`Rise of Islam seen as a threat to Western world'
`Rise of Islam seen as a threat to Western world'
JAKARTA (JP): A top diplomat hinted that the rise of Islam in
the post-Cold War era is seen as a threat that could challenge
Western hegemony.
"After the fall of communism, Islam is now the biggest threat
to the West," former Indonesian ambassador to China Abdurrahman
Gunadirdja told a seminar.
Such was the concern addressed during the seminar held by the
Association of Moslem Intellectuals (ICMI) on Saturday.
Abdurrahman argued that the threat stems from the fear that
the rise of Islam could suspend the riches and resources of the
Third World to the West.
"They (the West) see the Islamic world as a rising force which
could undermine their economic prowess," he said.
Though somewhat more diplomatic, Soendaroe Rachmat, head of
the Foreign Ministry's Research and Development board,
acknowledged the deep concern of Islam as a rising force.
Nevertheless Soendaroe's explanation on Saturday did not
explicitly identify those fears or in what way they posed a
threat to the Western world.
Abdurrahman on the other hand went into detail of how the
Western countries have from the times of colonial occupation
always shown a religious tendency in their favoritism of colonial
rule.
He explained that when the Dutch ruled Indonesia they would
consistently use religious considerations when hiring and
promoting indigenous workers in the colonial bureaucracy.
The first perceived threat the Islamic world posed to the West
came after the Cold War when the Middle Eastern countries, which
are dominated by Moslems, discovered huge oil reserves.
Western fears were heightened still with the creation of the
Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) which
refused to accept the low oil prices, Abdurrahman said.
New ways
OPEC's actions immediately proved perilous to the affluent
living of Western society and drove Western governments to seek
new ways to dominate the Moslem world.
The new strategy came in the form of monopolizing technology
and financial institutions.
"At this time there is not a single Islamic state or country
where a majority are Moslems that can be said to be developed,"
the former ambassador argued.
According to Abdurrahman, peoples' movements to break the
West's domination, though some have been successful, have mostly
been stifled by the Western countries.
He cited the Gulf crisis as an example where Iraq did not
really have to bullied by so many countries.
"Clearly there were ulterior motives as to why Britain, France
and Italy participated in destroying Iraq," Abdurrahman said,
adding that it was a good opportunity to weaken Islamic
solidarity and keep the allied arms factories from going
bankrupt.
Abdurrahman stated that the near annihilation of Iraq was also
beneficial to the West since it weakened the only Islamic force
which could counter Israel.
He further cited the case of Bosnia as another example of the
West's attitude towards Moslems.
He condemned the two-faced approach in allowing the Serbs to
annihilate the Moslems population while at the United Nations
they continue to place an arms embargo on the Bosnian army.
With all these impositions emplaced the developing Islamic
countries have to be wary of the future in trying to develop
their economies, he added.
He called for a revision of the educational curriculum which
contains many theoretical frameworks adapted by the West that
have to be filtered so as not to alter young Islamic minds into
thinking and adopting Western-like standards.
Otherwise they could, unconsciously, become agents of the
West, he stated. (mds)