Mukasa
17 June 2008
Kampala — THE Organisation of the Islamic Conference (OIC) council of ministers meeting in Kampala will discuss conflicts in member countries, Islamophobia (fear of Islam) and international terrorism, the head of the national task force has said.
"The OIC's position on terrorism is clear: It does not condone the killing of civilians," Ambassador James Mugume told The New Vision yesterday.
Referring to the Dakar Declaration, passed in Senegal last year, he said the OIC wanted to combat Islamophobia and the general belief that Islam stands for violence.
"When there is a terrorist attack, the picture that comes to one's mind is a man in a turban. That is Islamophobia, equating Islam to terrorism," Mugume said.
"The OIC's position is that Islam is a religion of harmony, tolerance and respect for human dignity. Instead of talking of a clash of civilisations, it wants to promote dialogue and respect among civilisations."
In their Dakar Declaration, the OIC leaders renewed their pledge to "work harder to make sure that Islam's true image is better projected the world over."
Consequently, they said, "we continue to strongly condemn all forms of extremism and dogmatism, which are incompatible with Islam, a religion of moderation and peaceful coexistence."
On the sticky Israel-Palestine issue, which will feature on the Kampala agenda, Mugume said most OIC countries respect the UN resolution, calling for a two states solution.
"They accept that both exist side by side within internationally recognised and secure borders."
Asked if Uganda, which enjoys cordial relations with Israel, would condemn Israel's non-compliance with UN resolutions, as was done in Dakar last year, Mugume said: "Uganda has good relations with Israel but we don't hide from them our sympathy for Palestine."
Other conflicts on the discussion table will be Somalia, Sudan, Chad, Iraq and Afghanistan, as well as disputed areas such as Kosovo, Cyprus and Kashmir.
"Some of these conflicts have a direct bearing on Uganda.
"The conflicts in Sudan, Chad and the Central African Republic are linked to the Lord's Resistance Army. In Somalia, we have peacekeepers," Mugume noted.
Asked whether the OIC could impose sanctions on erring countries, Mugume was diplomatic: "International organisations don't unite to punish. They unite to forge solidarity and move a member to a required position."
Besides political issues, the foreign ministers will also discuss information technology and economic issues, such as poverty alleviation, infrastructure, food prices, trade and investment.
"The OIC consists of a whole range of different countries. Some are rich in arable land, others in infrastructure, human resources or minerals. Ten of the world's top oil producing countries are members of the OIC," Mugume explained.
"We want to promote inter-OIC trade in which countries like Uganda are assisted to increase agricultural production to be able to export to other OIC countries that are faced with a food crisis."
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