Muslims vow to enhance education, economy
Abdul Khalik, The Jakarta Post, Jakarta
Muslim scholars ended an international conference on Tuesday with the establishment of a joint secretariat in Jakarta that plans to strengthen the role Muslims play in global education and economic development.
The International Conference of International Muslim Scholars voted to create the secretariat, which will fall under the auspices of the country's Nahdlatul Ulama (NU), with its leader Hasyim Muzadi named the first secretary-general over a two-year term.
It would serve as a coordinating body that would link up with other international groups, like the Organization of Islamic Conferences and the United Nations, to fulfill its objectives.
"There will be conferences every two years," Hasyim said.
The Morocco delegation offered to host the second conference in 2006.
The joint secretariat would refer to the agreement signed by participants of the three-day event, called the Jakarta Declaration.
Major topics discussed during the conference were peace and education, economic development, information and mass media.
The conference recommended the upgrade of teachers and better educational materials for Islamic institutions to prepare Muslims for the consequences of globalization.
On economic development, it recommended the encouragement of cooperation among Islamic economic institutions, and the development of more effective Islamic economic and banking systems.
It also suggested the application of Islamic principles in economic and social life such as zakat, saddaqah, and waqf, as a means to improve the living conditions of Muslim communities across the world
Zakat necessitates Muslims to contribute 2.5 percent of their wealth to the poor while saddaqah advises Muslims to give alms to their unfortunate brothers. A waqf is an institution where people can donate his belongings to public' charity.
On information and media, the conference suggested the establishment of a modern Islamic electronic network that would contribute to more balanced media coverage, while improving media workers' professional standards and integrity.
The declaration also stated a plan to organize workshops before the next conference.
"Besides sharpening the ideas that have been discussed in this conference, the workshops also intend to prepare topics to be discussed in the next conference. We plan to hold workshops in Batam soon," Hasyim said.
The NU organized the conference, which was aimed at bridging the differences among various groups in Islam, improving its image and contributing to world peace, he said.
All the Islamic scholars attending the conference strongly condemned acts of terrorism and rejected the identification of terrorism with any particular religion.
They agreed the campaign against terrorism could only be won through comprehensive and balanced measures and by addressing its root causes, including poverty, injustice and intolerance.