OIC Special Meeting on Mideast – Address by OIC Secretary-General – OIC Press release – Non-UN document

ADDRESS OF H.E. DR. ABDELOUAHED BELKEZIZ SECRETARY-GENERAL OF THE ORGANIZATION OF THE ISLAMIC CONFERENCE AT THE SPECIAL MEETING ON THE MIDDLE EAST

PUTRAJAYA – MALAYSIA

3 RABIULAWWAL 1425 H  22 APRIL 2004  

Excellency Dato Seri Syed Hamid Al Bar

Minister of Foreign Affairs of Malaysia,

Excellencies,

Ladies and Gentlemen,

Assalamou Alaykoum Warahmatoullahi Wabarakatouhou

We are meeting today in a meeting called for by the chair of the Islamic Summit in order to discuss and exchange views regarding two dangerous developments that took place in the Mideast region.

In this connection, I have the pleasure to thank the government of Malaysia for its interest in Islamic affairs, and for convening this meeting which is being held in a circumstance that calls for consultations among Muslim States on extremely delicate issues.

The Palestinian cause has reached in the recent days a dangerous turning point which may have repercussions that would cause considerable and extreme effects on the current tendencies to settle the question. The Israeli Prime Minister has announced his unilateral plan to withdraw from territories in the Gaza Strip and to pull out from some settlements there in return for annexing the huge Israeli settlements in the West Bank to the Israeli territory. This unilateral plan was backed by the American authorities in the meeting that was held between the American President George Bush and the Israeli Prime Minister on 14 April 2004. The American President referred to “the need to recognize the demographic changes in the region” and “the impossible return of Palestinian refugees to their lands and villages in Israel”. He declared that the separation wall “is necessary for the security of Israel”.

The new American views and positions are a fundamental renunciation of the former American stances which did not recognize the legitimacy of the policy of settlement and settlement colonies, did not deny the Palestinian right of return, and did not recognize the legality of the wall in its current course.

These new positions and the Israeli unilateral plans, coupled with the exclusion of the Palestinian party which was not consulted in these crucial matters that have a direct bearing on its land, population and interests, are indicative of the fact that the Palestinian cause has entered a dangerous impasse which– if translated into a reality on the ground – will cause devastating damage to the Palestinian cause, to the Islamic sanctuaries, and to the Islamic world as a whole. Besides, the new American positions ignore the United States’ role as a sponsor of peace in the Middle East and as an impartial mediator in the Palestinian-Israeli conflict. They are also disregard the Quartet which formulated the roadmap, in addition to their contradiction with the fundamental ideas and principles agreed under the roadmap, first among which is the freezing of settlement and, second, the right of return for the Palestinian refugees, in accordance with UN Security Council Resolution 194.

The new positions are likely to block peace plans, to wipe out the past agreements and to deny the efforts that have been made to solve this crisis. They require, in my view, an international Islamic effort with the international decision-makers, and with the international quarters supervising abidance by the resolutions of international legitimacy with a view to ensuring respect of the roadmap and rejection of the new unilateral plans. Chief among those quarters are the European Union, the Russian Federation, and the Secretary-General of the United Nations, besides the United States. The future of these Israeli plans and American views and positions – either rejection or confirmation – may be dependent on the efficacy of the efforts made.

The matter is put at your discretion to do what is good and necessary to face these new challenges.

In Iraq tension is rising as a result of the precarious security situation and the increasing military operations against the Allied Forces, which further complicates the situation at a time when the date for Iraq’s restoration of its sovereignty is coming nearer. It is the OIC’s duty in these circumstances to lend every possible support to Iraq to help it regain its full sovereignty over its territories and resources, to safeguard its national unity and territorial integrity, and to make good use of its natural resources in accordance with its interests. The current situation in Iraq also calls on us to make special efforts to help the people of Iraq avoid all that jeopardizes their unity of ranks, and consolidate concord among its members and agreement on their principles and supreme goals and objectives, such as to allow it to meet the numerous challenges ahead. The Organization, which has its own position in international affairs and its weight in world quarters, is also duty-bound to act toward providing the United Nations with a pivotal role in the Iraq question by contributing to the setting up of the necessary arrangements for government in Iraq, the drafting of the permanent constitution once the Iraqis regain their powers and sovereignty from the Coalition Administration, and the determination of the relationship between the new Iraqi authority and the Allied Forces in such a way as to encourage States to contribute to the establishment of security in Iraq and to participate in reconstruction efforts. It is important that the new UN Security Council resolution expected to be adopted in the coming weeks include strong hints that help countries take a positive decision regarding these two questions.

All the above requires, as I see it, making contacts with the UN circles concerned and with the UN Security Council Member States in order to communicate to them your conclusions and recommendations for consideration and study.

Wassalamou Alaykoum Warahmatoullahi Wabarakatouhou