The West's Responsibilities

Every country develops and follows a foreign policy with its own interests at heart in an attempt to benefit its people and its nation's future. However, this is done with the understanding that no country transgresses against or harms the interests of another. The same is true for the West's relationship with Muslim countries. From time to time, some Western countries develop policies in relation to the Islamic world that have nothing but their own interests at heart, even at the cost of the Islamic world's most basic needs. This, in turn, creates anti-Western sentiments among certain circles of Muslims and a mutual distrust and anxiety between civilizations. In reality, both parties' fears and worries can be resolved.

However, this requires Western governments, particularly the American, to be wary of certain powerful circles' influence and desire for a clash of civilizations. These circles can be defined as follows:

1- Hardliners with a Social Darwinist Perspective

This mentality, which considers non-Western civilizations to be primitive, was the dominant view in the nineteenth and early twentieth centuries. Supposedly, it was scientifically justified by Darwin's theory of evolution; however, in reality, it is a remnant of colonialism. As we know, Darwin claimed that humanity and apes evolved from the same ancestor and that there were great differences between the races, for some were highly evolved while others were still "half-apes."

This theory was widely recognized at the time of its formulation, but has been disproved by the strong scientific data obtained over the past few decades. Western imperialists used Darwin's so-called scientific claims to justify their exploitation and even enslavement of other nations. Claiming that the white race was superior to the "lower races struggling for survival," they tried to legitimize their policies of colonization and imperialism. While colonization was continuing at a rapid pace, colonialists were claiming to bring civilization to these nations. After a while, however, scientific advancements exposed Darwin's theory as lacking scientific substance and as nothing more than a myth. It also became clear that imperialists brought exploitation and misery, rather than civilization, to the lands they colonized. Still, the effects and remnants of the imperialist mentality and Darwinist logic continue to exist, albeit on a much smaller scale.

At the present time, certain circles in the West, under the influence of such flawed reasoning, set out from the premise of their race's and civilization's superiority when determining how the West will relate with the rest of the world. Of course, this is a great error that will only cause more tension and worsen existing problems. Both the Western and the Islamic civilizations are anchored in history, and both have influenced one another deeply. Moreover, the differences existing between civilizations should not be used as fodder for satisfying superiority complexes or, for that matter, as a source of conflict. To the contrary, the two civilizations should be seen as complementary and helpful to one another. Furthermore, all proposals made by the representatives of the military-industrial interest groups should be received cautiously, for they see international tension as a potential market and a source of economic gain—even at the cost of human lives.

2- Advocates of Militant Christianity

Christianity is a religion of peace and love, for the Bible commands Christians to love even their enemies and to do good for people. Many Christians follow this advice and live peacefully. Most churches and religious leaders in America fall within these parameters. However, some other Christian leaders have preserved their Crusader instincts, as reflected in their aggressive and unjustified comments against Islam. On the one hand, they wrong the Muslims with their comments and, on the other, misrepresent the Old Testament by suggesting that there will soon be a war between Muslims and the West—and, even worse, that this war is necessary. These Christian faults reflect a strategic vision in line with some radical zionist elements in Israel, and their error must be explained to them by fellow Christians.

3- Radical and Atheistic Zionists

The Kach, a radical organization established by Rabbi Meir Kahane in Israel that operates in America under the name of the Jewish Defence League, carried out activities against Muslims in Palestine. Kach embraces some fanatical ideas, among them the idea that Jews are superior to all other people and that all non-Jews are animals (goyim). For this very reason, they advocate the ethnic cleansing of all Arabs in all lands ruled and occupied by Israel. The murder of 67 Muslim worshippers, along with the wounding of 300 others, in the Ibrahim Mosque in 1994 was just one of this fanatic group's deeds. (picture above: Rabbi Meir Kahane)

Among those who desire such a "crusade" against Islam, some radical Israeli politicians and the like-minded Israeli lobby in America are the keenest. Instead of withdrawing from the Occupied Territories and making peace with the Arabs, they believe that Israel must continue its hard-line policies uncompromisingly. As the "Iron Wall" strategy proposed in the 1920^s by the fascist zionist leader Jabotinsky requires, they would like to see Israel as a modern day Sparta⁵² with America financing this war machine.

The American administration must be very cautious in its dealings with this radical view. However, there are orthodox Jews who demand that Israel defend peace, as true Judaism requires, and who advocate peace between Jews and Arabs. They must stand up to this radical movement and stop those who wish to drag the world into conflict from doing so.

As for the Islamic world, the most fundamental issue is to establish a union. Given the current lack of a central authority that represents all Muslim countries, the West finds it very difficult to establish a civilizational dialogue on a sure footing.

Sometimes, exceptional actions are blamed on Muslims in general, and, at other times, issues concerning the Islamic world are treated as isolated incidents. Hence, the resulting wrong strategies and harmful incidents cause tension in the Islamic world as well as disorder in the West.

Not having a central institution to protect the rights of Muslims, express their joint decisions and demands, and provide guidance for the West causes great difficulties. Thus, the necessity of our proposed Turkish Islamic Union becomes apparent once more.