Mowahid Urges US to
Reform Its Policies
Washington,
DC: Mowahid Hussain Shah, Minister/Special Assistant to
the Chief Minister of Punjab has said that in "in order
to work, reform has to be two-way. If the Muslim world needs
to correct its course, Washington, too, needs to reform
its policies." He alleged that these policies were "one-sided."
He made this observation while speaking at a forum organized
by the American University in the nation’s capital, Washington,
DC. Prof. Akbar S. Ahmed of American University hosted the
forum.
The audience included academics, senior military officers,
and students. According to Mowahid "many thoughtful Americans"
feel that the US policies have "undermined its credibility
in the Muslim world." Mowahid Hussain Shah was also critical
of what he described as "the ineptness and meekness of the
Muslim elites" which he claimed were "equally responsible
for not effectively countering the anti-Muslim wave spreading
across the West." Mowahid contended that in a globalized
world, there is no substitute to dialogue, understanding,
and reconciliation "as the path of confrontation has been
proven to be the path of destruction."
Mowahid viewed that the aftermath of 9/11, "which directly
led to the occupation and then invasion of Iraq, has exposed
the folly of force." Answering a question, Mowahid said
that "with respect to burning issues like Kashmir, Chechnya,
Iraq, and Palestine, the issue is not just lack of information
but disinformation." He maintained that "the great untold
story is that while all these lands have been occupied,
the Muslim peoples have neither been subdued nor conquered."
Kashmiri people, he stated, "have put up a heroic resistance
against Indian occupation." In response to another question,
Mowahid termed the non-resolution of the Palestinian problem
as "a great blunder." He urged the American youth "to be
more critical of U..policies towards Palestine." Mowahid
saluted the vision of Quaid-ie-Azam and Allama Iqbal who
had foreseen "the hugeness" of the Palestinian problem 70
years ago.
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