Bridging the Western and the Muslim world

Paul Wolfowitz, Deputy Secretary of Defense, United States

There is a dangerous gap between the West and the Muslim world. We must bridge this gap, and we must begin now -- the gap is wide and there is no time for delay. Whether we are successful in narrowing the critical divide between East and West will be a major factor in shaping the future. To achieve victory in this larger conflict, we must work to understand the many facets of the Muslim world.

My three years as U.S. ambassador to Indonesia (from 1986 to 1989) gave me insights into some of these facets and some of these traditions.

Many people do not realize that Indonesia is a country whose Muslim majority is the largest in the world. But even many who know that do not know that Islam is not the state religion, that the state accords equal status to the five major religions of its people. Like so many who go to Indonesia, I developed a deep admiration for that beautiful country, its people, its many rich cultures and its tradition of tolerance. My experiences there and since have strengthened my appreciation of the common ground shared by East and West.

Today I'd like to tell you more about this view, and discuss three related thoughts: First, Islam's tradition of tolerance and moderation; second, what current voices of moderation are telling us, and, third, what we can do to reach out to those voices and strengthen them.

Last September, a great evil struck our shores. And we are fighting back. But, given the scope of the evil of the terrorism we now oppose, this fight for a just and peaceful world is not one to be waged only by America, or only by the West. This fight must be fought by all who aspire to peace and freedom throughout the world for that aspiration is what the terrorists wanted to destroy.

I am convinced that the vast majority of the world's Muslims have no use for the extreme doctrines espoused by groups such as al-Qaeda or the Taliban. Very much to the contrary. They abhor terrorism. They abhor terrorists who have not only hijacked airplanes, but have attempted to hijack one of the world's great religions. They have no use for people who deny fundamental rights to women or who indoctrinate children with superstition and hatred.

The ideals of freedom and democracy have been the most powerful engines of change in the last 50 years, and should also give us hope for further development in the Muslim world.

One possible model for the aspirations of the Muslim world for democratic progress and prosperity can be found in a country that has interested me for some 25 years now, a country that straddles the strategic crossroads between East and West -- that country is Turkey.

What is fundamental to Turkey's success is its democratic character. A Turkey that overcomes its present problems and continues the progress it has made over the course of the last century is indeed an example for the Muslim world. Turkey offers a compelling illustration that religious beliefs need not be sacrificed in favor of modern secular democratic institutions.

Indonesia is another important example of a nation seeking to build a democratic government based on a culture of inclusion and participation. But it does so in the face of severe economic obstacles.

There is every reason to believe that Indonesia, with its own traditions and culture, can move forward, because when people are free to work and keep what they produce, they work hard and organize creatively. And if we are serious about opposing terrorism, we also must be serious about helping Indonesia in its quest for a stable democracy and a stable economy.

Likewise in the Arab world, we must support countries that are struggling to make progress. In Pakistan, we see a country that has much further to go, but possibly has more at stake in this fight against terrorism than any other. And no leader has taken greater risks, or faces more daunting challenges from within and without, than President Musharraf.

Jordan is another Muslim country that is making one of the largest contributions to the coalition in Afghanistan.

To win the war against terrorism and, in so doing, help shape a more peaceful world, we must speak to the hundreds of millions of moderate and tolerant people in the Muslim world, regardless of where they live, who aspire to enjoy the blessings of freedom and democracy and free enterprise.

It would be a mistake to think we could be the ones to lead the way, but we must do what we can to encourage the moderate Muslim voices that can. This is a debate about Muslim values that must take place among Muslims. But, it makes a difference when we recognize and encourage those who are defending universal values. We must become more attentive to the moderate voices in the Muslim world, for the better we are at encouraging them, the more effective we can be.

However, unfortunately, despite Islam's ancient tradition of tolerance, there are individuals today who are coming under ideological and even physical attack for defending tolerance. UCLA law Prof. Khaled Abou El Fadl has pointed out that in Islam's first century and a half, 135 schools of law existed to give Islam so much of its cultural dynamism. Today, with so much learning from those and later schools dismissed as sinful, he fears that perhaps "we are in the dark ages of Islam."

At the World Economic Forum in February, Shafeeq Ghabra, a Kuwaiti resident of Palestinian origin, then head of the Kuwait Information Office in Washington, appeared on a panel that included two former Israeli officials, well-known for their roles in supporting the peace process. He was condemned by groups in Kuwait for his participation, and it led to attacks in the Kuwaiti press on secular Kuwaitis in general.

When the American Shayk Muhammed Hisham Kabbani, a noted Muslim scholar, had cautioned in 1999 there was, at that time, an imminent threat of a catastrophic terrorist attack on American soil by Islamic extremists. Following his message, some Muslim organizations here in the United States publicly condemned him for "false and defamatory allegations against the Muslim community" and organized a boycott against him.

One of the great obstacles to the dream of peace is the continuing conflict between Israelis and Palestinians. Over these many years, after the sacrifice of so many, it is clear that the solution to this conflict will not be achieved by the force of tanks and bombs.

After the violence of recent months, one cannot expect a rapid transformation of the situation. For there to be peace, people in positions of authority on all sides must recognize its value. And while we realize that progress may only be made in small steps, there are also times when people must think of making great strides.

For people who cherish freedom and seek peace, particularly those who do so in the Middle East, these are difficult times. But, such times can also deepen our understanding of the truth. This truth we know: that the single greatest threat to peace and freedom in our time is terrorism. So this truth we also affirm: that the future does not belong to the terrorists. The future belongs to those who dream the oldest and noblest dream of all, the dream of peace and freedom.

The above article was taken from Paul Wolfowitz's remarks at the World Affairs Council in Monterey, California, on May 3, 2002.