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First Deputy opens the US-Islamic World Forum

Foreign Information Agency of the State of Qatar, 18-2-2006

 

Under the patronage of H.H. Sheikh Hamad bin Khalifa Al Thani the emir of Qatar, the three-day third 2006 U.S. - Islamic world forum, hosted by Qatar Ministry of Foreign affairs, opened at Ritz Carlton Doha on Saturday 18 February 2006.

H.E. the First Deputy Premier and Foreign Minister Sheikh Hamad bin Jassem bin Jabor Al-Thani opened the forum with a speech in which he asked to define the visions in different fields for the upcoming years in terms of US Islamic World relations.

H.E. reviewed what happened in the Middle East in the last past years talking about democracy, reform, comprehensive development, and activities to combat terrorism and the events that took place in Iraq and Afghanistan. He added that chronic conflicts remained in the area in their places far from final settlements, calling for taking serious and effective attitudes to cure the diseases of the region even with relative reasonable degree.

H.E. the first deputy premier noted that the logic dictates to confess the results to which democracy practice is leading to, noting that in this respect the government of Qatar welcomed the responsible spirit expressed by the Palestinian people during the continuation of legislative elections process and called the world community to deal with this elections results and respect the will of the Palestinian people which they have clearly and democratically expressed in the polls. Qatar also has called Hamas to continue the work of and proceeding in peace and reform process for realizing security good living and stability for the Palestinian people.

H.H. the first deputy premier stressed on the importance of confronting the challenges in the region which shall remain unless utmost efforts are exerted to encourage more positive relations and provide the solutions to all related parties based on studying policies built on widest possible range of dialogue and consultations.

H.E. the first deputy premier noted that the general feeling in the Islamic World is not personified in hostility against the United States for mere hostility, pointing out that Islam is well known for its adopting the principle of communication, intermediation and moderation. He added that it is incorrect that the Islamic world is targeted due to the attitude taken by some groups for political reasons.

In this regard H.E. said that “we must exert our best to prevent the provocation and provide the respect for all beliefs and religious sacred symbols without discrimination and not to use double standards as we have recently witnessed regarding the publishing of caricatures insulting Prophet Mohamed (Pbuh). The general feeling in the Islamic world holds the sense of injustice towards the interests of the Islamic world and its major issues. In the first place comes the settlement of the Palestinian issue which took long time despite the international legal resolutions and references globally accepted.

The State of Qatar hosts in the period of 18 to 20 February 2006 the US-Islamic World Forum for the third time. The Forum seeks to serve as both a convening body and a catalyst for positive action. Therefore, its focus is not to maintain dialogue for dialogue's sake, but on developing actionable programmes for government, civil society, and the private sector.

Sheikh Hamad bin Jassim bin Jabor Al Thani First Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs will open the forum with a welcome address. The inaugural session will be addressed by a number of participants including foreign minister of Bahrain Sheikh Khalid bin Ahmed bin Mohamed Al Khalifa, Dr Ekmeleddin Ihsanoglu secretary general of the Organization of Islamic conference, Martin Indyk director of Saban center for Middle East Policy at the Brookings institute in the United States, Syed Hamid Albar Minster of foreign Affairs of Malaysia and finally under US undersecretary of state for public diplomacy and public affairs.

Discussions at the opening session will focus on the relation between US and the Muslim world 5 years since the 9/11 attacks and the major challenges to be solved, looking forward to visions of where US-Muslim world relations should be 5 year from now.

In a press conference on Friday 17 February 2006, H.E. Sheikh Mohamed bin Abdullah Al Rumaihi Assistant Foreign Minister for Follow Up Affairs reviewed the themes and the goals of the forum and its future visions concerning US and Islamic World relations with Peter Singer Director of Project on U.S Policy Towards the Islamic World at Saban Center for Middle East Policy at the Brookings Institution.

H.E. Al Rumaihi stressed that the forum is held at the initiative of H.H. Sheikh Hamad bin Khalifa Al Thani the Emir of Qatar in order to build bridges in terms of US and Islamic World relations.

H.E. also stated that the themes of the forum include: Perceptions and Reality: the latest from Public Opinion Polling, the state of U.S. – Muslim World Relations now and in the previous five years starting from 9/11, Youth and Development, the Media Effect, technology, Arts, Politics, Faith and change in the age of Globalization, Youth and the future of U.S Islamic relations and finally the status of minorities in the world.

H.E. highlighted that a large number of leaders and decision makers in politics, arts, culture and thought will attend the forum.

Mr. Singer talked about the tensions in US –Islamic World relations, highlighting the importance of such forum in bringing closer the view points and opinion exchange on many issues concerning both parties in order to build more positive relations.

He noted that the themes of the forum will include other topics dealing with the situation in Iraq and Palestine after the legislative elections and the victory of Hamas in addition to the cartoons issue which offended the Muslims. He said that the forum will push dialogue and relations between U.S. and the Islamic world a step forward.

The 3 days of meetings of the forum will bring together over 150 top American and Muslim world leader, whose backgrounds range form government ministers and CEOs to journalists and scientist to religious leaders and rock music stars. 38 countries will be represented at the forum. Universities represented at the forum range from Harvard and oxford to Dar al-Hekma College, the first private college for women in Saudi Arabia and the college of jurisprudence at Najaf, Iraq.

Business organizations represented range from technology firm Cisco to the union of chambers and commodity exchanges of Turkey. Media organization represented at the forum range form the New York Times and al Ahram to al Jazeera, fox, Mtv and CNN.

Participants in the forum will discuss a host of issued related to US Muslim World relations and Muslim gatherings in the world as this theme is one of the big challenges in the world current policy. The forum will also discuss the means to deal with terrorism and extremism and support freedom by a deeper vision to problems considered as obstacles to the US Islamic World relation.

The 3 days of meetings will feature both plenary sessions open to the media and private working group seminars and task forces. Issues to be covered include security concerns and peace processes, governance and reform, and youth and development.

The first meeting of the Forum was in January 2004. Over 165 leaders from the Untied States and 37 states in the Muslim World convened for three days of discussion and debate. Former US President Bill Clinton and the Emir of Qatar His Highness Sheikh Hamad bin Khalifa Al Thani delivered the keynote addresses. The 2005 Forum sought to build upon these foundations, bringing together 160 leaders from the US and 35 Muslim countries, from Senegal to Indonesia. 

The forum is organized by Qatar’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs in cooperation with U.S. Saban Center for Middle East Policy at the Brookings Institution.

By focusing on creating a diverse set of attendees, the Forums have created a unique meeting space. The Forum is the only venue where a Wall Street banker might end up sitting next to an Islamist leader from Pakistan or where a news editor from Egypt might share dinner with an admiral from the US Navy. While the participants always include an array of notable policymakers and opinion-shapers, others are enthralled by the chance to hear new voices and meet the next generation of leaders.

In addition to dialogue and debate, among the most heartening aspects of the meetings are the various networks and endeavours generated by convening so many dynamic leaders. Past outcomes of the Forum have included the building of schools and other human development initiatives in the region, the formation of a Muslim American foreign policy group, and the initiation of “Track Two” diplomatic talks for certain conflict zones. The meetings also provide the foundation for a range of complementary activities designed to enhance the effectiveness of dialogue. These include a follow-up regional conference series, which would run parallel conferences in other Muslim regions, the assembling of task forces of policymakers and experts, and associated outreach, research, and publications. Collaborative media, education, and youth-centred programmes help expand the impact of such activities.

The theme of the 2006 US-Islamic World Forum, “Leaders Effect Change,” seeks to build on the previous sessions. Past Forums have established that, in a region once characterised by stasis and stability, immense change has taken place in the relationship between the US and the wider Muslim World since September 11. Importantly, this change has mostly taken place in manners and outcomes that few on either side find to be wholly positive. But this status quo, regardless of how one views it, is fleeting. Or, to put it more directly, the status quo is change itself. Deliberate policies, both in foreign policy and internal reform, reflect explicit goals to be “factors of change.” At the same time, powerful external dynamics, such as globalisation and demographics, shake the system. The relationship is and will remain in flux. This state of flux shapes everything from debates about the role of religion in politics to the interplay between arts, popular culture, and perceptions of each other. Both the repercussions of the past and the forces of change lying just over the horizon must be understood.

At the same time, past forums established the mutual responsibilities that American and Muslim World leaders have towards mending the relationship and working on areas of joint concern. This leads to the question of how will leaders react to these forces of change, and what actions will they take to steer them towards more positive ends? It is a fundamental underpinning of the US-Islamic World Forum that true leaders take ownership of problems and work to solve them.

 
 
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