LAHORE/ISLAMABAD: Speakers at a seminar here on Tuesday stressed that reasoning and debate is the right way to convince others as enforcement of beliefs through force or coercion has very serious consequences for peace and tranquility in a society.
“Roots of extremism and militancy lie in intolerance and not listening to others’ point of view, which wipe out moderation and foster extremism in a society,” said Tanzeem-ul-Madaris Vice President Allama Raghib Naeemi while addressing a Paigham-e-Pakistan conference here at Data Darbar. He said emphasis must be laid on inclusive citizenship as all citizens, whether Muslims or non-Muslims, enjoy equal rights in Pakistan. “Declaring anyone infidel by an individual is against the teachings of Islam. It is very dangerous approach and the Muslim Ummah should play its role to counter such trends,” he said, adding that punishing anyone for any wrongdoings is the purview of the state and the judiciary. “Individuals must not take law into hand for punishing the sinners or wrongdoers,” he added.
Raghib Naeemi said Islam preaches peace and harmony and gives very clear message of the respect of humanity. “Saints and Sufis have always propagated love and brotherhood … there is no place for terrorism, extremism, intolerance and narrow mindedness in Islam,” he said, adding that Ulema, Mashaikh, scholars and intellectuals need to play there role to save the society from devastation.
Other speakers said Paigham-e-Pakistan was a unanimous declaration of scholars from all schools of thought against the menace of terrorism and was in fact a message of prosperity and peace in Pakistan. They said the unanimous narrative was a step in the right direction, reiterating that Pakistan was an Islamic state believing in peace, tolerance, justice and love.
At a separate event organized by the Islamic Research Institute (IRI) at the Faisal Mosque Campus Islamabad, speakers stressed the need to raise awareness among students and youth as to how they can play their role in eradicating the menaces of terrorism and extremism from the society.
Addressing on the occasion Council of Islamic Ideology Chairman Dr Qibla Ayaz highlighted the importance of education for achieving durable peace and prosperity in the country. He said the younger generation had the key role in national development as the youth wanted peace in tranquility in the society. He underlined the need for eliminating extremism and terrorism and achieving lasting peace through education and creating awareness among public, especially youth, for progress and prosperity.
IRI Director General Dr Zia ul Haq said bright future of the country was linked with the youth. He said only education can bring peace in society, and urged the teachers to lay focus on character-building of students to effectively deal with the tendencies of extremism and violence. “A large part of the community is suffering from mutual hatred, ethnocentric mindset, intolerance, extremism and terrorism. Paigham-e-Pakistan initiative will help eradicate terrorism and prove instrumental in reforming the youth who have lost their path due to negative propaganda by some aberrant elements,” he said.
International Islamic University Islamabad President Dr Ahmed Yousuf Al Darwish called for promoting a culture of accommodation, tolerance and harmony across all kinds of divides. “We need to build bridges of cooperation, positive interaction, dialogue and mutual sharing rather than barriers and walls that divide us and cause mutual distrust and conflict. Religious and cultural extremism and terrorism adversely affects the society and it loses the societal feature of cultural and religious tolerance and political accommodation,” he said, adding that academicians and intellectuals have a leading role in inculcating the values of pluralism, brotherhood and tolerance in society, especially the youth.
The basic objective of the activity was to sensitize the students and the youth about the horrific dangers and risks associated with the wave of terrorism and extremism and train them vis-à-vis ways and methods to safeguard the community from these threats.
Published in Daily Times, October 31st 2018.
