The prime minister of Malaysia has urged world leaders to embark on building a “Global Movement of the Moderates” from all faiths to promote international peace and combat extremism.
Speaking at the UN General Assembly on Monday, Sept. 27, Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Tun Razak said that moderate religions should promote peace and pragmatism in order to marginalize extremists who have held the world hostage.
According to Bernama, Malaysia’s News Service, he emphasized that the international community must urgently reclaim the moral high ground.
“We must choose negotiations over confrontation. We must choose to work together and not against each other,” he said.
Out of concern over a perceived divide between Islam and the West, Prime Minister Najib noted that the real issue is not between Muslims and non-Muslims but between the moderates and extremists of all religions.
“Across all religions, we have inadvertently allowed the ugly voices of the periphery to drown out the many voices of reason and common sense,” he said.
Prime Minister Najib complimented a group of American Evangelical Christians for preventing the threatened burning of the Quoran by arguing that such an act was un-Christian.
He attributed the final outcome of the incident as an example of what can be achieved “when moderates in each faith stand up to the extremists who are trying to hijack the universal values of our religions.”
The prime minister also pointed out the benefits of supporting the Cordoba House, which would include a mosque and a multi-faith community center, to be located near the site of the World Trade Center.
“We must support the objectives of the Cordoba initiatives, an organization that focuses on promoting peace, understanding and moderation, both between Muslims and non-Muslims and within the Muslim communities,” he said while commending President Barack Obama and New York Mayor Michael Bloomberg for affirming the rights of supporters of the Cordoba House.
Prime Minister Najib described the way of living among the multiple races in Malaysia as in equilibrium, or “wasatiyyah,” in the Islamic tradition of mutual peace.
He also took the chance to introduce the current political program of “1Malaysia” which was designed and implemented under his administration. He explained the philosophy as “a vision that seeks renewal and rejuvenation to bring all people together in a just and harmonious relationship.”
Speaking at the UN General Assembly on Monday, Sept. 27, Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Tun Razak said that moderate religions should promote peace and pragmatism in order to marginalize extremists who have held the world hostage.
According to Bernama, Malaysia’s News Service, he emphasized that the international community must urgently reclaim the moral high ground.
“We must choose negotiations over confrontation. We must choose to work together and not against each other,” he said.
Out of concern over a perceived divide between Islam and the West, Prime Minister Najib noted that the real issue is not between Muslims and non-Muslims but between the moderates and extremists of all religions.
“Across all religions, we have inadvertently allowed the ugly voices of the periphery to drown out the many voices of reason and common sense,” he said.
Prime Minister Najib complimented a group of American Evangelical Christians for preventing the threatened burning of the Quoran by arguing that such an act was un-Christian.
He attributed the final outcome of the incident as an example of what can be achieved “when moderates in each faith stand up to the extremists who are trying to hijack the universal values of our religions.”
The prime minister also pointed out the benefits of supporting the Cordoba House, which would include a mosque and a multi-faith community center, to be located near the site of the World Trade Center.
“We must support the objectives of the Cordoba initiatives, an organization that focuses on promoting peace, understanding and moderation, both between Muslims and non-Muslims and within the Muslim communities,” he said while commending President Barack Obama and New York Mayor Michael Bloomberg for affirming the rights of supporters of the Cordoba House.
Prime Minister Najib described the way of living among the multiple races in Malaysia as in equilibrium, or “wasatiyyah,” in the Islamic tradition of mutual peace.
He also took the chance to introduce the current political program of “1Malaysia” which was designed and implemented under his administration. He explained the philosophy as “a vision that seeks renewal and rejuvenation to bring all people together in a just and harmonious relationship.”
