The Organisation of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) will hold a Summit in Makkah on August 14 and 15, to coincide with Ramazan 27 there, meant to be the holiest night in the month of Ramzan. The night is known as Lailatul Qadr, and is believed widely to be the night the Holy Quran, the book of guidance for followers of Islam, was begun to be revealed.
The meeting called by King Abdullah of Saudi Arabia comes at a time of tribulation for the Muslim world and is an opportunity for the countries involved to take an honest and unforgiving look at themselves, to see what exactly they have achieved, since the OIC came into existence in 1969 to provide a forum for Muslim countries wishing to register a collective protest over the violence offered to Palestine. The Palestine problems persists, the illegal occupation of Kashmir by Indian forces continues. Meanwhile, regime after regime has toppled in the wake of the Arab Spring, and no clear direction has as yet been established in the aftermath. Three of the OIC leaders have been bought to power by the Arab Spring, while even King Abdullah’s reign himself, has not been unchallenged in monarchic Saudi Arabia. Although King Abdullah has called for “support” to “our brothers in Syria”, what manner of support is as yet unclear. The Arab Spring might be the focus of attention in the Arab world, but opportunity arises through new crises everyday, to lament as proof of the political ineffectiveness of the community of Muslim nations on an international stage. The Rohingya Muslims in Burma are the latest example, with the number killed not entirely certain, but estimated to amount to thousands. There has been an outcry for the Muslim world to take some action on the Rohingy as but these are massive leaps for an OIC hobbled and crippled by infighting, conflicting geographical interests and a disinterest in seeming to be stepping away from the main stage of world affairs.
With 75 percent of the world’s Muslim population represented by the OIC countries, it is a pity that it has not been more effective in dealing with the tribulations these people have come to feel themselves hounded by in recent years. There is an urgent need for the Muslim world to galvanize and try to define itself as a cogent, coherent political force. It must do so on the principles of tolerance and fairness, that is surely the entire basis of the religion which they state binds them together. Were this to happen, it’s positive effects would most certainly be felt in Pakistan. If it does not, all will continue as before, with much complaining and little done to remedy the cause of complaint.