Muslim countries need to educate their people and imbibe the spirit of tolerance for members of other faiths
LAHORE: It is in the long-term interest of the Saudi monarchy to reconsider pros and cons of their dispute with Russia over the quantum of oil production and instead use platform of OPEC to regulate supply of oil to maintain balance between supply and demand. This is no coincidence that the US today is not only self-sufficient to meet its fuel requirements but will soon emerge as the biggest supplier.
In the 80’s a military dictator plunged Pakistan into a proxy war with Russia in Afghanistan. This resulted in the US emerging as the sole super power, while Pakistan suffered immense economic losses and even after 40 years we are still fighting the curse of terrorism and extremism. Having earned the ire of the Soviet Union by offering bases like Badaber, from which reconnaissance U-2 flights took off, we faced the humiliation of surrender and dismemberment in 1971. In the long run Pakistan has suffered by getting involved in such proxy wars.
As it is the Muslim world is fragmented by internal disputes over petty matters. I fail to understand why the Muslim majority countries cannot find common ground on factors like belief in the Almighty and the Holy Quran, and utilise human resources for research and development in science, agriculture, health etc. for the collective welfare of their populations living in poverty. We need to boost our trade relations.
Muslim countries need to educate their people and imbibe the spirit of tolerance for members of other faiths instead of inter sectarian communal strife within their own ranks. Our Holy Prophet emphasised upon tolerance and respect for all faiths and warned us against the curse of extremism, terrorism and denying women their rights while stressing on the importance of education.
Malik Tariq
Published in The Express Tribune, March 11th, 2020.
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