I’M writing about the world’s affairs in the past 100 years.
European countries had engaged in bloody civil wars prior to the first and the second world wars.
Most practised a liberal-capitalist economic system and freedom for humanity.
After World War 2, these European countries consolidated their positions and eventually formed the foundations of today’s European Union (EU).
The very aim of the EU was to assist in redeveloping weak European countries by establishing and advocating “shared prosperity”.
Eventually, through sheer determination, the European countries became economically and socially successful. Major powers like the United Kingdom (UK), Germany and France played the biggest roles.
The EU, centred in Brussels, managed to spread its influence by becoming the economic backbone of the continent, and broadening its role in political and economic systems in other parts of the world.
The EU, alongside the United States of America, became a major power globally.
The influence of the EU and US is widespread, and their military capabilities are exceptional, especially with the formation of the North Atlantic Treaty Organisation.
Military treaties between the US and European countries, including Turkey, have turned the EU into a powerful bloc.
On the other side of the world, there is another group of countries that adopt the socialist or communist ideology.
We cannot accept their ideology and belief system. But it is clear that these countries have historically dominated their people through the “doctrine” of their struggles.
It was the main reason why Russia was able to influence the Soviet Union and managed to dominate a large number of countries before they broke apart.
The dissolution of the Soviet Union gave birth to eight independent countries, but Russia remained very strong by dominating the people’s way of thinking.
It was also militarily and economically strong.
Then there is China. It was at one time in chaos, mainly due to the wars between warlords. The turmoil enabled the Japanese to control a large part of the country.
Prior to that, the British also managed to gain control in China. We can still see the British legacy in Shanghai today.
However, Mao Zedong, who led the ‘Long March’, succeeded in uniting China.
Adopting a strong communist ideology, Mao and his associates managed to unite the Chinese people under one republic, with the exception of Taiwan.
Chiang Kai-shek escaped communism in China and founded the more liberal and democratic Taiwan.
Both nations competed with each other for power and progress and finally, as we are witnessing in this century, China has emerged as an economic and military superpower.
Mao managed to unite the Chinese despite the use of brute force.
Post-Mao, Deng Xiaoping launched economic reforms.
Under the leadership of the Communist Party, China modernised into an economic and military superpower and is now the strongest rival to the US.
Taiwan, on the other hand, continues to develop under western influences and has made tremendous progress.
China’s progress and power have led other countries like Japan and South Korea to approach it despite warnings by the US.
Japan and South Korea are slowly changing their direction by building a close relationship with China while remaining allies with the US and European countries.
The same can be said about North Korea. Japan and South Korea are now approaching the country through dialogues.
UMMAH IS WEAK
The question is, where is Islam and the Muslims now, after
the British, Dutch, Portuguese, French, Italian and other European colonialists left Asia and Africa?
The Islamic countries gained independence after the colonialists were forced to leave.
Lately, we have witnessed how the Islamic countries became birthplaces of rich leaders.
The purchase of luxury items, such as paintings worth millions of dollars by these leaders, were revealed by the media.
They are also proud owners of luxury yachts, hotels and apartments in Switzerland, London and Paris, among many other places. They are also well known for visiting casinos.
Islamic leaders, be they presidents or kings, are known for their wealth and luxurious life.
To keep their country secure and to protect themselves from being overthrown by their own people, they would sometimes seek help from the major powers like the US, Britain or France.
The fact is, Muslim-led countries are still the proxies of superpowers.
Not being fully independent, especially in the way of thinking, has made Muslims weak.
Internal strife is common. We can see how Muslim wealth and lives are so cheaply ‘lost’ in the Islamic world.
Look at what has happened in Iraq, Syria, Libya, Yemen, Somalia, Sudan, and many others. In Afghanistan, the war has been raging for more than 40 years and is sadly being fought between Muslims.
While the socialist-communist countries — China and Russia — can be proud of their strength, and so, too, the liberal-capitalist countries such as the US, France, Germany and the UK, what about Muslims?
We Muslims always claim that we are the best, that Islam is superior to the others. This is continuously said in Islamic lectures and sermons. But Muslims are still at the bottom in terms of the economy, social justice and military capabilities.
The fights continue and Muslims will always be chasing the pack.
KL SUMMIT
Along came one man, the prime minister of Malaysia, Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad.
He has seen the ‘epidemic’, especially in the Islamic world, from post-World War I to World War 2, and up till now.
He often raises the matter of Muslims’ weaknesses in both open and closed-door meetings.
Muslims need to unite because they used to lead the world economically and militarily, as well as in education.
As the most senior leader in the Islamic world, Dr Mahathir is the most qualified person to talk about the unity of the ummah.
Alongside leaders from Turkey, Iran and Qatar, he initiated discussions on the unification of Muslims with the intention of liberating them.
At the very least, with ideas that focus on the future, the strengths of the Islamic world could be improved and mobilised, earning respect from others.
This very idea was translated into the Kuala Lumpur Summit (KL Summit).
The success of the KL Summit is probably not immediately evident, but the idea of unification of the ummah must be continuously pursued so that Muslims can freely discuss ideas, without the restrictions of sect, race and tribe that have often shackled the Islamic world.
The KL Summit was a platform to seriously discuss how the strengths of the Islamic world should be portrayed, and how wealth should be shared among Muslims, as what was done by the superpowers in the Eastern and Western blocs.
In the teachings of Islam, helping each other is a must, but this has never been done by Muslims.
Ironically, it is being practised by others, who interpret the teachings of the Quran themselves.
Dr Mahathir has started something new to bring Islam and the Islamic civilisation back to the world on loan by Allah S.W.T. so that we are able to return to Allah S.W.T. by fulfilling the teachings of Islam.
In the Islamic world today, there are at least two countries that have great military capacity, namely Turkey and Iran.
We are expecting the two countries, together with Indonesia, Pakistan, Malaysia and Qatar, to unite the ummah and bring about the enlightenment of the ummah of today and the future.
Mohamad Sabu is the defence minister and president of Amanah