Makkah summit
Once again we see wise and great statesmanship of Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques King Abdullah who has called the Islamic Solidarity Summit in Makkah to unite the Ummah and put an end to senseless bloodshed which continues unabated in Syria and elsewhere. The leadership of Iran should grab this opportunity and not only attend the summit in all sincerity and honesty, but also help the Organization of the Islamic Cooperation (OIC) in bringing reconciliation and peace among the Muslims.
The Arab Spring has turned into hot summer in Syria and thousands of innocent people have died, many caught in the wanton destructive civil war. The continuing civil wars and bloodshed in some Muslim countries mean that OIC has so far been unable to play its role effectively. An ordinary Muslim is very impressed and hopeful when he sees the grandeur and pomp at the OIC meetings, but eventually they end without any substance — same sectarian and ideological divide which is killing thousands of innocent Muslims. The word Ummah has lost its importance and relevance and we are divided on narrow religious and ideological basis.
When we kill ourselves, sometimes on foolish sectarian pretexts, how can we raise voice and protect those minority Muslims living in Myanmar and elsewhere — our moral strength in the world politics is completely eroded. If our houses are not in order, how can we be assertive in foreign affairs when it comes to minority Muslims’ human and civil rights.
However, against all odds the OIC members must nurture new mindset among its members — one of non-violence; demilitarization; of gender equality; of opportunities; democratization and putting emphasis on sustainable economic development. Currently, the famous world’s military industrial complexes are the only beneficiaries and their marketing ploys will be to perpetuate conflicts so as to sell more of their latest killing machines — to make up for losses in other sectors of the economies. Unlike in other marketing processes, where value is co-created between the supplier and the consumer, here it is negative value and the country, which uses them to go into negative growth. There are stark lessons to be learned too from years of neglect and bad autocratic governance, which trigger violent backlash.
Coming in the background of such a bleak situation, the Makkah summit holds great significance and God willing will yield tangible results in uniting Muslims. — Seif A. Somalya, Jeddah
Congratulations Arab News
As an equestrian of many decades, as a resident of Jeddah and as a Brit, may I offer congratulations to the Arab News for producing first class reports on the Saudi Olympic Equestrian Team and their recent prowess. Watching the progress of the team from early reports, it was simple to understand how their long months of grueling hard work could well be rewarded. And indeed it has been. What a triumph!
For those who are not in the world of horses and riders, the clarity of the explanations and descriptions of how our riders achieved their successes, both as a team and Kamal Bahaman as an individual, made it possible for any and every one to understand clearly just how much went into their success and how it was reached.
Many people believe that with enough money to buy the ‘best’ horses, anything can be won; any rider can vouch that nothing is further from the truth. In your articles the empathy for both the riders and their hard-working horses came through clearly, showing what it actually takes to be a winner in the Olympic Games.
So, Mabrook again to our equestrians, to Arab News and to your reporter. We now await the finale and look forward to reading all about it in the Arab News! — Judy Prewitt, Jeddah
